How To Eat Vegan And Not Lose Weight

People go vegan for lots of reasons: to reduce their environmental impact, to address animal cruelty concerns, to improve certain health markers, and even to lose weight. In fact, at the time this was published, more than 228, 000 Instagram posts had been tagged #veganweightloss.

Animal products, like dairy and eggs, vegans pass on them all—even honey (which is produced by bees) and gelatin (a common thickener used in packaged foods, which is made from the bones and skin of farm animals).

That leaves vegans to eat nutrient-rich fruits and veggies, protein-packed beans and legumes, hearty whole grains, and healthy fats like olive oil and avocado. But it also allows them to load up on not-so-healthy but still-technically-vegan foods, like sugary snacks, white bread and pasta, and junk foods like potato chips and French fries.

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This begs the question: Does a vegan diet for weight loss really work? Here’s what you should know about going vegan if shedding pounds is your ultimate goal.

When you fill your plate with healthy foods, going vegan can serve up some serious health benefits, according to a review of research and position statement from the American Dietetic Association. People who follow plant-based diets have lower cholesterol, body mass index, and blood pressure, along with decreased rates of type 2 diabetes and several types of cancer.

What makes a vegan diet so healthy? Cutting red meat and dairy from your diet is one way to decrease your intake of saturated fat, which is known to raise your risk of heart disease and stroke, according to the American Heart Association. Plus, plant-based diets tend to emphasize satisfying fiber, essential vitamins and minerals, and a vast variety of plant compounds (including antioxidants) that have disease-fighting properties.

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But switching to a vegan diet won’t automatically make you healthier. “Probably the most common mistake people make on the vegan diet is thinking everything vegan is healthy, ” says Julie Devinsky, RD, a clinical nutritionist at Mount Sinai Hospital in New York. After all, French fries and Skittles are both vegan and no one is going to tell you to start making a meal out of candy and carbs.

If a vegan diet helps you swap out empty calories for nutrient-dense foods, then absolutely. “For many, weight loss on a vegan diet results from the combination of avoiding unhealthy foods and replacing those options with healthier ones, ” Devinsky says.

In other words, if you’re accustomed to grabbing take-out every night, making your own vegan tofu and brown rice bowl at home can help you lose weight because you are totally in control of the cooking method and what goes in it.

Why Am I Gaining Weight On A Vegan Diet?

Still, certain vegan trade-offs can actually make you gain weight. To lose weight on any type of diet, you need to cut the number of calories you’re consuming. One of the easiest ways to do that is eat fewer refined carbs and more lean protein, which will keep you fuller for longer between meals.

When you don’t eat any meat, though, eating more protein can be tough, because your options are more limited, explains Nancy Rahnama, MD, a board-certified bariatric surgeon in California. So a vegan eater might end up downing a bowl of carb-rich pasta instead of a plate with protein-packed chicken breast.

Both Dr. Rahnama and Devinsky recommend filling half your plate with veggies before you add anything else. That way, you have built-in portion control for the rest of your plate: fats, proteins, or whole grains.

Vegan Diet Weight Loss

“For most carnivores, the meal centers around proteins—vegans can sometimes shift the focus and often fill up on breads, pasta, and rice, ” Devinsky says. But going vegan shouldn’t mean ditching protein, since it can help you stay full longer (and you’re bound to experience hunger pangs once you start dropping pounds). “Consider legumes such as beans and peas as additional ways to get adequate protein, ” Devinsky says. The 2015-2020 Dietary Guidelines for Americans recommend eating about 5.5 ounces of protein each day.

At the end of the day, healthy foods also contain calories. Even if your snack is vegan (and a high-quality, nutrient-dense food), extra portions will add up and stall weight loss efforts, says Robyn Goldberg, RD, a nutritionist in California.

To make sure your vegan diet is healthy, avoid loading up on simple carbs (like white bread). Instead, opt for whole grains (like wild rice, oats, and quinoa) or simply swap for sources of plant-based protein, like lentils, beans, or chickpeas.

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Foods like avocados, olives, and nuts are rich in satiating mono- and polyunsaturated fats, which can help you reach a healthier weight, Dr. Rahnama says.

Just because a decadent-looking cookie has vegan on the label, doesn’t mean it’s any healthier than a non-vegan one. “A vegan cookie may not contain butter or eggs, but most contain vegetable oils and sugar, ” Devinsky says.

This won’t do much for your waistline. “I see many patients who have gained weight after starting a vegan diet—many start eating deserts without guilt, simply because they are labeled as being vegan, ” Dr. Rahnama cautions.

Struggling To Lose Weight On A Vegan Diet?

The same less-is-more strategy goes for processed foods—even if they’re vegan. “If you are going to have a packaged vegan food, be wary and read the label carefully, ” Devinsky says. “The more ingredients you don’t recognize, the worse it is.”

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Macaela MacKenzie is a journalist who writes about women and power. She covers women’s equality through the lenses of sports, wellness, and the gender gap across industries and is the author of MONEY, POWER, RESPECT: How Women in Sports Are Shaping the Future of Feminism

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What Is the Galveston Diet? Is Juicing Good for Weight Loss? Does Apple Cider Vinegar for Weight Loss Work? How a Calorie Deficit Diet Really WorksA vegan diet is an excellent way to eat for weight management – you just have to do it correctly. Many people assume eating vegan is a means to shed a few pounds, but that's not necessarily the case. As with any diet or lifestyle change, you have to eat a well-balanced, nutritionally sound diet and take in (or burn off) fewer calories than take in to lose weight. This means that just because you’re eating vegan if you’re not following the proper portion sizes, or not reaching for whole foods, you can still see weight creeping up on the scale unexpectedly.

Why Am I Not Losing Weight On A Vegan Diet?

Add overeating to the new forms of vegan food available (read: fast-food restaurants with new vegan options) and you’ll find convenient vegan offerings all over, albeit ones that may be still slightly unhealthy for you.

“Eating vegan used to be about eating a whole-food, plant-based diet with only vegetables, fruits, whole grains, legumes, nuts, seeds, herbs, and spices, ” says plant-based nutrition expert Julieanna Hever, MS, RD author of

. “Now, vegan food is everywhere and it's accessible. For the first time in 14 years, I'm having clients come to me with the same health issues as clients who don’t follow a vegan diet, like weight issues and high cholesterol. I never saw that before, ever.”

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“One of the beautiful benefits of a whole-food, plant-based diet is that when you eat any combination of the infinite variety of vegetables, fruits, whole grains, legumes, mushrooms, nuts, seeds, herbs, and spices, you will get just what you need, ” Hever says. This means you don’t have to stress about keeping score of your macronutrients like carbs, protein, and fat, you just have to eat whole foods as straight from the source as possible. “If you’re concerned about your weight, eat more whole plant foods that are nutrient-dense and calorically light to fill up while steering clear of the processed [and packaged plant-based] foods, ” Hever recommends.

People think that because something is labeled vegan, it's healthy, whether that’s on a restaurant menu or a label in the grocery store.  “That’s not necessarily true, because ice cream is still ice cream, ” says Hever. “Yes, the vegan version is better for you than the dairy version, but it's not going to make you healthy, and it's not going to help you avoid weight gain.” For example, a 2/3-cup serving of Ben & Jerry’s Vegan Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough has 350 calories, 33 grams of sugar, and 11 grams of saturated fat. It’s made with almond milk, coconut oil, and pea protein, but that doesn’t make it an ideal plant-based food. You’re better off having a cup of fresh fruit and pairing it with a plant-based glass of milk or yogurt for protein instead if you’re looking to lose or maintain weight loss.

Since you’re not trying to follow a

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