Vegetarian keto combines eating a high fat, low-carb diet without eating animals, including meat, fish, and seafood. Normally, the keto way of eating involves lots of meat and fish for the high protein element, lots of healthy fats to keep you satisfied, and plenty of green leafy veg for gut-healthy fibrous carbs. So regular keto isn’t really vegetarian-friendly.
But can you adapt keto for a vegetarian diet? Yes!
What Is Vegetarian Keto?
Well, vegetarian keto is high fat, moderate protein, and low carbs without meat, fish, and seafood. However, because we’re talking about vegetarian and not vegan, this keto model still incorporates animal products like eggs and dairy.
So you’ll need to work out how to get your protein differently, because most meat substitutes are carb-based, so not suitable for keto.
But you can still follow a vegetarian lifestyle, eat the keto way, remain healthy, and get your body into ketosis – the metabolic state where you burn fat stores for energy instead of carbs.
How to Get Enough Protein on a Keto Vegetarian Diet
To get enough protein, you’ll need to eat protein-rich, low-carb foods like nuts, eggs, seeds, dairy, tofu, and tempeh.
Be sure to check your carb intake though, as all of these have at least some carbs – certainly more than the equivalent quantity of meat. On the plus side, nuts, seeds, and full-fat dairy all contain plenty of fat to help keep you satiated and give your body plenty of fuel to burn for energy.
Health Benefits of Vegetarian Keto
Vegetarian keto is potentially very beneficial to health. There have been many studies on keto and on vegetarianism, although none specifically about vegetarian keto.
Both Keto and Vegetarianism Promote Weight Loss
Multiple studies found that participants following a vegetarian diet lost, on average, 4.5 pounds, or 2 kilograms, more than meat eaters over an 18-week period. And, for people with diabetes, another study showed that veggie diets were more effective for shedding weight and fat than regular low-calorie diets.
For ketogenic diets, there have also been many studies. One found that over 6 months, a group of obese participants who followed a keto diet lost an average of 31 pounds, of 14 kilograms, each.
Helps to Control Appetite
One of the biggest struggles for traditional dieters is that they’re constantly hungry because they restrict the calories they eat so much and stop eating fat. On keto, however, you restrict carb intake and eat more fat. The healthy fats keep you feeling fuller for longer, so reduce appetite and feelings of hunger, so you naturally eat less and have fewer hunger pangs.
May Protect Against Chronic Disease
Vegetarian diets are well-documented to reduce the chance of developing a number of chronic conditions, including cancer and heart disease.
Ketogenic diets have been similarly studied and found to reduce risk factors for heart disease, including:
- Body weight
- BMI
- Cholesterol
- Triglycerides
- Blood Sugar
Keto has also been found to promote brain health and help to control or prevent Parkinson’s and Alzheimer’s.
And, although further research is needed, a number of animal studies and test tube studies have shown that a ketogenic diet can reduce the growth cancer cells.
Helps to Control Blood Sugar
Vegetarian and ketogenic diets both help to control blood sugar. One study found that switching to vegetarian diets reduced the risk of developing diabetes by 53%. Six separate studies also found that a vegetarian diet significantly reduced HbA1c levels (this is a strong indicator of long-term blood sugar control).
And then there’s keto. A ketogenic diet increases the body’s sensitivity to insulin, improving and stabilizing the body’s blood sugar control.
One study found that over 4 months, the keto diet led to a reduction of 16% of HbA1c levels, and that 81% of study participants reduced the amount of, or no longer needed, their diabetes medications by the end of the 4-month study.
Potential Dangers and Side Effects
Like everything else, the vegetarian ketogenic diet isn’t all rainbows and sunbeams – there are some potential risks that you need to be aware of, too.
Risk of Nutritional Deficiencies
Regular carb-rich veggie diets already put you at risk of nutritional deficiencies unless you carefully balance your nutrient intake. Add in restricting carb intake, and you significantly increase the risk of missing out on key nutrients. Remember, if you follow a vegetarian ketogenic diet, you avoid most fruits, legumes, whole grains, and many vegetables that are too high in net carbs to consume on a regular basis.
So, while it’s definitely possible to do a vegetarian ketogenic diet, you need to be smart and make sure what you’re eating is healthy and well-balanced. Eat plenty of whole foods, make sure you’re hitting your macros, and that what you’re eating contains enough vitamins and minerals to make sure you’re eating a healthy vegetarian keto diet.
If you can’t manage this through diet alone, you can always add in some nutrient supplements like a high-quality multi-vitamin.
Not Getting Enough Protein
Protein is crucial to your continued health and well-being but, because there’s no meat in your diet, you need to be extra vigilant about tracking your macros and eating enough proteins. Nuts and seeds, tofu, tempeh, eggs, and dairy are all good meat-free protein sources.
And you can always make a tasty, nutritious protein shake. I use a high protein, low carb protein powder, almond butter, coconut milk (maybe a dash of coconut cream if I need a bit more fat), a handful of milled nuts and seeds, a dash of vanilla extract, and a small handful of frozen raspberries. It only take a minute to whip up, and it’s a satiating, nutrient-packed meal.
Not eating enough protein can cause a variety of symptoms, from losing your hair and developing brittle nails to more serious symptoms like a fatty liver, weakness, fatigue, and increased risk of bone fractures.
Keto Flu
Keto flu sucks. It happens as your body starts to make the transition from burning carbs to burning fat for energy. While keto flu isn’t life-threatening, it can be very unpleasant for a few days. Symptoms include:
- Persistent headaches
- Lack of energy
- Insomnia
- Muscle aches
- Muscle cramps
- Irritability
- Sudden mood changes
- Depression
- Constipation
- Diarrhoea
- Nausea
- Dizziness
These symptoms should pass in a few days, and staying hydrated and doing some light exercise helps to ease the symptoms.
Take a look at our tips for avoiding keto flu.
What Foods to Eat on Vegetarian Keto
We’re all programmed from a young age to be afraid of fat, but when you follow a low carb or keto diet, fat is your friend and is used as a lever for weight loss. Or at least healthy fat is, like coconut oil and olive oil. I use a lot of coconut oil, particularly in baked goods, stir fry, and curries. And olive oil I use when I don’t want a dish to have any trace of coconut. Olive oil is a nice neutral flavor, while coconut oil has a mild but distinctive flavor.
Don’t be Afraid of Fat!
The keto diet requires you to eat plenty of protein, low carb veggies, and healthy fats. A low carb diet for vegetarians, unlike a low fat diet, helps you lose weight without restricting fat intake, helping to keep you feeling full and giving your body fat as an alternative fuel source.
Here are some key foods to eat when doing plant based keto:
- Vegetables: Any leafy greens are a great choice – think kale, spinach, cabbage, lettuce, rocket, bok choy, and so on.
Broccoli, sprouts, cauliflower, mushrooms, zucchini, bell peppers, Swiss chard, celery, asparagus - Healthy Fats: Avocado oil, coconut oil, olive oil
- Low carb proteins: Tofu, seitan, and tempeh are all great choices, as are spirulina, natto, and nutritional yeast, nuts, nut butters, dairy, and eggs
- Nuts: Almonds, pecans, macadamias, and hazelnuts
- Nut butters: Almond butter, cashew butter, peanut butter (in moderation!) – learn how to make your own peanut butter. AND check out our divine peanut butter cheesecake recipe!
- Seeds: Hemp, chia, pumpkin, flax are my top choices
- Dairy: Plain yogurt and cottage cheese that you can improve and flavor yourself at home, hard cheese, and butter
- Eggs: Eggs have many virtues, particularly for a vegetarian keto diet. They’re packed full of complete protein, along with a small dose of fat, and have minimal net carbs.
- Fruits: You can have some fruits – but only in moderation. Berries are my go-to. Particularly raspberries, blackberries, and strawberries. I also adore lemons and limes, as there’s barely any carb content and, aside from their nutrients, they are packed full of flavor.
Foods to Avoid on a Vegetarian Keto Diet
As important as it is to learn what you can eat on a vegetarian keto diet, it’s crucial to understand what you can’t eat when following a ketogenic diet. Obviously, if you’re vegetarian, you won’t eat meat and fish (unless you’re pescatarian), but aside from that, here’s some of the key food types you should avoid if you want to get into ketosis and become a fat-burning machine.
Legumes: Peas, corn, beans, lentils
Grains: Wheat, oats, barley, rye, and so on
Fruits: Apart from a few berries and some citrus, you’ll need to avoid fruits as they are high in natural sugars, and therefore, carbs
Processed and heavily refined foods should also be eliminated for your general health, whether you’re following a keto diet, going low card, or eating like a regular whole foods diet.
The Vegetarian Keto Diet
A vegetarian keto diet is definitely doable, it just takes a bit more planning than a meat-based keto diet or low carb journey. Stick to high fat (healthy fats) to keep you full and satisfied. Stay low carb – 20 to 50 grams of net carbs per day is a good goal to shoot for. And, when you’re doing the vegetarian keto diet, pay close attention to your protein levels.
Make sure you’re getting enough protein as this is one of the key dangers on a veggie ketogenic diet. Top up your protein quotient by eating lots of eggs, dairy, nuts and seeds.
A keto diet, whether vegetarian, vegan, or meat-based, can be healthy, as long as you do it properly and make sure you’re eating balanced meals so you’re getting a solid, full nutrient profile.
Don’t fall into the trap of thinking the keto diet is just about gobbling up burgers and bacon! Getting the keto diet right can bring lots of health benefits, from weight loss to improved cognitive function and reduced disease risk.
And a tip: If you don’t think you can manage a full-on vegetarian keto diet right away, be kind to yourself and start with low carb instead of a keto diet. A low carb way of eating sees you eat up to 100 grams of net carbs per day. This is a little less restrictive than a regular keto diet and can help you prepare to transition from your current way of eating to a keto diet over a few weeks or months.
