Everybody talks about how vegetarianism is a great way to control your calories and lose weight. While this is true, that’s often spoken by those who have recently become vegetarian or take it trendily and in small doses.

The story can change once it actually becomes your lifestyle: Weight, and especially muscle, can be very hard to maintain. You risk losing too much.

Unless your day grants you the time to sit down at a great veggie restaurant or cook well, it’s very easy to go undernourished or not get enough calories because you just eat variations of carbs and vegetables, maybe with the occasional tofu. Part of that undernourishment includes being protein-deficient, which can lead to muscle deterioration. I’ve actually felt my muscles evaporating some mornings.

Now this is where Indian food comes in. Its vegetarian background has been mastered for thousands of years, because before being scrumptious, it was a matter of being spiritual. Many Hindus don’t eat meat because they believe ingesting a butchered animal correspondingly involves ingesting the fear and negative energies that the animal possessed. They also believe involving oneself in cycles of pain and death is bad karma.

Indian food is primarily great because it can be wonderfully nutritious. It isn’t uncommon for the food to be crazily doused in oils and fats, but the repertoire of vegetables and fruits are superb. Plus, if you’re a scarily-slimming vegetarian, encountering the odd dish that is butter-laden is still more help than harm.

Second, the protein count in many Indian dishes is extraordinary. Achieving a high-protein dish without resorting to soy (which should never be taken in excess due to its estrogen-based properties) is a great feat. Variety of protein is also critical, and since a lot of Indian proteins involve beans and lentils, you’re getting some of the best. Even the lightest fitness will get a huge boost when your muscles are getting the right kinds of protein.

Third, Indian food is filling! A major issue for vegetarians is that they never feel full… at least never to the point of undoing the belt buckle at the dinner table (which we all love, let’s be serious). Indian food provides this feeling easily. Not to mention, Indian buffets are common, so you can really go wild.

Lastly, you can take your omnivore friends! Indian restaurants do meat just as well as they do vegetables, so it’s not going to be intimidating like some vegetarian restaurants that exclusively offer seitan steaks. Everyone goes home happy. Service in Indian restaurants also always seems to be incredibly attentive and genuine.

So now that the secret is out, get wild! Be full, fit and vegetarian! Despite popular belief it’s quite achievable — we just need some help from our friends to the East.  

Oh, and one last thing, it’s usually not that spicy unless you ask for it. •

Photo by Simon Law