The Vegan Thread

Animals get their protein from somewhere and cows don’t eat meat :)
People get very sensitive here about meat substitutes I’ve found. But they’re usually good for protein and some are pretty tasty. Linda McCartney etc.
On the supplement front, I started on Huel shakes which aren’t solely protein but are nutritionally complete so you can have as a healthy snack or instead of a whole meal.

Went through this, eating what seemed liked loads more (wanting double-helpings since going full vegan (from vege) just over a year back. Pretty much was hungry / hangry most of the time. Also coincided with a full-on return to commuting at the same time (now at 46 miles a day during the week) and a return to the booze (off for nearly 10 years), so guess there's a double (trouble, triple?) complication there. Shit, don't know. Can't give you any advice. Just can't stand animal suffering. Crisps and beer are my friends now so am not in a position to give you anything more useful.

Could your hungriness be related to some other kind of condition than the gradual switch to proto-veganism?

I've often sensed that when people didn't really want to make such a change they felt worse. Perhaps you need to think more about whether you really want to do it? I've never met anyone who forced him- or herself who stuck with it for long.

Obviously, if you are perfectly happy with it that might not be an issue, but you only say 'I was happy to try and make the change'. That may not be significant, but just something that caught my eye.

The switchover isn't all that easy for many people; it took me a few detours before I got there, too. What helped me was to take a step back and reconsider.

As ever, obviously make sure you eat complete proteins, supplement B12, etc. Stephen Walsh's 'Plant-based Nutrition' is a book that is often recommended if you're interested in the nutritionist angle. (I personally am not and didn't really need the book.)

You are probably getting fewer calories on a vegan diet, depending on what you used to eat. If you're in (too much of) a calorie deficit your riding is going to suffer too as you lose weight. Maybe increase your portion sizes proportionately?

I had the complete opposite experience to you, though it probably doesn't help to hear that. Think my resting heart rate dropped from 80 to 60 in a matter of months, I was flying up hills on my bike

Several aspects in this.
First of all, there are two things that are never mentioned to people going vegan: you eat all the time, you go to the toilet all the time.
5 a day is not just the amount of fruit and vegetables you eat.

Second. My best guess is that you are lacking energy because you are eating junk. You would probably also do that if the junk weren’t vegan.
Eat more food, but make sure it’s whole plant food. If your colleagues don’t go “wow, that’s a lot of vegetables/food/salad” you need to up the portion size. :)

The problem: Since the switchover I am never not hungry, always craving more, which leads to me eating an excessive amount of carbs/junk and feel bloated constantly.

The solution: don't eat an excessive amount of carbs/junk - eat an excessive amount of vegetables, and a bit of fruit and grains and legumes and nuts and whatnot instead.
Buy organic stuff. There is a lot more energy in there.
This will all cost you a lot of money (it's worth it though, is it not?)

One thing you have to realize about the being hungry / feeling full thing:
meat gives you a certain kind of "being full" that you will not get with anything other than meat (!).
That's just how it is.
You might still be attached / waiting for this specific feeling.
But maybe it's actually a feeling of having overeaten, on stuff that takes tremendous energy to digest, that you mistake for being "full" / "satisfied", because you are used to that feeling so much.
In other words I can have two huge bowls of mung beans with rice and vegetables, which keeps me going the whole day - but I don't feel "full" in the way I did when I still ate meat.
I think that's good though! I'm nourished, but not stuffed to the point I actually need a nap before I can do anything again.

Oh man. This is strange but me and my sister were having exactly the same chat today.

She's been vegan for a few years now and I've always commented on how much she eats (yet stays very lean) and since going plant-based/ vegan around 6 months ago I've never not been hungry.

Quite honestly a lot of it is just willpower and not wanting to eat everything in sight. This becomes difficult though when you're exercising 6+ times a week.
The times when you really must eat something look to fruit or other low calory density foods.

I also did some reading online that said after around a year that feeling of always being hungry will dissipate.