The human body is not suited to vegetarianism and as an athlete you may find it difficult to excel on such a diet (but not impossible). It is extremely difficult for vegetarians to raise their daily protein intake to 30-40%, even if they eat seafood. An excellent food supplement that can make up this deficit is whey protein. Whey is derived from milk and cheese, but without many of the negative side effects. I recommend Promax by Maximuscle. It is produced under stringent conditions and is used by many drug-free athletes world-wide. Order it here...
Another important consideration for vegetarians is where to get their additional fats from (the diet we're trying to move towards has a 30/40:30:30 split of lean protein:quality carbohydrate:good fats - some may find that a higher fat content of 40% works better). Below is a list of natural sources of high protein vegetables/nuts/legumes, many of which contain healthy fats:
Vegetarian High Protein Sources (that also contain healthy fats):
Almonds, 7-8 grams of protein per serving
Pistachios, 7 grams of protein per serving
Pumpkin Seeds, 11 grams of protein per serving
Sunflower Seeds, 8 grams of protein per serving
Hempseeds, 11 grams of protein per serving
Almond Butter, 8 grams of protein per serving
Peanut Butter, 8 grams of protein per serving
Black Beans, 8 grams of protein per serving
Lentils, 8 grams of protein per serving
Garbanzo Beans, 7 grams of protein per serving
Navy Beans, 8 grams of protein per serving
Kidney Beans, 7 grams of protein per serving
Pinto Beans, 7 grams of protein per serving
Important Sources of Healthy Fats:
Olive Oil
Hempseed Oil
Almonds
Almond Butter
Walnuts
Avacadoes
Marine Algae
Sources of Saturated Fats (include some in your diet):
Coconut Oil or milk
Avoid the temptation of following a low protein, low fat and high carbohydrate diet typical of many vegetarians.
More to come...