Any Vegan Athletes out there?

5FitFierce

Hey Friends, I just recently watched What The Health and The Game Changers documentaries on netflix and found them interesting. I wanted to know if anyone has had success in a vegan diet while gaining strength and muscle personally. Recipes and Before and after pics would be awesome! Thanks!

janejellyroll

I have been vegan for about fourteen years and have been marathoning for the past five or so years. I would absolutely consider myself to have gained strength on a vegan diet in the sense of endurance. In terms of muscle mass, I think I've put on some muscle through resistance training, but not major amounts. I typically run at least forty miles a week and haven't found veganism to hold me back at all.

I have not seen either of those movies. My position is that while veganism is certainly compatible with athletic accomplishments and there are some successful athletes who are vegan, I wouldn't consider it to be a competitive advantage either (I understand these movies, to varying degrees, might be making that claim). There are some specific vegan athletes who would, I'm sure, disagree with me.

I like a lot of variety in my diet, so I don't really have any set recipes, but I do eat plenty of vegetables (especially greens, peas, potatoes, and broccoli), beans, tofu, and seitan. Nuts and seeds are a regular thing too. I don't eat as many grains as I used to (because I prefer to spend the calories on other things). Same with fruit. I don't avoid things like fried foods, oil, or sugar, I'm just mindful of calories. I do a lot of just throwing things in the Instant Pot or making sheet pan dinners and seasoning with things like lemon juice, apple cider or balsamic vinegar, and nutritional yeast. I feel best on a moderate fat diet, not a low fat one.

janejellyroll

Deleting duplicate post.

mycocoabubbles

I am working toward being plant-based and whole foods not vegan (I don't want to give up my leather couch, boots, gloves...). I am mostly vegetarian right now because I occasionally eat cheese and things with dairy or eggs such as certain desserts, but I'm working on it. I have started working out doing HIIT for 30 mins 4x a week and endurance cardio once weekly for 2 hours. My goal is to build muscle, lose fat, and build stamina. I am losing weight and I'm sure it is fat or water because I'm also pretty sore from my weight lifting so I think I'm building muscles.

I usually look up Filipino, Japanese, Thai, Chinese, or east African recipes because I find them easy to make vegan. I don't focus too much on macros, but I do try to cook with as little processed fat as possible because I prefer to eat my fat whole like nuts, avocados, and seeds. I also don't eat many grains because I prefer other carbs like corn, potatoes, plantains, brown rice, carrots...

I find the volume of food I eat is higher because the foods I eat are so low in calories density that I can eat more which keeps me fueled throughout the day. I also take a multivitamin and BCAA to support my heath while being vegetarian.

janejellyroll

mycocoabubbles wrote: »

I am working toward being plant-based and whole foods not vegan (I don't want to give up my leather couch, boots, gloves...). I am mostly vegetarian right now because I occasionally eat cheese and things with dairy or eggs such as certain desserts, but I'm working on it. I have started working out doing HIIT for 30 mins 4x a week and endurance cardio once weekly for 2 hours. My goal is to build muscle, lose fat, and build stamina. I am losing weight and I'm sure it is fat or water because I'm also pretty sore from my weight lifting so I think I'm building muscles.

I usually look up Filipino, Japanese, Thai, Chinese, or east African recipes because I find them easy to make vegan. I don't focus too much on macros, but I do try to cook with as little processed fat as possible because I prefer to eat my fat whole like nuts, avocados, and seeds. I also don't eat many grains because I prefer other carbs like corn, potatoes, plantains, brown rice, carrots...

I find the volume of food I eat is higher because the foods I eat are so low in calories density that I can eat more which keeps me fueled throughout the day. I also take a multivitamin and BCAA to support my heath while being vegetarian.

I have no idea what your motivation is, but there are plenty of vegans who resolve to use up the goods they already own that involve animal exploitation and simply just don't buy new ones to replace them. I kept some shoes and a watchband for the first several years I was vegan - eventually I rehomed them because it just got too weird to wear them. It was based on my personal feelings, not an artificial timeline. There are lots and lots of vegans who either don't have the funds to replace household goods or are unwilling to engage in the waste of replacing things that are still functional.

If this doesn't fit your situation, please ignore. I just wanted to make sure that wasn't the issue holding you back from working towards veganism.

NorthCascades

First, don't watch Netflix documentaries about diet or health.

Anish has the fastest known time on the PCT and Triple Crown, got both as a vegan. She hiked 50 miles a day, every day for months, up and down mountains, carrying her house on her back. Vegan diet can definitely fuel excellence.