Are you weak without meat??

Sarauk2sf

Legit question for vegans; are there any plant sources for Creatine?

Not in 'food'...not for vegetarians either (or at least, not in any viable amounts). That is the one thing that actually can make a difference to strength, but is easily supplemented. However, most meat eaters will not get optimal levels of creatine and would need to supplement to be maximally beneficial.

That's why I thought of it, since low Creatine vs. Optimal is noticable very immediately.

Ah well, thanks Sara.

Welcome!

Everyone, including meat eaters, usually benefit from creatine re performance, however, vegetarians need more of a 'top up' for max benefits. The general recommendation for meat eaters is 5g daily. I cannot recall where, but I saw (from a source I consider reliable) that vegetarians should take that up to 7g daily.

Anecdotally, when I started taking creatine, I retained water on the high end of the 'usual' range (at least 5lb) , which is indicative of my levels being low before. I cannot say how much impact it had on strength though as I started taking it about the same time I started a bulk, so I saw strength gains for a higher calorie intake at the same time. Made tracking my bulk weight trend interesting!

Meerataila

There's a quote from a vegan I really liked- "don't do nothing because you can't do everything, do something." ... I don't know if that's the exact wording but anyway... I really appreciated that. It can be overwhelming facing the problems of the world. Sounds like you are doing something. :flowerforyou:

Good philosophy. And not just when it comes to food.

RosanaRosanaDana

Watch the video Forks Over Knifes. It will give you the strength you need to accomplish your goal.

joepage612

to the person who said iphones and nikes exploit people:
Not all vegans care about animals. or other people. Some vegans think animal stuff is unhealthy and are thus vegan for no other reason.

juice_warrior

I do not think that we will become weak without meat. We can get all the fat and protein from other stuffs, such as fruits and vegetables, or even eggs. I believe that with a balance diet we can have enough power and strength to do our activity. Enough nutrition from fruits and veggies are the best think ever! I am a believer that meat should not be the hero in the plate, but fruit and veggies. During my busy time I tend to just grab my Juice Plus capsule that able to give me enough fruit and veggie consumption per day. Have you guys tried Juice Plus before? As a user, I can say it is super amazing product!

MississippiMama87

It really hurts my feelings when I see how animals are being slaughtered for us to eat. SO after seeing a video/documentary, etc I wouldn't eat meat for a few days.. But after that, I'm back to eating it again. I feel like my body needs meat b/c I feel really weak if I had not eaten meat after a couple of days.(snip)

You don't need meat and a lack of meat won't make you feel weak. I just ran 3.5 miles yesterday and haven't eaten meat in two years. I'm okay. A vegetarian diet is healthy and you can get the nutrients you need without meat including iron and protein. Beans and tofu are good sources, (snip)

I hope this doesn't come across as condescending, but you are both "right".

So too are those on whichever side of the fence they find themselves on (based on their personal "beliefs") regarding the "morality" of (or of not) eating meat. There are few "certainties" in the diet world, but one of which I'm pretty confident is that I (or anyone else) is not likely to "convince" anyone that "my" point of view is correct and their's is wrong. As a result, I prefer to spend the time I save by not doing so focused on the "science" rather than the "ideology".

It's absolutely true that you "don't NEED meat..." - millions of people have existed for thousands of years never a morsel of meat having passed their lips.

It's equally true, however, that you DO need many of the nutritive components (including "fats" and each of the Omega 3 components ALA, EPA, and DHA. It's also true that "some" (maybe even "most") of the missing components CAN be found in alternative foods and while that's important and good to know, I personally couldn't care less that tofu can. For me, I'd rather eat cardboard, but it "works" for others and that's just fine.

The whole "fats" issue (as in USDA recommended Food Pyramid, "low fat" diets, and the CICO "theories") are ones that have gone largely unquestioned since being deemed "conventional wisdom" in the 1970's. Too often ignored, however, is the simple "fact" that since adoption and widespread acceptance, obesity, diabetes, cardio, and many other often "terminal" diseases have been on a dramatic and steady rise.

Direct "cause and effect" has yet to be "proven" - conclusively, although scientific documentation (by way of "clinical" studies) is getting closer to doing so day by day. Much of the "research" goes back many decades (including some back to the 1800's and early 1900's. Many would argue that much of it has been either simply "ignored", "dismissed out of hand", or intentionally "suppressed" by those with a vested interest in maintaining the status quo. That's a "political" and economic discussion for another day but one for which considerable support and "evidence" exists for those willing to invest the time to "uncover" it.

That the body "needs" specific nutrients though, is "science"- not ideology. It's the percentages of each that's in question, not the "fact" that they are needed.

IMO, if you are "substituting" carbs for meats (in an attempt to "replace" the missing nutrients) you are dealing yourself a deck that is NOT stacked in your favor. The human species existed for 10's of thousands of years on what your Grandma would have called a "balanced" diet that included foods from each of the "food groups" (which had yet to be defined as such). She (and indeed the entire "medical" and "dietary" communities) just "knew" that bread and potatoes "made you fat" and "processed" foods (when they came to exist), "just aren't healthy for you".

She limited (but probably didn't completely eliminate) your intake of the "bad" foods, tried her best to get you to "...eat your vegetables", and proudly proclaimed that she would never eat anything that contained "stuff I can't pronounce."

History has pretty much "proven" that Grandma "knew best" (and the politicians, current "experts", and mega "food" corps, DO NOT - or at least don't "care").

One need only be willing to examine the "results" of the "common wisdom", OR find an alternative (and scientifically documented) explanation for the disastrous "results" (in terms of obesity, disease, etc) produced by the "experiment" in low fat / high carb diets that has been forced on the public since the 1970's.

I'm not now, and never had "advocated" for any specific "diet" (especially any of the "fad diets"). I am though, beginning to seriously question what I've always been "led to believe" is the "best" (and most current) "conventional wisdom" when it comes to diet and nutrition. The more research and questioning I do though, the more I'm coming to believe that "low fat/high carb" diets (in the proportions dictated by the pyramid and blindly adopted by so many) are the PROBLEM and not the SOLUTION.

It is, of course, for each to "decide" on their own what is "best" for them. Doing so after having evaluating ALL the "evidence" is (IMO) the ONLY way one does themselves justice. "Myth", "dogma", anecdote, and conventional "wisdom" - don't quality as "evidence", "science" DOES.

"Diet" and "Nutrition" are (or at least IMO, should be), SCIENCE - NOT "ideology" or "religion".

Cheezus at the "quotes." I don't think you're doing it right. That was painful to read.