I know that veganism is often slammed in the T Nation forum and I get that conventional wisdom / bro science and the fact that a lot of vegans are pains in the arse are all contributing factors .
I have been training for 4 years with weights and I want to keep going . I have decided to modify my diet to whole food plant based after being drawn to it fir many years for both ethical , environmental , health and compassionate reasons . There are many vegan bodybuilders and athletes online these days to draw inspiration from .
I’m a woman I’m 42 I have no desire to be huge or ripped or anything . My goal is to be healthy , strong and lean for as long as possible .
I am aware that most articles are aimed at men but I was inspired whenever I saw CTs suggestion for a healthy low inflammatory diet in one of the threads … it was basically what I eat minus the fish ( I eat tofu or tempeh instead )
I’ve been plant based for four weeks now while comleting the hard body training for women including the optional sprints day and feel fine …
I am interested to hear other people’s perspective especially CT’s on vegan diets and if you think the T Nation world is ready to accomodate such a fast growing trend among young people?
The only downside to a vegan diet is the lack of protein. If you’re okay with drinking protein shakes to make up for it then it’s fine.
My wife is vegan. Her journey started as a fruit and veggie cleanse while she battled constant illnesses during her first year of teaching. She switched to full vegan after watching some Netflix documentaries.
I don’t like how meat is mass produced here in the US, but I buy 1/3 of a cow from a local farmer. I buy my chicken from a local meat store and they assure me the animals are raised in a good environment. I can tell the breasts aren’t injected with broth and water.
I just couldn’t accomplish what I want on 100g of protein per day. I need meat.
You’ll be fine as long as you make smart choices and supplement where needed. I was a vegetarian for a bit over a year. I got stronger and bigger without needed to live off supplements.
I only started eating meat again because genuinely find it delicious.
I highly recommend using something like my fitness pal or another app to track your food to make sure you’re hitting all your micronutrients though
The thing with non meat foods is that a lot of them are complementary. If you pay attention and eat a variety of foods then the only thing lacking is protein. I can’t get 200+ grams of protein without meat or protein powder.
My Fitness Pal is the front runner. I’ve tried Lose It. It’s the same. MFP syncs with so many other apps now that it’s probably the best choice.
My only complaint is the $$$ they want for premium. The premium version offers some cool features like breaking down your macro goals by the meal, but I’m not spending $100+ a year for that.
From a weight training perspective it will make you more injury prone and less resilient over time. Among other things supplement with leucine and creatine
Don’t believe those guys. All geared up or absolute genetic freaks if they aren’t.
For me from what I’ve seen in bloodworks, there’s no way I’d go vegan but I’m already lean and healthy. Far too many supplements for one, and low ferritin and hematocrit show up real quick. It’s ethical but it’s subpar.
CT has made passing comments regarding veganism and some great lifters who happened to be vegan, including Kazakh gold medalist Ilya Ilyin.
One of my best friends was a national level strongman competitor, 100% vegan for at least a decade before beginning to train/compete (unlike, say, Kendrick Farris who built the majority of his strength on animal products and then became vegan very recently)
It can be done but it does require a little extra effort for maximum results - and almost always need to supplement with a pea (or other) protein, B12, etc. I have been wanting to hear more detailed thoughts from CT on training vegans and diet modifications (very few zero carb whole foods, no casein replica) but knew it would turn into a shitshow before he got a chance to properly reply.
I’m not sure which country you’re from, but in Canada the vegan diet is absolutely rising in popularity. Many of our fast food restaurants have just recently included meat substitutes for burgers, breakfast sausages and more.
You’re kidding, right?
I agree that one can most definitely find them self deficient in one nutrient or another if they are not intelligently planning their nutrition. This can also occur in a diet that includes meat.
Finally some good points being added to this discussion. Check out @kleinhound’s log, the dude is a beast and was performing to a high level on his vegetarian diet.
Lacking protein for some of us, but not necessarily the OP. 42yo looking to be healthy, strong and lean. I have no doubt this goal can be achieved on a vegan diet that is intelligently planned with a much lower quantity of protein than some of us 200+lb bodybuilders/powerlifters.
Nutritional yeast is a very well known source of B12 that vegans/vegetarians can use to help reach their recommended daily value.
Care to support this claim? Genuinely curious about it.
…I can’t even…
When I first read the post I really hoped that it wouldn’t, but some people seem to be offended that someone else doesn’t eat meat so feel the need to make absurd comments. I enjoy hearing thoughts on different diets from people with experience, so I too hope that CT chimes in with his thoughts.
