Vegan or Vegetarian Bodybuilders

Diet and Nutrition
21

No need for a giant discussion on the subject.
OP, if you’re vegan for whatever reason and not telling people not to eat meat, good for you…and there’s no reason for us to laugh and tell you to eat meat.

As far as believing it has/will have no adverse effects on testosterone and your bb results, and since Bill Pearl won his last universe being lacto-ovo-vegetarian (or whatever) and that is solid proof that you can shock the world:yourself with your drug-free bodybuilding gains on a vegan diet, then feel free to knock yourself out trying, I’ll root for you from the cheap seats.

Good luck either way.

Nuts (plenty, and I mean plenty), pumpkin seeds, olive oil, coconut milk/oil, avocados, beans (all kinds), fruits, vegetables (emphasis on cruciferous), tofu, tempeh, protein powders and hard training.

[quote]toolshed wrote:
I know you don’t want a discussion, but cmon…animal rights?

It really doesn’t make sense. Look around you. Most living organisms are in one way or another feeding of another organism. It is absolutely illogical that eating animal is cruel. If you mean the way animals are handled by big food companies before slaughter etc I can understand it, but you can always buy organic stuff from farms where they treat their livestock good.

And yes I’m fairly sure your T-levels are going to suffer from this.[/quote]

22

here is a basic view of what i eat during the day. I have not figured out the exact macros or anything.

meal 1: Vega Shake (a vegan meal-replacement with digestive enzymes, 26 g protein, 100% RDI of vitamins and minerals) + banana

snack: A handful of nuts and seeds

Meal 2: Wild or Brown rice with lentils and flaxseeds

snack: A mix of Pea, Rice and Hemp protein shake + a piece of fruit

Meal 3: Spinach or Mache salad with olive oil and chickpeas.

Snack: Protein shake with added Glutamine

How does that look?
cheers

23

You need to add more protein sources to your diet. Adding one cup of tempeh to each of your “snacks” would add roughly 120 grams of protein. You’re going to need to make uncomfortable sacrifices, such as force-eating tempeh, seitan, or soy beans (avoid processed soy products and other “vegan” variations) frequently, and this is no different than the omnivore with bodybuilding aspirations, except your protein choices are more limited. As long as you stay creative with your food choices and find what works best for you personally, you should be fine.

24

Thanks Kyle. I read somewhere that fermented soy is good (or is the other way around?!), something to do with eliminating the phytoestrols. Is tofu ok? I absolutely love Tempeh so I wouldn’t have to do too much force feeding. I have troubles finding seitan.

So just so I can pick your brain a bit, I should avoid soy products like Soy milk and soy burgers (and other soy fake meats) but tempeh and other fermented soy is ok? As you can imagine I’m a little concerned about the whole estrogen thing.

25

[quote]Bingbeast wrote:
I don’t find that getting huge on a vegan diet is all that crazy of a notion. Eat a lot.[/quote]

Fruits, grains, nuts, seeds, and healthy fats make it easy to get plenty of calories, but don’t skimp on the protein.

Most vegans/vegetarians overestimate the protein they’re actually taking in. They also tend to get hung up on incomplete protein sources, and often neglect to focus on complete, or complimentary, sources.

It is, but it doesn’t have to be. Since a strict low-carb plan will be difficult (at best) try a carb cycling plan, using different protein powders more on low-carb days and less on moderate/high-carb days.

Check out Dr. Clay’s “How Bodybuilder’s Should Eat” article for an idea of how to lay out your weekly eating, and have it coordinate with your training (That last part is key. Because you’ll have some higher carb days, you need to make sure you’re really going full throttle in the gym):

Relevant question I didn’t see asked yet: What’s your height, weight, and general condition (super tubby, half-step away from shredded, something inbetween)?

[quote]natefisher wrote:
He ate a vegan diet, aside for breakfast where he ate eggs and a slice of cheese.[/quote]

And my neighbor Nicole is a virgin, except when she does the reverse cowgirl.

Does not compute.

[quote]OctoberGirl wrote:
Chris Colucci tried it for a month[/quote]

To be clear, I went strict vegan for a month and vegetarian the preceding month (two weeks lacto-ovo and two weeks lacto). None of this “Vegan except for an egg sammich for breakfast, kosher except for bacon-wrapped pork chops for dinner” stuff. :wink:

Ka-Pow - Confession: I Went Vegetarian:
http://tnation.tmuscle.com/free_online_forum/diet_performance_nutrition_supplements/confession_i_went_vegetarian

26

[quote]Bingbeast wrote:
here is a basic view of what i eat during the day. I have not figured out the exact macros or anything.[/quote]

Again, it’s hard to give solid advice when we don’t know your size or training, which would give us a better idea of your calorie needs, but anyhow…

A 320-calorie breakfast shake? I know you said you’re trying to drop fat, but that’s more of a snack. The Vega shake could use a splash of healthy fats (nut butter, olive oil, whatever).

Also, pop quiz for my own curiosity: How many scoops are you using in each shake?

[quote]snack: A handful of nuts and seeds

Meal 2: Wild or Brown rice with lentils and flaxseeds[/quote]

Nothing crazy here, good stuff. Carry on.

I’d rather rotate powdered protein sources every day or two, instead of having a mix of powders in each shake. Vega is already a combination of pea, rice, hemp, and other sources. Sticking with one quality source per day will help to ward off any long-term allergy issues.

Here’s that protein issue I mentioned earlier. The complete protein source is… ?

What type of protein? And what’s the glutamine for?

Another general note about the plan: You’re a vegan and you’re eating less fruit than some omnivores. Fix that.

27

thanks Chris. I’m going to check out your link.

I agree I need a heartier breakfast. For some reason I’m never ever hungry in the morning. I usually take 2 scoops with non-sweetened orange juice.

I primarily use Gemma Pea protein but I also have a jug that I mixed hemp, pea and rice proteins.

I usually have a protein shake with added glutamine and fruit after a training session.

Would it help to add avocados to my salads?

Is fermented soy safe (tempeh, misso and natto)

I am currently 6’ - 235 lbs - not sure where my body fat is but probably around 15%. I have been using DC but thinking of switching.
My lifts are Squat 455 x 6 / Dead 505 x 4 / Incline Bench 225 x 6