Vegan diet and sport: how to eat exactly

The combination of vegan diet, gym and sport is arousing more and more curiosity and success, as more and more competitive and amateur athletes are achieving extraordinary results ...

In this article you will discover how to get strength, endurance and develop muscles with a vegan diet and vegan cuisine .

We will also talk about how much protein you need if you practice sport and how to get it in a vegan nutrition program for power sportsmen (bodybuilding or weightlifting) or endurance (running, swimming, biking, etc.).

There is a lot of fear about the vegan diet and sports, yet it works well!

When it comes to the vegan diet and sports, many coaches still believe that it cannot work, that you will lose all your muscles and that you will collapse permanently dead without more energy, perhaps due to a
terrible shortage.

The data in hand, but above all the experience of hundreds of people, who have transformed their physique and their health by passing to vegan tell us that not only is it possible to succeed, but it is even preferable to feed yourself with a vegetable base if you do sport . Yes, the vegan diet is also good for sports.

Many people write to us because they are still confused about how to combine vegan and sports nutrition and they are afraid of losing strength and the muscles they have earned with effort and sweat over the years.

As we have shown in the guide on protein requirements in the vegan diet , plants are able to provide all the amino acids necessary for the needs of the average person ...

It is undeniable that for those who practice sport, the protein requirement is greater, but you need not worry, soon we will talk about how to calculate it and we will also see examples of daily menus ..

IMPORTANT: before knowing how many proteins you need, you should calculate your caloric needs .

"If you want to get big and strong, you have to eat like a horse"

This is what was stated by Stuart Mc Robert, author of Brawn , which has become the reference point for serious natural athletes; his advice has allowed thousands of Hard Gainers (buckets) to increase lean mass and get a strong and muscular physique without taking drugs ...

What many beginning vegan athletes miss is the proportions of food they consume.

The vegan diet is unquestionably healthy and rich in vitamins , minerals and antioxidants, as well as protecting many of today's diseases ...

... but plant foods have the defect (or privilege) of having a low caloric density.

Here are 2 FUNDAMENTAL ADVICES to be successful as a vegan sportsman:

To support your vegan training you need to learn how to eat a lot; concentrate on the most caloric foods, rich in energy such as sweet and dried fruit, cereals, legumes, seeds and nuts. Organize to consume enough calories, and taking enough protein in the vegan diet will be a consequence of this approach;
Respect the food combinations to digest well, consider the possibility of taking raw vegetable enzymes and herbs like aloe to help you break down the vegetable fibers and absorb nutrients in the best way (it's not just important what you eat, but even more what you assimilates) ...

How to calculate the protein requirement for a vegan athlete

The Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics recommends a requirement ranging between 1.3 g / kg / day and 1.8 g / kg / day of protein (compared to 1 g / kg / day valid for those who do not practice sports).

For an amateur activity, also practiced every day, and for endurance sports, it is recommended to stay in the lower limit (1.3 g / kg / day).

It is advisable to increase the protein intake (staying around 1.7-1.8 g / kg / day) only if the workouts are performed every day for several hours, as happens for professional athletes and especially for athletes involved in sports of strength (weightlifting, wrestling, football, pitchers); this in order not to incur a useless, and potentially harmful, protein overload .

The increase in the daily portions of food consumed, necessary to cover the increased caloric requirement compared to the sedentary subject, is generally able to cover also the protein requirement, therefore no particular precautions are needed.

The proteins are contained in every vegetable food group, therefore increasing the calories taken automatically increases the proteins taken.

It is also necessary to ensure a wide variety in the choice of foods: the proteins contained in plant foods generally contain a limiting amino acid (with the exception of soya and some pseudo-cereals such as buckwheat, quinoa and amaranth which have instead a pool complete amino acid), or present in the food in a quantity less than the optimal one for protein synthesis.

To overcome this limitation, it is sufficient to consume different types of vegetable protein sources during the day , alternating between whole grains, legumes and dried fruit in particular.

Also in this case, no particular precaution is required: nobody during the day eats only cereals or only legumes or only vegetables!

If the caloric intake should be limited for some reason, it may be useful to use protein-rich vegetables: with few calories they can contribute to increasing the daily protein intake.

For more details : contact Dietician Shivani Sikri @ Nutri4verve