Can you be a body builder and remain a vegan? If you have not considered the possibility, you are probably among those persons who do not consider vegetarians to be able to be masses of lean muscle. The prevailing culture to a large extent believes that a vegan diet lacks all of the nutrients required for a healthy body and that such a diet cannot develop the lean musclesought after by bodybuilders.

We have a tendency to think of a vegetarian bodybuilder as the 98 pound weakling on the beach taking another face full of sand. Vegan body builders are quickly changing this view.

Vegetarian diets exclude all animal products including meat, milk, and dairy derivatives. Many meat eaters think that a vegan diet is inferior when it comes to building muscle simply because it does not contain animal protein. However, there are many complementary sources of vegetable protein available.

Protein is required by the body to repair torn muscle tissue and to boost the immune system as well as to build lean muscle tissue. It is also important for the bodybuilder choosing a vegan lifestyle to make certain that he or she is getting adequate amounts of other required nutrients in their diet.

A well balanced vegetarian diet contains all of the essential amino acids used by the body for the synthesis of protein. There are also numerous vegetarian protein supplements available in the markets so vegetarian body builders should have no problem fulfilling the body’s requirement for protein.

While supplements can play an important dietary role in a vegan bodybuilding diet plan, you can also obtain many necessary nutrients from fresh fruit and vegetable juices, Gatorade and Spirtein. Soy products are also a great source of protein, not only for vegetarians but for anyone wanting a more heart healthy lifestyle. Nuts are also a delicious alternative source of protein that are sometimes overlooked.

Vegan diets are not without controversy for body building. In spite of the recognized health benefits of soy, some critics claim that it may have long-term negative effects. There is more evidence of its health benefits however than of any harmful side effects. Each person thinking about a vegetarian diet for muscle building should do some independent research and then make up their own minds.

Proper nutrition is more important to a bodybuilder than the amount of time in the gym or even what you do there. Basic muscle building requires that you take in more calories than you burn or you will lose weight. If you are not eating enough, the more you workout, the more weight you lose! For vegans, this means you have to eat a lot of fresh foods and use protein replacement products.

Protein replacement products are not to be confused with the bodybuilding supplements sold in muscle magazines and on the internet to those persons looking for a magic pill. There is no magic pill and for the most part the supplements are useless and often actually harmful.

It can become discouraging to look through those magazines and see the ads for the latest “muscle enhancing” pill and the accompanying photos of beautiful physiques. Keep in mind that while the buffed bodies are nice to look at they are not attainable by the average builder and the ads are targeted toward the normal meat-eating, supplement-using muscle builder.

If a magazine or web site is not advocating natural bodybuilding, you need to look elsewhere. There are many good sources of guidance for the vegetarian bodybuilder and you do not need to pay attention to the steroid and HGH peddlers. Just make certain that you consume adequate nutrients and supplements in the right quantity to give you the beautiful sculpted body you desire!

This entry was posted on Monday, May 26th, 2008 at 4:04 am and is filed under Body Building. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.