SkinGraft

Ive never been too good with eating right and that ha sonly increased once i became vegan two years ago, so I'm wondering if anyone can give me any tips as far as making sure I'm getting the right amount of protein etc. Basically I don't want anything to hold me back from getting in tip top shape for next years race season.

Serpico

post to the training/nutrition sub-forum, they will be able to help

I think you need to take B12 vitamin

I was vegan in high school, but that was 12yrs ago

good luck

velocipedio

i don't eat meat, but i eat dairy and eggs [ovo-lacto]. i get most of my protein from beans and tofu. so far, no major problems, but you really do have to make sure that you get some protein at every meal.

faztcanuck

Check out www.myvega.com

edit: looks like their web site is down (July 5 2005).

basically it is a vegan meal replacement product engineered by an elite vegan Ironman competitor.

ckleps

Not a vegan but I eat no meat and don't really dairy or eggs. I get my protein from beans and soy products. Never felt like I had any problems with a lack of protein. After a hard ride or workout I find chocolate soymilk to be a great recovery drink. Good protein and carbs.

Umbra

Buy a good soy protein supplement, take a good multivitamin every day, and a B12 supplement.

https://www.bodybuilding.com/store/soy.html

gonesh9

I've been vegan about 8 years, and feel in great shape. There's no reason you can't be just as healthy as a non-vegan if you just put some effort into making sure you're eating a well-rounded diet. Lots of whole foods is key. Don't let the common protein myths fool you, it's actually quite easy to get all the protein you need as long as you're aware. A lot of the cop-out veg proteins out there are variations of soy, which are just fine but you don't want to over-do the soy. Seitan is a wheat gluten that is very high in protein, and easy to prepare. Beans and rice consumed together within a day produce a great protein. A variety of nuts and seeds will help out as well. A lot of ethnic foods are going to be superior as far as good veg food over the typical Western style fare.

To me the B12 issue, as Ziggurat and Umbra pointed out, is one of the most important to keep in mind. Typically once you have enough it is stored in your body for years, but vegans need to make sure they are getting some just to be safe....it does irreversable damage to your nervous system if you become deficient in it.

There's a lot of vegan junk food out there... just be sure to consume real food instead and most likely you'll be healthier than most you're racing against.

bob338

it's nice to see noone started any silly arguments with this thread!

matgarf

yeah, what gonesh said....i have been vegan for 5 years and find the best way to stay healthy is to avoid junk. eat whole foods, cook at home, avoid refined sugars. you know the drill...

jstockton858

im a vegan and yeah like what was said earlier i think the whole vegans lack protein belief is false. its really easy to get all the protein you need from the foods gonesh9 mentioned and also from various breads and even pasta. anyways i just got myself a lemond today so im a happy vegan.... although my seat and shoes are not vegan sad

531Aussie

Wait for it......if someone starts telling us they can get b12 from mushrooms, I'll GO BALLISTIC!!!

beppe

As a vegetable-tarian, I cannot help you with all your problems in the eating department. But you should try Organic Athlete.

linus

OMG...there is no way I can be vegan. I rather die....I can't believe there are so many vegans here.

roadgator

hmm i geuss accidental road kill would disqualify me anyways.

x43x

Vegan here for seven years. There is some good info already on this thread so I dont want to repeat everything. Basically if you eat a well balanced diet there isnt a need to scrutinize everything in order to get the nutrients you need.

I take a vegan multivitamin and a B12 vitamin. How much protein you need depends on your body, age, and activity level. The bigger you are the more you need. Ive read 15% of your daily intake should be protein. For me its about 70-80 grams a day, but Im on the small side (5' 3"). Since you dont get protein from meat, a variety of plants is needed to get the essential amino acids. Beans are also very good. There is a Clif bar out called a Builders Bar that has 20 grams, and is really good.

Im glad to see there are a few other vegans on the board!

Im also glad that as of this time there hasnt been a meat eater zealot expressing the need to eat meat and that god said we could and humans are the rulers of the planet and they weaved the web of life so we can destroy it as we like. *knocks on wood*

Good luck with your racing, and if you need any inpsiration, look up info about Scott Jurek. He is vegan, and the winner of many Ultra-Marathons across the country, which are 100 mile runs lasting 20 hrs+. Pretty damn impressive.

***Butch***

I'm a vegetarian. Wish I could go vegan, but the jump just seems so hard.

jitteringjr

There should be way more vegans in the world. It would drive the cost of meat down for the carnivore I love to be.

Did I mention how awesome my new BBQ chicken wing rub recipe came out for the 4th? I could never give that up. My hat’s off you guys that can pull it off though.

x43x

The initial jump can be pretty daunting. I was vegetarian for a year before going vegan. I was also 17 yrs old and lived with my parents who at the time, where not very supportive. I had to buy all my own food which was something new for me and not having a lot of info about what to eat and where to buy it was even more difficult.

After a bit though, it was extremely easy. And now, there are A LOT more vegan options than there were just 5 years ago. I can get most of my food from the local Fred Meyer, while some of the more 'luxurios' menu items are found at Whole Foods or PCC, our local co-op.

Granted I live in Seattle which has more vegan/vegetarian restaraunts than you can shake a stick at, so maybe Im a bit spoiled.

I think cheese is one of the hardest items to give up (why must it taste so good!?!?). But really, pizza without cheese isnt THAT bad. There are a few vegan cheese's available and while they dont taste really good, the cheese made by Follow Your Heart actually melts and tastes pretty good over delivered pizza.

If youre serious about making the switch, I would suggest getting as much info as possible and also try a lot of vegan options in the meantime. www.vegweb.com has pretty much all the recipes you could ask for.

ed073

What's a vegan?

thelung

Another vegan here! I was vegetarian for 2 years and have been vegan for 1 and a half. I just got into road cycling in the begining of this year and ride between 15 and 30 miles every day. I have plenty of energy, the biggest problem is just the humidity here in Virginia Beach

Everyone has already given some good advice, so I will just stress the importance of getting a multi-vitamin made for vegans/vegetarians, and make sure it had b-12. You also want to get some Omega-3 fatty acids in your diet, this is easy with supplements from flax (versus fish) and ground flax seed that you can use in cooking or in your oatmeal or cereal. Some healthy brands like Nature's Path cereal already have flax in them.

Other than that, make sure you get some protein in every meal, either with protien powders/bars or eating a lot of soy, beans, and nuts. Pick up a vegan cook book and learn some basic high protien and high carb recipes, you will be fine when it comes to exercising.


A vegetarian who does not consume/wear/use any animal products. No meat, dairy, eggs, gelatin, etc. Many avoid honey as well.

x43x

*copied and pasted from vegan.org*

what is a VEGAN? A vegan (pronounced VEE-gun) is someone who, for various reasons, chooses to avoid using or consuming animal products. While vegetarians choose not to use flesh foods, vegans also avoid dairy and eggs, as well as fur, leather, wool, down, and cosmetics or chemical products tested on animals.

badsac

Vegan and "well rounded diet" sounds funny. (Goes back to having meat withdrawals thanks to my vegan ladies shopping habits. )

ed073

Cool. Got it. INteresting philosophy.

I think it was Anthony Bourdain who said: "You shouldn't vicitimise vegetarians, they've already suffered enough."

thelung

I grow my own veggies and cook much of my own food. My omnivore friends all love my favorite restaurant, despite it's all vegan menu. I love what I eat, and do not miss my old diet at all

douchebagonwhlz

It follows the same pattern as every time I have the vegetarian v. meat eater converesation:
The vegetarian/vegan is outnumbered, My argument is intelligent and logical, and a meat eater always makes a totally ridiculous comment with no real validity, the meat eaters all laugh and the credibility of the converesation is lost.
It is hard not to get militant and angry at this after so much repetition of this same scenario. But take note, it follows the path EVERY time/
On the B12 topic:
B12 is consumed in the processing of alcohol, and for a while I took it. When I read the label on the RDA of B12, the bottle contained some 12667% of my daily needs. Maybe if I got really wasted I would take it from there on. and that's 12000% rda for the average person. something tells me many on this forum are not so avereage with their aerobic output, and I've never heard of anyone dropping dead from being a vegan athlete. There are trace amounts of b12 in your stomach lining and cheek epithelial cells which you swallow inadvertantly. as far as I have read this supplies all your needs.
Thanks for keeping the negative out of this thread!
Just a real quick defense of vegetarianism, I can't resist,
What do you think makes up the seasoning part of that great BBQ? It's plants! You can spice up any plant food at all to taste the same as your BBQ.
anyway I will leave this hopeless subject alone.