The Protein Myth

Hopefully you’ll have heard that vegetarian and vegan diets are better for the planet and that they can also be healthier.  “But where do you get your protein?” is a common question –  in fact as long as you are eating a variety of plant foods in sufficient quantity to maintain your weight, your body gets plenty of protein.  If you need more information, the average man needs around 55 g of protein per day, and it’s 45 g for women, sources below:

Even if you compete you still don’t need meat  – the photo at the top of the page is of the USA’s only male weightlifting representative at the Rio Olympics, Kendrick Farris, who has been vegan for two years.  Morgan Mitchell, the Australian sprinter, is also competing in Rio.

Other athletes who also follow a vegan diet are Carl Lewis, the Williams sisters, John Joseph (Ironman winner), Tia Blanco (US gold-medal winning pro-surfer), Brendan Brazier (former professional Ironman triathlete and two-time Canadian 50km Ultra Marathon Champion),  James Southwood (2014 Savate World Champion), David Carter (NFL player) aka the 300 lb vegan, Vanessa Espinoza (3x Colorado Golden Glove State Champion boxer), Jon Venus (bodybuilder and trainer).

Obviously most people aren't interested in becoming champion body-builders or athletes, but hopefully you’ll get the idea that you don’t need meat to get protein.  Another thing to consider is that eating too much animal protein has been linked with osteoporosis, kidney disease, calcium stones in the urinary tract, and some cancers.  

However, if you are interested in body-building, here’s a link to a YouTube video, which might give you some ideas of what to eat: Body-building


On the other hand, if you’re not bothered about being too healthy, there’s always vegan junk food!