I recently became a vegetarian about a month and a half ago. I still eat eggs and drink milk. I have been doing weight lifting with my brother.
I understand that it might be more of a challenge to gain muscle mass on a vegetarian diet, but I have read about famous bodybuilders who were/are vegetarian.
I'm considering becoming a vegan, but I am going to be a vegetarian for a while first, and then switch to veganism. I'd also like to know some good substitutes for eggs and milk. I am not a doctor, so I have to say please check with your doctor before starting any new diet or exercise routine.
As long as you eat a balanced vegan diet, you should get all the amino acids, protein, carbohydrates and fats that your body requires. If you are concerned about getting enough vitamins and minerals, try Pangea's VeganLife multivitamin formula (veganstore.com link below).
For milk, you can substitute soymilk, almond milk, or oatmilk. Try different brands and see which ones you like (I like Westsoy, AlmondBreeze, and Whole Foods' brands).
To replace eggs when baking, you can use Egg replacer, a powdered starch-based product. For scrambled eggs, I love Tofu Scrambler (you can ask for the seasoning packet at most health food stores) - you just mix it with tofu and sort of stirfry it. Eggless Salad is another seasoning packet you can mix with Nayonnaise (delicious egg-free mayonnaise substitute) and tofu for a great dip or sandwich with bread.
According to the Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine, you will need 5+ servings per day of whole grains, 2+ servings per day of legumes (beans, peas, lentils, nuts), 3+ servings of fruit and 4+ servings of vegetables per day for a healthy, balanced diet (please see link below). I have been a healthy vegan for 15 years, have never had to go to a doctor in all the time since then.
You may want to check out a couple of books from your library on vegan nutrition, such as Becoming Vegan: The Complete Guide to Adopting a Healthy Plant-based Diet by Brenda Davis, R.D. and Vesanto Melina M.S., R.D. and Vegan Nutrition: Pure and Simple by Michael Klaper, M.D. for more detailed nutritional information.
As for bodybuilding, check out the other 2 websites I have listed below if you haven't looked at these before. I think you'll find the nutritional information you'll need for being a strong vegan, strong enough for bodybuilding! well yeah its going to be very hard to gain muscle mass. you probably arent getting much protien. and for a substitute you can always do powdered milk i guess bu i have no idea for the eggs. and about the amino acids just take some vitamins Ignore the protein hype, it's all a myth! If you get 10% of your calories from protein you'll eat more protein (and amino acids) than you body can EVER use. You can use a website like nutritiondata to get real data on how much protein you take in.
http://www.nutritiondata.com/
Once you register you can use their Pantry to exactly track your nutrition. Any combination of legumes and grains will give you all of the essential amino acids.
They used to tell vegetarians to make sure that they ate "complimentary proteins" (that is, from a bean source and a grain source) at every meal. But not any more, as long as your diet is balanced as a whole.
Some people say that soybeans and quinoa are "complete," containing all of the essential amino acids, but there is some disagreement. Anyway, it seems so natural (and easy) to eat beans and grains together (beans on toast, vegetarian red beans and rice, tofu fried rice, black bean soup in a bread bowl, vegetarian chili mac, boca (soy) burger on bun, cold cereal with soy milk, etc.) that the existence of a vegetarian complete protein source is, what's the word I want, superfluous. Especially now that the "complementary protein at every meal" rule has been abolished.
Nuts are also high in protein, but I don't know whether they fall into the bean side or the grain side, so I'll let someone else speak to them.
The amount of protein you get from a balanced vegetarian diet is more than adequate for an athletic lifestyle. I'm not sure, however, if you are going for a Mr. Universe type of build, whether you would benefit from a protein supplement (which, by the way, are common among the top level bodybuilders who do eat meat, so it's not a vegetarian thing, it's a bodybuilder thing). Most of them are based on whey, which is dairy, but there are vegetarian options out there. Personally, I think too much protein is unhealthy, but I'm not a bodybuilder. There are tons of vegetarian sources of protein and the old idea that you had to combine them to get a complete protein in each meal has been modified. As long as you're getting enough protein from a variety of sources, your body will complete the amino acid profile. There is, however, a vegetarian source of protein with all 8 essential amino acids and that's quinoa. It has more protein than any other grain, plus loads of calcium, iron and fiber. eat a wide variety of foods. if your consuming beans,whole grains, rice, fruit, veggies, nuts, seeds and (if you like it) soy through out the day, then you are all set!
there are oat, rice, nut, soy and coconut milks out there for when you decide to go vegan. my favorite is almond breeze (their chocolate 'milk' taste just like conventional chocolate milk) but try them all out. everyone has different taste.
for eggs there is egg replacer (for when your cooking) but other than that there is not an actual replacer for eggs like for cooked eggs for breakfast. though you can use tofu for a variety of foods.
when you go vegan, or even now since your still starting off with vegetarianism, if you need any help you can always email me. i'd be happy to help ya out with whatever Quinoa has all essential amino acids, making it a complete protein. It's packed full of all kinds of nutrition. It's a seed that acts as a grain and you cook it like rice. It's very versatile as well - you can spice it up for dinner, sweeten it for breakfast, put it in salads, etc. Hemp protein is a complete protein and is also the most easily digested and absorbed by the human body out of what is thus far known. You can find hemp cereal, powder, milk, etc. Beans are obviously high in protein.
But, everything has amino acids - they are deemed "the building blocks of life." The only way you're going to have a "protein deficiency" is if you completely starve yourself. Cows, in their natural state, eat grass and leaves and that kind of stuff all day. You don't see them, or any other herbivore, itchin' for a protein fix. If you're eating a varied diet, you're sure to get all the protein you need. Vegans, contrary to popular belief, get more than enough. And there are world class body builders and athletes who are vegan (Google them), so I really don't think it would be a challenge to build muscle.
I've been recently writing about protein in my blog if you're interested. It's veganjacks.blogspot.com
Good luck. |
