People adopt a vegan or vegetarian diet and lifestyle for a number of different reasons.
Religion, to start with, influences how people eat in many corners of the world. Hinduism, Jainism and Buddhism in particular, have strong links to vegetarianism.
Some people also choose to become vegan or vegetarian for moral reasons. Killing animals and eating them is just not acceptable for some, nor is using any of their by-products such as milk, eggs, or leather.
Health is yet another reason why people might end up adopting these animal-free diets. Some of us are simply unable to digest such foods or might have some sort of intolerance or allergy. Lactose intolerance, for instance, is incredibly common.
While not perfect, following a vegan or vegetarian diet can be beneficial for your health. But if you want to take things a step further in your chase for a healthy lifestyle, you need to do some exercise. And this is where things start to get a little fuzzy.
It’s not uncommon for those following a vegan or vegetarian diet to encounter a wall of misinformation when it comes to the relationship between their diet and sports. The internet is filled with all sorts of misleading information, and many people are doubtful and resistant to the idea of a vegan or vegetarian person succeeding in the athletic realm.
Many myths have contributed to the view that a vegan or vegetarian person will have a hard time building muscle or getting stronger. Lack of protein and other nutrients being the most common one. But while there is some truth in this claim, there is a way around it, which many athletes are now proving.
You don’t have dig deep to find world-class examples of elite athletes who adopted a vegan or vegetarian diet. These include F1 World Champion Lewis Hamilton, American tennis player Venus Williams, British boxer David Haye, and professional surfer Tia Blanco, among many others.
Being a vegan or vegetarian won’t necessarily hinder your progress in sports as long as you take a few things into consideration. In this gallery you’ll find some useful tips that you can start implementing today.
Click through to find out more and take your health and fitness to the next level.