Vegetarian Cyclists...

[soOpOSMthanks!]

I've recently converted to a vegetarian diet the past month and a half. It also has been the worst month and a half of riding for me to boot. I've been trying to supplement the lack of protein, iron, and what not as best as possible with said nutrient rich foods and/or vitamins but with not much success. Is there any other suggestion(s) that I may not know of? Also any suggestions for building back my lost strength/vitality as a neo-vegetarian?

 

[Tapeworm]

1) There is a long thread in the this forum about vegetarian/vegan eating and cycling. Worth reading.
2) How do you know you are deficient in certain areas (ie: protein, iron)? Are you basing this on "feel" or have you had testing?
3) Adequate protein should be able to be obtained with little effort, dairy products, eggs, legumes, soy products etc. The same goes for iron
4) If you are eating a vaguely health diet that includes some fresh vegetables and fruit there really shouldn't be a huge shortfall in your dietary intake which would necessitate supplements.

 

[GreggGermer]

Give the diet time, your body needs time to adjust to the diet.

Since you are sticking to a Vegetarian diet you can include eggs, cheese, yogurt to your diet to help maintain protein levels.

One for my friends here in Belgium is an elite female cross and road rider, Christine Vardaros - http://christinevardaros.blogspot.com/, who is also a Vegan. I'm sure she can help direct you to cook books to help expand your choices (she is always doing things like cookies, cakes, pancakes and other things you would think are impossible when eating vegan).

-Gregg-

 

[L'arriviste]

A pity...

Who knows what might have become of the peloton's only vegetarian team in history had sponsorship continued:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Linda_McCartney_Racing_Team

 

[ike2112]

I'm vegetarian, have been since I was a toddler. I've played semi-pro sports for close to 10 years and 1 year professionally.
There should not be a significant loss in what the body needs unless you eat a poor diet, or eat in a fractioned pattern. Maybe a couple sandwiches used to see you through an afternoon at work. But if those sandwiches are now just lettuce, cucumber and cheese then you're going to need more.

Sometimes it's a little awkward, you have to keep energy levels up so I'm always armed with bananas and flapjacks and the like. At times it feels like you're a diabetic trying to keep levels in check. But as long as you eat good foods, and eat regularly, there shouldn't be any issues.

 

[Vegan Dave]

Heya, long-time (nearly 20yrs) vegan here. =)

If your energy levels are low, then it has to do with energy, not protein. (Protein is a very poor source of energy for the body, esp. for endurance athletes.)

Make sure you're getting enough calories, and that they're mostly from carbohydrates. For a few days, actually count how many calories you're getting, and make sure it's enough to cover what you're doing (basal metabolic rate, plus training, usually 5-600 calories per hour for most of us).

If you're eating a fairly varied diet, protein is not going to be an issue. We really only need small amounts (World Health Org, ADA and other actual HEALTH organizations say between 0.4-0.8g/kg.) If you're eating enough calories, and it's not all crap like potato chips and soda, you're going to get more than enough protein.

Iron is more of a concern for people who consume dairy, since the calcium in dairy inhibits iron absorption, and also dairy contains almost no iron. (Many plant foods have iron, not huge amounts, but it adds up. Low iron levels will result in fatigue, although you won't 'feel' that it's iron.)

Christine is a great example, and she'll tell you the same thing about protein. Another good resource is the Sports Nutrition Guide put out by OrganicAthlete:

http://organicathlete.org/guide

It's a free PDF download, although you need to sign-up, but that's free too.

There are other nutrition books too, i highly recommend Becoming Vegan by Vesanto Melina and Brenda Davis, it's a wealth of nutritional info.

Good luck!

 

[mrsean1999]

Dissenting opinion

I was a vegetarian for several years and it did not suit me. I ate legumes, tofu, etc, etc, but always felt run down. Also I simply could not eat enough- I was constantly hungry and would bonk hard most afternoons or early evening.

Now I eat like a French peasant- pork chops, eggs, cream, cheese, steak, hamburgers, salads, veggies, fruit, potatoes roasted in butter or lard, etc- and feel quite good. My muscle mass is better and I don't get colds as often as during my veggie days. I do not require as much food on the bike now.

A vegetarian diet is better for some people than others, and it just did not work well for me.

 

[Tapeworm]

I was a vegetarian for several years and it did not suit me. I ate legumes, tofu, etc, etc, but always felt run down. Also I simply could not eat enough- I was constantly hungry and would bonk hard most afternoons or early evening.

Now I eat like a French peasant- pork chops, eggs, cream, cheese, steak, hamburgers, salads, veggies, fruit, potatoes roasted in butter or lard, etc- and feel quite good. My muscle mass is better and I don't get colds as often as during my veggie days. I do not require as much food on the bike now.

A vegetarian diet is better for some people than others, and it just did not work well for me.

Just curious, did you try eating like a French peasant minus the meat? I've been a lifelong vege and really don't like soy or legumes that much.

 

[mrsean1999]

Just curious, did you try eating like a French peasant minus the meat? I've been a lifelong vege and really don't like soy or legumes that much.

Hi Tapeworm,

Good question. Not really, I kind of increased meat intake over the last few years until reaching my current level (which would shock anyone but John Wayne) but you could add eggs and cheese and see how that works. A lot of people do well with higher fat and protein diets. "Mastering the Art of French Cooking" is a fun cookbook, with lots of great vegetable recipes.

I am really fortunate because there is a good butcher in my neighborhood (Bob's Quality Meats in Columbia City, Seattle) that sells locally raised meats. You can eat like Fred Flintstone without worrying about factory farms, which is important to me. Many small farmers will also sell meat directly, eatwild.com lists options throughout the country.

As an aside, there was an interesting article in slate.com recently about oysters. They have no nervous system so can not suffer, they are sustainably farmed, and oyster farms provide ecological services by fultering the water. For these reasons, the author argued vegetarians may consider oysters.

 

[ihavenolimbs]

I was a vegetarian for several years and it did not suit me...

Now I eat like a French peasant- pork chops, eggs, cream, cheese, steak, hamburgers, salads, veggies, fruit, potatoes roasted in butter or lard, etc- and feel quite good.

But I'm guessing that you're not a very fast cyclist (esp. in terms of power-to-weight) anyway? (Unless you're a 13 y/o, a genetic freak, or you eat more calories from fruit and vege than all the rest of that sh!te listed.) I think soOpOSMthanks was asking for dietary advice that would help him ride well. Any serious cyclist gets the majority of their calories from carbohydrates.

Last season I was a junk food vegetarian (lots of dairy, canned food, and processed grains) and now I eat a whole-foods, plant-based diet and I am putting out more power at lower heart-rates, recovering faster, and I'm so much faster that I'm probably going to have to race Cat I next season.
(Hopefully the local club will let me ride Cat II for the hilly race coming up! We have a handicapper here that decides grades, no formal category upgrade system like in the US.)

Per calorie, fresh vegetables have the most micronutrients, better than meat, dairy, and grains (esp. processed grains like white flour). Overall, veges even have about twice as much iron per calorie as lean meat.

I wasn't convinced that vegetables were edible at first, but perseverance and some help from the GF showed me that one can make very tasty food out of them. (Though the jury is still out on broccoli and carrots.)

Numerous studies back up my point too, like that beetroot juice study last year. The point of that study was that nitrates are found in large quantities in all vegetables (not just beetroot), and these can turn into NO, a vasodilator. Kinda like Viagra but can increase blood-flow to any parts of the body that need more, including (esp?) working muscle.

Point is, eat your vegetables!

 

[lostintime]

I've recently converted to a vegetarian diet the past month and a half. It also has been the worst month and a half of riding for me to boot. I've been trying to supplement the lack of protein, iron, and what not as best as possible with said nutrient rich foods and/or vitamins but with not much success. Is there any other suggestion(s) that I may not know of? Also any suggestions for building back my lost strength/vitality as a neo-vegetarian?

Why did you feel the need to "convert" , as you put it? Who says you must be one or the other? You're a human being, not a label for your diet. Eat what you're drawn to.

We've been so bombarded with information that we no longer know what,or how ... to eat. What to believe ...... not to believe...... it's all so muddied.

Each of has got to find what works for us ...... no matter what anyone else says about what we eat. Forget the labels ...... the veg-this ... meat-that . No one knows what you need more than you do. I have little faith in the science of nutrition, because it knows so little about life itself.... nor can it ever know. We've all been brainwashed to believe we need so much of this or that .... and it's very hard to let go. . . but it can be done.


For example .... I also have a difficult time consuming sufficient food at times... I make juice at home(Omega 8006). Daily, I use about 2lbs carrots, 3-4 apples, 2-3 stalks celery, a beet, some ginger root, and a large bunch of greens such as parsley, kale, chard, etc. Often pineapple instead of the apples. I consume this because I'm drawn to it. A side effect of this was I found myself wanting even more fruits and vegetables to eat , in addition to the whole grains,eggs, fish, legumes, goat cheese, nuts and seeds I already eat at mealtime.

I was addicted to caffeine many years ago, but after I started making fresh juice, I just found myself not wanting it anymore. After consuming fresh juice, anything out of a bottle is just rotten... plain rotten. But, this is what most people think of when they think of "juice". Think outside the box