are there more pros or cons to going vegan as a runner?

Makes you bones brittle.

You can do it but if you have the means I would highly suggest getting an apt or 2 with a nutritionist. You need to make sure you are getting the correct nutrients and more importantly calories with this big change. Also don't forget about the b12 supplement.

Herbivores don't take B12 and they're fine.

Nothing wrong with going vegan, you'll be fine. I am not a vegan because sometimes it can be very inconvenient but I feel much better since greatly reducing my intake of animal products. I completely hear you on wanting animals to be treated better. Feeling better about my impact on animals has been an unexpected nice side affect of eating less meat.

It's going to be hard for you to get enough protein and calories. I've been a vegetarian my entire life with varying degrees of strictness, by force of habit and for health reasons and I found it quite difficult to get enough food in. I had points where I felt like I basically spent every waking hour training or eating and when I counted my calories I was running a huge deficit. I ran 60MPW in late high school and slightly less in college (but with a lot of strength training and swimming mixed in)

If you are going to go vegan, I highly recommend Vega protein powder.

Also seeing as you're in high school and likely not in full control of what you eat and not doing your own grocery shopping, if your parents aren't going to buy vegan food for you (particularly protein sources--soy milk, seitan, beans and legumes, tofu, others) this is probably a bad idea because if you eat nothing but bread, pasta, fruit, and vegetables you are not going to get in all the micro or macro nutrients you need and you are going to have a hard time performing and recovering.

Pro's: You will lose weight, save money at the grocery store, feel better (initially), sleep better (somewhat).

Con's: Takes a long time to prepare vegan food (lot's of chopping, thorough meal planning, bean soaking, etc.). Drop in testosterone due to zero cholesterol intake. Eating more frequently since vegan food doesn't keep you full as long. If you buy a lot of vegan replacement foods (Yves meat, soy protein shakes, etc), it may actually cost more than an omnivorous diet.

Overall I find it beneficial to eat a small amount of animal products, but cutting them out completely is pretty dogmatic. No foods are 100% bad except sugar, and even then, sugar is great in a sports drink for recovery immediately following a run. It really depends on what outcome you are trying to control. Eating vegan is best for overall health, but crappy for every other aspect of life. Too much time cooking, too fussy at restaurants, etc.

You are right. Only carnivores need B12 through food or supplements. Guess which one we are.

heh? wrote:

Herbivores don't take B12 and they're fine.

going vegan? wrote:

i want to go vegan for mostly one reason, STRONGLY, i believe animals are mistreated. how does this diet work for a runner averaging 40-50mpw? high school girl.

If you are SMART about it, then it is a good healthy (and moral) lifestyle. You have to do your research though. Don't be a junkfood vegan!

BUT, with cookbooks, the internet, the library, subscription to magazines, lots of research, & a true interest in the lifestyle, you can be wonderfully healthy & strong, & have a successful running career.

You have to enjoy cooking & grocery shopping. You always have to be on the look-out for recipes (and a good variety of them). Underneath of all of that, you need to the base understand the health & morality of your decisions as well.

I've been a vegetarian for over 25+ years & have never had a problem with calories, health, running, etc. (I'm vegan at home & vegetarian at restaurants.) But, like I said previously, it is a LIFESTYLE.

Good luck!

going vegan? wrote:

i want to go vegan for mostly one reason, STRONGLY, i believe animals are mistreated. how does this diet work for a runner averaging 40-50mpw? high school girl.

Don't listen to the "nutrition advice" anyone gives you on this board. Even the guys who know a lot about running on here spew out the same nutritional misinformation you'll hear in the weight room of any LA Fitness.

EVERYTHING you need to know about nutrition (backed by unbiased scientific studies) can be found at NutritionFacts.Org.

FYI, I'm a vegan running 70 miles a week, and I haven't been injured in over a year. When I ate dairy and meat, I was always getting injured in the 30-40-mile-per-week zone.

Cons: you'll be scrawny and even more obsessed with your diet

Pros: our amusement

I'll reemphasize a couple great points.

Some vegans eat terribly. You can get lost in awful vegan snacks and overprocessed vegan food easily.

That said, it certainly does takes commitment if you do it right. You need to take time to cook and prepare your meals. Running and veganism was difficult in college for that reason.

Some good advice I got from a vegan author once was that if you're craving it, maybe your particular body works better with a little animal protein. That's something for you to explore.

On the topic of meat- I agree with you that most of the animals for food in the Western world are treated terribly. Good for you for taking a stand. However, as meat will continue to help sustain us, explore small-scale humane farming operations. I seek out farmers who love their herds/ flocks because, as I choose to eat meat, I know these animals got to live a well cared for life. Our purchasing power can shift the market towards farms that promote a better life for farm animals if the demand makes it apparent.

PS. If you think it's bs that farming animals for food is a thing, then that's great. But go learn everything you can to back up your belief.

going vegan? wrote:

i want to go vegan for mostly one reason, STRONGLY, i believe animals are mistreated. how does this diet work for a runner averaging 40-50mpw? high school girl.

I read Scott Jurek's book, Eat Run a few months back. It's all a puff piece about himself, but a large part hinges on his decision to go vegan in the 90's and the "big" results he had despite "not eating meat." For someone training and winning major ultras, I would say that his experience prooves that it's possible, but not easy, to supply and sustain your body at the highest training regimens as a vegan.

It's pretty poorly written, but provides some insights, especially if you're seriously considering going vegan.

I'm a 56 y.o. male and have been a vegetarian for 38 years. I was also a vegan for more than 25 of those years until recently when I was diagnosed with osteoporosis. I live in the Northeast and my vitamin D levels were extremely low. Other than that, I'm very healthy and a decent age group competitor. I started eating dairy again to get more calcium while taking mega doses of vitamin D. Vegetarianism is fine but I don't think I'd recommend a vegan diet to anyone unless I find there is some other underlying cause for my osteoporosis (-3.5 reading).

you can buy humanely raised animal products. Eat in moderation.

Pros

You'll lose bone density, protein, and iron! Gotta get some female athlete triad!! And an ED while you're at it!

Ex-Vegan wrote:

I'm a 56 y.o. male and have been a vegetarian for 38 years. I was also a vegan for more than 25 of those years until recently when I was diagnosed with osteoporosis. I live in the Northeast and my vitamin D levels were extremely low. Other than that, I'm very healthy and a decent age group competitor. I started eating dairy again to get more calcium while taking mega doses of vitamin D. Vegetarianism is fine but I don't think I'd recommend a vegan diet to anyone unless I find there is some other underlying cause for my osteoporosis (-3.5 reading).

I thought that I read that dairy products actually LEACH calcium from your body. Check this out:

Animal Protein

Another food that can leach calcium out of your bones is protein from animal sources, including meat, seafood, eggs and dairy. The Physicians Committee suggests ingesting protein from plant sources instead, as they have not been found to leach calcium. Although some sources recommend ingesting dairy for calcium, the Physicians Committee cites a longitudinal study by Harvard University which found that women who drank more milk had more bone fractures than those who drank less, as well as other studies with similar findings. The committee argues that you do need calcium, but that dairy may not be the best source. Other sources, including the National Osteoporosis Foundation, maintain that dairy does not leach calcium. The differences may be related to the amount of dairy consumed. More research is needed.

Lomc wrote:

you can buy humanely raised animal products. Eat in moderation.

"Humanely raised animal products" is almost the perfect oxymoron.

Don't forget Vitamin K2...

http://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2012/12/16/vitamin-k2.aspx

I was going to say don't do it for any perceived benefit for you but only if you have ethical reasons. It sounds like you do so go ahead

I've noticed no improvement and no negative. It's not a magic bullet for me, like some people say it is. But at the same time I'm not malnourished and I get sufficient calories etc. I do take protein shakes and B12 and occasionally calcium.