Why are so many runners VEGAN?

So too much protein (meat products) will lead to strokes, high blood pressure, heart disease, obesity, cancer…..millions of deaths/year….. And you vegans? How many of you are dying from a lack of protein? What's even the name/term for this condition?

Thank you! A nice, intelligent response. Bravo!

kmaclam wrote:

So too much protein (meat products) will lead to strokes, high blood pressure, heart disease, obesity, cancer…..millions of deaths/year….. And you vegans? How many of you are dying from a lack of protein? What's even the name/term for this condition?

I see your point (and even agree with it somewhat), but it is not necessarily the protein consumption per se that is a factor in some of these problems.

And to answer your question, here are some protein deficiency diseases (they certainly exist)-

kmaclam wrote:

How many of you are dying from a lack of protein? What's even the name/term for this condition?

It's called kwashiorkor you freaking idiot.

HADD to go there wrote:

Bootsie wrote:

I certainly won't speak for all vegans, but I... definitely swallow....

Thanks Bootsie, thanks for that.

So you DO consume some animal protein after all. But yes, the source is certainly not "suffering". Quite the contrary, I suppose.

Thank you for taking time out of doing your algebra homework to insert that audaciously clever bit. Really. Top notch stuff.

First off i'm not totally vegan but I was a born and raised vegetarian and have been that way for the last 28 years (15 years of that competitive, year-round running which have been injury free). I'm made out of cheese and peanut butter...

Nowadays I'm nearly vegan, but I wouldn't pass up a nice omelet or milkshake/dessert/pizza from time to time. I also have honey on my toast usually.

Protein is not even close to being an issue IMO. Iron and B12 and vitamin D could be, but i've seen runners that chow down on burgers and steak all the time have problems with iron (and I'd bet half the US population is probably low in Vitamin D). People just don't eat enough veggies and fruit to fill up on first...that's really the main problem with the American diet.

Other things to consider: Global energy savings. Think about how much wasted energy goes into cattle farms and meat packing plants, etc. If the whole world ate meat there wouldn't be enough energy to go around (there still really isn't but things will get worse). Thank goodness most of the world can live on beans and rice....

As for health reasons, yeah you need a balanced diet. Can that diet be vegan? Of course! Can it have some meat and eggs? Of course (but I'd go farm-fresh, organic, and eat sparingly if that's the case)

OMG the OP is a total MORON.

There are no world class runners that are vegan and there are no world class CrossFit athletes (= fittest athletes on earth) that are vegan. That should tell you something.

Soy will lead to higher estrogen and lower testosterone levels. While not good for your health, women can deal with this better than men, who will end up looking like SCRAWNY runners.

At the end of the day, you need ANIMAL protein (which has higher quality than e.g. bean protein) to support your GROWTH towards more BUFF. And of course, the saturated fat to elevate your T-levels and suppress your estrogen. Unless you want man boobs like many older runners, that is.

S. Canaday wrote:

People just don't eat enough veggies and fruit to fill up on first...that's really the main problem with the American diet.

Don't repeat everything you read in RUNNERS WORLD. Americans don't eat enough veggies, that's true. As for fruit, these artificially engineered super sweet Apples and oranges you can buy in the store these days lead to all kind of problems, from obesity to cavity, to just name a few.

If the whole world ate meat there wouldn't be enough energy to go around

Yes and the problem is...? Clearly there is a problem with population. If you don't see that there shouldn't be 7 billion people on earth then I can't help you.

Rob Krar eats a plant-based diet. (vegan) Scott Jurek is vegan. Dave Scott, probably the greatest Ironman ever, is and was vegetarian. Carl Lewis was vegetarian leading into the 1991 Championships, when he switched to a vegan diet and ran in his words, "the best meet of his life."

Moby Dick wrote:

Carl Lewis was vegetarian leading into the 1991 Championships,

Carl Lewis was also a drug cheat.

because they want to be slim slimmer lol. most of runners have different degree eating disorder because they believe the lower the weight the higher VO2max they can reach

Sage is right though, protein in a vegan diet isn't the problem, it's making sure to supplement with B12 and get enough iron. Also, being vegan isn't more expensive if you're making your own meals. Meat is expensive, a pound of kale costs me 79 cents. Beans, rice, vegetables, tofu, legumes, etc, are not expensive.

Anthony Famiglietti ate burgers and fries, pizza, and ice cream during some of his best years. Yes, his body gave out eventually.

Point being: no single diet is better/worse than another because its completely individualized. While being a vegan may work for one runner, it may leave another runner completely devoid of energy. That's why diet trends are completely ridiculous. Debates about them are completely ridiculous. No single diet has ever been proven to work for all the individuals that go through with it. You can argue until your blue in the face about it, but there are flaws in every diet.

I think the number of reasonable, intelligent comments on this thread surpasses that of any other on letsrun. Please carry on.

Moose wrote:

I think the number of reasonable, intelligent comments on this thread surpasses that of any other on letsrun. Please carry on.

In case you mean my posts - thanks brah, I appreciate it.

For some people, it's legit, but for a lot of people, it's a convenient way to hide an eating disorder both from themselves and from others. Same goes for runners who are paleo. The diets are inherently restrictive which makes it easy for them to justify excluding entire totally healthy groups of food for the sake of "health" and think they aren't sick

Tyrannosaurus Rexing wrote:

How about fist sandwich? wrote:

But runners? I find it hard to believe that there are many competitive runners who are vegan.

Why would you find that hard to believe?

Because, you know ... ignorance.

A lot of work wrote:

How about fist sandwich? wrote:

Do you mean runners or do you mean joggers?

I can imagine idiot hobby joggers with their fanny packs stuffed with soy, barely slogging through a 4 hour marathon.

But runners? I find it hard to believe that there are many competitive runners who are vegan.

I'd disagree with that, as disciplined diet or training is one of the last things I'd associate with hobby joggers.

I could definitely see some trendy BS diet where they only have to pay lip service, e.g. Chowing down chia seeds, protein drinks, eating pre-made energy bars, or making a beef/broccoli/coconut oil stir fry and saying they're paleo.

I've known hobby joggers who were extremely disciplined in their diets, training, and in general life. They just aren't very athletically talented. I've also known some fast runners who were undisciplined in their diets, quoting the old "if the furnace is hot enough..." line.

P.S...unless you make your living from running, you're a hobby jogger, too.

How much protein do you guys try to eat per day (regardless of whether you are vegan or not)?

Recommendations I could find online:

USDA: 0.8 g/kg (~51 g for me)

Vegan diet: 0.9 g/kg (~58 g for me)

Light running: 0.5 g/lb (~70 g for me)

Hard training: 0.8 g/lb (~113 g for me)

Crossfit site: 1.6 g/kg (~102 g for me)

Paleo site: 0.9 g/lb lean mass (~108 g for me)