[karate12345]

i become vegetarian lately and my bigest concern is:
can i build good strong muscle tone with only vegetarian food- vegetables, nuts, sprouted seeds and fruits??


thanks!

[vegetus25]

yes:

http://www.veganbodybuilding.com/?page=bios

God bless,

Veg

[govegan]

Sure - a lot of those foods you listed are great nutritionally. I'm a pretty solid 185 pounds at the moment and I've been a vegetarian since I was 10 and a vegan since I was 20. You certainly wouldn't know it by looking at me.

[John Peterson]

Hello Karate12345,

Absolutely. Many men have developed incredible levels of strength and stamina on a purely vegetarian dietary regimen. Not only that but some of the greatest minds in history have also been vegetarian.

The important thing is that one's body is given the necessary nutrients that it requires in order to maintain and build itself. From a purely logical perspective, I see no reason that one could not build an exceptional body on a vegetarian diet.

In fact, one of my all-time favorite Physical Culture Writers by the name of Paul Bragg, wrote an excellent and fascinating book more than 35 years ago with the title, "Are You Confused?", in which he examined a great many dietary strategies that were popular. He mentioned that there were many strong, well developed vegetarians that he had met in different parts of the world when he was a young correspondent for Bernarr Mac Fadden's Physical Culture Magazine. The important thing that he mentioned was balance and he seemed to feel that this was most easily achieved on a 'lacto-ovo-vegetarian diet' which obviously as the name implies means including dairy products and eggs in one's nutritional strategy.

One other reference that I read about as related to vegetarian super strength was in the book , "Mighty Atom--The Life and Times of Joseph Greenstein" in which the Atom describes having met The Mighty Gama while traveling to India with his mentor Volanko. In that part of the book, The Mighty Atom states that Gama was a strict vegetarian. And though I don't recall that it was specifically stated, I think the book implied that the Mighty Atom tended toward a vegetarian dietary regimen himself. Also bear in mind that The Mighty Atom was performing super human feats of strength well into his eighties.

---John Peterson

[mts]

Two thoughts:

Bill Pearl was a vegetarian body building and was quite built (I'm guessing he didn't consider steroids to be meat)

I'm reading a book called the "Thrive Diet" about a vegan ironman triathlete. While I don't intend on necessarily becoming a vegan, it is a very interesting book focused on vegetarian nutrition supporting professional level sports performance. I recommend it to anyone whose interested in fitness/health and particuarlly those interested in becoming a vegetarian.

[John Peterson]

Hey Friends,

Provided that one does not become deficient in Vitamin B12, I see no problem in adapting to a vegetarian lifestyle. And if it is done the right way, it is one of the best and healthiest of all. Not only that, but I have also known a few very religious people that I admire greatly that don't eat meat purely from a humanitarian perspective. And truth to tell, I found that argument impossible to argue with.

And gtlaau (Tom), don't sweat it my friend. There is nothing wrong with that picture.

---John Peterson

[Greg Newton]

Provided that one does not become deficient in Vitamin B12

Between that and missing trace minerals, one would have to be careful on a vegetarian diet to make sure you ate the right foods. With our depleted soil, that would be hard. I tried being a vegan for almost a year a few decades back. I lost down to 150 and was sick and anemic. Obviously I didn't do it right, because some people stay healthy on a vegan diet. When I finally broke my diet I went to a cafe and got the biggest, greasiest hamburger steak and cheeseburger I could buy. I felt immediately better. This told me I was missing necessary nutrients.

Personally, I don't eat a lot of meat and prefer protein from slow cooked beans and from free range eggs if I can get them. But, I do eat small portions of meat throughout the week, mainly hamburger and chicken breasts. I also believe Americans overconsume protein and that it isn't necessary to ingest huge amounts of protein to build muscle. This summer when I was out in Kansas City, which is famous for steaks and barbeque, my co-workers were astounded that prefered to not eat those things in the restaurants we ate at.

[Newman]

My family is strictly vegetarian from last 4 generations. We don't even eat eggs & sea food. My great grandpa died at the age of 100 & he could walk for 2-3 miles, even in this old age. My father is a very big & healthy man of 72 years old & thank God he does not have any serious health issues. If you are eating a well balanced vegetarian food then I don't think you should have any problems.

God bless you
Newman

[Viking Dan]

Originally Posted by mts

Bill Pearl was a vegetarian body building and was quite built (I'm guessing he didn't consider steroids to be meat.)

I believe he only turned vegetarian at 39, and lacto-ovo at that.

[John Peterson]

Hey Newman,

It's great to have you with us.

And Viking Dan, I really don't see any difficulty in a person being Lacto-Ovo-Vegetarian and getting a great balance of nutrients.

But I have to say that I am completely in agreement with Greg Newton. When I was working on my 'Doctor of Naturopathy' there was a report from the 1930's that was included in one of our text books. It was from the Department of Agriculture reporting to President Roosevelt. In essence it was sounding an alarm about the deplorable mineral depletion of American soil. Naturally, this report was compiled at a time when vast areas of America's top soils were literally being blown away in huge dust storms that often covered several states but it was real nonetheless.

Considering that that report was made more than seventy years ago none of us should really be surprised, Currently, one of the major problems we face in America is Nutrient deficient food that is totally lacking in essential minerals and vitamins. The best way around it is to grow our own organic fruits and vegetables if possible or to buy organic whenever possible.

---John Peterson