Vegetarian athletes: at the top of their game

David Tyree may have been the star of the Super Bowl, helping the New York Giants beat the New England Patriots, but in my opinion, Kansas City Chiefs tight end Tony Gonzalez is the greatest Super Bowl champion. the NFL. His team may not have made it to the Super Bowl, but as The Wall Street Journal recently reported, Gonzalez proved that a football player can be powerful without eating large portions of meat, eggs and dairy. Gonzalez has acknowledged that the meat-rich diet soccer players often eat can lead to serious health problems, including heart disease and cancer, and is promoting plant-based foods.

Several other professional athletes and Olympic superstars have touted the benefits of vegetarian and vegan diets. Four-time Mr. Universe Bill Pearl, powerlifting champion Bill Mannetti, 1951 Mr. America Roy Hilligenn, Stan Price, world record holder in the bench press, and American football player and Trophy winner Heisman Desmond Howard reportedly did not eat meat. These powerhouses are not alone: ​​some of the strongest animals, like apes, elephants, and giraffes, are herbivores.

International Federation of Bodybuilding and Natural Fitness and International Natural Bodybuilding Association bodybuilder Robert Cheeke is perhaps the most recognized vegan bodybuilder in the world and popular strength trainer Mike Mahler says that “Becoming vegan had a profound effect in my training… [M]i bench press went over 315lbs and i noticed i recovered much quicker. My body fat was also reduced and I gained 10lbs of lean muscle in just a few months.”

Other vegetarian athletes, including tennis superstar Martina Navratilova and six-time Ironman triathlon winner Dave Scott, have repeatedly beaten their meat-eating competitors. Swimmer Murray Rose, a vegetarian by birth, has six Olympic medals. Debbie Lawrence is an Olympic champion walker and discus thrower Al Oerter has won at least four Olympic gold medals. A healthy vegetarian diet helped propel two-time Olympic gold medalist Edwin Moses over the hurdles, and Olympian Carl Lewis has said his best year of competitive track and field was the first year he ate a vegan diet.

The famous Argentine soccer goalkeeper Carlos Roa, was nicknamed “La Lechuga”, which means “The Lettuce”, due to his strict vegetarian diet. Bill Walton and Robert Parish, two of the greatest basketball players of all time, were vegetarians, and John Salley, another professional basketball star, is a vegan. So is ultramarathon runner Dom Repta, who has run 100 miles in just under 20 hours.

Australian cricket superstar Greg Chappel also abstains from eating meat and animal by-products and fellow cricket superstar Anil Kumble has posed for a PETA ad promoting vegetarianism. Anil says: “Vegetarianism saves the lives of animals and is second to none for maintaining a muscular body and increasing endurance. Vegetarian food contains all the vitamins and protein you need to be at your best and is free of fat, cholesterol and toxins — found in meat.”

It doesn’t matter if you play for fun or for championships, if you want to excel, practice hard and follow a healthy vegan diet. Visit http://www.VegCooking.com for recipes fit for a champion!