Here are the reasons runners avoid a vegan diet

We all know someone who is vegan - because they’ve told us all about it, many times. Seen as just another fad a few years ago, the vegan lifestyle is picking up momentum. More and more people are ditching meat and other animal products for different reasons, with a lot of those people also being runners.

Adding more plants to your diet can help improve your health, but some runners still feel as though cutting meat and dairy out of their diet may have ill-effects, especially if they are exercising regularly.

Not Enough Protein

Most people worry that removing meat from their diet means they won’t be getting enough protein, but in actual fact, vegetables provide more than enough protein. For example, 1 cup of cooked spinach has around 5 grams of protein, and asparagus has 2.9 grams of protein per cup. Think of the animals we eat, where do you think cows, chicken, and sheep all get their protein from?

It’s Not a Balanced Diet

Cutting anything from a diet is going to make it slightly restrictive. People have concerns that they won’t be getting all the vitamins and minerals that their body needs. In this aspect, vegan diets can actually improve your health; dark leafy greens provide more iron than meat, as well as the vitamin C to help absorb it, not to mention vitamins A, E, K, B6 and calcium for good measure.

Too Expensive

It’s true that a vegan diet means you’re going to have to get more creative with your dishes now you can’t use animal products, but meat is actually an expensive commodity compared to fruit and vegetables. Eggs, meat and cheese are pricey sources for carbohydrates, potassium and fibre compared to sweet potatoes and rice.

Becoming vegan doesn’t mean you have to give up on future running events, in fact there are a number of famous vegans who have taken part in some seriously competitive races.