Is a plant-based nutrition the key to better performance?
Since the popular success of the Netflix documentary “The Game Changers”, an increasing number of athletes has been considering a plant-based nutrition as an overall solution to improve performance.
Surely, we should eat more fruits and vegetables (seasonal and regional) and some of us have a high animal protein intake. But is switching to a purely plant-based diet the key solution?
Let’s review the facts:
The scientific evidence is weak. To date, not a single study has been published on purely vegan nutrition in high performance sports. So far, neither advantages nor disadvantages in terms of efficiency and performance have been proven.
Athletes who want to switch to a plant-based diet should consider professional assistance from a sports nutritionist to ensure a sufficient intake of energy, protein and micronutrients. Athletes require a higher macro- and micronutrients intake than the average person. Not only the amount of amino acids in protein is important, but also their quality, digestibility and absorption. These factors must be taken into account when considering a change to a plant-based diet. In one of LIHPS’ previous Facebook posts on the topic of muscle development, it was stated that 2-3 grams of leucine is needed: meeting this recommendation is easier if you eat animal protein (whey protein in dairy products), but not impossible if you follow a plant-based diet (eating a bowl of lentils). The quantity of food to be eaten is just considerably higher.
No general rules have been set regarding protein recommendation for vegan athletes, as the scientific background is weak. The Belgian recommendations for the average person regarding protein intake are 0.8g/kg/day. For vegans the recommendations are 1.3g/kg/day.
The protein intake of athletes should be higher (1.2-2g/kg/day), depending on the kind of sport and the timing in competition preparation. Considering the same ratio as the Belgian recommendation for the average person, this means the requirements for vegan athletes would be 1.9-3.2g/kg/day. But to this day, there is no consensus on this.
In order to meet all the requirements in terms of energy, macro- and micronutrients, the athlete will have to eat large amounts of legumes, vegetables and whole-wheat products.
An athlete should therefore acquire a good knowledge about food, nutrients and how to meet the requirements if planning to switch to a plant-based diet. The increase in dietary fibre could cause discomfort at the beginning and a slow, gradual increase in the quantity of fibres ingested is crucial. In addition, the athlete should bear in mind that he or she will spend much more time in the kitchen preparing food: 5-6 meals a day will be necessary, and most should be home-made to ensure an adequate intake of all nutrients at the right time.
Regular medical check-ups and blood tests are mandatory to prevent a malnutrition and energy deficiency syndromes.
Critical micronutrients are:
Vitamin B2: nuts, seeds, legumes, whole-wheat products, mushrooms, nutritional yeast
Iron: cereals (oats, rye, amaranth, quinoa), pumpkinseeds, sesame, legumes. Vitamin C increases the absorption of iron
Calcium: sesame paste, almonds and almond paste, broccoli, fennel, kale, mineral water (>500mg/l of calcium), fortified planted based drinks
Zinc: nutritional yeast, oats, lentils, peanuts, cashew, brazil nuts, soybeans
Omega 3 fatty acids: linseed oil enriched with DHA, rapeseed oil, walnut oil, hempseed oil
Iodine: fortified salt
Supplementation is mandatory for vitamin B12
Sources:
Wirnitzer K, Seyfart T, Leitzmann C, Keller M, Wirnitzer G, Lechleitner C, Rüst C, Rosemann T, Knechtle B (2016). Prevalence in running events and running performance of endurance runners following a vegetarian or vegan diet copared to non-vegetarian endurance runners: the NURMI Study.
Lynch HM, Wharton CM, Johnston CS (2016). Cardiorespiratory Fitness and Peak Torque Differences between Vegetarian and Omnivore Endurance Athletes: A Cross-Sectional Study.
https://www.mysportscience.com/…/Is-game-changers-game-chan…
Course of vegan nutrition for athletes, Dr Keller M. (2019)