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aTHleTeS THriviNg

on Plant-based Diets

by Allison DeYenno Jacobson

Most people believe that that in order to get in shape and build

muscle, you need to eat a lot of protein. Animal protein, to be exact.

As a plant-based athlete, the first question I get is typically, in watermelon!) I eat mostly unprocessed whole foods,
“Where do you get your protein?” But many people aren’t and find it easy to achieve my daily protein goals. In fact,
aware that there are a lot of plant-based athletes out there, sometimes it’s hard to not go over.
excelling in their respective sports. And some are getting
just 10% of their calories a day from protein. Let’s take a Plant-based athletes also report recovering faster from
look at why a plant-based diet is an optimal diet for any- tough workouts. That’s because a plant-based diet is
one focused on fitness. naturally anti-inflammatory, rich in antioxidants. Eating
plants also supplies you with lots of chlorophyll from leafy
“So how much protein do you really need?” The RDA or greens and helps your body to be more alkaline, both
Recommended Daily Allowance of protein is .8 grams per which fight inflammation. A single meal of meat, dairy,
kilogram of body weight. To figure out how much protein and/or eggs triggers an inflammatory reaction inside the
you need every day, multiply your healthy weight in body within hours of consumption. Add that on top of an
pounds by .36. Less than you thought, right? For a woman intense workout which also causes inflammation and you
who weighs 150lbs, that equates to 54g of protein a day. can see why it will take your body longer to recover.
Now as an athlete, or active individual, you will likely need When I switched to a plant-based diet, I had a huge
more than that, but the ideal amount is easily achievable increase in my energy levels which is common for most
by eating only plants. Based on my weight, my RDA of people who eat plants. Eating plants doesn’t weigh you
protein is 60g. I eat about 95g of protein per day, or 1.26g down like a meal heavy in meat or dairy. Digesting meat
per kg per day. I typically train for 1-2 hours a day, 5 days is not something that our bodies are designed for. Unlike
a week, as an Olympic weightlifter and bodybuilder, and carnivores who have really strong stomach acid in order
am consistently building muscle. Track your protein for a to digest their prey whole, humans have much weaker
few days to see how much you are eating. It’s likely you are stomach acid, designed to break down pre-chewed fruits
eating way more protein than you need if you are eating and vegetables. We also have long digestive tracts to give
an omnivorous diet. our body ample time to absorb the nutrients from fruits

“So where DO you get your protein?” There is protein in and vegetables, compared to the short digestive tracts of
nearly all plant-based foods, including fruit, vegetables, carnivores. When you eat plants, your body doesn’t have
grains, beans, nuts and seeds. (Yep, there’s even protein to use as much energy for digestion, and that extra energy
quite often translates to better performance.

46 KAUAI Living Aloha | JANUARY–FEBRUARY 2017