Can You Build Muscle On a Vegetarian Diet?

Can You Build Muscle On a Vegetarian Diet?

Are you a carnivore? Enjoy knowing how to cut your meat perfectly? Skeptical that a vegetarian diet can help you still reach your fitness goals. It’s always important to align your workout effort to your diet and the other way around, so, in this article, we’re going to take a look at some tips and tricks.

Build Muscle on a Vegetarian Diet

Many top athletes in the world follow a vegetarian or vegan diet, so it’s good to know that this is something that you can do as well, without making compromises in terms of building muscle. For many years, people thought that a person needs to eat meat in order to achieve the desired muscular development.

However, the latest research and examples show that this is not mandatory, as long as you follow a balanced diet that includes a lot of plant-based protein. The key detail here is that you do need to ensure the right protein intake, but the source doesn’t necessarily need to be meat.

Can You Build Muscle On a Vegetarian DietSoy products and other alternatives, such as lentils and beans, nuts, seeds, or grains, can provide the necessary amount of proteins for your goals. If you plan your diet carefully, you can also avoid using any special supplements.

However, this depends on the type of diet you have adopted as well.

Types of Diets

The vegan diet is becoming increasingly popular these days, and it basically means that you don’t consume any type of animal product. This includes meat and fish, as well as cheese and any other type of dairy products. Therefore, in this case, you can only rely on plant-based proteins to meet your body’s needs.

A lactovegetarian diet, on the other hand, means that one can eat dairy products, so these can be an important source of proteins. Keep in mind that athletes do need to eat some protein every day, so you should include the necessary products in your diet.

It’s also important to remember that not every source of protein is equal to the others. Meat, dairy products, and eggs include the essential amino acids that our body needs.

On the other hand, not all plant-based protein sources come with these amino acids, so you may need to research this detail as well, to know exactly what ingredients you need to add to your meals.

Protein Quality

You should also take a look at the quality of the proteins you include in your diet as you plan it. For instance, egg protein is considered the perfect balance that includes the nine essential amino acids, and it’s also an easily digestible option.

Therefore, if you are a vegetarian, you shouldn’t forget to include eggs in your meals daily.

Wrap-Up

On the other hand, those following a vegan diet can look at tofu, soy yogurt, and milk, as well as at edamame, to ensure the right level of protein and essential amino acid intake.

Also, it’s recommended for vegetarian athletes to eat high-quality protein at every meal.