Vegan martial artists...?

[Doc_Jude]

in modern times you provably could.. but there are other nutrients that may or may not be lacking depending on diet.. once agian modern technology is your savior that way.

Modern Technology is the savior of Human meat eaters, too. Much more so, buddy :roflmao:

 

[mijemi]

I'm not vegan but have been vegetarian since I was 12 and feel that I am healthier in some ways for it which would certainly help my martial arts. However, I need to watch my diet exactly else I very quickly go downhill and fatigue which leaves me with no energy to train.

 

[geezer]

Yeah, I've heard that old joke too.
A chimp half your size can tear your arm off & beat you to death with it if he wants to. Raw foods, mostly greens and fresh fruit.
"Omnivorous" is a bit of a misnomer. 95+% Raw Vegan would be more accurate.

OK, I admit it, I was just joking around about "massive amouts of chocolate". I do love chocolate, but swore off the stuff last June while getting in shape for a summer escrima camp. By September or October, I had dropped from 190# to 150#. Now I eat massive amounts of bananas, and other fruits and veggies for snacks, and I have been doing a lot of pull-ups, brachiating (hand-over-hand swinging) and knuckle walking along the floor. I find myself disenchanted with my overly cerebral Wing Chun training and feeling a strong attraction for grappling arts. You know, the ones where you can tear the arm off someone twice your size. And my wife says I'm getting hairier every day.

 

[Mic]

i agree with out the tech we have today most places a vegan would not survive.Also i am offended by being compaired to a monkey, i do not think of myself as a primate but as a man which is very different no matter what DNA says.But when it comes down to it i think callcium you get from dairy and proten you get from meet are better sorces then soy and such, besides just that thought of a juciy stake prepaired very rare makes my mouth tingle and water lol.

 

[geezer]

i agree with out the tech we have today most places a vegan would not survive.Also i am offended by being compaired to a monkey, i do not think of myself as a primate but as a man which is very different no matter what DNA says.

No reason to get racist, or rather SPECIES-IST! First off, Chipanzees, bonobos, gorillas, orangs, and even baboons are not monkeys, but great apes. Let us not denigrate our primate cousins, but rather learn from them. Now settle down and have a banana, you'll feel better.

 

[chinto]

... i happen to know a few overweight vegans haha
i think being a strict vegan in a primitive place without heat or modern conveniences has plenty of problems... for example if you don't kill animals you won't have fur to wear and keep you warm... but things, like tofu (which is high in vitamins), have been around much longer than "modern technology"... and foods like pasta for example are a good source of calories, and carbohydrates... also mans ability to create fire is a wonderful way to keep warm... about gut length the human digestive system is twelve times the length of the body... Carvivores animals have a very small digestive tract... meat takes much longer to digest... and creates excess waste... the idea of... in a cold environment feeding an animal grains and vegtables so you can later eat the animal seems a bit silly... when you could just eat the grains and vegtables for yourself... although eating meat was a necesity for surival when we where in a very primitive state(before the invention of tools)... i feel that we, or i personally, do not need meat in my diet it all, or any animal byproduct for that matter...

if i ever come across as offensive please let me know... i'm only trying to explain my beliefs... and learn about others... since becoming vegans i've realized there are flaws to my diet... and by discussing it with nonvegans... i can learn to better my diet...

ok, fat has a lot more calories then carbohydrates do, meat has more nutrition for the weight the vegetables do, though again to much of any thing including water is a bad thing too.... the biggest problem for people into the early 20th century was to NOT starve to death or suffer from malnutrition. we, humans are Omnivores. its simple, we need a balanced diet of animal and/or fish and/or dairy product proteins and fruits and vegetables to get all the nutrition and calories to survive. you can in an equatorial or similar climate survive on only vegetables,and fruits, but only if you are not doing a lot of hard labor or other wise stressed badly. the technology we have now reduces the calories needed by heating the spaces we live in, and the amount of hard physical labor we need to do. so yes you can be a vegan and survive, but if you are say doing hard manual labor.. then its unlikely you can do so even short term if there is cold or any other stresses on you and get enough calories from vegetables and fruits and grains. That is why combat rations are not vegetarian with out some kind of fats added. my great uncle was a dairy farmer till he died. even with central heating he burned over 7,000 calories every day!!! a combat soldier in combat is expected even in warm weather to burn at least 5000 calores a day... usually more. in a cold climate like mountain warfare or arctic warfare they figure a lot closer to 12,000 calories a day is needed to sustain them....

 

[taitsechien]

... although i disagree with chinto on most points... i think that i've strayed from what i was going for on this thread... i feel that being vegan has helped me really step up my training... i feel that my body is now better prepared for internal training... if there are other vegans... or people that have had experienced a change from their diet (good or bad) in martial arts... i'd like to hear about it...

 

[Doc_Jude]

ok, fat has a lot more calories then carbohydrates do, meat has more nutrition for the weight the vegetables do, though again to much of any thing including water is a bad thing too.... the biggest problem for people into the early 20th century was to NOT starve to death or suffer from malnutrition. we, humans are Omnivores. its simple, we need a balanced diet of animal and/or fish and/or dairy product proteins and fruits and vegetables to get all the nutrition and calories to survive. you can in an equatorial or similar climate survive on only vegetables,and fruits, but only if you are not doing a lot of hard labor or other wise stressed badly. the technology we have now reduces the calories needed by heating the spaces we live in, and the amount of hard physical labor we need to do. so yes you can be a vegan and survive, but if you are say doing hard manual labor.. then its unlikely you can do so even short term if there is cold or any other stresses on you and get enough calories from vegetables and fruits and grains. That is why combat rations are not vegetarian with out some kind of fats added. my great uncle was a dairy farmer till he died. even with central heating he burned over 7,000 calories every day!!! a combat soldier in combat is expected even in warm weather to burn at least 5000 calores a day... usually more. in a cold climate like mountain warfare or arctic warfare they figure a lot closer to 12,000 calories a day is needed to sustain them....

So... anyways...

This guy is VEGAN...

So is this guy...

So is this guy ( the bigger guy on the right) ...

So is this guy...

Since we're living in the 21st Century, we can look at these guys and see that a vegetarian or vegan diet can be VERY positive for martial artist and serious athletes.

 

[Doc_Jude]

i agree with out the tech we have today most places a vegan would not survive.Also i am offended by being compaired to a monkey, i do not think of myself as a primate but as a man which is very different no matter what DNA says.But when it comes down to it i think callcium you get from dairy and proten you get from meet are better sorces then soy and such, besides just that thought of a juciy stake prepaired very rare makes my mouth tingle and water lol.

I've never wanted to eat a "juciy stake". Is that some new kind of brain food???
Oh, & despite what you might like or not, you're a hominid. It's genetics, get over it. You've got +98% identical genetics with all these guys...

Fortunately, belief is not required.

 

[chinto]

hay feel free to be vegan if you wish.. I would suggest you make sure you check with a physician and dietitian and other health care professionals if you train hard.... my point was that 100 years ago you could not be one and train and be healthy.. today is not 100 years ago..... if you are happy and use the vitamins that they suggest you can do so now... if that is what you want.. go for it! but do not say some how that is how humans were intended or evolved to live... that would be both a lie and stupidity. with modern technology and conveniences, it is viable, but that is your choice. I am not convinced it is optimal.

 

[Doc_Jude]

hay feel free to be vegan if you wish.. I would suggest you make sure you check with a physician and dietitian and other health care professionals if you train hard.... my point was that 100 years ago you could not be one and train and be healthy.. today is not 100 years ago..... if you are happy and use the vitamins that they suggest you can do so now... if that is what you want.. go for it! but do not say some how that is how humans were intended or evolved to live... that would be both a lie and stupidity. with modern technology and conveniences, it is viable, but that is your choice. I am not convinced it is optimal.

Okay. Thanks.

 

[Josh Oakley]

hay feel free to be vegan if you wish.. I would suggest you make sure you check with a physician and dietitian and other health care professionals if you train hard.... my point was that 100 years ago you could not be one and train and be healthy.. today is not 100 years ago..... if you are happy and use the vitamins that they suggest you can do so now... if that is what you want.. go for it! but do not say some how that is how humans were intended or evolved to live... that would be both a lie and stupidity. with modern technology and conveniences, it is viable, but that is your choice. I am not convinced it is optimal.

Tell that one to the Shaolin monks.

 

[chinto]

Tell that one to the Shaolin monks.

my understanding is that the shaolin monks historically ate some meat a few times a year or at least at eggs and cheese and such that would give them the fats and other things they need. the southern temple in fuchou province would have had fish from time to time I am sure .. and eggs.
you can not train hard on veggies alone with out some kind of protein's added. even beens and rice under real stress fall short. but there were times when 1/2 of china was malnourished as well... some are today I am sure too. there is a reason that the Japanese gained an average hight increase of about 6 inches between 1945 and 1965! its called nutrition.
like I said before as an adult, eat how you wish, but please for gods sakes do not put infants and young children on vegin diets!!! there are graves with infants and small children in them because adults were that irresponsible!

 

[Doc_Jude]

http://www.vegsource.com/

Please folks. The site above is an infinitely better resource for info on vegetarian/vegan diets than some of the posts here (that are largely opinion).
Happy reading.

 

[Bodhisattva]

just wondering if there are any vegan martial artists out there... if your training is better or worse because of your diet... that type of stuff... i personally am vegan and train in muay thai, fu style tai chi, and gen-jitsu karate... and i think that veganism has really picked up my game...

I train MMA and am not vegan but am vegetarian.

I think the lack of meat definitely hurts me athletically but am vegetarian for ethical reasons.

I make up for it with cage free eggs and cheese.

 

[TheOriginalName]

If i may throw in my 2 cents: Diets are very personal things. What works for one person may not work for another. We each have slightly different bio-chemistry and motabilisms and thus each of us will find that different things work best for us.

My ex-wife was at first a vegiterian and then became a vegan. It worked for her - but that said, she put a lot of energy and time into ensuring that she got all the nutrients and vitamens that she was missing due to the lack of meat and related products (eggs, dairy etc).

Personally i think any diet requires balance - but that if those who choose the vegan lifestyle (i call it a lifestyle because it does have effects beyond just diet) do their research and have the support of their doctors (you should consult a professional before making any radical change to your diet) then they can be as healthy as any meat eater.

Again the thing to stress here - it's all about balance and getting the nutrients that your body needs. If you don't fuel your body right then everything will go wrong.

So in my opinion, vegan or meat-eater it doesn't effect your training. The quality of the fuel you use for your body is what matters.