Q&A Volume 1

      We ask 4 high level athletes, who live a plant-based lifestyle, different questions pertaining their plant-based diets. Hopefully you enjoy the information given by these athletes. If you scroll to the very bottom of the blog, you will find some of the accomplishments these athletes have achieved. Please help support these athletes and follow their social media accounts. Hopefully you enjoy the read and learn something new. Thanks for taking the time to read this question and answer blog!

“Hey Bro, where do you get all your protein from?” What is your go-to protein source?

(Brandon Lwowski) I get this question quite often. Especially me being in a heavier weight class. I get my protein from 5 main sources. The first being “Beyond Meat” ground beef. If you have not tried this you are missing out. 1 bag as 60 grams of protein with minimal carbs. I also enjoy sautéing up some seitan with veggies. Stir-Fry style. My 3^rd source is peanut/cashew butter. I am addicted to it, I would do some dirty things for peanut butterJ. My 4^th source is beans, usually black beans. Then my final way I get my protein is from vegan protein shakes.

(Josue Cano) Personally, I never think about where I get my protein from since I'm just concerned with eating food. However, my favorite protein sources that are plant based: Broccoli.

(Vanessa Espinoza) Veggies, quinoa seeds, nuts, buckwheat, chia, nutritional yeast, spirulina, chlorella, tofu, tempeh, beans and powerootz protein shake

(Jonathan Lwowski) My go to protein source is Beyond Beef or Seitan. Beyond Beef is an amazing product by Beyond Meat that tastes very similar to ground beef, and it also has very similar macronutrient ratios as ground beef, without containing soybeans. Seitan, which is made from gluten flour, is another alternative to soybean based foods that makes a great meat substitute and contains a lot of protein.

What does your post work out meal look like?

(Brandon Lwowski) My post workout meal looks like this. 1 bag of “Beyond Beef” fried up with some white rice and vegetables. My wife makes a black bean pico de gallo that I put on top. It is absolutely amazing and full of protein and carbs needed to recover the body. Then I chase it all down with a GNC’s new Vegan Gainer!

(Josue Cano) Post workout meals usually have a carb dense source like rice or potatoes, some fat such as avocadoes and lots of plants such as vegetables. Finish off with cut tropical fruit.

(Vanessa Espinoza) It's usually a powerootz protein shake with unsweetened almond milk and ice.

(Jonathan Lwowski) My post-workout meal will consist of 2 cups of rice, 2 cups of vegetables, and a whole bag of beyond beef or a large serving of seitan.

What advice would you give to an athlete contemplating giving up meat?

(Brandon Lwowski) I thought this lifestyle would never be possible. Before being vegetarian then switching to vegan, I was drinking the Paleo Kool-Aid. I hate on average 3lbs of meat a day all while chugging down 3 whey protein shakes. My advice for someone who is thinking about switching is, just try it. When I decided to just try it, I set a goal for 30 days no meat. I told myself that after the 30 days if I was weaker, I would go back to eating meat. Surprisingly, after 30 days, I made huge strength gains and PR’s my snatch and clean and jerk. I felt great and full of energy every day. Once you “try it” I promise you will never go back.

(Josue Cano) It's not hard at all as everyone thinks it to be. The majority of people are overweight, out of shape, in bad health and majority eat meat and animal products. Stop listening to what everyone else and look at what we are doing as plant based eaters. Better for your health, better for the environment, and no one has to die.

(Vanessa Espinoza) That it's the best decision they will ever make. Not only is it better for your health, the environment and for the animals. Also, your energy level will increase, you will recover better from intense workouts and get sick less often. After giving up meat I became leaner and was able to gain lean muscle easier.

(Jonathan Lwowski) My biggest advice to an athlete who is contemplating giving up meat, is to make sure you still get enough protein and to just try it. When I gave up meat, I told myself I would try it for 1 month, and if my performance in the gym decreased or if I felt bad, I would stop. 1 month later, I was still hitting PRs and felt the same as I did when I was eating meat. I guarantee if you just try to stop eating meat for a month, you performance in the gym will not be effected and you will want to continue not eating meat. Along with that people have this perception about vegetarian or vegan food being completely different and that all you can eat is boring vegetables. This is not true, vegetarian or vegan food can still be amazing and taste just as good if not better than meat-based foods.

What supplements/vitamins do you add to your diet being a plant based athlete?

(Brandon Lwowski) I take quite a few. First I always have a protein shake around. You never know when you need a quick snack. My favorite vegan shake so far is GNC’s new Pureedge Line. It mixes well and taste pretty good. I also take the pure edge amino acids. I take Blonyx Creatine + HMB before and after a workout. In the morning I take multivitamin and b12 spray. Pretty long list.

(Josue Cano) I don't. Only use a vitamin B for energy and vitamin D in the winter since we get less sun exposure.

(Vanessa Espinoza) I drink 2 powerootz protein shakes a day, BCAA's, spirulina, chlorella and garden of life green supplement.

(Jonathan Lwowski) The vitamins and supplements I added to my diet since becoming a plant based athlete was creatine, l-carnitine, and beta-alanine. I added these supplements to my diet because Examine.com, which is a very trustworthy resource backed by scientific research, recommended them for people on plant based diets.

Is it expensive to be a plant based athlete?

(Brandon Lwowski) I buy everything organic and non-gmo when it comes to my vegan food. I feel like it cost somewhere around the same as eating meat for the fact that I eat Beyond Beef by the bag. I normally buy out the whole shelf. Even if it was a little more expensive to eat Vegan, I would still do it based on how this diet has affected my performance, plus I love the animals.

(Josue Cano) Absolutely NOT!!! If you are spending too much $$$ you're doing it wrong. For example, a pound of beef costs well over $5 to $7 bucks. A pound of beans or rice much much less than that. Eating a plant based diet is cost effective and cheaper than an animal based diet.

(Vanessa Espinoza) It's not any more expensive than buying meat.  I actually find it cheaper to buy plant based foods. The basics I consume everyday are tofu, veggies, quinoa, rice and beans are fairly cheap. I definitely go to the grocery store more often because I am consuming "Real Food".

I feel absolutely amazing eating a plant based diet. I feel like I have found the key

(Jonathan Lwowski) Being a plant based athlete costs about the same as being a meat based athlete if you buy all of your protein sources pre-made. If money is an issue, it is really easy to make your own seitan, and it is really cheap. 

    Brandon Lwowski Weightlifter @brandon_lwowski_oly 

·         2015 State Championship Silver Medal 105kg

·         2015 Texas Barbell Spring Classic Silver Medal 105+kg

·         2015 Weightlifting Wise Naturally Fit Gold Medal 105+kg

·         2015 USAW National Championships 13th Overall 105kg

·         2015 USAW National Championship 2nd Place Texas Barbell 

·         2015 ZKC USA Fall Open Gold Medal 105kg

·         2015 ZKC USA Fall Open Best Overall Lifter

·         2015 USAW American Open Championships 13th Overall 105+

·         2015 USAW American Open 3rd Place Texas Barbell 

Josue Cano Weightlifter @capscavestrength

        38 years young

·       IWF Master Worlds Weightlifting Competitor

·       Snatch 110kgs

·       Clean and Jerks 145kgs

·       Squats 210kgs

·       Front Squat 185kgs

Vanessa Espinoza Bodybuilder/Boxer @plantbasedmuscle

·      Basketball High School All American

·      Scholarship to Colorado State University

       3 Time Colorado Golden Gloves State Champion

Jonathan Lwowski Power lifter @monsterintraining

·    1^st Place Collegiate 83kg 2013 USAPL Texas Regional Championships

·    1^st Place Collegiate 93kg 2013 Iron Wars

·    1^st Place Collegiate 93kg 2014 Gulf Coast Championships

·    2^nd Place Collegiate 93kg 2014 Iron Wars

·    2^nd Place Collegiate 83kg 2014 USAPL Texas Regional Championships

·    1^st Place Collegiate 93kg 2015 Texas Strength Classic

·    15^th Place 2015 USAPL Collegiate Nationals

·    1^st Place Collegiate 93kg 2015 Iron Wars

·    2^nd Place Collegiate 93kg USA Powerlifting Texas Regional Championships

The Story of Vanessa Espinoza

     

   

            I feel very honored that I get this opportunity to share my story about becoming vegan and passion for all living creatures on this earth.  I have been vegan for 12 years now, it wasn’t a hard transition for me because I knew in my heart it was the right thing to do for the animals, planet, and my health.

            I’ve been playing sports my entire life and after becoming vegan my stamina increased, my strength increased, I was able to build muscle faster, I had more energy and my immune system was so much stronger.  My mission is to lead by example, that you can build muscle, strength and do anything you want living a plant based lifestyle.

            Sports has always been a huge part of my life. My first love was basketball, I became a high school All-American and earned a scholarship to Colorado State University and had the opportunity to play professionally and after my career I took up boxing and became a 3x Colorado Golden Gloves State Champion.  I started lifting weights at age 15 because I was always the shortest on the court.  It gave me such an advantage, I didn’t get pushed around, my speed increased, it helped prevent injuries and I became an overall better athlete.

            9 years ago I lost my father to cancer, I was so devastated because we were best friends.  After his passing it made me realize that the path I chose being vegan was the right choice.  I want to make sure as I go through life that I take care of my body the best I can.  We only get one body and I believe we should do whatever we can to take care of it and protect it from disease.  For myself I focus on counting nutrients not calories.  I eat mostly whole plant based foods.  My food is what gives me the energy to get through my day.  I wake up at 4am every morning and workout twice a day on top of work.  I have a crazy amount of energy each day because of the way I eat.  I eat very simple and very clean.  I usually eat 6 to 9 times a day.  I eat a ton of fruits and veggies, legumes, seeds, nuts and grain.  People ask me all the time where I get my protein?  This is a question I get asked daily.  My protein comes from veggies, quinoa, pea, tofu,buckwheat, chia, nuts, hemp, spirillina, beans and I also do a vegan protein powder called Powerootz.  I don’t ever keep track of how many grams of protein I’m getting in a day because I know all the foods I consume have plenty of protein in them.  Even working out twice a day I don’t consume an excess amount of protein. I usually get about 100 grams per day.  I am able to recover quickly from workouts and able to sustain a high intensity day after day.

            My workout routine varies all the time, however my intensity is always very high.  I strength train every day, focusing on one body part a day.  I usually spend about an hour and half on each body part, really blasting the muscle.  I will give it five days of rest then hit it again.  I lift very heavy but I also lift lighter as well to give my muscles a break.  Even when I’m lifting lighter I still am pushing my muscles hard.  For example, I will do 50 reps on a certain exercise for a few sets to really shock the muscles.  As for my cardio I love to box, sprint and hike with my four rescue chihuahuas.  I do cardio almost every day because I truly enjoy it.  I love to push my body to the max, the harder the workout the more I love it.  I have to give credit to my father, he was the one that showed me what a hard workout really is and to never give up.  My father was a professional boxer, one of the top ten ranked feather weight fighters in the world.   Growing up we would run outside in the winter together, it didn’t matter how cold or if it was a blizzard, we were training.  He would tell me “don’t let the cold beat you” and till this day I run outside in any kind of weather.

             I do a ton of sprinting on a turf field, my typical workout is ten 100 yard sprints, ten 50 yard sprints and ten 20 yard sprints or I will do a interval sprinting workout for 30 min to an hour.  I sprint the side lines and jog the end zones.  As for my boxing routine I hit a heavy bag, I will set a timer and do ten, 3 min rounds, resting 30 seconds in between.  On top of all my cardio I always make time to walk my four chihuahuas. (I have a total chihuahua obsession)  My mom and I walk them almost everyday for an hour.  Living in Colorado we are lucky that we have so many sunny days that even during the winter months we hike.  My four fur children are my pride and joy and I have to say they make my life complete.

            I hope to be an inspiration to many, not only in the vegan community but to others who are thinking of going vegan. My mission is to show the world that you can be muscular, be fit or have whatever type of dream physique you desire without harming other creatures.

Excited for the Future by Dan Fisher

It is true that the hardest part about being vegan is knowing the atrocities that go on in the animal agriculture industry and the effects it has on the planet and consumers. Otherwise it is all sunshine and rainbows. Feeling clean, energized, happy, and healthy is a blessing! And there is much to look forward to as a vegan athlete and vegan activist. It won’t be long until the whole world is plant based. I wager we'll see this to be true in less than ten years.

Does anyone remember what supermarkets looked like a decade ago? In a word - boring. These days every supermarket has entire aisles dedicated to organic foods, gluten free goods, local foods, dairy free foods, the list goes on. Consumers have demanded healthier food options and the corporations have supplied. Information is how it all begins. I scratch my head when I think about how it wasn’t until recently that most people didn’t realize the food you eat affects your health. With media and the internet at our fingertips everybody knows “eating clean” is the way to go.

The final tipping point will be when people realize that “eating clean” means eating plants. Believe it or not some people define eating bacon and eggs, a two ingredient meal as “clean”. A chickens period and the blubber of a pig is clean? But I digress! My point is, people are turning to a plant based diet everyday at a very fast rate. This is reflected in the animal agriculture industry as they desperately attempt to suppress information contrary to the myth that “milk is a good source of calcium” and other such stories while also spending a fortune on advertisements to entice people to buy more animal products. Newsflash, once government subsidies are no longer enforced for your cruelty, you’re going to go under in a heartbeat. And this will happen any day now. In the age of information, it won’t be long until the right person comes across the truth at the right place at the right time.

A Trip Through My Plant Based Journey by Brandon Lwowski

     Few deep breaths, head begins to get heavy, tilting to one side, eyes begin rolling back. Quick jolt, open my eyes and blink them rapidly, straightening my head as quickly as possible. This process repeats itself over and over again until I fall into a deep sleep, breathing like an obese man who just climbed a flight of stairs. It always seems that when you reach this point that there is always a dream, whether its good, bad, amazing, or terrifying, but you wake up never remembering the details, remembering just the mood of the dream.  I, myself, had a  lifestyle change, a complete 180 degree turn, an aspiration for a better life. I can't put my finger on the exact moment that his happened but, I imagine my self in Charles Dickson novel "A Christmas Carol" where my soul, my emotions, my being gets pulled out of my body. While in this dream I obtain the ability to watch myself from a third person perspective and see what got me to this point. What steps did I take to arrive at this point in my life and why am I vegan? I use Scrooge as an example because I imagine myself being flown around by a vegan ghost, my vegan self, exposing the changes that I made the last few years.

     The first stop would be the days of the global gym. I was diagnosed with a sleeping disorder which was only curable with a healthy diet and weight loss. Magazines, internet, billboards all tainted my mind on what was considered "healthy." Every Muscle and Fitness I read, every forum on bodybuilding.com that I came across promoted a high protein diet full of steaks, chicken, and of course bacon. Without doing my own researched, I dived head first into this type of diet, eating pounds and pounds of animal flesh because I thought it was the way to go. I thought it would get me ripped and strong as a gorilla. At this point I was not aware of the fact that gorillas were vegetarian. Not once did I think about how that meat arrived on my plate and even If I did know, I was probably to ignorant to even care. I didn't care about how the animals were treated, I didn't care where the meat came from, factory or farm. If it was meat and full of protein, I would shove it in my mouth. Besides, they are just animals right, they were brought to this earth by god for us to eat. 

    Every meal, I would pile the meat on my plate without a single drop of remorse. I was selfish. All I cared about was, "this taste good" and "Protein, Protein, Protein." My vegan ghost pulls me from that moment and fast forwards 1 year to the moment when a good friend of mine introduced me to crossfit. I loved every part of crossfit, I was getting healthier, I was losing weight, and I was feeling good. Crossfit introduced me to a paleo style diet. This was my first glimpse into the true meat industry and started to care where I got my meat from and how it was killed. I began buying only organic, and so-called "humane" meat. I no longer wanted to eat animals that were mistreated, misfed, and what major fast food industries considered real beef. If the cavemen ate meat then that is what I must do to become caveman strong, right? I started reading labels and eating only meat that was organic and free range, trying to make myself feel better for eating these murdered animals. Once again, media and popularity had me convinced that killing animals for food was the best option for becoming healthy. 

    After showing me the first 2 major events that changed the way I thought about food, my ghost takes me to the moment I first changed vegetarian. My wife convinced me to be open to the idea of becoming vegetarian. I promised that I would give it a try and see how it makes me feel for 30 days. I read two books on a plane trip to Hawaii. "Thrive" and "Spartan Up" changed how I viewed nutrition for ever. These books explained how the meat industry, whether conventional or organic, has destroyed the quality of meat and basically sucked all nutrients out of it. It is impossible for the meat industry to keep up with the demand for meat while using traditional methods of farming and ranching. This idea was the beginning of my journey as a plant based athlete.

     As my vegan ghost continues to take me through my past, I wonder how I ended up vegan? And this is where he takes me, my last stop. He show me myself, with my nose in a book called "Zen's Mind." This book was  my first experience of a text about how to live the life of the Buddha. This book taught me mediation, the noble 8-fold path, 4 Noble Truths and the one thing that stuck the mots, Buddha did not believe in hurting animals. Not only were the human lives valuable, but all lives mattered. Including the bugs that the Bodhisattva's swept off the path while Buddha walked into the forest to mediate, including cows,pigs, dogs, everything that lived. The ghost would take me to the days I watched all the documentaries revealing the truth behind the dairy and egg industry. How there is no such thing as humane dairy, humane eggs, or human meat. Killing is Killing. I now had a feeling of pain and guilt everytime I thought about drinking milk and frying up my eggs for breakfast.

    As my vegan ghost brings my mind and soul back to my body, before I awake from this trip to my past, it reminds me of how I got to the point. How I am a vegan athlete in a strength sport. I get a lot of jokes and funny looks when I tell my athletes that I coach or other national level lifters that I meet that I'm vegan. Questions like, how do you live? where do you get your protein from? how do you stay strong? so what can you eat?  That is definitely a topic for another entry. I am glad I am a vegan, I am glad that I changed. At this point in my life I wish I could've started earlier. Being vegetarian for 1.5 years and vegan for 2 months, I can say that I feel great. I am the strongest right now this second than I ever imagined possible. I've been to the American Open and National Championships. I have medals and plaques. All while being a plant based strength athlete. Now That my trip is done I can open my eyes, come back to the real world and continue to prove athletes that it is possible to become strong without killing animals.

Who is Coach Cano? by Josue Cano

Hello my name is Josue Cano, Coach Cano aka Captain.
I’ve been eating a plant based diet for more than 10 years now. Been a full time Olympic lifter
since March of 2008. I eat a plant based diet which means dedicating over 95% foods that come
from plants.

Olympic Weightlifting
I started Olympic Weightlifting in March of 2008. That’s when I decided to become a full time
Weightlifter. I was 31 years old then and 38 today.

My best results in competition are:
Snatch 105kg
Clean and jerk 138kg at 77kg body weight.

My all time best results in training are:
Snatch 110kg
Clean n jerk 145kg
Squat 210kg
Front squat 185kg

I continue to eat a plant based diet because of compassionate views I have towards animal welfare. Millions of animals continue to die in pain because we want to eat them for food. Their
 for our pleasure comes at their cost. Thankfully, today less people are eating less meat in the USA and more people are turning to plant based foods.

An overwhelming majority of lifters believe in eating animals or animal products in order to gain strength but science tells us that strength comes from training and less so from nutrition. It should be pretty obvious. If you train for strength you will get stronger. If you eat and you don’t train you won’t get stronger. Hopefully, people will see through our lifting that you can get very strong without killing.

The most frequently asked question I get is where do I get protein? The truth, there is protein in almost everything we eat. EVERYTHING!!!!! Personally, I don’t count or get caught up in how much protein I eat or for that matter how much fat or carbs. I’ve been eating like this for a long time and I trust that nature has blessed food to contain all the nutrients we need to continue to live and thrive. Therefore, I get protein from everything I eat. Sure some plant foods have more protein then others such as beans, certain breads, or broccoli for example. Because we are so physically active and use a lot of energy I eat enough calories and nutrients from plants to grow in strength. This I don’t worry about.

My future goals are to compete in 2016 at Masters World Weightlifting Championships in Germany, Masters Pan American Championships in Puerto Rico and Masters Nationals in Savannah Georgia and bring Gold Medals in all championships.

Going Vegetarian by Kevin Cornell

     Hello Kill Kilos Not Animals fans. I am extremely excited to have this well decorated athlete write a blog for me. Kevin Cornell has been a huge inspiration to me since his Cal Strength Days. What makes him even more noble is that he has switched to a vegetarian diet 4 months ago while continuing to train at a high level. I really hope you enjoy this piece he wrote for my Kill Kilos blog as much as I enjoyed reading it. Below is a little information about his accomplishments before you read his story.

2 Time Arnold Classic Champion

Pennsylvania State Record Holder

25th World Ranking

Top 8 Overall Ranked  2013-2014

2013-2014 Pan Am Team Alternate

    "Going vegetarian was somewhat a scary and unnatural feeling to me. I didn't really know what to expect, or didn't really know how to feel about it. I was somewhat afraid of people finding out about it. Almost as if I was turning into some sort of hippie or something like that.

     It was a lot different than I had expected when I first started out. You don't realize how much meat is in foods until you stop eating meat. Any fast food joint is completely out of the question and pizzas now turn into extra cheese only, where as before, it was supreme meat lovers. And you better bet your ass that you are that awkward friend eating only a salad while everyone else chows down on a nice juicy piece of steak or a loaded cheeseburger at your favorite restaurant.

     However, I am proud to say that I do not support the meat industry any longer as I have seen most of the atrocities that it commits to our beloved animals. I guess I could say that I was naive in thinking how bacon really got to your plate. Or how that juicy steak really ended up as your dinner.I almost felt like a narcissistic and extremely hypocritical when I realize that if I couldn't kill it myself, I shouldn't be eating it.

     Regardless of my personal believes, going vegetarian was a blessing in disguise. I started with not eating any meat, to trying different things I never thought that I would try before, such as, cottage cheese, meatless versions of everything, a more rice been and plant-based diet, and I even went as far as to cut off all milk with the exception of Almond, soy, and coconut milk.

     I eat way less fatty foods and plenty of greens throughout the day. My water intake has nearly tripled since cutting out all sugary drinks such as energy drinks, Gatorade, soda, and even the coffee creamer in my coffee is now either coconut oil, butter, or both.

     So I guess what I'm saying as I look back on my decision I made four months ago with my wife to go vegetarian is that I'm happy that I watched the Netflix documentary called cowspiracy, and I have to thank all who were involved in that documentary, because it really change the way I view not only my nutrition but the meat industry in general.

     I would never push my views and beliefs on someone else because I'm not much of a fan when people try to do that to me. But if you knock the vegetarian or vegan lifestyle, I would say try it first before you judge it.

     I'm also a big fan of promoting a healthy and pure lifestyle which I can now say that I'm doing almost 100%, and I hope that this blog can inspire someone else to do the same. And I want to put to rest the myth that if you want to be a world-class athlete you have to do, say, think, or even eat like somebody else. There are many different ways to get to the top, you just have to find what works best for you.

To follow my journey just followed me on Instagram @kevin__cornell"

Being A Plant Based Athlete by Dan Fisher

Here is a blog that a fellow vegan weightlifter wrote for Kill Kilos Not Animals! From here forward I am going to use this blog for a few things:

1. Express the crazy, random thoughts that go through my head

2. Shine the light on other vegetarian, vegan, or plant based athletes

3. Promote and change the idea that in order to be strong, you have to eat pounds and pounds of meat

4. Provide a place full of motivation and information for people who are interested in plant based diet

Please enjoy this piece written by Dan Fisher. A vegan weightlifter working hard to get to the next level!

I love being plant based! Disclaimer: I’m one of those health nut picky eaters that probably trigger you. All I’m saying is that if you put high quality air, water, and food into your body then you’re going to be healthy! I started seriously researching nutrition and human physiology when I was 18 and at the same time I began training for olympic weightlifting. I spent a lot of time in the library reading books about nutrition and olympic weightlifting technique. I arrived at two conclusions respectively. 

-A plant based diet is the way to go.

-Keep your shoulders over the bar.

        I am very blessed to have been coached by Joe Seth, who is in my humble and biased opinion the best coach in the USA. He coaches at Advanced Fitness & Performance an olympic weightlifting gym in Sarasota, Florida. I was 18 years old or so when I began training and Joe knew right off the bat that I was vegan. He was curious but really he didn’t care about my diet. His job was to turn me into a weightlifter. I can remember struggling to snatch the bar. These days I’m chasing a 100kg snatch, the holy grail for the amateur weightlifter. And I’d like to thank Joe for teaching me, believing in me, and coaching me. I couldn’t be where I’m at today without him and I’m getting quite emotional as I’m writing this because I haven’t connected with Joe in a while. 

        The most fascinating part about weightlifting is the variety of people involved in the sport and their unique lifestyles. Plant based athletes in general are a minority in the world, and even more so in olympic weightlifting, but they are growing in numbers very quickly. I am certain the future of all sport and people, in general, will be plant based. 

Let me make one thing absolutely clear before I ramble any further: there are MANY weightlifters out there who are stronger and more knowledgeable than me. And the fascinating part is that they are not plant based. I was just listening to a podcast by Jon North called weightlifting talk the episode was titled “Run Danny, Run” and in it Jon North talked about how he was smoking a pack a day and eating KFC for lunch every day with Donny Shankle while they were training for Nationals and both of them won 1st in their weight class.

 Respect where it’s due to America’s finest, but I’m in it for the long haul. I think it’s amazing that the human body can run on a diet of complete garbage and still be capable of generating incredible amounts of power. I would like to make gains, hit PR’s, and reach my peak natural potential in the sport of olympic weightlifting while still enjoying a long and healthy life. This is why I’m a plant based athlete. Because I can have the cake and eat it too.

 I used to volunteer at a hospital when I was in highschool, I would run all sorts of errands for the staff and interact with ill patients. I can tell you this for certain, being sick is not fun. Being plant based has not given me super powers by conventional standards, but for me, never getting sick is a super power. Three years and counting I haven’t been sick. Granted, even though I am young and healthy, I’m still actively investing in my future by being plant based. As I get older I do not want to spend time in hospitals, I know I would rather be in the gym snatching.