Are any of you vegetarians?

[sarahlou]

I didn't see a thread on this and I am curious. Are any of you vegetarians? Is it possible to follow a vegetarian lifestyle and compete? or is this an oxymoron?

If you do follow a vegetarian lifestyle I would be curious to know what your protein sources are. I have heard that tofu and beans are incomplete proteins so what should a vegetarian eat for protein?

[Erik]

Hopefully Jess/Pandora sees this. She's a vegetarian and has been successful.

[Pandora]

Yup. I am. I'm vegan, actually... so yeah, very vegetarian. I eat tofu, beans, tempeh, seitan, legumes, rice protein powder, hemp protein powder just to name a few of my protein sources. Even as a vegan I can very easily get 150g protein in a day if I want to (and not all from soy). However, I do not eat a ton of protein and I have no problem building or maintaining muscle, so experiment with it.

Veganbodybuilding.com and veganfitness.net are two good places for info. Being vegetarian or vegan and competing are perfectly compatible.

As far as beans and tofu not being completes proteins- meh. Tofu is a perfectly fine protein. Beans used to be said only to be complete when added to another protein, but most people do not follow that anymore. I personally do not feel it is necessary.

If you are vegetarian and not vegan you have other great sources of protein available to you such as eggs and some dairy sources.

[sarahlou]

WOw! Thanks! This is what I wanted to know so you can be vegan and develop a strong physique! Everyone has been telling me that this is a bad move on my part (going vegan) and I was concerned. I didn't know about the two websites so I really appreciate that!