Surely, being a vegan and an athlete is the ideal combo. In fact, since eating healthy comes as an important key in maintaining impressive athletic performance, it’s easy to say that following a vegan diet can help keep an athlete in good shape.
From reduced body fat to providing more antioxidants to improved blood viscosity, there are ton of health benefits linked to a plant-based vegan diet. Sure, while the lack of enough protein might seem to be a major setback for people engaging in the sports world, there remains to be a number of athletes that have whole-heartedly embraced the vegan lifestyle.
Here, we have compiled the most popular vegan athletes that could inspire you to take the same path as them. Get to know each one of them and decide for yourself whether it’s time to ditch meat for a greener lifestyle. Read on.
Top Vegan Athletes that Might Inspire You
Venus Williams — Tennis
First on our list is the American professional tennis player, Venus Williams. Widely regarded to be among the all-time greats of women’s tennis, Williams takes pride in her seven Grand Slam singles titles, 14 Grand Slam Women’s doubles titles, five Wimbledon women’s singles titles, and four Olympic gold medals.
The tennis star started a vegan diet back in 2011 when she was diagnosed with Sjögren’s syndrome. To date, she still maintains the same lifestyle, saying the said diet greatly helps her maintain her performance on the court.
Kyrie Irving — Basketball
Yes, you’ve read that right. Professional basketball player Kyrie Irving is a loud and proud vegan. According to an article from Business Insider, the Boston Celtics guard started adopting a vegan diet at the beginning of the 2017 after watching the Netflix documentary “What The Health.”
Jermain Defoe — Soccer
Next on our list the professional footballer Jermain Defoe, who currently holds the position as the eighth-highest goalscorer in Premier League history, and the sixth in in Tottenham’s. In 2018, when Defoe came back to the field, he mentioned his vegan diet as among the contributors to his comeback.
However, rather than following a “plant-based” diet, the soccer player adopted a vegetarian life, admitting he enjoys a few fish meals from time to time.
Barny du Plessis — Bodybuilding
Surprised? While it’s true that following a plant-based vegan diet offers minimal protein, it still didn’t stop Barny du Plessis from embracing such lifestyle. In fact, in 2013, du Plessis became the world’s first bodybuilder who is vegan.
After quitting the sport, he even later snatched the Mr. Universe title in 2014, thanks to his impressive body.
Kendrick Yahcob Farris — Weightlifting
Another shocker in our list is Kendrick Yahcob Farris. Similar to du Plessis, Farris is just another testament as to how athletes can switch to a vegan diet with compromising their performance. The young weightlifter from Louisiana served as Team USA’s only male weightlifter at the 2016 Rio Olympics.
According to him, he started to embrace the vegan life due to religious reasons.
The Bottom Line
Impressed about our list of vegan athletes? Who among them are you most familiar with? Whether you’re a sports enthusiast or a professional athlete, checking out similar stories such as these might inspire you to adopt a greener lifestyle sooner than expected!