I have included these two dietary regimens together even though macrobiotic diets often allow animal foods, mainly fish. Many macrobiotic dieters are vegans too. Vegan diets allow no animal products at all, even eggs. Macrobiotic practitioners include a high proportion of whole grains, particularly brown rice, and have a particular requirement for preparing foods according to principles handed down over many years and originating in Japan.
What can go wrong with vegan diets?
Protein. Generally speaking most vegan and macrobiotic diets are relatively low in protein, perhaps in the range 10-12 percent of total energy. This is because meat, dairy and egg consumption restrictions limit the total protein consumed in favor of beans and nuts, perhaps fish, and grains and vegetables, which provide smaller quantities. Weight training on a vegan diet is not impossible, but attention must be paid to sufficient protein and sufficient energy, particularly if bodybuilding is your goal. For sport in general, there are many fine examples of world class sportspeople who followed vegan diets. Dave Scott, the world’s best triathlete in his era and multiple Hawaii Ironman race winner was a very successful vegan athlete.
Dave Scott was a great believer in copious nut consumption for vegan athletes. Nuts supply some protein and also provide essential fats like omega-3 fats, particularly walnuts. In addition they supply energy which is often lacking in vegan athletes doing extreme training. Vegan bodybuilders and weight trainers should attempt to get their protein percentage up around the 20 percent mark or at the 1.5 to 2 grams/kilogram bodyweight per day intake.
Creatine. Creatine is a constituent of meat and creatine is also a useful bodybuilding supplement with applications in power sports for building body bulk and enabling high-intensity training. Vegan diets are very low in creatine. Vegan creatine supplements may be available from some sources. Ask suppliers about the origins of their creatine if this supplement interests you.
Carbohydrates. Vegan diets are usually high in carbohydrate, in the range 65-75 percent, and high in fiber. As noted above in the section on very low-fat diets, athletes who need to consume large quantities of food to fuel their exercise habits may not find high-fiber diets easy to manage. To consume 3000-4000 calories a day some simple sugars and refined carbohydrate foods may be required, especially in the post-exercise recovery meal. If you're attempting to lose weight, don't go overboard with the refined sugars and breads though.
Vitamins and minerals. Vegans are frequently deficient in calcium, iron, zinc, vitamin D and vitamin B12 measured against recommended dietary intakes (RDI). Calcium is available in green leafy vegetables and nuts and beans, and yet vitamin D can be an issue for bone health and vegans should deliberately seek sufficient sunshine exposure to enhance vitamin D absorption. Iron and zinc are not absorbed as efficiently from plant foods as from animal foods so vegan exercisers and weight trainers need to ensure sufficient intake.
Fortified foods such as breakfast cereals and soy milk and specially formulated vegan foods can ensure sufficient intake of these vitamins and minerals. A quality multivitamin supplement is a simple way of solving potential deficiencies for vegans. Vegans who follow a raw food diet are likely to be more susceptible to such vitamin and mineral deficiencies. (See more on raw food diets below.)
Essential fats. See the section on Very Low-Fat diets above. Similar cautions apply to vegan diets. The regular consumption of nuts may provide some assurance that possible deficiencies are averted.
Summing up, vegan diets can be constructed adequately for athletes as many have proven. However, attention to detail is required for total energy, essential fats, protein, iron, calcium, zinc and B12. Vegan diets may not be optimal for weight trainers wishing to bulk up.
