Can vegan diet fuel an athlete? He says yes

Arizona Daily Star | Opinion

Interesting that this is an opinion, because the writer's opinion really only comes in at the end, and it isn't really all that editorial. The bulk of the piece is a look at Bradley Saul, a former pro cyclist and founder of Organic Athlete. Saul is a raw foodist (though he will eat some brown rice in a pinch, according to the article), and Jennifer Duffy devotes substantial space to debunking the whole protein myth:

"Where don't you get protein if you're eating whole foods?" said Saul, who started Organic Athlete when he was living in Tucson in 2003 and now resides in California.

"Human mother's milk has only 5 to 6 percent of its calories from protein. And that's for babies growing at a much more rapid rate than we are. We get enough protein if we eat whole foods, fruits and vegetables." He eats nuts and seeds in small amounts because they're high in fat.

Fruits and vegetables have a bit of protein per calorie — some more than others — so as long as you're eating whole foods, you can't not get enough protein, Saul says. These foods aren't as high in protein as meat, of course, but that protein is more difficult to digest, according to Saul.

But this guy isn't just munching on heads of lettuce and lounging on the couch — he's an athlete.

Doesn't he need supplements or a chicken breast once in awhile?

Nope.

He doesn't use supplements when he races, and when he recently ran a marathon he just ate dates for fuel during the 26.2-mile race. "I was fine."

But the writer, a vegetarian herself, can't resist a glib ending that undercuts everything she just wrote about:

Saul's principles of eating lots of fruit and veggies appeal to me — but I'm not giving up my organic tofu any time soon. What I am going to glean from his purist lifestyle is a focus on organic produce, locally grown foods and choosing nutrient-rich fruits and vegetables over processed snacks.

Can't say that I disagree with here in spirit here. I'm not going raw any time soon, though I do try to eat more raw produce than ever. I don't really care too much about whether I eat all that much tofu for the rest of my life, though, as I consider it more of a convenience food than a necessity.

It's just that this ending reminds me of meat-eaters admiring vegans, then saying "The conscious diet of vegans appeals to me, but I'm not giving up my free-range beef any time soon. What I am going to glean... etc., etc., etc."

Tags: vegan | raw foods | living foods | vegan athlete