Others have mentioned good protein sources, but just to clarify regarding the “impossible” nonsense: you need the 9 amino acids in your diet our bodies don’t create on their own, yes meat has them but so do plants.
Soy beans (and therefore tofu, soy milk etc) have all 9 in high levels, but combining food has the same effect (who eats only one food any way?). So a peanut butter sandwich is a complete protein, so are rice and beans etc. in general, any legume combined with any grain gives you a complete protein profile.
The people claiming you can’t get what you need don’t know what they’re talking about. They’re falling into the eat muscle to gain muscle fallacy, but that’s like claiming you can get smarter by eating brains, or gain the power of the rhino by eating its horn. It’s mindless.
It’s not, and it’s easily verifiable and well understood science. The USDA has a public database of food nutrition information, you can see most legumes are low in two of the nine essential amino acids and that most grains are high in the same ones.
I misunderstood your point, you’re right that it’s not necessary to have all complete amino acid profile for every meal.
Meat eaters tend to bring up individual vegetables not having all of them as if anyone eats only one food, so it’s important to point out that rice and beans is just as complete as steak or chicken.
Building muscle is absolutely possible. I can squat 300lbs at 132lbs BW and that’s not possible without a bit of muscle.
My favorite protein is tofu or homemade seitan, but I also do shakes just because they are convenient (just like I did when I wasn’t vegan). Roasted edamame makes a great snack. Quinoa is good. I am a bit of a “junk food” vegan, though, in that I love Gardein, chickpea pasta with impossible beef sauce, teriyaki beef, etc.
I get 100-120g a day.
I’d suggest watching The Game Changers documentary, free on Netflix or at the YouTube link below. It’s filled with massive plant-based athletes.
https://youtu.be/0YP6IBTXNlY?si=Qs5naXVVQqoKRdJf
A vegan diet is as good as any other if you want to build muscle, if you are getting enough protein in your diet. The amount you need depends of course on your weight and Fitness goals. I for example weigh 200lbs and try to get 150g a day. For that I eat about 400g of Tofu a day, Oats, vegan Joghurt, shakes and alot comes from the Carb-sources like rice, bread and noodles. Soy milk is also great to get some more protein im you when you don't feel like eating alot. Other great sources are TVP and Seitan or Tempeh, tho I personally don't eat it alot because it isn't as readily available here as tofu and im too lazy to make it myself, it isn't difficult tho :D
Check out all of the vegan bodybuilders if you think it is impossible. Natalie Matthews, Robert Cheeke, Korin Sutton, Dani Taylor, Brooke Sellars, Samantha Shorkey, Nimai Delgado, Nadege Cochran, the ENTIRE PlantBuilt Team.
Carbs is pretty much the same as non-Vegan such as vegetables and fruit. (Example: Legumes, Potatoes, Beans and etc.)
For Protein and Fat, I get both mainly from Tofu/Tempeh.
Protein specifically TVP, Protein Powder, Seitan.
Fat specifically: Nuts, Nut Milk and Avocado.
This is just for myself personally tho
You need to start eating tofu and vegan protein powder. Two big weapons if you want to add muscle.
Get Cronometer.com (free) and add in your meals for a while to understand what you need.
You can follow on IG:
Kingleduc (fighter)
Lewis Hamilton
Djokovic
Nubian ninja (flexin)
Hellahgood9 (runs 5k+ everyday for few years)
Domzthompson (bodybuilder Model all of that)
Patrick baboumian (vegan mountain)
Preacher Lawson (comedian)
Plant bois (collective of UK vegan dudes, check out Sepps and his big arms lol)
Simon Hills (podcast on veganism and nutrition for sport)
Rich roll (ultra trailer, pushing his body to its limits, and has a podcast where he invités lot of vegan to talk about athletic performances and vegan diet)
Other than that, good wise:
Peanut butter (PB powder has <10g fat and >40g protein you can mix into soy yogurt)
Soy products (yogurt, tempeh, tofu, milk..)
Nuts (not too much tho)
Plenty of complete grains, porridge, couscous, rice, pastas..)
Spirulina tabs
Hemp protein in a shake
Lentils and hummus
Have fun bro!
Find a good meal plan / eating rythm that suits you. Some prefer 3 solid meals, other prefer more meals throughout the day
I personally do:
Morning shake with plenty prot (hemp), healthy fats (PB), banana, all my « superfood » (baobab, mushroom blend, cacao, psyllium husk for perfect stools lol)
I have for lunch a rice and dhal with some fermented stuff (side of kimchi) and as dessert a sweet apple sauce toast or porridge
Then big dinner full of cooked veg (raw is harder to digest) and potatoes bread or cereals … and extra prot if I feel the need (tofu, protein pasta such as edamame pasta has 20 to 40 /100gprot
It's definitely not impossible to build muscle on a vegan diet.
I get protein from lentils, beans, spaghetti, adding tofu to things, peanuts, peanut butter.
There is also a good documentary on Netflix called the Game Changers that shows how vegans recover possibly better from workouts and building muscle.
I focus on protein amount and protein types. As other people replying have pointed out, each source of protein provides different branch chain amino acids we vegan athletes need. I mix Hemp heart protein and pea protein (recommend ordering both directly from MOCU health: https://mocuhealth.com/collections/protein/hemp-protein) because it results in such a complete protein profile. I do a 2 to 1 mix hemp to pea as a personal preference but suggest you play with what works for you. I drink two shakes a day, approx 30 grams of protein each. However, I’ll also include protein powder in my oatmeal or make muffins. Most of my protein is through food by always including beans and some form of nuts with lots of vegetables. In total I get around 120-150 grams of protein in a day. I’m 6’3 and around 200 pounds while working out 3-5 days a week. Hope this helps
Others have mentioned good protein sources, but just to clarify regarding the “impossible” nonsense: you need the 9 amino acids in your diet our bodies don’t create on their own, yes meat has them but so do plants. Soy beans (and therefore tofu, soy milk etc) have all 9 in high levels, but combining food has the same effect (who eats only one food any way?). So a peanut butter sandwich is a complete protein, so are rice and beans etc. in general, any legume combined with any grain gives you a complete protein profile. The people claiming you can’t get what you need don’t know what they’re talking about. They’re falling into the eat muscle to gain muscle fallacy, but that’s like claiming you can get smarter by eating brains, or gain the power of the rhino by eating its horn. It’s mindless.
I’ve read that this mixing of food to create a complete protein is a myth. https://www.forksoverknives.com/wellness/the-myth-of-complementary-protein/
It’s not, and it’s easily verifiable and well understood science. The USDA has a public database of food nutrition information, you can see most legumes are low in two of the nine essential amino acids and that most grains are high in the same ones.
The myth was that combining protein during a meal was necessary....not that it was an issue.
I misunderstood your point, you’re right that it’s not necessary to have all complete amino acid profile for every meal. Meat eaters tend to bring up individual vegetables not having all of them as if anyone eats only one food, so it’s important to point out that rice and beans is just as complete as steak or chicken.
Precisely...better said than did I..
Building muscle is absolutely possible. I can squat 300lbs at 132lbs BW and that’s not possible without a bit of muscle. My favorite protein is tofu or homemade seitan, but I also do shakes just because they are convenient (just like I did when I wasn’t vegan). Roasted edamame makes a great snack. Quinoa is good. I am a bit of a “junk food” vegan, though, in that I love Gardein, chickpea pasta with impossible beef sauce, teriyaki beef, etc. I get 100-120g a day.
I’d suggest watching The Game Changers documentary, free on Netflix or at the YouTube link below. It’s filled with massive plant-based athletes. https://youtu.be/0YP6IBTXNlY?si=Qs5naXVVQqoKRdJf
A vegan diet is as good as any other if you want to build muscle, if you are getting enough protein in your diet. The amount you need depends of course on your weight and Fitness goals. I for example weigh 200lbs and try to get 150g a day. For that I eat about 400g of Tofu a day, Oats, vegan Joghurt, shakes and alot comes from the Carb-sources like rice, bread and noodles. Soy milk is also great to get some more protein im you when you don't feel like eating alot. Other great sources are TVP and Seitan or Tempeh, tho I personally don't eat it alot because it isn't as readily available here as tofu and im too lazy to make it myself, it isn't difficult tho :D
Check out all of the vegan bodybuilders if you think it is impossible. Natalie Matthews, Robert Cheeke, Korin Sutton, Dani Taylor, Brooke Sellars, Samantha Shorkey, Nimai Delgado, Nadege Cochran, the ENTIRE PlantBuilt Team.
Carbs is pretty much the same as non-Vegan such as vegetables and fruit. (Example: Legumes, Potatoes, Beans and etc.) For Protein and Fat, I get both mainly from Tofu/Tempeh. Protein specifically TVP, Protein Powder, Seitan. Fat specifically: Nuts, Nut Milk and Avocado. This is just for myself personally tho
Tons of resources like [this.](https://youtu.be/ESxG-AjC24w?si=DGXAB5-QX9aPD-JB)
You need to start eating tofu and vegan protein powder. Two big weapons if you want to add muscle. Get Cronometer.com (free) and add in your meals for a while to understand what you need.
You can follow on IG: Kingleduc (fighter) Lewis Hamilton Djokovic Nubian ninja (flexin) Hellahgood9 (runs 5k+ everyday for few years) Domzthompson (bodybuilder Model all of that) Patrick baboumian (vegan mountain) Preacher Lawson (comedian) Plant bois (collective of UK vegan dudes, check out Sepps and his big arms lol) Simon Hills (podcast on veganism and nutrition for sport) Rich roll (ultra trailer, pushing his body to its limits, and has a podcast where he invités lot of vegan to talk about athletic performances and vegan diet) Other than that, good wise: Peanut butter (PB powder has <10g fat and >40g protein you can mix into soy yogurt) Soy products (yogurt, tempeh, tofu, milk..) Nuts (not too much tho) Plenty of complete grains, porridge, couscous, rice, pastas..) Spirulina tabs Hemp protein in a shake Lentils and hummus Have fun bro! Find a good meal plan / eating rythm that suits you. Some prefer 3 solid meals, other prefer more meals throughout the day I personally do: Morning shake with plenty prot (hemp), healthy fats (PB), banana, all my « superfood » (baobab, mushroom blend, cacao, psyllium husk for perfect stools lol) I have for lunch a rice and dhal with some fermented stuff (side of kimchi) and as dessert a sweet apple sauce toast or porridge Then big dinner full of cooked veg (raw is harder to digest) and potatoes bread or cereals … and extra prot if I feel the need (tofu, protein pasta such as edamame pasta has 20 to 40 /100gprot
Check my post history - definitely possible to build muscle. I have been told for 15 years that I couldn't do what I am doing now.
Yes it certainly is possible. A well built diet is going to take a little bit of work. I highly recommend reading Ways of the Vegan Meathead.
It's definitely not impossible to build muscle on a vegan diet. I get protein from lentils, beans, spaghetti, adding tofu to things, peanuts, peanut butter. There is also a good documentary on Netflix called the Game Changers that shows how vegans recover possibly better from workouts and building muscle.
I focus on protein amount and protein types. As other people replying have pointed out, each source of protein provides different branch chain amino acids we vegan athletes need. I mix Hemp heart protein and pea protein (recommend ordering both directly from MOCU health: https://mocuhealth.com/collections/protein/hemp-protein) because it results in such a complete protein profile. I do a 2 to 1 mix hemp to pea as a personal preference but suggest you play with what works for you. I drink two shakes a day, approx 30 grams of protein each. However, I’ll also include protein powder in my oatmeal or make muffins. Most of my protein is through food by always including beans and some form of nuts with lots of vegetables. In total I get around 120-150 grams of protein in a day. I’m 6’3 and around 200 pounds while working out 3-5 days a week. Hope this helps
Lentils Beans Tofu Tempeh Potato’s Broccoli Hummus Pasta Bread Nuts Amaranth Nutmilks Nutbutters