American Football Player is "vegan"

[emzy1985]

American Football Player is "vegan"

Thoughts/opinions anyone?



http://online.wsj.com/article/SB120122116182915297.html?mod=loomia&loomia_si=t0:a16:g2:r1:c0.198021

[vava]

@ Emzy - from the article - Living solely on plant food, a combination of nuts, fruits, vegetables, grains and the like, has long been the fringe diet of young rebels and aging nonconformists.

hee hee guess which one I am?:)

[emzy1985]

A young rebel?;)

Why do they assume that you have to be one or the other? Why can't you just be a normal person.....oh wait YOU CAN! :D

[heat13]

That was a great article- it's nice to see more atheltes who want to take care of their bodies and health. I am shocked more of them don't eat better! Thanks for sharing that:)

[bryzee86]

shame about the "small amounts" of chicken and fish, and the fish oils he consumes as well though...

[heat13]

I know! It's all because people here in America are so biased toward the "traditional" meat and dairy diet. Even the government corrupts people into believing they "need" meat and dairy. It's so stupid- you can get all those "extra calories" they say athletes need from eating more nuts or avacados and the like.

[Fungus]

Good to show how you can get a lot of calories without meat ..
Theres quite a few other athletes out there on a vegan diet too, cant remember them right now but there is quite a few.

[Mahk]

Carl Lewis (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carl_Lewis) won 10 Olympic medals, 9 of them gold! I'm not sure of his diet now, but then he was a vegan and he credits his success to it.

"His lifetime accomplishments have led to numerous accolades, including being voted "Sportsman of the Century" by the International Olympic Committee and being named "Olympian of the Century" by the American sports magazine Sports Illustrated."

[Roxy]

I'm glad you put "vegan" in inverted commas Emzy. Whilst it's great to see they guy following a vegan diet, it's doubtful that he's actually a real vegan (and by that, I mean not using animal products as far as practically possible in all facets of his life). For example, I bet his football shoes aren't vegan.

Like I said though, it's great to see the good press that the vegan diet is getting :)

[emzy1985]

Well that's why I put the word vegan in inverted commas guys cuz I read the bit with chicken and fish oils etc. However it did have a section about the ultimate prize fighter and he is a "proper" vegan. That was interesting when we had a convo about it at work.

[John]

Almost. That must be a lot of pressure, surrounded by greedy people who have millions of dollars invested in your health and performance.

[Russell]

I'm really happy to see this article. The line questioning whether or not "a 6-5 man can be healthy"(paraphrased) with the diet really resonates, too. I'm 6'6 and when I went vegan my entire family flipped out on me, with the most common line being that "maybe this works for small women, but you're such a big guy. You need meat!" It got REALLY annoying and frustrated me to think that so many people would have me overlook my ethics just because I'm tall. Thankfully I've done really well on the diet and have kept most of my natural weight/muscle on. Glad to see something like this address a rather particular aspect of the vegan lifestyle.

[Sluggie]

It got REALLY annoying and frustrated me to think that so many people would have me overlook my ethics just because I'm tall.
I've had the same response because I have disabled children. "Oh but your life is so difficult already - why do you have to be a vegan as well?" As if having autistic children acquits you of the responsibility of having ethics. I guess when people cling to any excuse to carry on with their own selfish lifestyle, they can't understand why somebody else would ignore such a good excuse to be similarly selfish.

[heat13]

I've had the same response because I have disabled children. "Oh but your life is so difficult already - why do you have to be a vegan as well?" As if having autistic children acquits you of the responsibility of having ethics. I guess when people cling to any excuse to carry on with their own selfish lifestyle, they can't understand why somebody else would ignore such a good excuse to be similarly selfish.
that's great Sluggie! You are right- people just don't understand! Your children are so lucky to have a caring parent like you in their lives:)

[Sluggie]

Thanks Heat13. I only became vegan a couple of years ago, so didn't raise my kids that way. My daughter has always been veggie - she just didn't like meat or fish. I'd like to get her off cow's milk, but no luck so far. She's very stubborn about food. My son is omni, but only eats vegan food at home.

I hope you get your way with cooking for the guys in the house. From what I've seen of care homes in this country, the menu usually consists of rubbish like sausages and fries - cheap, quick to prepare, and largely devoid of nutrients. :(

[emzy1985]

My little (adopted) brother has mild autism, severe learning difficulties and a touch of ADHD aswell bless him. My mum has raised him vegetarian and the kid, despite all his problems, would soon throw food back at you if he thought it had animals in it! :D (My kinda kid!!!) Plus my mum is vegan and fosters kids with problems so these people with excuses can kiss her ass!

[Sluggie]

She sounds awesome Emzy. :)

[heat13]

My little (adopted) brother has mild autism, severe learning difficulties and a touch of ADHD aswell bless him. My mum has raised him vegetarian and the kid, despite all his problems, would soon throw food back at you if he thought it had animals in it! :D (My kinda kid!!!) Plus my mum is vegan and fosters kids with problems so these people with excuses can kiss her ass!
That's awesome! The world needs more people like your mom:) I would think that the diet plays a huge role in their condition... It seems like if they eat better, they will feel better!