GOING VEGAN MYTH VS REALITY

Veganism divides opinion among cyclists, with fiery views on both sides. Sports nutritionist Anita Bean pours some cooling impartiality on the overheated debate

- Anita Bean

EATING A vegan diet has become increasingly popular over recent years. Within the cycling community, there are passionate proponents as well as diehard sceptics. Mention the ‘V’ word on social media and you’ll provoke a lively – if not inflammatory – debate about the merits and harms of a plant-only diet. Naysayers will be quick to cite a story of a rider who became unwell on a vegan diet before switching back to eating animal products. On the other side, vegans will extol the ethical, environmental, health and performance benefits. How to take a balanced view?

Admittedly, it’s hard not to be biased by your own food preferences. To declare my own position: I am a vegetarian and I recently published a vegan cookbook. This feature is not designed to persuade you for or against; my objective is to help cyclists thinking about going vegan to weigh up the pros and cons. A survey conducted by researchers at the University of Bath found that the three biggest perceived drawbacks putting people off going vegan are taste, price and convenience. In this feature, we dissect six common myths about going vegan and speak to pro riders who’ve made the switch.

‘A vegan diet does not provide all the nutrients that cyclists need’

This is perhaps the most common concern among cyclists considering a vegan diet. Many plant-based foods are lower in protein, or lacking complete proteins. But this isn’t an insurmountable problem. “With proper planning, cyclists on a vegan diet can easily get enough protein,” explains registered dietitian Azmina Govindji, author of Vegan Savvy. “The key is to include a wide variety of different sources throughout the day.”