There’s the sniff test. A large percentage male vegan influencers look pale and sickly. (I’m not going to name names, but if you follow the space at all, you’ll know who I’m talking about, because it could refer to so very many of them.) Of course, you can build muscle and be fit as a vegan, but it is much harder, and we know that muscle mass is a significant predictor of all sorts of positive health outcomes.
I do not “follow the space” of male vegan influencers, so I cannot judge it. However, I would like to ask for a comment on what vegan strongman Patrik Baboumian, “face of a campaign by the animal rights organization PETA”, said in an interview (Google translation):
He had long since become a figurehead of the vegetarian movement. He felt the pressure: “I was afraid of failure if I also eliminated dairy products. They were the most important source of protein for me as a vegetarian strength athlete.”
But things turned out differently. As a vegan, Baboumian suddenly had to eat even less, he says, “because my metabolism became more efficient.” Animal protein acidifies the metabolism because it is rich in sulfur-containing amino acids, “and when these are metabolized, a lot of acid is produced.”
With plant proteins, things were different: “My acid-base balance was suddenly balanced, and that had a very positive effect. For example, all the inflammatory processes that automatically arise during strenuous exercise healed much better. So I was able to train more effectively with less protein and fewer calories.”
I really don’t know how to evaluate this claim, and I mostly just want to see logs (of his lifts, intake) backing it up.
I’m also curious to know how much lactase he produces (the majority of humans are some degree of lactose intolerant, which can lead to some of the effects he described, especially at high volume of ingestion, but via a different mechanism than ‘sulfur’).
I also think ‘one guy can do it, actually’ isn’t much evidence here; there are lots of genetic freaks wandering around, including a sedentary friend of mine with a six pack who only ever consumes beer (10+ per day) and pastries.
I do not “follow the space” of male vegan influencers, so I cannot judge it. However, I would like to ask for a comment on what vegan strongman Patrik Baboumian, “face of a campaign by the animal rights organization PETA”, said in an interview (Google translation):
I really don’t know how to evaluate this claim, and I mostly just want to see logs (of his lifts, intake) backing it up.
I’m also curious to know how much lactase he produces (the majority of humans are some degree of lactose intolerant, which can lead to some of the effects he described, especially at high volume of ingestion, but via a different mechanism than ‘sulfur’).
I also think ‘one guy can do it, actually’ isn’t much evidence here; there are lots of genetic freaks wandering around, including a sedentary friend of mine with a six pack who only ever consumes beer (10+ per day) and pastries.