Mixed
Plant-based diets (vegetarian or vegan) do not provide advantages for strength, anaerobic, or aerobic exercise performance compared to omnivorous diets, though they are viable for supporting athletic performance.
You do not need to eat meat to perform at a high level. Current research indicates that vegetarian and vegan diets support strength, anaerobic, and aerobic performance equally well to omnivorous diets, provided you consume enough total protein and variety. Focus on getting adequate calories and protein from diverse plant sources to match your training demands.
Based on currently available literature, it is unlikely that plant-based diets provide advantages, but do not suffer from disadvantages, compared to omnivorous diets for strength, anaerobic, or aerobic exercise performance.
Why this rating
The paper is a review of sparse literature, noting that most studies show no difference but highlighting a lack of high-level elite athlete data.
Source
Plant-Based Diets: Considerations for Environmental Impact, Protein Quality, and Exercise Performance
Heidi Lynch et al. · Nutrients · 2018
DOI 10.3390/nu10121841
More from this paper
- Plant-based diets significantly reduce the risk of chronic diseases (cardiovascular disease, type 2 diabetes, certain cancers) and have a lower environmental impact (greenhouse gas emissions, land/water use) compared to meat-containing diets.Good
- Vegetarians may have lower muscle creatine and carnosine levels, but this does not negatively impact performance; however, vegetarians may respond more robustly to creatine supplementation.Moderate
Related findings · Mixed
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This is one finding among thousands. Every one is graded and traced to its source, so you can see what the evidence actually supports. Browse the research →