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VEGGIE POWER

A well-chosen vegetarian or vegan diet can support optimal sports performance. However, this type of diet takes careful planning to ensure that you are getting all the essential nutrients that your body requires. It is important to include a variety of foods from all the food groups so that you get enough energy, protein, fibre, vitamins and minerals. By excluding animal products you will need to find alternative sources of protein, iron and vitamin B12, and without dairy products your calcium intake may not be optimal.


Nutritional tips for vegetarian athletes
1) Be sure to eat a variety of food choices including protein-rich and carbohydrate-rich foods at each meal.
Vegetarian sources of protein include:
Pulses (e.g. cannelini beans, kidney beans, butter beans, chickpeas, baked beans, split peas, lentils, sprouts), soya products (e.g. mince, milk, yoghurt, burgers, sausages, tofu), and dairy products (e.g. milk, yoghurt, cheese, maas).
2) Iron is essential for the formation of red blood cells and the transport of oxygen around the body. If you are not getting enough iron you can become anaemic and feel very fatigued. Red meat is particularly high in iron, so you will need to find alternative sources: E.g. wholegrains, legumes/ pulses, nuts and seeds, dried fruit, iron-enriched breakfast cereals, dark green leafy vegetables, eggs. Iron from plant sources is not as easily absorbed as it is from animal sources. You can enhance the absorption by consuming foods or drinks rich in vitamin C with these foods (e.g. orange juice, tomatoes, green peppers, cabbage, broccoli, guavas, strawberries). Tannins in tea can also reduce absorption, so rather have tea between meals.
3) Vitamin B12 is only found in animal products, eggs, milk, yeast extract, or fortified foods such as cereals, so strict vegetarians or vegans who do not eat any animal products will need a supplement of B12, or should regularly eat fortified sources such as Marmite, textured vegetable protein, soya milk, tofu, breakfast cereals fortified with vitamin B12, vegetable stocks.
4) If you include 2-3 servings daily of dairy in your diet you are probably meeting your body’s calcium requirements. If you use soya milk be sure to use a calcium-fortified option (with at least 100mg of calcium per 100ml) as many soya milks are low in calcium. Other sources of calcium include soya yoghurt, bread, legumes/pulses, dark green leafy vegetables (spinach, broccoli), dried fruit (particularly apricots), nuts and seeds.

Cooking tips
- Replace mince in dishes with lentils or textured vegetable protein e.g. lasagna.
- Tofu is a great alternative for chicken in most recipes. Marinade your tofu in soy sauce, plum sauce, sweet chili sauce and garlic prior to cooking to give it some flavour.
- Use vegetable stock in place of chicken or meat stock in dishes.
- Canned lentils, kidney beans, chickpeas and three bean mixes are suitable to use as convenient alternatives to dried options.

Rowena Curr writes from Kings Park Sports Medicine in Natal and can be contacted on (031) 3086276 / Cell: 082 4257234 or
Email: rcurr@energi.co.za