"The Vegetarian Bodybuilder"
Bill Pearl
Never heard of a famous vegetarian bodybuilder? Bill Pearl is probably the most well-known of vegetarian bodybuilders. At his own peak as a bodybuilder when he last won the Mr. Universe in 1971, Bill weighed 242 pounds at a height of 5'10" and his arms measured 21 inches! Bill stopped using steroids by 1961.
He won the professional Mr. Universe title in 1971, at the age of 41, without the use of steroids and as a vegetarian, and is recognized as one of the all-time greats of bodybuilding. Bill's diet is lacto-ovo vegetarian, which means he eats eggs and dairy products.
He describes his experiences with the conversion to vegetarianism. "With each succeeding year the diet (lacto-ovo vegetarian), I've felt better. I'm more healthy, I can train with more energy, and I'm not as much of a "hard guy" as I used to be. I've become more concerned with my fellow man and the other inhabitants I share the planet with. …I have now been vegetarian for almost 20 years. We have no fish, fowl, or red meat in our diet. Yet I can still carry the same amount of muscle as I did in winning my four Mr. Universe titles. People can't believe it. They think that to have big muscles you have to eat meat - it's a persistent and recurring myth. But take it from me, there's nothing magic about eating meat that's going to make you a champion bodybuilder. Anything you can find in a piece of meat, you can find in other foods as well."
Roy Hilligenn was also a vegetarian, though I’m not sure if he was a vegan. From what I read about him in MuscleMag, he lets his fellow bodybuilders and critics have it, when they got on his case for not eating meat. Hiligen say that he was just as strong as, if not stronger than, they were.
gcb, there's a difference between eating meat and eating nothing but meat. If someone's got ulcerative colitis or treacherous bowels then yes, they should limit or even completely avoid red meat. But for people that are healthy, active and have no serious medical concerns they should educate themselves to great depths before making such a drastic decision. Despite what hippies ramble about such as eating different foods to make complete proteins, and only eating twigs and bark mulch, it's just wishful thinking. They can have their rabbit food and kumbayas, and I'll have my delicious, nutritious animal flesh.
Not all vegans are hippies. As you stated, for health reasons, many people dropped their red meat consumption. Usually, it's a gradual transition. They go from being meat-eaters to vegetarians. Later, they go from being vegetarians to vegans.
As long as your body gets the amino acids it needs (in both quality and quantity) you will get bigger and stronger. The problem is that most people don’t know how to balance their diet. Yes, you have to know which veggie/veggie-grain combos make complete proteins. And, you have down enough of that to meet your needs.
The reason some vegans looks so gangly is because they think that they’re eating right, simply by avoiding the consumption of meat or any other animal products. Just because you don’t eat mean doesn’t mean you’re eating healthy.
This is especially true, as it relates to getting enough B-12. Unless you eat organic veggies (and even that may not be enough, especially given the price), you MUST take B-12 supplements. You won’t get it from your standard veggies or grains, because the way those foods are processed, prior to going to market, kills the bacteria that makes this critical nutrient. Animals don’t eat processed veggies or grass, which is why their flesh is loaded with B-12.
