The Truth About Being A Fit Vegan

Vegans are a very intelligent, thoughtful and critical group. Sometimes a little bit too critical for their own good.

With the smartest of my fit vegan clients (and even some youtube comments) I often encounter the following discussion:

“Why should I even care about fitness and my appearance? This is so shallow.”

But is this actually correct? Is being a fit vegan and improving your shape a selfish choice? This is a question that also dazzled me for quite a period of time.

So if you just give me a couple minutes of your time. I’m going to explain you the truth of getting in your best shape of your life – as a vegan. Let’s just jump right into it.

Over the last 6 years of working in the fitness industry I must say that yes, a lot of people are creating their bodies by harnessing their ‘dark side’.

Certainly did I.

About 8 years ago I was sick of my current situation. Sick of not being in control of my own body. Sick of having no energy.

Back then I was a gamer, a loner. I was spending my days gaming Metin2, drinking 5 or so energy drinks a day sometimes.

My life satisfaction was close to a 0%. I just knew I could do better.

And originally, this was the drive that fuelled me.

Over time I realized though, that being fit is a positive amplifier. It’ll improve every single aspect of your life.

Nowadays I can’t imagine a life without being a fit version of myself.

I love this vegan lifestyle. If someone would offer me $1,000,000 to go back to my old lifestyle for 5 years I’d decline. No thanks.

Here’s why:

As a fit vegan you will enjoy:

  • Improved confidence
  • Better self worth
  • A sense of self mastery, knowing that you live up to your potential
  • More energy
  • Perfect fitting clothes
  • Mental resilience to deal with the daily stressors of work & life
  • Decreased disease risk

But if you do not want to become fit for your selfish reasons, consider doing it for the animals:

See in psychology there’s such a thing as the ‘Halo effect’. Meaning: ‘Thing X’ gets associated with ‘Thing Y’, even though these two things might be completely uncorrelated.

Meaning: If we’re bad examples as a person, people will think it’s because of veganism. If we do not get our stuff together, people will think it’s because of veganism.

On the contrary: If we live awesome lives full of joy with great relationships, a great body and confidence. People will think it’s because of veganism.

Become a vegan role model:

This is especially important because change is extremely hard for most people. We have an ingrained mechanism, called a status quo bias or the Semmelweis reflex, that makes it really hard to accept an opinion that is different to our own.

For that reason we as vegans need to become better versions of ourselves. So the best, less selfish reasons for becoming fit are:

  • Being a great example for veganism
  • Being a positive role model
  • Representing a positive movement with a positive body
  • Showing people what vegans are capable of

Conclusion – The Truth About Being A Fit Vegan:

Being vegan and strong is good and the right thing to do.

Being a vegan athlete is good and the right thing to do.

Joining the vegan fitfam is the right thing to do.

Let’s be real here. There’s almost 0 justification for not optimizing your health and fitness to a level that you feel comfortable with.

Your body is the only vehicle that you’ll have for your entire life time. So it would make sense to fuel it properly and do regular maintenance work. Especially if you’re a vegan.

I think as vegans we have an obligation to refute the stereotype of weak and skinny. We should walk in a room confident, well put together. People should ask themselves: Is it true? That guy is vegan? No, that can’t be.

So today, do a good thing for yourself AND the vegan movement by getting in the best vegan shape of your life.