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Bodybuilding vegetarian diet pros and cons
Posted by: Ron
The media is very adamant about reducing animal protein and eating mainly a grain and vegetable based diet. There are both pros and cons to essentially eating like a vegetarian.
Downsides of being a vegetarian
The problems start when you become a vegetarian for an extended period of time. Months or even years. I’ve helped many vegetarians who were distraught with the way they felt and started to look after eating like a vegetarian for years. Some had a very pale complexion, others had their hair starting to fall out (in chunks.) Many of them would confess that their libido was next to nothing and they literally felt like doing nothing. They had no energy. Most of them were overweight too.
It was puzzling to them that if this is the “healthiest” way to eat, why they felt and looked so unhealthy.
I explained to them that eliminating animal products from their diets for an extended period affects their glands and their hormonal systems. Once your hormones get out of balance, it could take a long time to get them back to normal. The longer they’re out of balance, the longer and more difficult it is to bring them back into balance. Even the Dali Lama had health issues because he is vegetarian. He now eats red meat every once in a while yet limits its intake. We are meant to eat meat for optimal health. I could go on and on about why long term “vegetarianism” is unhealthy so I might make a full article about it.
Now let’s examine the other side.
There are benefits of removing meat from your diet, as long as it’s SHORT TERM. By short term, I mean a few days to a couple of weeks max, just to give your digestive system a little break, especially if you’ve been eating processed foods for an extended period. For example if you were on vacation and you only had access to prepared food.
Meat takes a lot of energy to digest and unless your digestion is in tip top shape, your liver and gall bladder are healthy, eating high amounts of meat can take a toll on your system after a prolonged period. This is one of the reason Vince Gironda suggested laying off meats (and most foods, actually) for a short period, 5 to 8 days. This is also how he would “whip” actors into shape for their upcoming roles. He would suggest giving your digestive system a break a couple of times a years.
That’s the same reason I recommend cleansing your colon every 6 months. It allows time for your body to repair and rejuvenate itself from the inside out, using up old, dead or damaged cells making room to build new ones. Kind of like exfoliating your skin, except it “exfoliates” your organs and glands on the inside.
Your body sends you signals when you need a cleanse. Have you ever felt you wanted to stay away from meat for a bit?
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