One of the biggest concerns for people who are vegan or vegetarian, or even strictly follow a plant-based diet is whether they can meet their daily protein requirements from healthy and high-quality foods. Since lean meat, fish and eggs are some of the major contributors of protein in the average diet, removing these from your diet can create several challenges, especially if you plan to increase your muscle mass. In fact, just maintaining you body composition can be difficult. People who think about switching to a more plant-based diet may feel even more inclined to not take that step due to the fear of not being able to get enough protein.
However, this shouldn’t scare you away from veganism or any plan-based diet.
The truth is that a vegan diet can provide enough protein, even without the inclusion of any food that comes from animal sources. You might have to make certain changes to your diet and pay attention to what you’re eating. Nevertheless, if you plan your meals in advance, then you can easily meet you daily protein requirement.
In fact, some studies show that in general, the vegetarian population doesn’t just meet their daily protein requirement, but can actually exceed it just by ensuring their following a healthy diet plan and avoiding junk food.
Do I need Vegan Protein Powder then?
You may think that if you can get enough protein from food source, then why should I add vegan protein powder to my diet? Depending on your diet, you may already be fulfilling your protein requirements. However, that doesn’t mean that vegan protein powder can’t be a vital part of your diet.
Regardless of whether you follow a diet that is herbivorous, carnivorous or omnivorous, you can benefit from adding vegan protein powder to your diet. This type of supplement offers a beneficial source of protein and fiber for everyone. If you are focused on optimizing your health or building some muscles, but are lactose intolerant, then vegan protein powder can be a great alternative to whey protein powder, which has been the go-to protein powder for years.
Additionally, there are various other benefits of consuming vegan protein powder on a regular basis.
Reduction in Digestive Stress
A common side effect that people suffer when they start taking traditional protein shakes is that it adversely impacts digestive problems even if these previously weren’t an issue. Most dairy-based sources of protein (whey, casein, etc) come with these unexpected side effects that no one highlights. Someone who is sensitive to lactose may not notice it with the regular consumption of dairy items, but ingesting concentrated sources of dairy such as protein powder may flare up their sensitivity.
Since the general consumption of protein shakes for athletes could range up to two to four shakes per day, it can contribute to digestive distress. However, if shakes are going to be a fundamental part of your diet or weight loss regime, then it is important to have one that is easy to digest and free of allergen. Vegan protein powders easily fit that profile. These are also alkaline forming, as opposed to acid forming, which makes it great for people who have a problem with acid reflux.
You Will Get Fitter
If your goal is to lose weight or maintain your fitness levels, then adding vegan protein powder to your lifestyle can help you achieve that more effectively. In fact, adding protein powder to your diet can help you achieve whatever fitness goals you have, whether it is to lose weight, gain muscle, or just maintain your current weight while getting fitter. Increasing your protein intake can help boost metabolism and reduce cravings. It can also be a great way to optimize the balance of your micronutrients. Although you need to ensure that you are getting enough carbs and fat in your diet as well, protein offers a greater satisfaction per calorie as compared to the other two macros.
Vegan protein powders have similar amino acid profiles as whey protein and other animal proteins. However, most of these plant-based proteins are also organic, gluten-free, soy-free and non-GMO. Hence, with the right combination of diet plan and exercise, vegan protein powder can help you achieve your fitness goals much more effectively.
Some Other Unexpected Benefits
Vegan protein powders can provide some benefits that you won’t get from traditional protein supplements. They can help reduce soreness, and can potentially help fight inflammation and pain as well. Although, following a vegan diet in itself can significantly decrease inflammation. If you are using high-quality plant-based protein, then it can also help you fight off various diseases, improve your cardiovascular health as well as the overall quality of your health and lifestyle.
Using plant-sources for protein supplements is also more sustainable and ethical. It takes a lot less duel, water and land to produce plant-based proteins as compared to animal proteins. If whey and casein aren’t isolated and reduced enough, they might contain growth hormones, antibiotics and other chemicals there were fed to the animals. However, vegan protein powders are mostly organic and contain no chemical plant options.
