Bodybuilders don’t exactly seem the vegan type. As much as the movement is booming well beyond the pale, hemp-wearing stereotype, beefcakes seem all too inextricably linked with, well, beef.
But that’s all changing. Over the past few weeks, sports stars have been queuing up to announce their conversions to plant-based diets. One of the most notable converts came yesterday in the form of Icelandic strongman Hafþór Júlíus Björnsson, aka The Mountain in Game of Thrones. ‘I’m always willing to give everything a chance!’ he posted on Instagram. ‘Especially when it comes from legends like Arnold Schwarzenegger.’
As Björnsson suggests, Arnie has been key to this movement. The Terminator star may not be vegan himself, but he is one of the executive producers of plant-based documentary The Game Changers, which landed on Netflix and iTunes this month. The film, which also counts Jackie Chan, Lewis Hamilton and Novak Djokovic among its production team, looks at how plant-based eating is taking off among world-class athletes.
The testimonials are pretty convincing. Everyone from boxers, MMA fighters and weightlifters to surfers, sprinters and cyclists are lining up to wax lyrical about the benefits of a plant-based diet. “When I made the switch, I qualified for my third Olympic team and I broke two American records,” says one. “Sometimes you have to do things that you know your competitors aren’t doing,” argues another.
The Game Changers isn’t just inspiring the professional sports crowd. Social media is awash with punters who have been convinced to try a plant-based diet. ‘This convinced me to go vegan and I love meat,’ raved one Twitter account.
All of which is good news for plant-based sports nutrition. It’s been a hive of activity for a while now – launches grew by more than 40% globally from 2014 to 2018, according to Innova Market Insights.
And UK brands are already seeing the benefits. Sports nutrition specialist Pulsin, for example, revealed last month that its plant-based products had emerged as bestsellers. “Pea protein has grown quicker than all the other protein powders we do,” said MD Simon Ashburner. “It’s now our number one-selling protein powder and even outstrips whey.”
The publicity is likely to boost the wider meat-free market too, which is already up 18% to £474.5m [Kantar 52 w/e 14 July 2019].
On the flip side, critics will be quick to point out that vegan does not necessarily equal healthy. There is admittedly a danger of assuming everything plant-based is good for you. Most notably, an article published by Harvard Medical School in August dispelled the idea of plant-based burgers being healthier than their meaty counterparts.
But importantly, endorsements from the likes of Arnie will also dispel the idea that veganism is linked to an anaemic complexion and weak constitution. After all, who’s likely to challenge The Mountain to a fight?
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