Vegetables – illustrative photo. Image credit: Pixabay, free license
One of the biggest myths surrounding the vegetarian diet is that it can’t help you get the protein needed to build muscles. Let this belief shatter as you picture some of the most muscular creatures on earth—they’re the elephants, bison, and water buffaloes, who mainly rely on grass, shrubs, and fruits for nutrition.
This suggests that it is possible to gain muscle with a vegetarian diet without consuming meat. If you are a vegetarian but confused about what to eat in order to build powerful muscles, you are at the right place. In this blog, we have listed some of the highly nutritious sources of protein for vegetariansthat not only stuff your stomach but also assist with muscle synthesis.
Plant-Based Sources of Protein for Muscle Growth
You can gain muscle mass by following a vegetarian diet. To optimize muscle synthesis, all you have to do is choose foods that are high in protein. In order to do so, you can have many selections from different plant types, as discussed below:
Here is a quick list of some essential amino acids and their plant sources:
Isoleucine: chard, kidney beans, sunflower seeds, watercress, and spinach
Leucine: kidney beans, alfalfa seeds, sunflower seeds, and watercress
Lysine: walnuts, peas, watercress, lentils, almonds, brewer’s yeast, and chickpeas
Methionine and Cysteine: Brazil nuts, seaweed, sesame seeds, spirulina, and oats
Phenylalanine and Tyrosine: kidney beans, sesame seeds, spinach, and peanuts
Threonine: spinach, kidney beans, sesame seeds, watercress, and sunflower seeds
Tryptophan: spinach, kidney beans, broccoli rabe, asparagus, turnip greens, oat bran, and watercress
Valine: black beans, kidney beans, chickpeas, sunflower seeds, and sesame seeds
Histidine: soybeans, kidney beans, peas, oats
Tips for Vegetarian Bodybuilders
Along with taking a balanced vegetarian diet, you also need to be mindful of some necessary tips, as listed below:
In order to get bigger doses of the necessary amino acids, eat more food. According to a study, consuming 60 g of wheat protein increased muscle protein synthesis (MPS) significantly more than consuming 35 g of wheat protein. This implies that consuming more plant-based protein is a very advantageous way to boost muscle synthesis.
Furthermore, combining many proteins to obtain a comprehensive protein profile can yield greater benefits. Rice combined with beans provides complete protein for healthy meals.
You can also take testosterone boosterfoods such as fenugreek, ashwagandha, and shilajit, as they help enhance muscle strength and development.
In a Nutshell
People with vegetarian diets can also enhance their muscle size and strength. The protein-rich plant sources that can be considered are beans, chickpeas, oat bran, watercress, nuts and seeds, tofu, soy, etc. It is essential to have a varied diet combined with various food groups in order to get a daily dose of complete protein. Lastly, you need to eat a healthy diet and plant-based source proteins so that you can gain more muscles than the energy you burn.
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