Some Of The World's Most Famous Athletes Have Gone Vegan

If you’ve never tried to live a vegan lifestyle, and you aren’t particularly close to anyone else who has, it can actually seem quite foreign. It can be a fairly radical change in the early going, and one that seems difficult to pull off or sustain; for many, eating meat and other animal products is simply a way of life, and has been as long as they can remember.

Sometimes, however, all a person needs is the right kind of inspiration to give it a try. This is where celebrity figures can actually play an important role.   As it so happens, some of the most famous and successful athletes in the world have “gone vegan,” allowing them to serve as incredible examples of what this lifestyle can do for a person’s health. These are people admired by millions around the world, and thus capable of exerting great influence and serving as role models, even for adults. We’re highlighting a few of them below.  

Venus Williams

Venus Williams is one of the most famous tennis players of all time, though her career was nearly cut short when she faced complications from autoimmune diseases. Williams made a remarkable return to tour however, and stands once more among the most competitive figures in women’s tennis. She credits a plant-based diet with having changed her life, and has actually led something of a vegan revolution among tennis players, counting her sister Serena Williams and prominent men’s champion Novak Djokovic among those who have at least flirted with a vegan diet.

Lewis Hamilton

Lewis Hamilton has been the best driver in Formula 1 racing for about five years now, and is in the midst of one of the most dominant runs of success the sport has ever seen. While this is not a sport we necessarily think of as having the same physical demands as some others (given that the cars “do all the work”), fans of F1 will be quick to correct this assumption. It is, in fact, quite a physical activity that demands the best of its drivers, from strength and endurance to reaction time and alertness. Hamilton has sought to maximize these traits and prime himself for success through sticking to a vegan diet.

Kyrie Irving

Kyrie Irving is one of the best young players in the NBA. With a championship already on his resume from his days playing alongside LeBron James with the Cleveland Cavaliers, Irving now leads the Boston Celtics, and the NBA playoff picture for 2019 has consistently included them as potential finalists and NBA champions. Irving is a big reason why. And though the Boston point guard is overflowing with talent, he’s also taken steps to make sure he’s as fit as he can be for the long haul of an NBA season. These steps included adopting a vegan diet sometime in 2017.

Tia Blanco

Tia Blanco is a professional surfer, and one of the best on the planet. She was a world champion in both 2015 and 2016, and like many surfers has exuded a sort of laid-back yet worldly vibe throughout her successes. In keeping with this vibe, Blanco has credited her love of and appreciation for the environment as reasons for transitioning from vegetarian to vegan. Given her obvious level of fitness and successes in such a difficult sport, it’s hard to argue with the idea that it’s benefitted her.

Jermain Defoe

For whatever reason, Jermain Defoe doesn’t have some of the same international recognition as some of his counterparts. In the UK and wider European football circles though, he’s recognized as one of the most effective goalscorers the Premier League has seen in the 21st century. Though he’s now playing in the Scottish Premiership in the latter days of his career, Defoe racked up 91 goals in three separate stints with Tottenham Hotspur (one of which was a loan). He has directly attributed some of his success, particularly as he got older, to the effect of a vegan diet on his fitness.

Tom Brady

Tom Brady, who just won his sixth Super Bowl for the NFL’s New England Patriots, actually isn’t fully vegan. However, he is noteworthy on this list because he’s launched his own meal kit service that is specifically meant to get customers to eat more vegetables and transition to a more plant-based routine. This is an example of how in some cases, an athlete’s health routine can go beyond inspiration and actually have a direct impact on the lives of fans.

Like this?

Read: After Kohli, Footballer Sunil Chhetri Turns Vegan For Better Recovery!

Read more: Virat Kohli Gets Protein From Plants, Not Meat Or Dairy. What’s Stopping You?