American Journal of Sports Science

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Tripple-Ironman Based on Vegan Raw Vegetable/Fruits Diet: Physiological Echocardiographic and Blood Analysis Findings

Received: 03 December 2013    Accepted:     Published: 10 January 2014
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Abstract

Endurance sport required healthy and balanced diet. This case report presents the findings of an ultra triathlete (three times Ironman with 11.4 km swimming, 540 km cycling and 126 km running in 41 hours 18 minutes) living and finished competitions based on vegan raw diet. To this end, the vegan ultra triathlete and a control group of 10 Ironman triathletes of similar age living on a mixed diet were investigated, using echocardiography and spiroergometry. In addition, blood samples were taken from the vegan athlete both in the sporting season and in the off-season. The vegan athlete showed no signs of dietary deficiencies or impaired health. In comparison with the control group, the vegan athlete showed a higher oxygen intake at the respiratory compensation point. This case demonstrates that even top-class sporting performance, like that of a three times Ironman, is possible on a vegan diet. Whether a vegan diet offers advantages or disadvantages for the performance of endurance athletes remains an open question.

DOI 10.11648/j.ajss.20130104.12
Published in American Journal of Sports Science (Volume 1, Issue 4, November 2013)
Page(s) 58-61
Creative Commons

This is an Open Access article, distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), which permits unrestricted use, distribution and reproduction in any medium or format, provided the original work is properly cited.

Copyright

Copyright © The Author(s), 2024. Published by Science Publishing Group

Keywords

Vegetarian Diet, Vegan Diet, Endurance Sports, Triathlon

References
[1] Craig WJ, Mangels AR. Position of the American Dietetic Association: vegetarian diets. J Am Diet Assoc 2009; 109: 1266 – 1282
[2] Fuhrman J, Ferreri DM. Fueling the vegetarian (vegan) athlete. Curr Sports Med Rep 2010; 9: 233 – 241
[3] Barr SI, Rideout CA. Nutritional considerations for vegetarian athletes. Nutrition 2004; 20: 696 – 703
[4] Venderley AM, Campbell WW. Vegetarian diets: Nutritional considerations for athletes. Sports Med 2006; 36: 293 – 305
[5] O'Toole ML, Douglas PS. Applied physiology of triathlon. Sports Med 1995; 19: 251 – 267
[6] Hoogsteen J, Hoogeveen A, Schaffers H, Wijn PFF, van Hemel NM, van der Wall EE. Myocardial adaptation in different endurance sports: an echocardiographic study. Int J Cardiovasc Imaging 2004; 20: 19 – 26
[7] Sleivert GG, Rowlands DS. Physical and physiological factors associated with success in the triathlon. Sports Med 1996; 22: 8 – 18
[8] Millet GP, Dréano P, Bentley DJ. Physiological characteristics of elite short- and long-distance triathletes. Eur. J. Appl. Physiol 2003; 88: 427 – 430
[9] Fontana L,MeyerTE,KleinS,Holloszy JO. Long-term low-protein vegan diet and endurance exercise are associated with low cardiometabolic risk. Rejuvenation Res. 2007;10(2):225-34.
[10] Lang RM, Bierig M, Devereux RB et al.Recommendations for chamber quantification. Eur J Echocardiogr 2006; 7: 79 – 108
Author Information
  • Dept. Prevention and Sports Medicine, Chair Cardiology,?University Witten-Herdecke,?Hagen, Germany

  • Dept. Prevention and Sports Medicine, Chair Cardiology,?University Witten-Herdecke,?Hagen, Germany

  • Dept. Prevention and Sports Medicine, Chair Cardiology,?University Witten-Herdecke,?Hagen, Germany

  • Dept. Prevention and Sports Medicine, Chair Cardiology,?University Witten-Herdecke,?Hagen, Germany

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    Roman Leischik, Norman Spelsberg, Birgit Dworrak, Melchior Seyfarth. (2014). Tripple-Ironman Based on Vegan Raw Vegetable/Fruits Diet: Physiological Echocardiographic and Blood Analysis Findings. American Journal of Sports Science, 1(4), 58-61. https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ajss.20130104.12

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    ACS Style

    Roman Leischik; Norman Spelsberg; Birgit Dworrak; Melchior Seyfarth. Tripple-Ironman Based on Vegan Raw Vegetable/Fruits Diet: Physiological Echocardiographic and Blood Analysis Findings. Am. J. Sports Sci. 2014, 1(4), 58-61. doi: 10.11648/j.ajss.20130104.12

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    AMA Style

    Roman Leischik, Norman Spelsberg, Birgit Dworrak, Melchior Seyfarth. Tripple-Ironman Based on Vegan Raw Vegetable/Fruits Diet: Physiological Echocardiographic and Blood Analysis Findings. Am J Sports Sci. 2014;1(4):58-61. doi: 10.11648/j.ajss.20130104.12

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  • @article{10.11648/j.ajss.20130104.12,
      author = {Roman Leischik and Norman Spelsberg and Birgit Dworrak and Melchior Seyfarth},
      title = {Tripple-Ironman Based on Vegan Raw Vegetable/Fruits Diet: Physiological Echocardiographic and Blood Analysis Findings},
      journal = {American Journal of Sports Science},
      volume = {1},
      number = {4},
      pages = {58-61},
      doi = {10.11648/j.ajss.20130104.12},
      url = {https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ajss.20130104.12},
      eprint = {https://download.sciencepg.com/pdf/10.11648.j.ajss.20130104.12},
      abstract = {Endurance sport required healthy and balanced diet. This case report presents the findings of an ultra triathlete (three times Ironman with 11.4 km swimming, 540 km cycling and 126 km running in 41 hours 18 minutes) living and finished competitions based on vegan raw diet. To this end, the vegan ultra triathlete and a control group of 10 Ironman triathletes of similar age living on a mixed diet were investigated, using echocardiography and spiroergometry. In addition, blood samples were taken from the vegan athlete both in the sporting season and in the off-season. The vegan athlete showed no signs of dietary deficiencies or impaired health. In comparison with the control group, the vegan athlete showed a higher oxygen intake at the respiratory compensation point. This case demonstrates that even top-class sporting performance, like that of a three times Ironman, is possible on a vegan diet. Whether a vegan diet offers advantages or disadvantages for the performance of endurance athletes remains an open question.},
     year = {2014}
    }
    

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    AU  - Roman Leischik
    AU  - Norman Spelsberg
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    AU  - Melchior Seyfarth
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    T2  - American Journal of Sports Science
    JF  - American Journal of Sports Science
    JO  - American Journal of Sports Science
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    PB  - Science Publishing Group
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    AB  - Endurance sport required healthy and balanced diet. This case report presents the findings of an ultra triathlete (three times Ironman with 11.4 km swimming, 540 km cycling and 126 km running in 41 hours 18 minutes) living and finished competitions based on vegan raw diet. To this end, the vegan ultra triathlete and a control group of 10 Ironman triathletes of similar age living on a mixed diet were investigated, using echocardiography and spiroergometry. In addition, blood samples were taken from the vegan athlete both in the sporting season and in the off-season. The vegan athlete showed no signs of dietary deficiencies or impaired health. In comparison with the control group, the vegan athlete showed a higher oxygen intake at the respiratory compensation point. This case demonstrates that even top-class sporting performance, like that of a three times Ironman, is possible on a vegan diet. Whether a vegan diet offers advantages or disadvantages for the performance of endurance athletes remains an open question.
    VL  - 1
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