Elite crossfitter Marek Vácha believes that it is possible to do professional sports even on a meat-free diet!
Author: Is it possible to play sports on a meat-free diet and still maintain racing qualities? That's what the Czech elite crossfitter Marek Vácha, who managed to dominate the Big Summer Games two years ago, will tell us today!
Hey, Mark. Do you remember how long it's been since you've eaten meat?
Hey! Hey! Hey! I'm not 100% sure, but I think it's been eight years.
What made you do it?
A number of factors came together when I decided to stop eating meat. I happened to watch a few documentaries dealing with the ethical and environmental issues of eating meat, and slowly started to think more about it all. In addition, I knew that from a training perspective it shouldn't be a problem, as my dad had also been on a meat-free diet for a long time and functioned perfectly fine.
How did your family feel about it? Were they supportive or were they more against it?
Well, the fact that my dad had been a vegetarian for a long time, so it was pretty cool. There were and still are some hints from other family members, but that's just the way it is.
Did you know right from the start how to substitute meat, or did you "swim" in it?
Well, as I recall, the first month was pretty rough. I knew in theory what to substitute for meat, but preparing these new foods to taste good was quite a challenge. Plus, I wasn't used to eating certain foods, so it took a while to get used to the change.
What do you think are the most common myths associated with a vegetarian diet?
I often come across the opinion that you can't fully exercise without meat. I think that's a misconception. Often people think that as a vegetarian one is unable to consume enough quality protein, and that people on a meatless diet must be these skinny bony individuals. It's all about attitude, if a person thinks about what they eat, the previous doesn't apply.
Does not eating meat limit you in any way?
I can think of the fact that in smaller towns or somewhere on trips, it's usually a problem to come across places that cook wholesome meatless meals. But even that has improved a lot in the time I've been meat-free. Otherwise, I don't feel any limitations.
Do you think it is possible to do peak sports on a vegan diet?
I firmly believe so. I'm an active CrossFit competitor myself and don't feel limited in any way to others. In my opinion, you have to think more about what you consume to get all the nutrients you need. However, if we are talking about vegetarianism, where one also consumes eggs or dairy products, I don't see any problem with that.
What advice would you give to people who are thinking about stopping eating meat?
I think the main thing is not to rush the process. In hindsight, I think it's ideal to start cutting meat gradually, not to cut it out 100% overnight. If a person is used to eating meat daily ( sometimes several times a day ), then if you stop it from one day to the next, you may end up with an actual deficiency of either protein or certain mineralsdue to lack of knowledge of what to replace it with . Besides, I find a gradual transition to a meatless diet better for the individual's psyche as well, as it takes time for a person to adopt new habits.
What are your primary sources of protein and do you combine them in any way?
I regularly include eggs, tofu or tempeh, seitan, legumes, nuts and seedsin my diet . I also include dairy products from time to time, but I try to limit them. As you wrote, I try to combine protein sources and generally eat as varied a diet as possible. In addition, I also regularly supplement protein with protein supplements, and in the case of plant-based ones, it is advisable to buy those that contain multiple protein sources.
What does your daily diet look like?
| Breakfast | Porridge (whole grain oatmeal + nuts + seeds + protein + fruit ) |
| Snack | 2 Servings of smoothie, sipped then throughout the day ( banana + berries + strawberries + apple + protein + creatine + spinach + coconut milk ) |
| Lunch | Rice with tofu / tempeh (basmati rice + tofu / tempeh + vegetables + legumes) |
| Snack | 1-2 pieces of fruit + handful of nuts |
| Dinner | Vegetable salad with eggs and rye bread ( 4-5 eggs, vegetable salad = lettuce, tomatoes, peppers, spring onions, radishes, cucumber, ... olive oil + rye bread ) |
+ in terms of fluids, I try to drink about 3-4 liters of water and have about 2-3 coffees in the morning.
Do you keep track of any deficiency substances that you have to replace because of the vege diet?
I think that if one has a varied vegetarian diet, it is not entirely necessary to supplement anything extra. However, by exercising quite a bit, I personally supplement regularly in terms of deficiency substances with B12, iron , magnesium, zinc and vitamin D3 + K2.
Do you think your performance might be better if you ate meat, or do you think it doesn't affect it?
Honestly, I don't think it does have an impact if one is able to maintain a good quality wholesome diet for the long term. But I recognize that this is just my assumption. However, I don't plan to reintroduce meat anytime soon, so I won't even test that hypothesis.
Mark, you yourself are also a trainer and therefore readers would certainly be interested to know if there are some of your charges who are on a meat-free diet.
Yes, there are a few people on a vegetarian diet as well. Others, on the other hand, try to at least limit the amount of meat and include plant-based alternatives, which in the end leads to an increase in dietary diversity, great for me.
Do you force your clients to eat a meat-free diet?
Absolutely not, overall I try not to force this lifestyle on anyone. People who train under me usually know that I don't eat meat. I mean, if they're interested, I'm happy to talk to them about it or advise them on ways to cut meat out of their diet, but the choice is of course completely up to them.
When you compare the performance of your charges, are the "meat eaters" better off or those on a vege diet?
Well, a larger proportion of people who train do eat meat, so there are more likely to be higher performers among them. However, as I wrote above, whether a person is more efficient does not depend on whether they eat meat or not. Rather, it reflects what predispositions a person has, how long and how they have been doing the sport, and most importantly, how consistently they have been doing it.
If someone wanted to train under you, is that still an option? Give us a closer look at how your programig works.
Yes, we are still recruiting new people. Basically at the same time we offer either private lessons in GTPS CrossFit or remote collaboration for those who are interested. In the latter case, the person has the choice between a completely customized program, a mixed program where part is built according to the individual's needs and part the mentee takes away from the "common RUFF plan". And the last option for now is just the previously mentioned common training plan. If interested, we can be contacted either by emailing riseupfromfailures.training@gmail.com or via instagram @r.u.f._training.
The CrossFit Games Open is coming up soon, will you be competing?
Yes, I plan to.
How are you preparing for the Open?
I started specific preparation for the CF Open a few weeks ago, but it's not a priority for me this season . Since I spent all of last year doing what I call back to basics and relearning bad movement patterns, the performance component went by the wayside for quite a while. Since about December I have been trying to get my performance back to previous levels, but everything takes its time. So I'm curious myself how I'll be in about a month's time during the CF Open.
What are your ambitions?
As I wrote, in terms of the CF Open, my only goal for this season is to give my best in every workout. We'll see what "phase" of our CrossFit season I'm able to get to this year. I haven't raced in quite a while, so I would like to do some bigger international and Czech races this year as a priority and ideally get some nice results there.
Mark, thank you very much for the interview and good luck!
Thanks a lot too !
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