Vegan Body Builder Reveals His SECRET Diet For Mr. Universe Success
Barnabas du Plessis stole the title of Mr. Universe at the 2014 bodybuilding contest.
Most onlookers assumed his diet was loaded with animal proteins found in steak, chicken, and eggs to achieve his 232lbs/105kg sculpted body.
This article is written by Ben.
LAST UPDATED: July 2020.
Vegan Bodybuilder Ditches Meat
Barnabas du Plessis won the 2014 Mr. Universe competition, yet shortly after, it was revealed by the man himself that he’s actually switched to a plant-based vegan diet.
Many would think that would be an end to his bodybuilding career, but doubters could not be farther from the truth!
He commented as a few other vegan advocates have, that the largest (and strongest) animals on the planet such as elephants and gorilla eat plants, not meat as we are all expecting a strong man to consume.
In addition, Barnabas du Plessis is not a youthful man, bare in mind Arnold Schwarzenegger retired from competitive bodybuilding at the age of 33, so you may be surprised to hear that Barnabas was 41 in 2016 when he announced his diet.
Can he maintain a big physique?
Absolutely, even on a plant-based diet, Barnabas consumes around 6000 calories daily, and that includes a staggering 300g of protein!
His previous mindset was common of many bodybuilders: chow down as much meat and animal-based proteins as possible, but with the onslaught of illnesses he changed his way of thinking.
So Barnabas made the change to veganism in the spring of 2015 and dragged his fiance into a plant-based lifestyle as well.
And, for the better.
He reports that his training is going better than ever, that he has more energy whilst muscle recovery has improved. Barnabas also notes a lack of aches and pains that he experienced previously, the switch also helped relieve his hernia.
What’s the secret?
It isn’t a secret anymore.
Barnabas has swapped monstrous quantities of egg and chicken for lentils, brown rice, nuts, and vegan protein choices which has boosted his performance according to the athlete.
Have a look at Barnabus’ daily eating regime
Pre-workout: Coffee with coconut oil and beetroot shot
After Training: Vegan protein with super greens and raw date bar
Breakfast: Vegan protein with tapioca/ rice flakes/ quinoa and mixed seeds, cacao and stevia
Lunch: Brown basmati rice, mixed lentils, and salad with nutritional yeast
Mid-afternoon: Brown basmati rice, mixed lentils, and veggies with nutritional yeast
Dinner: Oats, vegan protein and Mixed seeds, cacao and stevia
Not a steamed chicken breast (usually photographed in ‘meal prep’ Tupperware in sight!), those Instagram pics get boring after a while!
Barnabas is not alone…
No, it was widely regarded that UFC fighter Nate Diaz would lose against the ‘…steak for breakfast…’ eating Conor McGregor.
The reality was that vegan Diaz won their first bout as McGregor’s ‘…gas tank gave in…’.
Then there’s the case for overwhelming strength on a vegan diet with the advocate Patrik Baboumian who is an enormously strong competitive powerlifter.
Initially a vegetarian from 2005, it wasn’t until 2011 that he started to follow a vegan diet.
This has led him to win numerous strongman events such as Germany’s strongest man and the European Powerlifting Champion.
Patrik also shares a similar meal plan of nuts, grilled vegetables, and vegan protein sources.
Then there’s Dotsie Bausch.
She is a medal-winning cyclist with a large collection of records and titles.
Dotsie almost retired from competitive cycling and then turned vegan which transformed her performance.
It has been reported that since going meat-free her recovery improved which meant she could perform harder and stronger.
The Takeaway
It’s been a long-standing joke that those who do not follow an animal-based diet aren’t as strong or powerful as those who do.
However, this is just a snippet of there’s that have made the change and are winning in their chosen fields.
It’s no wonder that according to statistics the number of people choosing a vegan diet or one centered around plant sources is on the rise, this can be seen in the increased number of vegan-friendly products that are now on the market which even includes fitness supplements.
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