Edric Kennedy Macfoy - The Fit Vegan: Fuel Your Fitness with a Plant-Based Lifestyle

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Text Edric Kennedy-Macfoy, 2020

The moral rights of the author have been asserted.

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced by any mechanical, photographic or electronic process, or in the form of a phonographic recording; nor may it be stored in a retrieval system, transmitted or otherwise be copied for public or private use, other than for fair use as brief quotations embodied in articles and reviews, without prior written permission of the publisher.

The information given in this book should not be treated as a substitute for professional medical advice; always consult a medical practitioner. Any use of information in this book is at the readers discretion and risk. Neither the author nor the publisher can be held responsible for any loss, claim or damage arising out of the use, or misuse, of the suggestions made, the failure to take medical advice or for any material on third-party websites.

A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library.

Tradepaper ISBN: 978-1-78817-090-1

E-book ISBN: 978-1-78817-098-7

Interior illustrations: Shutterstock

To my Father, Thomas, for levelling up in every way possible.
You found the strength and courage to change your mindset.
You transitioned to a plant-based lifestyle and, in doing so, changed your life.
You too are an ambassador for change.
Thank you for your love and guidance.
I feel blessed to have you in my life.

Fit and vegan. Two of my favourite words. To my mind, they go together like salt and pepper. Until a few years ago, along with many other people, I thought the opposite. The phrase vegan muscle sounded like a bad joke. I was convinced that a healthy body needed to be fuelled with plenty of animal protein. I was a committed carnivore, with cupboards filled with milk-based protein shake mixes, and a fridge stuffed with chicken breasts, salmon fillets and lean beef. Fast forward a few years, and Ive left all that behind me. My body is now stronger, leaner and fitter than ever before, and I nourish it with a whole food plant-based diet. As a result, I have more energy than ever and have noticed significant improvements in my mood, digestion and vitality.

I wanted to write this book to share my journey with you, revealing how and why you can switch to a plant-based lifestyle, and what to do to transform your body into a stronger, fitter, more sculpted, more flexible and more energized version of the one you currently have. Ive spent years in the gym, training myself and others, initially as a bodybuilder and later as a personal trainer. Ive learned how to get dramatic results in minimal time, and Ive condensed that knowledge into a 12-week fitness plan for this book, which you can use for home- and gym-based workouts, and can be tailored to suit your body whatever level of fitness youre at right now.

Ill help you build your fitness as you develop your repertoire of delicious vegan meals, managing the transition from omnivorous or vegetarian, without the shock of cold turkey or the unsustainable faff of fiddly recipes with endless ingredients. Ill share the key facts and research Ive uncovered as Ive studied plant-based nutrition, on the course run by the vegan pioneer Dr Colin T Campbell at Cornell University, USA. Ill introduce you to fresh ingredients and reveal simple seasoning hacks to make your meals go from basic to brilliant.

Ill share some great places to eat out and tell you what to buy in the supermarket. Ill even help you work out what to say if friends, family or colleagues hit you with 20 questions about your new diet. When I went vegan, I was working as a firefighter in London, and I defy anyone to match the levels of interrogation disguised as banter I experienced there. I want to use my experience and newfound nutritional awareness to inspire you to have the confidence to make the change, saving you time in the gym and making sure you get more out of your workouts: results and fun.

First up, Ive got some good news. There has never been a better time to go vegan. Cutting out animal products no longer means compromising your social life, curtailing your adventurous and varied eating habits, or time-consuming and labour-intensive meal preparation. Restaurants have woken up to the demand for exciting vegan meals, most supermarkets have a plant-based range in addition to their fruit and veg aisle, and many cafs stock oat and almond milk alongside dairy. Veganism is having a moment, and thats great.

When I first transitioned, I found myself eating in my usual restaurants, with few or no vegan options to choose from. Id often have to ask for a vegetarian dish to be made vegan, (or veganized as Ive Iearned to call it) and this was sometimes met with sighs or flat-out refusals. It was painful: something I was once so fond of (eating out) had become an absolute bore. I sometimes felt self-conscious and awkward around friends. Its laughable now when I think about it because things have changed so much in such a short period. A little bit of research and a few years later, and most restaurants have caught up with their customers requirements. I now have several firm vegan favourites. Even mainstream chain restaurants offer a few vegan options. Now its rare to find restaurants without entire menus full of vegan, vegetarian, gluten-free, dairy-free and other types of dishes.

Eating out aside, any sustainable dietary change needs to work on an everyday basis. And the key to a diet you can stick with is one that delights your taste buds and keeps you satiated, energized and nourished. In my quest to help clients tick all these boxes, Ive spent a lot of time thinking about the poor eating habits that get in the way of achieving this balance, and how to avoid them. In particular, since Ive been working as a nutrition and personal training consultant, Ive noticed clients tend to fall into one of two camps when it comes to food. They either eat too much or not enough. Neither of these options is healthy. Overconsumption of food leads to excess fat and associated health issues, while an under-fuelled body wont have the energy to exercise and build muscle. Insufficient calories and nutrients mean mental clarity, agility and cognition are compromised too. I aim to help you provide the perfect ratio of nutrients and calories to give your body the energy it needs to fuel your workouts and your lifestyle. My meal plans are deprivation-free and keep effort and inconvenience to a minimum.

I hope the simplicity of The Fit Vegan (TFV) programme will make it ultra-easy to follow. This is because I recognize that its all too easy to get into unhealthy habits when it comes to your diet, a fact thats equally applicable to vegans as it is of anyone following any type of diet or non-diet. So often, we seize on a random pick-and-mix of nutritional facts and rules without investigating them, and eat according to them, without assessing the evidence. We may continue adhering to these arbitrary principles for years, avoiding carbs because we once lost half a stone on the Atkins diet or spending a fortune on hard-to-source exotic superfoods because we think we need them.