3 Plant-Based Power Meals for Athletes

When you're physically active, you want to make sure you're eating meals that are bursting in nutrients, easy to prepare, and taste delicious. As an ultra runner and nutritionist, these are my three secret weapons as far as packing some powerful nutrients into my training.

1. Vegan Pizza

Who doesn't love pizza? It tastes delicious and it's fun to make. Best of all, this is the type of pizza you can eat every day, guilt-free.

Find a vegan-friendly dough and load it up with every single vegetable you can find. Anything goes. Make sure you experiment with unusual toppings like squash and dulse (seaweed) flakes. Be adventurous—it's incredibly difficult to screw up pizza.

Toppings I have used include:

  • Vegan sauce base
  • Garlic
  • Onions
  • Ginger
  • Spinach
  • Dulse (seaweed)
  • Olive oil
  • Black olives
  • Mushrooms
  • Avocado
  • Tomatoes
  • Sunflower seeds
  • Green peppers
  • Red peppers
  • Habanero peppers
  • Lettuce
  • Pineapple
  • Various herbs
  • Bean sprouts
  • Celery
  • Radish
  • Grated squash

You could easily make a hundred pizzas and every single one would be different. This is one of the most nutrient-rich meals I have put together. My pizzas are usually so fully loaded coming out of the oven that I have to eat them with a fork and knife to keep all the toppings in place.

MY SECRET TIP: I put the tomatoes on raw after the pizza comes out of the oven, as well as an avocado. This gives the pizza a pleasing and cooling texture.

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About the Author

Vanessa Rodriguez 

Vanessa Rodriguez is the former nutrition editor for Active.com, and author of The Summit Seeker. She is a Registered Holistic Nutritionist and an avid ultra-distance trail runner. Keep up with her adventures at vanessaruns.com.
Vanessa Rodriguez is the former nutrition editor for Active.com, and author of The Summit Seeker. She is a Registered Holistic Nutritionist and an avid ultra-distance trail runner. Keep up with her adventures at vanessaruns.com.

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