Novak Djokovic Goes Vegan, Starts Winning

Novac Djokovic the, the Siberian tennis professional, found out that he was allergic to gluten. That’s when he switched to a gluten-free, vegan diet. Since then he’s made the final of the U.S. Open, won the Davis Cup and Australian Open, defeated Rafael Nada four times, and is currently on a 39-match winning streak, the third longest of the Open era. So much for the idea of a carbo boost.

Is his diet responsible for his outstanding play? Djokovic spoke about the change earlier this year. “I have lost some weight but it’s only helped me because my movement is much sharper now and I feel great physically,” he said in April.

Whatever the reasons for Djokovic’s success, it brings up the question of what is the best diet regimen for you? Certainly, there is no “one size fits all” diet. As you probably already know, there is a vegan diet, a vegetarian diet, a raw foods diet and so on. One must become acquainted with the basics of each one and make a decision for them self.

Here is more by author Tony Horton:

In my opinion, the real lesson here is that no single diet philosophy works for everyone. How can you believe that a 22-year-old ultra-marathoner and a 42-year-old desk-jockey who doesn’t own a pair of running shoes, have the same diet? It’s ridiculous.Even if you think you’ve found the perfect diet, making adjustments based on your ever-changing needs — especially as you get older and wiser — is perfectly normal. I was a vegan for years, but I was losing weight (not my intention) eating just veggies, fruit, beans and nuts — so I simply changed my strategy. I still eat tons of veggies, but I’m now a free-range chicken, wild salmon and other healthy fish-eating type of guy. I’m also discovering that the less gluten I eat, the better it is for my body and brain chemistry.

For some crazy reason it seems to be important for us to segregate diets into rigid categories, like we do religions or political parties. Vegan, paleolithic, raw, pescetarian or vegetarian. I call myself a flexetarian — that way I don’t need to defend any particular food faith.

That said, I think there are a couple guidelines we all need to keep in mind. Hunger, survival, cravings, boredom, taste and performance are some of the reasons why we eat what we do. If you don’t find ways to stay accountable and exercise then boredom, cravings or those addictive “comfort foods” will take you down in the end. Restrictive diets that cut out favorite flavors will almost always lead to deprivation — and deprivation often leads to bad eating habits. The key to success is finding an eating plan that makes you feel good while eating it. If you do that then you’ll stop the weight-loss-weight-gain cycle.

Tony Horton: The American ‘Food Fight’