I have posted on this issue on this forum previously so apologies for boring people. I was vegetarian for 26 years. You can survive on a vege diet obviously. My iron levels tested normal. No problem there. I did have some other concerns however. Very poor recovery. I got sick a lot. Mostly after hard training sessions. I moved to a two week on and one week off regimen. I thought it was just an aging thing. I battled to get my strength up. Despite doing strength work I struggled in this area. I had loads of sweet cravings. Slowly over years I developed a sweet tooth. Very dry skin. I tried to get more oils and did all I could think of in this regard. From drinking the stuff to rubbing it on my skin. I started to rapidly lose muscle tone. I had achy joints and thinning hair. My digestion was not good. On the verge of IBS. I also had very very high cholesterol I ate a fair amount of fruit, sometimes too much I guess. I ate a lot of raw vege and tons of salads. I did eat dairy and most of the almost three decades ate eggs. I ate no meat fish or chicken. I did end up using a lot of supplements in an effort to fix my increasingly deteriorating health. I used creatine, l glutamine, whey protein shakes, protein bars. I also ate soya protein, tofu, beans and lentils and other vegetable sources of protein. I don't drink, at all, and don't smoke. Less than a year ago I started eating meat. My weight stabilized. I don't get wild weight swings anymore. No more sweet tooth but I do sometimes eat sweets. I am back to a three week on one week rest training cycle. Skin no longer dry. Haven't been sick in ages. On my old trainer my power increased by around 10%. The new trainer gives such different numbers that I don't compare back anymore. I suspect that improvement has now flattened. My recovery is better. Not just over days but within a ride. I can make a hard effort and recover better to go again within a ride. That never used to happen. My mood is better. I feel more optimistic and handle stress better but there are other factors that could be responsible for this. I still eat lots of fresh food. Prepare food at home mostly. Limit my fruit to three of 4 servings a day. Not a big soda drinker but do like coke. I guess I drink a can of coke about once every three weeks or so. I eat meat every day. To start with I ate a lot of meat. It seems to have moderated lately. I do go for the fatty cuts when I can. So eat what you want and believe what you want. You must try it for yourself. There are so many variables that it is hard to make any real findings from the experiences of another person. People will believe what they want and look for evidence to support those beliefs. I do the same of course. Good luck
