Venus Williams reveals her ten-year vegan diet changed her life in a major interview with Insider.
Wimbledon champion Venus Williams has praised a vegan diet for having “changed her life” in a major interview with Insider magazine.
The athlete has been vegan for ten years, initially trying out the diet after being diagnosed with Sjogren’s Syndrome, an autoimmune disease.
Sjogren’s Syndrome causes joint pain and fatigue, and after her diagnosis, Venus’ tennis career looked as if it was about to end.
A vegan lifestyle allowed the tennis champion to manage her disease without medication and allowed her to continue playing the sport she loves.
Venus explained to Insider: “Living with an autoimmune disease, things can get a little tricky and you can be on loads of medicine, and that’s not something that I want to do.
“So to be able to control as much as I can — what’s happening in my body, my inflammation levels — through what I eat is a godsend.
“Plant-based definitely changed my life.”
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Vegan athletes
Venus is a vocal advocate of how a plant-based diet can fuel the active lifestyle of a professional athlete and says other athletes come to her for advice on cutting out meat.
Moreover, last year she launched her own vegan protein brand Happy Viking.
Talking about the launch, she explained:
“I need to refuel and provide protein to my muscles quickly after I work out for recovery and to maintain muscle.
“So Happy Viking was created to fuel your inner fighter, your inner Viking while feeling happy and satisfied about what you put in your body.”
Junk food vegan?
While Venus initially went raw vegan after her diagnosis and advocates for healthy plant-based foods, she still considers herself a ‘junk food foodie’.
“I’ve never met a French fry that wasn’t vegan,” she remarked to Insider.
“I’m definitely not a robot. You can reward yourself and have fun eating as well.
“There are so many more athletes doing it and sometimes they ask me how to do it. So, I tell them, ‘Hey, sometimes you just have to have some pie.'”
We’re definitely up for eating some vegan pie!
Everything in moderation right?
Looking for more vegan celebrities to take inspiration from?
Read our article where 44 stars share why they went vegan.
