How a Whole Foods Diet Fuels an Elite Athlete!

On #LunchBreakLIVE, Lisa Karlan presents our Olympic/Championship Athlete-Chef Series, a collaboration with Switch4Good athletes building a dairy-free future. These athletes are working relentlessly to ignite the fire in all of us, sharing the TRUTH that cow’s milk is not a health food! Today we are featuring the amazing Olympic-hopeful  Krishna Curry. She is an All-American track alumni of UCLA Athletics now competing professionally as an 800 meter specialist, a group instructor at EXOS (teaching at Google), and a Strength Coach for Addidas Runners LA! Join Krishna as she reveals how a whole foods, plant-based diet fuels her body for elite athletic training and competition.

Krishna grew up in the South and didn’t care for meat growing up. She faced criticism about not eating meat when she started running at UCLA in college. Her coaches warned her that she would not get enough protein or become anemic if she did not eat meat. She began eating some meat as result. She says it made her feel very heavy, especially when she was competing. Dairy products and sugar also made her feel unwell. She also developed several infections from pneumonia to tonsillitis at that time. Once she stopped eating excess sugar, she felt much better. She also cut out dairy, and that helped with her inflammation.

After college, Krishna’s boyfriend realized the moral implications of eating meat after watching the documentary What the Health. They both decided to make the transition together. She feels so much better now that she doesn’t eat meat. She also feels better about conserving the environment by not eating animal products. She explains that the amount of water used for animals in animal agriculture could be conserved to help our current drought issues. She also explains that by eating an animal that has been tortured, a person internalizes that fear and negativity into their bodies. Krishna also has family members who have had cancer and she explains that their ailments may have been correlated to the consumption of animal products.

Today Krishna is making a quick and easy Asian stir-fry full of fresh vegetables. Krishna makes the rice first, and then she sautés minced garlic, ginger, onions, chickpeas, and vegetables with water not oil. Krishna uses teriyaki sauce and sesame dressing to add flavor to her stir fry. Lisa explains that the starch from the rice that Krishna uses in her recipe has been medically proven to keep a person’s gut bacteria healthy. Try making this whole food healthy stir-fry at home. It is sure to make you feel like a winning athlete too!

Lisa Karlan reporting for Jane Unchained News Network.

Report edited by Ellen Dent.

Photos Courtesy of Lisa Karlan.

Quick Asian Style Stir Fry: 

“Easy Pre-Workout Lunch”

INGREDIENTS:

1 can 365 Organic Garbanzo Beans

1 Organic Red Bell Pepper

1/2 Organic White Onion

2 Organic Heads Broccoli or Broccolini

1 – 2 Organic Finely Minced Garlic Cloves

Few Slices (use vegetable peeler) Organic Ginger

See Also

From Obese Junk Food Addict to Whole-Food, Plant-Based Queen

Organic Sushi Rice (Lundberg Brand) 1 cup

Pinch of Star Anise ( Or Chinese Five Spice Blend- Anise, cinnamon, star Anise, Cloves and Ginger) 1/2-1 tsp

1 – 2 TBL Kikkoman Organic Soy Sauce

1 – 2 TBL 365 Teriyaki Sauce

1 – 2 TBL Annie’s Organic Asian Sesame Dressing

DIRECTIONS

1. Cook rice separately according to package directions
2. Sauté onions and garlic (use water instead of oil) for three minutes
3. Add remaining vegetables to onions and garlic and continue water sautéeing, then add a little water and cover until onions are translucent and broccoli or broccolini turn bright green
4. Add seasoning/sauces to taste and toss in pan
5. Serve over rice in a big bowl
6. Enjoy!!!