Brandon Frye is a 30-year-young plant-based distance-runner from Winston-Salem, NC. When he’s not blogging, running, or moderating #VegRunChat, he’s in school studying Web Technologies.
Brandon discovered his love for running in 2004, but wouldn’t start racing until 2011. After learning the benefits of a plant-based diet, and its effects on athletic performance, he decided to give it a try. He now tallies anywhere from 20-60 miles a week and competes in many races each year.
He considers himself a whole-food vegan, eating only plant-based foods that are unprocessed and unrefined, or processed and refined as little as possible. He’s found that this lifestyle is what works best for him, and it has encouraged his growth as an endurance athlete.
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Excellent idea of Brandon! I look forward to reading your posts.
Thank you Bob. You have been one of the biggest motivators for me in all that I do today. I appreciate your courage, wisdom, and persistence in helping others to take back control of their lives. We bow no more to the American food industry!
Nice to meet you Brandon! I'm noticing more and more athletes transition to a vegan diet and find it very beneficial! I am training for a marathon in Eau Claire, WI on May 5th! Good luck with your training. I will be following your progress!
-Em
Glad you stopped by Emily. I have really been enjoying the benefits of running on plants, lol. We're running a day apart. I'm running the New River May 4th. Good luck to you. I'm sure you will do great!
Great blog Brandon! Thanks for kale smoothie! And Nancy had her's this morning on her way to work! We are really enjoying your visit with us in AZ!
I recently decided to go vegan and I LOVE it. I feel so great, I have so much energy, and my runs are becoming easier and easier.
I am also currently training for a half marathon… only six weeks away and I am stoked. Being a vegan runner makes me feel like a hippie… in a good way of course. I really like it, I'm just not sure if I am ready to face all of the challenges of the outside world (people are SO judgmental, and they seem to WANT to make you feel uncomfortable about your new lifestyle change.
Thanks for being such an inspiration! 🙂
Thank you! I am very happy that you have switched to plant-based, and are noticing the benefits. Everyone can benefit from a vegan diet, but us runners notice these benefits, possibly more than anybody else. For instance, my energy has increased and my recovery times are amazingly faster. We (as runners) can compare the before & after. It's a beautiful thing to see the changes. The outside world will always judge, especially if they see us doing something that they consider "extreme." Perhaps, they know deep down that they should be doing it too. Stick with it! If you have any questions, please feel free to contact me through the "Contact" tab at the top of this page. I am more than glad to help when I can. Have a great day!
I tried to send this to you in your "contact" section, but for some reason it wouldn't let me. (boo technology!) Anyhow, I really enjoy your blog, which I visit almost every day. You inspired me to start my own blog, so I decided I would let you know and share it with you!
http://runninggreen.blogspot.com/
There's not a lot on it yet, because it just got started. Thanks for being such an inspiration, you are awesome! 🙂
Thank you so much HVR! You have no idea how happy it makes me to hear that I have inspired someone. I am truly touched. Your blog is looking good already btw! I see you already grabbed the Runkeeper app and applied it to your site. I consider it my proof-ometer, lol. Proof that you "can" run on a plant-based diet. You can sync Garmin with Runkeeper too. I also noticed that you are increasing your distance. Way to go, the sky is the limit!
I'd especially like to thank you for a) Spreading the word about nutrition. We have enough medical doctors in this world. I believe that the future of this nation will lie in the hands of nutritionists, like yourself. We can prevent diseases before they occur, but it all depends on what we put on our forks. and b) Letting me know about my Contact tab, lol. I have it working again, but had no idea that it was out of commision. You will see that little things like that are quirky. Please, let me know if you have any questions about anything. I'll be sure to keep an eye on your blog and send some folks your way! Thanks again
Hi there, fellow NCer! I'm from the Charlotte area. Let me ask you about energy. I've been thought a cycle the last ten years being raw/vegan, and lastly the majority of the time was being a flexitarian. Anyhoo, Since Jan. of this year, I've gone "plant strong low-fat vegan. The extra weight loss is great! My only concern is my energy level. I myself am a full-time student getting an engineering degree from uncc, as well as being married with three boys. So you can see, I'm can use all the extra energy I can get 🙂
I do take a b12 everyonce in a while, my school and family time makes it where I don't get out and exercise properly enough. I'm considering looking into green "superfood" suplements, like HealthForce's Vitamineral Green, or Vitaforce Powder, or Boku superfood.
My question to you would be, have you had any experience with any products like these, or heard anything about them. Also, any other advice on energy gain would be awesome!
Thanks
Hi Donnie,
I have gone through periods where my energy levels have seemed lower than normal. I felt much of this lack of drive while training for my recent marathon. When switching diet patterns we should allow our bodies time to adjust. However, if you have been consistent with your eating for some time now, you may be missing something. You mentioned Vitamin B12. It is extremely important that we are getting B12, whether it be from fortified plant milks or supplements. It has recently been brought to my attention that the B12 in nutritional yeast is not necessarily sufficient. Often times, this B12 will not absorb into our systems properly. I "highly" recommend using a daily supplement for B12. There's a good chance that a B12 deficiency could be the culprit.
Superfoods are a wonderful thing! I haven't tried the above mentioned items, but I use natural superfoods in my diet everyday. Two in particular come to mind; Chia seeds and Maca Powder. You can order either one from Nuts.com. Maca has been linked to an increase in energy. If you are looking for an energy enhancement without the caffeine, this should be your go-to superfood. Maca also works as a mood stabilizer. Chia seeds are just wonderful. They provide energy and keep you feeling full. Just add some to water with a bit of lime/lemon juice. Check out my article on Chia Seeds here: https://www.forkstofeet.com/2013/03/what-are-chia-seeds.html
As far as the superfood supplements go, check out the reviews and see what others are saying. I am interested in learning more about them myself. I like sticking with what's natural, but am always open to new ideas. If you do get a chance to try the supplements, please let me know what your experience was with them. Good luck on your journey and thanks for reading!
Thanks for the reply Brandon! I have felt an increase of energy with taking a B12 1000mcg daily for about a week now. After reading Rip's book "my beef with meat" he suggest taking 1000mcg twice a week, so I'm going to try that. I am interested in checking out these seeds you mentioned. I started getting into the running game, and realized it is going be a while before I can run like "normal runners" haha. My thing is water. Everywhere I go, I have to have my bottle water with me. I went out running for a few blocks and my mouth was "bone dry"! How do regular runners do it? I haven't noticed a runner carrying a water bottle before, or even wearing a Camelback. What do you do? Any tips to stay hydrated while on the move?
Thanks!
I'm so glad that you're getting your energy back. Like I said, I went without the B12 for a while, and felt terrible. As far as water goes, I typically don't carry any with me on my runs unless I'm going over 10-12 miles. That being said, I've been running for a while now. In this Summer heat, I try to drink plenty of water before I head out and maybe take some fluids with me. I use a single-bottle belt made by Brooks. Some runners use hydration belts with pockets for gels, keys, etc. I like to fill my bottle up with filtered water, coconut water, and chia. This provides plenty of electrolytes and energy! Most of the time though, I just use water, chia, and lime juice. It's very refreshing! Much like you, when I'm just out-and-about I keep a bottle of water with me.
So glad I found your blog!
Hey Brandon! Just saw a comment of yours over at The Unrefined Vegan and had to check out your site for myself. I'm not a vegan, but I've transitioned to an 80% plant based diet (I still eat some meat and dairy, mostly for social reasons and because my husband is very much a meat protein guy) which is so beneficial. I'd probably be quite a happy vegan if it didn't seem to be so hard within my group of friends, half of whom are Argentinean (a VERY meat oriented culture! My friend Will, 26, wouldn't even date a vegetarian!). Did you (or do you) ever struggle with social pressure?
So glad that you've reached a happy and healthy place in terms of your diet and lifestyle. Great blog, this is only my first visit but I'm already loving your very well thought out posts. All the best!
I'm so glad you found the site! I've been enjoying Unrefined Vegan very much. I am way past the social problems, for the most part. I still hear a lot about protein, but It's been no problem for me. My experience (from multiple races) shows that I need no more protein than what I get from plants. Sometimes it takes some time for our loved ones to get used to our eating habits. Most people believe It's just a phase. For me, its become my lifestyle. I will never go back. Thanks again for visiting. Don't be a stranger!
Hi Brandon, I am a 42 year old mother of three, super busy girl! I LOVE to run and ran my first half marathon this past September. I LOVE eating vegetarian and I do mostly but I still cook meat for my family. My challenge is staying away from refined carbs cuz I tend to grab them on the go. I also teach yoga and I'm becoming a real estate agent so I need a lot of energy! I am considering going vegan this year to see if it helps me have more energy. 🙂 I would love to increase my running this year as well. Congratulations on all of your successes!
Hello Brandon,
I am going to be 31 in 3 days! I'm a single mum to a 3 and half year old, and a full time student. I turned Vegan in November (for International Vegan Month) and found it so easy to get on with that I decided to stick with it. In a previous life I was a personal trainer and began running then. Unfortunately, the emphasis was always on animal derived 'complete' proteins for increasing performance for any event. I wish I had tried a vegan diet before! Even with just 2 months as a vegan, and no real training plan I am increasing my speed, and runs are feeling easier and altogether more comfortable!!
I am signed up for a half marathon in June, and look forward to reading your story for inspiration. Here's a technical question though. Can I read an ebook on a laptop??? I have no ereader.
Best wishes and a Happy New Year
Sam
Thank you for stopping by, Stacey. I'm glad to hear that you are taking steps to improve your health, and boost your energy. I can say that within two weeks of removing milk, cheese, and milk from my diet, I felt an increase in energy and the pain in my joints went away completely. I hope that you experience the same benefits.
The biggest motivator for me, was watching the film Forks Over Knives. I'm not saying that every single detail of the movie is true, but it certainly opened my mind to trying new things. In fact, right after watching it, I went vegan and never looked back. So check that out if you get a chance.
Also, I invite you to come check out #VegRunChat on Twitter. We also have a website here: http://www.vegrunchat.com. We're a community of plant-based (vegan & vegetarian) runners just talking about what we love most: running on plants. Hope you will join us for one of our chats.
I love it! That's the reason why I promote the "Vegan for a Month" campaigns because people don't have to commit to them, but can decide for themselves if they would like to continue. And I'm so happy to hear that you will be continuing. If you ever have "any" questions, please let me know.
You should also check out our plant-based running community (@VegRunCHat) on Twitter. We also have a website here where you can join: http://www.vegrunchat.com.
As far as your ebook question: absolutely! I can send you a .pdf version that you can read on any computer. Simply subscribe to our emails, and I will get it out to you as soon as I can.
Hope you have a Happy and Healthy New Years! Look forward to talking with you more in 2014. 🙂
That's great news, thank you! I look forward to reading it 🙂
Hi Brandon,
I have a vegan restaurant in Tucson, AZ (www.LovinSpoonfuls.com) that I opened eight years ago because I wanted to promote a vegan lifestyle. One of my customers suggested that I reach out her fellow runners at local events. I have created a flier to distribute at events and was wondering if it's okay with you to quote you on the flier:
"Within a couple of weeks (of switching to a plant-based diet) I noticed a dramatic boost in energy, decrease in recovery time, and I was beginning to run longer (and faster). Moreover, the pain in my joints had literally disappeared." Brandon Frye, Plant-based distance-runner Winston-Salem, NC.
Good luck with your running and thanks for helping to spread the word!
My best regards,
Peg Raisglid, Owner
Lovin' Spoonfuls Restaurant
GoVegan@LovinSpoonfuls.com