Alexey Voevoda - Vegan Powerhouse

Alexey Voevoda is a Russian athlete who has not only won gold at the Arm Wrestling World Championships but also secured two gold medals at the last winter Olympics in the Bobsleigh event whilst following a strict vegan diet, predominantly based around raw foods. His triumph over legendary arm-wrestler John Brzenk was immortalized in the feature length documentary "Pulling John".

Alexey says: 

"I’ve noticed so many benefits since becoming vegan. First, I no longer eat the suffering and pain of defenceless animals. Secondly, my body has become lighter, so to say “clearer”. Thirdly, in my profession, flexibility and elasticity are incredibly important, and I increased both of these. And fourthly, now I almost never suffer from a cold or flu."

It's great that veganism is now becoming more popular in Russia, especially because during Soviet Russia vegetarianism was effectively banned. Athletes like Alexey Voevoda are certainly helping to lead the way and show that humans simply don't require meat to live, and can still compete at the highest levels of sport without any problem.

And Leo Tolstoy, a famous Russian novelist, philosopher (and vegan for the last 20 years of his life - at a time before the term 'vegan' had even been coined!) said:

"A man can live and be healthy without killing animals for food; therefore, if he eats meat, he participates in taking animal life merely for the sake of his appetite. And to act so is immoral.”