Lance Armstrong is Going Vegan Part-Time

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Lance Armstrong is touting the benefits of a vegan diet, at least for breakfast and lunch.

The seven-time Tour De France winner and cancer survivor told HuffPo that he has recently been integrating vegan meals into his diet.

He is using recipes from the Engine 2 Diet, a cookbook and vegan diet guide by Rip Esselstyn. Rip is the son of famed cardiologist Dr. Caldwell Esselstyn, Bill Clinton's heart doctor, who is featured prominently in the documentary Forks Over Knives.

Armstrong says he's impressed by the effects of the new diet.

"Even when you’re training really hard, it’s normal that you would have certain things for lunch or certain things for breakfast, and then have this dip, or almost like a food coma … I don’t experience that anymore. My energy level has never been this consistent, and not just consistent, but high. I’m a big napper -- I couldn’t even take a nap these days if I wanted to.

The other thing -- I expected to get rid of that dip, but I didn’t expect the mental side of it, and the sharpness and the focus that I’ve noticed. And I was the biggest non-believer, I was like ‘whatever man’, and I’m in. I’m not doing dinners yet, but breakfast and lunch, I’m in."

The diet eliminates all animal protein and processed foods, along with oils. People following the diet are encouraged to eat whole grains, beans, legumes and fresh vegetables and fruits. Armstrong says he plans to stick with the diet for breakfast and lunch but he still plans to eat whatever he wants for dinner.

As a role-model for athletes and cancer survivors, we love Armstrong's new venture into veganism. If he can encourage more people to try the diet, more power to him. We hope he even tries to shift more of his dinners to vegan or vegetarian, but just going vegan for breakfast and lunch is a good start.