If you aren't into spearfishing that's not a problem, you don't have to eat fish to be a great freediver!

Here are the best vegan food to eat before and in between dive sessions









 

 

Are you going freediving in the near future? Maybe you’ve never dived before or you just want to learn how to maximize your energy levels. Keep reading and you’ll get plenty of useful information to help you prepare for your under-the-sea adventure.

 

There are great guides online that teaches you what you can eat and drink before, during and after dive sessions but I want to include recipes and tips on meals for people who are vegan or want to try a plant based diet.

 

Maybe you’ve heard the famous myth that it’s hard to get protein from eating a plant based diet? We want to show you that it’s not the case. Maintaining a plant based diet, regardless if you usually eat meat or not, is a great way to prep yourself and keeping your body in best shape while diving.

 

Here’s a guide that Point Deep recommend you to follow if you plan a diving trip soon:

 

• Stay hydrated! You should always drink plenty of water, but whenever you are exercising, it’s extra important so you don’t suffer from dehydration symptoms or get decompression sickness. You will sweat underneath your wetsuit, even if its not visible, and even more when you dive in warmer climates.

 

• Make sure you don’t drink alcohol and dive. Diving can be both mentally and physically demanding and you have to stay focused and ready for any obstacles that might emerge in the water. You’ll be more efficient in the water without alcohol in your body. It also makes you more dehydrated. If you don’t just want to drink water, try tea (there are loads of different brands and flavours), fruit-water or why not start making your own juice in the morning! Decrease your coffee-intake before diving, because coffee and diving are not an ideal match if you want to stay well hydrated.

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• A high-carb diet is great to prep you for your dive session, but try staying away from the white stuff (white pasta, white rice, white bread) and try instead stocking up on whole-grains, veggies and fruit. Don’t know what to cook? Stay tuned for recipes and vegan meal plans for diving in an upcoming blog post.

 

• Where do you get your protein from? If you live on a plant based diet (or if you want to give it a try), there are plenty of good protein sources that you can eat such as: seitan, tofu, tempeh, edamame, chickpeas, beans, hemp seed (and other seeds such as pumpkin seed, sunflower seed), green peas, spirulina, quinoa, amaranth, soy milk, oats, chia seeds, nuts and nut butter.

• There are loads of veggies you can eat that not only contains much needed nutrients and vitamins, but also protein. Broccoli, spinach, asparagus, brussels sprouts and sweet potatoes are the vegetables with most protein content.

• Fruits and berries really are nature’s candy. But it doesn’t just taste sweet, it’s good for your body too. There are so many varieties of fruits you can eat before you dive. My favourite fruit in the summer is watermelon. It not only contains loads of water, it’s also delicious and packed with vitamin C.

• Begin every day with a steady breakfast; I always eat a bowl of oatmeal - even if it might sound boring. To mix it up as much as possible, try adding cinnamon or cocoa powder, pumpkin-, chia or sunflower seed, sliced banana or other fruits or berries.

• A good reason for turning to a plant based diet when diving is to eliminate dairy products. Dairy creates thicker mucus so it makes it harder to equalize by blocking your Eustachian tubes and sinus passages.

2-3 days before your dive:

• Plenty of rest (at least 7 hours) and fluids (2-4 liters depending on your height and weight).

• Make sure you eat loads of high-carb vegan meals and add whole grains like pasta, brown rice or sweet potatoes.

• Leafy greens such as kale and spinach are great to keep your iron levels up.

• Snack on fruits, berries, granola bars without refined sugar or smoothies.

• Eat smaller meals divided evenly throughout the day rather than having a bulk meal.

• Allow at least 3 hours between meals to help the body digest the food better. Slow burning energy foods are prefered (oatmeal, whole grains, banana).

• The day before your dive, try to lower your calorie intake by 500 kcal.

Dive day:

• Don’t overeat in the morning. Keep the breakfast fairly small but drink loads of water or tea (caffeine free).

• A great tip to minimize the risk of sea-sickness is to eat ginger before you head out to the diving location. Ginger makes you less nauseous if you have a sensitive stomach.    

• Eat high-carb snacks between the dive sessions so you can keep going throughout the day. Bananas, apples, yoghurt or a healthier granola bar is a great snack option, and don’t forget to drink water or tea.

• Dark chocolate (not the sugary kind) contains a lot of antioxidants that helps increasing the blood flow throughout the body. This helps the delivery of oxygen to the brain and muscles, which improves their functions. Eat a piece between your dive sessions.

• For lunch you should eat a smaller meal, preferably high-cab. Examples are sweet potatoes, brown rice, quinoa, edamame, avocado, beans, beetroot and nuts. They will make you feel great and help you maintain energy to continue diving. Point Deep offers a perfectly healthy lunch option if you participate in one of our courses, so you don’t have to think about where to get a hold of any ingredients. Although a pizza from the local pizza place sounds tempting, the greasy food will only give you heartburn. You mind and body will also feel much better during your diving adventure when eating healthy plant based food!