Top 10 Vegan Bodybuilders

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Vegan Bodybuilders

The idea that you need meat to build championship muscle keeps dying, and these ten people are some of the ones who killed it. They’ve won pro cards, national titles, and world championships on nothing but plants. If you’re wondering whether a vegan diet can carry you through serious training, start here.

If you want a practical starting point after reading, our guide to fueling workouts with a plant-based diet covers the day-to-day eating behind physiques like these.

1. Nimai Delgado

Nimai Delgado has never eaten meat. Not once. Raised vegetarian by his Hindu parents in Mississippi, he went fully vegan in 2015 for ethical and environmental reasons, then won his IFBB pro card at the 2016 NPC USA Championships in Las Vegas. He’s an IFBB Men’s Physique pro, starred in The Game Changers, and his stated goal is to be the first vegan on the Olympia stage. He also runs veganfitness.com, which offers training routines, recipes, and meal plans.

2. Zack Belknap

Zack Belknap is a natural bodybuilder and NASM-certified personal trainer from Eugene, Oregon. After watching the documentary Cowspiracy, he went vegan and won his WNBF pro card in September 2018, then won his first pro show the following April. He’s the kind of competitor who treats veganism as both ethics and strategy: he credits the diet with improving his recovery and his physique, and he promotes plant-based bodybuilding to his coaching clients.

3. Anastasia Zinchenko

Anastasia Zinchenko is a British powerlifter who also competes in bodybuilding. She has competed in the 63 kg and 72 kg classes, broken multiple national records, and competed at the Bench Press World Championship. Her best lifts include a 115 kg squat in the 63 kg class and a 117.5 kg squat at 72 kg. She has been vegan since 2013 and works as a nutrition and fitness coach.

4. Karl Bruder

Karl Bruder went vegan in March 2016 after watching The Game Changers during production, a decision his already-vegan wife helped nudge along. The results came fast: he won the WABBA Grand Prix in 2016, placed sixth at Mr. Universe, and took fourth at the PCA Physical Culture show, all as a vegan. He says he put on 6 kg of muscle in his first 20 months plant-based, more than he managed in six years of competitive bodybuilding on animal products.

For training and nutrition basics, see our 15 tips for the aspiring vegan bodybuilder.

5. Torre Washington

Torre Washington has been vegan since 1998, nearly three decades, after being raised vegetarian. He’s a natural, drug-free IFBB pro who has won natural bodybuilding titles for years. Then came the historic one: winning the 2025 Ben Weider Naturals Pro earned him qualification for the 2026 Mr. Olympia, making him the first vegan bodybuilder ever to reach bodybuilding’s biggest stage. He also works as a physique coach, teaching other athletes to build muscle on plants.

6. Korin Sutton

Korin Sutton is a U.S. military veteran, having served in both the Marine Corps and the Army, before turning to bodybuilding. He went vegan around 2012 for animal welfare reasons, inspired in part by Torre Washington’s example. He’s now a three-time pro bodybuilder, certified trainer, and nutrition specialist who runs BodyHD Fitness, coaching clients on building muscle with plant-based nutrition.

7. Greg Lachance

Greg Lachance is a Canadian natural bodybuilder in his late forties who turned vegan as a dietary experiment about five years ago and never looked back. He won his IFBB pro card in Masters Men’s Physique at a 2022 show and was named the 2022 Canadian National Champion. His philosophy is simple: “100% naturally prepared for life… Health first, stage always second!” He eats smoothies built on soy milk, seeds, and oats, plus sprouted beans, salads, and fruit, and says veganism improved both his health and his placings.

8. Jehina Malik

Jehina Malik is the first bodybuilder to earn an IFBB pro card having been vegan since birth. Raised in a vegan family, she never had to “switch” anything. In 2013 she won first place and the overall at the NPC Eastern USA Bodybuilding Championship in women’s physique, and in 2014 she was awarded her IFBB pro card at Team Universe. She’s proof of the most literal kind that you can build a championship physique without ever eating an animal product.

9. Kenneth G. Williams

Kenneth G. Williams is known as America’s first vegan champion bodybuilder: the first vegan to make the USA bodybuilding team. He went vegan in 2000, a year before he started bodybuilding, and placed third at the 2004 Natural Olympia among more than 200 competitors. He’s also a personal trainer and longtime vegan activist who has spent years showing that every required nutrient is available on plants.

10. Billy Simmonds

Billy Simmonds is an Australian natural bodybuilder and powerlifter who won the 2009 INBA Mr. Universe title in Hollywood. He became vegetarian in his late teens and went fully vegan in 2011, after his Mr. Universe win. He famously went from his first proper weight session to a Universe title in about three years, drug-free and tested to Olympic standards. Along the way he also set two televised strength-stunt records on national TV.

Conclusion

Ten athletes, ten different paths, one conclusion: a vegan diet doesn’t cap your muscle. It might even remove the ceiling you assumed was there. The common thread isn’t a magic food or supplement. It’s consistent training, enough calories, enough protein, and years of showing up. Everything else is details.

If you’re ready to start, read how to fuel your workouts with a plant-based diet and our 15 tips for the aspiring vegan bodybuilder.