Many top athletes are vegan. Bruce Lee was, and so are Mike Tyson and Ironman triathlete Canadian Brendan Brazier. Brazier, author of Thrive: The Vegan Nutrition Guide to Optimal Performance in Sports and Life, and other athletes debunk the myth that to be on top of your game you need to be packing in a lot of animal protein.

In his book, Brazier writes about his quest to become a professional Ironman triathlete and how he realized that a vegan diet not only speeds up his recovery time in between intense training sessions; it also reduces the overall stress on his body from nutrition and outside factors. It makes him a better athlete.

The Thrive diet consists of "one-step nutrition," classified as food "containing nutrients already in a form usable by the body, with no breaking down required." In the simplest terms, this means whole foods, not a microwave dinner.

The diet also includes its own nutrition pyramid that is different from the Canada's Food Guide pyramid. In this particular pyramid, the bottom consists of fibrous vegetables rather than grains. As you go up the pyramid, there are legumes and seeds for protein, fruit, cold-pressed oils and nuts for fat and at the top are whole grains and starchy vegetables, like squash and sweet potatoes.

Essentially the focus is on efficient foods that digest easily, making you a stronger athlete because your body's not working as hard to break down the food. There's also an emphasis on cutting back on sugar and starch. It's not an extremely limiting diet; it's a more holistic approach to eating that's about treating food as fuel for your body to keep it performing at its best, whether you're a triathlete or not.

Thrive also includes some amazing and doable recipes. It's not all tofu and sprouts. There's toasted apple cinnamon cereal, blueberry pancakes, banana bread energy bars, and easy recipes for pizzas and even burgers — all vegan but still delicious.

This book is helpful for those wanting to learn more about a vegan diet, particularly if they're physically active and are wondering how to stay strong while altering their diet from one with a reliance on animal products.

As Brazier wrote, "The Thrive Diet is not about perfection or idealism, it's about progress."

For more information on Brazier and the Thrive diet, visit www.brendanbrazier.com.