Is Tom Stoltman Vegetarian? Unpacking the Strongman's Diet

December 23, 2025 •

3 min read

In 2022, world-famous strongman Tom Stoltman and his brother Luke temporarily adopted a vegan diet for the month of Veganuary. This led many to question if this was a permanent shift, sparking interest in whether Tom Stoltman is vegetarian or follows a plant-based diet for his intense training.

Quick Summary

Tom Stoltman is not a vegetarian; he consumes a high-protein, meat-heavy diet to fuel his training as a strongman, although he and his brother have experimented with plant-based supplements and a temporary vegan diet in the past.

Key Points

Not a Vegetarian: Tom Stoltman is not a vegetarian; his regular diet is packed with animal products like eggs and meat to fuel his training.
High-Calorie Diet: Stoltman consumes thousands of calories daily, often reaching 8,000-13,000+ calories, to support his immense physical demands.
Veganuary Experiment: In 2022, Tom and his brother Luke followed a plant-based diet for the month of Veganuary as an experiment, using vegan supplements.
Dietary Staples: Key components of his typical diet include large quantities of eggs, steak, chicken, and other protein and carb sources.
Performance Over Preference: Stoltman emphasizes that his diet is focused on fuel and performance, rather than a specific dietary belief.
Omnivore vs. Vegan Strongman: While Stoltman is an omnivore, other strongmen like Patrik Baboumian have proven success on a plant-based diet, showcasing different paths to strength.

Tom Stoltman's Meat-Heavy Diet for World-Class Performance

For a strongman like Tom Stoltman, who consumes between 8,000 to over 10,000 calories per day, a diet rich in protein and dense with calories is crucial for maintaining his formidable physique and energy levels. While he and his brother, Luke, did participate in a month-long vegan challenge for Veganuary in 2022, his typical diet relies heavily on animal products. This meat-focused approach is typical for many strongman competitors, who require immense caloric and protein intake to support muscle repair and recovery from their grueling training sessions.

The Daily Fuel of the World's Strongest Man

Stoltman's regular day-to-day eating habits are far from vegetarian. He has detailed his dietary routine in numerous interviews and vlogs, consistently featuring eggs, meat, and dairy. His first meal often consists of a staggering quantity of eggs, alongside toast and other animal products. This is followed by multiple other large meals throughout the day, ensuring a constant supply of energy and protein for his physically demanding lifestyle. For instance, lunch might include a significant portion of steak or chicken, with a sizable quantity of rice and vegetables.

Breakfast: A typical first meal might involve up to 10 eggs, porridge, and fruit.
Lunch: This often consists of 300g of meat, such as steak or chicken, alongside carbohydrates like rice and some vegetables.
Snacks and Cheat Meals: Stoltman incorporates high-calorie snacks and occasional 'cheat meals,' such as burgers and fries, to meet his energy demands.

Comparing Stoltman's Diet to Vegan Strongmen

While Stoltman thrives on an omnivorous diet, other elite athletes have proven that a plant-based lifestyle can also support top-tier strongman performance. Patrik Baboumian, a German strongman who appeared in The Game Changers, is a prominent example of a successful vegan competitor. Comparing their approaches highlights the different strategies athletes can take to achieve similar results.


Aspect	Tom Stoltman (Omnivore)	Patrik Baboumian (Vegan)
Protein Sources	Eggs, steak, chicken, mince, sausages	Beans, legumes, lentils, nuts, seeds, tofu, soy products
Caloric Intake	8,000-13,000+ calories/day	Around 5,000-6,000+ calories/day
Meal Frequency	Eats every few hours with multiple large meals	Follows a strict, multi-meal plan, often with liquid meals
Supplements	Whey protein, creatine, BCAA	Vegan protein powder, B12, creatine, iron
Diet Flexibility	Incorporates 'cheat meals' and processed foods	Primarily focused on whole, plant-based foods

The Veganuary Experiment: A Temporary Shift

In January 2022, Tom and Luke Stoltman temporarily adopted a plant-based diet for the "Veganuary" challenge, using MyProtein's vegan supplements. This was an experiment to test their bodies' reactions to a vegan lifestyle and supplements. Tom noted that the vegan protein shake tasted better than he expected and felt that his energy levels remained steady. However, this dietary choice was not permanent. The sheer caloric needs of a strongman at the elite level can be challenging to meet entirely with a plant-based diet, and Stoltman's long-standing preference for meat-based fuel remains.

The Importance of Fueling for Strongman Performance

For an athlete like Stoltman, nutrition is about more than just personal preference; it's a strategic component of his training. The goal is to consume enough fuel to perform at an elite level, recover effectively, and maintain body weight. This involves carefully planned meals and supplements, often managed with the help of a nutritionist. The emphasis is on performance rather than a specific dietary ideology. The temporary switch to a vegan diet during Veganuary was an interesting insight into the adaptability of strongman nutrition but did not signal a long-term change for Tom Stoltman.

Conclusion: Tom Stoltman Is Not Vegetarian

To put it plainly, Tom Stoltman is not a vegetarian. While he and his brother Luke notably participated in Veganuary in 2022, their regular diets are rich in animal products to meet the immense caloric demands of strongman training and competition. The brief experiment demonstrated the potential for plant-based nutrition in sports, but Stoltman's sustained success is fueled by a traditional, meat-heavy diet, with his choices prioritizing performance above all else.

For more detailed insights into a strongman's preparation, visit the official Stoltman Brothers website at https://stoltmanbrothers.com/.

Frequently Asked Questions

No, Tom Stoltman is not vegan. He and his brother temporarily adopted a plant-based diet for Veganuary in January 2022 but typically consume a diet rich in meat and eggs to meet their high caloric and protein needs.

A typical day for Tom Stoltman involves several large meals, including around 10 eggs for breakfast, followed by meals of meat (like steak or chicken) and carbohydrates, as well as protein shakes and even cheat meals like burgers.

Tom Stoltman and his brother Luke temporarily followed a vegan diet during Veganuary in 2022 to experiment with plant-based supplements, but this was a short-term challenge and not a permanent dietary change.

Tom Stoltman consumes a significant number of calories, eating around 8,000-10,000 per day during training and sometimes increasing this to as much as 13,000-15,000 calories during competition weeks.

Yes, it is possible. Notable vegan strongmen like Patrik Baboumian have demonstrated that a plant-based diet can support the strength and muscle mass required for elite strongman competitions.

The Stoltman brothers tried a vegan diet for the month of Veganuary in 2022 as an experiment. They used vegan supplements from their sponsor, MyProtein, to test if they could maintain their strength and energy on a plant-based regime.

Tom Stoltman's diet relies on a variety of animal-based protein sources, including steak, chicken, minced meat, and a large number of eggs, supplemented by whey protein shakes.