Beyoncé announces vegan diet in preparation for Coachella

Could a plant-based diet benefit the singer’s performance?

Rising star Tiffany Haddish may have just revealed who allegedly bit Beyoncé. (Getty Images)

Beyoncé has announced that she’s adopting a vegan lifestyle as she prepares to headline Coachella festival, which is taking place in April in California.

In January, it was confirmed that Beyoncé would be headlining the festival alongside The Weeknd and Eminem, having pulled out last year when news of her pregnancy hit the headlines.

Two days ago, Beyoncé gave her Instagram followers an insight into her Coachella training regime by posting a photo of some food with the caption: “44 days until Coachella!! Vegan Time!!”

She then shared another photo with the same caption, this time showing the singer practising some choreography with her backing dancers.

Beyoncé will be following a vegan diet formulated by the 22 Days Nutrition meal planner, a programme that she co-founded with her husband Jay Z and celebrity trainer Marco Borges that was based on Borges's book The 22-Day Revolution.

The 22 Days Nutrition website features a testimonial from Beyoncé and her husband Jay Z, which reads: “We want to challenge you as we challenge ourselves to move towards a more plant-based lifestyle and acknowledge you for standing up for your health and the health of the planet.”

In a 2015 video about 22 Days Nutrition that Beyoncé shared on her YouTube channel, she admitted that she did still eat meat on occasion at the time.

"Now, you know, I still eat meat, and it's all about balance, but absolutely I make better choices," she said.

"22 Days is about allowing people to define plant-based living the way that works best for them," Borges explained in the video.

Beyoncé isn’t the only famous performer to have decided to follow a plant-based diet in recent times.

Miley Cyrus and Ariana Grande are also strong believers in veganism, while Jared Leto previously described himself as a “cheagan” (a cheating vegan) in a Rolling Stone interview.

While going vegan can reduce your risk of conditions such as heart disease, diabetes and cancer, it can be a difficult lifestyle to sustain.

"Going vegan is not without its challenges and a long term move to plant-based eating can impact on your levels of vitamin B12 (necessary for healthy nerve function and red blood cell production) which is almost entirely found in animal foods as well as your ratio of omega 6 to omega 3 fatty acids," Dr Sam Rodgers, general practitioner and medical director of Medichecks told The Independent.

"Perhaps the biggest challenge is meal planning, but with so many vegan options now available in supermarkets and restaurants as well as meal planning services such as Beyoncé's own, adopting a plant-based diet is becoming easier all the time."

Dr Rodgers has admitted that he's unsure whether a plant-based diet will benefit Beyoncé in the run-up to her appearance at Coachella.

"To date, there is little evidence to show that adopting a vegan diet will have any positive impact on training and performance. In fact, the usual case to be proven is the opposite; whether the same level of training and performance gains can be achieved by eating a solely plant-based diet," he said.

"At the moment, the jury is out, however, on a psychological level, if Beyoncé feels that she is eating healthily and getting into shape, the impact on her motivation and confidence could be huge."