0:00:00.000,0:00:04.819 I’m the first person who will tell you that[br]going vegan is an astronomically beneficial 0:00:04.819,0:00:12.110 decision for the planet, other humans, certainly[br]the animals, and your health…sometimes. 0:00:12.110,0:00:16.560 There are so many ways to eat vegan that in[br]reality it doesn’t always equate to glowing 0:00:16.560,0:00:22.010 health. Still, vegans abound who have seen[br]profound improvement in their health through 0:00:22.010,0:00:27.089 dietary change and athletes who’ve seen[br]significant improvement in performance and 0:00:27.089,0:00:33.280 recovery. But are these success stories based[br]in science? Or can we be just as healthy consuming 0:00:33.280,0:00:39.490 animal products? Well my guest today has a[br]unique take on the matter as a vegan ultra-athlete 0:00:39.490,0:00:41.610 and Registered Dietitian. 0:00:45.340,0:00:50.160 Hi it’s Emily from Bite Size Vegan and welcome[br]to another vegan nugget. Nothing gets people 0:00:50.170,0:00:55.350 up in arms so much as the debate on the perfect[br]way of eating, especially when you get into 0:00:55.350,0:01:01.030 all the various factions of vegan dietary[br]approaches. It gets intense and health claims 0:01:01.030,0:01:04.140 abound along with conflicting advice. 0:01:04.140,0:01:09.070 Well endurance ultra-athlete and Registered[br]Dietitian Matt Ruscigno holds what is rather 0:01:09.070,0:01:14.369 controversial view, at least in vegan circles,[br]that eating vegan isn’t necessarily the 0:01:14.369,0:01:18.960 only way to be healthy. If you missed my first[br]video with Matt where he shares what he eats, 0:01:18.960,0:01:22.820 be sure to check it out up there or in the[br]description. 0:01:22.820,0:01:27.490 So let’s hear from Matt about eating vegan[br]for athletic performance, and in general, 0:01:27.490,0:01:30.479 as well as the importance of not exaggerating[br]health claims: 0:01:30.479,0:01:34.609 Matt, I want to thank you so much for[br]taking time out of your busy schedule to be 0:01:34.609,0:01:35.189 on the channel. 0:01:35.189,0:01:37.460 I’m honored to be here. Thank you[br]for having me. 0:01:37.460,0:01:41.439 Can you speak a bit to, I mean, we[br]talked earlier about kind of what you eat 0:01:41.439,0:01:45.719 and your philosophy with your own food but[br]can you speak kind of as a registered dietitian 0:01:45.719,0:01:51.189 about eating vegan for athletic performance,[br]like what, what’s really the, of course 0:01:51.189,0:01:55.060 there’s not “the” ideal but what is[br]something that people should try to trend 0:01:55.060,0:01:56.859 towards as athletes? 0:01:56.859,0:02:02.530 Right, great question and it’s something[br]on my mind especially right now having been 0:02:02.530,0:02:07.549 at Vida Vegan Con in Austin where I gave a[br]presentation on why we shouldn’t exactly 0:02:07.549,0:02:12.960 exaggerate health claims in vegansim because[br]being healthy and being vegan aren’t the 0:02:12.960,0:02:18.060 same thing and the science is very complicated[br]and you know when I’m wearing my professional 0:02:18.060,0:02:23.140 hat, the truth is you can eat animal products[br]and be healthy. You know, there are people 0:02:23.140,0:02:27.290 who do it, there are people who have had great[br]results from Paleo. You know, they’ve lowered 0:02:27.290,0:02:30.460 their cholesterol levels to which we vegans[br]say “No, they’re eating all that meat 0:02:30.460,0:02:33.080 their cholesterol’s going to skyrocket”.[br]It’s like well there’s some published 0:02:33.080,0:02:37.270 research that says they’re actually lowered[br]cholesterol levels eating Paleo, and we have 0:02:37.270,0:02:42.080 to be realistic about these results and that[br]they exist. It’s naive to think the only 0:02:42.080,0:02:46.820 way to be healthy is to be vegan. Now that[br]said, of course, I’m an ethical vegan and 0:02:46.820,0:02:53.930 my stance is that you can be just as healthy[br]while being vegan. And we have actual research 0:02:53.930,0:02:58.810 that says people who eat more plant foods[br]live longer, they have lower rates of chronic 0:02:58.810,0:03:04.160 disease, all that stuff that’s based on[br]good, actual peer-reviewed research. And that’s 0:03:04.160,0:03:09.510 great to have and I think it really gives[br]strength to our argument but to say that you 0:03:09.510,0:03:13.390 have to be vegan to be healthy I don’t think[br]is true. And so for athletes, it’s the same 0:03:13.390,0:03:18.490 sort of thing where you can perform just as[br]well and we have the examples you know, we 0:03:18.490,0:03:23.040 have Scott Jurek, Rich Roll, we have the whole[br]PlantBuilt team, all those folks that are 0:03:23.040,0:03:29.310 really kicking ass while being vegan but to[br]say that you have, that you are better to 0:03:29.310,0:03:32.420 be vegan is, well, we don’t quite have the[br]research. We just have a lot of people who 0:03:32.420,0:03:34.290 have given their own personal stories. 0:03:34.290,0:03:39.830 For someone who is interested in athletics[br]or already is an athlete and is interested 0:03:39.830,0:03:44.930 in transitioning to a vegan diet, what would[br]you recommend as far, because a lot of people 0:03:44.930,0:03:48.720 have fears about, you know, well, how am I[br]gonna get this how am I gonna get that which 0:03:48.720,0:03:52.390 ends up not being quite as complicated, I[br]think, as people think but what would you 0:03:52.390,0:03:55.840 tell someone who is looking to that and wants[br]to make sure they can maintain their level 0:03:55.840,0:03:56.460 of performance? 0:03:56.460,0:04:01.130 Yeah absolutely, what I do, I get a[br]lot of clients like this that are very intelligent 0:04:01.130,0:04:06.330 and they’re vegan-ish or an athlete-ish[br]and they say “I read all these books what 0:04:06.330,0:04:10.950 do I actually do?” and my philosophy is[br]you need to start where you are. You know, 0:04:10.950,0:04:15.910 do you really wanna be raw and 80/10/10 or[br]did you just read the book and you think it’s 0:04:15.910,0:04:18.909 great. Is this this really practical for you,[br]do you have reasons to believe that this is 0:04:18.909,0:04:23.610 better than any other way of eating. So it’s[br]all about starting where you are. You know, 0:04:23.610,0:04:27.490 can you veganize the stuff that you’re already[br]eating and see how that feels. If you like 0:04:27.490,0:04:30.810 broccoli and you’re familiar with cooking[br]broccoli, add it to more things, eat more 0:04:30.810,0:04:34.849 of it. If you want to do some meat substitutes[br]for a little while, go right ahead. If you 0:04:34.849,0:04:40.060 want to keep doing them, go right ahead. Just[br]make sure you are indeed eating actual fruits, 0:04:40.060,0:04:44.949 vegetables, whole grains, beans are very important[br]for vegans and especially athletes, you know 0:04:44.949,0:04:50.210 lots of nutrients, lots of protein, all those[br]amino acids, it’s really an important part 0:04:50.210,0:04:52.620 of a healthy vegan diet in my opinion. 0:04:52.620,0:04:56.699 You read about how they have kind of[br]anti-nutrient agents and if you soak them 0:04:56.699,0:05:01.020 then it takes that out, is that something[br]that you ascribe to or that you know much 0:05:01.020,0:05:02.689 about? Do you do that with your own? 0:05:02.689,0:05:08.439 I think a lot of people are concerned[br]about these anti-nutrients and phytates and 0:05:08.439,0:05:16.219 what not and when it’s true, those are present[br]in some plant foods but really the research 0:05:16.219,0:05:24.509 shows that people who eat plant foods aren’t[br]getting nutrient deficiencies from these so-called 0:05:24.509,0:05:27.879 anti-nutrients. So on paper yes they’re[br]there but in reality it doesn’t seem to 0:05:27.879,0:05:33.039 matter for most people. When we get into like[br]young kids or someone who needs to restrict 0:05:33.039,0:05:37.729 their diet for a certain reason, sure, maybe[br]you want to look closely at it but for most 0:05:37.729,0:05:44.349 people it’s really not an issue. We really[br]get hung up on these very fine points and 0:05:44.349,0:05:49.210 I think that that’s one, confusing and two,[br]difficult for people who just want to eat 0:05:49.210,0:05:58.840 well, you know and I get a lot of people who[br]come from sort of a normal US cultural diet 0:05:58.840,0:06:02.150 and they’ve never heard of any of these[br]things and those of us who are kind of seasoned 0:06:02.150,0:06:06.240 in it are like well you can’t eat GMO, it[br]has to be local, it has to be organic and 0:06:06.240,0:06:10.210 no you shouldn’t eat kale because it has[br]goitrogens and it’s like what the heck are 0:06:10.210,0:06:14.020 you talking about, I just want to eat more[br]fruits and vegetables so you know let’s 0:06:14.020,0:06:17.479 keep it simple. Let’s keep it simple and[br]not get hung up on these very fine points. 0:06:17.479,0:06:21.699 Alright well, Matt I just want to thank[br]you again for taking time out of your schedule 0:06:21.699,0:06:23.569 to be with us and for sharing your knowledge. 0:06:23.569,0:06:27.300 Yeah absolutely, and thank you for having[br]me. It was great to talk with you. I love 0:06:27.300,0:06:29.939 talking about all this stuff and thank you[br]for all the work that you do. 0:06:29.939,0:06:34.900 I hope you enjoyed hearing from Matt on his[br]approach to simplifying vegan nutrition. 0:06:34.900,0:06:40.159 While I completely agree that we vegans need[br]not and should not falsely inflate the health 0:06:40.159,0:06:45.789 or any other benefits of eating vegan, the[br]astounding devastation of eating animals makes 0:06:45.789,0:06:50.360 doing so completely unnecessary. As I’ve[br]said before in my videos, we don’t have 0:06:50.360,0:06:52.939 to make things up—they’re bad enough as[br]it is. 0:06:52.939,0:06:57.719 For me, it all boils down to the fact that[br]whether or not we can be just as healthy consuming 0:06:57.719,0:07:03.759 animal products, doing so remains profoundly[br]devastating to the environment, diverts global 0:07:03.759,0:07:10.349 food and water resources, and most importantly[br]violently ends the lives of trillions of beings 0:07:10.349,0:07:14.270 every year. And that is not up for debate. 0:07:14.270,0:07:18.529 I’m interested to hear what you think of[br]Matt’s approach. Do you think it’s possible 0:07:18.529,0:07:23.719 to eat animal products and be healthy? Do[br]you think there is or needs to be an “ideal” 0:07:23.719,0:07:26.849 way of eating vegan? Let me know in the comments! 0:07:26.849,0:07:31.129 Be sure to check out the links in the description[br]to connect with Matt at this website where 0:07:31.129,0:07:36.580 he offers nutrition counseling services, and[br]at his own vegan athlete video series Strongest 0:07:36.580,0:07:40.029 Hearts where be profiles incredible vegan[br]athletes. 0:07:40.029,0:07:44.469 If you enjoyed this video, give it a big thumbs[br]up. If you’re new here, do hit that big 0:07:44.469,0:07:49.270 red subscribe button down there for more awesome[br]vegan content every Monday, Wednesday, and 0:07:49.270,0:07:53.770 some Fridays and to not miss out the on the[br]rest of the Vegan Athlete series. If you want 0:07:53.770,0:07:57.580 to help support Bite Size Vegan, check out[br]either of the support links in the video description 0:07:57.580,0:08:02.249 below or click on the Nugget Army icon or[br]the link in the sidebar. Now go live vegan, 0:08:02.249,0:08:04.860 keep nutrition simple, and I’ll see you[br]soon. 0:08:04.860,0:08:09.009 I do have to admit that we vegans can get[br]a little carried away with exaggerated health 0:08:09.009,0:08:09.779 claims. 0:08:09.779,0:08:12.259 When you go vegan, you’ll never get another[br]pimple! 0:08:12.259,0:08:14.169 If you go vegan you’ll never fart again! 0:08:14.169,0:08:16.689 You’ll be able to run a marathon tomorrow! 0:08:16.689,0:08:19.409 Being vegan means never having to blow your[br]nose again! 0:08:19.409,0:08:22.729 Did your head come off? Go vegan and it will[br]pop right back on! 0:08:22.729,0:08:25.479 Nothing cures decapitation like a healthy[br]vegan diet! 0:08:25.479,0:08:27.139 When you go vegan, you’ll be a better dancer! 0:08:27.139,0:08:27.759 A better lover! 0:08:27.759,0:08:28.939 A better friend! 0:08:28.939,0:08:30.580 You’ll rule the world! 0:08:30.580,0:08:33.459 When you go vegan, you’ll never have body[br]odor again!