It may seem strange to you that a foreword to a book about a vegan diet is being written by a non-vegan. Fair question. However, while I am not one now as I write, there is every chance I will be by the time you read it.
Decisions like this tend to take a while for me. I will even admit to having the book sit on my desk for months before reading it. Why? Like most of us, I want the best out of life: I want my body and mind to run at their full potential, and not take health and vitality for granted. But vegan? Seems a little extreme, right? After all, I am 41 years old, and so far things have gone pretty smoothly. Add to that the usual concerns: I am so busy, Do I have time to commit to this, etc., etc.
Well….I found myself having to put on 20 pounds of lean muscle for another film version of Wolverine, which normally would mean a LOT of animal protein and synthetic protein powders. While this worked in the past, I knew it wasn’t sustainable, that at some point my body (and probably my heart) would rebel. Not to mention that I often felt extremely lethargic eating so many hard-to-digest calories. Then there were the ethical considerations of the diet—the environmental impact being the largest one.
But the idea in my head was that while being a vegan or even a vegetarian was admirable, there would be no way I could achieve the results.
So as this book sat on my desk screaming at me, “There is a way…THERE IS A WAY,” I actually started using Brendan Brazier’s Vega products to see if I could at least replace the synthetic protein powders with Vega One and Vega Sport Performance Optimizer. I loved them, and using them eased my mind for a while. But that image of Brendan on his bike in full triathlon gear finally woke me up to reading the book.
WOW!
Here was a professional athlete describing how beneficial his vegan diet was to his training regime. A regime far more difficult than my own…and how it had liberated him from many of the feelings I was going through in my own training. As the pages turned, my enthusiasm grew. Not only was it possible—it was easier and healthier.
I am so excited by what I am learning. My job does require different physical results for different roles, but I am no longer interested in the “at any cost” part of the equation. I am a family man first and foremost and it has always been important for me to be as healthy as I can be, for all of us to treat our bodies with respect, and hopefully to set an example for our kids and set them on a lifelong path of health and vitality. I am forever grateful to this book, and now having had the opportunity to meet Brendan, I am so impressed with his dedication to passing on his extraordinary knowledge.
I am convinced that the way we eat as a society has led us astray over the past decades, and that many of the current epidemics are surely due to our changed diets: increased preservatives, additives, and under-nourishing foods. What this book is proposing is a very important road map for all of us.
While I am not yet a vegan, I am closer and closer to becoming one. Already, as Brendan describes in this book, I have noticed increased energy and more restful sleep. My desire for sugar and salt is waning, and what’s more, I am following his recipes, and loving them (the smoothies are awesome, too!).
So if you are anything like me, it has been quite a journey for you to even read this foreword, but I guarantee you, you will never look back.
Enjoy the new levels of health and vitality that are coming your way.