My father, he’s been my hero my whole life. And I am very, very grateful for the gift that he has given me, which is the gift of eating plant-based, and the gift that then in turn, I am going to be giving to my son and my daughter and all the people whose lives I am able to touch by eating plant-based.

Welcome, gracious viewers, to another uplifting edition of Vegetarian Elite. On today’s program, we will honor Father’s Day by introducing a man who is continuing the valiant, life-saving legacy of his beloved dad. World class triathlete turned firefighter turned best-selling author, Mr. Rip Esselstyn, has always lived a heroic life. From saving human lives as a firefighter to animal lives as a plant-strong vegan, he has always responded to the call.

Nowadays he serves as a major proponent of society transitioning to meatless eating. His vegan philosophy comes from his father’s loving decision to help the whole family become vegetarian over 25 years ago. His father, world famous doctor Caldwell Esselstyn, is considered a pioneer in the use of plant-based preventative medicine.

My father was one of my heroes. No doubt about it. And he was the primary influence in me making the transition to eating this way.

While serving as a dedicated firefighter in Austin, Texas, USA, Rip created a simple and powerful vegan diet plan out of concern for health of his fellow colleagues.

In 2003, we had basically a very, very competitive station. And we had a bet to see who had the lowest cholesterol level. So we had our cholesterol levels checked the next day. The results came back. And one of my fellow firefighting brothers had a cholesterol of 344, at the age of 33. So as a group of firefighters, literally the next shift in an act of solidarity, to really save his life, we started eating plant-based, plant-strong.

This effective eating system gained national exposure, and led Rip to write the powerful award-winning book “The Engine 2 Diet,” and create an informative website. He also has a YouTube channel that guides people step-by-step through his 28-day scientifically researched eating method.

We got a lot of press and media attention as a bunch of firefighters that started eating plant-based or vegetarian. We were on the cover of the New York Times, National Section, we were on National NPR radio, numerous radio broadcasts. And then all of a sudden I realized as a firefighter, not as a doctor, not as a nutritionist, but as a firefighter, I was in a unique position to reach out and connect with a group, with an audience that would never otherwise hear this message.

It almost became like an obligation for me to write this book in order to let people know the irrefutable and the undeniable connection between what you put in your mouth and your weight, perfect health, and becoming bullet proof to western disease.

In 2006, Rip, along with other members of the Engine 2 fire station were honored by Supreme Master Ching Hai with the Shining World Leadership Award for showing people that they too could lead a heroic, compassionate lifestyle in their own homes simply by changing their food choices.

In a nutshell, I am kind of challenging people to eat more fruits, vegetables, whole grains, beans, nuts and seeds, it’s really that simple. Right now your average American is consuming a minuscule 6% of their calories from fruits, vegetables, whole grains, and beans, and almost 90, 95% are coming from processed and refined foods, and animal-based products. And so, my goal, my mission, and what I talk about in the book is all the reasons why you want to go from basically eating a plant-weak diet to swinging the pendulum around and eating a plant-strong diet.

Mr. Esselstyn is featured in the critically acclaimed 2011 documentary “Forks Over Knives,” and a respected member of the Whole Foods Market healthy eating team.

I’ve got a little couple of minute snippet with me and the guys at the firehouse basically highlighting how we eat a plant-strong diet to be the best firefighters we can be, to be at our best 24/7.

I started eating this way in 1987 for a number of reasons. One was for health reasons, and the other was for performance reasons. And that’s because my mentor in the sport of triathlon, a guy named Dave Scott, the 6-time winner of the Hawaii Ironman Triathlon was a hardcore vegetarian. And so I was like, “Well, if the number 1 endurance athlete in the planet eats this way, then there’s no reason why I shouldn’t eat this way.”

I think it gave me the edge as a world class triathlete for a little over 11 years, and then I continued to compete at that level, even as a full-time firefighter as well, up until the age of 43, 44. But I’ve won numerous triathlons, numerous endurance competitions, dualathons, open water swimming competitions, and I contribute my success in large part, to the plant-strong or vegan diet.

Among his accomplishments, at the age of 43, Rip Esselstyn was named one of Austin’s 10 Fittest People. In 2008, he won the US Masters Swimming National Championship in record time for his age group. We asked Rip, based on his personal experience and research, if he would have performed better as an athlete if he continued eating meat, fish, dairy, and eggs.

No, no. When you’re not eating refined and processed foods, when you’re not taking in saturated fat, dietary cholesterol, acidic producing animal protein, you’re going to be much better off, and you recover better. And as an athlete, one of the things that’s so important is being able to train and then recover.

As a firefighter, one of the things a lot of people don’t know is that 80% of our call volume, we’re making are medical calls. So we see up close and personal the devastation that’s being caused by the fork and the knife and the spoon. So eating this way it gave me the means to not get sick, have the energy to write the book, and continue to do all the things I wanted to in life: be a firefighter, be a father, be a husband, and still take care of myself by training for at least an hour a day.

What is your assessment of the effect of a plant-based diet on your physical abilities as a firefighter in terms of both stamina and strength?

By far this is the best diet to eat. Your blood is going to be as clean as it can be. When you eat plants, specifically the green leafies, your body produces something call nitric oxide and this allows all your vessels to dilate. When they dilate, a lot more flood can get through to the muscles, the tissues, and the organs. And if you have more oxygen, you’re going to be performing better.

One misconception that I always have to clear up first and foremost because most people don’t understand that you can get all the protein you need in abundance to repair muscle and also grow more muscle, through a plant-based diet. As human beings, there’s three macronutrients that we get out of food: there’s fat, which we can store easily; there’s carbohydrates, which we can store as glycogen or glucose; and then there’s protein. We can’t store protein, so we use what we can and then we discard the rest.

So now at the fire station where they’re are all vegan, what is the food like? What are the meals like at the fire station?

Well, great question. And I tell people, the four major food groups of the Texas firefighter are: burgers, pizza, beef fajitas, and ice cream. So for starters, I just took the four major food groups and made them healthy. So instead of doing beef burgers, we did black bean oatmeal burgers. And then for a side, instead of doing fries that are dunked in oil, we did baked sweet potato fries.

And instead of doing green beans for example, smothered in butter and oil, we did green beans with a wonderful spice on top. And then pizza – firefighters love pizza. So we did a clean, whole grain crust and a marinara sauce with all kinds of veggies galore, whether it’s pineapples, artichoke hearts, sun-dried tomatoes – we got pretty extravagant. Instead of beef fajitas, we would do portobello mushroom fajitas. So we’d slice up portobello mushrooms with barbeque sauce and either cook them on the grill, or bake them in the oven.

Then instead of doing ice cream for dessert, we’ll do a healthy silken tofu lime mousse with fresh raspberries on top and a sprig of mint. And the guys loved it. And you know in the book for example, I have nine different dinner categories. These are all very stick-to-your-rib, kind of masculine-type meals. For example, we got Pizza Night, we got Burger Night, we have Big Salad Night, we’ve got Soup Night, we got Tex-Mex Night, we’ve got Comfort Food Night. So all these categories, close to 125 different recipes.

Great. Would you tell us about your diet on a typical day?

Yeah, I keep it simple. In order for this to be sustainable and permanent it has to be simple. I start the day with what I call “The Big Bowl,” and it’s 3 different types of cereals. And then I do a tablespoon of ground flaxseed meal for my omega 3 fatty acids. I do a small handful of walnuts. And then I do usually three pieces of fruit. I usually keep frozen fruit in the in the freezer, that way it never goes bad, it’s very, very economical. So I usually do mango chunks, raspberries, blueberries. Then I’ll also do something fresh like a banana, a mango, or a peach or a kiwi.

And believe it or not that is my breakfast cereal. It’s the linchpin that has kept me going for now 24 years. And that little bowl there, or I should say big bowl has anywhere between 35 or 40 grams of protein in it and the same amount of fiber. So it is just packed with all kinds of wonderful things to start the day out in a great way.

On Engine2Diet.com, Rip guides each visitor with resources that make it fun, easy, and delicious to effectively change their diet (and their life!) in just four weeks.

This basically guides you through the 28 days. And each week, I have anywhere from a 2 to 4 to 5 minute video where I explain to people what you’re going to be eliminating and why you’re going to be eliminating it. In week 1, it’s all dairy. Week 2, it’s all meat, it’s all flesh. And week 3, it’s all extracted oils. And then I also have week by week accompanying meal plans and grocery lists for people that you know will invariably say “Well, what am I going to eat? What in the world am I going to eat?” And so that’s why I’ve supplied these tools.

But I also like to tell people that 99% of the food on the planet comes from plants. 99%. One percent comes from animals. During the 28 days health opportunity, every day try a new food, a new plant-based food that you’ve never had before. And exercise, you know, eating plant-based is king, exercise is queen, combine the two, and you have a health kingdom. I find it’s very, very important to build the immune system, to fight depression, and then if you’re female, help fight off the osteoporosis. By the way, as an aside, the best form of absorbable calcium comes from plants, it doesn’t come from dairy.

And this is, of course this website will all be free because I just want people to start eating this way, because you’ll save yourselves and you’ll help save the planet.

We asked Mr. Rip Esselstyn if he had some kind words to share with our viewers for Father’s Day.

One of the greatest gifts that anybody can give any father out there is the gift of going plant-based. I would challenge the men out there, what is more masculine: eating a certain way and dying of heart disease at the age of 51, 52, and leaving your family behind; or eating a plant-strong, plant-based diet and being there for, for your children, for your wife, in a very responsible and heroic way. And I would say that being around for your family, in a responsible way and being healthy is the more masculine thing to do. So that would be a nice Father’s Day wish that I would wish upon all the men out there that are fathers.

Engaging viewers, we appreciate you spending time with us today on our special Father’s Day edition of Vegetarian Elite featuring plant-strong Rip Esselstyn. Please join us again next week, June 25, for part 2. Coming up next is Between Master and Disciples. May you and your family enjoy one another’s blessed company in happiness, health, and longevity.

I am Rip Esselstyn of the Engine 2 Diet.
Be Veg,
Go Green
2 Save the Planet!

For more information on Rip Esselstyn and his plant-strong Engine 2 Diet, please visit: Engine2Diet.com