Inside Nutrition Misinformation: Nutrition Scientist Jessica Knurick Exposes What's Really Happening to Public Health in America

From a young, troubled gang member facing an almost certain future of jails and institutions to becoming one of today's freshest voices in the conscious media movement, the life arc of Preston Smiles is something to behold. So it's a pleasure to welcome my friend back to the podcast. Inspirational speaker. Motivational messenger. Fount of creative positivity. All around solid, loving dude. If you are relatively new to the RRP, I strongly suggest rewinding the podcast back to my first sit down with today's guest (RRP #103) for the full Preston Smiles lowdown and origin story — a conversation that ranks right up there amongst some of the most popular and downloaded episodes in the history of the show. I am proud to share this powerful conversation with you today. A conversation that traverses a tapestry of mental, emotional and spiritual topics and truisms, including healthy strategies for: * navigating relationship pitfalls; * overcoming the scarcity mentality; * learning how to access, attract and accept abundance into your life; and * why none of us should be afraid to love loudly in our quest to embrace our highest self. I'm a better dude for having Preston in my life. I truly enjoyed this conversation and sincerely hope you do too. Peace + Plants, Rich

9 Mars 20151h 51min

Futurist and science fiction author Arthur C. Clarke famously said, the only way to find the limits of the possible is by going beyond them to the impossible. An apropos theme for my conversation with Jennifer Steinman, a documentary filmmaker who spent well over a year following four seemingly normal, far from professional athletes as they prepare for and undertake one of the most grueling, backbreaking endurance challenges on the planet — a collection of ultra-distance adventure footraces teetering on the absurd dubbed the 4 Desert Series. WHAT IS THE 4 DESERTS? Named by TIME magazine as one of the world's Top 10 Endurance Competitions, the 4 Deserts is the world's leading rough-country endurance footrace series. A unique collection of world-class events that take place over 7 days and 250 kilometers in the largest and most forbidding deserts on the planet. Jennifer has a more poetic take on this lunatic fringe: Imagine you’ve been dropped off in the middle of one of the largest, driest deserts in the World. Over the next six days you will have to run, jog, walk or crawl 155 miles through incessant heat, across soft sand and hard-packed gravel, over sand dunes multiple stories high and down razor-sharp rocky cliffs. You must do this carrying everything you need to survive — clothes, food, sunscreen, emergency medical supplies, sleeping bag — in a 20-pound pack on your back. Now imagine doing this not just once, but four times in one calendar year, through the driest, windiest, hottest, coldest and ultimately the most treacherous four deserts in the world: the Atacama Desert in Chile, the Gobi Desert in China, the Sahara in Egypt … and then, the final stage, a 150-mile footrace across the single most inhospitable landscape in the world: The Last Desert in Antarctica. Any single race in RacingThePlanet’s 4Desert Ultramarathon Series is an extraordinary, life-threatening challenge– something we would only expect the most accomplished, elite athletes on the planet to try. But most of the courageous men and women who come from all over the world to compete in these Herculean events are not professional athletes at all, they’re ordinary people—people with families and day jobs and mortgage payments– people like you and me who have decided, for a variety of personal reasons, to take on this extreme physical challenge. Why do they do it? This week's guest set out to answer this question. The result is Desert Runners– a feature length character-driven documentary that follows a remarkable collection of brave souls on an extraordinary year-long adventure, racing to the four corners of the Earth.

6 Mars 20151h 53min

Let's talk about food. Despite all the diet and nutrition content I consistently and freely generate, Julie and I are still inundated daily with inquiries like: So what exactly do you guys eat? How can I get my kids to make healthier choices? Is it possible to eat healthy on a budget? How can I overcome my cravings for unhealthy foods? And of course…Where do you get your protein? It's questions like these that led to an epiphany: I think it's time for the next book. A cookbook. However, there is is no shortage of amazing plant-based cookbooks already available. What could Julie and I possibly bring to this conversation that hasn't already been said? After pouring through all the cookbooks at our local Barnes & Noble, we made a rather shocking discovery — not a single plant-based cookbook seemed to speak directly to the primary concerns of the typical modern family. So we started to think about how we could fill this gap by providing real, tangible guidance for the soccer moms and softball playing dads with young kids just looking to live a little healthier. Normal people searching for a simple, solid roadmap to make better choices at the market and in the kitchen. A book that would really address the true needs of everyday, budget-conscious folks too busy to study nutrition yet seeking easy-to-implement answers. A book that would guide, educate and inspire people to adopt healthier eating and lifestyle habits and instill such habits in their children. Visualizing such a book was easy. Because it's just a natural, authentic extension of our every day family lifestyle. A lifestyle we call The Plantpower Way. It's taken more than two years of solid focused work to get this book right. So this week Julie and I thought it would be fun sit down and learn more about her personal journey in food while rehashing the long journey undertaken to finally birth this book to life. WHAT IS THE PLANTPOWER WAY? Everybody deserves optimal health. And wellness begins with what we put on our plate. But that's just the beginning. So we decided to pick up where every other cookbook leaves off by providing concrete tools, tips and general lifestyle guidance to foster long-term wellness and catalyze your journey towards unlocking your best, most authentic self. Bursting with inspiration, practical guidance, and beautiful food and lifestyle photography, The Plantpower Way features more than 120 of Julie's delicious, easy-to-prepare whole food recipes, certain to delight even the most finicky or carnivorous of your clan. But this is more than a mere cookbook. It's a fully formed, comprehensive lifestyle primer chock-a-block with information, tools, resources and inspiration to not only answer all those questions we field daily, but elevate and guide the modern family towards healthier, more sustainable food, lifestyle and parenting practices. Both evolutionary and revolutionary, it's a book you will proudly use every day, share with colleagues, eagerly gift family members and even display on your coffee table for friends to peruse and enjoy. WE NEED YOUR HELP! Although the book doesn't hit stores until April 28, it is currently available for pre-order. The way publishing works, pre-orders are very important in terms of setting up the book for long-term success.

2 Mars 20151h 26min

In 2005, New York City firefighter, avid marathoner and ironman athlete Matt Long hopped onto his bike to do what he did every day — ride from his East side Manhattan apartment north to the Randall's Island fire academy where he helped train the city’s bravest. As he crossed 52nd Street, a 20-ton bus made a right turn from the middle lane. The bus didn't just hit him, it dragged his body completely underneath, where Matt was then quite literally impaled by his bike. After receiving 68 units of blood in the first 40 hours post-accident, Matt spent the next month in a coma. When he woke up, the doctors told him he was facing a one percent chance of survival. Matt had other plans. After a 5-month hospital stint and 40 surgeries in under two years, he did more than survive. He finally came alive. The story of Matt’s accident and his comeback quest to tackle the 2008 NYC marathon just 3 years after his accident was first chronicled in an extraordinary story in Runner's World by Charles Butler entitled A Second Life. That story was later adapted and expanded into Matt's exceptionally inspiring memoir, The Long Run* , a work of co-authorship by Long and Butler (not to be confused with my buddy and RRP favorite Mishka Shubaly's equally compelling Kindle Single, also entitled The Long Run*). Today Matt will tell you not only does he not regret the accident, it is the one thing that has made him whole. There are many words that can be used to describe Matt — firefighter, 9/11 first responder, ironman athlete, accomplished marathoner, advocate, bon vivant, husband and father. But one word will suffice: hero. Matt is a man I hold in high regard as an incredible example of the resiliency not just of the physical body, but of the emotional body — the indomitable, boundless strength of the human spirit in selfless service to others. Great guy. Great talk. I sincerely hope you enjoy the exchange. Peace + Plants, Rich

21 Feb 20151h 43min

Jason Hall is having a moment. The country is having a moment. Although hardly an overnight success story, it's fair to say American Sniper is this talented screenwriter's big break. A break so big he just might win his first Oscar a few days from today. But the celebratory mood is tempered by one inescapable fact: it is constructed from the tragic demise of a man named Chris Kyle. The soldier who not only serves as this contentious movie's protagonist, but was also a man Jason called friend. In an era when studios shy away from war movies as box office poison, American Sniper is an unsuspecting juggernaut. Breaking records left and right, the Bradley Cooper starrer seems to have touched a national nerve, packing theatres across the U.S. to the tune of over $300 million domestically and a fast approaching $400 million worldwide gross. Not only is American Sniper Clint Eastwood's most successful film to date, it's the highest grossing war film of all time. And yet the film is not without its critics and controversy. Propaganda or protest movie? War polemic or character study? The glorification of a highly skilled killer or the tragic tale of one man's demise?  Let the pundits pontificate, Jason Hall would say. The important thing is that people are now talking about things that need talking about. Irrespective of your personal feelings about this film, you cannot deny that it is a work that demands to be reckoned with. A reckoning that has catalyzed a productive dialog around a litany of important issues such as: * the incidence and treatment of post traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and traumatic brain injury (TBI) in today’s soldiers; * the physical, mental and emotional impact of multiple deployments on soldiers, their families and society; and * how to systemically improve the much needed care and support we provide our troops. This is the dialog that interests Jason – a guy with his feet on the ground who really gets that the success of this movie is not about him. It's about service. It’s about the responsibility we collectively shoulder as a society – irrespective of politics — to do a much better job of taking proper care of the men and women who voluntarily enlist to place their lives on the line daily, and without reservation. This is a compelling conversation about many things, from the machinations of Hollywood to the fragility of life. But to me, this is about the responsibility to make your journey about something bigger and more important than your self and your ego. I sincerely hope you enjoy the exchange. Peace + Plants, Rich

16 Feb 20151h 48min

Remember that big deal about how the bread at Subway contains chemicals found in yoga mats? Then there was the story about how fast food French fries contain a chemical used in Silly Putty. And the whole to-do about how there’s actually no pumpkin in the Starbucks pumpkin latte. The person behind these semi-salacious, headline grabbing campaigns is this week’s guest, Vani Hari – aka Food Babe – the outspoken and often divisive food activist behind the wildly popular FoodBabe.com blog. I met Vani at a dinner party this past summer and found her not only delightful but also razor sharp, fiercely passionate and tenacious when the subject turned to food — particularly what big food manufacturers don’t want you to know about what’s in our food. Her message? To empower the typical soccer mom with the information to feed her family right and the courage to stand up for greater transparency and accountability from companies that produce what ends up on our plates. FoodBabe.com, which exceeds an astounding 2.5 million unique visitors per month, along with the mobilization of Vani’s passionate Food Babe Army following, has been incredibly successful in getting gigantic companies like Subway, Kraft, Chipotle, Chick-fil-A, and even Anheuser-Busch to not only remove certain harmful ingredients from their food but also steer them toward more healthful policies. Therefore, it should come as no surprise that food companies are terrified of her. Her voice and legion of supporters pose a significant threat to corporate profits and business as usual. This makes her a target. Attacked daily, it’s not uncommon for her to receive death threats. But that’s what happens when you really put yourself out there, on the front lines. The fact that she soldiers on is super ballsy. She is a warrior. Totally punk rock. The Erin Brockovitch of food. Congressman Tim Ryan calls her Vani “a one woman consumer protection agency.” And I for one have tremendous respect for anyone who demonstrates her level of courage and advocacy. Vani and I were supposed to sit down in person in New York a couple weeks ago but the big storm that never was left her with a cancelled flight and compelled me to break my cardinal rule and host this conversation on Skype. I never do this, but I think Vani’s message is potent and important and it didn’t appear we would be in the same city at the same time again anytime soon, so I took a chance and I’m glad I did. This is a great talk. A talk about how all of us, irrespective of our personal dietary proclivities, can live a cleaner, more organic and healthier lifestyle in today’s overprocessed, contaminated-food world. This is a talk about corporate responsibility and corporate transparency. This is a talk about government oversight and regulation of our food, our food companies, and the ingredients that find their way into our food. And most importantly, from my perspective, this is a talk about the inherent power and responsibility we hold as as consumers to be advocates; to raise our voice and be heard; to hold the people behind the food we eat more accountable for how its made and what goes into it. I sincerely hope you enjoy the conversation. Peace + Plants, Rich

9 Feb 20151h 24min

America's #1 killer, heart disease currently kills 1 out of every 3 Americans; 70% of Americans are obese and getting fatter; and Studies forecast that by 2030, 50% of Americans will be diabetic or pre-diabetic. The great irony in all of this is that, as Dr. Kahn so astutely points out, 80-90% of all chronic health problems can be resolved via pretty simple diet and lifestyle alternations. The tricky part is translating these lifestyle alterations from theory to practice. I understand that it can be difficult for many, particularly when there is so much confusing information out there concerning about heath, nutrition and diet. So confusing in fact, that it becomes incredibly challenging for even the most savvy consumer to separate fact from fiction and truth from hyperbole. Just because good news about bad habits makes for tempting clickbait doesn't mean the information is reliable — its usually not. To help sift through all of this, I once again sit down for a heart to heart (pun intended) with cardiologist Joel Kahn, MD — you can listen to our first conversation (RRP #44) here. A Summa Cum Laude graduate of the University of Michigan's prestigious Inteflex program (a 6-year undergraduate / graduate program that developed doctors fresh out of high school), Joel has served as Clinical Professor of Medicine (Cardiology) at Wayne State University School of Medicine since 1993. He's authored over 130 articles on heart disease, is a frequent lecturer on heart disease and its prevention, has performed thousands of cardiac procedures, and has been advising patients on heart healthy programs for over 20 years. Not only does Dr. Kahn know what he is talking about, his basic message is elementary: if you want to experience true long-term wellness, then you must focus on implementing sustainable long-term preventive protocols into your lifestyle. This starts and ends with diet and active lifestyle. The specific thrust of this conversation focuses on separating truth from marketing with respect to certain zeitgeist trends in nutrition science. To wit: Is butter really back? What are the health impacts of a low carb / high fat diet? What are the risks (and benefits, if any) of trendy practices like putting butter and oil in your morning coffee? Is everything we thought we knew about saturated fat truly wrong? Who was Ancel Keys and what is the import of his nutritional studies? What is the true impact of dietary cholesterol on arterial and heart health? Finally, and most importantly, what specific dietary and lifestyle protocols does this veteran cardiologist recommend to maintain optimal heart health in a culture in which heart disease has become a wildly out of control pandemic? You'll want to tune in to find out. Amazingly informative, this is straight talk from a solid guy. An awesome and trusted and educated and experienced and entertaining guy I am proud to call my friend. I sincerely hope you heed the call and enjoy the conversation. Peace + Plants, Rich

2 Feb 20151h 40min

What can mined from the abyss that separates ordinary from extraordinary? Although he's never pedaled a single stage of the Tour de France as a professional cyclist, Mike Cotty has done things on the bike that would make even Jens Voigt (the consensus hard man of the pro peloton) cringe. Here's a taste. Last summer Mike rode his bike 1000 kilometers non-stop across 21 mountains in the Dolomites, Eastern Alps and Swiss Alps, from Conegliano, Italy, to Chamonix-Mont-Blanc, France. That's over 21,000 meters in elevation gain. That's 54 hours of riding without sleep. That's like riding 8 to 10 stages of the Tour de France without stopping. How is that even humanly possible? Mike also rode 684 kilometers for 30 hours straight across the Pyrenees from the Atlantic to the Mediterranean. A feat rivaled only by his 33-hour, 677 kilometer ride that ascended 16,000 meters of elevation gain across the Alps. Obviously I wouldn't characterize Mike as normal. Far from it. But there is a very relatable everyman aspect to Mike's story that captured my fancy. Mike's path has hardly been linear, but today he is not only an extraordinarily accomplished athlete, he is a respected filmmaker, brand ambassador, media & marketing consultant and entrepreneur. Through his company Media-24, Mike creates compelling content and develops marketing strategy for top tier organizations like Mavic, Cannondale and the Cannondale-Garmin professional cycling team. Mike's latest passion project is The Col Collective, a high quality online video resource dedicated to helping inspire and educate cyclists to reach the summit of the most spectacular mountain passes in the world. Mike's is also a path without ego, well grounded in a true desire to educate, positively impact and inspire people to overcome their own barriers. All these elements make for great conversation about passion. About pushing past that voice in your head that wants you to quit. About what is required to break through seemingly insurmountable barriers. And about the self-discovery incident to attempting something personally unprecedented. This is a conversation about the value and importance of hard work over the life hack. About the pain, suffering, joy and pride that comes with embracing the journey. About living in balance with nature. About faith, having a strong conviction about yourself and the path ahead. And it's about what's required to turn your passion into your profession. I sincerely hope you enjoy the conversation. Peace + Plants, Rich

26 Jan 20152h 18min