As most of my clients know, I rarely watch TV. In fact, up until the other night, I don’t even remember the last time I sat down and watched a full movie. First of all, I don’t have the time to sit down for more then an hour, never mind two hours, and secondly, I don’t have the attention span to watch anything on the television that lasts longer then 30-40 minutes max.

However never have I received so many requests by clients for my thoughts and opinions on a particular subject until the movie “The Game Changers” was released on Netflix a few weeks ago. I actually didn’t realize that so many people were interested in learning about Plant Based Diets, until just recently. As a Coach/Trainer who designs Customized Nutritional Plans, this excites me, as it shows that more and more people are taking an interest in their Diets – And not just for aesthetics and performance, but also for overall health and longevity.

However are Plant Based Diets really the “BEST DIETS” out there to follow?

Is eating meat as bad for you as The Game Changers would have you believe?

Or is this entire Plant Based Diet thing just another diet fad that will fizzle out within the next few years?

The Game Changers – My Review

To be completely honest, I absolutely suck at giving reviews on movies. Probably because I don’t really watch them and generally because I don’t really care for them. So my apologies in advance if this particular review comes off as curt and offensive. The only reason I sat down to watch The Game Changers in the first place, is because I had so many of our clients asking me for my thoughts and opinions on it.

So here it is: I thought the movie The Game Changers was extremely bias and far too critical of Meat Eaters. My opinion is that although somewhat informative, it lacks some fairly general knowledge with regards to micronutrients and how the human body digestive tract actually works.

Care for me to elaborate? Ugh….Fine…..

There Are Always Two Sides To A Story

Look, we all know (or at least I hope most of you know) that eating processed meat is a BAD idea. And I’ve been preaching for the past twenty something years the negative impacts that consuming fatty meats such as red meat, pork and duck can have long term on the human body. And Game Changers just capitalized on these facts to strengthen their argument that all meat is bad. Yes, I understand they used leaner sources of meats as examples as well such as Chicken and Turkey. However they forgot to mention the QUALITY of the lean meats that they were using as examples. For example, a typical frozen Chicken Breast purchased at your local Walmart is most likely going to be MUCH cheaper then a fresh, organic and/or hormone-free Chicken Breast purchased at your  local grocery store.

Why?

Because the quality of the micronutrients inside the Walmart Chicken are far inferior then the ones that are found in the fresh Chicken and therefore cost less to produce. With that said, I still believe that if you are consuming QUALITY LEAN CUTS of white meat, then you’re not doing any harm to your body. I also believe that if you take an extra step and drain any of the additional fats that are found in these meats, such as grilling your chicken, or straining your ground turkey periodically while it cooks, then you are taking an even healthier approach to the meats that you consume.

And as for fish? Why are fish so bad? Well, quite frankly, they’re not! Most types of fish are completely fine to consume and actually offer plenty of health benefits as well. So don’t think for one moment that you have to give up your weekly Salmon dinner or skip your favourite dish at your local Seafood Restaurant (unless it’s covered with butter and sauces), because you’ve been told fish is not healthy. This is completely false and inaccurate.

Why I Actually Love Plant Based Diets

Believe it or not, even though I’m a self proclaimed “Meat Eater”, I truly do believe that a Plant Based Diet is healthy and can be just as effective for building muscle and improving overall athletic performance for a specific sport or inside the gym. I also believe that a person can get all their essential nutrients from following a diet that contains no meat whatsoever.

And the reason I believe this is because I have worked with, and continue to work with a roster of Vegetarians and Vegans that have achieved incredible results while following the Meat-Free Diet Plans, that I design for them. Even for myself personally, I don’t eat nearly as much meat as most competitive bodybuilders who are within my weight class consume. I believe in following a diet that provides me with a variety of protein options besides just poultry and fish. In my opinion, non-meat protein options such as egg whites and whey isolate protein powder, can be just as nutrient dense as a piece of cod or a serving of ground turkey.

Final Verdict

So do I think that Plant Based Diets are healthier then Diets that contain meat? Well, I guess that depends on the type of meats you are consuming as well as the quality of the plant based foods that you are choosing. Look, there are just as many unhealthy Vegetarians and Vegans out there as there are Meat Eaters. And a simple google search will provide you with thousands of articles and posts that support each viewpoint separately. If you want a clear cut answer, my suggestion would be to ignore the cheerleaders for both sides, do your own research, and simply try what works best for your body and your beliefs.

Just because you’re a Vegan or Vegetarian does not mean you can look down upon someone who consumes meat. And likely, just because you are a Meat Eater does not make you any stronger and more fit, then someone who is not. Yes, Plant Based Diets will work. But so will diets that contain lean sources of meat and fresh fish. I can’t choose a diet plan for you as this is a personal choice. However I can suggest to have an open mind and accept that other people may choose to follow a diet plan that is different from yours. Their plan is not necessarily better then yours, but it’s also not necessarily worse. Rather then judge one another for the choices that we make with our diets, I think we should learn to see things from a different perspective and never limit ourselves to just one point of view.

Bon Appetit!

Yours in Good Health,

Nick Cosgrove
Forever Fit Performance