242 - Winning Ultramarathons on Plants with Austin Meyer

Episode • Aug 9, 2023 • 1h 7m

Our guest today, Austin Meyer, is a documentarian, journalist, podcaster, and animal rights activist, giving a voice to those whose stories might not otherwise be heard. He’s worked for HBO, The New York Times, and National Geographic, to name a few outlets, and his filmmaking has taken him to faraway places like India, Nepal, and Zambia, where Austin chose to adopt a plant-based diet.

Austin is also a passionate ultrarunner. And on April 15th of this year, with a time of ten hours and seven minutes, Austin showed the world what a vegan athlete can accomplish by winning the Zion 100K Trail Race.

This is a must-listen episode for anyone trying to achieve the improbable and for any naysayers claiming it can’t be done on a plant-based diet!

“I will say one of the interesting elements is that most of the ultra-athletes who I see when it comes to their nutrition game around race day will actually move towards my end of the spectrum when it comes to race day. Like most people aren’t eating dairy, they’re not having meat when it comes to this day where you need to perform, which is kind of an interesting element.” – Austin Meyer

What we discuss in this episode:

The major life changes Austin experienced that prompted him to adopt a plant-based diet.
How he maintained a plant-based diet while living in a rural village in Zambia.
How Austin transitioned to journalism and documentary filmmaking after playing soccer at Stanford.
What he experienced and learned about himself in the first few years as an ultrarunner.
What Austin eats and drinks while he’s training and during a race.
What he did differently to win the Zion 100K Trail Race.
What Austin is doing to promote veganism.
Austin’s experiences working with two-time Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist Nicholas Kristof.