Reverend Al Sharpton is fitter and healthier than ever after losing 176 pounds on a mostly vegan diet.
The 5-foot-10 Sharpton, who once tipped the scales at 305 pounds, now weighs 129 pounds, thanks to daily treadmill workouts and a low-calorie, mostly vegetarian diet, as Celebrity Health Fitness has reported.
Rev. Al followed a vegan diet for several years but has since begun incorporating whole wheat bread, eggs and some fish into his diet at the suggestion of his doctor.
Sharpton’s daily menu consists of about 1,000 calories broken up into two meals:
- Breakfast: Three slices of whole wheat toast, English breakfast tea sweetened with Stevia and a bottle of Juice Press “Doctor Earth” green juice.
- Lunch: Salad (of lettuce, tomatoes, cucumbers, onions, two or three boiled eggs balsamic vinaigrette), a banana and more tea.
Al, who said he hasn’t eaten dinner in years, usually skips dinner and never eats past 6 p.m. Sharpton, a former couch potato, also exercises daily, walking on the treadmill for 20 to 30 minutes, five days a week.
Sharpton says becoming fitter and healthier has also helped him in his work. “You can’t address our issues and demand social justices when you are a prisoner in your own body,” he said.
Rev. Al is no longer 100% vegan, but follows a mostly vegetarian diet that avoids red meat, pork and chicken. Sharpton previously said being vegetarian has not only made him fitter physically, but also calmer and happier emotionally.
“A vegetarian diet has a way of absorbing the stress and gives you greater endurance,” Sharpton said. “I don’t eat many starches or [refined] sugars. I feel like a new, improved me.”
The weight loss and health benefits of a plant-based diet aren’t surprising to Dr. David Katz, director of Yale University’s Prevention Research Center.
“A diet of minimally processed foods close to nature — predominantly plants — is decisively associated with health promotion and disease prevention,” said Katz, author of Disease-Proof.
Obesity expert Dr. Joel Fuhrman agrees. “The more greens you eat, the more weight you will lose,” said Fuhrman, author of The End of Dieting.