Before even getting to the meat of the programme, if you will, my interest was piqued by the executive producers listed in the making of the plant-diet-focused documentary The Game Changers. The Terminator himself Arnold Schwarzenegger, British Formula One driver Lewis Hamilton, tennis superstar Novak Djokokvic and martial arts legend Jackie Chan to name but a few on this smorgasboard of famous sporting names.
Nutrition for them is key and all currently espouse the virtues of a vegan diet. (Mostly vegan – old Arnie treats himself to eggs, likely embedded from his bodybuilding days). All link an improvement in performance to the dramatic dietary change.
Eating only plants, such as vegetables, grains, nuts and fruits, and food made from plants, it is the combination of vegan nutrition with high performance athleticism that is explored in this Netflix documentary.
Is a plant-based diet enough for developing muscle mass?
Forbidden fruit… well, sweets
Personally, I tend to steer away from nutritional-focused content. I had enough of food focused thoughts in my formative years as an elite gymnast. Yes, us gymnasts were weighed in front of each other; no, it didn’t feel great; and yes, a couple of times I did think, ‘Right, I’m going to get anorexia just to show them’.
But I was so hungry once I’d got home from gym on school nights, mostly after 8pm, that I’d ravenously tuck into hearty food prepared by my mum, all thoughts of starving myself forgotten. Mostly though, I just thought it made sense for us gymnasts to be of a reasonable weight to limit the impact of the sport. I also wanted to be as good as I could be.
It was the 1980s, so the importance of nutrition was just starting to filter through. The only thing I specifically remember about nutritional guidance was my coaches suggesting we cut down on red meat and sweets.
My reaction was to go one step further. Other people may follow those guidelines but I was going to go one better. Cut them out entirely as that would make me even better. I know. I didn’t eat red meat for a decade after that.
Piece of cake
I did have some weird eating habits. I would make myself a mixed herb sandwich for lunch (no butter). If I had a night of gymnastics and no one was home I’d have my treats.
Cooking a piece of cheese in the new-fangled microwave before dabbing off the oozed-out fat with kitchen roll before adding a layer of Marmite and then rolling it up into a chewy snack.
Or my cake-in-a-cup. Putting a small amount of cake mixture in a mug – flour, chocolate powder, sugar, butter – microwaving it up, and scooping up the thick, dark, deliciously sweet mess.
A balanced life (pic by Jo Gunston)
These days though, I just eat a balanced diet. Meat, fish, chicken, dairy, carbs and veg – with occasional treats. Put in less calories than you burn off and voila, you lose a few pounds.
I know my insides look nice and healthy. On having a hospital scan relatively recently I listened to a medic talk a student nurse through my organs. “Well, it’s rare to see such a healthy liver (I think it was). You see how it… blah blah.”
I didn’t really take in what he was saying, I was too busy thinking, “Hello? Can you direct this information toward me? I’d quite like to know what my organs are doing, if it’s all the same to you two.”
Eat your heart out
So anyway, I reluctantly put on The Game Changers. I did so because I saw friends talking about it on Facebook and thought, oh flipping heck, it’s about sport, I’d best watch this.
So I did, and it’s pretty compelling stuff, truth be told.
Documentary host, James Wilks, is a former UFC fighter who now teaches fighting techniques to government agencies. When recuperating after an injury he spent 1,000 hours studying recovery and nutrition.
His interest piqued when he found research revealing that Roman gladiator bones reveal a more plant-based diet than we’d realised. It’s difficult to imagine Russell Crowe chowing down on some broad beans to bulk up for his famous role, right?
Wouldn’t he be tucking into steaks times a day – breakfast, lunch and dinner – swallowing six raw eggs from a pint glass, that kind of stuff. That’s exactly the point.
There’s no indication that meat-based protein is the way forward for muscle bulk. In fact, Wilks argues, it’s the opposite.
Eat like a horse
When lactic acid hits towards the end of a middle distance run, athletes need to be properly fuelled
Athletes across the spectrum are interviewed by Academy Award-winning director Louie Psihoyos (The Cove). From thigh-dominated track cyclists to lithe wiry ultra marathon runners to brutish world’s strongest men to arguably, one of the best racing drivers ever, Lewis Hamilton.
All have responded positively to the change in diet, whose environmental credentials are also cited in the film. Less land needed for the raising of cattle, for example, and the excessive amounts of water needed for the process.
Examples of the benefits, athletes argue, is that they recover better, they’re not as sore. An Australian middle distance runner reveals: “Sometimes you have to do something you know your competitors aren’t doing.”
An American football team is in their best season of the past 15 years. Fourteen of the guys on the team switched to plant-based diets.
Full of beans
The focus is not just on elite sport stars, though. Wilks follows cholesterol test results on an American fire department. Shockingly, firefighters are more likely to die from heart-related issues than fire-related injuries. Cholesterol levels, even after a short period on a vegan diet, raised many a singed eyebrow.
The results of a meat vs plant-based burrito test surprises team-mates
Erectile performance tests on college students initially produced much giggling. But the difference after just 24 hours after switching to a plant-based diet became eye widening more than laughable.
Says one scientist: “It’s not one set of dietary guidelines improving your performance as an athlete, another one for reversing heart disease, reversing diabetes… it’s the same for all of them.”
In a nutshell
Professional strongman Patrik Baboumian weightlifts meat free
Psihoyos also highlights the human interest side of the stories. Patrik Baboumian, the professional strongman, followed his path after his mother, father and sister were in a car accident and only his mother survived. He wanted to be strong enough so that if it happened again he would be able to help.
Built like an ox, Baboumian paid short shrift to the the person who asked how he could be so strong without eating any meat. His response: “Have you ever seen an ox eating meat?”
Official selection 2018 at Sundance Film Festival
Social
GameChangersMove.com
#ChangeYourGame
The Game Changers film is very inspiring to me personally and professionally. Proud to be on the team and can’t wait for you guys to see it this September 💪🏼 #changeyourgame #thegamechangers @LewisHamilton @CP3 pic.twitter.com/9rbYLam8rq
— Novak Djokovic (@DjokerNole) June 29, 2019
I’m so proud of @lightningwilks for bringing the @gcmovie to the finish line. Waiting for the world to see what I already know. This is the tipping point. #plantstrong #changeyourgame pic.twitter.com/GM0FJWYfsh
— RipEsselstyn (@RipEsselstyn) September 10, 2019
James Cameron and I have teamed up again. This time to terminate myths about protein, strength, and performance. Get your tickets to @gcmovie before they sell out. Do it. Do it now! https://t.co/QuFwCXtKuD #thegamechangers #changeyourgame pic.twitter.com/fS72CBVWBN
— Arnold (@Schwarzenegger) June 28, 2019
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