He might be an animal on the court, but Australian tennis player Nick Kyrgios has recently explained why he’s plant-based off it.
Speaking to BBC Sport during Wimbledon in June, Nick Kyrgios was asked why he chooses to be vegan. He explained it isn’t for health reasons but more so for “the love of animals.”
“It’s not for health, because I don’t mind a pint of beer, so I’m actually just doing it for the love of animals,” he says.
“I love animals, and it’s so hard for me to eat them, I guess. I just don’t want to be doing that. I drive an electric car now,” – a retina-searing green Tesla, in case you were wondering – “I’m trying to do as much as I can for the environment.”
“You ask someone why do you eat meat, or why do you drive a petrol car, and it’s like, ‘oh it’s too late to do anything, it’s too late to save,’ and I’m just like ‘I’m just trying to be the change that I want to see.'”
“But yeah, that’s it. I love animals, and I love the world, I love the environment, so I’m doing everything I can to prolong its welfare.”
The video, predictably, generated a ton of divisive comments, from: “‘I’m trying to be the change that I want to see’ whilst gobbing spit at spectators” to “I love Kyrgios, his personality is literally all over the place, you got to love him.”
“Loves animals and his red leather Jordan’s” another quipped.
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It’s clear the animal-based vs plant-based diet debate is one that has no obvious end in sight. When someone makes a personal decision to do what they feel is best for them (i.e. Kyrgios choosing to adopt a vegan diet), there will always be those who oppose that view because it isn’t confirmed ‘the norm’.
There are benefits to going vegan, and it has been claimed you can get ripped on a plant-based diet, but one piece of information that cannot be argued with, is that animal-based meat products contain far more nutrients than their plant-based counterpart.
Documentaries, such as Netflix’s Game Changers, hoped to prove that a plant-based diet can still be a good option for those wanting to pack on some serious muscle. But following its release, many nutrition and fitness experts called it out for bending the truth. For example, the documentary claimed that a peanut butter sandwich has as much protein as 3oz beef or three large eggs.
But, as Dr. Anthony Gustin, founder and CEO of Perfect Keto has said, that would only be true if you used 5 tablespoons of peanut butter. And, when you factor in how many calories you would be consuming to get the same amount of protein, you’re looking at around 500, and that’s before you take the bread into account.
So, while Nick Kyrgios may potentially have a tougher time achieving a match-fit rig, the fact he reached the Wimbledon final this year – playing 6 matches in all, having skipped his semi-final against Rafael Nadal – suggests he’s certainly doing something right.
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