
The Rich Roll Podcast
A master-class in personal and professional development, ultra-athlete, wellness evangelist and bestselling author Rich Roll delves deep with the world's brightest and most thought provoking thought leaders to educate, inspire and empower you to unleash your best, most authentic self. More at: https://richroll.com
Latest episodes

Jun 19, 2017 • 1h 19min
Dr. Neal Barnard, M.D. On Breaking The Dairy Addiction
Last week we discussed the how behind ditching dairy. This week we discuss the why.Right now the average American eats more than 33 pounds of cheese a year. Packed with calories, loaded with saturated fat and teeming in highly addictive casomorphins, it's a habit that's intimately linked to obesity and a litany of chronic illnesses, including heart disease and type-2 diabetes. It's a habit that wrecks significant havoc on the environment, polluting our skies and poisoning our water table. And it's a habit that perpetuates unspeakable cruelty on the sentient animals it relies upon to serve its unabating appetite.Nonetheless, the U.S. continues to produce more cheese and dairy products than any other country in the world. Relentless, well-funded dairy industry lobbying efforts have entrenched government subsidies that not only incentivize production but even quietly fund corporate product development and marketing efforts, such as Pizza Hut's infamous grilled cheese stuffed crust pizza, McDonald's McCafé products and even Starbucks smoothies — all products specifically produced, developed and marketed to increase consumer dairy consumption courtesy of the federal funded and USDA regulated dairy checkoff program.It's time to stop the insanity.So let's talk about it. I can think of no better steward to facilitate a conversation on this subject than my good friend Neal Barnard, M.D.A pre-eminent authority on diet and nutrition and its impact on illnesses such as atherosclerosis, diabetes, cancer and Alzheimer’s, Neal is the founder & president of The Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine (PCRM), where he leads programs advocating for preventive medicine, good nutrition, and higher ethical standards in research, and the Barnard Medical Center, a ground-breaking non-profit primary care medical practice where board-certified physicians, nurse practitioners, and registered dietitians help patients prevent and reverse serious health problems, leveraging a holistic approach that involves tackling the actual causes of illness, with extra attention on nutrition.Neal is also an adjunct associate professor of medicine at George Washington University and has authored over 70 scientific publications as well as 18 books, including the New York Times best-sellers Power Foods for the Brain*,21-Day Weight Loss Kickstart*, the USA Today best-seller Dr. Barnard’s Program for Reversing Diabetes* and the subject of today’s conversation...

Jun 12, 2017 • 1h 20min
Ditching Dairy: The Doyenne of Vegan Cuisine on Food as a Portal for Transformation
“I would totally go vegan but there’s no way I can give up cheese.”If this is you, then today's episode is required listening.This week my wife and creative partner Julie Piatt returns to the podcast to discuss the hows and whys of ditching dairy in celebration of her brand new book, This Cheese Is Nuts! Delicious Vegan Cheese At Home, hitting bookstores everywhere Tuesday, June 13.Equal parts mother, author, yogi, musician, and doyenne of vegan cuisine, Julie spent the last two years ensconced in her kitchen lab, dutifully pushing plant-based culinary boundaries to create an extraordinary new work to empower each and all with the required tools and techniques to prepare over 75 facile vegan cheese recipes for home and family.Introducing Cheese 2.0. As her taste-tester in chief, take it from me — it doesn't mimic dairy cheese. It's better. Way better – for you, your family, the planet and of course the animals.If you loved The Plantpower Way, then you're going to flip for This Cheese Is Nuts — a next level nutritional primer designed not just for vegans but for everyone and anyone looking to live better and more sustainably. So whether you are paleo, lactose intolerant, plant-curious or just looking for healthier options for your kids, this book is a must for your and loved ones.This week I sit down with Julie to talk about why she wrote this book and what she hopes it will accomplish.This is a conversation about creative exploration, the power of self-expression and the hidden strengths of naiveté. It's about why and how you should finally ditch dairy. And it's about food choice as a powerful political act to improve personal health and sustainably preserve our collective ecological resources for future generations and our animal friends alike.I'm so proud of Julie and I couldn't be more excited about the impact her new book will no doubt have on positively transforming countless lives in the years to come. The recipes forever changed our lives and I promise they will change yours too. So pick it up for yourself. Pick it up for a loved one. Pick it up for the animals. Pick it up for the planet. Because time is running out. Because good food truly is the first portal to self-actualization. And more than ever, we need everybody to be who they really are.I sincerely hope you enjoy the discussion. This Cheese Is Nuts!Peace + Plants,Rich

Jun 8, 2017 • 1h 44min
John Joseph Returns: The Evolution of a Cro-Magnon, Overcoming Insurmountable Obstacles & The Transformative Power of PMA
Back by popular demand, my good friend, podcast favorite and provacateur-at-large John Joseph returns for an unprecedented 5th appearance on the show to share more of his extraordinary story. A story that lays bare the indelible power of the human spirit to face and transcend unimaginable, seemingly insurmountable obstacles and ultimately transform one's life wholesale.If you're a longtime listener, Johnny Bloodclot needs no introduction. For the uninitiated, John is a sui generis American original. The very definition of hardcore. A survivor. A spiritual warrior spouting straight talk directly from the streets of the Lower East Side with one singular, driving purpose:getting people to wake the f&*k up.Conceived and raised in abuse, deprived of opportunity and left to his own devices, John turned to violence and drugs on the rough and tumble streets of New York's Lower East Side in the 1970’s. It's a path that predictably led to violence, crime, addiction and incarceration. Spending his teens as a drug mule led to a series of unsavory foster care homes, culminating in unimaginably horrific stints in juvenile detention.Then things went downhill.To avoid long-term incarceration, he enlisted in the Navy, only to go AWOL after a fight. Fleeing the law and rudderless, John found redemption in the hardcore punk rock scene flourishing on Manhattan's Lower East Side in the early 1980's. Taken in by the Bad Brains' frontman H.R., John began to explore not just his musicianship, but his spirituality. It's a journey that birthed the Cro-Mags – one of the era's most iconic and influential hardcore punk bands. Later, he found his spiritual salvation living in a Hare Krishna monastery, birthing a life-long love of meditation, yoga, the vegan lifestyle, racing Ironman triathlons, and most importantly, his profound devotion to service.Renown for his straight talk, no BS approach to living and the power of PMA — positive mental attitude — John continues to tour as frontman for both Cro-Mags and his new band Bloodclot. He also just released a 2nd edition of his memoir Evolution of a Cro-Magnon* and is the author of nutrition primer Meat Is For Pussies*, with a foreword by yours truly.A man who truly walks his talk, every conversation with John leaves me better than before. Today's conversation proves that just when I think we’ve covered it all, new layers emerge. So even if you've enjoyed all of John's previous appearances on the podcast, this episode will find you riveted by a stream of mind-blowing, never previously told stories that are certain to incite, provoke, educate and inspire.LANGUAGE ADVISORY: John drops more f-bombs in this conversation than I could count. John is John, and editing was out of the question. So if you're queasy about foul language, consider yourself warned and make sure the kiddos are out of earshot.Enjoy!Rich

7 snips
Jun 5, 2017 • 2h 8min
How To Achieve Peak Performance — And Sustain It — With Brad Stulberg & Steve Magness
In a riveting discussion, Brad Stulberg, a health and performance writer, joins Steve Magness, a celebrated track and field coach. They explore the pitfalls of ambition leading to burnout, emphasizing the need for balance between stress and rest for sustainable performance. The duo highlights the importance of self-awareness, integrating mindfulness practices, and the significance of community in personal growth. They also delve into the addictive nature of smartphones and the balance needed between technology and listening to one's body for optimal performance.

May 29, 2017 • 1h 25min
John Mackey On Conscious Capitalism, Building An Empire & The Power of Plants To Heal and Thrive
Creating a huge business is one thing. Building it on principles of conscious awareness? Another thing altogether.This week I sit down with John Mackey, the father of conscious capitalism and the unlikely entrepreneur behind a $16 billion grocery behemoth that ushered in a global organic food movement and permanently changed the way we eat, live and think about business.The Bill Gates of organic food, John is the original, current and sole CEO of Whole Foods Markets, which he founded in 1980 and has parented to Fortune 500 status, employing over 90,000 people across 450+ stores in the United States, Canada and the UK.A strong believer in free market principles, Mackey is the co-founder of the Conscious Capitalism Movement and co-authored the New York Times and Wall Street Journal best-seller Conscious Capitalism, which encourages business grounded in principles of ethical consciousness.Consistent with this ethos, John has birthed a myriad of philanthropic efforts, including the Whole Planet Foundation to help end poverty in developing nations, the Local Producer Loan Program to help local food producers expand their businesses, The Global Animal Partnership’s rating scale for humane farm animal treatment, and the Health Starts Here initiative to promote health and wellness.Mackey has been recognized as Ernst & Young’s Entrepreneur of the Year Overall Winner for the United States, Institutional Investor’s Best CEO in America, Barron’s World’s Best CEO, MarketWatch’s CEO of the Year, FORTUNE’s Businessperson of the Year, and Esquire’s Most Inspiring CEO.Aligning his actions with his values, John embraces an extremely grounded lifestyle in stark contrast to his means. This is a guy who in 2006 cut his annual pay to $1, donates all his stock options to charity, walks to work, cooks his own meals and meditates daily.A vegan for many years, John recently released The Whole Foods Diet*. Co-authored by Alona Pulde and Matthew Lederman of Forks Over Knives, it's a powerful primer that unequivocally establishes a whole foods, plant-based diet as the optimum protocol for health, disease prevention and longevity based on the huge body of science, research, and advice that is available today.Enjoy!Rich

May 26, 2017 • 1h 48min
Jordan Harbinger On The Art of Communication
In all honesty, I don't put that much thought into how I communicate. Jordan Harbinger thinks that's a mistake. Because the signals all of us routinely emit — verbally, physically and often quite subtly — have a profound impact on how we feel about ourselves, how we are perceived by others, and how we navigate the world.Indeed, the social cues most employ by habit, and without conscious awareness, fundamentally forge our entire human experience, more often than not leading us astray from the relationships, career, goals, and reality we desire.The good news? Social acumen is entirely teachable. To be sure, it's an inside job. And that job is hard. But by committing to that work and embracing certain scientifically proven practices and strategies, we can indeed dramatically improve our communication skills and thus positively impact our ability to relate to and with others. Over time, the result is enhanced connection, self-esteem, empathy, authenticity and influence, all of which translate into an enhanced quality of life and an expanded sense of personal fulfillment.Today Jordan joins the podcast to share his experience. A former Wall Street lawyer turned entrepreneur, public speaker and expert in social dynamics, Jordan is the creator and host of the popular Art of Charm podcast. Celebrating its 10th year with over 600 episodes, Art of Charm has been rated one of the top 50 podcast on iTunes and currently receives an amazing 2.5 million downloads per month.Jordan is also the co-founder and owner of a coaching and consulting firm of the same name. Through his Art of Charm bootcamps and training programs, Jordan and his team counsel executives, employees, athletes, soldiers and every day people on the social, psychological, scientific and philosophical skills required to positively transform your career and life.A bit of a disclaimer: despite very much enjoying my experience guesting on Jordan's show back in 2015, I wasn't sure Jordan was the best fit for this show. The idea of exploring how to teach charm just didn't sit all that well with me. It doesn't feel authentic. But in fairness to Jordan, I think his website, podcast and services are inaccurately named.In truth, Jordan's message is much more about the human psychology behind what holds us back — and the journey required to overcome the habits that block us from becoming the best versions of who we really are.And that, my friends, is a subject I deem worthy of exploring.I sincerely hope you enjoy the exchange.Peace + Plants,Rich

4 snips
May 22, 2017 • 1h 49min
David Clark: When An Audacious Goal Becomes An Obsessive Addiction
Goals are great. Audacious goals? Even better.But what happens when that quest to touch the outermost edge of your capabilities tips into maddening obsession?David Clark has been there. And this week he returns to the podcast to tell us all about it.Longtime listeners will remember well our first conversation — one of my most popular episodes to date — in which David vividly recalled his extraordinary journey from morbidly obese, full-blown alcoholic into sober, vegan, ultra-running warrior.Not too long ago, David tipped the scales at 320 pounds. Fueled on a steady, death-defying diet of booze, pills and fast food, he was a man hell-bent on wrecking havoc, destruction and woe in the lives of loved ones and anyone unfortunate enough to cross his path,He wasn't just unhealthy. He was broken.Ultimately Dave met his breaking point. Understanding that if he didn't change he would surely die, he summoned the will to finally face and overcome his demons, transform his life wholesale and ultimately accomplish feats most sane people would deem impossible.As told in his memoir Out There*, David didn’t just drop 150 pounds on a plant-based diet. He didn’t just complete a half-marathon. He didn’t just complete a marathon. And he didn’t just finish the Badwater 135, but went on to crush an impressive list of ultra-marathons, including a run across the entire United States (along with podcast fave Charlie Engle) and the Quad Boston, in which he ran the Boston marathon course four times without stopping.Along the way, he repaired his broken self, emerging healthy.Mission accomplished. Or so he thought.No matter how far David continued to push the envelope, a void nonetheless remained. A hole in his soul he simply could not fill. So he continued to push, convinced that the answer he sought would surely be found in going further. Farther. Longer. Harder.What had begun as a laudable journey to wholeness had fractured, leading him away from the light — and into darkness.And yet once again, David found his way out.This is a conversation about that journey.It's about what happens when goals devolve into addictions — an escape from what is most real and important.It's about the stories we tell ourselves about ourselves, and the impact of those stories on our beliefs.And it's about constant, continual fidelity to growth and re-invention.I sincerely hope you enjoy this powerful, contemplative exchange with the inspiring David Clark.Peace + Plants,Rich

May 18, 2017 • 1h 53min
Growth Is Our Mandate
Twenty years ago I was a hope to die alcoholic — lost and alone.Despite achieving sobriety, ten years ago I remained lost — overweight, depressed and utterly rudderless.Five years ago this week, I published a book about how I found my way out. A spiritual journey that entailed extreme faith and relentless persistence called Finding Ultra. Today I celebrate the journey of my rebirth — and pause to honor this five year landmark — by taking a look back.Because the growth I have been blessed to experience isn't mine to covet. It's a choice available to all.So today, Julie asks the questions. And I answer them.I sincerely hope you enjoy the exchange.Peace + Plants,Rich

May 15, 2017 • 1h 51min
JD Roth: The Big Fat Truth Behind The Controversial King of Weight Loss TV
Despite our cultural obsession with weight loss, we've never been fatter.Right now, one out of every three U.S. adults are obese. Another third are overweight. Even worse? 18% of our children are morbidly obese with rates continuing to soar. In lockstep with our obesity epidemic is a shocking escalation of chronic lifestyle illness, including high blood pressure, Type 2 diabetes, heart disease, liver disease, and stroke. One out of every three Americans will die of heart disease. Close to 30% of the adult population is diabetic or pre-diabetic. The problem is so bad, 75% of all U.S. healthcare costs are attributable to these conditions — illnesses that quite ironically are avoidable and often reversible through some fairly simple diet and lifestyle changes.So why can't we lose the weight and keep it off?This is the question JD Roth has devoted his life to answering.The man behind a television empire built on the shoulders of a prime-time juggernaut called The Biggest Loser — which aired for an astonishing 17 seasons — JD is the award-winning producer and reality-TV pioneer behind some of the most successful and prolific television programs of our era. More than a decade ago, JD first introduced viewers to the weight-loss TV arena with The Biggest Loser on NBC – now a worldwide, half-billion-dollar brand – and expanded upon it with Extreme Weight Loss on ABC, which ran for five seasons and airs as Obese in more than 130 countries.JD is also author of Big Fat Truth*, and a brand-new television series of the same name (premiering June 11 at 8pm ET/PT on Z Living), which challenges and guides groups of participants unhappy with their weight and health (including some former Biggest Loser contestants who regained their weight), providing them the tools to uncover and tackle the real issues behind the weight while encouraging them to adopt a whole food, plant-based diet over a three month period of mental, emotional and practical mentorship by JD and a panel of experts that include none other than podcast favorite Michael Greger, MD (and a brief appearance by yours truly).Never before has a show advanced plant-based eating as a central conceit. A first in the history of television, I cannot overstate how excited this is for the movement and the world.Today I sit down with the blockbuster producer to unpack it all — including the whirl of controversy that surrounds the successful shows he created.This is a conversation about the cultural phenomenon of weight loss television that JD originated, framed and fashioned. It's about the overlooked mental and emotional barriers that prevent too many from achieving and maintaining optimal weight and health. And it's a conversation about his passion for the plant-based lifestyle, as well as the hows and whys behind his book and new television show that advance this lifestyle as the model way to not only lose weight, but keep it off for good.Irrespective of your opinion on JD's former shows, I can honestly say that JD is truly passionate about helping people — I've seen it first hand, up close and personal. So I urge you to set aside any pre-conceived notions you may have and enjoy!Rich

May 8, 2017 • 1h 47min
Turia Pitt Unmasked – How Choosing Gratitude Turned This Burn Victim Into A Global Inspiration
Close your eyes and imagine yourself running a trail ultramarathon in the beautiful Australian outback. You're enjoying the experience when suddenly you find yourself trapped in a gorge, surrounded by a raging brushfire.The flames quickly close in until you're surrounded on all sides.No escape.This is how it ends, you think.Then darkness.Against all odds, death is averted. Instead, you lie comatose. Months pass in dormancy. Finally your eyes open, awakening to discover you're miraculously alive, yet somehow less than whole. A glance at your left hand reveals several fingers missing. On the right? No thumb. And the reason you can't move? 65% of your body is covered in life threatening burns. Overwhelmed, you allow your eyes once again close, welcoming the comfort of darkness.200 operations follow. Over the next two years, you will die three times during surgery.Miraculously, you somehow survive. Not as a victim, but as a hero.This is the powerful story of Turia Pitt – humanitarian, athlete, and beacon of inspiration and female empowerment to millions across the world.One of Australia’s most admired and widely recognized people, Turia has been profiled everywhere from 60 Minutes to Women's Weekly. She has scaled the Great Wall of China, competed in the Ironman World Championships and walked the Kokoda Track. A sought-after public speaker, Turia has mentored thousands through her online programs, raised funds and awareness for a variety of philanthropic concerns and authored two books — the recently released Unmasked* (available in the US in audiobook format* only) and Everything To Live For*.This is a conversation about turning tragedy into opportunity. Adversity into advocacy. And experience into service. It's a conversation about the importance of putting others before yourself and serving those less fortunate.But most of all, this is a powerful conversation about facing life head on — about taking risks, facing your fears and believing in yourself.It was an honor to spend a couple hours with Turia and her fiancé Michael during my recent visit to Sydney. My hope is that our exchange will leave you feeling inspired, empowered and grateful.Or as Turia says, no whinging!Peace + Plants,Rich