Interview: My Transition to a Fruit Based Diet

Can you tell us a little bit about yourself?
I am an animal rights activist, author and public speaker. I have organized many events throughout the years and volunteered with many groups. I have spoken at the Vegan Spring Expo, World Peas Expo, Ryerson University, University of Toronto and Toronto District School Boards.

Why did you go raw vegan?
I always knew that there was something wrong with way I was living and that there must be another to live. I kept questioning our culture, but I still did not make the connection between the foods I was eating and the suffering I was causing to the animals and the planet. I finally realized this when I had a spiritual awakening in spring 2009 going vegan. If I truly profess to love animals and the planet, how could I still be committing such violence? Ever since that time I started incorporating more raw foods into my diet until I heard about Durianrider and the 80/10/10 diet, which I then started including more fruits as my staple. Three quarters of my diet was raw, but I still had an attachment to cooked foods. I later heard about Michael Arnstein, a marathon and ultramarathon runner who inspired me to take the next step. It was actually one of his interviews that prompted me to cut my bad eating habits. On December 1, 2012 I went 100 percent fruitarian after I organized my first raw fruit potluck. This was the way I wanted to live. I knew that in order to live a spiritual harmonious life, I had to live according to my beliefs.

Do you include vegetables in your diet?
I do eat vegetables occasionally, especially tender leafy greens; however I tend to gravitate towards sweet fruits. I feel better when I eat at least 95 percent of my calories from fruits, and the rest from tender leafy greens. I truly believe one can get all the nutrients from fruits alone.

What do you think of dehydrated foods?
When we dehydrate our foods we remove the vital water from them, as well as many of the nutrients. I don’t have anything against dehydrated foods like dates and do eat them on occasion; however I feel my best when I eat high water content fruits like melons for example.

What does your family think of your way of life?
I hardly see my family and when I do, they think I am too skinny and I will fade or blow away with the wind. My mother somewhat understands my lifestyle more as she is near vegan herself.

How much exercise do you do?
I don’t do much exercise, like I should. When I went vegan I used to lift weights and cycle a lot. My current life is hectic, juggling work, music, my writings and activism. Hopefully I will be settled soon so I can enjoy a more active lifestyle.

How many calories do you eat in a day?
I probably eat anywhere from 2400 to 3000 calories a day. I hate counting calories; I just eat as much as I want.

Tell us about the books you are writing.
I don’t want to release any information about them just yet, but they are on veganism and raw veganism from an ethical and spiritual perspective.

What are your plans for the near future (within 5 years)?
I would love to release my first two full length non-fiction books and have my music on CDs and documentary films.

What do you have for the far future?
I have a few things that I would love to do in my life if I ever get the money for it. I would love to move somewhere to the tropics and eat all the unlimited fruits I want, create a full length documentary, open a vegan/raw vegan restaurant and supermarket chain, create a vegan city and adopt a dog or cat. Too many to list here…

How does paradise look like for you?
I have a dream, that one day all the killing will stop; the killing of man, the killing of Mother Earth and most importantly the killing of animals.

How do you cope being a fruitarian in this world?
It’s generally easy buying and eating fruit, however if you are on a strict budget, fruits and other plant foods can seem expensive because the government subsidizes meat, dairy and egg industries. I would like it if the government would subsidize fruits and vegetables instead. I would also like to meet new fruitarian friends.

In your opinion, why do you think that most people rarely take the step from their standard diet to fruitarianism or even veganism?
Like Will Tuttle, the author of The World Peace Diet says, “It’s the programming brought on us, as young children”, and I believe this very much. As young children we are all conditioned to consume animal, processed and cooked foods. When we do this enough times and see everyone around us eating the same types of foods, we get conditioned to believing that this way of eating is normal and natural. These foods are extremely addicting, just like drugs are.

Is there anything else you’d like to tell us?
Animal foods are killing this planet. We are destroying everything! We can not go on committing violence to any living thing, if we want to live in peace. Violence does not create peace, even if that violence is done to other living beings. I think we have to go back to our natural diet of raw fruits in order to live entirely in harmony with all life. This is the ultimate spiritual life we were meant to live.