OS20: Theresa Sgobba - Transitioning to the Whole Food Plant-Based Diet

51 Shares

I was equal parts terrified and profoundly excited.

Theresa Sgobba (my beloved wife and co-founder of Ownstream) & I had just finished watching the remarkable documentary, “Forks Over Knives”. I had always known my diet was off, and no film had ever before crystallized the “why” to me so clearly, eloquently, perfectly. Yet, I was scared.

Was I really going to give up meat and dairy? I had grown up with these foods, eaten them almost daily for 40 years, and had come to depend upon them as a baby does a bottle. Were these foods truly, suddenly, in my rearview mirror?

I recall looking at Theresa on our couch in our home in Park Slope, Brooklyn and there was a slightly different look on her face:

Fierce determination.

This is often the look which accompanies the clear realization of one’s calling or mission in the world, as clearly something had been reached within Theresa by the content of this film.

Perhaps it was the clear connection between meat, dairy and cancer. Her beloved father was currently suffering from cancer (and passed away some months later), and we had both felt many losses at the hand of this rapacious disease.

Or, maybe it was the myriad of blatant lies exposed by the film revealing the mass collusion between government, industry and “healthcare” to, in effect, keep us sick for the purpose of greater profit for the few.

It could have been her well-oiled legal mind, a graduate of Yale’s prestigious law program, at the sight of clear hypocrisy and privilege to the detriment of millions, even billions of human lives.

Or, perhaps it was her simple desire to feel better and knowing, as did I, that the food we were eating wasn’t serving our desire to live abundantly, joyously and vibrantly.

So, we decided – right then and there – to change our diets.

What has happened since has been a true revolution in both of our lives as we’ve pieced apart every area of our life, seeking greater truth, health and vitality. We have lost weight, we look and feel great, we radiate health.

In short, we have chosen to thrive. And dare I say that Ownstream, and this podcast, has certainly stemmed from this dramatic moment.

Quite naturally, Theresa began helping others transition to this vibrant diet. Her nature is to give, and those around her (including me) were the immediate beneficiaries of her new way of life.

She has studied with some of the true luminaries in the whole-food, plant-based (WFPB) movement (Dr. T. Colin Campbell, Pam Popper) and, now, coaches others through this dramatic, life-affirming transition.

Meeting Engine 2 Diet’s Rip Esselstyn in Encinitas

For many, changing to a whole-foods, plant-based diet has ripple effects across virtually every other area of life. Amazing things happen when you love the body with this diet, as feeling better suddenly highlights other ways in which we have embraced mainstream and often unexamined areas where there are better and healthier approaches and designs.

In this episode with Theresa, we discuss:

The 4 steps to transitioning, where the challenges lurk and how to avoid these, dramatically improving your chances of success;
The protein myth, and how plant-based foods have more than enough protein to live a vibrant, active lifestyle (+ the calcium myth, and more marketing-based messages that actually reduce health and wellness);
Early challenges with weight and her own body image, and how the WFPB diet has radically helped her with both of these issues;
Growing up Italian, and how she has learned to convert many of her favorite dishes into delicious vegan meals (to which I can resoundingly attest);
Her coaching work with others, and how her calling in life is so beautifully expressed through enabling others to thrive on this wonderfully simple, elegant diet;
How her diet looks today, many specific and delicious recipes for thriving on a WFPB diet.

Theresa is easily the warmest, most generous person I know, and anyone who works with her agrees. I truly hope you enjoy this interview, and that you will consider upgrading every area of your life by embracing this powerful change: the whole-food, plant-based diet.

Enjoy!

Theresa Sgobba