“I was finishing up the Hunger Games press tour and got the flu,” says Liam according to AskMen. “Woody Harrelson told me that I should try eating raw vegetables. He’s got more energy than anyone I’ve ever met, along with the nicest guy in the world, so I tried it out. Since then I’ve felt amazing and have been eating that way ever since.”
"I felt really good so I continued," said Hemsworth to news.com.au in a separate interview. And Hemsworth's motivation isn't just rooted in his own health benefits. Liam is a huge advocate for the environment and animal rights, a quality he shares with fiancé Miley Cyrus, who also went vegan following the death of her dog.
"I have more energy, my sleeping is better, and I have more endurance in my workouts. Also, I did some research about cruelty to animals. Ethically, I didn’t feel good about supporting those industries. It’s not good for the environment, it’s not good for people and certainly not for animals.”
Side note: it's good to know that even though going vegan means Hemsworth doesn't indulge in an Aussie roast lamb, he can still get involved in some cultural delicacies. “Oh yeah, I have a lot of Vegemite. That hasn’t changed.”
With a rise in ‘vegan bodybuilding’, the benefits of a vegan lifestyle are becoming more apparent when it comes to athletic performance, especially with not one, but two Hemsworths as proof.
However the Hemworths’ new diet isn’t only helping them get into blockbuster shape, it has turned them into living breathing world-saving man-mountains, and they’re not alone. In fact, when Men's Health USA readers about going vegan on Twitter, nearly 20 percent of them said they'd at least give the diet a shot.
And according to new research released earlier this year, removing meat and dairy from your diet is the quickest and most effective way of reducing your impact on the environment. “A vegan diet is probably the single biggest way to reduce your impact on planet Earth, not just greenhouse gases, but global acidification, eutrophication, land use and water use,” said Joseph Poore, lead researcher on the project from University of Oxford, UK.
“It is far bigger than cutting down on your flights or buying an electric car.”
Which begs the question, how has Liam maintained blockbuster size and fitness without meat? For Hemsworth, the key to maintaining health, size and energy is in portion size, with going vegan allowing him to eat larger quantities of the foods he loves and enjoys, including his go-to smoothie. “They’re great for you and so good," says Hemsworth. "I probably do a few of those a day.”
Liam Hemsworth’s Go-To Breakfast Smoothie
- Couple Handfuls of Spinach
- Handful of Ice
- Handful of Berries (Strawberries, Blueberries)
- One Banana
- Almond Butter
- Almond Milk
- One Scoop Plant Based Protein
Want to follow in Liams carbon-neutral footsteps and give veganism a red hot crack? Make sure you get your facts right first and get some well-informed information, because this writer tried it himself without prior knowledge and failed miserably!
