Speaker 2 (02:04):

Pat McCauley is a Boston-based cereal entrepreneur, TEDx speaker, author, and podcaster. After a plant-based diet changed his life, pat shifted his focus to building and supporting businesses in the plant-based space. He is the host of the popular Eat Green Make Green podcast, founder of the plant-based restaurant called Plant Pub, hence the hat and founder of the Endurance Sportswear Brand, plant Athletic. And Pat, we start by kind of breaking down your TEDx talk. Would you mind? 

Speaker 1 (03:06):

Yeah, a hundred percent. Yeah, that I suppose the TEDx talk for me, I had barfed out a book prior to I had started a podcast because I felt like I had to start talking about what I had learned over those few years of changing what I ate. So the TEDx talk was really my coming out party, if you will. People really didn’t know anything about me prior to that. And then that definitely kind of blew up my message for sure. Yeah, I was a backup for that. There was a Boston one at Babson College here, and I got a call two weeks before the event. Somebody had backed out. They had travel issues or something, and the woman organizing the event was aware of me and they didn’t have anybody speaking on health. So I literally had two weeks, and it was kind of a blessing because I really just didn’t have a choice but to tell my story authentically. 

Speaker 1 (04:12):

I didn’t have time to overthink it and come up with something that I thought would move people one way or the other. I didn’t have much time to plan, so I just told my story. And really the, I guess not long-winded version is around 25 years old, I changed what I started eating. I’m a former college football player, was the definition of a meathead and was always very fit because I was so active in an athlete. So anytime I went to the doctor, it was simply, yeah, you may have some what I call normal health issues like asthma, arthritis, skin problems, et cetera. But you’re a very healthy weight. You are a very fit, keep doing what you’re doing, take your inhaler before your football practice and call it a day, move on. And I always thought those things were just things I had to live with and I was doing all the right things on the diet front. 

Speaker 1 (05:19):

If you asked anybody that was close to me during my football days, I was the health freak. I was doing my eggs in the morning, my chicken for lunch, my steak for dinner, drinking green tea and eating chia seeds. And way before it was cool to do it. So I wasn’t like an unhealthy person transitioning to a plant-based diet. I was a healthy person. And I just stumbled into, after my playing days, I stumbled into a plant-based diet through experimentation. I was kind of sick of trying the same thing over and over. Everybody in my life, from coaches to doctors, nutritionist to people in the sports world told me high protein and to everybody that meant high animal products, and that’s what I followed to a tea. And yet I had these health problems. I found it difficult to stay in the shape I wanted to stay after my playing days in my early to mid twenties. 

Speaker 1 (06:17):

And yeah, it’s kind of the definition of insanity to try the same thing over and over and still feel like you have to absolutely crush yourself in the gym to maintain your weight and how you look. So I just found a guy on social media. I wish I remembered who that was, big into green smoothies and a green smoothie. I had already switched to plant-based milk because I just felt that was healthier many years prior. And so yeah, I just changed out my eggs in the morning for this green smoothie. And I always say that that was my gateway drug. 

Speaker 1 (06:53):

When I think back, it was the first meal that I had had truly that was raw whole plant foods and experiencing that over the next few hours in the morning, going out for my workout or just working at my computer or whatever. It was just night and day and things started to work in my body better. My energy was incredible. And I just went on this smoothie binge for a number of weeks because it felt so good and it was so new to me. And yeah, long story short, about six months into really going hardcore into whole food plant-based, all of these health issues that I had had since a little kid started going away. The things that I had breathing machines before bed as a little kid for the things I was given pills for arthritis wise that I had blamed on years of football and contact sports. 

Speaker 1 (07:52):

And I thought I’d just have to live with these things and they were normal, and all those things went away. And it just shocked me that nobody in my life had ever given me that information because I was the type of person that I was going to do something with it. And I think that’s a whole nother path we could go down with our healthcare system where people don’t believe people will make the healthy decision even if they tell them. And I was one of those per people I was doing the things I thought were right. And I realized that all the people I trusted in my life had the wrong information. So it was a big shocking thing for me. I also come from a family where both my grandfathers died of either heart disease or cancer before I even knew them, my dad had open heart surgery in his mid thirties. So when I started to realize that these things are preventable and even reversible, I just felt called. I was so shocked and I felt called to do something about it. And the TEDx talk, just all about telling my journey and how I’ve kind of evolved and how that has not only changed my health, but changed how I interface with people in my life. 

Speaker 2 (09:08):

Got it. And are making it seem like you’re very humble about it in terms of two weeks in advance. And I had to create this talk and just tell my story, but when I listened to your TED Talk, I saw a lot of strategy behind how you presented it and the order in which you told your story. I saw a lot of strategy in that when you were kind of structuring how you were going to come at this. I mean, I’m talking about starting with the story of really connecting with your girlfriend, and it was like when I’m listening to it, I’m like, okay, this empathetic side is coming out and you’re, your experience empathy for another human that you already love. That’s one step of compassion. And then you’re talking about the your personal health challenges and then getting into systemic challenges of our healthcare system and then going into the values and ethics. When you were creating a speech, what was going through your head in terms of how you wanted to deliver your message? 

Speaker 1 (10:19):

Yeah, I mean, I’m an entrepreneur. I know the value and the power of storytelling. And I wanted to tell a story that was moving to people because I feel my story was moving. It was certainly moving for me, but also to educate from the point of view of my path. I didn’t want to go up there and say, plant-based diet is the only diet to shown ever to reverse end-stage heart disease, and you should do this and you should eat this way, and you should live that way. I, I’m very aware that that doesn’t work for most people. So yeah, the whole talk very specifically was told from my point of view was I learned this. I discovered this happened to me as a result. So that was very thought out. And I just know storytelling is an important way to engage people. So I definitely wanted to start out with that. 

Speaker 1 (11:27):

And I think my original title for the talk was actually Food’s Impact on Your Ability to Love. That was the really underlying message is how do the foods you put in your body impact your ability to connect with the people in your life? And I am fortunate that the woman that uploaded the TEDx talk to the TEDx channel there chose a plant-based diet, changed my life. Yes, it’s just a more searchable title, but the actual in the pamphlet that day, it was food’s impact on your ability to love. But yeah, it was very intentional. And then the other thing was I wanted, I’m an emotional person to begin with. I wear my heart and my sleeve, and I’m not afraid as a dude to show my emotions. And I wanted to not only do that, which is me, but I also wanted to the best of my ability get across the fact that I am an college football player and I am an athlete and I am a man’s man in terms of diet. 

Speaker 1 (12:40):

Leading up to that point when I started to change what I ate and I wanted to be able to welcome in that person that I used to be the 22 year old meathead that things, vegans are scrawny and you can’t live on plants. So that’s why I mentioned football and mentioned my background and at least try to lean a little masculine on that front and then just weave in the science, right? It’s like, yeah, that’s what ultimately convinced me. I was on the right path. I felt what I felt, and I knew in my heart it was right, and I knew my body was right. But then when you really dive into nutrition science of the past a hundred years and you see what it tells you, it’s just so crystal clear to me. And I had to drop my old beliefs because of what all that science is telling you and you just can’t argue with. I hope at least the things that I presented in the talk that are the most impactful to me, the top X amount of diseases that kill us are all diet and lifestyle related. And if you can just understand that and then back into, okay, what should I be eating then to prevent these diseases from manifesting later in life? So yeah, I don’t know if I answered your question there, but 

Speaker 2 (14:03):

Yeah. No, that’s fabulous. And it was just interesting hearing you talk about the systems and the doctors and not giving people the information. And it’s kind of crazy how doctors, a lot of them are out there with that information saying, yeah, I’m not going to recommend the things that I know are going to work because people aren’t going to do it. They will actually say that. And definitely it’s so disempowering, right? 

Speaker 1 (14:31):

Yeah, definitely. Again, in my experience, it’s like I always felt like I was a victim to the things I suffer from. I wasn’t ever told I could do something about it. And I think in, and I get it right, we are in a country that almost 80% of people now are over overweight or obese with multiple chronic health issues. So doctors, they see the 80% every day, me and you aren’t in the hospital or seeing our doctor weekly. So it’s the people they see every day are the sick ones. So in time after time, people don’t change what they do. They don’t even do their exercise, a good doctor might mention. So I can see where doctors in the healthcare system do lose faith in their patients to actually do what they say. 

Speaker 2 (15:25):

And I mean, I can relate as a personal trainer for a decade, people lying, lying about what they’re eating. I’m like, I can’t help you if you don’t tell me. So yeah, I get it. And I love how you threw in all the macho stuff and then at the end, it seemed to me you got a little choked up when you were No, no. Yeah. What was going through your mind being on stage? Did you have a lot of experience as a public speaker already? How were you feeling at that moment? Not 

Speaker 1 (15:57):

Really. I had, again, because of the podcast in the book, just locally, I would speak at schools, I’d speak at the high school. I went to the college I went to once a year leading up to that point type thing. And then I’ve done a bunch of podcasts, but never, I’m really good in, again, as an entrepreneur, I’m used to pitching a room or things like that. And I’m very comfortable talking off the cuff like we are now and even giving a presentation. But the TEDx is a different ballgame where it’s filmed once, it’s not edited, they post what you say and you have 16 minutes or 18 minutes or whatever it is. It’s one of those two, and you, you’re done. So they’ll cut you off if you hit the 18 minutes and you haven’t finished your talk. And also if you screw up, you screw up and the millions of people that potentially see it see you screw up, and there’s just no way around it. 

Speaker 1 (16:53):

So that was very nerve wracking that, and I wasn’t used to that, which made it, I had a plan. But again, the backup, the thing that made me rest easy a little bit was that, hey, if I stumble here, I am just telling my story. I know my story and I know all the information that I’ve found. I talk about it every week. I love that stuff, so I know it and I know my story. So that’s what I fell back on. But yeah, I mean the emotional part, I believe health is the greatest gift you can give yourself or help give somebody else. And again, I’ve just seen family members lose decades with people they love because of died and lifestyle decisions that they either knew or they had no idea that they were doing. But I think if you ask any individual what’s important, it’s family. 

Speaker 1 (18:02):

It’s spending time with family. If you boil it down, it’s the connections in our life and the fact that there’s a way of eating and living that can extend that time on earth with those people you love is to me, me, there’s nothing more important. And I think everybody would agree with that when you really break down somebody’s barrier and you get to the core of what matters to them. And that’s an emotional thing to me. And I am so grateful personally that I’m aware of it now and I have the information I have and I have the discipline to put it into action in my life. But it also saddens me that so many people unnecessarily suffer and miss out on years of life with their loved ones. And that’s why I get emotional about it. 

Speaker 2 (19:03):

It’s huge. If you think about it in those terms. And I’m curious when it comes to the animals, and you chose to be pretty descriptive about what animals go through to a large degree, at what point did you really connect to that and how did you decide or was there decision making involved in how detailed you wanted to be and how much emphasis you wanted to put on the life of a farmed animal? 

Speaker 1 (19:34):

Yeah, for sure. It took me probably a year of eating plant-based. And naturally you become more aware of things just by the people you start following or the information you start consuming on social media, wherever, or just learning more about where your food comes from and asking questions that maybe you’ve never asked prior. And yeah, I was about a year in, and I remember there’s this place I walk in my hometown. It’s about a two mile walk exactly from the doorstep of where I grew up, my parents’ house to this beautiful farm up on this hill. It’s a place called Turkey Hill in Hingham, Massachusetts, south of Boston. And up on this hill, it looks back at the Boston skyline, 15 miles across the ocean, you can see the Boston skyline. And there’s all these cows up there, free range cows, and they ultimately die and are used for food. 

Speaker 1 (20:37):

But it’s a beautiful spot and a beautiful farm, and you can walk up there and walk right up to the fence and pet a cow. And I don’t know why. And I guess a little bit, I got into this in the talk, kind of how that compassion comes out in you once the food you put in your body puts yourself in what I call a place of ease and calm, and you’re just better, you’re just more empathetic and you’re blocked out the noise and the crap that maybe clouds your natural instinct and judgment and ability to connect with others with bad food and all that. And you’re in a place now where, call it high vibe or whatever you want to call it, where you can connect with other people better as I detailed in the talk, but also with animals. And I just remember going up to the fence and patting this cow, and he just wagged his tail just like a dog would do. 

Speaker 1 (21:39):

And he loved it. And I was feeding him grass, and he is licking his tongue and licking my hand and wagging his tail. And it just kind of hit me in that moment. That was the burger I ate every night. That was the steak I ate every night. And that was kind of my awakening that one moment and then led me to asking that question about all animals. And I think I was just in a place in my life to be able to receive that and connect with that. But again, when it came to the talk, I know that is a turnoff, and it’s very hard if somebody told me directly to eat plants for the compassionate piece of it when I was 22, eating and living the way, I was not in a position to hear that, and I would’ve been turned off by it. 

Speaker 1 (22:31):

So I wanted to lead with health. I wanted to lead with the selfish reasons to eat plant-based and kind of welcome people into the talk that way, but then bring in the compassion piece. And again, it’s just like, Hey, this is where your food comes from. And the example I give I think is powerful too, with the pig stuck in the fence there. And I see that, we see this all the time on YouTube and videos that go viral. It’s like the hunter literally with his rifle in his yellow, I mean orange hunting vest. He’s literally out there to kill birds or kill rodents or whatever the hell he’s trying to kill. And there’s a hawk with his wing caught in a branch or whatever. And the extent that human being goes to free that animal, even deer, I’ve seen hunters do it with a deer that’s caught in something in or a bear even. And people are literally risking their life to free this animal. And that to me, that that’s the natural human reaction. That is who we are as humans, and we for some reason, turn a blind eye to that with what we eat. And even things like hunting and things like that, it’s indirect conflict with who we are, in my opinion. 

Speaker 2 (24:05):

Yeah. Now I just hands off to you for putting together such a powerful talk. It really, I mean, I get chills just thinking about it, so thank you. 

Speaker 1 (24:18):

Well, thank you. 

Speaker 2 (24:19):

Yeah. How did that talk or just really your transition to a plant-based way of life change your career path? Can you talk about that? 

Speaker 1 (24:32):

Yeah, a hundred percent. Yeah. I mean, I’m somebody that I need to wake up with a mission in a purpose and a big goal, or I am, I’m not a very happy person. I’m just wired that way. I lasted about two months at my first ever job when I was 22 out of college. And my only goal at that time was to get to 5:00 PM and get the hell out of there. And that’s just not me. I’ve always had clear goals before that it happened to be sports. And I like big far route goals and things that scare me. And when I am passionate about something, I really like to go after it. And when I learned all this that we’ve been talking about, one wanted to talk about it and be a leader in the Boston area and beyond, but also I could see in Boston that is a very traditional kind of city in many ways that is not a Miami or in LA where these things have existed for many years. 

Speaker 1 (25:47):

It’s pretty traditional and blue collar and hard around the edges in many ways. And I wanted to bring plant-based food to Boston in a way that is Boston. And that is how I came up with the idea for Plant pub and kind of a bridge to people eating, plant-based, kind of a welcoming place. The places that existed in Boston before, places that I love, but they’re kind of stereotypical vegan places, bright colors and Buddhas on the walls and that sort of thing, which I love. But the average specifically male is turned off by, and again, the younger version of myself would’ve been turned off by it. And I also come from craft beer. I had started a craft brewery prior to Plant Pub. And what I loved about that environment, for some reason, like tap rooms and breweries, it’s the only place I’ve seen, the 21 year old hip person trying the latest I p A right next to the 65 year old guy after his construction shift, right next to the family of five with their dog. 

Speaker 1 (27:03):

It’s a very welcoming environment. And I was like, wow, if you can recreate that environment, but do it in an entirely plant-based fashion and show people number one, that plant-based food can be really good. But number two, that you don’t have to sacrifice all the things you love to change what you eat and be more conscious. You can still go out with friends, you can still go out with your spouse. You can still meet somewhere to watch the Red Sox game or whatever it is, and kind of welcome people in to the lifestyle. So that was my big shift. I was at the craft brewery when I learned all this plant-based stuff and my life changed and I knew I had to do something about it in Boston that led me to Plant Pub. And then I’ve also kind of changed in the talk really motivated me actually in many ways. 

Speaker 1 (27:59):

One of the biggest regrets of the talk for me was that I wore a loose, long sleeved shirt because if you knew me at that time, I was like two years post, three years post college football. I was an animal. I was 180, I was 180 pounds. I was benching 2 85, squatting 4 0 5. I was a real big dude. I probably should have gone to Miami for a few days, gotten a tan, came back, did the talk in a tight, short sleeved shirt. Because what is beautiful about YouTube and the stage of TEDx is that so many people see it, but it also comes with criticism and just the amount of criticism I got for being a pale dude that was emotional, and it was just ruthless on YouTube, but really ruthless if you get it. And it bothered me the first year, but it motivated me because I was so upset because I was like, these people don’t know who I am. 

Speaker 1 (29:12):

Again, at that time, I was in the gym six days a week. But it motivated me to say, okay, how can I use my athletic talent to show people what is possible? And that it’s not only possible on a plant-based, it’s an advantage, and it’s the ultimate athletic hack. And that’s led me to, I was like, what’s the hardest physical thing I can do? And that’s led me to Iron Mans, and that’s led me to triathlon and doing things that the average person, and I guarantee you, the people that comment on my video can’t possibly do. And so it’s motivated me to be more of a example to people, and that’s also led me to plant athletic. And that’s very new. That’s why actually why I was in Miami this past week. But everything I do is now aligned with really encouraging people to make healthier decisions in their life, and specifically to add more plants into their life because I know it can change people’s lives. 

Speaker 2 (30:24):

So good. This is so interesting. So I have a few things on this. Number one, I know for me, a Ted Talk is on my horizon somewhere, somewhere. And you have both inspired me and scared the shit out of me in so many ways so far, just with thinking about the time limits and all of this and then the criticism. So thank you. And thank you. But also another point, I’m sure you have the IPAs, but do you have Belgian quadruples? 

Speaker 1 (30:58):

I have messed around with Belgian Quads in the past, and definitely I did a little proof of concept south of Boston before I raised money for Plant Pub. It was like a three month popup, and we had a Belgian quadruple, we did, and a triple as well. I’m trying to think of the brewery as an upstate New York brewery, but is that your choice of poison? If you can caver? 

Speaker 2 (31:29):

It is. It’s awful because I, I’ve largely moved away from alcohol in the last year ever since. And I think a lot of people say this after ayahuasca it. There’s a lot of people that just don’t, you don’t crave alcohol so much anymore. Not that I was ever, well, that’s a lie. I drank. I have done my fair share of drinking, and Belgian quadruples is definitely my beer choice, and I’ve never understood why they’re so unpopular relatively to IPAs because I think they’re so delicious. But the problem is they’re like 11% alcohol. And I go and watch football and people are drinking like Mick Ultra, and here I am with my Belgian quad, and they do not, one’s not a replacement for the 

Speaker 1 (32:13):

Other. Yeah, it like you’re drinking wine at that point 

Speaker 2 (32:19):

Anyway, I am dying to come to Plant Pub. I would love to come check it out right up my alley. Like, like I said, I’ve shifted a lot with the spiritual path, but most of my life it’s football and sports, and I’m hanging with the guys going to the pubs and never a vegan option in terms of the food. And I’m like, why can’t they just have, and we’ve always wanted one in Miami grilled cheeses and just the things that a regular pub would have Totally. And have it be vegan. So I love it. And I do want to hear about plant athletic too. 

Speaker 1 (32:54):

Yeah, for sure. Yeah, so that actually, again, very recent. I’ve been five, four or five months ago, I first connected with them to triathletes down in Miami that started it. And I could just tell as somebody that’s worn their gear for many years, I could tell that they were not focusing on it as much. The social media was slowing down some products not in stock, that sort of thing. And I reached out and have since become very friendly with them. And yeah, they’ve just gone to such incredible lengths to make sure that they’re sourcing. I think 90 plus percent of the product is fully recycled. It’s all plant-based materials. They use specific ethical factories that they’ve done a lot of work of vetting all compostable packaging that they ship their stuff in. And it’s just incredible high end, high performance sportswear done the right way, in my opinion, that I’ve been a huge fan of and worn for many years. 

Speaker 1 (34:04):

And again, I’ve gravitated into that space over the past few years doing Ironmans and running marathons and that sort of stuff. And a lot of my personal content, and again, how I feel like I am leading by example is around endurance sports now. And I just thought it would be a great compliment and a great business to go into and really put a brand out on the market that is doing everything the right way in terms of no animals in ethically made and ethically sourced, but still being something that the best athletes in the world can wear. And the more I talked with them, the more it felt like a fit. And just recently, within the past few weeks, purchased the company, and hopefully by spring summer we have all kinds of new design stuff and a slight rebrand and just really go hard into marketing and the content and see where we can take it. And I hope we can make wearing sustainable plant-based sports where the norm in that space. So that’s my plan. 

Speaker 2 (35:20):

Cool. Wow. Wow. Yes. You are nonstop, huh? 

Speaker 1 (35:25):

I like to keep moving. Like I said, I need my big goals and things that excite me. Yeah. 

Speaker 2 (35:30):

So let’s use this last little bit here. I, I’d love to hone in on your own health regimen. What does holistic health or holistic wellness mean to you at this point in your life? 

Speaker 1 (35:43):

Yeah, I think it means feeling good, number one in the way. I guess the big shift for me over the past five to eight years is shifting from I want to look a certain way to, I want to feel a certain way. I want to be able to perform a certain way and I want to be around for many, many years. And that shifts. And I always say a beautiful side effect. If you do the right things with that in mind is the natural side effect is you’re going to look really good and it’s going to be effortless if you check those boxes. And so that’s very much been my shift. And yeah, I’m less about how big my chest and shoulders are I used to be and more like, Hey, there’s a mountain over there. If my cousin says, Hey, you want to climb that tomorrow? 

Speaker 1 (36:48):

I’m able to do it. And hopefully in the future in my forties, my or my fifties, when hopefully my teenage kids want to run their first marathon, I’m right there with them. And those are the things that motivate me now from a health standpoint. And I guess the main things I do that I’m big on, obviously one is whole plant foods as much as possible, always vegan, but sometimes I certainly have the indulgences like plant pub and other foods and the occasional great I P A, but I know my body and I know when I know what I can handle with that stuff. It’s a once in a while thing. I know I can’t have more than two beers on a Saturday. I can’t do it mean I’m always train Sunday morning. I’m up at 5:00 AM and I’m running her biking in any way. So it’s like that holds me accountable and I want to be able to perform the next day as well. So whole plant foods, number one, sleep. Number two, I’ve been with my girlfriend now over 10 years, and we have never slept in the same beds. 

Speaker 1 (38:09):

And it took her a little while to get on board with it, but that’s how serious I take my sleep. We spend our time together and if we want to be intimate or whatever, it’s like, okay, we just come to my room and spend a few hours. But when it comes time to sleep, my room’s cold. I have my own blankets. I’m getting elbowed. I’m sleeping through the night, and I’m just a huge believer in sleep. And I guess something that’s happened with all of this is just questioning the norms. And that is one of the norms that I think many people, they just over the years get used to with their spouse or partner, get used to having shitty night’s sleeps. And I just think that’s make any sense. I always am with friends that are married or whatever, and you’ll get into a conversation where somebody’s complaining about the other partner when they were sleeping, and I’m just sleep separately. What are you trying to prove to people? 

Speaker 2 (39:16):

Oh my God, I love this. I absolutely love this. I think this is the healthiest thing people can do for not only themselves, but probably for their relationship as well. 

Speaker 1 (39:26):

Yeah, totally. We wake up, nobody’s mad at each other when we wake up. There isn’t like that. Oh, you were snoring last night and I slept like shit. There’s none of that. So right off the bat in the relationship, it’s better, but also you’re just well rested and you’re going to be a better you when you’re well rested. And so that’s another thing. I’m big on breath work as well. I can’t say I do it every day anymore. There was certainly a period of time where I was learning it and I was every day and was learning all kinds of different techniques. But for me, I started with, I found whim H, who I’m sure many people are familiar with, and used that 30 breath and then the breath hold and his technique. And again, one of those things that I was blown away by, wow, I’ve had access to this. This is free. I don’t need a gym membership. I can just lay down on the floor and do this. And that was really big for me. So I’m big on breath work. And Did you 

Speaker 2 (40:30):

Time your breath hold? 

Speaker 1 (40:33):

I will. I probably shouldn’t, but occasionally I know I’ll do it. I’ll do it in the car. 

Speaker 2 (40:38):

Yeah. Right. No. 

Speaker 1 (40:41):

Normally if on a perfect day I’m laying down in my bedroom on the floor and my eyes are closed and I’m not timing anything, I’m like trying to zone out, right? Yes. But I’ll do it in the car if I’m going into plant pub or commuting or whatever, and I 

Speaker 2 (40:57):

Don’t recommend it, would not recommend that. No, let’s not recommend that. But this is interesting yet I 

Speaker 1 (41:01):

Don’t recommend it, but I’ve been doing it so many years. I know the feeling if I’m getting lightheaded or whatever, and I will time myself on those breath holds because I’m awake, obviously driving, 

Speaker 2 (41:14):

And 

Speaker 1 (41:15):

I didn’t glance at my watch. I mean, I’ll get close to two minutes, but I certainly haven’t gone unless I do multiple rounds. 

Speaker 2 (41:24):

Right, right. 

Speaker 1 (41:25):

But I’m usually doing two to three rounds and I don’t get much past that. But that’s been a game changer for me. I swear that, and then just movement again. I’ve gravitated over the past years to running, cycling, swimming, more body weight type stuff when I am in the gym. And yeah, I also guess generally speaking, I mean, I don’t beat myself up. I know that consistency over long periods of time is the secret sauce. And if I took yesterday off or ate poorly yesterday, I’m not trying to make up for it or punish myself for it. I’m very forgiving with myself, but I also don’t lie to myself at the same time. I’m honest with myself. But yeah, those are some of the things, non-negotiable type everyday things for me. 

Speaker 2 (42:27):

If you had to decide one challenge for our listeners, for our 99 Thrive members to implement daily, a doable new habit for them to implement daily, if you had to choose one for the next, let’s say one month or even just one week just to start, what do you think you would choose for them if you got to prescribe it? 

Speaker 1 (42:54):

I would prescribe breath. I think, again, it’s the easiest. You don’t need running shoes. You don’t, don’t need anything. Lay down 30 breaths in through the nose, out through the mouth. Just let it go. Don’t force it out. 30 breaths, stop, hold as long as you can. Big breath in through the nose, hold at the top for as long as feels comfortable. Let it go. Two rounds of that takes you literally less than five minutes. That can just completely change how you feel every single day. It’s free. And it’s probably the most, in my opinion, the most powerful tool we have at our disposal, again, that you don’t have to pay for. 

Speaker 2 (43:46):

Love it. Love it. Pat is, where can people find you and your projects and where should people go? 

Speaker 1 (43:56):

Eat green Maker green.com is kind of like my personal website that I have the podcast and things on plant pub.com if you’re in the Boston area and want to check out that plant athletic.com, if you’re in the market for some cycling or running gear or triathlon gear at Eat green, make green on all social media. And yeah, that’s pretty much it. 

Speaker 2 (44:24):

Amazing. We will, of course, put all that in the show notes. Any final words, anything else that we’ve missed that you’d like to share? 

Speaker 1 (44:37):

I don’t think so. I would just leave people with, I’d just leave them with that they are capable of whatever they want to set out to achieve and to go easy on yourself, whatever that thing is, and don’t give yourself 30 days to achieve it. Give yourself 30 years to achieve it and take a longer lens on the way you look at your health or your goals, and just show up as many days as possible and just don’t give up on that goal and just keep going. And anywhere you’re truly capable of anything, whether that’s reversing health issues or starting a business or accomplishing any goal, just go stay committed to it. Show up each day and stick with it for many, many years, and you’ll get there. 

Speaker 2 (45:33):

Yeah. I love your message of consistency. It’s not about beating yourself up, but it’s about keeping going on your path and doing it day after day the best you can. So, pat, you’re awesome. Thank you so much for being with us today, 

Speaker 1 (45:47):

Ella, you’re awesome. Thank you for hosting this and connecting all the awesome people you do. You’re a huge inspiration as well, so thank you. Oh, 

Speaker 2 (45:55):

Thank you. All right. And then we’ll see if anybody has any questions. My, we’re done with the audio portion. When’s your next, you mentioned your training for races and how has that transition into endurance sports after doing football? That’s a very different, right? 

Speaker 1 (46:14):

Very different. 

Speaker 2 (46:15):

And is your body not really beat up? I mean, I was a gymnast for my young childhood, and I feel like my body never quite recovered from a lot of those injuries I have when I was young. How have you managed that? 

Speaker 1 (46:28):

Yeah, I mean, I think to some degree, right? There’s certainly ligaments I don’t have in my ankles and things like that, that I’m just not, probably not get back, but in terms of just my body being recovered from the impact, I think for the most part, I am in a pretty good place because of the decisions I’ve made. But yeah, there’s certain little things, but I’m just aware of them. I was a quarterback, so I have some shoulder type things that I have to be aware of swimming and that sort of stuff, but for the most part, everything’s healed and I’m able to move my body the way I want to. 

Speaker 2 (47:10):

Nice. Interviewing Fiona Oaks was like, I think that’s most, anytime I feel sorry for myself, my aches and pains and back or whatever issues are coming up. I think about her who has no knee happen, and she was told she’d never walk again. I’m like, are you kidding 

Speaker 1 (47:28):

Me? Oh my. Yeah. You’re 

Speaker 2 (47:29):

Amazing. 

Speaker 1 (47:30):

Yeah. Yeah. I think too the, I mean, the body just learns, right? If it’s like, okay, you’re going to start running and you don’t have a kneecap, or you don’t have a ligament here, or whatever. Over time your body with everything, it learns what it needs to do to be able to do that activity. 

Speaker 2 (47:48):

Incredible. All right. Well, I don’t think we have any questions for you, but wow, that was really awesome. Really great conversation.