Kansas City Chiefs’ Tony Gonzalez Is A 247lb Herbivore

We’re not sure what the statistics are when it comes to vegetarian football players. The notion is an oxymoron of cataclysmic proportions. Football players are supposed to be cannibals; dismemberers of their own members; savorers of their own species. Look at the legendary Chicago Bears’ behemoth of the 1980’s, William Perry, a.k.a “The Fridge.” He must have accidentally inhaled a third-string linebacker or defensive end throughout his career. Well the times are changing. Take Kansas City Chiefs tight-end Tony Gonzalez. Last year he embarked on a vegan diet to ensure the future of his health, but at the risk of ending up looking like DJ Qualls.

Living solely on plant food, a combination of nuts, fruits, vegetables, grains and the like, has long been the fringe diet of young rebels and aging nonconformists. Even the government recommends regular helpings of meat, fish and dairy. Vegans of late have gotten more hip with such best sellers as the brash “Skinny Bitch,” and its more scholarly cousin, “The China Study.” Both books argue vegans can live longer.
But could an all-star National Football League player, all 6-foot, 5-inches and 247 pounds of him, live on a vegan diet and still excel in one of the most punishing jobs in sports?

With a hearty serving of steroids, anything is possible. But we’re not accusing anyone of anything.

For Mr. Gonzalez, the stakes were high. He’d just signed a five-year contract, making him the game’s highest-paid tight-end. Entering the 2007 season, his 11th in the NFL, he had a shot at breaking all-time NFL records for career receptions and touchdowns at his position. To do that, he needed top performances in every game. Mr. Gonzalez knew he was out on a limb. “I was like, ‘I’m going to look like a fool if this doesn’t work out,’” he says.

More like the mail attendant from “Beetlejuice.” You know, the guy that is completely flattened from being run over by a car. But why take such a gamble? Was Gonzalez so fearful of destroying his colon that munching on bark and paper was inevitably deemed necessary?

Mr. Gonzalez had never heard of the vegan diet when he boarded a flight from New York to Los Angeles last spring, about a month before preseason training. His seatmate turned down most of the food offered in first class, and Mr. Gonzalez finally asked why. The man told Mr. Gonzalez about “The China Study,” a 2006 book by Cornell professor and nutrition researcher T. Colin Campbell that claims people who eat mostly plants have fewer deadly diseases than those who eat mostly animals…Mr. Gonzalez was intrigued. Earlier in the year, a bout with Bell’s Palsy, a temporary facial paralysis, had focused his attention on health. He bought the book, and after reading the first 40 pages, he says, was convinced animal foods led to chronic illness. He was an unlikely convert. Mr. Gonzalez, who grew up in Southern California, says cheeseburgers were his favorite food. But he quit them, substituting fruits, nuts and vegetables.

We once stopped eating meat after our rare steak was served breathing. We were right back to sucking down succulent skirt the next day. But you have to admit, the gall it takes for an elite pummeling machine to make the move from meat-eater to plant muncher is commendable. Will he start a trend? Probably not. Last we checked, meat eaters are still making the Super Bowl at a higher rate than non meat eaters. But hey, at least Gonzalez is the tight end with more receptions than anyone else in the history of the game. Keep on eating those nuts.

The 247lb. Vegan [WSJ]
Image [WSJ]