Sidebar Sidebar
Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.

Steve Jobs was a fruitarian, now a vegan

Status
Not open for further replies.
I was a fruitarian for about 4 months, then I went back to vegan. It is hard as hell, but the energy and attitude enhancement is mind blowing.
 
maybe that's why he has gotten skinnier?

in any case, what's with the links that don't support your thread's tittle or the thread itself??
 
sowillo14 said:
I was a fruitarian for about 4 months, then I went back to vegan. It is hard as hell, but the energy and attitude enhancement is mind blowing.
Click to expand...

I know what I'm about to ask is a nearly impossible question to answer, but here goes.

Do you think the "mind blowing" "energy and attitude enhancement" you experienced was really due to the different biological chemical effect caused by ingesting a different diet, or do you think any portion of that feeling was a placebo effect? Studies have shown that the placebo effect is extremely powerful, and has a very real measurable effect on what goes on chemically and electrically in your body and produces very real measurable changes in your health and state of mind.

I would bet that when you made the diet switch, you did so because you thought it was better for you. At the very least you thought it was better for the world, which made you feel good. I also bet that when you made the diet switch, before the effect of the change could've even caused a biological difference, you were also motivated to do other positive things in your life, such as do more exercise, or take more walks in the park, or spend time with your friends or family, or listen to more music, etc.

Any of those types of things that almost certainly must've happened concurrent with your diet change would've caused significant positive changes in your energy and attitude all by themselves. So while the change in diet may well have actually caused "energy and attitude enhancement," it's also entirely possible that they did not.

Simply even having an optimistic attitude can seriously impact your health! All over the news today they were reporting the results of a study that showed that heart surgery patients who had an optimistic opinion had a hugely higher survival and recovery rate over those who were not.

This is not to discourage people from moving towards a diet with a higher percentage of plant products, because at the end of the day, who cares if the positive effects experienced are a direct result or a secondary effect, all that matters is that it makes you feel great! Rather, this comment is designed to remind people that the biggest factor that impacts how you feel, is actually your mind! It's a reminder to everyone to put effort into working on cultivating a positive attitude and to do all the small things that have a big impact on your body and mind. It takes work to change your outlook and your attitude, but it is very doable.

And make sure you do all the small things that make a big difference. If you do a moderate jog for just 5 minutes a day, I promise you will feel better. Put effort into making sure that you spend time with friends and family, it has a huge impact on your health and well being.

Take a short walk in a park with a friend.

Jog for 5 minutes between your car and your job or school's front door.

Do a good or cool new thing every so often, like learning to play sudoku, or spending a couple of hours volunteering anywhere, like a soup kitchen or even just an animal shelter.

Change your mind for the positive, do the small things that matter, and you will feel great! :)
 
Steve Jobs was a fruitarian in the 1970s for a short time. He is not vegan. He's a Pescetarian.

I think it would be an interesting thing to be a fruitarian, just to see what it's like. GO VEG!
 
dukebound85 said:
must be hard to get all that protein,amino acids, etc on a fruit only diet lol

things people do and think its "healthy"
Click to expand...

Amino acids are proteins, broken down into their basic blocks. All the amino acids, fatty acids and glucose that your body needs can be found in a fruit-based diet.

You can actually find almost all the nutrition you need in almost any natural sources. You could eat a diet consisting largely of woodland creatures and still be reasonably healthy. (Providing the woodland creatures were healthy and nourished themselves, and that you ate their stomach contents as well).
 
Iscariot said:
A vegan diet would be less restrictive and more calorie-dense than a fruitarian diet.
Click to expand...

perhaps i should have put "skinny" instead of "skinner." (i didn't know that SJ's not into meat.)

Iscariot said:
Amino acids are proteins, broken down into their basic blocks. All the amino acids, fatty acids and glucose that your body needs can be found in a fruit-based diet.

You can actually find almost all the nutrition you need in almost any natural sources. You could eat a diet consisting largely of woodland creatures and still be reasonably healthy. (Providing the woodland creatures were healthy and nourished themselves, and that you ate their stomach contents as well).
Click to expand...

true, but it's way harder to get complete protein if one doesn't eat meat/eggs.
 
BiTurboMunkie said:
perhaps i should have put "skinny" instead of "skinner." (i didn't know that SJ's not into meat.)
Click to expand...

Especially if he was a fruitarian. Fruitarians typically have the lowest body weight of the different vegetarian types.

There's at least one fruitarian body builder. He lives in Hawaii, however, so the abundance of tropical fruit makes a huge difference.

BiTurboMunkie said:
true, but it's way harder to get complete protein if one doesn't eat meat/eggs.
Click to expand...

No, it's not. That's a fairly common misconception. It's a lot harder to get a significantly high quantity of protein, but that has more to do with calorie density than anything.

I recall your thread about gaining weight (how's that going, by the way?) and you and I are at about the same BMI, gaining about the same amount of weight. I just have to eat a lot more food, and it's probably not as tasty :(
 
So who here is vegan/fruitarian? Do you find yourself in better shape physically and mentally compared to previous diets/eating habits?

...Or could the same results be achieved just by being more conscious with what you eat, moral aspects aside, (e.g. less red meat)?
 
Much Ado said:
So who here is vegan/fruitarian? Do you find yourself in better shape physically and mentally compared to previous diets/eating habits?

...Or could the same results be achieved just by being more conscious with what you eat, moral aspects aside, (e.g. less red meat)?
Click to expand...

When I went vegetarian, I noticed an increase in my energy levels and sharper mental acuity. However, I don't think it's fair to attribute this to a meat-free diet, but rather that as a vegan it's more difficult to make poor dietary choices. Most junk food is eliminated from the diet by virtue of containing milk or eggs. I think it's this shift to a healthier diet — not necessarily a vegan diet — that most who adopt the diet "claim" is a result of plant-based nutrition.

I noticed a much more valuable shift in my health when I eliminated overly processed foods as well.

In the end, I think that a vegan diet is moderately healthier in that it includes more one-step nutrients, and it more closely resembles the kind of diet you'd except to see in nature (see many primates, who are largely frugivorous, as an example). I don't think, however, it gives the kind of lifestyle and performance boost many would like to claim it does. If it were really that effective, you'd see many more professional athletes flocking to it.

I actually think that a pescetarian diet is the healthiest.
 
It's really cool that SJ was/is a fruitarian/vegan, but I can't live without...
beefraviolican.jpg
 
PowerFullMac said:
Apple got its name from the Beatles' record label, as him and the Woz were Beatles fans.
Click to expand...

Markleshark said:
Yeah, I mean, there would have been some kind of legal case by now should that have been the case.

... Oh, wait... :p
Click to expand...

The story I've heard is that Steve Jobs lived in some kind of commune that was also an apple orchard at one point (IIRC this is in Pirates of Silicon Valley?) and that's why he named Apple "Apple". I'm not sure a whole lot of thought was given to it. After all, when Apple started, it was very small and there was certainly no guarantee that it would really ever go anywhere. Even after a fair amount of success, Woz was reluctant to quit his job with HP and go full time with Apple.
 
Iscariot- great post, thank you.

I've been feeling pretty sluggish recently and have been meaning to change my diet somewhat to improve energy etc. I'd agree that probably the most important thing is simply being conscious about what you eat, and that the biggest effect of a vegan diet is removing 'bad' foods by default. I think i can get away with improving my diet without totally forgoing my favorite meats :)

I'd still be prepared to try it out though...
 
dLight said:
This a myth that has proven itself wrong a long time ago.

The Protein Myth
Click to expand...

Excuse me? You are citing a random discussion forum with no formal sources as "fact"?

In my opinion it is possible to get sufficient amounts of most of the essential amino acids (i.e., building blocks of proteins) from a lacto-ovo vegetarian diet that includes sufficient amounts of soy (tofu, soy milk, etc), legumes (beans, peas, lentils), whole grains, dairy, and eggs. It is much harder to get all the essential amino acids with a vegan (milk-free, egg free) diet. It might be possible, but will take large amounts of soy, legumes, and grains.

With a purely fruit-based diet I frankly don't see how it would be possible to get all the required amino acids in sufficient amounts without getting much too much sugar. I do believe in fruit as a healthy part of a balanced diet, but a purely fruit based diet is just as far from "balanced" as, say, a purely meat based diet would be. I have discussed this with several nutritionists and believe this to be correct.

PS -- I think Steve Jobs was quoted once as saying that he named the company Apple because he thought an Apple was the perfect food -- so simple, yet so perfect. And I suppose the combination of simplicity and perfection is what has been driving the company's philosophy from its earliest days on.

PPS -- Regarding diet, I was a lacto ovo vegetarian for 10+ years and very careful about what I ate and how much protein I was getting. After 10 years+ of being vegetarian I started getting a string of infections and blood tests showed that I was missing some essential amino acids, as well as some minerals in sufficient amounts. I was told to add small amounts of chicken and fish to my diet, and the infections stopped immediately and have never returned. On a similar note my cousin, after being vegan most of her life, started getting serious seizures and it was determined that those, too, stemmed from a critical protein deficiency in her body. The seizures stopped after she returned to a regular balanced diet. I completely agree with the post that said it's amazing what strange diets people eat and think it's healthy.
 
dLight said:
This a myth that has proven itself wrong a long time ago.

The Protein Myth
Click to expand...

Iscariot said:
No, it's not. That's a fairly common misconception.
Click to expand...

notice i didn't say "impossible?" ;)

Iscariot said:
It's a lot harder to get a significantly high quantity of protein, but that has more to do with calorie density than anything.

I recall your thread about gaining weight (how's that going, by the way?) and you and I are at about the same BMI, gaining about the same amount of weight. I just have to eat a lot more food, and it's probably not as tasty :(
Click to expand...

yeah, i was having a tougher time before switching from soy-based protein to dairy-based protein (i was never a vegan, but was never a big milk fan cos imo it's never meant for human consumption). things are going well btw. i gained ~7 lbs by the end of my winter break. are you trying to gain weight too? maybe we should have a race! :D
 
BiTurboMunkie said:
yeah, i was having a tougher time before switching from soy-based protein to dairy-based protein (i was never a vegan, but was never a big milk fan cos imo it's never meant for human consumption). things are going well btw. i gained ~7 lbs by the end of my winter break. are you trying to gain weight too? maybe we should have a race! :D
Click to expand...

Yeah, I'm +25 pounds over last year. If we have a race though, you're probably going to win because I lost an absolutely retarded 15 pounds when I was sick last month and my throat swelled nearly shut D:
 
Status
Not open for further replies.
Register on MacRumors! This sidebar will go away, and you'll see fewer ads.
Top Bottom
Back