Real men eat meat. They kill it and then they grill it.
That's the stereotype, or cliche, that's about as old as time.
At a recent barbecue in Brooklyn, N.Y., a half-dozen guys who resist that particular cultural stereotype gathered together. Many of them are muscled semi-professional athletes, including triathlete Dominic Thompson, competitive bodybuilder Giacomo Marchese and mixed martial arts fighter Cornell Ward.
They're also all vegans and eschew all animal products. Because these guys are so seriously, well, built, they say some people find it hard to believe they never eat meat, fish, dairy or eggs.
"Everyone always thinks vegans are weak, skinny, frail, pale," Thompson says. "I get people that think, 'You're like Gwyneth Paltrow.' "
Unlike Paltrow (who is no longer vegan), Thompson grew up in a rough Chicago housing project. He was he kind of kid who would rush in to save stray cats or dogs if he saw people picking on them.
"[There's] nothing more cowardly to me than taking advantage of something that's defenseless," he says.
The Salt
Can You Call Yourself An Environmentalist And Still Eat Meat?