Gabe Madsen Chats About Vegetarian Lifestyle
Gage Versteeg
11/13/2023
As a high schooler Gabe Madsen decided to make a lifestyle change on a whim. With no outside factors, outside of an interest and inspiration from his sister, Madsen decided to make a change to his diet: he would go vegetarian.
Madsen, a senior guard from Rochester, Minn., entering his third season here on the Runnin’ Utes Basketball team, has spent the past eight years following that vegetarian diet, a move that, according to him, has him feeling great.
I just feel really good. Inflammation is way down and I just feel like I recover really fast.Utah Senior Guard Gabe Madsen
The transition has even helped Madsen gain 20 pounds, something that he struggled with prior to transition to the dietary lifestyle.
Madsen gives credit to an amazing staff with helping him maintain his diet, while continuing to progress as a Division 1 athlete, especially when having team meals on road trips during the basketball season.
“We have a great staff. Meredith, she’s our nutritionist and she does a great job of finding options for me and sending me to me where I get to choose so it is never really an issue of finding ways to manage it.”
With Madsen’s midwestern roots, the change was not also an easy transition. “There is a lot of meat eating in the Midwest so it was hard at first… even going over to my grandparents and being like ‘sorry I can’t eat this.’” Madsen explained one item that surprised him when hearing it did not fit within his new dietary restrictions: honey. “I remember hearing honey wasn’t vegan and I was like, ‘that’s an interesting one’... I never really eat honey but it was an interesting one for me.”
Madsen explained that while it is more of a dietary lifestyle change, he was still proactive on his practices that involve animals and their treatment. “I thrift leather like if I find boots since it is second hand, but I try to not wear the fur or leather and whatnot.”
“I have a love for animals, always have… that’s how I have always been, I just have love for animals… and that’s obviously a reason why I switched was the cruelty to animals.”
When questioned on how people struggling to maintain their vegan/vegetarian diet could stay the course, Madsen advised to find someone you can relate to. “Whether it be social media or something like YouTube… that’s what I did, just found guys who were athletes that had plant-based diets.”
He shared similar advice to those who were looking to begin a similar diet but did not know where or how to begin.
If you are interested, I would definitely say just give it a try. It is going to be hard at first because it is going to be like ‘alright I don’t know exactly what I need’... it is definitely going to be a little change… when I first started, like a lot of people, I was just eating all the fake meats but find out what works for you and stick to it, whatever it may be.