Rich Roll
Ultra-endurance athlete · The Rich Roll Podcast
Plant-based ultra-endurance athlete and host of The Rich Roll Podcast, who got sober at 31 and rebuilt his life around training and diet. His memoir Finding Ultra prompted many people to try a plant-based diet. His stack is unusually low-tech: food, miles, sobriety and sleep.
- Entries
- 27
- Does
- 17
- Recommends
- 5
- Discusses
- 5
Gear
9 pieces of gear in this stack
- GearDoes it$$$Mid: Roughly $50 to $500, or up to $50/month.
Running shoes
Back in 2008 he wrote that Newton running shoes changed how he ran, putting the padding under the forefoot, and that his season had been injury free so far. No sponsorship then, he added, only a hope of getting shoes for Ultraman.
Source: richroll.com blog: I Love My NewtonsView item: Running shoesOn record from 3 of 62 tracked people: 3 do it - GearDoes it$$$Cheap: Roughly under $50, or under $15/month.
Sleep eye mask
An eye mask is part of the same sleep setup as the tent and the blanket. He names the Mindfold as the one he likes.
Source: The Tim Ferriss Show #561 transcriptView item: Sleep eye maskOn record from 3 of 62 tracked people: 1 does it, 2 recommend it - GearDoes it$$$Mid: Roughly $50 to $500, or up to $50/month.
Cycling power meter
A CycleOps PowerTap hub is the power meter on his bike. He listed it because people kept asking what he rode, and noted that no sponsor sits behind the choice.
Source: richroll.com blog: Products & Prose, A Note to the CriticsView item: Cycling power meterOn record from 2 of 62 tracked people: 2 do it - GearDoes it$$$Mid: Roughly $50 to $500, or up to $50/month.
High-speed blender
His disclosure post lists the Vitamix among the gear he uses and backs, and states the arrangement plainly: an affiliate banner on his site earns him a small cut when a reader buys one.
Source: richroll.com blog: Products & Prose, A Note to the CriticsView item: High-speed blenderOn record from 2 of 62 tracked people: 2 do it - GearDoes it$$$Expensive: Several hundred dollars and up.
Road bike
He paid retail for the bikes that carried him through Ultraman: an off-the-rack Trek in 2008, a Felt time trial bike in 2009. Franco Bikes, a startup near him, supplies him now, and he says they have never paid him to ride them.
Source: richroll.com blog: Products & Prose, A Note to the CriticsView item: Road bikeOn record from 2 of 62 tracked people: 2 do it - GearDoes it$$$Mid: Roughly $50 to $500, or up to $50/month.
Weighted blanket
A weighted blanket, the Gravity one, goes over him at night. His explanation is loose: the weight seems to tell his nervous system that he is safe.
Source: The Tim Ferriss Show #561 transcriptView item: Weighted blanketOn record from 2 of 62 tracked people: 1 does it, 1 has discussed it - GearDoes it$$$Mid: Roughly $50 to $500, or up to $50/month.
Camping tent
For a couple of years he has slept outside in a tent rather than in the house, starting with nights on the flat roof. The cool desert air agrees with him, is roughly how he puts it.
Source: The Tim Ferriss Show #561 transcriptView item: Camping tentOn record from 1 of 62 tracked people: 1 does it - GearDoes it$$$Mid: Roughly $50 to $500, or up to $50/month.
GPS sports watch
In the same 2012 post setting out which brands pay him, he says he trains with a Garmin 310XT and has no relationship with the company whatsoever.
Source: richroll.com blog: Products & Prose, A Note to the CriticsView item: GPS sports watchOn record from 1 of 62 tracked people: 1 does it - GearRecommends$$$Mid: Roughly $50 to $500, or up to $50/month.Sponsor, disclosed
WHOOP
Recovery-focused wearables have come up on the show. WHOOP is one of the podcast's listed sponsors.
Source: richroll.com: sponsors pageVisit whoop.com (opens in a new tab)On record from 6 of 62 tracked people: 4 do it, 1 recommends it, 1 has discussed it
Books
5 books in this stack
- BookRecommends$$$Cheap: Roughly under $50, or under $15/month.
Why We Sleep
Must-read for anyone wanting to live and feel better, in his framing, and he has hosted its author on the show.
Source: The Rich Roll Podcast: episode with Matthew WalkerView item: Why We SleepOn record from 8 of 62 tracked people: 5 recommend it, 3 have discussed it - BookRecommends$$$Cheap: Roughly under $50, or under $15/month.
Atomic Habits
Another must-read on his list; he says he has used many of its strategies himself, and has hosted its author.
Source: The Rich Roll Podcast: episode with James ClearVisit jamesclear.com (opens in a new tab)On record from 6 of 62 tracked people: 5 recommend it, 1 has discussed it - BookRecommends$$$Cheap: Roughly under $50, or under $15/month.
Finding Ultra
His own memoir.
Source: richroll.com: biographyView item: Finding UltraOn record from 1 of 62 tracked people: 1 recommends it - BookRecommends$$$Cheap: Roughly under $50, or under $15/month.
How Not to Die
Rates it a must-read and the densest citation-heavy case for plant-based eating, and has hosted its author repeatedly.
Source: The Rich Roll Podcast: episode with Michael GregerView item: How Not to DieOn record from 1 of 62 tracked people: 1 recommends it - BookDiscusses$$$Cheap: Roughly under $50, or under $15/month.
Breath
Discussed the book at length with James Nestor, covering nasal breathing, breathing rate and airway health.
Source: The Rich Roll Podcast: episode with James NestorView item: BreathOn record from 1 of 62 tracked people: 1 has discussed it
Supplements
3 supplements in this stack
- SupplementDoes it$$$Cheap: Roughly under $50, or under $15/month.
Protein powder
Plant protein powder goes into a post-workout smoothie, and he says a scoop a day or every other day is plenty.
Source: richroll.com: FAQView item: Protein powderOn record from 18 of 62 tracked people: 13 do it, 3 recommend it, 2 have discussed it - SupplementDoes it$$$Mid: Roughly $50 to $500, or up to $50/month.Sponsor, disclosed
AG1 (Athletic Greens)
Alongside a plant-based diet it goes in daily as nutritional insurance. AG1 is a long-running sponsor of his podcast, which he discloses.
Source: richroll.com: sponsors pageVisit drinkag1.com (opens in a new tab)On record from 3 of 62 tracked people: 3 do it - SupplementDoes it$$$Cheap: Roughly under $50, or under $15/month.
Vitamin B12
Supplements B12 as non-negotiable for eating fully plant-based, and says so plainly whenever the diet comes up.
Source: The Rich Roll PodcastView item: Vitamin B12On record from 2 of 62 tracked people: 1 does it, 1 recommends it
Apps
1 app in this stack
- AppDoes it$$$Cheap: Roughly under $50, or under $15/month.
Headspace
The morning routine he laid out on his own show puts a twenty minute meditation in the Headspace app between the visualization and the journal.
Source: The Rich Roll Podcast: morning routine AMAVisit headspace.com (opens in a new tab)On record from 3 of 62 tracked people: 2 do it, 1 recommends it
Protocols
5 entriesStructured routines and practices with a defined method.
Very large volumes of easy aerobic work built an ultra-endurance career, and he still trains predominantly at low intensity.
Source: The Rich Roll PodcastSince his forties the diet has been whole-food plant-based, and he credits it with the turnaround described in his memoir.
Source: richroll.com: biographyHas gone through cold plunging with many of the researchers and practitioners behind it.
Source: The Rich Roll PodcastFasting and eating windows come up with many guests, though he notes high training volume changes the calculation considerably.
Source: The Rich Roll Podcast: fasting episodesHas covered the cardiovascular literature on regular sauna use with guests on the show.
Source: The Rich Roll Podcast
Habits
4 entriesRecurring behaviors recorded in public statements.
Twenty minutes of meditation, fixed into the morning routine with journaling and a gratitude list.
Source: The Rich Roll Podcast: morning routine AMAWriting is part of a morning practice, tied to the recovery habits that keep him steady.
Source: The Tim Ferriss Show #561 transcriptSober since 1998, after rehab at 31, and he describes sobriety rather than diet as the foundation everything else was rebuilt on.
Source: The Tim Ferriss Show #561 transcriptHas explored nasal breathing and airway health at length with James Nestor on the show.
Source: The Rich Roll Podcast: episode with James Nestor
In their own words
Checked word for word against the linked source
“I go to bed around 9:00, and generally get up around sort of 5:00, between 5:00 and 6:00. And the early hours are really protected as my own time. So morning meditation, journaling, writing, creative projects, no meetings, no phone calls.”
The Tim Ferriss Show #561 transcript (opens in a new tab) · 7 Jan 2022 On Journaling
“I mean, I was sober for almost 10 years before I made these lifestyle shifts. … sobriety and addiction stand outside of those things, and those other things have a role in my life, but addiction and recovery are a very separate thing.”
The Tim Ferriss Show #561 transcript (opens in a new tab) · 7 Jan 2022
Episodes from the feed
Show archive, The Rich Roll Podcast (opens in a new tab)Last fetched . A title without a link is an episode the feed publishes no page of its own for.
- Olympic Medalist Jenny Simpson On Her Sudden Cardiac Arrest After A Race & The Journey Back To Health (opens in a new tab) · 1h 36m
- From Drinking Every Morning to Running 340 Miles: Tommie Runz on Recovery, Running & Redemption (opens in a new tab) · 2h 17m
- Hunter Biden Is Out Of Secrets: A Story of Recovery, Exposure & Amends (opens in a new tab) · 1h 34m
- How Hellah Sidibe’s 3,350-Day Run Streak Rebuilt His Mind (opens in a new tab) · 1h 23m
- Mindfulness, Meditation & Performance: Manoj Dias Live At The Rivian Performance House (opens in a new tab) · 1h 7m
Stack notes are paraphrased. Anything in quotation marks is a short excerpt copied from the transcript it links to. Not medical advice. Not affiliated with, endorsed by, or reviewed by anyone listed. How this works.