Rich is a world-renown, plant-based ultra-endurance athlete, in-demand public speaker, wellness advocate, #1 bestselling author and inspirational hero to a global audience of wellness seekers as a transformative example of courageous and healthy living.

After succumbing to the sedentary throes of overweight middle age, at age 40, Rich made a decision to overhaul his life, adopting a plant-based diet and reinventing himself as an ultra-distance endurance athlete. Just a few years later, Rich stunned the multi-sport community with top finishes at the Ultra-man World Championships one of the most grueling endurance events on the planet. In 2010 Rich topped this feat when he was the first of two people to complete EPIC5 in less than 7 days total.

Rich chronicles his journey in Finding Ultra: Rejecting Middle Age, Becoming One of the World’s Fittest Men, and Discovering Myself which quickly became a #1 bestseller and has been translated into six foreign languages. 2012 Rich launched the wildly popular Rich Roll Podcast, currently topping charts on iTunes. With over 5 million downloads to date, Rich is touching and changing the lives of a passionate devoted audience that spans the globe. Rich and his wife Julie’s first cookbook: The Plantpower Way (Penguin) – a plant-based primer for the active modern family – just hit bookstores across North America.

PHOTOS: