Harrison Ford isn't just Indiana Jones or the most famous Wookie-loving pilot in the Galaxy.  Now he is adding to his many roles. After playing heroes as lovable as Han Solo, Indie and the original Jack Ryan of the big screen, Ford just yesterday announced that he was giving up meat and dairy "to help the environment."

Speaking about his new diet, Ford said: "I eat vegetables and fish, no dairy, no meat. I just decided I was tired of eating meat and I know it's not really good for the planet, and it's not really good for me." This follows his speech last fall at the UN Climate Action Summit where he spoke about the environmental crisis and saving the Amazon rainforests.

Always fit, always preternaturally youthful and always on the move, Ford is another "cool guy" who has joined the ranks of plant-lovers. When Arnold Schwartzenegger and James Cameron speak out against meat and dairy, and the benefits of adopting a plant-based diet for their health and performance, guys sit up and listen. There is the usual discussion of "Where do I get my protein?" and "What the heck do I eat?" which are all good questions and The Beet has complete guides to the best sources of plant-based protein and 21 days of ready-to-cook recipes as part of our 21 Day Plant-Based Challenge. But less and less, do you hear the line of resistance that goes something like: Real men eat meat. And Vegetarianism is for girls. Because it's not.

Ford says his athletic body is due to his diet more than hitting the gym, according to a recent interview, and insists he doesn't "work out" like crazy.

Making an appearance on The Ellen DeGeneres Show, he added: "I don't work out like crazy; I just, I work out a bit. I ride bikes and I play tennis and a little bit."

Meanwhile, Harrison has claimed the only people that can save the world are "angry" young people.

The Hollywood icon, now 77, appeared on Tuesday's edition of The Ellen DeGeneres Show, and went into detail about delivering his speech to save the Amazon rain forest last fall at the UN Climate Action Summit.

Asked if he was nervous before he gave the speech, the Oscar-nominated actor replied, 'Not until I [got] there - I don't have enough sense to be.'

'I was in this room, I was on a dais ... and everybody else was a head-of-state and I thought, "Oh man they made some big mistake here,"' Ford said. 'But then they let me talk about what I wanted to talk about - which is the environment.' The Daily Mail of London broke the story.

"We've been talking about saving the Amazon for 30 years. We're still talking about it," Ford continued. "The world's largest rain forest, the Amazon is crucial to any climate change solution for its capacity to sequester carbon, for its biodiversity, for its freshwater, for the air we breathe, for our morality. And it is on fire. When a room in your house is on fire, you don't say, 'there is a fire in a room in my house.' You say, 'My house is on fire,' and we only have one house ... They are the young people who, frankly, we have failed - who are angry, who are organized, who are capable of making a difference. The most important thing that we can do for them is to get the hell out of their way."

Harrison Ford tells Ellen he has given up meat and dairy
@TheEllenShow
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On a lighter note, Ellen accused Ford of riding an electric-powered bike, a fact he adamantly denied.

 

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