Featuring Shami Hariharan MD, Jessica McCarton RD, Dr. Cowan, Shonda Caines, Katya Gorbacheva. Moderated by Steven Cuzmusco

Erin Fergus is the associate department head of health and fitness science at Wake Tech Community College in Raleigh. After being vegetarian for 12 years and spending her post-college years as a runner and triathlete, she decided to try a different challenge. March 1, 2013 was the day she decided that there was no better way to solidify going vegan than to do so as a bodybuilder. She was told “vegan bodybuilder is an oxymoron” and placed last in her first competition in 2013, but she never gave up on training and spreading the message. That paid off in 2017 when she became the first vegan pro in WNBF Fit Body and the first vegan pro in OCB women’s physique. Her pro debut in fall 2018 went better than expected by placing 2nd at the national level OCB Yorton Cup and 6th at the international level WNBF
Worlds. Each of those competitions has been against all non-vegans. Although she won’t compete again until 2020, she trains as hard as possible six days a week to prove that what many people think can’t be achieved on plants and compassion definitely can be! She is also an advocate of busting other myths, such as that women lifting weights will become bulky or “less feminine.”

Featuring Abbas Naqvi, Zakkiya Miller, Benita Gibbs, June Taylor, Celeste Moonchild. Moderated by Kayla Jai.