The athlete says a plant-based diet has improved his performance, and decreased his anxiety

The athlete is a frequent advocate of plant-based eating (Photo: Instagram)

Australian

rugby star Kelly Benson - of the Macquarie Scorpions - has launched a fully

vegan meal delivery service after losing weight and improving his performance

on a plant-based diet.

Newcastle

Vegan Eats

His

startup, coined Newcastle Vegan Eats, offers both seven and four-meal packages,

priced at $95 and $45 AUD respectively.

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The food is

marketed as gluten-free, organic, and 100 percent plant based - in addition to being served up in

compostable packaging.

?Newcastle Vegan Eats offers four and seven-meal plans (Photo: Newcastle Vegan Eats)

'Thriving'

Benson, who

has been vegan for two years says he is 'thriving on a plant-based diet'.

Describing

his results, he told the Newcastle Star: "I was carrying extra baggage, which

was dead weight. Dropping the fat, I felt a lot more mobile.

"I have

quicker turn around times with recovery; less sore the day after."

His report of improved recovery and performance matches that of football stars Chris Smalling and Hector Bellerín, and F1 racer Lewis Hamilton.