Will.i.am Lost 20 Pounds — and His Stress Level Plunged — After He Removed This One Thing from His Diet

The Black Eyed Peas may share a name with a fiber-packed vegetarian dish, but the band's frontman Will.i.am was happily a meat eater — until he had an epiphany.

Will.i.am faced some health issues combined with an insane work schedule, and that combination of stressors began to literally weigh him down: He weighed 210 pounds at his peak, slept about four hours a night, and battled a collection of conditions like high blood pressure and out-of-control cholesterol that his doctor warned would only get worse.

“I switched my regimen, went plant-based, and it changed my life. I lost 20 pounds,” he told People. “My cholesterol came down, my high blood pressure came down. My stress levels came down naturally. I have more energy. My sleep regimen is awesome.” 

Now, he is hoping to spread the word about plant-based diets.

“You don’t need the meat, you don’t need to have decaying flesh in your body," he said. "The more I think about it I was like, ‘Ew.’"