The National Football League players are one of the most capable athletes in the world and that has a lot to do with their training, discipline, and strict diet. It is impossible to compete in the big league without maintaining a balanced nutritious diet that will help you gain an advantage and improve your performance on the court.
Athletes are working with teams of nutritionists that are helping them create the perfect diet that can bring them to the next level. Teams are investing million in keeping the athletes in shape, and some athletes decide to share their eating habits with the world.
For the normal people, this means that we are getting nutrition tips from NFL stars that went through a lot of research, for free!
Let’s go through the list and find out more about what are NFL athletes’ nutrition habits.
Tom Brady
Obviously, we will start at the top with one of the most popular football player in the world, Tom Brady. In order for him to be in shape, he hired a personal chef who makes sure that Tom is always on the right path to success.
Just to warn you, Tom Brady is on a really strict eating routine and his chef, Allen Campbell, is like an obstacle for him on his way to the fridge. So, when you ask who has the best offensive line in the NFL 2021? The answer is the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, because they have in their ranks the ageless Brady.
For starters, Tom has many forbidden ingredients, such as:
- White sugar
- Glutamine
- Iodized salt
- White flour
- Eggplant
- Mushrooms
- Tomatoes
- Peppers
- Coffee
- Fungus
- Dairy
His chef says that the forbidden vegetables in Tom’s diet cannot harm his diet, but since they don’t have any inflammatory effects, they are trying to avoid them.
Even though fruits are allowed, Tom doesn’t like eating them. He sometimes eats a banana or a fruit smoothie, but that’s about it. Tom’s diet contains 80% vegetables and the rest of it is lean meat. Additionally, he doesn’t eat anything that’s not organic.
Von Miller
Von Miller is an absolute machine on the court and an outstanding linebacker, but what does it take to maintain a body like that?
Even though Von didn’t have a personal chef, he has still developed strict discipline when it comes to his diet.
As you’ve probably already guessed, sugar or any kind of sweets are not allowed, but he occasionally treats himself with a regular soda served with ice and a straw.
Von has a three-meal plan filled with snacks between them. He has developed a strict plan when it comes to timing, and he likes to eat at the same time every day. For breakfast, he loves eggs with some turkey bacon, or fruits, as for the main meal, his diet contains complex carbs filled with protein like chicken breast with starches.
He never eats dinner after nine, just so his digestive system can have enough time to burn through the calories before getting to bed.
Julio Jones
This is a rare case in the National Football League where an athlete just because Julio won’t say no to a yummy treat. He doesn’t have a strict diet which is why he said that his diet won’t be very helpful to a large percentage of people who want to get into football professionally.
With that said, he still has some rules when it comes to eating protein. You won’t find beef or pork on his plate, as he focuses on chicken just because it contains fewer fats. Additionally, his meals are full of organic vegetables, and he says that after he changed his diet to more healthy ingredients, he feels more energetic.
Antonio Browns
If you want to eat like a professional NFL player, make sure your pocket is deep enough to cover the costs. Antonio eats $1000 worth of food only in whole foods that last him for 3 days.
He hired a personal cook who was also an NFL star, Nicholas Hasapoglou, with in-depth knowledge about what professional athletes need. Antonio believes that nutrition plays a big role in his career which is why he makes such sacrifices.
He usually gets six eggs for breakfast, but only two of them are eaten whole, for the remaining he eats only the whites. He also likes bison meat, and some high concentrated in steel oatmeal.
Just like most athletes, his diet is made out of three meals and snacks in between them. He is one of the strictest players in the league when it comes to following nutrition rules.