Any serious combat athlete will pay as close attention to their nutrition for MMA as they do their training. This includes eating a healthy breakfast on a regular basis. Here are some of the excuses my clients give me about why they don’t eat breakfast…
- “I don’t have the time.”
- “I don’t feel hungry.”
- “I’m trying to cut weight.”
- “I don’t enjoy typical breakfast foods.”
The bottom line is that these are just excuses. Decide now to do the right thing when it comes to eating breakfast and your MMA training will truly be optimized.
Michael Phelps never skips breakfast…
The winner of 7 gold medals in the Beijing 2008 Olympics understands how important it is to fuel his body for optimal performance. That’s why he consumes 8,000 to 10,000 calories everyday even when he’s not competing! In fact, take a look at a sample breakfast he eats…
- Three fried egg sandwiches with cheese, lettuce, tomatoes, fried onions, and mayonnaise
- A five-egg omelet
- A bowl of grits
- Three slices of French toast with powdered sugar
- Three chocolate pancakes
- Two cups of coffee
Simply put, eating breakfast and getting proper nutrition for MMA will help you to perform better in your training and/or competitions. To give one example, a study was done on athletes who consumed different types of nutrition and then biked hard for 45 minutes followed with a 15 minute sprint. The athletes who ate a high calorie breakfast 4 hours before they trained performed the best on the sprint.
Here are some other benefits to eating breakfast…
- Improves overall nutrition- Eating a nutritious breakfast is the perfect way to start your MMA nutrition plan. Healthy snacks and a balanced lunch and dinner will soon follow.
- Improves overall well-being- Besides your performance in the ring or on the mat, you will feel better in general throughout your entire day.
- Reduced injuries- Breakfast for MMA fighters is especially important since many combat athletes train more than once per day. Carbohydrate consumption becomes crucial and neglecting to refuel between training sessions is a common way to weaken the immune system and risk injury.
Bioindividuality and your nutrition for MMA plan
When I conduct seminars, I often teach a concept called bioindividuality. This principle states that all people have different nutritional needs and preferences. For instance, you may tolerate a certain carbohydrate better than someone else or dislike broccoli while someone else loves it.
Options for Breakfast for MMA Fighters
While you need to figure out what works for you, here are some breakfast ideas that have worked well for me and some of my clients.
- Egg white omelet with spinach and a bowl of oatmeal
- Smoothie with natural peanut butter, skim or low-fat milk, a banana, and a scoop of vanilla whey protein
- Oatmeal with a scoop of protein powder and some raisins
- Leftovers from a balanced dinner the night before
While you probably don’t have to consume as much food as Michael Phelps, you should be eating something. Try to eat a mix of lean proteins (for muscle building and repairing) and well-tolerated carbohydrates (for energy).
I’ve had many clients who‘ve noticed a dramatic improvement in their physique, energy levels, and performance after implementing a nutrition for MMA plan. Of course these plans began with a solid breakfast. This could be the difference you need to make a breakthrough in your training!
References: Nuefer, Costill J Appl Physiol 62(3): 983, 1983
