Want to clean up your diet but aren’t sure where to start? You can now follow the strict, regimented diets of one of the world’s most successful athletes.
Coming off the back of his seventh Super Bowl win, Tom Brady’s extreme eating habits and bizarre game-day breakfast have been revealed – and its greener than you think.
Brady’s obsessive diet has long been the butt of his former New England Patriots’ jokes, with one ex teammate describing it as “that birdseed s–t”.
But what exactly does the Tampa Bay Buccaneers’ quarterback eat in a day?
Eighty per cent of Brady’s food is plant-based, and 20 per cent is animal-based protein.
Everything Brady eats is organic and he likely frequents the restroom after drinking around 6 litres of electrolyte-infused water each day.
You can say goodbye to your morning coffee and toast too, since caffeine of any kind and white flour are out.
White sugar, dairy and gluten are also no-gos, and so are vegetables that cause inflammation.
That includes tomatoes, capsicum, eggplant, mushroom, paprika and white potatoes.
While it sounds like most foods are out of the question, there are still some options Brady can enjoy.
Allen Campbell, Brady’s personal chef between 2013 and 2016, said during game season the 43-year-old “focused on dark leafy greens, some grass-fed animal protein as well as legumes and whole grains”.
On an average day, his schedule includes a berry and banana smoothie before working out, followed by avocado and eggs for breakfast.
Lunch is usually a salad packed with nuts and fish for lunch, with plenty of nuts, hummus and guacamole for snacks.
Dinner is roasted vegetables with chicken.
But all of this goes out the window on game day.
Breakfast of champions
In his first season in 2000, Brady admitted his pre-game lunch consisted of ham and cheese subs with onions rings and a large orange soft drink, with a snack of nachos.
Today, the star quarterback’s breakfast is a lot cleaner.
On Super Bowl Sunday, Brady sticks to a simple breakfast consisting of a smoothie and a sandwich of almond butter and jelly.
Of course, there are exceptions to the structured diet.
“If I’m craving bacon, I have a piece,” he told Men’s Health.
“What’s changed as I’ve gotten older is now if I want pizza, I want the best pizza.”
“I don’t eat a slice that tastes like shit and then wonder, ‘Why am I eating s–t pizza?’”
