Guest post by Evolve MMA, Asia’s premier championship brand for martial arts. It has the most number of World Champions on the planet. Named as the #1 ranked martial arts organization in Asia by CNN, Yahoo! Sports, FOX Sports, Evolve MMA is the top rated BJJ gym in Singapore.
One of the most important factors in sustained weight loss is your diet. The Evolve Fight Team and Evolve MMA World Champion Instructor Team consistently maintain a balanced and healthy diet. Everything that they put into their bodies is measured and calculated in order to maximize performance. Read up below and discover our approach towards eating and drinking like a world class athlete.
1) MAKE IT A HABIT, NOT A DIET
Make it a habit. The word “DIET” is often associated with a miserable time, an unpleasant consequence of losing weight, and shedding body fat. The key to successful and long term weight loss is to disassociate ourselves from the word diet. Diet suggests something that is short term. We should look to make better food choices instead of dieting. Make better food choices a habit just like brushing your teeth every morning!”
Eddie “The Magician” Ng, ONE FC Lightweight Superstar
2) EAT A LOT OF VEGETABLES
I recommend adding as many vegetables to your diet as possible. You can continue to consume the same quantity of food. Vegetables are lower in calories, packed with nutrition, and they will keep your metabolism firing!”
Heath Sims, US Olympic Greco-Roman Wrestler
3) LOTS OF WATER, AND STAY AWAY FROM THE SUGARY STUFF
Drink a lot of water. Stay away from soft drinks, sodas, and sweet teas. On a daily basis the only thing you should be drinking is water. If you need some flavor, try squeezing some fresh lemon juice into your water. You can occasionally mix in fresh squeezed juices or coconut water, but stay away from the bottled stuff you see in convenience stores. Make sure it is fresh.”
Yodsanan Sityodtong, WBA Boxing World Champion
4) DIETS ARE NOT SUSTAINABLE
In my experience “diets” don’t work. They may give you fast results, but they are short term. “Diets” are not sustainable. You need to change your way of thinking about food. Make healthy, clean eating a lifestyle choice. Avoid heavily processed foods. Try to eat food that is as close to the original source as possible. Pay attention to how you feel, and how your body functions when you eat healthy versus when you eat junk food.”
Jake Butler, ONE FC Light Heavyweight Superstar
5) CONTROL YOUR PORTIONS
Control your portion size when you go out to eat. Usually restaurants give you way more food than you need to be satisfied. Don’t feel obligated to eat everything. Eat slowly and stop eating when you feel satisfied, not when your plate is empty.”
Namsaknoi Yudthagarngamtorn, 4 x Muay Thai World Champion
6) ACTIVE LIFESTYLE AND SENSIBLE EATING CHOICES
I don’t believe in strict diets. Adopt a healthy, active lifestyle and make sensible eating choices. It’s simple, and it is sustainable.”
Irshaad Sayed, Muay Thai and Kickboxing World Champion
7) FOCUS ON HEALTHY FOODS THAT YOU ENJOY EATING
Eat simple and clean foods. You don’t have to eat things that you don’t enjoy. Focus on the healthy foods that you enjoy eating and eat them often. After training I like to eat pasta. It helps me recover, and it gives me great energy for the rest of the day. Everyone is different, but this is what works for me.”
Leandro “Brodinho” Issa, UFC Fighter and Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu World Champion
8) DON’T SKIP MEALS
Don’t skip meals and never let yourself get too hungry. We usually make the bad choices when we are most hungry. Eat 3 moderate sized meals a day and have healthy snacks in between as necessary.”
Chaowalith Jockey Gym, 3 x Muay Thai World Champion
9) LOTS OF WATER AND VEGETABLES
Drink a lot of water and make vegetables the biggest portion of your meals. Eat a lot of vegetables at every meal. They will fill you up, provide your body with all the nutrients it needs, and help eliminate cravings for unhealthy foods.”
Leandro Ataides, Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu World Champion
10) PLAN YOUR MEALS
Be prepared. Don’t wait until you are starving to find your food. When we are starving we settle on unhealthy fast food choices. Plan your meals in advance. Always carry some healthy snacks with you in case you get hungry and don’t have access to healthy foods.”
Orono Wor Petchpun, 3 x Muay Thai World Champion
11) HYDRATE YOURSELF, AVOID FAST FOOD, AND DON’T SKIP BREAKFAST
Always keep your body well hydrated and avoid fast foods. I believe that breakfast is one of the most important meals of the day, so don’t skip it. Make sure you balance your food plate with all of the necessary components like carbohydrates, proteins, nutrients, etc. Also, balance the quantity of each component based on what you are about to do. For example, take more carbohydrates before your training and consume more proteins after.”
Bruno Pucci, No Gi Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu World Champion
12) CHOOSE YOUR FOOD PROPERLY
Make better choices in what you eat. If you are unable to get all of your nutrients through food, add in some supplements and vitamins. I like a good multivitamin, fish oil, and a high quality protein powder. I eat a lot of meat as well, but I make sure it is prepared correctly. For example, I eat grilled chicken as opposed to fried chicken or lean grilled beef as opposed to a cheeseburger.”
Gamal Hassan, Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu National Champion
13) CLEAN AND HEALTHY FOOD
Eat clean and healthy foods 6 days a week. No fast foods, nothing too heavily processed, and no candy. One day a week allow yourself to eat whatever you want. Some people call this a “cheat day”. The cheat day gives you a reward to focus on throughout the week and helps you maintain your discipline.”
Herbert Burns, No Gi Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu World Champion
If you are not sure where to start and how to eat well, check out our newest and best-selling diet product from George Lockhart. Lockhart is one of the UFC’s leading nutritionist and has helped some of the best professional athletes in the world lose weight and doing it in a healthy fashion. Lockhart is the real deal and this product can literally change your life. It is an E-Book and a DVD. This is also available as a digital download below.
