Thirsty (for knowledge) Thursday: What The "Fittest Man On Earth" Eats

I don't know much about Crossfit. I've never taken a Crossfit class, but I have done some Crossfit-like workouts in my garage years ago. But with my limited knowledge, I *do* know 2 things: Crossfit champions are considered the "fittest man/woman on earth," and Mat Fraser has been the Crossfit champ for many years in a row. It turns out (after I looked it up), it's the last 5 years STRAIGHT.

Fraser recently talked a little about his training and a LOT about his nutrition in a Men's Health UK article. Here are some bits worth mentioning:

“Honestly, I just make sure that I have a smile on my face when I walk in the gym. I never train unhappy,” Fraser told MH back in 2016, when he was freshly crowned the Fittest On Earth for the first time.

He talks about being lucky in his nutrition as his fiancé preps all of his meals for him. He considers that a big benefit:

Yet despite his proven level of strength, fitness, and commitment to training, the eternally humble Fraser puts his edge in this year’s Games down to his nutrition, and more importantly, his fiancé, Sammy Moniz.

“This past year has been a big jump in the right direction,” said Fraser in an interview with GQ on the eve of competing in Madison. “Every meal is made and waiting for me. I'm not having to finish training and then spend 30 minutes putting a meal together anymore. I'm not taking those trips to the grocery store. Sammy, my fiancée, loves to cook—she spends a lot of time on it and is always doing it for me.”

So WHAT does he eat? He has the "common sense" mentality of eating "real food" whenever he feels like he needs to:

“Anything from steak and potatoes to enchiladas to tacos. There's not too much she doesn't do,” said Fraser.

Adding to his universal appeal, Fraser seems to skirt the temptation to let nutrition rule his life. Although he’s clearly super human, his seemingly flexible approach to dieting almost makes his level of fitness seem attainable for the everyday bloke (it’s not). He's like the man next door, if you lived next door to Mount Olympus in the days of the Greek Gods.

“I tried to take my diet to a more extreme place, but it wasn't for me. It was taking too much time and energy away from different parts of my life. Now, instead of obsessing, I just try to eat well: No junk food. No soda. It’s mostly meat, vegetables, and fruit. If I'm hungry, I eat. If I'm not hungry, I don't. There's not too much of a science behind it.”

I think this is an idea that we all WANT to be true, but it CAN'T be true for all of us stationary desk-jockeys. That won't work for all of us, no matter how much we want it to. I'm not saying it's bad for us! I'm just noting that it's easier to live that way when you (1) have a fiancé who has tasty real food cooked for you the moment you need it, and (2) when your job is exercising and not just being stationary all day.

Although not necessarily scientific, Fraser’s general guidelines of avoiding food that comes in a packet seems like a fairly easy rule book for eating real, healthy, nutritious food.

But rest assured, even the greatest of athletes have their cheat meal indulgences, and Fraser is not exception.

“I keep a stack of Hershey's in the house—just plain milk chocolate—so that if I'm having a craving, I can go eat half of one.” Amen to that, a diet we can happily abide by.

Here's a link to the full article if you're interested.

For more "Thirsty Thursday" posts that highlight workouts, body science, and all kinds of interesting information, CLICK HERE. As always, back with some "Friday Funnies" tomorrow.