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Combat Sports Nutrition: Martial Arts Diet Tips to Increase Performance

A car is only going to run properly if you use the right fuel. So, too, your body will only perform to its peak ability in combat sports and martial arts with the right diet.

You can certainly perform well with poor nutrition, or little attention paid to your diet. However, you won’t be performing to your true potential.

Think about it – if you’re eating poorly and still performing well, imagine what level you could reach with the proper fuel going into your body.

There’s no exact formula to the correct diet for combat sports athletes. However, there are plenty of guidelines to follow, as well as known high-performing athletes to use as inspiration. In addition, a baseline knowledge of nutrition will help you stay more or less on the path to a diet that will have you performing at your peak.

In this post, we’ll give you the introductory knowledge you need to start a martial arts diet that helps you perform better, for longer.

Feel free to use the links below to skip ahead to any sections that interest you:


The Importance of Nutrition for Fighters (BJJ, MMA, Boxing)

There are a number of factors that influence performance in combat sports. The mind, for one – you need knowledge of what to do, when to do it, how to do it. Your training – conditioning the body for the movements you need to perform, and ensuring you have the strength and speed to do so. And finally, the fuel that powers your body. I.e., your diet.

The body needs sufficient amounts of certain nutrients, vitamins and minerals to operate. This is true for everyone, however the levels needed are higher for sustained athletic performance.

I always like to think of it like a car. You need the right fuel for your car to run. And if you’re going to drive your car at 100 mph for an hour, you’ll need more fuel (or better fuel) than driving it at 60 mph.

This is not to say you can’t fight and perform at a high level with poor nutrition (or without paying careful attention to your nutrition). But if you put two athletes next to each other, both with the same training, skills, and mindset, but one eats a balanced diet, while the other a low quality diet? The one who takes care of their nutrition will win.

Related: All You Need to Know About Strength Training for BJJ

What Constitutes a Balanced Martial Arts Diet

To start with, you might not need to carefully count every little thing that goes into your body to see an improvement in your BJJ or MMA performance. First, see if you’re consuming a balanced diet, which many people are not.

What exactly is a balanced diet?

A balanced diet means you’re getting the right nutrients to help your body function. As the word “balanced” suggests, this means a mixture of different types of foods. While kale, for example, is generally considered one of the healthiest foods, if you were to only eat kale, it wouldn’t be a very balanced diet.

To achieve a balanced diet, you’ll want to ensure a large portion of what you’re consuming comes from foods like:

  • Fresh fruit & vegetables
  • Lean proteins
  • Nuts & legumes
  • Whole grains

A martial arts diet consisting mostly of these foods will usually mean you achieve the ideal levels of macronutrients, vitamins and minerals for you. For the exact recommended levels, based on your age and gender, you can check out these guidelines from the US department of health.

Macros: Protein vs Fat vs Carbs

A balanced diet will help ensure you get the right mix of nutrients and minerals your body needs. With these vitamins and minerals – for example, calcium, magnesium, vitamin C – you basically want to be making sure you get at least the minimum recommended levels (unless your body is naturally deficient in any). 

The other area of the equation, which has a bigger effect on your body and your athletic performance, is macros.

Macros, short for macronutrients, are categories of nutrients that are responsible for providing most of your energy. Remember our car analogy from earlier? Macros are the fuel that powers your body.

There are three types of macros: carbohydrates, protein and fats. Basically, all of the calories you take in will come from these three macros, and getting the right ratio of carbs to protein to fats will help you reach your athletic goals.

Macros are especially important for losing or gaining weight, which makes them even more relevant for combat sports athletes, who have to hit specific weight targets.

The exact ratio of carbs, protein and fats you need depends greatly on your age, gender, body type, height/weight, and level of activity. There’s no “perfect” ratio for everyone. To get the right ratio for you, you’ll want to either consult a dietitian, or use an online macro calculator like this one to give you an assessment.

A simple view of what each macro does for you is as follows:

Carbohydrates

Carbohydrates come from sugars, starches and fibers, and are responsible for providing a lot of the energy we burn. Carbs get a bad rap as something that you should avoid, but this is just a generalization of simple or “bad” carbohydrates.

Processed carbs like sugar, syrup, sweets, desserts are not good for you nutritionally. However, there are many other forms of carbs that have nutritional value. Even naturally occurring sugars, which come from fruits and vegetables, are “good” for you.

The reason a lot of people think carbs are bad is that they are coming from a point of view of wanting to lose weight. Carbs are a great way to store energy – however, if this energy is not consumed, it turns into weight gains. Thus, if you’re trying to lose weight, low-carb diets are effective.

For combat sports athletes, however, you need energy – a lot of it. So, unless you’re cutting weight, it generally benefits you to have a lot of carbs in your diet (as long as they are complex, non-processed carbs).

Fats

Most people have a negative connotation attached with fats. In reality, fats are a macronutrient that is important for the body’s function. It just depends on the types of fat you’re taking in.

Trans fats are the kind you want to stay away from. These are what we get from processed foods, such as fast foods, fried foods and potato chips. Other types of fat can be good for you, however. Foods such as red meat, dairy, eggs, avocadoes, dark chocolate and salmon are all high in good fats, and staples of a balanced diet.

Much like carbs, fats are stored as energy by the body, burned throughout the day, and when we exercise. This means if you eat a lot of fat but lead an inactive lifestyle, you’re going to gain weight. But if you’re a combat sports athlete, these fats are going to form a vital part of the energy you need to train.

Protein

Finally, protein is an essential building block of a strong and healthy body. Protein helps the body build muscle, as well as repair muscles that may be damaged or broken down after a hard training session.

Protein also helps to repair damaged bone, skin, teeth, hair, and body tissue in general. Think of protein like a building block. If you need to build your body, or repair torn or damaged tissues (which you’ll have a lot of, as a martial artist), you need protein.

Protein generally isn’t used to provide energy for the body, though, which is why you need to supplement your protein intake with healthy carbs and fats.

Calories in and Calories out

A big reason that carbs and fats are vilified by so many people is that they are calorie-dense macros. Calories, too, are misunderstood, and believed by many to be unhealthy. It’s become common for people to think “low calorie” means healthy, and high calorie foods or meals are bad for you.

Calories are literally units of energy. The body needs energy to function. If you were to eat a zero-calorie diet, you’d probably die.

Calories on their own are not bad for you. The problem comes when you’re getting too many calories – this results in weight gain, when you’re taking in more energy than you’re putting out over the day. This is mostly a concern if you’re living a sedentary lifestyle, or if you’re trying to cut weight for a competition.

If you’re trying to manage weight, you should pay attention to not just how many calories you’re taking in, but how many you’re burning. For someone who sits in an office all day and doesn’t exercise, 2700 calories a day may be plenty. However, if you’re in the gym and training every day, the same intake would likely lead to a drop in weight.

For the combat sports athletes who don’t have an active weight target in mind, you generally want to try and eat more calories. More calories means higher energy intake, which is more energy for you to put out in training.

Don’t succumb to the myth that calories are bad, and all low-calorie foods are good for your (or high-calorie foods are bad).

Foods to Avoid, and Foods to Eat More Of

You want to take into account macros when planning your martial arts diet. However there are some foods that are nutrient-rich, which it pays to eat more of. There are also foods that are generally pretty bad for you, which you should limit or cut out entirely.

Avoid: trans fats, such as junk food and fast foods containing hydrogenated vegetable oils. Basically anything deep-fried. Sweets, candy, sodas are all things you should stay away from, as they are “empty” calories – high calorie foods with little to no nutritional value. And alcohol – overindulgence in alcohol damages your body’s cells, and will have you performing at limited capacity.

Eat More Of

  • Eggs – high in protein, amino acids and vitamin B-12.
  • Avocados – a great source of healthy fats.
  • Greek yoghurt – super high in protein, as well as providing calcium and other nutrients.
  • Spinach & leafy greens
  • Broccoli
  • Berries
  • Salmon
  • Lean meats

Famous Combat Sports Athletes and their Diets

You can take some cues from those who have performed at the top level of combat sports to get a broader idea of how to eat. Here are some famous martial artists and their diets.

Gracie Diet

If you’re a BJJ athlete trying to craft a diet plan, who better to look to than the Gracies?

One of the fathers of Jiu Jitsu, Carlos Gracie, devised a diet intended to keep the body in good shape for fighting. This diet works by separating foods into different groups, with strict rules on what can and can’t be combined with each other.

The groups are:

  1. protein and vegetables
  2. sweet fruits
  3. starches
  4. acidic fruits

The following guidelines are presented:

  • Group A foods can be mixed with each other and with one of group B.
  • Group C foods can be mixed with each other and with one of group B.
  • Group B  foods cannot be mixed with each other.
  • Group D foods can only be eaten individually.

Milk and banana are also included, but have their own list of foods they can and can’t be combined with.

Other important parts of the Gracie Diet include:

  • Separating meals by at least 4 ½ hours
  • Drinking a glass of water before and after sleeping
  • No alcohol, smoking, pork or pork derivatives.

Bruce Lee

Here are some takeaways from martial arts icon Bruce Lee’s diet:

  • A preference for vegetable-heavy Chinese dishes.
  • A large amount of vegetables, but also beef, shrimp, chicken, liver and tofu.
  • Little to no dairy.
  • Meals split into four or five smaller portions, rather than the traditional three large meals.
  • No refined flour or “empty” carbohydrates, like baked goods (cakes, biscuits).
  • Protein shakes (made with powdered milk) & vegetable-based smoothies.
  • Regularly drinking black tea with honey or sugar.
  • No alcohol.
  • Some “unhealthy” foods such as McDonalds, or sodas (consumed in moderation).

Bruce Lee also was said to take a number of supplements, including:

  • Magnesium
  • Vitamin C
  • Vitamin E
  • Inositol
  • Lecithin
  • Bee pollen
  • Wheat germ oil
  • Rose hips
  • Natural protein tablets
  • Acerola-C
  • B-Folia

Mike Tyson

Former heavyweight boxing champion Mike Tyson won his first championship belt when he was just 20 years and four months old. Along with a rigorous workout routine, his diet helped him to reach the heights he did.

Tyson’s diet was high in carbohydrates and calories, to fuel his intense training, as well as including a lot of protein for muscle growth and recovery. At the height of his powers, Tyson was eating over 4,000 calories per day.

A typical day for Tyson would look like this:

  • Breakfast: complex carbohydrates from oatmeal, together with milk and several supplements, such as fish oil and magnesium.
  • Lunch: chicken breast, rice and orange juice.
  • Dinner: steak, pasta and orange juice.
  • Protein shakes, blended with bananas throughout the day.

Tyson would also “cheat” with ice cream and Cap’n’Crunch cereal from time to time. 

Muhammad Ali

From one champion heavyweight boxer to another. The great Muhammad Ali was another to pay close attention to his diet.

Ali’s diet consisted of clean, natural whole foods, particularly foods high in protein and nutrients. Staples of his diet included:

  • Eggs, toast and orange juice for breakfast.
  • Protein from chicken and steak.
  • A lot of green beans, potatoes and other vegetables.
  • Fruit for snacks throughout the day.
  • No alcohol, no smoking.

Conor McGregor

Former UFC champion Conor McGregor has nutritionist George Lockhart assist with his diet during training camps. The focus is on a lot of protein, and a diet based on meat, fish, green vegetables and carbohydrates.

A typical day for the Notorious might look like this:

  • Breakfast: eggs, smoked salmon, kale, avocado & other assorted fruits and vegetables.
  • Lunch: meat (steak, fish or chicken breast) with a side of kale.
  • Greek yoghurt, nuts, fruit throughout the day for snacks.
  • Afternoon post-workout protein shake, along with carbs from sweet potatoes, rice and oats.
  • Dinner of chicken, fish, green beans, sweet potatoes and rice.
  • Coffee with breakfast, green tea before bed.

Diet Changes for Different Times

An important part of planning your martial arts diet is the ability to adapt and change for different stages of preparation. For example, what you eat during the heart of your training camp won’t be the same as when you’re out of camp, or when you’re in the last stages of cutting weight.

Training Camp

When you’re in camp, this is when you’re working out the most. Thus, you need a diet high in calories, to give you the energy you need to train hard multiple times a day. You also need high levels of protein for muscle recovery. You may want to consider supplementing with protein shakes at this time, to ensure you get enough protein to recover quickly, and be able to train multiple times a day.

Weight Cutting

During the week leading up to a fight, you’ll generally taper off training to a degree, and work towards making fight weight.

During the weight cut, you’ll want to manipulate your body to be able to cut as much water weight as possible. This means strategic water loading, and cutting out salt – a low sodium intake makes it easy to cut water weight.

You’ll also want to drastically reduce carb intake at this time. This will help you lean out, as well as cut water more efficiently.

A typical fight week diet should consist largely of lean proteins like lean meats and eggs, leafy greens, and healthy fats.

Out of Camp

Generally, when you’re out of camp, this is when you can let loose a little bit with your diet. However, you shouldn’t make the mistake of completely disregarding your diet when you aren’t actively training for a fight. Doing this will make it harder to get back into shape once training camp starts. It will also limit how effectively you can train – even if you don’t have a fight coming up, the quality of your training is important for your progression as a fighter, and as an athlete.

Can Vegetarian or Vegan Diets work for Martial Arts?

A common misconception with nutrition is that you need meat to get all the nutrients and macros you need. While it helps (many meats are excellent sources of lean protein), you can absolutely compete in MMA or other martial arts at a high level on a vegan or vegetarian diet.

UFC star Nate Diaz is well known for his vegan diet, which has fueled him to a number of high-profile wins over legendary opponents. His brother Nick and teammate Jake Shields also sustain themselves with no meat or dairy.

Another great example that you don’t necessarily need meat to be an athlete is MMA/BJJ fighter Kron Gracie, whose diet was the subject of a short documentary film:

The trick for making a vegan diet work in combat sports is replacing the nutrients most people get from eating meat. Protein is probably the biggest part of this. Generally, you’d get the bulk of your protein from chicken, red meats and dairy. However, if you decide to go vegan, there are more than enough options for plant-based proteins, such as:

  • Lentils
  • Kidney beans
  • Black beans
  • Chickpeas
  • Tofu
  • Quinoa
  • Oats
  • Nuts

Also, while a lot of athletes take whey protein supplements (whey is dairy based), there are many vegan protein supplements available too, made from sources like peas or hemp.

So, to sum up, there’s no reason you can’t be a high-level combat sports athlete and a vegan (or vegetarian). It’s about your macros and nutrients, and you can get all the nutrients you need from a plant-based diet.

Combat Sports Nutrition: Summing Up

A lot of people ask me, or other experienced martial artists, “how do I get better at [BJJ/MMA/Boxing/Karate]?”.

Often times, the area that can make the most difference is your diet.

The fuel you put in your body is vitally important. The body needs certain nutrients to operate efficiently, and if you’re not getting enough of these nutrients, you’ll be performing at a fraction of your potential.

This not only means lesser performance in competition, but reduced ability to train and progress your skills.

Nutrition is even more important for fighters who have to hit a certain weight for their fight. What goes into our bodies is the #1 factor determining whether our weight goes up, down, or stays the same.

To dive deeper into combat sports nutrition, I’d suggest checking out this ebook from BJJ Black Belt Reid Reale. Reale, also the Performance Nutrition Manager for the UFC Performance Institute in Shanghai, is in the unique position to give you the information you need on nutrition specifically for BJJ, MMA or other combat sports.

This book covers a range of topics, such as:

  • Fluids & hydration
  • Facts about carbohydrates
  • Fiber, antioxidants, vitamins and minerals
  • Cutting weight
  • Meal plans for fighters

Reale is as qualified as anyone to help guide your nutrition plan. Whether you’re training for fun, personal development, or to be a serious competitor, it’s 100% worth it to get this insight on how to get your nutrition under control.

>> Get the ebook now <<

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