Nutrition Principles for Physique and MMA Athletes

Next Level Podcast with Host Tavis Piattoly, MS, RD, LD

Podcast Transcript

0:25 Welcome by Tavis Piattoly

1:54 Introduction to Jimmy Smith

• Has a masters degree in Exercise Movement & Movement Science.
• Jimmy is a Certified Strength and Conditioning Specialist.
• A recognized leader in the field of human performance.
• He is an author, speaker and coach who has helped professional and elite athletes reach a higher level of performance and physique development. 
• Jimmy has been a guest on ESPN Radio, ABCNews.com, CBSSports.com and in Men's Fitness and Men's Health magazines.
• His best-selling book, The Physique Formula, has helped hundreds of athletes and health enthusiasts attain leaner and healthier physiques.

4:08 What made Jimmy want to work in the field of strength, conditioning, and nutrition?

• I had an ankle injury in my freshman year playing collegiate basketball.
• I was dissatisfied with the therapy that I received from the athletic trainer at my school.
• That injury spurred me to read as much as I could about strength and conditioning, nutrition and exercises to rebuild stability in the ankle.
• After college, I had my own business working as a personal trainer, but I needed another avenue and I knew nutrition was it.  I wanted to make myself healthier and to get better results from my clients.

7:10 Who was the first known athlete that approached him about helping them change their diet?

• Andrew Penner, ice hockey goalie for the Boston Bruins (at the time).
• His trainer found me online, read some articles and referred Andrew Penner to me as a client for nutrition.
• It was an eye-opening experience because I had the theory that professional athletes ate great.  After working with athletes for a while, I found out that they are just like you and me.

8:47 What makes the MMA athlete a little different than a football or baseball player or is there a difference in the approach?

• MMA athletes are a little different breed, I need to be a little more hands-on with them.
• MMA athletes train for 4-5 hours per day, whereas football and baseball players might train for 2-3 hours a day.  
• MMA athletes do so much high intensity training that they are overtraining themselves. 
• As a result, we have to adjust the nutrition approach with them.

10:18 What are the nutritional biggest challenges an athlete struggles with the most when trying to lower their body fat?

• Patience.  
• During our 12 week camps, we’re going to lose 2-3lbs per week.
• Losing weight is a slow process.
• Athletes are still afraid of carbohydrates. 
• When we do a certain amount of high intensity activity, we need to have a certain amount of carbohydrates to recover.  
• Carbohydrates provide nutrients and health benefits.

12:02 What 3 key nutrition principles are a must when someone is trying to improve their body composition?

• Eat real whole foods
• Build habits
• You can give an athlete the cleanest diet in the world, but if they don’t or can’t follow it, you’re not going to get results.
• Have a little fun and enjoy what you eat.

14:58 If there a specific macronutrient ratio he develops for each individual (i.e. based on body type, goals, body composition)?

• Three questions I ask myself:
• Who is the athlete?
• What are their goals?
• How long do we have to achieve that goal?
• Depending on the time frame, we can go slow, take less risks, and develop a plan.
• Macronutrient ratio factors:  
• Age 
• Gender 
• Height (Huge factor)
• Metabolic rate will be different; hormones are different to a degree
• Weight (the amount of muscle mass versus fat that they carry)
• Protein: Generally, I will recommend 1.2-1.4g/lb of body weight per day.
• Fat: 32-40g of healthy fat throughout the day (nuts, fish oil).
• Carbohydrates: I don’t have a blanket recommendation
• Generally speaking, I will not put anyone under 130g per day depending on their goal.

19:39 Does he change calorie requirements or macronutrients based on the volume of training of his clients?

• The more volume, the more need for carbohydrate because the athlete is doing extra work and depleting muscle glycogen more.
• Increase protein for muscle repair.
• At the end of the day, to gain muscle mass, it’s about the calories they are taking in.

21:05 Safe strategies to help athletes make their fighting or performance weight.

• If we cannot get the athlete to about 12-14lbs of their pre-fight weight 48 hours before they fight, then we are doing something wrong.
• Lose weight by pulling out muscle glycogen, lose water volume (from not eating certain carbohydrates or drinking water) and doing other electrolyte manipulation.
• Strategy wise, we need to not try to do things too soon before a fight.

25:03 Supplement safety and education before designing a comprehensive supplement plan.

• I ask for a list of what the athlete is currently taking, and then cross stuff off.
• No supplements with a secret formula, etc.
• Arginine and leucine are fine.
• I am a proponent of: 
• Omega-3 fish oil, magnesium, zinc, a multivitamin and whey protein
• Eat whole based foods

30:20 What specific supplements he recommends for athletes or individuals who are trying to reduce body fat?

• I’m a fan of high dose Omega-3 fish oil: 6-9g
• Improves insulin sensitivity.
• It helps our bodies essentially take those carbohydrates and make us more spongy to them to a large degree.
• R-ALA (R-Alpha Lipoic Acid)
• Shown to improve insulin sensitivity. 
• Anti-oxidant
• Has the ability to help our body recycle vitamin C.
• Large dose bolus of 200-300mg one time per day, or depending on goals, 100mg 2-3 times a day with a carbohydrate meal.
• Cinnamon, chromium, magnesium, zinc all impact insulin sensitivity.
• Curcumin (low bioavailability)
• Anti-inflammatory 
• Resveratol
• Anti-inflammatory 
• Insulin sensitivity

35:32 Closing remarks from Jimmy

• Keep an open eye on the research.
• Don’t necessarily believe what you read.  
• At the end of the day, it’s about what you put into your mouth and how you train.
• You can find me at:
• Twitter: @jimmysmithtrain

Website: physiqueformuladiet.com