After finishing weigh-in on fight day, each boxer wants to have a heavy meal to fill his empty stomach. So what do boxers eat before a fight?
If you want to perform well during your fight, you need to eat certain foods at specific times. It’s important to have a solid boxing diet plan throughout training camp up until the fight.
This article will discuss what boxers should eat before a fight.
What Do Boxers Eat Before A Fight?
In order of importance, boxers should consume these before a fight:
- Carbohydrates
- Water
- Protein
- Healthy Fats
These are essential for a boxer’s diet and pre-fight nutrition.
While eating the right foods is needed to replenish energy stores, it’s also important to eat these at the right times.
Although fight-day nutrition mirrors pre-fight nutrition, the crucial difference here is when you should eat these foods.
Before a fight, it’s better to spread food intake evenly, rather than eating it all at once in a big meal.
It’ll be easier on the digestive system and will aid optimal performance and boxing recovery.
Fighters eat these foods to have:
- More energy
- Better blood flow
- Increased stamina
Often when boxers have a poor diet due to a rehydration clause, they have less energy and endurance in the ring.
Even if you don’t have a fight coming up, these foods will fuel you properly before regular boxing workouts or boxing class.
Carbohydrates
First, boxers should eat complex carbohydrates at regular intervals of 2-3 hours before a fight.
Unlike simple carbohydrates, which are digested faster and spike your blood sugar, complex carbs take time to digest and add glucose to your blood slowly.
Complex carbohydrates have fiber and starch, and can include:
- Fruits (banana, apples)
- Whole grain bread
- Pasta
- Vegetables (sweet potato, leafy greens)
Eating complex carbs replenishes the glycogen stores that provide you with a continuous source of energy.
It’s important to eat just the right amount; too much or too little and you’ll feel tired and sluggish.
Within an hour of entering the ring, you shouldn’t feel too hungry or too full. It’s fine to have a snack like fruit or a low-sugar energy bar.
Water
Next, boxers should drink enough water before a fight.
Staying hydrated is more important than eating protein or healthy fats when you are hours away from a fight.
You can stay hydrated just by eating fresh fruit and keeping a water bottle on you at all times.
Drink plenty throughout the day. Consistent sips of water consumed hours before a fight will do more to help than big gulps of water in between rounds.
As you get closer to the fight, you should already be well-hydrated and start to cut back on water intake.
Too much water and you’ll make your stomach upset, which will make you feel sluggish and bloated in the ring.
Protein
Next, boxers should eat protein three or four hours before a fight, including:
- Greek yogurt
- Chicken
- Fish
According to the Recommended Dietary Allowances, adult men and women require 0.8 grams of protein per kilogram of body weight for the amino acids needed to repair and build muscle.
Most boxing professionals eat these proteins 3 or 4 hours before a fight or as a pre-workout meal.
However, it’s important not to eat too much protein since it takes time and energy to digest. Digestion can take oxygen and blood flow away from your muscles during a fight.
Healthy Fats
Lastly, boxers should eat healthy fats three or four hours before a fight, including:
- Fish
- Nuts
- Eggs
These foods provide fatty acids, which keep your heart and brain healthy.
As a general rule, most boxing professionals eat these healthy fats 3 or 4 hours before a fight or as a pre-workout meal.
Like protein, it’s important not to eat too much of these healthy fats before a fight since the digestive process takes time and energy to digest.
Since these are great sources of both protein and healthy fats, boxers consider these superfoods and make sure to eat these whenever they can.
Benefits of Eating Healthy Food Before Boxing
Some of the benefits of eating healthy food before boxing include:
- Eating Healthy Food Before Boxing Will Give You More Energy
- Eating Healthy Food Before Boxing Improves Blood Flow
- Eating Healthy Food Before Boxing Gives You Increased Stamina
Eating Healthy Food Before Boxing Will Give You More Energy
First, eating healthy food before boxing will give you more energy.
We like to think of food as both fuel and oil for a car.
While replenishing your energy is essential, it’s also important to consider how healthy this food is.
For example, you can refill your energy with cheeseburgers (fuel), but over time, this will decrease your overall energy output and health (oil).
Eating Healthy Food Before Boxing Improves Blood Flow
Next, eating healthy food before boxing improves blood flow.
This reason pertains to water specifically.
Even though water doesn’t replenish your energy directly, it’s still essential for all of your body’s vital processes.
Eating Healthy Food Before Boxing Gives You Increased Stamina
Lastly, eating healthy food before boxing gives you increased stamina.
When you have a consistent diet of healthy food, the energy difference is day and night.
You’ll be able to last through longer workouts with shorter recovery periods.
Conclusion
It’s important to consider the role of your nutrition plan in your boxing training. Even if you don’t have a fight coming up, you should still incorporate these foods into your diet.
By eating these consistently, you’ll feel the positive effects before a regular boxing workout or boxing training.
Most fighters, especially boxers, find consistently dieting for boxing hard.
If that’s you, we suggest using one of your rest days to meal prep, so that you don’t have to worry about what you’re going to have to eat day-to-day.
We also suggest using a meal-plan delivery system, which takes away the hassle of cooking altogether so you can focus on boxing.
A healthy diet will help you reach your boxing goals, whatever they are. It can help you lose weight, increase testosterone, or build muscle.
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