Tom Brady believes the secret to his success is his unusual diet. The five-time Super Bowl-winning quarterback and his supermodel wife Gisele Bündchen purportedly follow an “insane” diet at home.
Whatever Brady is eating is clearly working. At 39 years old, he just won his fifth NFL championship. In numerous interviews, he has attributed his success to his “eccentric” eating habits.
What is Tom Brady eating to enjoy such a successful NFL career? Let’s take a closer look.
A Careful Balance of Alkaline and Acidic Foods
One of the most unique parts of Tom Brady’s Diet is his choice to carefully balance alkaline and acidic foods.
In a 2014 interview with Sports Illustrated, Brady described his diet as 80% alkaline and 20% acidic in order to “maintain balance and harmony” throughout his “metabolic system”.
80% Vegetables and Whole Grains, 20% Fish and Lean Meats
In a separate interview, Brady’s personal chef spoke about the quarterback’s unique eating habits. In an interview with Boston.com in January 2016, the chef revealed that Brady eats approximately 80% vegetables and whole grains and 20% fish and lean meats. Brady’s preferred lean meats include certain cuts of steak and duck.
Brady Has Plenty of Dietary Restrictions
One of the easiest ways to follow Brady’s Diet is to look at the foods he’s not allowed to eat. Tom Brady and Gisele Bündchen purportedly avoid all of the following foods and ingredients:
- Sugar
- White flour
- Nightshade fruits and vegetables (including tomatoes, peppers, eggplant, tomatillos, potatoes, and certain berries)
- MSG
- Iodized salt
- Coffee
- Fungi
- Dairy
Other key restrictions of the diet include only using extra virgin olive oil on raw foods, and only using coconut oil on cooked foods. Brady and Bündchen only drink alcohol occasionally.
Tom Brady Has Never Eaten a Strawberry
Perhaps the weirdest part about Brady’s diet is that he has never eaten a strawberry in his life. At least, that’s what Brady told New York magazine in 2016.
When that magazine asked him what he liked to eat for a treat or dessert, he said he prefers cacao avocado ice cream.
A Very Limited Amount of Fruit
Brady isn’t a big fruit eater. He claims to eat an occasional banana, blended into a smoothie. Outside of that, however, he rarely eats fruit.
Tom and Gisele’s kids, for the record, follow a similar diet plan. The main difference between Brady’s diet and his kids’ diets is that they eat more fruit.
When Brady does eat fruits and vegetables, it has to be organic. Virtually all parts of Brady and Bundchen’s diet are organic.
What Do Nutritionists Say About Brady’s Diet?
Is Tom Brady’s unique diet backed by any scientific evidence? Is there any reason to believe that his eating contributes to his athletic longevity and strong overall health?
News.com.au interviewed a registered dietitian who summed up parts of Brady’s diet as “sketchy”. One of the weirdest parts of the diet, from a nutritional standpoint, is the adherence to an alkaline diet. The science behind such diets is weak, to say the least.
Followers of alkaline diet plans believe eating acidic foods – including meat and dairy – causes your blood to become acidic, which increases your risk of disease.
Proponents of the alkaline diet include Robert O Young, who was recently convicted of practicing medicine without a license in California and now faces up to 3 years in prison. Young praised Brady for following the alkaline diet in a 2016 blog post, although he’s never personally worked with the quarterback.
Nutritional experts claim that the alkaline diet is based on questionable science because your stomach is naturally acidic. Anything you eat has to go through your stomach acid, which means the ratio of alkaline and basic doesn’t really matter. There’s no evidence to suggest that eating acidic foods can significantly increase the acidity of your blood.
What about the nightshade vegetable restriction? Should you really stop eating potatoes and tomatoes? Brady avoids nightshade vegetables because he – along with other believers – thinks they cause inflammation. The Arthritis Foundation, however, states that the link between nightshade vegetables and inflammation is a myth.
Where Does Brady Get His Nutritional Guidance?
Tom Brady and Gisele Bündchen base their diet on eastern medical practices. Brady has become known for consulting lifestyle experts over the years. One of those experts is Brady’s lifestyle guru and business partner, Alex Guerrero, who was sued by the US Federal Trade Commission for selling supplements he claimed could cure cancer and other curable diseases.
Guerrero has previously advised Brady on fitness and nutrition. He holds a master’s degree from a school of Eastern medicine, although that school has since been closed.
Some of Brady’s Restrictions Are Misguided
Overall, nutritionists disagree with many parts of Brady’s diet plan. His restrictions – including banning entire food groups like dairy and fruit – are seen as misguided.
Yogurt, for example, is a great source of protein and gut-friendly probiotics.
Meanwhile, Brady avoids using olive oil in cooked foods because he believes olive oil can create toxins when cooked. Research shows, however, that this is only true when heated to a smoke point of around 400 degrees. So if you don’t burn it, toxins aren’t released.
Ultimately, Brady is one of the NFL’s greatest-ever players. He’s a multi-millionaire who will likely retire (eventually) as the greatest quarterback of all time. He can eat whatever he likes. If you want to follow his diet exactly, then you can always buy Tom Brady’s $200 cookbook.
