What is JJ Watt's NFL Diet and Workout Routine?

JJ Watt spends a lot of time warming up and loosening up, regardless of the workout
JJ Watt spends a lot of time warming up and loosening up, regardless of the workout's specific focus. (Image via Instagram)

The life of Wisconsin-born athlete JJ Watt, aka Justin James Watt, is strikingly similar to the lives of many other talented athletes. The defensive end for the Arizona Cardinals has been interested in athletics since a young age. He began playing football in fifth grade after playing hockey for four to thirteen years.

Throughout his four years of high school, Watt's natural talents made him a football standout, but he also excelled in other sports, including track and field, baseball, and basketball.

Getting to where he is right now requires a great deal of determination and dedication. The level of energy that Watts exhibits on the field is unlike that of many other athletes.

Read on to find out more about Watt's NFL Diet and Workout Routine.


JJ Watt’s Workout Plan

JJ Watt often wakes up between five and six in the morning to begin his day. He spends a lot of time warming up and loosening up before his workout routine, regardless of the exercise regime's specific focus. The 30-to-40-minute warm-up session, which promotes balance and ankle stability, is performed barefoot.

During this warm-up, Watt focuses on the core especially. To ensure that everything is engaged and stable before picking up the bar, Watt performs core exercises during every single training session. The NFL defensive player's workout combines glute and low ab work with an emphasis on the groin and pelvic floor strength and stability.

The exercises that make up the warm-up session are:

  • Planks
  • Glute extensions
  • Side planks with leg raise
  • Lateral leg walks with bands
  • Bird-dogs
  • Dead-bugs

Watt's main routine consists primarily of free weights, but he also does functional training and conditioning to stay in shape.

JJ Watt works out for 90 minutes at a time. He begins with foam rolling and some stretches, then moves on to footwork and performs a lot of resistance band work. In order to be in peak shape during the NFL season, JJ Watt makes sure to schedule time for stretching and recovering.


JJ Watt’s Diet Plan

Every day, Watt consumes a tremendous amount of food. So much so that he views eating as a chore. All of his meals—two breakfasts, two lunches, and two dinners—are enormous. He consumes a variety of fresh, natural foods like oats, eggs, chicken breasts, and plenty of vegetables.

The NFL player consumes about 5,000 calories each day, but a few years ago, he consumed even more calories, an additional 4,000 calories. He followed a semi-keto, semi-Paleo diet while ingesting 9,000 calories per day, eating a lot of fats like avocados, olive oil, and bacon while eating few, healthy, natural carbs like sweet potatoes.

His daily meal plan includes:

Breakfast: Watt starts his day with a 900-calorie breakfast of oats and half a dozen eggs. Four more eggs make up the second breakfast.

Lunch: Three chicken breasts, whole wheat pasta, italian dressing, and a side of broccoli make up the lunchtime feast. Watt's second lunch consist of more chicken breasts, mashed sweet potatoes, and carrots.

Dinner: Another protein meal awaits Watt for dinner: lamb chops with whole-wheat noodles and grilled asparagus. steak fillet, additional spaghetti, and steamed broccoli makes up the second meal.


Wrapping Up

Athletes that compete professionally do not succeed by accident. Superhuman levels of effort, commitment, and concentration are required, including being mindful of what they eat.

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