The Forrest Griffin Diet
If you know what sugar tastes like, you’re doing it wrong.
If you know what sugar tastes like, you’re doing it wrong.
Photo by Josh Hedges / Zuffa LLC / Getty Images | Licensed to Alpha Media Group 2012
We already learned about the Tito Ortiz diet, and now we’re looking at Forrest Griffin’s plate. Griffin will take on Ortiz this Saturday as part of UFC 148. What does the former UFC champ put in his stomach? Not cake.
The Griffin Diet
Forrest Griffin: I kind of make up my own diet. The less steps between you and your food the better. I still eat processed foods, but I try not to. So I eat organic most of the time. I notice, too, that the more sugar I eat the more often I get sick. And that just stands to reason: you’re making your body more acidic. I’m a big believer in the Paleo Diet, I just don’t have the discipline for it.
The High Cost of Health Care
My wife and I buy expensive meat and expensive veggies. I bought some organic kale and the last little bit of it went bad. I was pissed. “Man, it was $6 for that kale! We’re just throwing money away!” I don’t try to eat healthy, I enjoy eating healthy. But I also want to eat unhealthy, too, you know?
Photo by Frank Curreri| Licensed to Alpha Media Group 2012
Welcome to Third Dinner
I drink green drinks, throw some spinach in there. I usually supplement with a lot of protein shakes. So I eat 5 to 7 times a day. I eat a lot of food. But I’m lucky because I really enjoy working out. I always have. I don’t care what it is but I’ve got to do something for a couple of hours.
Weight Watcher
I had six or seven fights at heavyweight. Light heavyweight is a deeper weight class but there are two problems: One, I don’t have the pop, the power. Two, I no longer have a heavyweight chin. I get the best of [heavyweight] Roy Nelson 70 percent of the time. But that other 30 percent of the time, I just can’t take their shots. The other thing is, when Roy gets on top of you the world feels like it’s ending. So heavyweights are not fun.
Eating Tuna In the Boys Room
I remember growing up in high school and I would eat a can of tuna every day after fourth period. In college, I would keep a notebook and try to eat 6,000 CLEAN calories a day. Do you know how hard that is to eat 6,000 CLEAN calories a day!? It’s hard! I was working out 2 to 3 hours a day, lifting, running, sprinting. At that time I had such a high metabolism.
Photo by Josh Hedges / Zuffa LLC / Getty Images | Licensed to Alpha Media Group 2012
Finding the Right Sport
When I graduated high school I was 223 with 5 percent body fat. I ran a 4.6 40 yard dash and I could dunk the shit out of a basketball. In college I tried to play football [at the University of Georgia]. I was on the practice squad but I realized that no matter how hard I tried I just wasn’t as talented as those guys.
Can you still dunk a basketball?
It’s sad. It took me three tries last time but I did it. One-handed.
Sweet Memories
I remember eating cake (years ago) and thinking, ‘When was the last time I had anything with this much sugar in it?’
What’s in the Fridge?
There’s coconut milk, vegetables, tons of spinach, Greek yogurt unsweetened that my wife makes dip with. Tons of good stuff. Avocado, homemade guacamole. I actually eat out more than I’d like to. The old standby for me is Jason’s Deli. I’ll get a salad or a wrap. I won’t eat cheese or anything fried. I don’t touch fast food. I don’t drink fruit juices or do juicing, either. If sugar is bad, then why is lots of sugar in juice good? If I’m going to eat something bad, screw it, I’ll eat Ben & Jerry’s. No processed cookie crap. Refined sugar is poison. We all know that. Anything that tastes really good is really bad for you.
The Grill of the Hunt
I remember when my mom used to buy liver. You can’t buy liver anymore because of all the hormones, steroids and antibiotics that destroy an animal’s liver. You wouldn’t want to eat that. I’m super fortunate because my wife’s family are big hunters. So I’ve got a freezer full of boar, venison, a freezer full of good game. But it’s fresh meat. A deer will not willfully sit in another deer’s shit. Cows don’t have a choice.
Options Are for the Weak
I cook the same thing every day. I cook two or three pounds of ground lean organic turkey or chicken, then I put broccoli or spinach slaw and that’s dinner every night. I might use some olive oil, balsamic vinaigrette. I also might put some barbeque sauce or hot sauce on it.
Photo by Frank Curreri| Licensed to Alpha Media Group 2012
Hot Sauce is OK
I eat a lot of hot sauce and it’s great because it doesn’t have a lot of calories. But never use hot sauce before a workout. I get the worst indigestion if I do that. I’ll be on fire.
Drink 14 Cups of Coffee a Day
Caffeine obviously beats your system up. It causes you to get sick more; it causes you to break down more. That being said, I just love coffee. I’m never going to NOT take in caffeine. I just don’t take any caffeine after 4 p.m. and I don’t usually have any trouble sleeping. I just started drinking coffee my freshman year in college. There are a lot of papers that wouldn’t have gotten written if not for coffee.
Without the Coffee?
I would be awesome. I would be so much healthier. I just would never make it to the gym!
Photo by Josh Hedges / Zuffa LLC / Getty Images | Licensed to Alpha Media Group 2012
Watch Griffin take on Ortiz this Saturday at UFC 148 on Pay-Per-View! And check out Tito’s diet tips here.
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