World champion athlete Hunter McIntyre said McDonald's, PB&J sandwiches, and cereal fuel his workouts and recovery

• Hyrox champion Hunter McIntyre eats up to 7,000 calories of mostly carbs and sugar each day.
• He eats lots of sugary cereal, PB&J sandwiches, chicken, potato, rice, and steaks, he told Insider.

Hunter McIntyre is a world champion athlete and fuels his training with a carb-heavy diet, he told Insider.

McIntyre consumes a lot of McDonald's, peanut butter and jelly sandwiches, Fruit Loops, and very little fruit, vegetables or water to fuel his workouts, he said.

The athlete is 2022's Hyrox champion — a fitness race that requires endurance and strength, and combines running with movements like wall balls, rowing, and farmer carries.

He said eating a high-calorie diet (anywhere from 4,500-7,000 calories a day) helps keep his energy levels up and aids his recovery.

He estimates his diet is 70-80% sugar and simple carbs.

McIntyre trains before eating

McIntyre goes to the gym in the morning three times a week but he doesn't eat beforehand. Instead he consumes coffee with 2-4 tbsp of honey or maple syrup.

He said he prefers to feel light while training, and eat more as the day goes on.

After training, McIntyre said he eats "a landslide of food."

He eats "tons of cereal" such as Fruit Loops, and PB&J sandwiches.

Sometimes he goes to McDonald's for breakfast and orders a cinnamon bun, oatmeal, and coffee with cream and sugar.

As the day goes on, McIntyre eats whole chickens or steaks with "lots of" potatoes or rice.

McIntyre rarely eats vegetables

Vegetables aside from potatoes are noticeably absent from the athlete's diet.

"I don't eat any vegetables," he said, except for when someone else has prepared food for him.

McIntyre doesn't really eat fruit either, except for the occasional plantain or apple, which he said he enjoys.

This isn't because he doesn't value fruit and vegetables, he said.

"It's just because, in reality, there's only so much time in a day and so many times I can take bites of food, and it really comes down to the fact that you need really valuable calories," he said.

McIntyre rarely drinks plain water, but he will drink some glasses over the day with supplements mixed in, such as "greens" powder, which contains a mix of nutrients, he said.

People are advised to drink eight glasses of water a day, but individual requirements vary depending on temperature, body size, activity levels and more.

A balanced diet includes healthy fats for energy

While carbs and sugar can serve as quick energy for workouts, too much of it long-term can be harmful and can throw off the balance of a healthy gut microbiome, sports dietitian Jessica Spendlove told Insider.

She said healthy fats, such as nuts, seeds, avocados, and extra virgin olive oil, are high-calorie and good energy sources but also contain beneficial monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fats.

"High saturated fat foods, processed foods, and refined sugars are correlated with the development of certain chronic diseases later in life," Spendlove said.

One large-scale 2019 study found a 10% increase in ultra-processed foods in the diet was linked to a 10% increase in the rates of cardiovascular, coronary heart, and cerebrovascular diseases.

Genetics and overall lifestyle can't be underestimated when it comes to health and fitness, she said, as we're all different.

"Key considerations would be fueling before training, optimizing recovery, looking at plant diversity for a good gut microbiome and then choosing healthy fats where possible to get that additional energy intake," she said.