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This is everything tennis champion Rafa Nadal eats and drinks for breakfast, lunch, and dinner
This is everything tennis champion Rafa Nadal eats and drinks for breakfast, lunch, and dinner
Alan DawsonSep 4, 2018, 17:11 IST
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Rafa Nadal, one of the greatest male tennis players ever, is currently coasting through the 2018 US Open.
The Spaniard won the 2018 French Open in June and if he wins a second calendar major at Flushing Meadows in Queens, New York, then he will have made an almighty claim for male player of the year.
Nadal has already won 17 Grand Slam championships and should he win one more, he will close the gap on all-time leader Roger Federer to just two titles.
But how does the superstar tennis player fuel his body?
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It turns out, his diet is largely focused on one key ingredient.
Here's everything Rafa Nadal likes to have for breakfast, lunch, and dinner.
This is Rafa Nadal, also known as the "King of Clay," as he has dominated tennis on the sport's soft surface and has even won the French Open — the clay major — an extraordinary 11 times.
Nadal's shopping basket will always, without fail, include fish. He was even asked for his ideal in-competition meal during a cooking demonstration with chef Marcus Samuelsson in 2016, and, without skipping a beat, said: "Always seafood."
Being Spanish, Nadal naturally pines for paella. And, apparently, it's his mother who cooks it best. But paella does come with a warning. "Only sometimes, not every day. You eat paella every day, you cannot play tennis," Nadal said.
Other items in Nadal's shopping basket include olives and chocolates. "I love eating olives. They're healthy, but maybe not if you eat as much as me," he once said. "And I like chocolate."
Nadal is no stranger to the kitchen. This photo, posted to his Instagram account, shows him by a frying pan and a steamer. He asked his fans to guess what he was cooking, and most answers suggested fish (of course, what else?) with spinach.
Tennis is a physically-demanding sport often played in tremendous heat, and so it is of the utmost importance to stay hydrated. On court, Nadal quenches his thirst with water and isotonic drinks.
However, while Nadal certainly eats clean, he unwinds every now and then. A Bacardi ambassador in 2013, he has knocked back a cocktail or two from time to time — and what better way to enjoy a drink than when it's accompanied by a New York City skyline?
Here he is drinking more of the good stuff, this time in Miami Beach in Florida. Cheers!
