MLB Pitcher Matt Boyd and Meal Planning

Recently, I was contacted by Matt Boyd, a starting pitcher with Major League Baseball’s (MLB) Detroit Tigers. Matt read Brain Maker, and he is using the guidelines there to improve his athletic performance.

Matt posed a very interesting question to me, regarding optimal nutrition planning for his lifestyle. This is of particular concern given that, in-season, Matt will be playing many games late in the evening, making a traditional meal plan difficult to schedule. I thought you all might be able to benefit from my answer, so see his full question, and my response, below.

Matt’s inquiry:

Over the past season, I read Dr. Perlmutter books in effort to help my overall health, as well as boost my performance on the field. Using strategies from Brain Maker I changed my diet this offseason when training to prepare for the upcoming season.

The results, feeling fresh and healthy every single day and a new focus and capacity to learn and feel alert. A main concept I put forth was intermittent fasting, between 7:30 pm and noon. I would eat my first meal after my 9 am morning workout.

These strategies worked perfectly in an offseason training regimen setting where all my work was done between 9 am and 1 pm. The problem lies in season, where I play my games at 7 pm. I am not sure how to incorporate my new diet into my daily baseball schedule that is so lopsided toward evening competition. Do you have any ideas or suggestions that I could implement?

My response:

Hi Matt. Thanks for sharing your story. There’s no doubt that people have various unique life requirements that prove challenging in terms of following our guidelines.  That said, we can almost always create a healthy workaround.

In your circumstance, I would consider having a protein-based, small meal before your evening game with a fiber-dense meal with added fat (like olive or coconut oil) as soon as you can, after the evening game. You will then likely be able to engage in your morning workout, and break your fast at noontime, or whenever your morning routine is finished. Keep in mind that you should plan on awakening later in the morning following evening games, if your schedule permits.

Please let us know how this works out for you, and best of luck.