HOUSTON – Eating right and working out, then more eating right and working out, followed by more and more and more of the same.
That has to be the way that Houston Texans superstar J.J. Watt is able to maintain his level of play as one of the league's most dominant players.
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Watt used to think, until his body started telling him otherwise. His body was pleading with him to get fat, so he had to eat more fat.
According to a story on ESPN.com, during the offseason, Watt's diet kept him as lean as he desired, but it did not include enough fats and oils, which he needed to provide the right fuel for his body to keep up with his rigorous workout schedule.
Plus, he needed to ramp up his calorie intake to roughly between 6,000 and 9,000 calories per day. Consuming numerous chicken breasts every day was already part of his daily diet, so his trainer suggested wrapping those in bacon.
While Watt declined to reveal his exact diet, in order to reach that desired caloric intake, one might need 20 chicken breasts and 50 slices of bacon.
What he really needed to achieve the desired results was food that he liked, and his cheat days needed to return to his diet.
He needed to have days that had him sitting down for a brunch that included French toast, eggs and potatoes, foods that he liked to eat.
At other meals, Watt needed to hunker down for a new favorite for him and seemingly everyone in Texas: great barbecue.
Watt has been known to eat at one of Food Network's top five barbecue joints in America: Pearland's Killen's Barbecue. According to an interview with ESPN, when Watt eats lean, owner and chef Ronnie Killen sends him smoked turkey and lean cuts of brisket.