UFC unveils ‘game-changing’ meal prep program available to fighters in 2019

Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) is stepping up its efforts to make weight management a bit easier for its athletes leading up to their respective fights, as the promotion has revealed plans for a meal plan program dubbed “Trifecta Fight Prep.”

According to James Kimball — Vice President Operations for UFC Performance Institute — the meal plan will be available to any fighter who wishes to partake in it, and it will provide meals during fight camp and fight week.

“Trifecta’s new fight prep program is an absolute game-changer for UFC athletes. With the offering of this program, athletes – should they choose to participate – will have access to culinary chefs and sports dietitians who can offer the highest-quality, individualized nutritional support and meal planning for the fighters,” said Kimball (via MMA Junkie).

“Proper nutrition and meal prep are critical elements that help each UFC athlete compete in the octagon at an optimized level, and we’re thrilled with Trifecta’s commitment to evolve the sport of MMA through this innovative program,” he added.

While it won’t be free of charge, it is said will be a lot cheaper than most services out there though costs have yet-to-be revealed.

“When we were building the (UFC Performance Institute), we were identifying needs – kind of a needs assessment of the MMA community as a whole,” said UFC Vice President of Athlete Development Forrest Griffin. “I think the weakest lead was always nutrition. That was where we were the most behind. You’re talking about a weight-class sport when you make weight 30 hours before a competition. You’re talking about a sport that has so many different energy system usages and we really as a sport – as a community overall – weren’t doing well at that.”

Unfortunately, Popeyes is not on the menu.

Indeed, weight-cutting has long been a hot topic in the sports of mixed marital arts (MMA). While exercise, sauna time, and various other techniques to shed the weight last-minute are still being used, food prep is without a doubt one of the biggest elements.

Unless, of course, you’re a heavyweight.

“We are thrilled to partner with UFC to make this program a massive success,” Trifecta co-founder and CEO Greg Connolly stated. “Large sports organizations, from the strength and conditioning coaches on up, have long known how critical nutrition is to performance, and UFC is the first to act on that knowledge. With UFC, we will be providing fully prepared food to the participating fighters with individualized macro and calorie levels designed to optimize their health and weight management. We’re excited to see nutrition in this sport finally rising to the next level.”

And fighters won’t have to worry about this, either.

To start, the program will only be available to athletes competing in cards based in the U.S., with hopes of expanding to international events down the road.