Food Secrets that Fueled Novak Djokovic’s Success

8 Food Secrets that Fueled Novak Djokovic’s Success

What does it take to become the number one tennis player in the world?

A lot of practice. Nerves of steel. And, if you’re Novak Djokovic, a strict gluten-free diet that he says has played a major role in helping him attain the number one ranking. The newly-crowned U.S. Open men’s singles winner and reigning Wimbledon champion reveals what he eats during a tournament, in an exclusive Eat This, Not That! adaptation from his book Serve to Win. Here’s the food that fuels his quest to win his 10th Grand Slam title.

Grand Slam Secret #1

Start Drinking in the Morning

Most of us have morning rituals, but mine is probably stricter than most.

The first thing I do out of bed is to drink a tall glass of room-temperature water. I’ve just gone eight hours without drinking anything, and my body needs hydration to start functioning at its peak. Water is a critical part of the body’s repair process. But I avoid ice water, for a reason. When you drink ice water, the body needs to send additional blood to the digestive system in order to heat the water to 98.6 degrees. There’s some benefit to this process—heating the cold water burns a few additional calories. But it also slows digestion and diverts blood away from where I want it—in my muscles.

Eat This, Not That! tip: Also drink a cup of tea. Barberry, rooibos, pu-erh and white tea are proven fat-blasters, and we’ve included them in our best-selling diet plan (on which test panelists lost an amazing 10 pounds in one week): The 7-Day Flat-Belly Tea Diet and Cleanse!

Grand Slam Secret #2

Eat Some Honey

The second thing I do might really surprise you: I eat two spoonfuls of honey. Every day. I try to get manuka honey, which comes from New Zealand. It is a dark honey made by bees that feed on the manuka tree (or tea tree), and has been shown to have even greater antibacterial properties than regular honey.

I know what you’re thinking: Honey is sugar. Well, yes, it is. But your body needs sugar. In particular, it needs fructose, the sugar found in fruits, some vegetables, and especially honey. What it doesn’t need is processed sucrose, the stuff in chocolate, soda, or most energy drinks that gives you an instant sugar shot in the body, where you feel like “Wow!”

I don’t like “wow.” “Wow” is no good. If you have “wow” now, that means in thirty minutes you’re going to have “woe.”

Grand Slam Secret #3

Eat a “Power Bowl” for Breakfast

After a little stretching or some light calisthenics, I’m ready for breakfast. Most days I have what I call the Power Bowl, a normal-sized bowl I fill with a mixture of:

Gluten-free muesli or oatmeal

A handful of mixed nuts—almonds, walnuts, peanuts

Some sunflower or pumpkin seeds

Fruits on the side, or sliced up in the bowl, like banana and all kinds of berries

A small scoop of coconut oil (I like it for the electrolytes and minerals)

Rice milk, almond milk or coconut water

Eat This, Not That! tip: Whether you play tennis, do cardio, practice yoga—or just aren’t a “breakfast person”—click here to discover The #1 Best Breakfast for Maximum Weight Loss!

Grand Slam Secret #4

Have Breakfast #2 on Standby

One bowl of these ingredients is generally enough for me. If I think that I will need something more—I rarely do—then I wait about twenty minutes and have a little gluten-free toasted bread, tuna fish, and some avocado. I love avocado; it’s one of my favorites.

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