The NFL star opens up about the many misconceptions related to his strict diet plan.
Even Tom Brady has his cheat days!
Clad in a sleeveless gray hoodie and flaunting his impeccable biceps, the NFL star covers the September issue of Men's Health. Inside the mag, he reveals the secrets to his health and fitness regime, along with his goals for the upcoming football season.
Brady has long been notorious for having strict dietary demands -- no white sugar, white flour, gluten or MSG, according to his personal chef, Allan Campbell -- but while speaking with the outlet, he admits there's a lot of misconceptions about what he puts into his body.
"I have a friend who freaks out if it's not the most organic this or that, and I'm like, 'That stress is going to harm you way more than eating that chip is,'" Brady explains. "If I'm craving bacon, I have a piece. Same with pizza."
"You should never restrict what you really want," he adds. "We're humans, here for one life. What's changed as I've gotten older is now if I want pizza, I want the best pizza. I don't eat a slice that tastes like s**t, and then wonder, 'Why am I eating s**t pizza?'"
With six Super Bowl rings and a football career that's still thriving at age 42, the New England Patriots quarterback often gets asked how to "be like Tom Brady." He says the secret all comes down to self-discipline -- only you can decide for yourself to make better choices to be healthy and fit.
"No one has to be Tom Brady. I just get to be Tom Brady. You get to be you," he says. "Everyone has a choice. But if you want to be good at sports, you have to work hard at it. If you want to be healthy, you have to work at it. But you can't say, 'I want to be healthy,' then eat s**tty food and do crappy workouts."
Brady's advice on health and fitness is one of the many lessons he's passing on to his own children, Benjamin, 9, Vivian, 6 (both whom he shares with wife Gisele Bündchen), and Jack, his 11-year-old son with ex Bridget Moynahan. He says he's also teaching his kids the importance of how to overcome defeat, an emotional discussion they had when the Patriots lost to the Philadelphia Eagles in Super Bowl LII.
"I had to put my emotions aside so I could deal with their emotions," he recalls. "I said, 'Guys, look: Daddy doesn't always win. That isn't the way life is. You really try hard -- that's the most important thing. If you gave it your best, you live with the outcome.'"
"Jack is just like me -- he holds a lot in. Benny lets it all out. Vivi, she doesn't care," he continues. "They’re going to be their own selves, not who you want them to be. Jack loves sports. He wants to try hard, and he never wants to disappoint his dad. That was me. I'd wake up early on the weekends to do stuff with my dad. That's why I didn't party a lot. If Dad wanted to golf, I wanted to be there with him. And if I ever missed those things, it would crush me."
Read more from Brady's Men's Health feature here.
Last March, Bündchen got candid on life at home with Brady in an interview for WSJ Magazine's April Style & Design issue. The Brazilian model, who also follows her husband's strict diet plan, admitted that their family indulges in Dunkin' Donuts from time to time.
"Do you know those things called Munchkins?" she asked, referring to the bakery chain's popular bite-sized donuts. "Oh, my God. I cannot have one. I have to have, like, 10. They’re so tiny…. It's a guilty pleasure."
Bündchen confessed it was actually Brady's idea to start bringing boxes of Munchkins to Benjamin's early morning hockey practices. "It’s become a thing that we bring [them]," she added
Hear more on the family in the video below.
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