Philadelphia Eagles tackle Lane Johnson has become one of the premier offensive linemen in football, and arguably the best right tackle in the league, thanks in part to a diet in which he eats 5,500 calories each day in order to maintain a weight of 330 pounds, according to The Athletic.
Johnson sought to put on weight to go from 312 pounds to 330 three years ago, but he had been struggling to consume enough calories to either add weight or maintain his weight. That changed when Johnson employed personal trainer Stan Efferding, a bodybuilder whose clients also include Thor Björnsson, who played "The Mountain" on Game of Thrones, and four-time World's Strongest Man winner Brian Shaw.
Johnson's diet now consists of micronutrient-dense food that has enough protein for his muscles to repair and rebuild, but not enough that Johnson has a hard time digesting and feels bloated. Among the foods that Johnson eats are lean ground meats, simple carbohydrates like rice and orange juice, and "Monster Mash" -- a staple meal consisting of lean meat, white rice, scrambled eggs, bone broth and red peppers.
"Because it's moist you can shovel a ton of it in," Efferding told The Athletic. "I got the idea from sumo wrestlers. … They're just able to eat larger portions and digest it better and then be hungry again sooner because they have to consume an enormous amount of calories."
Overall, Johnson's daily targets are to consume 250 grams of protein (1,000 calories), about 850 grams of carbs (3,400 calories), and to keep fat below 30% of his daily intake (1,100 calories).
The diet has paid off enormously, as Johnson has been a near-immovable force on the Eagles' offensive line. Johnson has not surrendered a single sack since 2020 and was named First-Team All-Pro this season for the second time in his career.
