Michigan State decathlete Ryan Talbot has a very specific diet: bring the protein

Ryan Talbot is a Michigan State graduate student who also competes in the decathlon for the men’s track and field team. Talbot, like many other athletes, takes his diet seriously.

However, his approach may raise some eyebrows.

“I only eat meat, eggs and butter,” said Talbot, “for daily eating habits I usually eat six eggs and half a pound of ground beef for breakfast, lunch is three half pound burgers with a little bit of butter… like half a stick of butter , then dinner is steak and six eggs.”

This means that Talbot eats about three pounds of meat and a dozen eggs a day. No veggies, no sides, really nothing else.

“Whenever I get food, I go to local farmers and buy grass-fed beef. I buy it in large quantities; sometimes I’ll buy a whole cow that’s like 600 pounds of meat,” Talbot said.

Talbot’s journey into the carnivore diet began two years ago during his junior year when he felt he wasn’t performing at his best. He decided that changing his diet would help him achieve a higher level of success.

“As an athlete, I always want to do what I can to be the best athlete that I can be, and so nurturing I’ve been exploring and learning about all kinds of things,” said Talbot.

That video started him on the path of a protein only diet. Talbot continued to research, watching hundreds of hours of podcasts and documentary videos. His research got to the point where he knew so much that he decided to give it a shot.

“I’m so afraid that you need carbohydrates to perform as an athlete and that was the biggest thing for me, I thought I had to eat carbs all the time,” Talbot said.

Carbohydrates are the body’s main source of energy, so the mindset of an athlete is that carbs are essential to perform well. Protein is also a source of energy, but most athletes consume protein for that purpose, mainly to repair and build cells.

“I decided to go carnivore and then I started to feel good. My hamstring injuries were completely gone, except that I strained my hamstring badly, but recovery was much faster than usual…I got better in eight days. I competed the next day and won the Jim Click Shootout decathlon, went to Big Ten, and won that year as well, while not eating carbohydrates. I decided it was partly because of the carnivore diet and I’ve just kept doing it,” said Talbot.

Tess Piper is also a member of the track and field team. She is studying nutritional science and working towards becoming a dietitian. As a junior, she is in her third year studying the effects of food and nutrition on the human body.

“It’s important to understand the facts when changing your diet…Cutting out specific things from your diet or adjusting how you eat can limit inflammation but it won’t cure it,” a Piper said, “Be mindful and mindful of the food you eat though. what you see on the Internet. My concern with a carnivore diet is that people may be missing out on important nutrients like fiber and vitamins C and E. There is a risk of long-term effects as well of course.”

The track and field team doesn’t offer its athletes the typical carnivore diet, so travel looks different for Talbot. Although he admits it makes things a little more challenging, it’s worth it if you feel good.

“When I’m traveling, I’ll bring a cooler backpack and fill it with meat, and butter and I’ll buy eggs when I get there. I bring a hot plate and a pan and cook food in the hotel room,” said Talbot.

Cooking on the road gets a little tricky sometimes.

“There was one time I was cooking pork belly, it’s like bacon, so there was a lot of steam and smoke, and I thought I was going to turn off the alarm and everyone would have to leave the building to evacuate,” Talbot said.

Talbot has a different routine for actual meeting days, however.

“During the competition, I don’t eat any food. I usually get faster and feel a lot better competing fast,” said Talbot.

He eats no snacks, only water and unflavored electrolytes during the day. When he competes in a decathlon, the events are often spread over several days, so it is vital that Talbot has all the nutrients he needs for competition well in advance.

Talbot feels the best he’s ever been and believes he’s getting better every day.

“It’s very unusual against all the nutritional advice I’ve been given. But more and more information is coming out that all this nutritional advice that was promoted to get big corporations to sell their products is false information,” said Talbot.

Although he didn’t dive further into his conspiracy theories regarding his theory about food products, one can’t help but think that he might be on to something with his carnivore diet, at least for him. He summed up his desire to stay on this path.

“You don’t realize how bad you feel until you feel good, and I feel so good it’s not worth going back,” Talbot said.