While researching for my recent story The Eating Habits of the Best Athletes in the World, I was surprised to learn that LeBron James and Sidney Crosby eat the exact same thing just before they compete.
I was intrigued by the fact that two of the greatest athletes in the world, from two different sports, fueled up in the same manner. And I wondered if the habit extended even broader among professional athletes.
LeBron and Crosby both eat a peanut butter and jelly sandwich before games, and it turns out many other top pro athletes do as well.
I hadn’t realized that the peanut butter and jelly sandwich is the NBA’s secret addiction.
The PB&J was credited as the secret weapon of the 2007–08 Boston Celtics championship season, and then it quickly spread across the rest of the league. Now nearly every NBA team makes PB&J sandwiches readily available to their players.
And it doesn’t stop with the NBA.
MLB legend Derek Jeter ate a peanut butter and jelly sandwich an hour before every game, NFL star Rob Gronkowski downs a PB&J (with a glass of chocolate milk) before every football game, and even golfer Dustin Johnson gets his energy for a round of golf from the same sandwich (although he opts for almond butter with his jelly).
