At 6 feet 8 inches tall and 380 pounds, for the past few seasons New England Patriots’ offensive tackle Trent Brown has held the honor of being the NFL’s biggest player. But thanks to an offseason that prioritized shedding weight, improving mobility, and addressing issues that had been contributing to calf injuries he suffered the last few seasons, the lineman as likely lost that distinction—and hopes to make turning the corner on him virtually impossible.
After battling a calf injury early last season, Brown set career-best blocking numbers. Then he entered the offseason by getting to work on rebuilding his mechanics while also making the decision to go pescatarian. Due to those changes, Brown says he's entering this season in the best shape in his career.
GQ sat down with the Brown to discuss the offseason that led to him crushing his contractual and personal weight goals, drinking way too much water, Bill Belichick's practices, and why going pescatarian wasn’t as difficult as you might guess for the former bearer of the NFL’s heaviest title.
For Real-Life Diet, GQ talks to athletes, celebrities, and other high performers about their diet, exercise routines, and pursuit of wellness. Keep in mind that what works for them might not necessarily be healthy for you.
GQ: How has the offseason been?
Trent Brown: I’m ready to go. I crushed all my contractually binding weight goals and I’m working to get even lower. As far as I’m feeling physically, emotionally, mentally, and spiritually—I’m ready for the season. I’m ready to go all the way, be on the field for 17 games and hopefully 20.
What’s your usual offseason programming look like?
What I’ve learned about myself is I’m not a guy that can take time off. I have to stay on some type of schedule or regimen as far as getting up and doing something every day. So for the first two to three weeks, it will probably be all cardio and footwork, then I’ll start adding in run mechanics so I can build myself all the way back up from a fundamental standpoint. I did the first part of my offseason training in Atlanta with Lily Abdelmak, who is my sprint coach. We worked on a lot of run mechanics. She also has Vince Vance there—he’s an O-line coach. For the second half of the offseason, I came out here to Dallas with Duke Manyweather of OL Masterminds. I’m also with my PT, Adam Malek, and I’ve been doing three-a-days: footwork and o-line drills. I finish up with Adam and we do a lot of mobility, stretching and cardio three days out of the week.
How do you feel the focuses you made to address the calf issues you’ve suffered over the last few seasons will benefit you?
The calf has felt great, and the work I did was also about repairing a lot of scar tissue— strengthening over the calluses that had been created and just smoothing everything out. I’m as mobile as I’ve been since I was a kid, probably. I feel really good and that’s definitely a testament to my diet and the regimen I’ve been on during the offseason.
How do you feel your body has responded to some of the things you’ve done this offseason?
I think dropping 20 pounds definitely goes a long way as far as mobility and helping the way my body moves. I’ve always been an explosive guy, but I feel like I’m that much quicker and lighter on my feet now. My cardiovascular health is definitely better with just not carrying the extra 20 pounds around. By the end of camp I hope to be at around 355. That would be great—it will give myself some leeway between my weight goal and their weight goal for me, so I won’t have to be strict as hell on myself throughout the season. I can live a normal life and afford a cheat meal here and there and enjoy myself — especially when family visits.
Instagram contentThis content can also be viewed on the site it originates from.
Is there pressure when it comes to those weight incentives?
It’s definitely some pressure because everyone has cravings—a sweet tooth or a vice when it comes to food. I think it makes it easier when you’ve given yourself the opportunity to be able to afford those cheat snacks or meals here and there because you don’t have to worry about wondering: Do I really want to eat this? Can I eat this or do I have to step on a scale before I can attempt to eat this? I can eat whatever and feel fine about it because I know I’m going to burn it off.
I was doing a gallon of water a day but I upped that to two gallons and that’s made a huge difference as far as suppressing my appetite. I feel like by doing that the bad stuff you eat that usually sticks to you, it doesn’t stick as long or not at all. Also, having everything within reason. You can have a cheat meal here and there but you can’t let that cheat meal turn into a cheat day and then a cheat week or cheat month.
That’s a lot of damn water.
What I found that made it easier is drinking the gallon jug instead of going from bottle to bottle. When you have that gallon in front of you, you can see the process and it helps you get through it.
Was going pescatarian a hard transition?
Honestly, it wasn’t a super-hard transition because since I’ve been in the league, that’s kind of been what I’ve been doing. I just had to cut some other things out. Instead of having bacon or sausage at breakfast—when I do eat breakfast—it would probably be a piece of salmon or striped bass with my spinach scramble. It was really a pretty smooth transition. That’s probably why I’m tired of eating salmon now. I’ve been eating salmon and stir fry every day for f**king seven years [laughs].
Most Popular
What does a typical day of eating look like now?
I typically wake up, drink a green juice for breakfast. I’ll start on my two gallons of water. I don’t know why this is now, but I’ve been super addicted to watermelon this offseason and I haven’t had a bad one yet. After my workout, I’ll have watermelon and that fills me up because it’s full of water, so I’m probably at two and a half gallons. Lunch will probably be salmon and a nice salad. I’ll have dinner after that. That will be salmon and a spicy stir fry.
When I get back to camp, I know I’ll have to find a way to fine-tune that just to be able to make it through a day of practice. Training-wise, I can get through that, but you have to be able to eat to have some type of fuel to make it through a New England practice.
What’s a Patriots practice like?
The motto is to make practice harder than the game. Belichick is going to push us to the limits every day. As some old folks would say, “You get the butter from the duck.” You’re going to have an extensive warmup, definitely going to have an extensive individual period and it’s non-stop. You’re going through every period of practice and after that, you’ll finish the day with some kind of up-tempo team drill. You’re still going and doing some conditioning after that. That’s just what it is. It’s no days off and no slacking.
What’s a cheat meal look like now?
It would be a honey bun or maybe some fried catfish and fries. It’s nothing too crazy. I always try and stick to the script. The fries are really the cheat part because instead of having tri-colored carrot fries with my usual meal, I’m having potato fries instead.
What’s your game day routine?
I’ll wake up around 6:45 and leave the hotel. I try and be one of the first guys in the locker room so that I can use everything before everyone else gets there and it gets crowded. As soon as I get there, I’ll put my pads on to make sure that’s good to go for the game. I try and get to the weight room, the tubs and sauna to get all of that out of the way before we have our team meeting. After our team meeting, I’ll get my IVs and I’ll go do my prep work as far as getting my body fully ready to go.
More Great Wellness Stories From GQThe Only 6 Exercises You Need to Get a Six-Pack
You Should Be Doing Hamstring Stretches Every Day—Here’s Why (and 7 To Try)
The Many Stealthy Ways Creatine Boosts Your Health
Flexibility Is a Key to Longevity. Here’s How to Improve Yours, According to Experts
How to Actually Build Muscle When You Work Out
Not a subscriber? Join GQ to receive full access to GQ.com.
Related Stories for GQNew England PatriotsNFLFootballFoodGQ Sports