UFC Champion Alex Volkanovski: From Starvation to Science in Nutrition

At 37 years old, UFC middleweight champion Alex Volkanovski has cracked the code that eluded him for years. Gone are the days of surviving on 200-calorie vinegar-flavored chicken broth soups while grinding through brutal two-a-day training sessions. In a revealing behind-the-scenes look at his fight camp, Volkanovski opened up about how his revolutionary approach to nutrition has transformed his performance and extended his championship reign, suggesting that what he discovered might change everything fighters think they know about cutting weight.

From Starvation to Science: Volkanovski’s Nutrition Evolution

Volkanovski’s early approach to weight cutting was nothing short of barbaric. Like countless fighters before him, he believed that suffering was a necessary part of the process.

“I used to starve ourselves just to fill me up. If I used to make soups, I would like get chicken breast. I’ll get a heap of water. I didn’t want too much sodium, so I’d put vinegar in it for flavor. And I’ll just have literally there’s probably 200 calories in it, I reckon,” he shared.

This primitive strategy couldn’t sustain an elite athlete pushing physiological limits. Everything changed when performance dietician Jordi Sullivan entered his camp in 2019, bringing expertise from working with top UFC fighters, such as Israel Adesanya and Leon Edwards, as well as other elite athletes across various sports.

The Delicate Balancing Act: Making Weight While Maximizing Performance

Sullivan’s approach revolutionizes traditional fight camp nutrition by addressing two competing demands simultaneously.

“When Alex is dieting, there are two main goals. You have to make weight first and foremost, but you also have to be able to do all of the training that Joe wants him to do. So my job is finding that little balancing act because to make weight, you’ve got to be in a calorie deficit, but to train, you’ve got to be consuming adequate calories,” Sullivan explained.

This paradox often stumps fighters. Cut calories too aggressively, and training quality plummets. Eat too much, and weight targets slip away.

Body Composition Analysis: The Foundation

Sullivan begins every camp with comprehensive body composition assessments. These scans reveal lean mass versus fat mass, providing critical baseline data.

The goal isn’t just losing weight—it’s losing the right kind of weight at the optimal rate. Mid-camp follow-up scans ensure Volkanovski sheds body fat while preserving muscle tissue essential for striking power and grappling strength.

Precision Nutrition: Where Science Meets the Kitchen

Volkanovski partners with Athletes Nutrition, a Sydney-based meal prep company owned by Paul, ensuring that meals are as delicious as they are precise. The collaboration produces fight camp meals that seem almost too good to be true.

As calories become increasingly restricted late in camp, maintaining meal quality becomes challenging. Athletes Nutrition tackles this through innovative cooking techniques:

• Flame grilling and char grilling maximize flavor without adding calories.
• Custom spice blends create taste complexity while keeping sodium controlled.
• House-made sauces deliver satisfaction without derailing macros.
• Gram-precise measurements eliminate guesswork from every meal.

Paul emphasized the exacting standards required for champion-level athletes:

“We have to be very precise with the measurements and down to the gram. So there’s no yesing, no ifs or buts when it comes to measuring carbohydrates, fats, proteins, etc. Everything is weighed and packed according to the information that we get sent.”

The Performance Monitoring System

Chris Jaffrey, exercise physiologist and strength coach, has worked with Volkanovski since 2018. He connects training intensity with nutritional strategy through constant communication with Sullivan, utilizing advanced technology to monitor performance.

Using force deck technology, Jaffrey conducts regular jump testing and weighted jump exercises. These assessments reveal fatigue levels that might not be obvious from training alone. When testing indicates elevated fatigue, Sullivan adjusts fueling strategies immediately.

“This real-time responsiveness prevents cumulative fatigue from sabotaging camp progress,” Jaffrey noted.

Strategic Periodization Across Fight Camp

Modern Volkanovski camps span 12-16 weeks, dramatically longer than his earlier 6-8 week preparations. This extended timeline allows for more gradual weight reduction while building championship conditioning. Jaffrey structures strength work to complement nutritional phases.

Maximum strength exercises dominate early camp when calories support intense loading. As weight drops and fight night approaches, training shifts toward explosive power movements that don’t overtax a depleted system.

Hydration Before Caffeination: The Morning Protocol

Volkanovski’s day begins with deliberate hydration before touching coffee. Sullivan’s “hydrate before you caffeinate” philosophy recognizes that dehydrated athletes compound cortisol spikes from caffeine. His morning routine consists of water, coffee, protein shake, and training-specific drinks, with small snacks strategically timed around workouts to maintain stable energy without interfering with weight targets.

Recovery Strategies: Heat Over Ice

Contrary to popular fighter recovery protocols, Volkanovski favors hot baths with Epsom salts over ice baths. This preference serves dual purposes during camp.

“I don’t do the ice baths. I like my hot baths. So, I might do a bit of that. I like to do the heat acclimation because I got to do the weight cut. So I like to do that in camp. Jordy likes us doing that as well. Makes the weight cut that little bit easier. Get you used to sweating.”

Heat acclimation primes the sweat response, making final water cutting less physiologically stressful. Volkanovski believes hot immersion aids muscle recovery more effectively than cold therapy for his individual response.

Pushing Beyond Human Limits

Epic Bane, Volkanovski’s physiotherapist since 2017, has witnessed his evolution across multiple championship defenses. His observations about Volkanovski’s work capacity border on disbelief.

“He can push to a physiological level that is not human that I’ve seen in any other sport.”

Eight-round sparring sessions followed by 25-minute conditioning circuits push boundaries most athletes never approach. This superhuman output becomes possible only when nutrition provides adequate fuel. Bane noted camps have lengthened considerably—Miami preparation exceeded 16 weeks—demanding sophisticated nutritional support that primitive approaches cannot provide.

The Championship Mindset: Team Over Ego

Volkanovski’s transparent acknowledgment of his team’s importance reflects a championship maturity. Rather than clinging to outdated methods out of pride, he embraced scientific advancement.

“Put it this way. Me being 37 years old, if I didn’t have the team I have around me right now, I wouldn’t be able to do this. I can’t be eating soup and then doing the training that I’m doing at 37. You know, I’ll definitely feel it.”

This humble recognition separates champions who extend careers from those who flame out early. Volkanovski understands that elite performance requires elite support systems.

Key Takeaways for Athletes at Any Level

While most athletes lack access to championship-level support teams, Volkanovski’s approach offers universal principles:

• Prioritize body composition over scale weight when making weight for competition.
• Balance caloric restriction with training demands rather than choosing extremes.
• Invest in meal quality even during calorie deficits.
• Monitor performance metrics to catch overtraining before it derails progress.
• Individualize recovery strategies based on personal response rather than trends.
• Build longer preparation phases when possible to reduce physiological stress.

Volkanovski’s transformation from soup-sipping suffering to scientifically optimized nutrition showcases that smarter always beats harder. His championship longevity at 37 validates this evidence-based approach over traditional fighter mentality that equates misery with toughness.

For athletes in weight-class sports, the lesson is clear: precision nutrition isn’t a luxury—it’s a necessity for sustained excellence.