Canelo Alvarez Workout And Diet

Professional Boxer
Born: 1990

Santos Saul ‘Canelo’ Alvarez is from Mexico. The youngest of 8, he grew up on a farm. Alvarez began boxing when he was 13 after seeing his older brother Rigoberto make his professional debut. In 2004, Alvarez won the silver medal at the Junior Mexican Nationals. He won the Championship the following year, and went pro at age 15. He is the youngest person to date to hold the super-welterweight title (age 20 years, 230 days). Alvarez has won multiple world championships in 4 weight classes and is the undisputed champion at super middleweight. As of January 2022, Alvarez is ranked as the world’s best active boxer, pound-for-pound. Alvarez is engaged to Miss Mexico 2003 and sports reporter, Marisol Gonzalez. He has 4 children with different mothers. Alvarez is also a boxing promoter. Canelo Promotions represents 40 Mexican boxers. Alvarez has almost a million followers on social media. He is 5 feet,9 inches tall and weighs 175 lbs.

Known For:

Canelo Alvarez’s Diet

Summary

Diet is important for all serious athletes but it is especially important for boxers where making weight is essential. Alvarez is incredibly disciplined and follows a strict diet for 2 months leading up to a bout. During this time, he will have almost no carbs except from fruit and vegetables. Breakfast is egg whites, ham and oj. Lunch is chicken and vegetables. Dinner is equally self-denying, often just a zero-carb protein shake. He snacks on veggies and fruit and has a serving of bread or rice about once a week. Once the match is over, he lets himself indulge. Top picks include sushi and tacos.

Estimated Macros

  • Low Carb 20% 20%
  • Low Fat 20% 20%
  • High Protein 70% 70%

Diet Details

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Diet Is Key

To make weight, Alvarez must be extremely regimented. He eats very lightly, including egg whites, chicken breast, and lots of veggies to take the edge off his hunger. But, he says being hungry keeps his energy up in the ring.

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Disciplined Diet

For months prior to a fight, Alvarez will eat only 2 real meals a day, and even they’re pretty skimpy. Dinner is just a no-carb protein shake.

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No Carb Diet

Alvarez is particularly strict when it comes to carb consumption. He only eats grains once a week while training, and it’ll be bread or rice, but not both. All the rest of his carbs come from veggies and fruit like jicama, cucumber apples and grapes.

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Unleash the Beast

After a match is another story, and Alvarez lets his cravings guide him. He says sushi is often what he wants right after a match, followed by plenty of tacos the next day.

What to Eat

R

Egg Whites

R

Ham

R

Salmon

R

Chicken

R

Vegetables

R

Fruit

R

No-carb Protein Shakes

R

Bread or Rice Once/Week

R

Sushi (treat)

R

Tacos (treat)

R

Water

What to Avoid

Q

Heavy Meals

Q

Carby Foods

Q

Junk Food

Q

Processed Foods

Q

Added Salt

Q

Added Sugar

Q

Artificial Additives

Q

Chemical Ingredients

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Alvarez on Eating Lightly

‘Feeling full can be a disadvantage. You can have the best training, but just feeling full can make you sluggish and cause you to lose.’

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Alvarez on his Pre-Match Diet

‘I do 2 months of strict dieting.’

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Alvarez on His Post-match Diet

‘After fight night, I go for whatever my body is craving. It’s usually sushi. But after that, I go home to Guadalajara and indulge in a lot of tacos before I have to start getting in shape for another fight.’

Canelo Alvarez’s Workout Routine

Weekly Routine

Natural Athlete

Growing up on a farm, Alvarez learned how to ride horseback, a hobby he continues to this day.

A Family Affair

All 6 of Alvarez’s brothers entered into professional boxing. The baby of the family, Alvarez had no interest in boxing until bullies and teasing about his red hair and freckles caused him to change his mind.

Longterm Relationship

Alvarez went pro so young because his trainer, father and son team Chepo and Eddy Reynoso were unable to find decent opponents for him. The trio run Canelo Promotions together.

Bodyweight Rules

While Alvarez will pump iron, his preferred workout tool is his own bodyweight.

Daily Dose

Alvarez works out 6 days a week, doing all the standard boxing training including speed bag, heavy bag, sparring, jumping rope, and mitt work, as well as weights and bodyweight training.

Cardio King

For endurance, Alvarez does sprints, and he also runs longer distances. He is up at 6 am every day except Sunday to get his miles in. He also skips rope for a high-intensity routine at the gym.

Love the Rings

Alvarez is at home in the boxing ring, and he trains with rings too, gymnastic rings. He does all kind of training with them including push-ups and pull-ups.

Exercise Style

Z

A Sample Canelo Alvarez Routine

Warm-up: jog for 10 min

Mitt training:
4 sets x 45 sec x 3 rounds

Jump rope:
Repeat sequence 3x
Regular: 90 sec
Single-leg: 30 sec/side

Stability ball work
Plank: 30 sec x 3 sets
Push-ups: 10 reps x 3 sets
Lying leg raise: 15 reps x 3 sets
Medicine ball oblique throw: 10 reps/side x 3 sets
Ring push-ups: 10 reps x 3 sets
Wide-grip pull-ups: 5 reps x 5 sets

Band-resisted step-ups: 1 min

Single-leg bench step-over: 30 sec/leg

Band-resisted high knees: 2 sets across gym. Superset with:
Band-resisted sprints: 2 sets across gym

Elevated cross-body climbers: 30 sec. Super-set with:
Elevated Spiderman climbers: 30 sec

Ab series:
Cable-resisted crunches: 12
Cable-resisted hollow body: 12
Cable-resisted v-ups: 12

Rotational punch press: 6-8 reps x 2 sets

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Alvarez On The His Training Routine

‘If someone is going to beat me, it’s not going to be because they trained harder.’

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Alvarez on Weights vs Bodyweight

‘I hadn’t lifted that much previously. A lot of reps but not much weight.’

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Alvarez on Sparring

‘It’s the hardest thing I do and it’s what fascinates me the most.’

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Alvarez on the Importance of Routine

‘Routine is everything to me because boxing is very much driven by routine.’

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Alvarez on Why He Loves his Daily Regimen

‘My routine helps me focus, but more importantly, helps me unwind when I need to.’

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Alvarez on his Approach to Bulking Up

‘I’m lifting more weights, eating more carbs, eating protein.’

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Alvarez on the Sport of Boxing

‘I take on every fight with respect and seriousness. I just love boxing.’

Canelo Alvarez’s Supplements

 

Besides his no-carb protein, Alvarez is keeping quiet on any other supplements he may take. So below are options that can benefit anyone following a similar diet plan.

Protein Powder

No-Carb Protein

Alvarez is extremely disciplined when it comes to diet, including his protein. A lot of protein shakes are full of sugar, but Alvarez only has the no-carb kind.

Get it here

BCAA

BCAAs

Anyone interested in getting serious about boxing can consider BCAAs to boost muscle growth and retention, and to reduce recovery time.

Get it here

Creatine

creatine

Creatine can be beneficial for improving performance.

Get it here

Omega 3 Fish Oil

fish oil

Fish oil can help to combat inflammation.

Get it here

Multivitamin

multivitamin

A multivitamin to cover your nutrition bases, and caffeine-free beetroot for lasting energy.

Get it here

Canelo Alvarez’s Lifestyle

Essential Rest

Alvarez goes old-style when it comes to recovery. He says you can do a lot of fancy things like ice baths and massages, but he is mainly into getting plenty of sleep. 

Family Affair

All 6 of Alvarez’s brothers became professional boxers, including Rigoberto, Ricardo and Ramon.

What’s in a Nickname?

‘Canelo’ means ‘cinnamon’ in Spanish and is a common nickname for red hair. Alvarez says he may have an Irish grandpa in his family history.

Paying It Forward

Alvarez donates to many needy causes, including a children’s hospital in his home town and $1 million in earthquake relief.

Risky Bet

On the advice of his trainer, Alvarez dropped out of school just a few months after turning 15 to go pro. He had 34 pro matches under his belt before age 18.

Incredible Record

Alvarez’s amateur record includes knockouts of 11 out of 13 opponents in 19 months. His pro record is 67 wins including 49 knockouts, 1 loss (Floyd Mayweather Jr.) and 2 draws (Gennady Golovkin& Jorge Juarez).

Substance Controversy

After testing positive for the banned substance clenbuterol and receiving a 6-month ban from boxing, Alvarez submitted a sample of his ‘canelo’ hair, which cleared him of the charge. He says he believed the positive result to be due to consuming contaminated meat.

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Alvarez on Recovery

‘Just rest. There’s a lot you can do recovery-wise — massages, getting into ice baths…and all that. My best advice is a lot of rest. Sleeping is simple, but it’s so important.’

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Alvarez on his Golovkin Rematch

‘I learned a lot from the first fight.’ 

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On the Substance Abuse Claim Against Alvarez

‘Contaminated meat is a problem in Mexico. It happened with the national soccer team and it has happened with several athletes in Mexico. I believe what Canelo wants to do now is keep proving until his career is over…that he is a clean fighter.’

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Alvarez on the Sport of Boxing

‘I respect all judges. Boxing is about appreciation.’

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Alvarez on How to Win in Boxing

‘Boxing with technique and skill doesn’t mean that I ran…It’s not always about going forward.’

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