Professional athletes dont get to the top by accident. It takes superhuman levels of time, dedication, and focusand that includes paying attention to what they put in their bellies. In this series, GQ takes a look at what men whose bodies pay their bills eat on a daily basis to perform at their best. Today we're looking at the daily diet of Tom Ford model Conrad Bromfield.
Four years ago Conrad Bromfield started his modeling career with a Tom Ford campaign. Since then, the 25-year-old male model has been working pretty much nonstop, which is tougher than it sounds. While constant travel isn't exactly conducive to a healthy routine, in Bromfield's line of work you have to be ready to jump on a plane at a moment's notice, and your abs have to be ready, too.
Somehow that's not a problem for hima Brooklyn native whose energy reserves overflow to a ridiculous degree. (Seriously, don't ever give him coffee.) He has the buoyant enthusiasm you'd expect from a man who makes his living off of his superior physique and bone structure. Skepticism aside, though, Conrad Bromfield comes across as the real thing: a working model who takes the subway, prefers his mother's cooking to anything else, and makes all of New York City his gym. We could all learn a thing or two.
GQ: Do all male models eat the same thing? Do you abide by the steamed vegetables and grilled chicken diet?
Conrad Bromfield: No, I'm not the clich or the typical model. My thing is I eat once a day. I eat something small in the morning like an apple or a banana just to give me energy to run around to castings and do a bunch of things. When I'm finished in the evening, I eat a big meal. After that I don't eat anything.
How many castings do you go to in a day?
When I first started it was a lot, but nowadays it's one or two a day. I always take the subway or walk. And I never take the escalator. I always run up the stairs. Take the hardest way... because that's sometimes my only exercise for the day. When you're too busy you just gotta make everything around you your gym.
Do you cook for yourself at home?
I live with my mother. She's always around trying to cook something for me. We're a Caribbean family, so she makes the curried chicken and the oxtail and sometimes I have to tell her Ma, you can't put all that on the plate. But it works.
What is your favorite thing that she makes?
It would have to be Aki and salt fish. Which is a Jamaican dish. Aki is... as a country we don't know if it's a fruit or if it's a vegetable. But it grows on a tree, and it's amazing when steamed and put with salt fish.
Do you indulge in a cheat day?
Yesterday was my cheat day. I woke up pretty late. I flew in from L.A. at five in the morning. Then I went to a couple of castings, didn't get to eat anything. From there I got back home. I slept until about 6 P.M., then I got up and I ate rice, aki, and salt fish (thank you, Mama), and coconut cake all at once. Coconut cake is the greatest. It's pound cake covered with a glazed coconut frosting.
Do you eat the backstage food at fashion shows?
Yeah that's the best stuff. Because during fashion week a lot of the models have been running around so we need that re-up in a sense. In the morning, definitely, you'll always find male models eating. Trust me we eat. If there's 50 looks you're going to find 49 male models eating backstage.
What do you stay away from?
Pork. I realize when I eat pork or red meat I gain a lot more weight. So with pork I know it's harder to digest for me. The pizza's amazing in Italy, so I have to indulge. But greasy foods can sometimes fatten my head. And coffee... If you ever see me drinking coffee, run. Other than that I eat anything.
What's the one thing you can't resist?
Shake 'n Bake chicken. If you want to know my kryptonite, I'm gonna give it to you. It's Shake n Bake chicken. That's something... I'm sitting in front of my television, Looney Tunes are on, Bugs (my hero), mom comes out with the plate. Shake n' Bake chicken and corn on the cob actually. Yeeeeees.
Say you're prepping for an underwear or bathing suit shoot?
I still keep the same diet definitely. If anything, it's the workout that I'll ramp up. Do more reps on certain things. Running six miles on the treadmill, then sit ups. The best thing for me is calisthenics, which is using your body's weight. Instead of looking for a gym when I'm traveling. I use the floor, I use my backpack or my luggage, for weights... or I just have my stretch bands. I can use them for my biceps or my back. They're the best. Because when you use weights your body relies on outside sources, so you can easily lose that tone. But using your own body's weight it's coming form the inside. So it stays longer, it works better. And to get nice obliques and that V-line, when you're standing up just do a little twist. A side plank, kinda.
"If you want to know my kryptonite, I'm gonna give it to you. It's Shake n Bake chicken."
Do your non-model friends ask for advice on staying lean and fit?
YES, everyone does. I tell them sip some [apple cider] vinegar. That is the elixir. It cleans you, it kills bacteria, if you have break outs it fixes those.
So your friends say, I wanna lose weight, I wanna get abs, and you tell them drink vinegar and twist a little bit?
Uh-huh. Vinegar with grapefruit in the morning if you want to lose weight.
Models go to a lot of parties, do you drink when you're out?
I try not to. But if I'm around it, I'll probably have a champagne. But that's a thing I learned early to stay away from: alcohol, smoking, and drugs. If you wanna have the fountain of youth look, vinegar is not the only thing you need.
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Link:
The Real-Life Diet of Conrad Bromfield, the Male Model Who Eats One Meal a Day - GQ Magazine
