LAS VEGAS - A reasonably healthy diet is part and parcel to the lifestyles of most fighters. It's something that just comes with the territory. Even Roy Nelson, as much as he jokes about cheeseburgers, likely has to concern himself with it from time to time. But very few fighters fall into the vegetarian class, and even fewer heavyweights go that route. But that's what Frank Mir did for a year before deciding it wasn't working for him. Now on a Paleolithic, or "caveman," diet, Mir said he's bigger than he's been in several fights - but more importantly, he's leaner. "I got on the scale on Monday at 272 - muscle weighs a lot," said Mir, who fights fellow Las Vegan and sometimes training partner Nelson on Saturday at UFC 130. "Going off the vegan diet, I think, helped. There were some good approaches to it that I actually tried to do. ... The dieting thing, I think you have to approach as intelligently as you can. First I started as a vegetarian. And for a whole year, I gave it a shot. And it kept my weight down. But honestly, my body fat wasn't as low - I got a little bit softer. I was getting injured a lot more. I felt a lack of 'umph.' But I was very determined to try and be a healthier person." After researching the Paleo diet, which focuses on hunter-gatherer foods like lean meats and fish, fruits and vegetables, nuts and seeds, and cuts out the processed foods common in the Western diet, Mir decided it might be more in line with his nutritional needs as a fighter. And then his wife, whom Mir joked at Wednesday's press conference was the real boss, chimed in. "My wife looked at (the Paleo diet) and said, 'This is the Mediterranean Diet,' Mir said prior to the press conference. "I'm like, 'Yeah, pretty much.' She said, 'This is how we've been eating for like the last 10 years.' Sometimes you've got to come full circle to appreciate where you are now." After Mir stopped with the vegan principle, he said the weight gain came quickly. "I was four pounds shy of 300 pounds - I completely shot up," the former UFC heavyweight champ told MMA Fighting. "But my strength felt incredible, and my wind actually didn't feel that bad. The only thing I probably lost a little was footwork - ask a 300-pound guy to dance left and right ... so I worked in the pocket a little for those couple months."
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Source: http://mmafighting.com/2011/05/27/off-yearlong-vegan-diet-experiment-frank-mir-feels-stronger-for/
Source: http://www.fighters.com/05/15/bellator-44s-submission-of-the-night-giedrius-karavackas
Source: http://www.fighters.com/05/22/top-5-moments-of-bellator-45
Source: http://www.mmatko.com/countdown-to-ufc-130-rampage-vs-hamill-video/
Source: http://www.mmaforum.com/general-mma-discussion/91392-ucmmas-top-5-kos-2011-so-far-vid.html
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LAS VEGAS -- Watch below as Frank Mir talks about fighting Roy Nelson at UFC 130, the criticism he received after beating Mirko Cro Cop at UFC 119, why he wasn't initially keen on fighting Nelson and where a win over Nelson ranks him in the heavyweight division and more. Check out the video interview after the jump.
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Source: http://mmafighting.com/2011/05/25/frank-mir-thinks-roy-nelson-should-be-fighting-at-light-heavywei/
Source: http://mmafrenzy.com/18608/jon-jones-expects-to-fight-rampage-or-machida-in-october-ufc-return/
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