Vladimir Guerrero Jr.’s Trainer and Grandmother Helped With Weight Loss

Away from the gym, Guerrero became more disciplined — and the people around him helped. He increased his water intake. He stopped snacking after dinner. No more alcohol, fried food or sugar. He slashed his portion sizes, something Alvino said she had to get used to. She said a longtime family friend who also cooks has also kept an eye on the portions.

Alvino said she made Guerrero a cucumber-green apple-celery juice before the morning workouts and a papaya-oatmeal-cinnamon shake in the evenings. Lunch was the biggest meal of the day. Although Guerrero never ate a lot of rice, Alvino said, she started using a smaller spoon to serve him. He still got a normal amount of her stewed beans, his favorite, and meat or fish.

“If he finishes fast, I say, ‘Are you still hungry?’” she said. “He says, ‘No, abuela, I’m OK.’”

Guerrero still takes Alvino’s traditional Dominican meals to the stadium to share. If he is hungry after night games, she makes him a small meal of grilled chicken or fish and vegetables. (And if she makes mangú, a dish of mashed boiled plantains, she said, she uses water and milk but not butter.)

Guerrero said in a recent video call with reporters that his body felt “really different” now and that he was proud of his off-season work. He said he planned to stick with the current regimen for the rest of his career. At the plate, he said, he felt better than at the height of his minor league career (he once hit .381 in a season). And even though he had originally hoped to return to third base, he said he was happy playing wherever the Blue Jays needed him.

Article source: https://www.nytimes.com/2021/04/26/sports/baseball/vladimir-guerrero-jr-weight-loss.html