Professional athletes don't get to the top by accident. It takes superhuman levels of time, dedication, and focus—and that includes paying attention to what they put in their bellies. In this series, GQ takes a look at what pro athletes in different sports eat on a daily basis to perform at their best. Here's a look at the daily diet of Isaac Caldiero, the first American Ninja Warrior champion.

The allure of American Ninja Warrior is hard to explain. Maybe it speaks to the audience’s appetite for the over-the-top and the melodramatic. Maybe it’s the desire to see real action stunts in the Michael Bay-era of CGI. Or maybe it’s a part of America’s long tradition of ironically obsessing over Japanese competition shows, then unironically remaking them stateside a decade later.

Arguably, though, it’s the sheer physical difficulty of American Ninja Warrior that couch potatoes love, the way contestants ranging from professional acrobats to waiters to pest control workers run, climb, swing and jump through a padded Mousetrap-maze of death, except unlike Dancing with the Stars or Top Chef, no winner is guaranteed.

Well, until now. Racing up the 75-foot rope to our hearts last week came Isaac Caldiero, the 33-year-old rock climber who trained on a homemade, backyard obstacle course. He was actually the second person to scale Mt. Midoriyama, but he did it mere seconds faster than Geoff Bitten, who summited the mountain himself right before Caldieron. That superior time earned Caldieron the title and a $1 million prize.

“The skills and techniques and strengths I’ve built from rock climbing are in a direct correlation with every aspect of American Ninja Warrior," he tells me. “That’s what initially drew me in. I thought, ‘I know I can do well, I’m not sure how well, but whatever I can do to be a part of it.’”

We start the day with lukewarm water with fresh-squeezed lemon juice. It helps wake up the body and digestive system.

Outside of ninja training, Caldiero’s diet is pretty low key. He spent so much time traveling and staying with friends while climbing, that he learned to accept and eat anything that his hosts offered him. Being a good guest means letting your host be a good host.

“For so many years I’ve lived very frugally and simply. I can eat the same thing over and over again for months,” he says. “On one of the first climbing trips I went on, I was 17 years old and I got in the front seat of my car and went into the mountains by myself. Every day I was eating cereal with water, tuna fish on crackers for lunch, and ramen noodles and potatoes for dinner, for five months straight. I was living the dream: I was able to live on $300 and I was climbing every single day.”

But when it came time to transform himself into a ninja, he needed something more disciplined. He and his girlfriend devised a diet plan that prioritized protein and concentrated on a large morning meal that would keep him fueled throughout the day.

“We start the day with lukewarm water with fresh-squeezed lemon juice. It helps wake up the body and digestive system. A lot of people wake up and eat food, or pound some coffee, and it’s very harsh on the body to wake up like that. Then for breakfast I like to eat something that will last me throughout the day. I don’t like to eat a lot while I’m being physical, so if I can eat something that will last a long while, that’ll work best for me. I cook up oat bran with almond milk, molasses, cinnamon, blueberries and a tablespoon of chia seeds to thicken it. All the good morning nutrients you need and I could keep working without lunch.”

Over the rest of the day, that’s followed by a light smoothie, maybe nuts, and finally dinner built around some meat. While Caldiero isn’t a vegetarian per se, his normal, non-ninja diet is pretty sparing with animal flesh (despite the occasional bacon and bleu cheese bison burger). But to be a ninja, he need that extra power.

Caldiero’s ninja diet emphasizes tuning into his gut. No exercising shortly after a meal, no heavy snacking during workouts—just laser-like focus on what keeps your body feeling energized. Or as he puts it: “You don’t want to put regular unleaded fuel in your Ferrari.”

Pre-breakfastGlass of lukewarm water with fresh lemon juice

BreakfastGluten free oat bran with almond milk, molasses, cinnamon, blueberries and chia seeds

MiddaySmall smoothie with plant protein, strawberries, and banana

SnackWalnuts

DinnerSalmon with quinoaKale and spinach salad with feta and lemon-olive oil dressing

Luke Darby is a contributor to GQ, covering news, entertainment, and the environment. A Louisiana native, he now resides in Cleveland, and his writing has also appeared in Outside, the Dallas Observer, and Marie Claire.Related Stories for GQReal Life Diet