The Diet of an mma fighter

[Deathgrind]

Ive always wondered why some elite fighters over the years never looked like they were in shape. They obviously were in shape otherwise they would gas after 2 seconds, but you look at fighters like Tim Slyvia or Fedor and they do not even look like they could last a round yet watching there workouts over the years you knew that they were in top shape. So my question is was it just poor diet or genetics or a mixture of both?

[Far from massive]

I hate to say this sort of thing as some will feel its somehow morally wrong but here goes anyway.

I think this has a lot to do with the nationality/ethnicity of the fighters. Lots of people from differing backgrounds have not had the luxury of living in heated areas and eating three meals a day for several generations so even though they may be in excellent cardiovascular condition their bodies will hold a little more fat around the belly than others would.

Also some fighters while working an excellent cardiovascular program will have fairly poor diets as far as appearance goes. But does this mean there diet is not as good? Just like power lifters/NFL players etc. often carry more fat than bodybuilders they still have good endurance, explosive power and tough joint materials.

[paleocaveman]

Far from massive made a good point about genetics; as genetics play a huge role in determining physical appearance. Another area one must look at is the definition of in shape. For example, a person who is relatively muscular and has sub 12% body fat may look fit or in shape, but that person's cardiovascular and respiratory endurance may be nonexistent. One the other hand, an athlete like James Toney (boxer), Roy Nelson or Fedor Emelianenko may not possess a sculpted or athletic build, however, other factors such as stamina, endurance, power, strength, speed, etc., can not be determined based solely on physical appearance. Also, I'm sure these, so called, out of shape fighter spend most of their time on skill acquisition, as opposed to the weight room. If they were to quit mma and spend years lifting to enter into a bodybuilding contest, I'm sure they would look a lot more in shape by your definition.