How much weight would Jack put on when he spends a month's at Bitty's residence in Georgia?
lol as much as he can
for real though. summer is #bulkingseason for winter athletes. say jack wants to be at 215 at the start of the season, which is on the higher end of average for nhl players, but by the end of playoffs he’s at like 200ish, maybe 195. he’s gotta eat between 5500 and 6000 calories a DAY during the summer. he NEEDS to gain around 20lbs. athletes try to eat clean enough, but they for sure aren’t staying away from full-fat foods and dessert. if they eat TOO clean, they won’t get enough calories.
i know we joke about meal plans and “cheat days” and stuff but that’s not really how it works. athletes do have meal plans, but a lot of it is just outlining how much to eat, what kind of food to eat, and when. if he’s working out at 7 am, he’s got to wake up an hour early and have a his pre-workout meal – maybe a smoothie with some protein powder and some oatmeal. then immediately after his workout he’s going to be taking more protein. then a meal at noon – even if it’s just a couple hours after. he can’t just eat when he’s hungry. he’s got to have like 6 big meals a day + snacks, while working out a LOT. it seems like a lot to us normal folk, and it is, but remember he’s been conditioning himself for this since he was 15/16.
bitty too, because we often forget that bitty is one of the best athletes in his division, in a league that’s pretty much the level below nhl, where he played on the same line as jack zimmermann. he won’t be eating as much as jack but still easily in the 4000-calorie range. that means if they’re having bbq chicken for supper, jack’s going to be eating three chicken breasts and bitty two. or a 12 oz steak. four, five eggs for breakfast. tons of carbs and veggies. and dessert, for sure. and they go through protein powder like you wouldn’t BELIEVE.
what i’m saying is, it’s mama b’s and moomaw’s dream come true, and zimbits is a match made in food heaven. of course, it’s hella expensive to eat as a pro athlete so jack definitely slides coach some grocery store gift cards when the moms aren’t watching, and coach won’t say anything, because he knows.
source: my sister, with whom i lived this summer, is a division-1 CIS athlete (canadian equiv of NCAA) in one of the best soccer teams in the country AND a kinesiology student. and her boyfriend is one of the best weight-lifters of his weight-class in the province and also a kin student. she’s 5″ and weighs 125 pounds and while i’m slightly taller and weigh more than twice that, could not eat what she puts away. seriously. she eats all the time. so much. it’s ridiculous.
of course, post-retirement is a whole different ball game. can you say dad bod jack? hell. yes.