Feel the best ever
I Hit 41 a few months ago, and Honestly, I feel the best i ever have 🙋🏻♂️
It wasn’t down to supplements, hacks, or some shiny new program.
It was REAL food.
FOOD that actually FUELS
Whole foods provide powerful combination of nutrients
Supplements are everywhere, especially in performance nutrition and increasingly in everyday life. They’ve become so normalized that many people now reach for pills, powders, and capsules before considering what’s on their plate, we’re slowly becoming dependent on them and, in the process, forgetting how real food actually works. Wholefoods provide not just isolated nutrients, but powerful combinations of vitamins, minerals, fiber, enzymes, and phytonutrients that work together in ways supplements can’t replicate.
Be a performance chef
Unless you’re facing a clinical deficiency, over 95% of what’s sold can be replaced with a proper food strategy.
As a performance chef, I don’t build results with powders or pills. I build them with wholefoods that fuel, repair, and work.
Here are 5 of the most common performance supplements and how real food stacks up next to them.
Whey Protein 💪🏻
Why it’s used: Muscle repair, growth, convenience.
Wholefood instead
• 2 eggs + 100g chicken breast = 40g complete protein
• 200g Greek yogurt = 20g protein
Why? You can hit your post-workout target (20–30g) with real food and get added nutrients like B12, zinc, and healthy fats too.
Creatine 📈
Why it’s used: Power, strength, repeated high-intensity effort
Wholefood instead
• 100g beef = ~0.5g
• 100g salmon = ~0.9g
Why? A full food approach contributes, but supplementing 3–5g daily may benefit explosive athletes, still, food first.
Omega-3 (Fish Oil) 🐟
Why it’s used: Inflammation, brain health, recovery
Wholefood instead
• 100g mackerel = 4,500mg EPA/DHA
• 100g sardines = 2,200mg
Why? 2–3 servings of oily fish/week deliver what most fish oil capsules aim to replicate, with bonus protein and micronutrients.
Pre-Workout 🔋
Why it’s used: Energy, focus, pump
Wholefood instead
• 1–2 shots espresso (100–150mg caffeine)
• 200ml beetroot juice (boosts nitric oxide naturally)
Why? A simple black coffee and wholefood carb source gives you clean, crash, free pre-workout energy.
Electrolytes ⚡️
Why it’s used: Hydration, muscle function, cramp prevention
Wholefood instead
• Banana (422mg potassium)
• Coconut water + pinch of salt
• Salted almonds, sweet potato
Why? Your body absorbs these minerals better from food, especially when paired with hydration and balanced meals.
Why I Choose Food First 🙋🏻♂️
• Better absorption, Wholefoods come with enzymes, fiber, and co-factors that boost nutrient delivery
• Complete nutrition, Real meals do more than one job, theyre not isolated, they repair, energise, and protect
• Gut + immune support, Powders don’t feed your microbiome, food does
• Sustainability, Long-term habits come from eating real food, not relying on tubs
Supplements might support a few corners, but wholefoods build the foundation!
Chef James THE PERFORMANCE CHEF | Founder of Project Performance | Leading International Private Performance Chef to Elite Athletes | Michelin trained | Author | Performance Testing
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