Tom Scott’s job is to kick ass.

He’s on Team USA for karate, and with that comes a strict diet to ensure that he is always in shape for his next competition. Men’s Health recently interviewed Scott to break down what he likes to eat on a typical day of training, along with his immense love for breakfast cereal.

For Scott, his main focus is to eat lean and maintain his 165-pound frame, as karate does have weight classes. “Athletes do drastic cuts to maintain their weight classes,” Scott says. “But I generally train at my weight year-round. So I like to eat lean, to train and feel my weight, and avoid impacting my performance by doing drastic weight cuts.”

Scott usually wakes up around 6:30 a.m., when he has his first breakfast of the day. Because he’s usually looking for something pretty light to eat, he tends to lean towards various fruits, such as bananas, apples, blueberries, and tangerines.

Then comes his first bowl of cereal and milk, which is a staple for the karate star. “My wife and I will have maybe six or seven different types of cereals,” he jokes. Although he loves Cocoa Pebbles, he eats the “good ones” in the morning, which can include Wheaties, Mini Wheats, or Life, a personal favorite.

Scott goes to the track around 7:30 a.m. for a 45-minute workout, then heads homes for his “real breakfast.” This time, he looks to add protein, so 2 or 3 eggs with toast and peanut butter.

At that point, he heads to the karate dojo, where he teaches classes throughout the day. By the time noon rolls around, Scott is ready to have some lunch. As he is working, he likes to keep it simple with a deli sandwich, dressed with lettuce and tomato. Scott also likes to have oatmeal on the side, for which he has a specific way of flavoring. “I like to add brown sugar and maple syrup, butter, milk if I can,” he says. “That kind of gives it a good flavor for me.”

At 3:00 p.m., Scott eats his first snack of the day. “It’s really important to continue snacking,” he says. “[It keeps] my metabolism going and makes sure I’m not hungry and complaining all the time.”

What does he go for? You guessed it—cereal. He likes to eat some of the sweeter ones around this time of the day, along with some fruit or peanut butter and toast. He’ll also hit some of the gel energy packets for an extra boost.

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Scott begins his own Karate training after the day is over. “My own practice in training begins at 7:00 p.m.,” he says, “where we practice the fighting techniques that apply to our competitions.” At around 9:00 p.m., he comes home to lean dinners like pasta with a palm-sized piece of grilled chicken, along with a side salad and veggies. And as dessert? Scott reaches for his beloved cereal once again. “I love cereal so much that I generally finish off with a cap of cereal and milk,” he says. “Just to get that comfort food in and also make sure I don’t go to bed hungry.”

For Scott, one of the things he likes to do is incorporate protein powders into his diet throughout the day. For the Karate star, it’s important that the powders he chooses are NSF International-certified, in order to ensure that nothing bad is going into his body. “It’s important to find things that are NSF-certified or that has been tested and is clean,” he says. “You have to be very careful because you don’t want to put anything in your body that could get you disqualified from competition.”

And what happens when the sports star has the time for a cheat meal? Scott likes to keep it simple. “A standard hamburger works well for me.”

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