It is often said that Cristiano Ronaldo, at 40 years of age, has the body of a 28-year-old. However, the statement falls short when observing a musculature that few professional athletes manage to sustain even at the highest point of their career. The most recent image of the Portuguese, posing almost naked in a gym with a serious gesture and defiant posture, once again confirmed that his physique remains one of the great enigmas of high-performance sport.
The latest available measurement indicates that Ronaldo maintains just 7% body fat, a figure even lower than the average for Premier League footballers, which tends to range between 8% and 12%.
Extreme training and total discipline
Beyond his daily work with his club, Cristiano complements his routine with a demanding personal training plan. His preparation includes pilates, regular swimming and five gym sessions a week. Each day combines 25 to 30 minutes of cardio, high-intensity sprints and specific strength exercises to enhance his muscles.
In total, the Portuguese trains between three and four hours a day, a physical workload that explains much of his sporting longevity. This is combined with his fondness for saunas and ice baths, which he uses even at unusual times, such as two o’clock in the morning, with the aim of accelerating muscle recovery.
Diet: six meals a day
Ronaldo also breaks away from the traditional three meals a day. Instead, he spreads his intake over six “mini-meals” throughout the day: breakfast, brunch, lunch, snack, dinner and a second dinner. His diet prioritizes protein-rich, low-fat foods.
Chicken, which Cristiano himself has described as “magical”, is one of the pillars of his diet, along with fresh fish, avocado, salads, whole grains such as quinoa and daily fruit.
Sleep differently to perform better
When it comes to rest, the striker opts for an unconventional method: polyphasic sleep. Instead of sleeping continuously, he divides his seven and a half hours of rest into five 90-minute naps. This system, inspired by theories from specialist Nick Littlehales, seeks to improve muscle recovery and alertness“Sleeping well is essential to get the most out of training,” Ronaldo has explained on more than one occasion.
Cryotherapy and the near future
For more than a decade, Cristiano has been a regular user of cryotherapy, a technique that exposes the body to extreme temperatures of up to -200°C to reduce inflammation and accelerate recovery. Athletes such as Usain Bolt and Erling Haaland also use this method.
Despite his impressive physical condition, Ronaldo recently admitted that his retirement could come in “one or two years”. In the meantime, his routine continues to defy the passage of time and redefine the limits of human performance.
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