LeBron James is one of the most physically fit men to have ever played in the NBA. The reason he’s been able to last as long as he has in the league and still dominate opposing defenses in Year 20 and at age 38 is because he’s dedicated his off-court lifestyle to fuel his on-court excellence.
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His trainer, Mike Mancias, first met LeBron during his first stint with the Cleveland Cavaliers. Mancias’s goal was to be a trainer for an NBA team, not one certain individual. However, that wouldn’t work out all too well as James liked him so much that he would hire him as his personal trainer. They have been together for about 15 years now.
Mike is more than just a physical trainer however. He is in direct communication with LeBron’s chefs and helps the Lakers superstar out with his diet on a day-to-day basis. He’s instrumental in both his weight training and his endurance training along with making sure he recovers well from each and every workout.
Mika Mancias made a new protein powder for LeBron James
The 2014 NBA Finals saw the San Antonio Spurs run the Miami Heat out the gym in 5 games after losing to them in the previous year’s Finals. Game 1 of that series however, is quite the controversial one as the air conditioning in the Spurs arena had gone off, leading to extreme fatigue on both teams.
The heat affected LeBron James the most as he would have to leave the game early in the 4th quarter after playing less than 5 minutes due to his left leg cramping up. He would check back in with less than 4 minutes remaining, hit a lay-up, and be checked out of the game once again almost immediately.
Him cramping up as bad he did led to Mike Mancias looking towards a new formula for the protein powder he supplies James with. In an interview with GQ in 2019, Mancias talks about the infamous Game 1 in the 2014 NBA Finals.
“The one we developed after 2014 was really clean. But it still had some ingredients I wasn’t too sure we needed, and I wanted to add a probiotic to it too. Through research and development, it’s even cleaner now—the best in plant protein, the best in whey protein,” said Mike.
Mike Mancias is helping LeBron James come back from injury
LeBron James has been ruled out of action for a minimum of 3 weeks after suffering a foot injury in a Lakers win over the Dallas Mavericks. While he would finish that game, he’d express discomfort in the ankle following it.
James would go on to put up a story on his Instagram, tagging Mancias, letting fans know that he’s currently working with his trainer to get back to action as quickly as possible. He will be re-evaluated in 3 weeks.
