Urijah Faber is an Ultimate Fighting Championship Hall of Famer and is one of the most successful bantamweight fighters in UFC history. Before that, he was a two-time NCAA qualifier in wrestling. And before that, he was a teenager in Isla Vista, Calif. with parents who he described as “kind of hippie.”
“They were about health and fitness from the womb,” Faber said. “Organic food, no conventional medicine. You did not want to get sick at my household. It wasn’t like you got some Tylenol or the quick fix. You’re eating raw, drinking vinegar and carrot garlic beet juice.”
Faber’s childhood focus on fitness and nutrition helped fuel his career in the UFC and also led him to invest in Trifecta, a meal-delivering nutrition program.
“When the opportunity came to be more involved I was all about it,” said Faber, who serves as Managing Partner at Trifecta. “(Trifecta) is a healthy alternative to saving time on nutrition.”
Trifecta recently acquired Pocket WOD, a popular app for tracking fitness that provides the workout of the day. The new Trifecta app combines both fitness and nutrition to provide a comprehensive look at individual health.
“Diet and health are a multiple-level attack. It’s not just eat good, it’s not just work out, it’s a combination,” Faber said. “Pocket WOD is a great addition to Trifecta and makes it an all-around solution to getting in great shape.”
Trifecta has partnerships with a wide range of professional athletes from Philadelphia Eagles quarterback Carson Wentz to UFC fighter Cody Garbrandt and is an official sponsor of both Team USA Weightlifting and The CrossFit Games. It is also popular on Team Alpha Male, Faber’s mixed martial arts (MMA) organization.
“A lot of the guys on my team, the best team in the world for MMA, utilize Trifecta,” Faber said. “In my opinion, the toughest and most demanding sport in the world is MMA and it has been a massive support for my guys.”
Regimented nutrition is especially important in professional fighting where athletes must cut down for the weigh-in before adding pounds again before the fight.
“I’ve had to lose as much as 25 pounds to make a weight cut then gain it all back again healthily within a 24-hour period,” Faber said.
While that number may sound incredulous, weight cutting is a common practice in fighting. Even though the majority of weight cutting is water weight, fighters must be conscious of everything they are putting in their bodies.
“You are looking for every advantage as an athlete,” Faber said. “You have to take everything into account. Having food that is ready, prepped and healthy is super important. Trifecta makes things so much easier.”
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In addition to tracking nutrition and fitness, the app provides the user with daily workout videos. Those workout videos have largely been the work of Brooke Ence. Ence started as a successful Crossfit athlete finishing 14th in the 2015 Games, and then she made her silver screen debut as Amazonian warrior Penthiselea in “Wonder Woman” and “Justice League.”
“The app provides a bunch of different things,” Faber said. “You can schedule workouts with Brooke Ence, check calories and look at your full fitness.”
Faber only recently retired from fighting in July. For many of the later years of his career, he has been focused on Team Alpha Male and business investments like Trifecta. He says Trifecta still has a big effect on his life outside the octagon.
“Being an athlete is only part of who I am. Being a businessman on top of that, being a guy that has precious time between mentoring the next generation and handling business, top-notch fuel is super important,” Faber said.
From his California upbringing to his illustrious fighting career, Faber has always maintained a focus on health and fitness. Now Trifecta allows him — and the rest of Team Alpha Male — to keep a detailed record of their training.
The only thing missing is for Trifecta to add carrot garlic beet juice to its list of pre-packaged meals.