Tennessee Titans' Kevin Byard has taken up intermittent fasting. Here's why.

Intermittent fasting is part of the diet for Tennessee Titans star Kevin Byard.

The All-Pro safety explained his diet in detail after organized team activities Wednesday. Apart from the occasional steak, he largely stays away from red meat. He eats primarily fish and vegetables, and chicken is consumed less frequently. He also stays away from carbs at night and eats berries in the morning.

Byard also said he has a chef cook meals for his family early in the week.

“I don’t really eat food until 11 o’clock. And the last meal of the day stops at 7 or 7:30 (p.m.),” Byard said. “It keeps me light and honestly helps me recover more overnight. A lot of different benefits and stuff like that.”

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Byard estimated he entered the NFL around 215 pounds but maintains a slightly lighter weight.

“I’m not that much smaller – I’m probably like 211, 210 – but it’s a way different 210-211,” he said. “I definitely feel more slim. I feel faster. Obviously, playing at a high level last year, I kind of felt that difference between If I have a great week on my diet, I’m eating right, I feel great during the game. I feel light, I feel fast. And that’s how I want to feel 24/7. Being a younger player, you don’t really understand that because you’re just getting introduced to those kinds of things. As I get older, I definitely feel being lighter and faster is the name of the game.”

Last season, Byard was named a Pro Bowler and an All Pro for the first time since 2017. He credited that success to the play of the defense as a whole.

After a lackluster 2020 season, the Titans’ defense made strides in 2021, tying for fifth in points allowed. The unit also ranked second in run defense, sixth in third-down efficiency, seventh in red-zone efficiency and 12th in yards allowed.

“Obviously, you have to have individual players playing well, but when we had the defense play how we played and playing together, guys are going to have great stats,” Byard said.

“As a defense, when we’re all playing well, guys get paid and guys get great stats,” Byard continued. “That’s definitely going to be the plan this year.”

Ben Arthur covers the Tennessee Titans for The USA TODAY Network. Contact him at barthur@gannett.com and follow him on Twitter at @benyarthur.

This article originally appeared on Nashville Tennessean: Kevin Byard: Tennessee Titans DB's diet includes intermittent fasting