In this year's White Sox spring training, Lucas Giolito has a new look. But it's a bit of a throwback to old-school Giolito. After gaining weight last season, Giolito lost 35 pounds over the winter, returning to a more familiar weight and shape.
“I just took last year's defeat as a big motivator,” Giolito said. “I work really hard in the gym and slightly tweak my focus and focus on each small area while getting my body in the right shape so my muscles are stronger and looser when I want to explode Then I can explode”
The key to Giolito's weight loss is eating an overall healthier diet and reducing fat intake.
“As I get older, I think it's important,” Giolito said. “When I was younger, I could rely on my metabolism to eat a bunch of crap, but now that I'm approaching 30 in a few years, I think it's important to take good incremental steps to take care of yourself to the best of your ability. A lot of different fields, and nutrition is one of them.”
Giolito was dissatisfied with his performances last season, including at the beginning of the year in IL, so he decided to lose weight in order to repeat his past success.
“As a big guy, it's important to be able to repeat my moves and be as much of an athlete as possible, so that's a huge focus … when I'm at my best, my weight, that's type of body, this condition.”
It's early days, but Giolito is already noticing a difference from last year. He feels more stable, more explosive and more athletic. His body is feeling better, so he feels like he can already use all his pitches. It also allows him to work more on his mechanics. As a result, Giolito thinks his court is better now than it was at the same time last spring.
“The combination of all those factors, working really hard this offseason, I feel like I'm in a better, more prepared position at the moment.”
Click here to follow the White Sox Talk podcast.
