What Does Coco Gauff Eat? The Pro Tennis Player's Diet Explained

January 10, 2026 •

3 min read

As a professional athlete, Coco Gauff has specific nutritional needs, but famously maintains a flexible approach to her diet, incorporating moderate indulgences like chips and ice cream. She has a well-balanced routine that includes dedicated match-day meals, plenty of protein, and her famous courtside fruit salad snacks.

Quick Summary

Coco Gauff follows a balanced diet for peak athletic performance, incorporating lean proteins, complex carbs like pasta, and ample hydration. She relies on specific pre-match meals and snacks, including fruit salad, while also allowing for moderate enjoyment of treats like fast food and ice cream on off-days.

Key Points

Pre-Match Pasta: For every match, Coco Gauff eats a specific pasta dish—plain penne with chicken, spinach, tomato sauce, and parmesan—because it's easy to digest and fuels her effectively.
Courtside Fruit Salad: Gauff famously fuels up during matches with a homemade fruit salad, rich in simple carbs for quick energy and muscle recovery.
Strategic Hydration: She combats dehydration and cramping during tournaments by drinking Pedialyte and water throughout the day.
Moderation, not Restriction: Taught by her parents, Gauff believes in a balanced diet that includes moderate indulgences like fast food and chocolate, saving them for off-days.
Nutrient-Dense Snacks: Her daily snacks often include protein bars, nuts, or eggs to ensure a constant intake of protein throughout her busy schedule.
Focus on Protein: Gauff prioritizes protein throughout her meals and snacks to support muscle growth and recovery, a crucial element for a professional athlete.
Diet Evolves with Awareness: As she's gotten older, Gauff has become more intentional about her nutrition, focusing on regular fueling and higher protein intake.

Coco Gauff's nutritional habits are a key component of her elite athletic performance, balancing disciplined fuel with personal enjoyment. Her approach is pragmatic, designed to meet the high-energy demands of professional tennis while still allowing her to savor her favorite foods. From pre-match meals to hydration strategies, her diet provides a valuable blueprint for other athletes and fans alike.

A typical day's menu for Coco Gauff

On a normal training day, Gauff's meals are structured to provide sustained energy. Her breakfast is a substantial meal to fuel early training sessions, while her lunch and dinner are packed with nutrients. Snacks are strategically timed to prevent energy dips.

Breakfast

As an athlete who isn't typically hungry first thing in the morning, Gauff still prioritizes a nutritious start. Her usual breakfast includes a combination of protein and carbs:

Eggs and toast (sometimes with almond butter)
Fruit bowls
A balanced meal of eggs, potatoes, sausage, and fruit on a heavier training day
Her signature Protein Pineapple Orange Naked smoothie for a quick protein boost

Lunch

Gauff's loyalty to pasta, especially as a pre-match meal, is well-documented. Pasta provides the essential complex carbohydrates needed for energy. During the off-season, she enjoys varying her midday meal.

Pre-match: Plain penne pasta with tomato sauce, chicken, spinach, and parmesan
Off-season: Protein-packed rice bowls with beans, avocado, and chicken

Dinner

Evenings are for refuelling, and Gauff keeps her dinner simple and centered around lean protein and healthy vegetables.

Lean meat, such as chicken or salmon
Roasted vegetables, like Brussels sprouts prepared in her air fryer
When traveling, she enjoys exploring restaurant options

Match day nutrition: The rituals and strategies

On match day, Gauff's diet becomes even more intentional. She focuses on easily digestible meals and specific hydration to sustain her through intense, long matches.

The famous fruit salad

During the 2023 US Open, Gauff's courtside fruit salad became a viral sensation. This simple snack serves a crucial purpose: providing quick, natural sugars for immediate energy. Prepared by her parents, the mix often includes her favorite pineapple, along with grapes, melon, and watermelon.

Hydration

Professional athletes require significant hydration to replace the electrolytes lost through sweat. Gauff has a specific strategy to stay hydrated and prevent cramping.

Pedialyte: She drinks this electrolyte-rich fluid throughout the day during intense tournaments.
Water: Regular water intake is a constant, alongside her electrolyte drinks.
Pineapple Juice: Sometimes she adds a bit of pineapple juice for flavor and energy.

Indulgences: The importance of moderation

While her diet is largely disciplined, Gauff's philosophy, instilled by her parents, is that moderation is key. She doesn't believe in overly restrictive eating and allows herself to enjoy treats and fast food on occasion.

Favorite treats: Brownies, ice cream, Kit Kats, and Twix
Fast food favorites: Burgers, fries, and Chick-fil-A

Comparison of training vs. match day diets


Aspect	Training Day Diet	Match Day Diet
Breakfast	Hearty with protein and complex carbs (e.g., eggs, sausage, potatoes, fruit).	Lighter, focusing on easily digestible options (e.g., eggs, toast with almond butter, fruit bowl).
Lunch	Versatile, can include rice bowls with various proteins and veggies.	Strict adherence to plain penne pasta with tomato sauce, chicken, and spinach for easy digestion.
Snacks	Protein shakes and bars for overall nutrition and recovery.	Fruit salad (pineapple, grapes, melon) for quick, courtside energy.
Dinner	Lean protein (chicken, salmon) and roasted vegetables.	Simple meals, often avoiding red meat and excess dairy.
Hydration	Water and Pedialyte throughout the day.	Increased Pedialyte intake during and after the match to replenish electrolytes.
Indulgences	Saved for off-days and after successful tournaments.	Avoided pre-match to prevent feeling heavy; enjoyed as a celebratory reward post-match.

Conclusion

What Coco Gauff eats is a testament to a modern, balanced approach to sports nutrition. It shows that peak athletic performance does not require a restrictive, joyless diet. By combining high-octane foods like pasta and lean proteins with strategic hydration and moderate indulgences, Gauff fuels her body and mind for the rigors of professional tennis. Her routine proves that intentional eating, rather than extreme restriction, is the key to sustained success and well-being. For more insights into athletic nutrition, the ITF Tennis resource on eating right provides comprehensive information. Her focus on natural energy sources like fruit and her sensible pre-match rituals highlight a sustainable and practical fueling strategy that has helped define her successful career.

Frequently Asked Questions

For her pre-match meal, Coco Gauff consistently eats plain penne pasta with chicken, spinach, tomato sauce, and parmesan cheese.

During matches, Coco Gauff relies on a homemade fruit salad packed in a Tupperware, which she often eats courtside for quick carbohydrates and natural sugar energy.

Her favorite snacks include fruit salad, protein bars, potato chips, and dried fruit crisps. She also enjoys chocolate candy like Kit Kats and Twix on her days off.

To stay hydrated and replenish electrolytes lost from sweating, Gauff drinks plenty of water and Pedialyte, especially during tournaments.

No, Coco Gauff follows a flexible approach to her diet, emphasizing balance and moderation over strict restriction. Her parents instilled this philosophy to ensure she still enjoyed eating like a normal teenager.

In 2025, Coco Gauff partnered with Naked Smoothies to launch her own signature beverage, a Protein Pineapple Orange smoothie.

Yes, Gauff enjoys fast food and junk food in moderation on her off-days, with favorites including burgers, Chick-fil-A, brownies, and ice cream.

Her new Naked smoothie, the Protein Pineapple Orange, contains 20 grams of plant-based protein, pineapple and orange juices, electrolytes from coconut water and sea salt, and added vitamins B6 and B12.