Rams RB Cam Akers Details New Diet: 'It's Noticeable!'

Los Angeles Rams running back Cam Akers has noticeably refined his figure this offseason, in large part thanks to his new diet

Los Angeles Rams running back Cam Akers is entering his fourth season in the NFL, and it could very well be the most important of his young career.

A 2020 second-round pick out of Florida State, Akers has had an up-and-down career to this point. He had a strong rookie season, but injuries cost him almost his entire sophomore campaign. Then last season, he started out slow before finishing the season strong and earning his starting job back. Now Akers enters this season as the starting back again, and because it's the final year on his contract, the pressure is on him to perform.

With such an important season looming, Akers is making sure that he's at his best. One way he has been working towards that goal is with a new off-season diet, cutting out snacks and fried foods. As a result, Akers is now at 217 pounds compared to the 212 he was at last year, and he feels markedly better for it.

“You don’t recover the same when you have certain stuff,” Akers said, per the Orange County Register. “Just making sure I focus on gaining the right kind of weight and it’s paying off for me.”

“It’s noticeable, day-to-day routines and everything else,” Akers said. “Sleep better, turn over better if I’ve got a long workload day and my legs hurt. If I’m going home and I’m eating fried foods and sugary stuff, I’m not going to be able to recover it just off the sleep that I get that night no matter what.”

On the field, the difference has been very apparent. Even without experiencing the full speed of an NFL game yet, Akers has felt much stronger when participating in practice.

“Definitely can feel myself being heavier on defenders,” Akers said. “Obviously we’re not tackling or doing anything like that, but as far as the thudding, I can feel myself being heavier, leaning on defenders more, falling forward. Which I was doing anyway, but I can tell it’s going to be amplified.”

Akers finished last season on the best run of his career so far, rushing for over 100 yards in each of the Rams' final three games. With an improved physique, Akers expects to carry that momentum into the new season.

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