Michigan OL Gio El-Hadi has improved his offseason habits to maintain a larger frame

Michigan senior offensive lineman Gio El-Hadi made it abundantly clear to the media that he was not happy with the way his last fall camp went and was not pleased with the way he handled his body when it came to fueling it and preparing for the season.

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Meeting with the media on Monday, El-Hadi was asked when the last time he had to put on weight like freshmen linemen have to, and he was candid in his response.

“This year, actually, because last year I played very light,” El-Hadi said. “I had a bad camp. I didn’t take good care of myself. I was playing around 300, 305. Right now, I’m about 325, 330. Just in general, the way I was drinking water, I was drinking about a gallon, two gallons a day. I sweat a lot. Big guys, you guys know how it is. We sweat a lot. It’s like a job, trying to eat that much and drink that much.

“It took me a long time to learn that. Now, I’ve got it pretty good. I’ve got a good little rhythm, and it’s going good.”

Playing a physical sport, it’s difficult to maintain a larger frame while also exerting energy, especially in fall camp. The summer is in full spring, the reps are grueling and players are leaving everything on the field in hopes to rise the depth chart when the calendar turns to September.

For El-Hadi, last year was a lesson learned that he needs to focus on fueling his body to maintain peak performance.

“Every practice, I was losing about 10 to 15 pounds of water weight,” El-Hadi said. “The first week, I was doing a pretty good job, but over time, when you’re losing that type of weight, just drinking that much water and eating that much, you kind of get tired of it. This year, I said, hey, I don’t care how tired you are. You better eat or drink as much as you need until you feel like a balloon. And that’s what I did.”

Now with a better mindset and better habits, El-Hadi is seeing the benefits of what his weight and strength gains can do for him on the football field.

Going up against a group of defensive linemen like the Wolverines have had the past few seasons, you’re quickly reminded of where you need to improve.

“Last year, I was a little light,” El-Hadi said. “I still felt very powerful, but it’s kind of light in the butt, so I was getting kind of moved back a little more than I would like to. Now, when I get my hands on it, it’s a lot more weight trying to push through. That’s the biggest difference. I feel stronger.”

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