LeBron says not eating pork has helped performance

As he now sits on the wrong side of 30, with over 46,000 regular-season and playoff minutes under his belt, LeBron James has had to make some sacrifices to keep his body in peak operating condition.

One of those involves cutting pork out of his diet, something James says he's done for the past seven years, to noticeably beneficial results.

"Oh, you can tell the difference," James told Chris Haynes of Cleveland.com. "It's in how I recover, the energy I have. It has helped a lot with my performance. Overall, I've just been feeling good."

James said the suggestion came from an uncle. Though he initially also cut out red meat, he said his nutritionist advised him to start eating it again to increase his iron intake.

It's hard to argue with the results. In his age-31 season, James finished 18th in the NBA in total minutes - more than any other player over 30 - and tied for third with a 27.6 PER.

"It has worked for me," James said of eliminating pork. "It has been one of the best things I've decided to do for my career."