Victor Wembanyama says he snuck out during stay at Buddhist temple to eat meat, maintain his weight

San Antonio Spurs star Victor Wembanyama spent 10 days at a Shaolin temple in Dengfeng, China, over the summer. While the 7-foot-3 center was diligent in most of his duties with the monks, Wembanyama revealed during an appearance at Fanatics Fest in New York City that he couldn’t budge on his diet. 

Most of the meals that Wembanyama ate at the vegan monastery consisted of zucchini and rice noodles, which isn’t entirely sufficient for a professional athlete that has to maintain some semblance of bulk. So Wembanyama would sneak out on occasion to eat meat. 

Wembanyama’s clandestine meals worked. He told Kevin Hart, during a live rendition of Hart’s “Cold as Balls” podcast, that he’s up to 245 pounds after his visit to China. 

“It was a great experience,” Wembanyama said, per The Athletic. “My goal going there was putting my body through things that it’s not used to doing and allowing my range of movement and strength. This was probably as very different as possible from what I’m used to doing.”

Wembanyama also returned to the United States with a shaved head and a newfound appreciation for kung fu, an art that he practiced every day at the temple. 

Not long before Wembanyama left for China, legendary San Antonio coach Gregg Popovich announced he was stepping down from his position. He’s still around the franchise as president of basketball operations. 

But Fanatics Fest offered Wembanyama his first opportunity to speak publicly about Popovich’s decision. 

“First of all, the person,” Wembanyama said. “We were all really close. We all have really good relationships between the teammates and him. It’s always sad and shocking when something like this happens. What’s incredible with him is that he keeps giving hope being the person that he is. 

“He keeps inspiring us. Because the way he works, he works harder than most athletes in the world.”