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Jordan Mazur is entering his ninth season as the director of performance nutrition for the San Francisco 49ers. He’s only thirty-four.
“My dream was always to work in the NFL, and I got here when I was twenty-six,” Mazur says. “But there is still so much I want to accomplish, and that starts with helping this team win a Super Bowl.”
Twice since Mazur has been working for the team, the 49ers have gotten close. The team has claimed two NFC titles since he joined in 2017, but it has also endured two heartbreaking Super Bowl losses. It’s far more than most other NFL teams have accomplished in the last decade, but Mazur is rarely happy with the status quo. He knows his career has moved fast and his gratitude is evident, but part of the reason he’s accomplished so much so quickly is his drive.
The director was the first full-time hire dedicated solely to nutrition at the 49ers in 2017. When he arrived, nutrition protocols weren’t nearly as well defined as they are today.
“There wasn’t much here when I started,” Mazur says, laughing. “We had premade protein shakes and some granola bars. That’s where a lot of organizations were at the time, and it was my job to help evolve that program quickly.”
Although Mazur works in the Bay Area, and he has tested all the latest and greatest tech advances since he joined the 49ers, his approach is not nearly as tech-centric as one might expect. Instead, the director says it often comes down to “less is more.”
“When we’re talking about wearables and data collection, I want to know what’s going to provide us with the most information without asking too much of the players,” Mazur says. “To individualize nutrition approaches for every player, we have to evaluate that person from the inside out. We track a lot of blood biomarkers and ensure we’re catching insufficiencies or deficiencies, but you have to remember that so much of this is about the trust you build with people.”
The human element, Mazur says, is still the most important part of the equation. The director’s partnership with players is heavy on coaching and communication. Technology can enable progress, but it’s that collaborative relationship that helps players achieve their goals.
Mazur’s background includes a Gatorade Sports Nutrition Immersion Program fellowship with the Philadelphia Eagles in 2015, a director of sports nutrition role at the University of California in 2016, and a master’s degree in exercise science from Florida State University. The director has been working toward the NFL for as long as he’s been in nutrition.
The Connecticut native grew up a diehard Patriots fan and actively sought out Head Team Sports Dietitian Ted Harper as he was coming up the ranks. “Ted was willing to meet with me, and so I drove there, and we established this mentoring relationship,” Mazur explains. “I love learning from people who know so much more than me. I can’t emphasize how much I benefited from networking and working to establish real relationships with people in the industry. I’ve tried to repay that mentorship by doing the same thing myself with younger professionals.”
As one might imagine, Mazur is a hit at parties. As soon as anyone finds out what he does, the director jokes that an unplanned workday begins. He has yet to invoice a guest seeking advice, but all the questions he’s fielded have spurred some real thinking about what Mazur wants the rest of his career to look like. The 49ers are his priority, but Mazur has also started considering what it means to provide nutritional guidance for those who aren’t performing at the highest levels of sports excellence.
“We track a lot of blood biomarkers and ensure we’re catching insufficiencies or deficiencies, but you have to remember that so much of this is about the trust you build with people.”
Jordan Mazur
Mazur has begun providing individual consultations as well as partnering with brands he believes in, like the American Pistachio Growers and Real California Milk. Mazur hopes these platforms will cut through the rampant nutritional misinformation he sees online. For Mazur to do his best work, he has to know the kinds of bad advice people are getting in TikToks and Instagram Reels. And there is a lot of it.
“By nature, food is something we all have to consume every day, so there’s the tendency to believe that we’re all experts,” Mazur says. “I get that. Food is relatable. But when you’ve taken so much time to understand the science and the mechanics of how nutrition actually works in the human body, it can be amazing to see the amount of misinformation that gets spread.”
Mazur has shared his expertise with a wider audience through numerous Men’s Journal contributions and other nutritional writings. He also makes time for organizations he cares about, like the Second Harvest of Silicon Valley, a nonprofit dedicated to ending hunger in its region, and his local chapter of Big Brothers Big Sisters.
“Whatever I’m doing, I’m hoping to use my platform to influence my world for the better,” Mazur says. “I’m very passionate about community nutrition, and I continue to look for new ways to bring that knowledge to people who need it most.”
Real California Milk is proud to partner with Jordan Mazur to help educate athletes at all levels about the value of real dairy foods in sports performance. From thought-leadership to recipe development to farm tours, Jordan’s passion and expertise has elevated awareness of the nutritional benefits of real milk and dairy foods. When people buy wholesome dairy products like milk, cheese and yogurt with the certified Real California Milk seal, they support farm families who are world leaders in sustainable and innovative milk production practices, helping create a more resilient food system.
