I don't keep monitors, but this is what I do know based on what experienced savvie keepers say:
Their diet should consist of mainly insects, vertebrates, etc. A variety of different kinds in large numbers that allow lots of hunting behavior to keep them fit and in shape. Growing your own colony is highly recommended to save on costs. Obesity and bad diets shorten their lifespan drastically. Insects provide good, non-fat protein. Lots of it is good for them. That also means you must feed a lot of it. Avoid feeding mice prey or use it as an occasional treat.
I never heard of not feeding it inside the enclosure. In fact, it is the opposite, so they can dig and hunt their food. Someone else will confirm this. I guess the outside feeding is to help teach it not to associate you with food every time you visit its enclosure?
Savvies that are available in the pet industry are wild caught. Captive bred babies are rare, if any. Taming them will take a lot of time, work, and the result may still not be as much of an improvement as one would expect, ie it learns to tolerate your presence vs being petted or held. Some have a great disposition and may even relax enough to allow handling, but those are exemptions rather the rule, and that is after months of taming work.
I recommend watching vids from NERD and other breeders who keeps Savvies. Clint's Reptile made a YouTube video that was very informative.
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