CHICALIM: Salgaocar Football Club held a talk and interactive information session on nutrition for the young budding footballers and their parents as part of the Community Outreach Programme, at Chicalim Panchayat ground, on Sunday.
Whilst the children were participating in the various drills and football exercises on the field of play, the parents had the opportunity to interact with the experts from the field of nutrition and diet. Interested children benefitted from having their body composition tested by the experts present along with personalised tips for addressing specific issues.
Stressing on the role of nutrition in a player’s and children’s life, Ajay Kumar, Sports Nutritionist, VM Salgaocar Hospital (MSC, DFSM, CNCC, BSc) briefed the parents on the effective ways to improve their children’s health and other important aspects to manage their weight.
“Nutrition is a vital aspect of a player’s developmental growth. And grooming it from their initial days will help their all round development. As parents we mustn’t ignore this aspect. Proper diet and food items can boost the child’s physique and moreover it will help to improve their stamina.” said Dr Ajay Kumar, while addressing the parents during the Community Outreach Programme.
“Nutrition not only helps in child’s physical fitness but also has a positive impact on their mental growth. Proper eating habits helps in improving body composition to have the right ratio of muscle to fat,” Dr Kumar stressed.
While Dr Ajay Kumar spoke about the importance of nutrition, Nutritionist Alina Tellis from VM Salgaocar Hostpital explained to the parents about various healthy diets and recommended food intake to help the children gain proper nutrition in an enjoyable way.
Tellis also shed some light on medical nutrition therapy and metabolic rate testing and its benefits.
Salgaocar FC vice president Swati Salgaocar said, “The parents and kids concentrate on a player’s onfield abilities and often neglect the most important aspect —their nutrition and dietary plan. We at Salgaocar FC are very particular about their all round development from their initial days and it was with this is mind that we felt a session like this would be helpful.”
Salgaocar FC General Secretary Adlear D’Cruz said, “We shall give all the possible support for the players and parents during this community outreach programme. It’s not just about football but we look into overall development of a player. This is a continuous process wherein more doctors and experts from the field of sports will interact with the parents and the players.”
