KOCHI: After helping Kerala football team to land a title after almost a decade in the Santosh Trophy in 2017-18, nuclear chemist-turned-nutrition technocrat Madhavan Anirudhan is gearing up to get Kerala Blasters ready for tough battles in ISL. His company Essen Nutrition, named Blasters’ nutrition specialist, will work with players to improve their stamina, overcome fatigue and help repair tissue damage. “When it comes to performance in endurance sports, Indians lose out to their competitors from across the world,” said Anirudhan. The reason is the lack of proper nourishment during their formative years, he said.
“Studies have shown that around 68 per cent of children below the age of four in India are malnourished. They don’t have the necessary muscle mass and growth,” he said. “The reason is the diminished amount of protein in the diet,” he added. Anirudhan, who has set up a branch of his company at Kinfra Food Park in Kozhikode, will use scientific procedure to prepare diet charts of each Kerala Blasters player.
“The process starts with asking the players to list the food that they have for breakfast, lunch and dinner. With the help of the chart we will plan the amount of additional nutrition that each player needs. The diet will include nourishment that gives stamina, overcome fatigue, helps repair tissue damage and rejuvenate the players. Each player needs a different diet plan,” he said.
When this plan was followed for the Santosh Trophy winning Kerala team, the players were still energetic unlike their rivals even after the game was extended to the extra time. Essen Nutrition aims to recreate the same magic again.