Webinar on Myths and Misconceptions about Sports Nutrition

Speaker: Dr. Vikram Singh (Senior Physical Educator – Jawaharlal Nehru University)

In the backdrop of the pandemic which made the entire world understand the importance of a healthy body and mind, this webinar was organised to talk about the myths and misconception about sports nutrition. The speaker was Dr. Vikram Singh, the Senior Physical Educator at JNU. He has earned multiple awards and honours on various national and international platforms.

His presentation majorly covered the topics listed below:

• Difference between diet and nutrition
• Analysis of importance of nutrition for general public in comparison to sportspersons
• Understanding calories and nutrition

. Importance of exercise and proper nutrition

• Concept of female athletes’ triad
• Knowledge of hormones and weight loss nutrition

He presented multiple research analysis and surveys on how nutrition is one of the most important concepts in bringing a concrete positive change in not just the life of athletes but also among general population. He spoke about metabolism rates and understanding of how nutrition less diet can create major issues in the life of people, for example low energy, menstrual cycle irregularities, etc.

Some of the myths /misconceptions while planning diet, as pointed by Dr Singh were:

• “Calorie in/ Calorie out, all that matters is weight loss”- This myth is associated with problems like hormonal disbalance, endometriosis, bioidentical hormones and hypothyroid- Low BMR.

He also introduced the audience to metabolic adaption and explained how athletes should aim to minimize the change of these adaptations, adequately fuel performance and recovery during weight reduction.

• “High fat food is unhealthy”- Some high fat foods are extremely nutritious.
• “Breakfast is the most important day of the meal”- Contrary to the common belief, a

late breakfast according to research is actually good for health.

• “You need to eat small, frequent meals for optimal health”- Research says that it is

best to have regular meals except on specific health condition or during pregnancy.

• “Non-nutritive sweeteners are healthy”- The intake may lead to type 2 diabetes.
• “Calcium supplements are necessary for bone health”- Natural sources of calcium

like yoghurt, dairy products, etc. are recommended instead.

• “Everyone can benefit from pro-biotics”- This has to be personalized accordingly.

The webinar was open for a Q & A session, and questions from both the Zoom and YouTube audience were addressed. The webinar ended with a vote of thanks presented by Mr. David Absalom, Hony. General Secretary.