New Delhi: Ever since Erling Haaland gave a breakdown of the ‘ancestral’ diet that fuels one of football’s most lethal strikers, social media has been flooded with people wondering whether the secret to elite performance lies on his plate.
At 41, Cristiano Ronaldo still remains one of the fittest footballers, having for years remained an inspiration for many footballers and beyond to adopt that level of dedication. No cheat days and a daily diet of grilled chicken, fish, eggs, fresh vegetables, healthy fats such as avocado and disciplined meal timings.
Sunil Chhetri – India’s most decorated footballer – knows a thing or two about longevity with a career spanning more than two decades. His diet has evolved over two decades. Having switched to a vegetarian diet nearly eight years ago on medical advice to aid recovery, the 41-year-old believes there is no one-size-fits-all formula in elite sport.
“There are many ways for a footballer to meet his or her nutritional needs,” Chhetri told HT. “Our body loves routine… Don’t eat processed food, don’t consume too much sugar, and try to maintain consistent meal timings. Then comes the subjective part – what works for an individual.”
Making it individual specific instead of imitation is a philosophy increasingly shaping Indian football. For Chhetri, nutrition wasn’t discovered through social media trends. His education began during spells in England and the United States, where he realised sports science was years ahead of India.
“I realised that what we were eating here wasn’t as conducive to football performance as what they were providing there,” he said. “I kept making changes… eliminated things I shouldn’t consume, started eating at fixed times every day and became much more disciplined.”
“I was probably one of the first to bring that information into the dressing room. I tried it on myself, shared it with everyone, and slowly things started falling into place.”
Goalkeeper Gurpreet Singh Sandhu, defender Sandesh Jhingan and midfielder Suresh Wangjam are now among those who treat recovery and nutrition as integral to performance.
“For someone like Haaland, who’s 6’5”, eating 6,000 calories makes sense. But if you’re someone like Suresh, who’s 5’6”, then that many calories probably won’t make sense,” he said. “You’ve to understand the context… Don’t blindly follow anyone.”
Chhetri recalls trying to change perceptions in the dressing room long before nutrition became a buzzword. “We Punjabis don’t get six-pack abs,” young Sandesh Jhingan once told him.
“I just looked at him and said, ‘Kid, you have no idea what you’re talking about. If you eat properly, you’ll get the body composition you want.’”
Years later, sitting by a swimming pool, Chhetri looked at a ripped Jhingan and joked about the early conversations, looking back at how much the team had changed. “Today, he has one of the best athletic physiques in the country. He’s lean, agile and exactly how a footballer should look.”
Chhetri said: “I reminded him of those conversations. It’s nice to see how much they’ve all changed.”
Despite becoming a vegetarian, Chhetri doesn’t subscribe to the idea that athletes need exotic superfoods. His own staples remain Indian.
“I swear by ragi and ghee. Those are two things I genuinely love.”
Sports scientist Nikhil Latey agrees that traditional Indian staples deserve more recognition, provided athletes understand what they can and cannot do.
“Ragi, jowar and bajra digest more slowly, giving steadier blood sugar levels. Ghee is an excellent fat source… Does it replace your protein requirement? No.
“If your protein intake drops, your muscles don’t recover on time. Then you either train below your potential or at 100% and open the door for injury.”
While vegetarian diets can absolutely work, they require planning. Milk, dairy, soy, legumes and protein supplements become critical protein sources, especially for athletes avoiding meat.
Latey cautions against assuming that European nutrition models can be transplanted in Indian athletes. Centuries of famine and food insecurity have left South Asians predisposed to storing more visceral fat than many European populations. However, elite training and disciplined eating can overcome much of that.
“I wouldn’t call it a disadvantage,” he said. “If you’re matching your calorie requirement with the food you’re consuming, and those calories are coming from the right fuel source, then your body doesn’t need to store excess calories.”
At the elite level, Indian football has largely caught up on nutritional awareness. The national teams travel with carefully planned buffet menus featuring grilled chicken, fish, rice, dal, mashed potatoes, pasta and vegetarian alternatives, with players free to carry approved supplements, if required.
“The buffet is designed to cater to everyone equally,” said an All India Football Federation member. “The rest also incorporate inputs from their trainers, coaches, and medical staff from their clubs.”
But the divide still exists for those coming from less affordable backgrounds. “For younger players who are still coming up… it’s more difficult,” Chhetri admitted. “I’m blessed. I have a personal chef, doctors… a lot of planning, effort, energy and money goes into bringing food onto my plate.”
Latey said: “At the pointy end (top level) Indian athletes receive adequate nutritional support, but at the base of the pyramid we’re lacking.”
Many footballers spend their formative years without access to sports nutritionists, personalised meal plans or even the financial means to consistently afford quality protein.
“Ideally, if you’re a high-performance athlete, you shouldn’t be thinking about all these things,” Latey said. “Your team should be thinking about this. The footballer’s entire focus should be on training.”