Sportspersons are keeping up with the Delhi heat, and how

Loading on watermelons, altering training schedules, and following a summer-specific diet are survival hacks for the athletes who are continuing their training in Dilli ki garmi.

Delhi’s heat is not for the faint hearted! And for the sportspersons who are training here in the Capital, it’s quite a fight to stay well while not missing out on their practice sessions. Gliding across the field, as sweat drips down their determined faces, some are carrying flasks full of lemonades whereas others are altering their training schedule to suit a summer specific diet.

Sportspersons (clockwise from top left) Aniket Gupta, Shubham Sheoran, Namrata Hooda and Mohit Sehrawat share how they are bringing their A-game to the training ground, amid rising temperature in the Capital.

Shubham Sheoran is practising for 8-9 hours every day, as he gears up for the upcoming Asian Games.

Shubham Sheoran, 25-year-old handball player who lives in Vasant Kunj, shares how his sleep hours have reduced in summer months and he’s juggling between Delhi and Hyderabad to train as part of the national camp; to get selected for Asian Games. “When in Delhi, I join the training at Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium or Talkatora Indoor Stadium. We would usually start practising at 8am, as part of the morning training session. But nowadays, our alarm goes off at 4.30am since we have to be on the field by 5am. This session ends at 11am and then we resume workouts in the evening at 5.30pm, which is the delayed time to avoid peak heat hours. This leaves me with hardly four to six hours of sleep. Had it not been for this extreme summer, I would have got good eight hours of sleep... In diet, we try to drink more water and survive on water-rich fibrous food like watermelon and cucumber. Usually, BCAA and glucose are drinks that keep up our energy high.”

Mohit Sehrawat hits the gym to keep himself fit during the off season and prep for the upcoming matches.

Mohit Sehrawat, 25-year-old kabaddi player is a travelling ticket examiner in the Indian Railways, and training at the railway grounds in Paharganj for Senior National Kabaddi Championship (Men). “In winter we stick to a pro-active diet, fitness routine and training for the kabaddi matches. But summer mein woh sab possible nahi hai. Thank God summer is an off season and we hardly have any matches. But, we do need to stay fit and hence resort to training in the gym aur woh bhi without the AC. We are also expected to keep a rich-protein diet par jitni bhookh lagi ho usse kam khane ko kaha jata hai kyunki summer mein agar zyada khaa lo toh utna fat burn nahi ho paata because our training isn’t as vigorous as in summer.”

Aniket Gupta takes two watermelons in a day to stay cool during his practice sessions in summer.

Aniket Gupta, 32 years old karate player, believes that intense summer heat can surely affect a sportsperson’s performance. “As sportspersons, we need to avoid being sensitive about the weather and keep our bodies aligned with the required training, be it hot summer days or chilly cold winters. Such discomforts shouldn’t affect our zeal and sincerity to achieve our goal,” says Gupta, who is an officer in the Income Tax Department, and prepping for the upcoming US Open Karate and swears by two watermelons in a day! “I am conscious of maintaining my weight and fat content in my body parts, so my daily diet is always restricted. To fight the summer heat, I take liquids including water in excess, to avoid facing dehydration. My diet also consists of more dry and seasonal fruits.”

Namrata Hooda has taken to a lighter diet in summer, to move swiftly on the court.

Namrata Hooda, 25 years old basketball player who lives in Paharganj and is training at the railways’ basketball court in the area, can’t let summer risk her chances at the upcoming National Basketball Championship; organised by BasketBall Federation of India. “I always stay hydrated during my practice hours. Recently, seeing the high temperature and news of how hot it’s getting, my coach suggested me to have minimum levels of water as that can make us feel bloated and is also a deterrent from jumping higher while aiming the basket! We are also suggested to stay away from the AC during summer months as that only makes us lose our breath when we play outdoors on a sunny court.”

Author tweets @maisha_scribbles

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