MANILA, Philippines - Donning the Philippines’ colors in the biggest sporting event in Southeast Asia the Southeast Asian Games (SEA Games), which recently concluded in Singapore Filipino athletes showed that they can slug it out with the best athletes from the neighboring countries.
The Philippine Olympic Committee (POC) has new programs for the SEA Games representatives in order to realize their full potential and ensure that they are at their peak condition during this much-hyped event and other international sporting events in the future.
The Philippines’ foremost sportsmen successfully translated these programs into more wins after improving the country’s seventh place standing during the 2013 SEA Games in Myanmar, to a sixth place finish, bagging 30 more medals in this edition of the Games.
POC enlisted the help of professionals in the fields of sports science, sports psychology, sports vision, sports rehabilitation, sports training, and nutrition in order to whip the athletes into shape and to achieve their optimal fitness level.
Before heading to Singapore, athletes from different sporting events went through rigorous training and special programs that rendered them more competitive than usual.
“Now, our efforts are double compared to what we did in the other international competitions; it’s really harder training for the SEA Games. Sometimes, you want to give up, but you force yourself because you’re doing it for the country,” said Olympic rowing representative Justine Vinas, who missed the podium after settling for fourth place.
Emmanuel Escote, who is the spiker of silver medalist sepak takraw team, said they trained intensely to top their successful performance in the recently concluded King’s Cup Sepak Takraw World Championship in Thailand.
Acknowledging the important role of good nutrition in an athlete’s performance, POC created a sports nutrition program to make meal plans for the athletes depending on their specific needs. In the process, POC nutritionists learned that many of our national athletes are constipated and lack an understanding of proper nourishment in achieving optimum health.
To address this issue, the POC partnered with a leading supplement brand in the country, C-Lium Fibre. With the tie-up, fiber was incorporated in every athlete’s meal plan in order to reach the 25 to 30 grams of the recommended daily fiber intake. Athletes were asked to take C-Lium Fibre in husk form mixed with water, first thing in the morning.
“When we came, a lot of them were constipated because they did not know what to eat. What we did was we made sure they were eating a balanced diet and they achieve the required daily fiber intake with the help of C-Lium,” said POC nutritionist Luningning Caravana.
After just a couple of weeks on the program, athletes reported experiencing regular bowel movement and no longer suffering from bloating or other signs of digestive disorder.
SEA Games first-timer Justine Karyle Vinas claims that the bloating of his stomach disappeared after he started POC’s nutrition program. The sepak takraw standout disclosed, “The nutrition program also helped me lose weight and maintain it.”
C-Lium Fibre, available in husk and capsule formats, is made from natural psyllium plant, which is a good source of soluble and insoluble fiber.
According to the National Fiber Council, the soluble fiber in psyllium absorbs water, turns it into gel, then attaches to food, sugars, cholesterol, and fats in the stomach. It then helps to expel these from one’s digestive system. A high-fiber diet also helps lower the risk of developing life-threatening diseases such as heart disease, certain forms of cancer, diabetes, and stroke.
“I think it’s one of the most important supplements we need to take as individuals. C-Lium Fibre is actually a very good product and it’s very convenient and so there’s no excuse for you not to be able to get the right amount of daily fiber because it’s so accessible,” said coach Jim Saret.
Coach Toni Saret, who is co-heading POC’s program with her husband coach Jim Saret, said, “You cannot work out with poor nutrition. Fitness and sports are always tied up with proper nutrition; you cannot have one without the other or else you cannot attain your optimal performance as an athlete.”
C-Lium Fibre is a product of Pascual Laboratories, Inc. and is available in major drugstores nationwide.