No matter whether it’s here at home in Hokie Nation or on the road at numerous practices and competitions throughout the year, Virginia Tech’s sports nutrition team is on the scene providing the right fuel for VT’s student-athletes.
In the wake of the current COVID-19 crisis facing families across the world, the Hokie Fuel team took the initiative Friday to ensure that student-athletes were well supplied with essentials to get them through the upcoming weekend until select campus dining facilities reopened for pick-up service Sunday.
Earlier this week, Virginia Tech’s sports nutrition team was working hard to keep Hokies fueled up.
The sports nutrition team aims to stay at the cutting edge of research, science, and the applications of nutrition in performance to help Virginia Tech athletes maximize their potential. Incorporating sound nutrition practices, in conjunction with proper training, rest and recovery can be beneficial to all student-athletes. Utilizing an individualized approach to sports nutrition, members of the Hokie Fuel group analyze individual needs and create specialized meal plans catering to the athletes’ needs and goals. In addition, athletes learn to navigate some of the best dining facilities in the nation, as well as local grocery stores.
Often considered the “missing link” in sports performance, Hokie Fuel believes nutrition can turn a good athlete into a great one. Their mission, with a food-first philosophy, is to help athletes reach their full potential in their athletic careers and beyond.
Aly Onyon is the athletic department’s director of sports nutrition. She is responsible for all nutrition- and performance-related concerns for varsity student-athletes, including individual counseling, team talks, body composition analysis using the Bod Pod, recovery nutrition plans, grocery store tours, training table menu planning, travel meal arrangements, managing the Nutrition Oasis and other Fueling Stations, and supplement education
Virginia Tech sports nutrition emphasizes a multi-faceted approach by working seamlessly with sports medicine, sports psychology, and strength and conditioning. The team works to create a culture that supports fueling for performance, positive body image, and individualized nutrition for all of Tech’s 22 sport teams, all while working within NCAA rules and providing permissible supplements.
–VT Athletics
