"What me and Virat eat is extensive, expensive." Sunil Chhetri discussed the challenges of being a vegetarian in sports and the high costs of maintaining such a diet.
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00:00So people like Virat and me have played for the last six years at the top level, physically being vegetarian.
00:05So that myth is gone, that vegetarians can't play.
00:09I don't know, some kid might think, I'll play by showing off.
00:11And he won't be able to play, my friend.
00:13He won't be able to play at the top level.
00:17Do you encourage children, this whole debate on vegetarianism and sports?
00:23This is a good question you ask.
00:24So why I don't talk about being a vegetarian is for a single reason.
00:31Do not think that you'll be able to play by eating roti, pyaaz, dal.
00:36And this is what comes to the minds of general people.
00:38The first thing people ask is, where will you get protein from?
00:41You already know the person has no knowledge or lack of knowledge.
00:46So people like Virat and me have played for the last six years at the top level,
00:50physically being vegetarian.
00:52So that myth is gone, that vegetarians can't play.
00:56But what me and Virat eat is extensive, expensive right now.
01:02And it's not easy to bring on the table.
01:06We eat a lot.
01:08We are really fortunate we got chefs.
01:10We got nutritionists.
01:11Two, three types of vegetables, cereal, quinoa, salad, nuts, fruits, pomegranate.
01:19There are a lot of things on the table that we eat.
01:21Then we get the enough fuel needed to perform.
01:25So that's why I'm afraid to say, yes, you can play vegetarian.
01:29I don't know.
01:29Some kid might think I'll play by eating dal and roti.
01:32And he won't be able to play, friend.
01:33He won't be able to play at the top level.
01:35So that's why I restrain myself from saying that yes, vegetarian is good.
01:40A lot of effort from my chef and my wife goes every day to make food for me.
01:47Every day.
01:47You wake up, what do you eat?
01:50That's a cheat meal.
01:51Whenever I wish to, I'll eat that.
01:54But generally the same stuff.
01:55I mean, it's the same fruits.
01:57It's the same seeds, same nuts, same quinoa, same red rice.
02:04There are a lot of Indian options to it.
02:06Yeah.
02:06Ragi is one of the best.
02:07I love ragi.
02:08Me and my son loves ragi.
02:09God, that's such a Bangalorean now.
02:10Ragi is good.
02:11And also idli is good because it's fermented also.
02:14So again, you don't have to go on labels and buy expensive stuff.
02:19We Indians, throughout the country, we have so many good options.
02:22So if you don't understand anything, I'm talking about diet.
02:25Eat what's being made at home.
02:28When I was growing up, vegetables, rice, lentils.
02:33And every other day there was meat, eggs.
02:37And your wife is a Bengali.
02:39So does she make fish?
02:40She consumes fish.
02:41I'm a vegetarian.
02:42She consumes a lot of fish.
02:44And your baby?
02:45He is eating everything.
02:48I want him to eat everything.
02:49And he enjoys it.
02:50His favorite is...
02:51So you're not that new age mom and dad.
02:53No salt, no sugar, no all that.
02:56He doesn't eat sugar.
02:57We don't give it to him.
02:58We try not to give him packets because I don't eat it myself.
03:01So it's not that I don't eat stuff from packets.
03:04So I don't give it to him.
03:05For all the viewers, if you do not understand anything.
03:10Eat what's being made at home.
03:12And accept the timing.
03:14Timing.
03:15Your body likes good timing.