By Elisabeth Tharp | Broadcast Reporter
Nutrition is an important aspect of healthy living and prosperous growth, especially for athletes. For student athletes, it can be hard to maintain a balanced diet with classes, homework, practices and game days.
The Beauchamp Athletics Nutrition Center focuses on feeding Baylor student athletes and providing a variety of food options every day.
Timothy DiLeo, associate director of sports nutrition, explained what goes into feeding college athletes and head chef, Tracie Hartman, talked about how they make sure the athletes are consuming the right types and amounts of food.
“Nutrition is a huge piece of their performance. It’s often one of the most overlooked pieces of performance because I would say it’s kind of the newer piece of performance,” DiLeo said.
The BANC is convenient for Baylor athletes since they often don’t have time to plan all their meals and account for all the calories and nutrients they need.
“Just across all sports, you know, they have different needs,” DiLeo said. “So it’s a lot of different science that goes into feeding all the different athletes in different sports.”
With over 650 student athletes, it would seem like it would be difficult to keep track of what each athlete is eating every day. But with the help of nutritionists and Hartman that task is far from daunting.
“I kind of patrol the dining room and they know if you’re going to eat the bad thing, then you better have some good stuff on your plate as well,” Hartman said.
The BANC is located off University Parks Drive, directly across from campus and next to the Simpson Strength and Conditioning Weight Room. This convenient location allows athletes to easily grab a bite to eat and refuel.
