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Sports nutrition in Zimbabwe

Sports nutrition in Zimbabwe

Zimbabwe Map by Vemaps.comBlessing TF Mushonga, registered nutritionist

Zimbabwe has produced world-class athletes over the years. To name a few sporting codes, Zimbabwe has excelled in:

  • the Zimbabwe ladies hockey team (Golden girls) who won gold in 1980 Summer Olympics,
  • Kirsty Coventry who won various accolades in swimming at the Olympics and World Championships, and
  • the Cricket team that ranked top ten in the world

Performance and winning probability could be higher with more local high performance centers that embrace the eight pillars of high performance: Psychology, Planning, Rituals, Training, Nutrition, Recovery, Stress and Sleep.

An athlete needs good sports nutrition to perform at an optimum level and athletes benefit from an individualized nutritional plan that compliments their body composition.  All this is being slowly incorporated into Zimbabwean sports and many athletes have benefited.

Sports nutritionists from outside of Africa need to understand that athletes in Zimbabwe come from different economic and social backgrounds. This impacts the types of foods they can recommend. Some sports associations sponsor an athlete’s food list. A number of times we have to plan with naturally available foods in season as they are the less costly options. Supplements like whey, creatine, etc. are readily available but are quite pricey because they are not produced locally.

In Zimbabwe, there is a great need to educate athletes from a very young age about the fundamentals of sports nutrition in order for them to grow to their maximum potential and develop good performance nutrition practices.  Nutrition education should also go to coaching and technical staff. Other sports professionals offering high performance are yet to appreciate sports nutrition as an important pillar to ascertain a comprehensive high performance service in Zimbabwe. The future is bright in Zimbabwe for the sports nutrition profession to grow and help take Zimbabwean sport to the next level and help Zimbabwe’s athletes compete with the world’s best athletes at all international games.

Author

Blessing TF Mushonga is a Registered Nutritionist with an Honours degree in Nutritional Sciences. He is currently studying a Post-Graduate diploma in Sports Nutrition.  Blessing consults as a sports nutritionist to the Zimbabwe Olympic Committee: Medical Commission (all sporting codes). This includes Zimbabwe Women’s Rugby, Zimbabwe Men’s Hockey, Zimbabwe U21 Ladies Hockey, and St John’s College (Zimbabwe). Blessing also has a private practice called Nutrition-Ward that provides nutrition services in sport, clinical, corporate, research and writing. He is in the national hockey men’s squad and has won five varsity hockey trophies with the University of Zimbabwe.

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Alice Sharples

Sydney


Alice is a performance nutritionist working in Australia. Originally from New Zealand, she developed an interest in sports nutrition through her own involvement in athletics and field hockey. This led her to complete a Bachelor of Applied Science in Sports Nutrition at the University of Otago, followed by the International Olympic Committee Diploma in Sports Nutrition and a Master of Science with Distinction in Sport Nutrition from the University of Stirling.

Alice began her career working across women’s and men’s high-performance sport in New Zealand, supporting athletes in rugby, football and basketball. These roles gave her valuable experience translating sports nutrition science into practical strategies and working collaboratively within multidisciplinary performance teams.

Alice transitioned to Australia, where she has continued her career working with rugby league athletes and swimmers. Alongside her applied work she undertook a PhD through the University of Technology Sydney, investigating the factors associated with nutrition and sleep in rugby league athletes.

Alice is passionate about strengthening the sports nutrition profession through collaboration, connection and the exchange of knowledge. She values the opportunity to learn from practitioners with diverse experiences and perspectives and feels privileged to contribute to PINES and its global professional community.

PINES role

As administrator of the PINES Member Exchange, Alice helps connect sports nutrition professionals from around the world and creates opportunities for members to share knowledge, experiences and ideas. She supports member engagement and the continued development of the Exchange as an inclusive and valuable platform for the international sports nutrition community.