Subhas Nair - SINDA Excellence Award (Basketball) Recipient (Part 2)

Note:

If you are keen and have queries, please contact Coach Rameshon at 9100 4369 or you can email him at m.rameshon@gmail.com or swift.rameshon@gmail.com. Please refer to website http://flexifitness.com.sg (for more information on him and his programmes)

By Rameshon

Bsc (Hons) Degree in Physical Education, Loughborough University (1992-1994)

Masters in Education (University of Western Australia, 2005-2008)

Subhas Nair - Weight Reduction = Improvement in lifestyle and performance

The people that I talked to, recently, told me to do a write-up on people who have, through dedication and determination, lost weight using common sense approach. Rather than I write points on how to reduce weight, I told myself to write on people who have gradually lost weight. One such person that I would like to feature is Subhas Nair. Today, I met Subhas Nair in Hwa Chong Institution (college) and told him that I will be doing a write up on him. As a Youth Olympics player, I have completed part 1 of his interview in the September Blog issue. Over time, I was thinking of featuring him on his recent weight reduction campaign, while on his path towards excellence in his chosen sport, which is basketball.

I posed two important questions to Subhas Nair on weight reduction and he answered all basing from his experience.

Can you tell us how you reduced your weight when you were in year 1 and year 2?

When I entered my first year of Junior College in Hwa Chong, I weighed a hefty 205 pounds or around 93 kilograms. I realized that while a lot of this weight was muscle mass, I was also carrying far too much fat on my body to realistically ever become an elite athlete and it was the only thing holding me back from really breaking that barrier and improving not only my performances on the court but also my overall quality of life and general health.

I then told myself that I needed to drastically change and improve my training methods and also my eating habits in order to effect a positive change immediately to see results in both the short and long term and help my school win back-to-back national championships.

I kicked out junk foods, oily foods, processed food, refined sugar and excess carbohydrates and calories from my life, and substituted them with more whole grains, fruits, nuts and vegetables. Also, I use the term "life" as I believe this is not a diet, this is a lifestyle change, as anyone can go on a diet for a certain amount of time and after they reach their goal, they go "off" their diet and put on weight. I find this very pointless and I believe a total change in one's lifestyle and habits is more purposeful and significant, and although this is a difficult decision for anyone to make, however, it is really a positive and necessary change that any serious athlete should not neglect in his/her training.

Also, as it is a lifestyle change, technically my training never ended. Everything I did (and currently do) in my life, from proper sleeping habits to even stretching in the mornings were a part of my training. Also, it was very important to surround myself with the positive and correct motivation to ensure my focus and some of this positive motivation included the work of individuals such as my peers and indeed more renowned individuals such as the wise words of Jack LaLanne and other successful athletes such as Ray Lewis in the NFL and many many other basketballers and athletes, who have made it clear to me that "Hard work beats talent, when talent doesn't work hard", and this allowed me to stay highly motivated and zeroed in on my targets and goals.

Through this lifestyle change and positive mindset, I managed to lower my weight down to a healthy 77kg ( 170 pounds ) in mid-2010 and managed not only to look better but also to feel and live better. This is definitely a feeling of great individual triumph, which is one of the best feelings in the world.

Do you find weight reduction as beneficial to your sport? Can you explain more about this?

Definitely, my weight reduction has improved the quality of my performances on the court and also helped me realize my dream of dunking a basketball. I was a faster, stronger and more agile athlete and I saw my scoring output during games balloon as I was given a larger role on both the offensive and defensive end of the court. It has also opened the door to allow me to pursue new targets and goals, which I had never dreamt of just a short one year ago.

I feel that this is also an added advantage for me adapting this change as in Singapore as unfortunately, too many young athletes do not realize the importance of maintaining a healthy lifestyle as the country sees obesity fast becoming one of the major risks facing youths today. Also, I believe this is what is keeping Singaporeans mired in merely recreational sports as very few individuals make it onto the regional, let alone international scene as professional athletes as they fail to invest total dedication in their fields of sporting interest and take care of their health and fitness to ensure they can play the game they love at the highest level possible for the longest time they possibly can.

Also, rather surprisingly, my improved fitness has made me very much more attentive in class. Because now I lead a healthier lifestyle, I also enjoy less stressful and improved state of mental well-being and I am able to perform better in tests and examinations, which will hopefully continue through my GCE 'A' Levels examination which is coming up in November 2010.

The End

Note:

By Narayanan

Rameshon has taught in Hwa Chong Institution, plus several schools, and Republic Polytechnic as well. He has won many accolades and he was awarded Merit Award for 1991 marathon performance in breaking the national record of Singapore, at that time. He has made 22 male athletes do a marathon in sub-3hrs. He has made 7 female runners do sub-4 hours for the marathon, as well. He was inducted to the ‘Roll of Honour’  by the then College of Physical Education, organised by Singapore Olympic Academy, in 1998, for breaking the National record repeatedly 4 times, till he did 2hr 24min 22sec).

He also has a Coaching group and he trains them on Tuesdays and Thursdays, 7pm at Botanic Gardens. Those interested can call him at 91004369 for coaching assistance, to improve performance. There is also personal training that he does for many in a week. You can e-mail him at swift.rameshon@gmail.com.