Fuel The Olympic Fire: How is Chirag Shetty keeping himself fit before Tokyo 2020? All you need to know about his diet and training 

Chirag Shetty is one of India's premier doubles badminton players and is currently ranked 10th in the world. Along with his partner Satwiksairaj Rankireddy, he is all set to represent India at Tokyo 2020 as they are ranked ninth in the Race To Tokyo table.

Shetty's first significant medal at the international stage came at the Asian Team Championship where he won bronze. 2018 was a very fruitful year for the Mumbai-born shuttler as he won silver in the men's doubles and gold in the mixed team at the Commonwealth Games at Gold Coast Australia.

The pair had a nervy start to 2021 as they were ousted in the Round of 16 in the Yonex Thailand Open. But they came back strongly within a week and reached the semi-finals of the Toyota Thailand Open. They continued their good form in the Swiss Open in Basel and once again reached the last four where they were defeated by the Danish pair of Kim Astrup and Anders Rasmussen. However, in the All England Open, they once again had an early exit after they were beaten by the same pair of Astrup and Rasmussen in the Round of 16.

With less than 75 days to go for the Olympics, Shetty is leaving no stone unturned to board the flight to Tokyo in the best possible shape. Apart from the on-court sessions, he is focused on improving his strength and agility.

What does Chirag Shetty eat?

The badminton player focuses on what not to eat rather than what to eat. His diet is protein-heavy and low carb. Sugar and fatty food items are strictly forbidden.

"I avoid eating sweets. I avoid eating sugar as much as possible. If at all I am having sugar it will be in tea. I do not eat any chatpata (spicy) or masala stuff. If I want to chew something, it will be dry fruits or something of that sort," he said to Olympics.com.

At breakfast, he has eggs, fruits, and either dosa or muesli. He likes to have it heavy as the breakfast is followed by gruelling on-court sessions. For lunch and dinner, he has subscribed to a local 'Fit Meal' plan which provides him with specially curated meals as instructed by his nutritionist.

"They serve mostly boiled chicken, broccoli, and sometimes they give salad and rice as well. Chicken, mutton, or fish remains constant. Good source of protein, mostly boiled or stew. At dinner also, you have the same kind of stuff," he informed.

He has a cheat day once a month or when he visits Mumbai once in two months.

"Whenever I am in Bombay (Mumbai), I make sure that I have pav bhaji. That's my favourite," he smiled.

How does Chirag Shetty train?

Shetty's day starts at seven in the morning and by eight he reaches the academy after having breakfast.

"I do my strength training for 30 minutes before warming up and by 9 we start training."

This is the most intense training session of the day which goes on for two hours straight. After cooling down, he tries to have lunch by 12:30 pm.

"After that, it is important to rest. You recover well and at four you get back on the court for the afternoon session. It gets over around six."

The training sessions might get elongated with the Olympics approaching as the pair are trying to fine-tune their game in order to succeed against the faster Indonesians and Danish players.

Shetty is always careful about his fitness as his style banks on pace and agility.

"Fitness is extremely important. We have been pushing a lot more on the court than off-court. You do the regular gym in the evening but the on-court sessions are extremely tiresome. We also do shadows to increase our fitness," he revealed.

After a gruelling day of practice, he likes to have his dinner early around half-past seven and is off to bed by ten.