Ronnie O’Sullivan is preparing to face old rival Ali Carter at the World Snooker Championship on Tuesday, and he might be relying on a familiar strict diet to get him in top shape. O’Sullivan confirmed his participation in the tournament just one day before it began, making his comeback following an extended break from the sport.
The Englishman’s last competitive appearance was at the Championship League in January, where he dramatically snapped his cue. As he announced his decision to compete in the tournament, the 49-year-old revealed it’s his nerves which have kept him away from the table.
Even committing to play in the World Snooker Championship was a significant hurdle for O’Sullivan to overcome, and he plans to face these issues head on to get back to his best.
Speaking to BBC Sport, O’Sullivan said: “Because it is the World Championship and the last tournament [of the season] I thought I need to try and break that cycle. Call it stage fright, I just haven’t had the [will] to go and compete. Call it lost my bottle. You sometimes lose your nerve. Just to come here is an achievement for me.
“The kind of nerves I have [been] feeling off and on for the last two years have not been good nerves. I have just been not wanting to go out there – sometimes struggling to even take my eyes off the floor. The confidence has been draining away, so it has not been a great place to be.”
The snooker star might return to the diet regimen he followed during last year’s competition, which saw him embracing intermittent fasting. O’Sullivan disclosed that he would go without food for about 16 hours before breaking his fast, aiming to enhance his energy levels during play.
After reaching the quarter-finals in the previous tournament, O’Sullivan discussed his distinctive dietary approach. “I just do what’s right for me. It’s not like I sit down with someone and work out what’s right, what’s wrong and how to peak,” he explained.
“A lot of people think I do. What I do is I try to eat right. I’m intermittent fasting for this tournament because it gives me more energy.”
He continued: “There’s certain things I do and it doesn’t necessarily mean I’m going to win, I just need every little advantage I can get at this stage. This is a tournament of endurance, stamina and concentration. For me, intermittent fasting just gives me a bit more energy.
“Once the tournament’s over, I’ll be back to eating 24 hours a day. There’s times when you have to work out what’s right for you. I go a certain period of time where I won’t eat and it’s just amazing the energy you get from it. I’ve always found it works really well for me.”
Intermittent fasting is a popular dietary pattern that shifts focus from what you eat to when you eat. It usually involves consuming food within an eight-hour window and staying hydrated with liquids during the remaining 16 hours of the day.
John Hopkins Medicine reports that this diet can increase the duration your body spends burning calories and can train it to burn fat more effectively. However, O’Sullivan adopted intermittent fasting following a period of sickness rather than for weight control.
Reflecting on his experience, he said: “I got ill and the only way to give my stomach a rest was by not eating. My nutritionist said ‘the only thing you can do is not eat’ but obviously you have to eat. I was doing it and I went ‘you know what, I love this, it’s great’. I just felt it worked for me.”
O’Sullivan also explained how he had been more “energised” since starting this dietary regimen, but acknowledges that such a strict lifestyle is not suitable for everyone – though it has certainly had a positive impact on him.
The seven-time world champion added: “That’s 16 [hours] at the moment, 17 sometimes. I try to stop at about 7pm but it’s hard obviously when you’re playing matches. Last night was 8:30pm so I didn’t eat again until about 12:20pm today. It feels great, I feel good. I’m 48 and I feel energised. If I eat too much I get really sluggish.
“Animals in the forest apparently go days without food and then all of a sudden they get hungry, get their prey, eat it and just digest it for a while. They’re not having three meals a day, it’s just eat when you’re hungry and give your body a rest sometimes. It works for me anyway.”
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