Food for thought: Q&A with FSU football nutritionist Marisa Faibish
With the vast majority of Florida State's athletes living back home during the coronavirus shutdown, each of the Seminoles' support programs are having to tweak their approaches to provide their services as effectively as possible.
Warchant spoke earlier with FSU football strength coach Josh Storms about what he and his staff are doing. Today, we will get insights from FSU's director of sports nutrition, Marisa Faibish, to see what the university is doing to help the football team nutritionally during this hiatus.
Up next will be an interview with Dr. Kacy King, associate athletics director for student-athlete academic services.
Here is the interview with Marisa Faibish:
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Q: Back before the start of spring practice, Coach Norvell had some very positive things to say about the strides the football players had made from a nutrition standpoint. Some players had either gained or lost a lot of weight, and he seemed really excited about what was happening. Can you reflect on those first couple of months of the year and what was working so well?
A: Yeah, so the one big thing I struggled with in the past was being the only person to say, "Hey, nutrition is important," and not really have that support behind me to show the importance. And the biggest thing I've noticed with this new staff is they are very nutrition-forward. They understand the importance, and they also were ready to support me from the beginning.
So what's been really great is they have involved me in all the football staff meetings. I have a time in those meetings to talk about updates. They also have my back with the players and echo everything I say. So all of the things that I've been saying -- over the year-and-a-half that I've been here -- is now being echoed and supported. And because of that, it's amazing how the athletes have bought into the program.
Some of the things in the past, like post-workout protein shakes or having breakfast before practice ... now I'm having coaches back me up and saying, "That's important. Listen to Marisa." And now the players are doing it, and you can see the amazing benefits and all of the strides we made during the off-season -- just from them buying into the program. Really listening and paying attention and believing that it's important. So it's been great.
Q: We spoke earlier with Coach Storms about his approach in general, and also during this current set of circumstances. How closely do you work with him and his staff to accomplish the performance goals you guys have?
A: Oh yeah, it's funny because I just got off the phone with him before we started doing this interview. We always communicate, but obviously we're communicating a lot right now because that's all we have. But even when we were in the stadium and actually working on campus, I probably went to his office every day to discuss something. So we speak to each other constantly, because he's my eyes, and I'm his eyes. We see different things and we're able to help each other, because he's got them in the weight room and I've got them in nutrition. Both areas help with their performance, so it's really important that we're both on the same page and that we use the same verbiage.
Q: So when a coaching staff changes, do the goals for the nutrition program change? Or do you and your staff already kind of have your plan in place no matter who the coaches are?
A: It was definitely important to hear what Coach Norvell and all of his coaches wanted when it comes to nutrition. Right when he got here, I definitely had that first meeting with him and the O.C. and the D.C. and really all of the coaches: "OK, what do you think is important for nutrition? What would you like to see? Here's what we've done in the past. Let's meet in the middle and figure out what we want to do." Luckily, his staff sees me as an expert and and they trust that everything I'm doing is to benefit the athletes, and they fully support it.
Q: Do you set up individual nutrition plans for every player on the entire team? Or is it just for guys who have to make dramatic changes to their bodies?
A: It's individualized to the point of having their names on their specific post-workout protein shakes. So it's very individualized. And that's the great thing about this program is we're here to cater to each athlete -- not just the team, but to each individual athlete. So like right now, I have a weight-gain group text with all of our weight-gain guys. And I'll do grocery lists based on their budget and how much they need to be eating based on their goals. And I'll do that every week for some athletes. So it can be very individualized.
And then we have some guys who are just maintaining; they're fine where they are, so we might just get a weekly update with them to make sure they're doing well and see if they need any new recipes or anything like that. But for our guys who need to gain weight or lose weight to be impactful on the field, those are definitely the ones I'm hitting on the hardest.
Q: With most of the athletes back home because of the coronavirus, what are you able to do for them right now? Are the recipes and grocery lists about the extent of what you can do while they’re so far away?
A: Well, we’re doing that. We also have sent them care packages. And we are using our social media platforms very heavily. We actually just started an exclusive football nutrition Instagram page, so that way it’s catered specifically to our football team. So we can do anything from posting recipes for weight-gainers or weight loss or weight maintain, and we can also do virtual cooking classes with our guys. I can send them the recipe, they can go get the ingredients, and we can cook it together. So we can teach them how to make meals that way.
We also do daily texts – message blasts – reminding them to drink water and things like that. And what I’ve found to be really impressive right now, not just from our football players but all of our athletes throughout the department, is how many of the athletes want to do better are reaching out. It’s so amazing to see how many football players, specifically, have reached out and shown concern. Like, “Hey Marisa, I’ve got to be on top of my goals, can you help me?” They’re reaching out to me. They’re FaceTiming me when they’re cooking: “Hey, look what I’m making.” So they’re really taking pride in what they’re doing as well, which has been really nice.
Q: How are you able to keep track of hundreds of athletes? What kind of overall staff do you have?
A: Luckily, I am not the only one (laughing). Since I am the director, I oversee all the sports. But I have three other dietitians who work with me, and they have their own specific sports. And then to stay in touch with all of the athletes, we have been doing Zoom one-on-one counseling. Zoom actually has a HIPAA-compliant area, where it is very safe and secure, and we can have those private conversations with our athletes.
We are just making sure that we are able to touch every team as much as possible. I also work with softball, and we are doing team talks with the girls every week. We are doing those virtual cooking classes and the one-on-one counseling. And luckily, I have a lot of time right now to reach out to all of my athletes.
Q: What were you able to send them in their care packages?
A: It was just some things to help make sure they are fueled constantly, post-work out, things like that. Things they normally could get from us at the stadium — whether that be protein bars or other things to help them stay fueled during this time.
Q: I know most college-aged kids, when they go home, they’re kind of at the mercy of their parents when it comes to what food is brought into the house. And that might not necessarily be the kinds of foods you would recommend.
A: Yeah, like I said, what’s been really impressive is a lot of those guys are reaching out to me and saying, "Hey, my mom is going to Sam’s Club right now, what should she get?" Plus we are doing that weekly grocery list and showing them what meals can be made with those foods.
Q: If there are players that you’re not hearing a lot of feedback from, will you go to Coach Norvell or his staff and give them a heads-up that there might be something they need to look into?
A: That’s why it’s great that I am in those weekly football staff meetings. So if there is a concern with a specific athlete, that’s a great time for us to talk about it. And all of the coaches have my number, so if they have a concern, they will text me and say, “Hey this athlete has an issue with his sleep and recovery.” And then I can go talk to them about that. Like I said, Coach Norvell, Coach Storms and all the coaches are my eyes and ears. I always tell them if you hear anything that concerns you, reach out to me, because I’m not going to see everything — right now especially.
Q: And those Monday meetings — Coach Norvell has mentioned before that he likes to bring everyone together to get a full picture of the program — is that a new experience for you? I’m guessing you didn’t have that opportunity in the past?
A: Since I have been at Florida State, I’ve never had that opportunity until his staff came here.
Q: It has been helpful?
A: Oh, it’s super beneficial. Also because I am able to give them updates on our weight-gain guys, our weight-loss guys, and I’m able to give them updates on different things we want to incorporate with the team. That lets them know what we are doing.
Q: How did you get into nutrition? Were you an athlete? What attracted you to that field?
A: That's funny. I was an athlete my entire life. I played soccer. But I came to Florida State as an undergrad and to get my master’s, and I started off as a meteorology/environmental science major. That didn’t work out, but growing up, I always knew I wanted to help people. I didn’t know how, but I knew I wanted to help support people in some way. And I love science. I love performance. And I love putting them together.
Understanding how nutrition can help a body. How it can help someone go from second place to first place in a 100-meter sprint, or whatever it may be. And I’m also a really big science nerd, so I love to hear the research on it. Before I came here, I worked at Appalachian State University for two years as the director of performance and nutrition. And then I got this job about a year-and-a-half ago. So I came back.
Q: I know this might be hard right now to look to the future with everything that is going on, but because of the progress you were making in the winter and early spring, how excited are you about the opportunities for this program once you guys get back together and it’s full speed ahead?
A: I am so excited. I am juiced up. I was so excited when spring practice started and it was really sad when we had to stop three practices in. I am just really pumped to see the motivation within the guys. There’s fire underneath every single one of them. It’s amazing to see that and to see the progress we’ve made in just a few months. Imagine what it’s going to look like two years down the road. I’m really excited to be a part of this team, for sure.
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Talk about this story with other Florida State football fans in the Tribal Council