Prairie View A&M University athletics has created a new and exciting way to assist student-athletes to prepare for competitive success.
 
The Panthers' Fueling Station recently opened, providing additional nutritional support to all PVAMU student-athletes to assist with sports performance. The fueling station is stocked full of foods with advantageous nutritional components, whether it be loading protein for muscle building and recovery or eating low calorie but nutritious foods in order to manage weight.
 
"Opening the fueling station is a great opportunity to provide our student athletes a way to sustain their high levels of performance over a longer period of time," said Prairie View A&M Vice President/Director of Athletics Ashley Robinson. "Eventually this will assist with the elevation of their performances consistently throughout the season. We believe this will be one of PVAMU's key components to winning multiple championships and SWAC Commissioner's Cup titles, which we have been close to achieving in recent years."
 
The fueling station is another step in helping Prairie View A&M student-athletes to be their best. The heightened focus on educating athletes on what they put into their bodies was elevated last season. In conjunction with Houston Methodist, the official medical provider for Panther Athletics, a sports nutritionist meets regularly with individual teams and athletes, tailoring individual meal plans for teams and athletes so that they can get the most out of their bodies during competition.
 
"We've opened the fueling station for the specific purpose of fueling our student-athletes for high-level athletic performance," said C.J. Potter, Assistant Athletic Director of Sports Performance. "The nutritional needs of athletes varies greatly, not only from the general public, but between sports, genders, and even between different positions on the same team. The fueling station allows our student athletes the ability to customize their nutritional content to their individualized athletic needs."
 
Foods like peanut butter and jelly and cottage cheese, from tuna meals and turkey sandwiches, to 100% fresh fruit smoothies and fruit, are stocked daily in the fueling station and all 400+ student-athletes can come daily and take as many items as they want without restriction.
 
"The fueling station has been a positive experience for me," said PVAMU women's track athlete and three-time SWAC 400 meter champion Deonca Bookman, who qualified for the NCAA Championship this past June. "I am not a breakfast person, so I never really have time to cook anything or grab something from the MSC (Willie A. Tempton Sr. Memorial Student Center).  Having the fueling station has made it easier for me to grab a quick snack on my way to practice so I won't be running on an empty stomach like I have done in the past before this station was implemented.  It has definitely enhanced my performance."
 
Zachary Hamilton of men's basketball, who recently scored his 1,000 career point, sees the positive impact the fueling station is having.
 
"This is great for the student athletes," said Hamilton. "This really helps with the performance of our athletes day-in and day-out, and it fuels us throughout the week.  It's better than putting a whole lot of junk in your system. If you put canola oil in your car tank it won't run right, so if fuel your system the way that you should, it should most definitely enhance your performance."
 

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