Pasta And Preparation: Roger Federer Reveals His Secret For A Balanced Diet

20-time Grand Slam champion Roger Federer says he ‘cannot wait’ to return back to the court after staring in a special surprise video recently released by Barilla.

The former world No.1 travelled to Finale Ligura in Italy to meet 13-year-old Vittoria and 11-year-old Carola. Who starred in a viral video earlier this year of them both playing tennis on the rooftops during the lockdown. The video started as an interview with the two girls before the Swiss maestro showed up and surprised them both.

During filming for the advert, Federer spoke with long-time sponsor Barilla about a variety of topics besides the video. The 38-year-old hasn’t played a competitive match since his semifinal loss to Novak Djokovic at the Australian Open in January. Since then, he has had to undergo two surgeries on his right knee. The second procedure was required after he failed to achieve the desired results from his first.

“To be honest, it wasn’t easy, and I haven’t played much tennis lately,” Federer commented about how he tried to keep fit during the lockdown.
“I am recovering from a knee surgery that I’ve had this year, so I was focused on the recovery and on keeping social distancing and to stick to the rules.’
“I was in Switzerland with my family and friends, trying to work as hard as I was allowed to for my knee. But all is progressing well, and I cannot wait to be back on the tennis court soon.”

With 103 titles under his belt, Federer is the second most decorated player in ATP history. The first is Jimmy Connors, who won 109 titles during his career. He also holds the record for most weeks spent as world No.1 on the men’s tour at 310 weeks.

Now one of the oldest players in the sport, Federer says the key for an athlete to have a balanced diet is moderation. As for his food of choice, he usually consumes pasta before matches. Federer signed an endorsement deal with The Barilla Group back in 2017 worth millions. Barilla is the world’s largest pasta producer.

“The secret to a healthy and balanced diet stays all in moderation. Whatever you do, you have to do it with moderation, but you also need to enjoy food,” he said.
“Pasta has always worked very well for me before matches. I’ve eaten pasta almost before every game, and I’ve played almost 1500 matches now, and I still love it like the first day. It is important to stay healthy.”

As for his home life, when it comes to meals Federer takes a more traditional approach learned from him and his wife’s Mirka parents. Making sure his family gathers around the dinner table ‘several times a week.’ Something that is easier said than done for a tennis player who regularly travels around the world.

“We really take a big effort and make sure we get all together at the table maybe once or twice a day, definitely several times a week,” Federer explains. “I think it’s important to talk about our day, about what has happened, and not to just sit down, eat quickly and run away. For me it is part of a nice unwinding of the day or even a great way to see each other and catch up, because our lives are all very busy.”

Federer is currently ranked fourth in the ATP rankings.