Effect of Plant-Based Protein Intake on Overall Athletic Performance among Athletes of Gwalior District

The present study was conducted to examine the effect of plant-based protein intake on overall athletic performance among athletes of Gwalior district. In recent years, plant-based protein has gained importance in sports nutrition because many athletes are including plant-based foods in their daily diet for health, cultural, ethical, and practical reasons. At the same time, athletic performance remains one of the most important indicators of sports readiness, training efficiency, and physical functioning. Therefore, it was considered important to study whether plant-based protein intake had any meaningful effect on athletic performance. The study was descriptive and analytical in nature. A sample of 100 athletes was selected through purposive sampling. Data were collected with the help of a self-constructed Plant-Based Protein Intake Questionnaire and Athletic Performance Assessment Scale. The data were analyzed through mean, standard deviation, percentage, and simple linear regression. The findings revealed that plant-based protein intake had a significant positive effect on overall athletic performance among athletes. The obtained value of R was 0.468 and R Square was 0.219, which showed that plant-based protein intake explained 21.90 percent of the variance in athletic performance. The obtained p-value was less than the 0.01 level of significance. Thus, the study concluded that plant-based protein intake had a significant positive effect on overall athletic performance among the selected athletes. The study has useful implications for athletes, coaches, trainers, and nutrition professionals.