Staying hydrated is extremely important for NFL players during training camp, especially with the incredibly hot temperatures that scorch the country during the months of July and August. Drinking plenty of water is the easiest way to stay safe, but Panthers defensive end Thomas Keiser has a secret that he believes keeps him even safer: Chia Pet seeds.
According to the Panthers official website, Keiser mixes the seeds with his water and then drinks them.
“People ask me all the time if it’s the same stuff that’s in Chia Pets,” he said. “It is. I’ll have probably two or three tablespoons in somewhere between two-thirds and a full gallon of water every day. It helps hydrate you, because it absorbs 10 times its weight in water. And instead of the water just going in your system and flushing right out, it’s going to sit in you longer.”
Keiser said he catches plenty of flack from his teammates for the strange ritual, but that it is too beneficial for him to care. Instead of letting them bother him, he just makes a joke out of it and continues on with his seed routine.
“Most of the guys think I’m pretty weird for carrying that around. I just keep telling them it’s like Mike’s Magic Juice in ‘Space Jam’.”
It’s all fun and games until somebody’s puking the way a dog would after grazing in the backyard a little bit too much. But hey, I guess that’s a lot better than dealing with the dangers of dehydration and heat stroke.
H/T Eye on Football
Photo credit: Michael Hickey-US PRESSWIRE
