Nutrition consultant

Dr Dan Martin on switching from the rugby world to horses – and one jockey’s disgusting Christmas dinner

- Catherine Austen

I rather fell into the equestrian world. When I met my wife, who has show jumped since a young age, in 2012, I had never had anything to do with horses. I was working in rugby as a performance nutritionist.

In 2013, a nutritionist’s role came up with the Professional Jockeys Association (PJA); I applied because it was an appropriate job at an appropriate time, and got it. So within 18 months I had gone from having no interaction with the horse world, to having my personal and professional life taken over by it.

Through the PJA I work with jockeys right through their career. I work with them at the start of their careers, delivering the nutrition module on the licensing courses at the National Horseracing College, and I see them while supporting the 60 UK racecourses to ensure their food provision for jockeys is suitable.

I work with injured jockeys on the road to recovery as part of the Injured Jockeys Fund’s multidisciplinary team, and many jockeys come and see me at the university for lab-based testing.