Vinay Menon: The Indian shaping the wellness culture at Chelsea and Belgium national team

A frayed Belgium team is back home after a shocking exit from the World Cup 2022. One quiet and enterprising Indian is often seen standing unobtrusively on the sidelines. He is there to bring calm into their lives. “It is football, which like life, one never knows what happens the next minute. It’s best to accept and move on,” says Vinay Menon, wellness coach, Belgium Football Team and Chelsea FC. Menon, an encyclopedia of wellness, has created a niche in the world of elite footballers. His MO is simple: Help these elite footballers deal with the high-intensity life they lead. The Cherai, Ernakulam-born Menon works behind the scenes with these masters of the beautiful game – to work on their mind, body, and soul. Taking tenets and lessons from a versatile philosophy that brings together various schools of thought in positive psychology and wellness, it has been his methodology for the past 13 years. Luck, and then Chelsea FC An opportune meeting with the then Chelsea FC owner Roman Abramovic, it has been reported, saw Menon work as his personal trainer, before, the Russian saw merit in his teachings fitting in the highest levels of football. That catapulted this ordinary Indian on a skyrocketing career trajectory — he joined Chelsea FC as wellness coach, and continues in that role, even today. [caption id=“attachment_11755961” align=“alignnone” width=“341”] Vinay Menon with Chelsea captain Cesar Azpilicueta.[/caption] Humble beginnings in the verdant Cherai, to Ananda in the Himalayas, then Jumeirah in Dubai, Menon landed slam dunk in the middle of football’s most gloried echelon, the Chelsea Football Club in London. Oh, and he does bleed blue, whole-heartedly! Prod further, and he laughs, saying, “I have FIFA, Belgian FA and Chelsea Football Club rules to abide by, thus the limitation to quote anyone. Yet, I am in a position today where I would like to help Indians as a European insider of football. There is no other Indian at the Premiere League. India is already late to come into the world of football, and to give back as an insider is what is important to me.” He joined the Belgian national team during the nations league, Menon explains, “the structure is such that when international duty calls, club operations stop, so that is why one can work in both spaces if the club permits.” The Belgians were wonderful. “Fantastic, great people. As wellness coach of the team – I help on how to create mental equilibrium for the players, before, after, during a match — everything is about preparation. I am a part of the backroom staff, where lots of specialists are at work behind the scenes — doctors, engineers, even though you see only 11 players on the pitch,” says the guy with an MPhil in Physical Education from Pondicherry University. A philosophy of Bhakti yoga Rubbing shoulders with the who’s who at the Premiere League and world football aside, a profound urge to impart wisdom has taken Vinay from strength to strength. Yoga science at the Kaivalydhan Institute (Pune), he was further strengthened by his great grandfather’s and grandfather’s Bhakti yogic pursuits and adhyatma yoga philosophy. Menon’s self-coined wellness mantra ARFA (awareness, recovery, focus, achievement) brings a profound knowledge of self. “My strong background in physical education, hypnosis and psychology, sleep therapy – in the past 13 years, I have been in the most professional environment at Chelsea FC, dealing regularly with highly trained elite players. If a player has specific issues, I address those. I need to be a good listener and help these elite performance athletes. “The only drawback is that there is no time. I use the influence of all the learning, it is a journey I created. I am a staunch believer of the yogic philosophy, and it is more important than the popular moves, asanas, pranayama, etc.” Menon’s sessions are one on ones that players can opt for, and encompass healing. “Players don’t have much time — to go step by step. They come for half an hour to reboot. To bring their brain level and waves to drop to low theta and delta level, to manage energy levels for performance,” he adds. That learning from his ancestors, who followed a staunch yogic life, going to the Himalayas, preaching bhakti yoga, Menon feels has wired his foundation. Unimpressed by today’s yoga fitness fad, he clarifies, “that is a bad influence, as it is only on the physical level, while the traditional treaty or texts focus on the inside.” His strategy? Apologetically close-mouthed, he says, “I work with people to harness the power of the mind.” A family of accomplishments [caption id=“attachment_11756241” align=“alignnone” width=“640”] Vinay Menon is an MPhil in Physical Education from Pondicherry University[/caption] From Cherai to Chelsea, his life story was released in August 2022, which was a labour of love during Covid 19, written by his wife Prof Dr Flomny Menon, who teaches leadership in the UK, and was earlier Dean at the FA Academy and manager at Chelsea FC herself. The book, he chuckles, “is a Covid production.” Incidentally, he met Flomny when she joined Ananda as a physiotherapist specialised in spinal injuries. Today, as doctors and professors teaching business to ex-players, sports professionals, top execs, etc, uncannily, sports and therapy have intertwined their lives and careers. “We are great friends, the constitution of marriage should be 50/50 - where I am weak, she is strong, we complement each other,” adds Menon. He calls himself the doer, while Flomny is the boss. Their son Abhay plays squash recreationally and loves beating his father. The family stay at Chelsea in London. A Russian connection Conversation, inevitably, steers towards Russian oligarch Roman Abramovich, and Vinay laughs, predictably changing tack, “After Ananda, Flomny and I travelled to Jumeirah, there I would meet many accomplished people. One couldn’t predict who will be in front of you! I got an opportunity to go to London, to Chelsea Football Club. It was sheer luck.” It was during the time Jose Mourinho was the gaffer, and a chance conversation with Ivory Coast footballer Didier Drogba about life and self, changed perceptions. Oft perceived as odd, even mumbo jumbo, soon other players opted to work with him. Eden Hazard among others were getting their sense of calm, and it spread like wildfire. “Now, my blood is blue!” giggles the Chelsea FC wellness coach, who funnily, had never seen a football match in Kerala before Chelsea FC. “Succinctly put, I found an empty space to fill, that of wellness, I fit in, and fixed it. Now, I am the Vinay of football,” he grins. Going back to the roots Still a “Cherai” guy, his roots are strong. A state gold medallist Judo player, Vinay believes his predilection to sports, Judo and yoga came full circle with his august clientele - world-famous footballers, CEOs, elite athletes. No names though! “I look after famous individuals, apart from footballers. I am thankful to have the privilege to meet and train some big names,” he adds. For every player, there is a different strategy. Menon is lucid, “I help them by being a friend, listening and helping them reach their goals. Knowledge of the self is very important, to be aware of oneself, intensely, to perform at an elite level or any level.” Giving clarity on what the person needs, he adds, “In all sports as in life, recovery is key, ME time is crucial to analyse oneself and reflect – Ask the question, where am I, who am I and how am I – and you’ll find your answer.” Not that easy, but it’s these one-on-one sessions with Menon that helps elite players relax, reflect and rejuvenate. That’s quite profound. The author is a senior journalist. Views expressed are personal. Read all the Latest News ****, Trending News ****, Cricket News ****, Bollywood News ****, India News and Entertainment News here. Follow us on Facebook ****, Twitter and Instagram ****.