Judith Lukaszuk likes to give advice to famous athletes — indirectly.

Lukaszuk, an assistant professor in the college of Family, Consumer and Nutrition Sciences, has given dietary guidance to professional tennis stars’ coaches.

In August, Lukaszuk attended the US Open to talk to the athletes’ coaches.

“I get excited about going every year,” Lukaszuk said. “It is something I love to do. It is fun for me.”

“When I first came here [to NIU] in the fall of 2000, I was set to do a US Open lecture that year,” Lukaszuk said. “It was interesting because the lecture coincides every year with the first day of class at NIU. Fortunately, the department chair was supportive, and I could go.”

Lukaszuk said she has lectured tennis coaches for the last three years.

“I basically wrote to them and said, ‘I have expertise in nutrient and exercises physiology.’ They contacted me and said they wanted me to talk to the tennis coaches,” she said.

Choosing to concentrate on tennis was an easy decision, she said.

“I love tennis,” Lukaszuk said. “I am an avid tennis player and fan. I have watched for years; I think a lot of other areas are overpopulated from a nutritional perspective. Tennis is not as overpopulated as other sports.”

Tennis, however, is not the only sport Lukaszuk has lectured on.

“I did all the athletic counseling at Pittsburgh University for football, soccer, wrestling, gymnastics and tennis,” she said. “I had a wide range of athletes I would talk to on a daily basis.”

A graduate of the University of Pittsburgh, Lukaszuk received her doctorate in exercises physiology.

Although Lukaszuk has seen a lot of tennis players play, she has yet to come into direct contact with the players.

“The tennis stars themselves are not sitting in on my lectures,” Lukaszuk said. “The coaches are the ones that relay my message on to them.”

Lukaszuk is interested in contacting the tennis professionals, but she said she thinks most of the stars already have personal nutritionists.

“Once [they] get to that level of being tennis professionals, they probably already have people they are talking to regarding their nutrition,” she said. “Otherwise they probably won’t be able to get that far.”