Personal cook concocts a healthy diet for Chambers

10/10/2005

She isn't his mother. Not his wife, either. Not even a girlfriend. Yet Victoria Murray has become one of the most important women in Chris Chambers' life.

"Ever since training camp, I've felt so much better because of her," the Dolphins' wide receiver said. "It's definitely paying off."

He feels more energetic. Less sluggish. More vibrant.

Murray is responsible for planning, buying, preparing and delivering nearly every bite of food that Chambers eats. She's better than a chef. Different than a nutritionist. More personal than a caterer.

"I look at them as family," says Murray, who has helped Chambers cut his body fat by nearly 3 percent. "I think of them like they're my own children."

At the suggestion of wide receiver David Boston, Chambers hired Murray at the start of training camp to deliver lunch and dinner each day. So every afternoon and evening, Murray tracks down Chambers on his cellphone and delivers his meals in a brown bag filled with Tupperware.

Simple enough, right? Not quite. "It's a full-time job," Murray said. "It probably takes about 40 hours a week."

Right now, Murray has just one client. That's still enough to keep her busy.

Since she also makes sure the food is nutritionally flawless, it takes a full day — usually Sunday — to plan meals for the week. Murray also uses only organic foods.

Between trips to Whole Foods Market and hours of preparation, her schedule is as stuffed as Chambers' stomach.

"I don't have anybody at home to cook for me on a regular basis," Chambers said. "And I'm too tired to cook, so it's just good to have a nice meal twice a day. I'm living too good right now."

Chambers is one of the least demanding clients Murray has had. Boston, whom Murray calls "her baby," hired Murray last year to cook three meals per day. She also made sure his dog ate organic foods. And she cooked all of Boston's meals in his kitchen.

Don't think Murray's clients take her for granted. On her birthday last year, Boston surprised her with a large basket from Saks Fifth Avenue overflowing with Chanel products.

And on Valentine's Day in 2000, the Ravens' Jamal Lewis — who was training in South Florida for the scouting combine — showed up to eat one of Murray's meals with a dozen roses and a box of candy. "I was shocked," Murray said.

That was the least Lewis could do. When he started eating Murray's meals, he was 12 pounds overweight with 7 percent body fat. He wanted to lose the weight and drop to 4 percent body fat. Mission accomplished.

Now for the real question: How much does a service like this cost?