AS AN elite AFLW midfielder whose performance relies on being properly fuelled, it would be easy for Fremantle star Gabby Newton to view the significant dietary restrictions she manages as a hurdle. 

The smiling and skilful star of the Dockers' engine room, Newton plays with a physically demanding style while eating a dairy-free and gluten-free diet and managing other intolerances to foods including onion and garlic.  

Having lived with the discomfort of food sensitivities but not understood the cause, Newton first got answers when she arrived at the Western Bulldogs as a No.1 pick in 2019 and she has been on a mission ever since to better understand her body's needs.  

The 25-year-old had a breakthrough off-season in 2026 learning more about how to fuel her body for performance and flipping the script, turning a potential hurdle into a reason to be diligent with nutrition and thriving with her dietary restrictions. 

"When I first got to the Bulldogs, I spoke to the dietitian who told me, 'The things you're feeling after eating certain meals are not normal'," Newton told AFL.com.au this week. 

"I just thought maybe everybody just has like terrible stomach cramps and feels awful after every meal, which is bizarre to think about now. 

"Even after games growing up or even going into games, I would feel exhausted but thought maybe that's just my nervousness for the thing itself.

"[Finding out] was quite overwhelming, because it was a complete overhaul of my diet. But I've learned more ever year, and society as well is always getting better about intolerances and allergies." 

An All-Australian in 2025 and vice-captain at Fremantle this season, Newton's standing in the game has grown significantly in recent seasons and she has again been a key driver in the Dockers midfield in 2026. 

As part of her preparation for this season, the Victorian approached Fremantle's AFLW dietician Carla Florio about taking her game-day preparation to the next level and trialling new food and drink options that could work for her. 

It was a lengthy process of elimination that took place alongside all the other demands of pre-season, but it helped reduce the nervousness and anxiety that can exist for elite athletes who have specific dietary requirements. 

"We really did work quite intensely over the pre-season to trial new products and also trial the amounts that Gabby would need during training," Florio told AFL.com.au.  

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"We essentially used training and match sims to simulate what we would do on game day, and then when it came to the season, it was one less thing for her to worry about.  

"For athletes that have specific dietary requirements, it can feel really overwhelming and quite anxiety-inducing. But I think with Gabby, she really knows her body so well and knows what food and drinks work for her and which ones don't. 

"She's a great example of how using the off-season to trial new food and drink products can work to meet game-day demands.

"She knew which foods were going to sit well for her, what her drinks combinations were going to be, and what really was going to help to elevate her performance."

Preparing carbohydrate drinks, gels, snacks and other game-day fuelling options for athletes with specific dietary needs is a key part of the job for sports nutritionists like Florio, and it requires a lot of planning. 

Back-up options are also needed in case there is a curveball while travelling for matches. 

The importance of being prepared and knowing what she needs to perform is clear to Newton now, especially when she reflects on her early seasons in the AFLW, which saw her under-fuel herself for games out of fear of triggering symptoms. 

While her education and preparation went to a new level when she joined the Dockers, her sister's diagnosis with coeliac disease was another key moment that helped Newton switch on to the fact that her needs were different and that was OK. 

"In a way, it's empowered me now that I'm a little bit older and I think I'm a lot more empowered to speak up," Newton said.  

"When I was first starting out in my career, I'd just rock up to team dinner and be like, 'Oh, there's nothing gluten free, but I don't really want to like put anyone out of place'. 

"Even up to last year, I opted out of team meals and I would bring my own meal.

"But being able to have faith in the club to provide all the things I need, Carla has been really cool in getting me to try different things and I learn more about it every year."

Newton will be a key player when Fremantle takes on Sydney at Cockburn ARC Oval on Sunday, with the Dockers first needing crosstown rival West Coast to beat Hawthorn on Saturday to keep their finals hopes alive.  

The Freo No.1 will have everything she needs to perform from a nutrition point of view and knows that elite athletes are in a privileged position to work with experts who can help them manage their dietary needs. 

For young athletes who don't have the same support, Florio said it was important to be attuned to your body and notice if you have significantly low energy or are fatiguing quite early.

They are signs that it is worthwhile speaking with a sports dietitian or doctor, she said, to start the process of identifying if certain foods are triggering intolerances or allergies.

With that support, Newton said special dietary needs did not have to be seen as a barrier for young athletes aspiring to the elite level. 

"The past couple of years I've really taken it into my own hands and just reduced those barriers so that now I'm just not seeing it as a barrier at all," Newton said. 

"But we're obviously very privileged to have all those sorts of resources.

"There could be kids who are suffering and getting symptoms and not feeling well and just don't even realise it, so I hope for young kids that there's a lot of education around that for them as well."