Maintaining a Healthy Gut: Nutrition Basics
There is so much news about sports nutrition all over the internet, but with such a hectic schedule as a student-athlete, your nutrition is the last thing on your mind. To maintain a sustainable healthy diet, all you need are some basic nutrition facts to keep you healthy and happy.
Sports nutrition requires some additional nutritional values to support athletic performance. Special attention to hydration is particularly important. But just like every person is different, every athlete is different so while these are some guidelines, everyone has to build their own plan accordingly.
The Basics:
According to Healthline, sports nutrition is about fueling the body to support daily activities as well as high-intensity training and competition. Including a variety of fruits and vegetables provides important vitamins, minerals, and phytonutrients. Whole grains and lean proteins such as chicken, pork, fish, turkey, eggs, and soy products are great ways to build a high-performance eating plan. Overall avoiding processed foods maximizes nutritional value and avoids additional sodium.
Protein:
Protein is a macronutrient that helps build muscle and recover from training, which is especially key for athletes. Most are derived from animal sources, but there are some plant-based alternatives too. The nutritional recommendation for protein intake for athletic performance is about a gram of protein per pound of body weight a day.
Carbohydrates:
Brown rice, whole grain bread and pasta, quinoa, sweet potatoes, and oats are all cabs that provide energy and fuel daily functions like exercising, breathing, eating, and thinking. Half of your grains should be fiber and the other half should come from simpler starches such as white rice, potatoes, pasta, and sweets and desserts. These simple carbs are best consumed before training sessions or games. Generally, carbs take up about 45-65% of your total calories.
Fats:
Olive oil, avocado, seeds, nuts, fatty fish, and whole eggs are just a few of the fats that provide a secondary source of energy. Fats provide more calories per gram than protein or carbs do. Omega-3 fatty acids are especially helpful because they provide anti-inflammatory properties that help athletes recover from intense training.
Balancing your diet:
20% comes from fats, 30% comes from carbs and 50% should come from proteins. In an ideal world, this is how the breakdown should look, but depending on the training season.
Meal timing:
Timing your meals can help optimize performance, enhance recovery, and build muscle. Consuming protein within 2 hours after a training session helps the synthesis process, and replenishing carbs around 30 minutes after exercising is also important. If you are an endurance athlete, then you might need to consume some additional intake of carbs or gels in between a longer than 60-minute workout. The same goes for if an exercise is less than an hour, then you can wait longer to replenish nutrients.
Hydration:
While exercising, you lose fluids and electrolytes through sweat. Staying hydrated helps maintain athletic performance during sustained high-intensity exercise. It also helps prevent dehydration, especially during hot conditions. Many athletes drink sports drinks to restore electrolytes and eat foods high in sodium and potassium.
Snacks:
Snacks are another way of boosting your energy without leaving you too full and sluggish. There is a great variety of pre-and post-training snack options that are nutritious and easy to prepare; think about a whole grain sandwich, apple slices with nut butter, hard-boiled eggs on toast, greek yogurt and granola, or some fruit with cheese. For an even quicker snack, a trail mix, protein bar, or shake are also good options. A good snack is a mix of protein and carbs, so pick something that you like and enjoy!
Sports nutrition is unique to every athlete, but everyone needs a good base on where to build. Choosing the right foods and meeting all your nutritional needs can enhance athletic performance and ensure a healthier you. So, remember to hydrate, grab some snacks, and head to practice!
