What should athletic people eat

For access to exclusive gear videos, celebrity interviews, and more, subscribe on YouTube! Courtesy Image. More Videos. More from Sports. It happens the days, weeks, and months leading up to the competition. Peak performance during competition means eating nutritious food while traveling. Relying on the concession stand for food during competition is an almost certain failure. Players and parents should prepare by packing a variety of food and beverages.

Choose energy-packed foods such as whole grain crackers with low-fat cheese, tortilla wraps with veggies and lean meat, hard-boiled eggs, vegetable or bean soups, small boxes of non-sugary cereal, fresh fruit, mini-whole wheat bagels with peanut butter, pita bread with hummus or pasta with grilled chicken.

Fibrous carbohydrates can be beneficial as these tend to cause GI disturbances. Refer a Patient. Find a Doctor. Search UW Health. Pay a bill. Refill a prescription. Obtain medical records. Order flowers and gifts. Send a greeting card. After exercise, you need to eat carbohydrates to rebuild the stores of energy in your muscles if you are working out heavily.

Protein is important for muscle growth and to repair body tissues. Protein can also be used by the body for energy, but only after carbohydrate stores have been used up. Most Americans already eat almost twice as much protein as they need for muscle development.

Too much protein in the diet:. Often, people who focus on eating extra protein may not get enough carbohydrates, which are the most important source of energy during exercise. Water is the most important, yet overlooked, nutrient for athletes. Water and fluids are essential to keep the body hydrated and at the right temperature.

Your body can lose several liters of sweat in an hour of vigorous exercise. Clear urine is a good sign that you have fully rehydrated. Some ideas for keeping enough fluids in the body include:.

Offer children water often during sports activities. They do not respond to thirst as well as adults. Teenagers and adults should replace any body weight lost during exercise with an equal amount of fluids. For every pound grams you lose while exercising, you should drink 16 to 24 ounces to milliliters or 3 cups milliliters of fluid within the next 6 hours.

Changing your body weight to improve performance must be done safely, or it may do more harm than good. Keeping your body weight too low, losing weight too quickly, or preventing weight gain in an unnatural way can have negative health effects. It is important to set realistic body weight goals. Once these principle habits have been established, a registered dietitian can help you fine-tune your diet based on individual needs.

A serving size of fruit and starchy vegetables such as corn, peas, and potatoes is about a fist, while a serving of vegetables is two fists. These sources are rich in carbohydrates, vitamins, minerals, and fiber which contribute substantial resources for high-intensity activity and recovery.

Depending on physical activity level, these high-starch foods should be consumed in amounts equivalent to one-two fists at each meal, especially those prior to exercise. Complete protein sources are those that include all of the essential amino acids your body is unable to produce itself. Amino acids serve as building blocks for several vital functions in your body, such as cell structure, muscle maintenance, and chemical reactions.

Animal proteins are complete sources, but certain combinations of plant-based proteins can also provide adequate amounts of all essential amino acids as well. Lean animal proteins such as poultry and fish should be prioritized in the diet and portions should take up about a quarter of the plate and be about a palm in size.

This food group is packed full of calcium, complete proteins, potassium, and carbohydrates, to name a few.