Sports Nutrition

    

Sports Nutrition

Introduction

Sports nutrition is nothing short of essential. What you do

not know about the athletes that you see on the television,

competing in the Olympics and breaking world records is

that they have a plan in place that allows them to succeed.

If you will succeed at your sport, you too need to insure that

your nutrition is the top of the line. Do you know what you

need to do?

Ask yourself these questions:

• Do you know when to eat before your game is to start?

• Do you know what foods are going to help to ultimately

win the game if eaten before you compete in the

game?

• Do you truly know how much hydration your body

needs to power its way through all that you plan to put

your body through?

• Did you know that with proper nutrition, the right plan

and consistency, your body can do better, perform

harder and be more likely to be successful at what you

want it to do?

Dedication Counts

When it comes to sports nutrition, there is no reason to

assume that you know it all. In fact, you should be hungry

for learning. Learn about what is out there to help enhance

your body’s performance. Learn about what you should be

doing now so that your time on the floor is perfectly

optimized. And, learn how to properly take care of yourself

to avoid the risk of injury.

When it comes to these things, dedication is the most

essential element. You will learn in this book that it takes a

lot of hard work and dedication to be successful at sports

nutrition. There are no short cuts worth taking either.

Knowledge is the first key to success. You will learn how

sports nutrition affects virtually every aspect of your game

and how you can better enhance your game by the foods,

exercises and processes that you put your body through.

You should dedicate time to work through these steps and

suggestions to better your overall performance. As we

mentioned, it takes quite a bit of dedication. Therefore, do

not expect to eat the right meal and get results right away.

Your body needs you to provide it with the fuel that it needs

to do each and every thing that you want to do. Yet, most

sports players do not pay enough attention to their goals in

sports nutrition. Many make the mistake of believing that if

they just work harder that they can do what needs to be

done.

Work Smart By Learning First

As an athlete, you need to look at all aspects of the game.

Therefore, it is up to you to insure that your game has all

the fuel and power behind it to allow you to succeed quickly

and effectively.

To get started, read through our ebook and learn what you

are missing. Then, move to using these elements in your

everyday life, by adding them in as you go. You should

expect it to be hard work. But, when you implement the

changes you find here, you can also expect to find results.

It is recommended that you spend some time at least talking

with your doctor to insure that your health is at an optimal

level before playing any sport or changing your diet

drastically. Additionally, if you are facing any physical

challenges or taking medications, insure that it is safe for

you to follow these recommendations.

Success can and does happen when you look at all areas of

your game including sports nutrition.

What Is Sports Nutrition?

Today is the day that you begin to enhance your game. As

an athlete, you already know that you need to work hard at

insuring that your skills on the court, field or track are the

best they can be.

You want to insure that your body is doing everything in the

correct manner from start to finish.

You may spend hours perfecting your movements. You may

work to build your muscle to enhance how well you can

throw that ball.

Or, you may spend countless hours pushing your body to

just get past that race line by a fraction of a second better.

All of these things are essential parts to being a successful

athlete. There is no doubt about that. But, that is not all

that you need to handle either.

Off The Court Work Outs

Besides planning your next routine, your next set of reps

and your next game, you should be concentrating on your

nutrition. Think about it.

What your body eats is what makes it move.

What you put into your body is the fuel it will use to do the

things that you want it to do.

What you do not put into your body can not help you to

succeed either.

While it may sound hard to determine what the right

products are, it does not have to be.

As an athlete, you need to focus your time on sports

nutrition as much as you focus it on your workout.

You should take the time to learn about what your body

needs, how it reacts to the foods you put into it and how

well it will perform based on the fuels you provide it.

The good news is that sports nutrition can be broken down

into a much less difficult thing especially in comparison to

the workout that you know that you need.

Aspects Of Sports Nutrition

There are several aspects that you need to consider when it

comes to sports nutrition. This is the overview of what we

will cover here.

• Hydration: Your body needs fluids first and foremost.

It needs the right type of fluids and they need to be

provided at the right time. This may be a bit tricky at

first, but ultimately, without fluids, your body is

completely limited in what it can and will do for you.

Carbohydrates: No, we are not talking about any type

of diet here. In fact, carbohydrates are an essential

building block for your body’s workout.

You need to know when to eat them, what they will do

for you, and how much to consume. Luckily, you will

find that information here.

Proteins: Protein is the building block of our body’s

muscle. Without the right types of proteins in your

body, your body can not successfully build muscle

groups to accomplish tasks that you want it to.

You need to learn what you need, when you need to

consume it as well as the right products to provide.

• Fats: Are they good or bad? Do you know? Your body

does need fat, no matter what those diets tell you.

But, you need to know what fat is good fat and your

body needs to have them delivered at the right time for

them to be useful to you.

Doesn’t One Diet Work?

Something that is often misunderstood is the reason why

there is not just one diet out there that is used for sports

nutrition.

If you need certain amounts of foods, specific foods and at

the same time, wouldn’t everyone be able to follow the

same plan along the way?

The answer to this is no. Each and every one of us has a

very different body make up. In that, we need various

amounts and specific planning in our food consumption.

Another contributing factor to this is our age. Let’s face it.

Our needs change as we age and our bodies need us to

provide them with foods to compensate for those needs.

Even when you are young and fit your body needs

something different as you age.

Additionally, the race that you are matters too. Various

cultures need various types of foods, minerals and vitamins.

Remember, bodies developed over time in various ways.

Therefore what you need is not the same as what someone

around the globe (or right next door!) would need.

Finally, your body’s size matters too. Obviously, the larger

you are, the more calories your body needs to feed your

body’s cells. But, that does not mean that you can just take

on a little bit more here and there.

Even more so, what you plan to do with your body will effect

what you plan to consume. Will you physically exert your

entire body or will you simple exert just your arms? These

are plenty of differences that lie here too.

It All Sounds Confusing

There is no doubt that sports nutrition is a bit complex, but

that is only until you break it down and determine what it is

that your body truly needs.

When you take the time necessary to balance out all of

these factors through a solid sports nutrition plan, you will

ultimately be able to succeed at what you need to do, no

matter what it is.

Your Goals:

Your goals will follow these needs specifically:

1. Learn what foods your body needs to ingest to succeed.

2. Learn when you need to feed your body those foods.

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3. Learn what amounts your body will need to be

successful.

4. Develop a plan to help you to succeed at sticking with

the goals.

5. Work the plan and find success.

That makes it sound easier, right? Throughout the next

chapters, things will get easier, we promise! Soon, you will

be well on your way to a successful sports nutrition plan that

will provide you body with excellent fuel to give you the

winning edge you want.

Hydration Is Key

Keeping your body hydrated is a very essential part of the

process of sports nutrition. Your body needs fuel in the form

of fluids. It is a very essential part of your well being and

life in general.

If you do not have enough water in your body at any given

time, your body will ultimately suffer. It is a fact of life that

can not be denied.

As an athlete, not providing yourself with the necessary

amount of water, or limiting it, can cause you to have

numerous problems including the risk of serious health

complications.

On top of that, your game will suffer without the right

amount of water.

Why Water Matters

Without taking you too far back to science class, think about

the serious job that water has in your life and in your body.

• It has to be there to move the vitamins, minerals and

other nutrients through your body. It keeps blood

moving which carries the fuel that your cells need for

energy.

• Additionally, water helps to move out the waste

products from your cells. This allows them to keep

your cells at an optimal level.

• Finally, your body uses fluids to keep the body at the

right temperature, there by protecting your health

overall.

Can you live without water? No. When it comes to sports

nutrition, it is nothing short of essential. How water helps in

sports nutrition is important for you to know and to practice.

When your body burns energy, it produces heat. That heat

races through your body.

If you think of your body as a car, if the engine gets too hot,

it can not perform as it should. Therefore, you will find a

way to keep your engine cool, water is a necessity.

Additionally, your body needs to have these fluids to allow

you to carry all the nutrients throughout your body. Since

you are working on developing muscles, enhancing your

physical characteristics, you realize that your body needs

those nutrients to get where they need to go.

For that, they need water to push them through.

Water helps your body to grow, but also helps you to repair

cells as you work hard at achieving your goals.

The Importance:

If you lose 2% of your body’s fluid, your overall performance

will considerably drop.

If you lose 5% of your body’s fluid, you can find yourself

facing heat exhaustion, which is not good. Now, you are

barely moving.

If you lose 10% of your body’s fluid, you are at risk for heat

stroke and even death through dehydration. In other words,

game over.

How Much Is Enough?

Do you think you can just drink a glass of water when you

are thirsty? Thirst is actually the first sign of dehydration.

If you get to the point of being thirsty, you have already lost

at least one percent of your body’s fluids and are already

putting your body at risk.

There is not too much, drink more than enough to quench

your thirst. Do not stop when you are no longer thirsty

either.

It is essential that you are always keeping those fluids

moving in your body, pumping energy to your cells so that

you can perform.

There are plenty of misconceptions out there about how

much water is enough water for you to have in your body.

The fact is that your body should not be restricted during

your practice, your warm up or during your game.

Your body needs water consistently throughout.

I’m In Good Shape, I Know What My Body Needs

This is a poor attitude to have. When your body tells you it

is in need of fluid, it’s too far gone to keep performance up.

Instead, your mind needs to think, “I need water soon.”

Now, if you are a conditioned athlete, well on your way to

success, your body will need additional water than that of

someone that is, well, farther behind.

• Your body is burning fuel faster and that means more

heat is produced quicker.

• On top of that, it is depleting the energy faster, so fluid

needs to get there faster.

• Your body is probably sweating more too, which means

even more of a need.

Tips For Fluids

Here are some basic things that you need to keep in mind

when it comes to water.

• Drink water in smaller amounts, more often. This will

help to provide a constant level of fluid. If you attempt

to drink water too quickly, you get that heavy feeling in

your stomach that you just do not need or want to

have.

Remember, small, more often.

• Six to eight ounces ever 15 to 20 minutes during your

game or during your work out is ideal. If you feel you

need more, then increase this amount slightly until you

feel comfortable about it.

• Don’t go for ice water. You need water that is at the

right temperature too. The right temperature is cool

water, about 50 to 40 degrees.

This will help to get rid of the heat in your body but will

not sit heavily in your stomach.

• Cool water is absorbed quickly by the body, putting it

right to work for you.

• Weigh yourself before and after your workout or

competition. Drink eight ounces of water for every

pound you have lost for optimum results in your

workout. Make it a habit!

• Don’t dehydrate yourself for weight loss benefits.

While you will drop a few pounds by restricting what

you drink, your overall performance will significantly be

reduced if you do this.

Therefore, you need to insure that you follow good

hydration steps even when weighing in is important.

• Skip the caffeine. Caffeine is actually like a diuretic

and will increase the amount that you have to urinate.

Therefore, you are not hydrating yourself, but putting

yourself at risk.

Drinks like this include any type of sports drink that has

caffeine as well as things like soda pop, teas, coffee

and even foods with high amounts of caffeine.

• A sure way to tell if you are dehydrated or drinking

enough water is to pay attention to your urine. Urine

that is dark or only a small amount is a sign of

dehydration.

It should be fairly clear and there should be a good

amount of it.

Knowing What To Drink

As you can see, we really have pushed the word water here.

That’s because water is the best type of fluid for you to

consume.

Yet, there are many various sports drinks on the market that

claim they too can help you.

When considering whether or not you need to drink sports

drinks, you need to consider what your practice has been

and what your body needs.

To Drink Water: Most of the times you will only need to

drink water. Your body does not need fuel from the fluid you

drink.

You should drink water whenever you are enjoying a

standard workout or game.

Generally, if your physical activity is that of fewer than 90

minutes at a time, you should only need to drink water.

To Drink Sports Drinks: Now, if your body will have to go

for a longer period of time, or you have to compete quite

often (several games in just a short amount of time) then

you need to consider sports drinks.

When drinking sports drinks, you want to insure that you

find those that contain carbohydrates and electrolytes. Your

body will need these in these stressful situations.

The sports drink you choose should have less than eight

percent in total solids which includes both carbohydrates as

well as electrolytes.

If you go with something that has more, it is not easily

absorbed into your body, delaying any benefit it may have.

Dilute sports drinks by 50% if they contain over this

amount.

Avoid fructose sports drinks. Look at the label. If you see it

has fructose as the only source of carbohydrates, then you

will want to avoid it. It will take your body longer to use

these products and delay results even further.

Juices

You can use juices at the same time that you would use the

sports drinks, only during long, hard sessions of endurance.

If you do use these products to help you to gain back some

of your body’s necessary power, you will want to dilute

them. To do this, dilute an equal about of fruit juice to the

same amount of water.

You will do this because standard fruit juices have a high

concentration of carbohydrates. This amount is far too

much for your body to use easily.

You should consider fruit juices such as orange juice to

refuel on.

When you use these tips to help you keep your body fueled,

you will find yourself completely ready to perform at a high

level. It is necessary to insure you provide optimum levels

of hydration as it applies to sports nutrition.

Fueling Your Body

Food. Your body needs this simple tool to help it to do

virtually every single thing that it has to do. From breathing

to walking to playing your game, your body depends on food

to fuel it.

While water is essential to life, food is essential to

performance. Without the right amounts, types and timing

for the food you eat, your body will not be able to reach its

highest level of performance no matter what you plan to do.

There is no workout that will work for your body more so

than the fuel that you give it. It has a direct relation to your

performance and therefore is one of the building blocks in

successful sports nutrition.

The Balanced Win

As an athlete, your specific needs are your own, but there is

no doubt that if you want to win at physical activity, you

need your body to have a balanced diet. You probably have

heard this many number of times, but it is the same as day

one.

You need to consume a balanced diet of foods to be

successful.

The combination of foods will provide your body with all the

essential building blocks that it needs. This includes

vitamins, minerals, fats, carbohydrates, and proteins. Each

of these elements plays their own role, one that is crucial to

your success.

Think of food as a team effort. You know that you are only

as good as your team is, right? When you do not provide all

of the right nutrients to your body, to limit them, they can

not perform as a team and then the overall whole suffers.

How many times does the star athlete go down in a game

and the team crumbles around them? Or, how many times

does someone that is a smaller asset and the star can not

longer hold the team up? The same is true for food.

The body needs each one of these pieces for the whole to

work. The goal that you have is to learn what it needs and

how it needs them to get the whole working well.

Over the course of the next chapters, you will better learn

what each element plays in the whole race. But, for now,

we want to take you back to grade school where you learned

what your body needs to sustain a good overall healthy

lifestyle.

Lucky for you, this same information will apply to your own

health in sports nutrition now.

Foods: A Plan For Successful Diet Management

Eating food is a must, of course, but what you eat is just as

important as how much you eat. So, let’s break it all down

for you.

Do you remember the food pyramid from school? That is

the ideal thing for you to use for your basic sport nutrition

education.

While we will tweak it later, this is the overall best thing to

use to determine where your level of nutrition stacks up.

What You Need

Here’s the breakdown for you. But, we want to strongly

inform you that what is listed here is the minimum of what

your body needs to perform. The more you demand from

your body, the more it will need. We will go into more detail

on what that will include later.

Dairy Group:

Your body needs dairy to provide your body with calcium.

Proteins, vitamin A, and riboflavin are also found in dairy,

making it necessary for good nutrition.

You should consume at least 3 servings per day which is

about 8 ounces of liquid or about one and a half ounces of

solids.

You will find dairy in milk, yogurt, and cheese. You should

limit the amount of fat that comes in from these items

though. Low fat products increase the good while

decreasing the bad.

Vegetable Group:

Vegetables are ideal. You will get many of your nutrients

like vitamins and minerals from vegetables. You need an all

around good variety of foods to fit this need.

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To balance what you eat, try to eat lots of different colors

and look for dark colors for more benefit.

You should have five servings of vegetables per day which is

about half of a cup of raw or cooked vegetables, one cup of

leafy vegetables or six ounces of juice.

Great choices in vegetables include tomatoes, broccoli, and

Brussels sprouts for their high levels of vitamin C. For

vitamin C, go with carrots, sweet potatoes, pumpkin,

greens, and spinach.

Darker colors, like dark greens, deep reds, oranges and

yellows are ideal for a good overall nutritional value.

Meat Group:

With meat comes protein, the very building block for

muscles. Therefore you need to insure that you get enough

protein in your diet to allow you to build your strength.

Meats also include iron, thiamin, riboflavin, niacin and zinc.

You need to consume three servings per day in meats. This

is about three ounces of cooked meats, two eggs, one cup of

cooked beans or lentils, or four tablespoons of peanut butter.

Good choices include lean amounts of beef, pork, lamb,

poultry, dry peas and beans, peanut butter and eggs.

Grains Group:

You will learn that carbohydrates are a necessary building

block for energy in the body and many will come from

grains. They provide complex carbohydrates that you need

including starch and fiber.

Additionally, they contain protein, the B vitamin group and

iron.

You need to consume eleven servings of carbohydrates per

day. This is about one slice of bread, three or four crackers,

half of a coup of cereal, rice or pasta, and one ounce of

breakfast cereal.

Good choices for sports nutrition include grains that are

whole grain. In this group you find cereals, bread, pasta,

and rice. Whole grains are a must.

Fruits:

Fruits are another source of many of your necessary

minerals and vitamins. They have vitamin C which is

powerful and can be found in your citrus foods.

Additionally, melons, strawberries and blueberries are all

great sources. Apricots are great for Vitamin A.

You need to consume four servings per day in fruits which is

one whole fruit item like eating a banana or an apple. Half

of a grapefruit, six ounces of fruit juice, or a quarter of a cup

of dried fruits equals a serving.

Calories

When it comes to your fuel intake, you also need to keep in

mind that the more that you do, the more that you will need

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to provide your body in fuel. If you want to go farther in

your vehicle, it needs more gas right? The same here is

true.

We monitor how much we intake by calorie count. The

average person will need to consume about 3000 calories

per day. If you are intensely athletic, you should increase

this to 5000 calories a day.

But, you must do this in the right manner. That is, you

should increase it through eating additions of all food groups

that we have mentioned and it should be done with lean

foods rather that fatty foods.

Depending on the amount of exercise, practice, competition

and physical exertion that you need to put out will ultimately

determine the amount of calories you need.

You do not want to eat too many so that you gain weight in

fat, but you do want to provide enough for weight gain in

muscle as well as for energy use.

Tips To Remember

1. Eat often, but eat less. Your body should not need to

wait hours before its next meal. You need to provide

it with the fuel it needs consistently. Eat a meal every

few hours that is much smaller.

2. Snacks are the ideal meal between big meals. But, do

not go for empty calories or poor nutrition. Great

choices for snacks are vegetables, fruits, salads, and

nuts. These provide high levels of minerals and

vitamins your body is craving.

3. Get your energy from all the food groups.

Carbohydrates are ideal for times when you are

pushing yourself hard. They are perfect for a workout.

But, you do not want to cover them with bad stuff

either. Go without the butter and without the

dressings.

4. Breakfast is essential. Your body needs a kick start in

the morning to get the metabolism moving. It also

gets your body working the right way from the start.

Don’t skip it.

5. Skip late night meals. They will not provide you with

anything necessary for your health. You need to

provide your body with nutrients so that it can do

things. Food is fuel, not needed for sleeping!

In The Next Chapters

In the next chapters, we will break down all the needs that

you have and tell you how to balance the carbohydrates, the

proteins, the fats and other elements in your diet.

It is important to know when to eat and how these elements

of your diet power your diet and your sports abilities.

Carbohydrates Role

We hear a lot about carbohydrates today. Often, they are

called bad and unhealthy. Yet, this is not true.

Go back to an analogy of the team. As a team, nutrients

work together but if you take one away or lessen the

amount you eat of it, you drastically lessen the quality of the

rest of the team.

In this case, you need to realize that it is necessary for your

body to have the carbohydrates that it needs to power

through your body’s demands. Carbohydrates are nothing

short of essential.

As you will learn here and throughout this ebook, the best

thing that you can do is to provide your body with the right

type of food. So, while we say carbohydrates are good, that

does not mean that any carbohydrate are good.

You should always look for whole grains when it comes to

carbohydrates and you should look for things that are not

full of sugars, bad fats and processed foods.

Did that just end your food tastes? It shouldn’t.

The Role Of Carbs

As part of a balanced diet, carbohydrates are a necessary

part, but what do they do to your body when it comes to

sports nutrition?

In the world of sports nutrition, carbohydrates play a large

role. They are necessary because they provide an essential

source of foods for your nutrition. If you look back at your

food pyramid, you will notice that you are supposed to

consume 11 servings per day of grains.

Grains make up most of your carbohydrate intake, but that

is not all. In fact, you will intake carbohydrates when you

eat fruits, vegetables and other foods as well. Most

commonly, starch foods will contain mostly carbohydrates.

Carbohydrates should be consumed at 65 to 70 percent of

your body’s calories!

How They Effect Your Body

Carbohydrates are necessary for the production of energy in

your body.

• The body will take carbohydrates and convent them to

sugars for easy consumption.

• The starch in carbohydrates is used for energy in the

form of glucose (the sugar) to power the body through

exercises.

• Carbohydrates are also stored in your liver as well as in

the muscle tissues throughout your body. This is called

glycogen.

• Carbohydrates give you a high power boost of energy

for a short time period.

• When the body does run out of carbohydrates in this

type of fuel, it will then burn other elements including

fat and then it will go to protein to use for energy

output.

• When your body goes to fat usage for energy, the level

of performance you get will drop.

• When the body goes from fat to protein, it is beginning

to take apart muscle mass which is counteractive and

therefore will cause performance to further drop

significantly.

• Not enough carbohydrates when you begin to exercise,

play your game, or physically exert yourself and your

body will resort to turning to stored fat and stored

protein.

• Do not exercise heavily for more than 60 minutes

without consuming any carbohydrates.

• Do not do anything high intensity too much without any

carbohydrates available to power your body through

fuel.

• Keep the amount of events, games, or physical

exertions for one day or several days, minimal or, add

additional carbohydrates to your diet during this very

intense period.

Points To Remember

There are two things that you need to remember when it

comes to carbohydrates:

1. Eat quite a few carbohydrate foods for the several days

before your event, heavy exercise routine, your

exercising routine or any other time in which you will

need lots of energy available. This will help to load

your muscles with glycogen: fuel for your body’s

needs.

2. If you will be participating in a high intensity, long term

event or several events over a short period of time or

other instances where you will need to burn energy for

an extended period of time, replenish your

carbohydrates as you go. You can do this with fruit

juice or through carbohydrate drinks like the ones we

talked about earlier.

Carbohydrate Loading: Good Or Bad For You?

If you are considering carbohydrate loading, which is the

method of adding additional carbohydrates to your diet prior

to a race, event or competition, you need to look at what

your needs are for that event as well as what your physical

condition is for it.

The goal of carbohydrate loading, which is also known as

glycogen loading, is quite straight forward. Remember how

we said that your body takes carbohydrates and breaks

them down into glycogen?

Glycogen is then stored in your muscles as well as in your

liver. When your body needs to access reserved or stored

carbohydrates, it will go to the stored glycogen first before it

attempts to break down fats and proteins.

When you are carbohydrate loading, you are packing your

liver and muscles full of glycogen to allow your body to have

those reserves full and readily accessible to your body when

the time does come.

It can be quite helpful to an athlete to have glycogen ready

to go, but it should be done effectively and with good

sources of carbohydrates.

How To Use Carbohydrate Loading

If you would like to see the benefits of carbohydrate loading,

you will want to consider this.

• Several days before you will need to use the stored

glycogen for your race or competition, eat a diet that

is rich in protein, high in fat and low in carbohydrates.

• This is accompanied by the intense training workouts

you are probably doing to get ready and in shape for

your competition.

• This will deplete the body’s reserves of glycogen,

something that needs to be done first.

• Now that it is nearly depleted, two to three days

before your event, you will be ready to carbohydrate

load your body. Eat a very high amount of

carbohydrates during this period of time. This should

be foods from the grain group.

• You should not be doing any type of extraneous

exercising during this period of time. You do not want

the body to burn through those stored glycogen

carbohydrates. It also gives your body the ability to

repair damage from the last workouts to enable you to

work harder on the day of the event.

When it comes to this type of activity, really take the time to

learn if you need to use it. You should not need to use

carbohydrate loading unless you need your endurance level

to remain high for an extended amount of time, such as in a

long running race or in a bike race.

You should also realize that you probably will not do well in

your high protein phase of this carbohydrate session.

Finally, most athletes will eat an overall high amount of

carbohydrates during their exercise regimens as it is the fuel

your body needs.

But this routine for carbohydrate loading should only be

done as preparation for high intensity, long events, not as a

regular routine.

The Need For Protein

Another aspect of the athlete’s sports nutrition is that of

protein. Protein is yet another fundamental building block

that you need to incorporate into your diet in the right

manner in order to succeed at building your body into an

energy producing machine so you can win at your game,

whatever that is.

Protein is a necessary element in your diet but you should

take note that you do not need to go on an all protein diet

by any means.

In fact, too much protein can be detrimental to your actual

results.

Again, we can bring back that team. Here, without protein

or with not enough protein, your body will have a difficult

time building up to the endurance level that it needs.

It will not have enough of what it needs to build muscle

tissue so that your workouts are meaningful.

As part of your body’s necessary team for success, protein

intake should be monitored carefully, especially around your

events and competitions.

What’s Protein?

Protein comes from most products that are in the meat

group. It comes from fish, beef, poultry, pork, lamb, eggs,

nuts and dairy products as well.

The amount of protein you eat will vary but it should be

consumed at about 15 percent of the total amount of

calories that you take in, still a significant amount and right

behind that of carbohydrates.

While carbohydrates will be used to provide your body with

the energy it needs to go from one place to the next, protein

is essential for building the body up so that it has the

physical capabilities for that to happen.

Proteins are what give your body the necessary abilities to

build new tissue in your body, to repair damaged tissues in

your body and to maintain fluids throughout your body.

They do other things as well, but for the athlete, this is the

most essential aspect to know.

What is important to note about protein is the body’s

inability to store excess amounts of protein. Unlike that of

the carbohydrate, it can not store it up to use when needed.

The body will use protein for its needs and then it will burn it

for energy. If it does not need to use it for this matter, then

it will convert the protein into fat and pack it onto your

thighs, and everywhere else for that matter.

Therefore, balancing the right amount of protein in your diet

is essential to the athlete competing to win.

What Do I Need?

When it comes to protein, there are several things that you

need to carefully consider. How much you need is varied

depending on these characteristics:

• What type of exercising are you doing?

• What level of exercise are you doing in terms of

intensity?

• How long will you be performing these exercises for?

• The total calories you are consuming also plays a role

in how much you should intake.

• And, this also is dependant on the amount of

carbohydrates that you are consuming.

Your level of fitness plays a role in the amount of protein

your body needs. If you are physically active, as most

athletes are, your body will need more protein than if you

were not active or were minimally so.

When you first begin your exercise program, you will need to

increase the amount of protein calories you are taking in as

well.

That is, you should increase them because your body will be

building muscles faster and toning them faster at this time.

Your body will need additional protein calories then, but this

will soon taper off when there is less muscle and tissue

building taking place.

In your exercise type, your level of protein is very

important. This is determined by how intense the exercise

you are doing will be as well as the duration of the exercise

as well.

Those that need endurance for a longer period of time will in

fact need more protein so that it can be used to burn as fuel

when you do run out of carbohydrates.

Those that are endurance runners, for example, need to

have more protein in their diets than those that are short

duration athletes.

If you are a body builder or you will be doing strength

building exercises in general, you need to increase the

intake of protein that you have as well.

Calorie intake also makes a difference. If you eat the wrong

amount of food, generally speaking, your body will resort to

burning protein as fuel.

If you do not eat enough calories in your diet, your body has

to go to the protein to burn for energy. It burns more

protein then so you will need to increase the protein you eat.

Carbohydrates that you take in also play a role in the

amount of protein that you need. If you do not eat enough

carbohydrates, your body has to use protein to burn for

energy.

If you start a race with lower levels of glycogen, you will end

up burning more protein than you would otherwise. In fact,

you can burn up to 10 percent more this way.

Of course, we said that you want your body to burn

carbohydrates as opposed to burning proteins!

The Truth About High Protein

No, we are not talking about the weight loss diets that you

will only consume protein for, well, the rest of your life.

Remember our team analogy, that’s not a good diet to be on

for anyone!

What we are talking about is muscle building high protein

diets. While an athlete that is working to build muscle mass

does need to intake more protein calories, it is where you

get these from that matter.

You are sure to have seen high protein meals and drinks on

the market. These are used to target those that are looking

to add additional grams of protein to the diet easily.

In sports nutrition, it is not necessary for you to resort to

those products unless you do not eat the right amounts of

proteins from the start.

It is commonly believed that eating high protein

supplements like these is not necessary as long as you

naturally increase the amount of protein calories that you

take in.

To do this, add into your diet more low fat, high protein

foods just as a natural addition to your diet. This may

include eating more meats like poultry, beef, pork, fish and

nuts to your diet.

Also, remember that high protein diets are only geared to

those that are looking to build muscle mass.

• If you are just starting out in your exercise routine,

you will need additional calories coming from protein.

• If you are looking to build muscle mass, such as with

body building, you too will need to increase the

amount of protein you intake in a high protein diet.

The standard athlete does not necessarily have to eat more

protein than the 15 percent that we mentioned unless they

fall under one of these categories.

In addition to this, it is important to note that many high

protein diet supplements and foods can do more harm that

they are worth.

For example, they are known to cause people to lose their

appetite, which in turn causes them not to get the necessary

carbohydrates they need for sustained exercise.

Additional problems are dehydration, diarrhea and too much

pressure on the kidneys to perform.

Maintaining the amount of protein that you but into your diet

is crucial!

The Story With Fats

You have heard a lot about fats in your life, no doubt. But,

when it comes to sports nutrition, none of that really

matters.

One thing you need to realize is that when the stakes are

higher, as in when your body needs to perform at a higher

level, it is important for you to provide it with the foundation

to do so.

Many of the things you will read here will not provide a

balanced diet outside of sports. These things are geared to

provide your body with the foundation of producing higher

amounts of energy and therefore endurance.

When it comes to fat, there is much to learn as well.

What Is Fat?

Fat is a product that you ingest when you eat foods. While

there is not just one food group that it comes from, there

are many things that you need to realize that do contain

higher amounts of fat.

Fat comes from anything that is from animals. This type of

fat is called saturated fat and is the worst of the two types.

This would include:

• Meats of all types have fat; even lean meats will have

some levels of fat in them.

• Eggs have a high fat amount in it.

• Milk, even low fat milk, still has a good amount of fat

within it.

• Cheese too may be low fat, but will still have a good

amount of fat in it.

Unsaturated fats are fats that come from vegetable

products. Your oils are high producers of fat. It comes from

vegetables of all types, but in different amounts.

Unsaturated fats are a better, healthier version of fat to have

within your body.

How Much To Consume

When it comes to how much fat you should be consuming, it

is not as complex as that of your carbohydrate or your

protein calories.

In fat intake, you should not consume more than 25 to 30

percent of your calories in fat. Generally speaking, this is

not hard to do, unless you are used to eating deep fried

products or those that are covered with saturated butters

and sauces.

Did we again just throw off your daily diet intake? Sorry,

but the body needs to be regulated here.

Fat In The Body

Your body does need some fat though. Have you heard of

those diets in which people will cut out nearly all the fat in

their diet? Yes, you are right.

Look back at our team playing theory.

You need to consume a balanced diet of products, ones that

will incorporate various amounts of fats to balance your

needs.

Your body does only need a small amount of fat though. It

needs this to help with several functions. From a sports

nutrition stand point, fat is used to burn as energy.

Remember when we said that our bodies will first burn

carbohydrates and then will result to proteins?

Fat is next on the list of energy sources when there is not

enough carbohydrates or glycogen available to burn.

So, why not load up on the amounts of fat that your body

consumes as it seems to be a fundamental part of energy

and fuel? There are many reasons.

The main reason that you do not need to eat excess

amounts of fat is because of how unhealthy it is to the rest

of your body.

Too much fat in your body can cause a number of health

problems starting with heart disease, the number one killer

in the United States. It can also lead to cancers,

complications of other conditions and just an overall

unhealthy lifestyle that is anything but beneficial to the body

or to your sports life.

If you are consuming too much fat, you are probably not

getting the right amount of carbohydrates that you need as

well.

Even more so, when we talked about carbohydrates, we told

you that carbohydrates are easily burned by the body for

energy. When it comes to burning fat, it is harder for the

body to do.

Therefore, fat should not be considered as a needed element

to consume in order to burn as energy for the body.

Three Times Fats Are Used

There are three main times in which fat will be used to burn

energy in your body or will be needed for you to have on

hand for that reason.

1. If you are participating in extreme or intense exercise,

your body will need more energy to burn then you

have stored in glycogen or in carbohydrates readily

available. It will then turn to stored fat for help in

providing you with the energy that you need.

2. When your body is at rest or you are just doing low to

moderate amounts of work, your body will then

primarily use fat to burn as fuel. During this time, just

small amounts of fat will actually be burned, though.

3. If you continue to exercise for long periods of time,

such as when you do during a marathon, a long

endurance race of any type, your body then needs to

tap into fat stores to help it to power through all of

these needs.

When it comes to fat and sports nutrition, it is something

that you really do need to monitor. If you should consume

quite a bit of fatty foods, especially those that are made

from saturated fats, you are putting your health at risk.

As far as sports nutrition goes, too much fat can cause your

performance to slip. The body does not perform as well as it

does with carbohydrates or even by burning protein when

you are consuming fats.

Meal Planning For Your Game

We have broken it all down for you now. Think you are

done, ready to go out there and win at your game?

Not just yet, but soon you will be. As you have learned,

there is much to getting your body fed the right amounts of

fuel at the right time. It is not easy, but it can and does get

done everyday by athletes.

Now that we have broken it all down, we can start to put it

back together for you.

To do that, we will work on developing a pre game plan for

what you should eat, how you should eat it and how much

you should eat prior to your athletic performance.

What you eat right before your competition or performance

is a direct reflection of what will happen in that performance.

In short, your body will only perform to the level that you

have prepped it for.

Have you ever been mid event only to feel so tired that you

just feel as if you can not take just one more step? This is

your fuel running out.

If you are a car, you are done, on the side of the road

waiting for your driver to refuel you. But, if the driver

prepared before the start of the drive, you would not have

any problem hitting the destination and doing it in the way

that you want to succeed.

It’s Starts Before Game Day

One thing to take note of is the fact that your pre game

planning needs to start several days before you actually

head out there to compete.

Don’t plan to just wake up, eat breakfast and hit the run.

You need to plan several days in advance for what will

happen just this one day, this one race, this one

competition.

As we talked about, the goal is to store up enough glycogen

in your body so that you can withstand what needs to be

done during your event. We are not talking about

carbohydrate loading, mind you.

This would be something you only do when you are going for

a long intense effort, not for a standard event that is short

lived.

By following a good regimen, your body will be better able to

meet the needs it will be required to meet. The right plan

can also do things that you may not have thought of needing

to consider.

1. It can help to keep your blood sugar at a level amount

which controls your energy amounts.

2. It helps to build up your muscle and liver glycogen that

we have talked about.

3. You will have virtually nothing in your stomach at game

time, meaning that you do not have that full, can’t do a

thing feeling.

4. It helps you to avoid hunger as well as an upset

stomach during your event.

5. It finally helps to keep your body completely hydrated

so that your energy is flowing where it needs to be

during your event.

Now, there are many ways to take the next plan, but we

want you to know that this is just a basic plan. It is not

necessarily perfect for everyone and definitely will not

provide you with a perfect outcome to your events.

But, it can help you to get back on track, get your body

ready to go and then allow you to change it up as you see

necessarily down the road.

Things You Have To Know

As someone that is competing in an athletic event, you need

to position yourself for success and the only way that you

can really do that is to provide the necessary fuel for your

body.

Here’s a break down of what you should be doing now.

• Your last meal before your event should happen no

shorter than three full hours before your event. Do

not try to eat a meal right before.

Your stomach will be upset, will weigh you down and

you will feel no benefit from the foods consumed.

• Keep yourself fully hydrated for several days before

your event. Of course, you really do want to try to

always remain hydrated but remember that it takes

the body time to re-hydrate itself (sometimes days

even) when you are dehydrated.

• Now, the meal before your event should be something

that is high in starch. It should be carbohydrate full

to allow your body to easily digest it, quickly and

effectively, so that you have the necessary power to

go.

It is also helpful in maintaining your body’s blood sugar

level as well.

• In that meal and maybe even the one before it, limit

the amount of protein that you are consuming.

Remember, proteins are not meant to be energy.

They are harder for the body to digest and will hold

you back ultimately.

You definitely do not want to end up dehydrated

because you have consumed too many proteins either.

• Do not eat foods or drink fluids that contain caffeine.

As you remember, caffeine is something that can

cause your body to dehydrate and simply not give you

the right outcome.

Even energy drinks that have caffeine in them will

ultimately restrict your abilities in the events.

• Do not eat foods that have not been found in our food

chart. You do not want to eat foods that are high in

sugar at all.

This will really not do anything but keep your energy

waning rather than help you to power through.

• Drop the oils. We also mentioned how fats are not a

good thing for your body. So, especially in this last

meal before your event, limit the foods that you eat

that are high in fats.

Do not forget to consider the butter on your pancakes

and the oil in your salad dressings. You will find fats

everywhere and they need to be noticed.

What Should I Eat?

So you know what you want to eat on that last meal, right?

You are right, it does seem limiting, but really, it does not

have to be.

Go back to our breakdown of foods that fit well within the

categories of carbohydrates (check out the grains!) in

proteins (meats and dairy products) and avoid those foods

that you find are high in fats.

Really, you can eat anything you want as long as it fits

within the calorie suggestions and in the food groups we

have listed there.

 Foods That Work Well

Okay, so you would like some help in determining what

foods are ideal for the pre game meal or maybe just an

overall look at what you should be eating.

Here’s a break down that will help you.

Foods High In Carbohydrates

The first and most important aspect of sports nutrition is to

provide your body with the building blocks of what it needs

to perform. That is in the carbohydrates.

Here are some foods that are ideal to consume as high

carbohydrate foods. In other words, these are the foods to

eat prior to your game, your competition or your events.

Potatoes

Potatoes are high in starch and carbohydrates. They make

for the ideal pre event meal choice. You can eat them any

way that you would like including baking them, mashing

them, pan frying them, broiling them and so on. Avoid deep

frying them (no French fries please!)

Also you need to be careful with what you put on them.

Things like butter or gravy can be heavily saturated with fats

that you do not need. Sour cream goes along with that.

If you can’t live without it, then consider cutting down on

how much of the condiment or additional additive you place

on them.

Pasta

Even if you are not Italian, you probably have lots of pasta

in your home. It’s a quick and easy meal and it’s great for

sports nutrition preparations.

There are many choices out there including a variety of

noodle shapes from macaroni to ravioli, to spaghetti and

everything in between.

You can top it with spaghetti sauce or go without.

Be careful when you add oils, butter, or heavy sauces to the

pasta though. You should also not top it with too much

meat either, especially if this is pre game a experience.

Cheese too should be avoided or kept at a minimum

especially if it contains lots of fat.

Rice

When it comes to rice products, you have all types of

options. Consider mixing the rice with vegetables if you

would like to. Add some hot peppers for taste, but do not

over do it. You do not want to have a stomach ache prior to

your event.

Again, you should limit the things that you place into the

rice. It should not be things that are high in saturated fats.

Avoid gravy, butters or other heavy cream sauces.

Cereals

Most cereals are okay for you to use. But, you need to flip

them over and look at what is in them. You want to avoid

foods that are high in sugar or fats. Believe it or not, many

cereals are.

You should consider foods like oatmeal and other warm

cereal type foods, but make sure that you again, check what

is in them.

Always top the cereal with low fat milk products. Avoid

adding additional sugar to them. Again, this will just provide

the wrong power to you.

Bread

Bread is a big yes! There are plenty of products that are

ideal here. From slices of breads to rolls, you have many

choices to pick from.

But, again, you really do need to limit what you put on the

breads. You should not top them with lots of butter or fill

them with high protein or high fat foods. Spreads and other

products that are added that are high in fat will cause the

benefits to be weighed down.

Fruits

A large confusion has to do with fruits. Because they are

sweet, they seem to be something that is not good for us.

While they do have sugar in them, it is natural sugars that

allow our bodies to better stay hydrated and to have the

carbohydrates that we need. Therefore, these types of

juices are quite worthwhile to consume.

Your options are many and should include things like

oranges, bananas, and apples. In the form of whole fruits,

most are easy for your body to digest and will provide the

necessary nutrition that you need.

In the way of juices, you will want to look at what is in

them. You do not want your fruit juices to have more than 8

percent of carbohydrates or electrolytes as this will make

them harder for your body to digest.

Dairy Products

If you have to have your milk with your breakfast by all

means have it. Actually, any and all low fat dairy products

are perfect for the sports nutrition guide. Try a variety of

things including low fat milk, low fat cheeses, low fat yogurts

and others.

Again, avoid things that are high in fat or that are added to

the dairy products such as chocolate.

 Foods That Will Hurt

Unfortunately, not all foods in the world are good for our

sports nutrition diet.

But, remember, giving up food to win the race, the marathon

or to find ultimate fitness is a reward far better than any

food product out there.

Giving up on these things does not have to be permanent,

unless you plan to be athletic all that time. In other words,

you do not have to restrict yourself from these foods forever.

In fact, you may be able to squeeze something in when you

are not performing or practicing, if you dare take a break!

Here are some foods you just should avoid and reasons why

they are anything but helpful to your overall performance

and expectations.

1. Candy. There we said it. You have to give up candy

products because of the amount of sugars in them.

They can throw off your blood sugar and cause you to

have less than ideal results in your performance.

They can also make you feel awful after only a few

minutes of being in your system. The reason is that

they create a natural rush that can only be sustained

for a short period of time.

2. Caffeine. We have already mentioned this in our ebook

but it has to remain on our do not touch page.

Caffeine will slow you down and it will ultimately ruin

your game.

It may even keep you from staying hydrated in the long

run too.

3. Keep yourself away from foods that you know upset

your body. While these foods may seem healthy and

helpful to you, they can cause your stomach to hurt,

your body to begin to concentrate on healing and loss

of performance edge.

This would include any food that gives you gas, things

like raw vegetables, beans and popcorn. You know

your body and what you should avoid.

4. Fatty foods. We have talked a great deal about the

harmful effects of fatty foods in your diet as an athlete.

It has to be on our list here because of the amount of

performance success it is likely to steal from you.

This would include foods that are high in saturated fats

like creams, fatty meats, deep fried products, and high

fat dairy products.

Cut out these products from your diet and you will ultimately

have a better result overall for all of your hard work.

Supplements

Supplements are something that many people wonder

about. Are they good for you? Will they enhance my

performance? Are they fair to take?

There are many various types of supplements on the

market. The goal of any supplement is to supplement your

diet. This means it will provide for your diet what you may

not already have.

In that, it goes without saying that natural is always going to

be better for you. That means that it is a much better

option for you to insure that you have a high quality of

natural foods in your diet rather than having a bag full of

vitamins and minerals that you have to take.

Do I Take Them Or Not?

Only you can truly answer if supplements are in fact right for

you and your needs. There is no easy to way to answer this

question but we can break it down to help you to understand

both points of view.

As an athlete, your body will demand more nutrients

including vitamins and minerals of all sorts. It needs this as

well as additional calories to keep up with your demand.

It is not simplistic to handle this need though. The best way

to get the things you need to balance your diet is to get it

from natural, whole foods. To do this, you need to really

concentrate on what you need, what is included in what you

eat and then insure it is all balanced for optimum nutrition.

That is not an easy task to do, though. Not only do you

need to increase the levels of calories that you consume, but

you also need to consider the various minerals and vitamins

your body needs to make that happen.

Not sure what we mean?

• Niacin

• Iron

• Riboflavin

• Thiamin

That’s just to name the most essential.

In most cases, if you can eat a well balanced diet full of

vegetables and variety, you can achieve these needs while

doing it.

But, if you can not commit to this level of dedication, then

providing yourself with a solid supplement can be helpful.

Yet, you still have to pay attention to what you are taking.

When purchasing vitamins, you need to make sure that they

are the highest of quality and that they are easily absorbed

into your body. They should be purchased form a health

food store or someplace that is designed for optimum health

products.

Beware!

Some vitamins can be dangerous if you take too much of

them. This can do the exact opposite of what you are trying

to accomplish. If this is something you are not sure about,

seeking out the help of a dietician, your pharmacist or even

your doctor.

Vitamins are powerful things and they need to be kept

regulated for your own safety.

Another reason to speak with your doctor is to insure you

are not deficient in any of your vitamins as well. This will

help you to balance yourself naturally and therefore find the

best success overall.

Conclusion

Sports nutrition is a complex matter. What is important to

you and your body is likely not going to be important or as

important to someone else.

It can not be stressed enough that the athlete should have a

complete health physical done to insure that he is ready to

pursue his athletic dreams and his physical height of

perfection.

The goal of a physical should be to rule out any conditions

that may hinder you but it also should provide information

about your needs.

You can learn about your nutritional needs, based on your

specific body type and your ability to meet any deficiency

that you may have.

When it comes to sports nutrition, there are few things that

are 100% accurate about it. The fact is that we are all

different people and that means that our lives and our goals

are all different.

With that too comes the fact that your body is uniquely

yours and even if you follow a diet perfectly, it may react

differently to the conditions you present.

Yet, when we condition ourselves from a nutritional

standpoint, following basic rules of maintaining healthy

bodies, we will see our bodies improve.

Over time, your body will become stealthily built to take on

whatever physical challenges that you provide for it.

Your body will be honed to fit each of your demands to the

level of perfection you crave. And, with it will come the

highest level of success you can achieve both physically and

mentally.

Remember, though, that this will not come without a price to

pay. You will need to work for it and you will need sheer

dedications to make it happen. In the end, this is what will

define you and your needs.

Dedication to your sports nutrition is the foundation of

everything that goes into being an athlete.