Ru Diet

www.rudiet.com

Eating Healthy for Athletes
by Ann Sertanze
http://www.rhsnutrition.com

If you are an athlete, it's important for you to consider
your diet carefully. Whether you've been a serious
lifelong athlete or have just started to exercise
regularly, this applies to you. It's been shown that
people who are starting to get into shape need more
proteins and other nutrients than even seasoned athletes.

So what should you eat to stay healthy while you're in
training? People who are exerting themselves physically
need a higher calorie intake than others. So long as you
are not overweight, eat more than you did when you were
not working out. Aim for roughly 8.5 calories for each kg
of body weight. So if you weigh 100 kg (or 220 pounds),
consume 850 calories for every hour that you exercise.

When you begin to train regularly, don't cut back your diet,
which could compromise your health. If you do need to lose
weight by eating less, talk to your doctor before making
any significant dietary changes. Keep in mind that it's
never safe to lose more than two or three pounds per week.

Most studies agree that the most important thing when
training, and when cutting back your food intake, is to
maintain a balanced diet. This is the same for athletes
as for the general public.

A balanced diet means that you should get the majority of
your calorie intake from carbohydrates coming from pasta,
rice, bread and so on. Carbs should make up about 57% of
your diet.

The next largest group is the fats, which should make up
about 30% of your diet. Fats are both vegetable based - eg
corn oil, and animal based - non-vegetarian shortening.
Butter and shortening occur in many foods like cakes, and
are examples of saturated fats. In general most of your fat
intake should come from the unsaturated fats found in
vegetable fats. You should use olive oil for salad
dressings and for cooking.

The rest of your diet, 13%, should be comprised of protein.
This means fish, poultry, lean red meat, and so on. You can
also get protein from nuts.

Proper nutrition means avoiding or consuming only small
portions of fried food, cookies, alcohol, candy bars, and
that kind of junk food. Instead, eat plenty of fresh, raw
vegetables, whole grains, fish, and lean meats.

If you follow the advice above and make sure to vary up
your diet, you will be getting all the essential nutrients
and won't really need any supplements.

However, there are a lot of supplements on the market,
often with limited scientific studies to support their use.
Sometimes athletes in hard training in endurance sports -
marathon runners for example - may need to take iron
supplements. This deficiency effects women more than men,
and can easily be tested for.

You can also see a nutritionist with a good reputation to
take an overview of your diet. Also, you may have to
supplement while on the road, since diet while traveling
tends to be poor.

Finally, athletes tend to reach for sports energy drinks
and sports bars. These can be great for training athletes
since they give all the essentials without having to make
a huge meal. Just keep in mind that these bars and drinks
have lots of calories, so don't load up on them. And
remember to give it a few hours after eating before you
start to work out so your food has time to digest.

Submit An Article

Get Exposure For Your Site! Advertise with us.
Click Here For Details on a Great Deal!

Would you like more information on diet?
Sign up here for our mailing list. You will get great information before it becomes available on our website!