A good example would be a turkey and cheese sandwich on whole grain bread, paired with a piece of fruit. Soccer players sweat a lot, and staying hydrated becomes necessary to keep moving. Water is usually enough for regular hydration, but sports drinks may be beneficial during long training sessions or games to replace electrolytes.

Prepping meals and snacks in advance can help you stick to your nutrition plan, especially on busy days. This might involve cooking larger quantities of meals and freezing them in individual portions or preparing easy-to-grab snacks, like chopped fruits, hard-boiled eggs, or trail mix.

Supplements are a great way to get a balanced amount of micro and macronutrients in a hectic schedule as a soccer player or athlete. Including supplements in your diet plan can help you get the extra energy you need to pull off a great game. Protein powders can be a convenient and efficient way to meet high protein requirements, especially for post-workout recovery.

You can stir, blend, or shake in a shaker cup with milk and water and have it before, after, or anytime during a game.

Creatine can help improve strength and power output, which could benefit performance on the field. BCAAs leucine, isoleucine, and valine can help enhance muscle recovery and reduce muscle soreness after intense training. Hydration is of utmost importance for a soccer player due to the physical demands of the sport.

Proper hydration results in a great performance, reduce the risk of heat-related illnesses and helps in post-match or post-training recovery.

Hydration starts before stepping on the field so remember to drink water regularly throughout the day to stay well-hydrated before training or a match. About hours before a game or training session, aim to consume ounces of water.

This helps ensure that you begin the game well-hydrated. During soccer practice or a match, drink small amounts of water frequently to maintain fluid balance.

A general guideline is to drink ounces about milliliters every minutes. For intense matches or training lasting longer than 60 minutes, sports drinks can be beneficial. They contain electrolytes like sodium and potassium, which help replace what is lost through sweat and aid in fluid absorption.

After a match or training session, it's essential to rehydrate. drink water or a sports drink to replace the fluids lost during the match. As a general rule, aim to consume ounces about milliliters of fluid for every pound lost during the game.

Soccer is a demanding sport that needs a unified blend of physical prowess, technical skills, and mental agility. It pushes players to their limits, requiring endurance to run for a full 90 minutes, speed for sudden sprints, strength for tackles, and agility for quick direction changes, therefore, along with the training it becomes important for soccer players to focus on the nutrition as well.

As a soccer player, plan your meals, take a balanced diet, and focus on hydration to be on top of your game.

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Newsletter 0. Your cart is empty Start shopping. Unleash your soccer potential: Explore the ideal diet. Understand what to eat, the reasons behind it, and when to fuel up for peak performance on the field.

The Ultimate Reveal. By Shopify Admin Aug 25, Tags Nutrition. Facebook Pinterest Twitter E-mail. Must-Have Diet Nutrients for Soccer Players Nutrition is not just about performance on the pitch.

Macronutrients Macronutrients are the nutrients your body needs in larger quantities which are proteins, carbohydrates, and fats.

Protein Protein is essential for growth, repair, and the maintenance of good health. Carbohydrates As a soccer player, carbohydrates are your primary fuel source. Fats While often misunderstood, fats are vital for health and performance.

Micronutrients Micronutrients are nutrients your body needs in smaller quantities but are still vital for performance and health such as vitamins and minerals. Vitamins Certain vitamins, like B-complex vitamins, are essential for energy production and the repair and growth of cells. Minerals Key minerals for soccer players include iron, which helps transport oxygen to the muscles; calcium and magnesium for bone health; and electrolytes like sodium and potassium for hydration and muscle function.

Diet Plan for Soccer Players Soccer is a sport that tests every facet of an athlete's capabilities, making it a truly exhilarating pursuit. Pre-Game Meal The goal of a pre-game meal is to provide you with sustained energy and keep you hydrated. Some good choices for a pre-game meal can be: Grilled chicken breast A serving of brown rice or quinoa Steamed vegetables e.

Halftime Snack During halftime, the priority is to rapidly refuel and hydrate. For those athletes choosing to eat more healthy fats and less carbohydrates, their pre-game plan may look a little different from the athlete that relies on carbohydrates as their fuel source.

Note 4 hours prior to play for pre-game and those choices may depend upon playing time and older youth players and adults can have caffeine 30 min before the event. Soccer players can have a snack hours before the event to top off your fuel stores. Reload during the game and at halftime with carbs, electrolytes, and fluids to power you through the remaining game.

A small snack can delay fatigue and help with recovery. Refuel immediately following the match, you should have a recovery snack within minutes ideally. Make this a mix of carbs and protein to replenish your fuel stores glycogen and repair damaged tissue. Always follow up with an actual meal within an hour after your recovery snack.

Amy Dirks is the former sports performance nutritionist for MLS' Sporting Kansas City. Dirks has counseled many professional athletes during their pro seasons and is a Registered Dietitian-Nutritionist with a background in Sports Nutrition and Wellness.

Also certified as a Strength and Conditioning Specialist and Personal Trainer, Dirks has a refreshingly logical approach to working with professional sports teams, elite youth soccer players, and individual pro athletes.

Home About Advertising Contact Us Privacy Policy. Follow Us Facebook Twitter Linkedin Instagram Youtube. To succeed, what you eat and fuel your body with is extremely important. Throughout a single game or practice, you cover anywhere from miles!

Not only are you covering a significant distance, you constantly changing directions, making sprinting runs, jumping up for headers, and getting into physical 1v1 battles.

On top of all of these physical demands, you have to be mentally engaged throughout the whole game. Your brain alone needs about g of carbohydrates a day to function! The physical demands of soccer require a ton of energy and this means you need to eat to fuel your body!

The only way to keep up with all of these physical demands for every training and game is to give your body the fuel it needs.

Implementing a fueling plan is going to ensure that your body has the energy it needs to compete at your full potential on the field. Before we jump into what you need to eat, you must understand the basics of the food you eat.

While all of your meals and snacks should contain carbs, the amount and type will vary. For example, at meals, you should aim to incorporate grains and starches for proper energy intake. Some examples are. Carbs that are rich in vitamins and minerals, like fruits and vegetables, should be included as well.

These still provide energy calories but not as many as your grains and starches. You need both! Additionally, download your free grocery store list for soccer players!

Since carbs are an important source of energy for the body, your body will benefit from having them before your practice. When you are looking for a pre-practice snack, opt for quick energy carbohydrate sources such as bananas or applesauce.

A soccer girl pre-practice favorite are these healthy cookie dough protein bites! My soccer girls snack on of these before training and know you will love them too! Protein is essential to building and maintaining lean muscle mass. Getting in enough protein throughout the day is a must for soccer players!

While protein plays a major role in muscle growth it also functions to support a healthy immune system and provide structure to other parts of the body. I recommend you consume grams of protein at every meal and grams with every snack.

Protein Ideas that are equal to about 20 grams of protein. Fats also have many important roles in your body.