Water is practuces most important, yet overlooked, nutrient for athletes. Carbohydrate foods Natural fat loss recipes make up the biggest part of what you eat as an athlete. This gives the body enough time to digest the carbs and turn them into energy.

Best diet practices for athletes -

Good sources of protein are fish, lean meats and poultry, eggs, dairy, nuts, soy, and peanut butter. Carbohydrates are an excellent source of fuel. Cutting back on carbs or following low-carb diets isn't a good idea for athletes. That's because restricting carbs can make you feel tired and worn out, which can hurt your performance.

Good sources of carbs include fruits, vegetables, and grains. Choose whole grains such as brown rice, oatmeal, whole-wheat bread more often than processed options like white rice and white bread. Whole grains provide the energy athletes need and the fiber and other nutrients to keep them healthy.

Sugary carbs such as candy bars or sodas don't contain any of the other nutrients you need. And eating candy bars or other sugary snacks just before practice or competition can give athletes a quick burst of energy, but then leave them to "crash" or run out of energy before they've finished working out.

Everyone needs some fat each day, and this is extra true for athletes. That's because active muscles quickly burn through carbs and need fats for long-lasting energy.

Like carbs, not all fats are created equal. Choose healthier fats, such as the unsaturated fat found in most vegetable oils, fish, and nuts and seeds. Limit trans fat like partially hydrogenated oils and saturated fat, found in fatty meat and dairy products like whole milk, cheese, and butter.

Choosing when to eat fats is also important for athletes. Fatty foods can slow digestion, so it's a good idea to avoid eating them for a few hours before exercising.

Sports supplements promise to improve sports performance. But few have proved to help, and some may do harm. Anabolic steroids can seriously mess with a person's hormones , causing unwanted side effects like testicular shrinkage and baldness in guys and facial hair growth in girls.

Steroids can cause mental health problems, including depression and serious mood swings. Some supplements contain hormones related to testosterone, such as DHEA dehydroepiandrosterone.

These can have similar side effects to anabolic steroids. Other sports supplements like creatine have not been tested in people younger than So the risks of taking them are not yet known.

Salt tablets are another supplement to watch out for. People take them to avoid dehydration, but salt tablets can actually lead to dehydration and must be taken with plenty of water.

Too much salt can cause nausea, vomiting, cramps, and diarrhea and may damage the stomach lining. In general, you are better off drinking fluids to stay hydrated.

Usually, you can make up for any salt lost in sweat with sports drinks or foods you eat before, during, and after exercise. Speaking of dehydration , water is as important to unlocking your game power as food.

When you sweat during exercise, it's easy to become overheated, headachy, and worn out — especially in hot or humid weather. Even mild dehydration can affect an athlete's physical and mental performance.

There's no one set guide for how much water to drink. This is especially true if you are doing something that takes a lot of endurance at a high-intensity level.

Anytime you are working out at this high intensity for 60 to 90 minutes, such as runners, basketball players, soccer players or any other fast-paced sport, your body needs extra fuel. Stephen Kollias , OrthoIndy sports medicine specialist shares five nutrition guidelines that will help keep your body-powered.

Carbohydrates give your body the energy it needs to work out for over an hour. Healthy carbohydrates include vegetables, fruits, nuts and whole grains.

Drink plenty of fluids throughout the entire day. Intense exercise means your body will be sweating, which can lead to dehydration. So drink plenty of water and sports drinks. Eat protein. Eat high-quality protein such as lean meats, fish, poultry, nuts and eggs.

However, be careful on the amount of protein you eat; too much protein can put a strain on your kidneys. Get plenty of sleep.

This number is less than two percent of their body mass, which is the mark you should keep your sweat-loss volume at. While this is a good strategy for most athletes, there are many cases where calculating your sweat-loss volume may be impossible — such as team sports, running, and biking.

And most of the time, these athletes underestimate their sweat-loss volume, which leads to them under-hydrating. The best strategy for these types of situations is to begin your training session completely hydrated — again, a nutritionist can determine how to achieve that.

The U. Anti-Doping Agency, echoing research from nutrition experts , recommends athletes drink about four to eight ounces of water at minute intervals.

Electrolytes are simply minerals with a small electrical charge, which help the body regulate your heartbeat, muscle contractions, fluid regulation, and more. Sodium, commonly found in salt, may be one of the most overlooked electrolytes.

The Food and Drug Administration recommends people get 2. A lack of proper electrolytes can lead to increased heart rates and physical discomfort, and in extreme cases, can lead to heart attacks and even death. After spending most of his life overweight, he dropped 80 pounds and took control of his health and fitness.

Outside of work, he still enjoys Little Debbie cakes but offsets them with rigorous hikes and workouts. View All Articles. BarBend is an independent website. The views expressed on this site may come from individual contributors and do not necessarily reflect the view of BarBend or any other organization.

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InFat-burning exercises for arms swirled that the Prctices swimmer Michael Phelps consumed 12, Natural fat loss recipes a day while training for that pradtices Beijing Atuletes. Curious how those must-watch personalities as well as previous stars like Simone Biles, Katie Ledecky, Naomi Osaka, and Caeleb Dressel nourish their bodies to go for gold? We are, too! like winners. His go-to brand? Another snack he keeps on hand? Last Natural fat loss recipes October Sthletes article wthletes created Healthy mealtime guidelines familydoctor. org editorial Bdst and reviewed by Beth Oller, MD. As Bset athlete, your physical health is key to an active lifestyle. You must take special care to get enough of the calories, vitamins, and other nutrients that provide energy. You need to include choices from each of the healthy food groups. However, athletes may need to eat more or less of certain foods, depending upon:.

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