Nutrition Basics
In order to eat properly you first need to understand what the nutrients are that you need to feed your body. You can compare you body to a car or machine. In order to run efficiently, you need the proper fuel and maintenance. There are six nutrients: carbohydrate, protein, fat, vitamins, minerals, and water. Each of the nutrients is equally important and need to be consumed in a balanced manner.
Carbohydrates
Carbohydrates are the energy source for your body and aid with digestion and water absorption. Carbohydrates are divided into simple and complex depending on the number of sugar molecules they contain. Complex carbohydrates are found mostly in vegetables and whole grains, while simple are found in fruits, processed foods and sugar based drinks. Most respected literature reports athletes should obtain about 55% to 65% of their calories from carbohydrates, preferably from a complex form. Simple carbohydrates are absorbed quickly into the bloodstream whereas the complex forms take longer to digest and absorb and allow for more even blood sugar levels.
Proteins
Proteins are essential for growth, reapair and maintenance of tissue, a substance of hormone and enzyme production, and help carry substances in the blood. Proteins are no more important than any of the other nutrients, even for athletes. Good sources of protein are meat, seeds, nuts, dairy products, legumes, and some vegetables. Animal proteins are complete sources of protein, containing all of the essential amino acids (the building blocks of protein) that your body needs. However, athletes can meet their protein needs by carefully combing other sources of vegetable protein in the same meal. The consensus with respected nutrition literature states that most adult athletes require no more than 1.5 to 2 grams of protein per kilogram of body weight.
Fats
Fats deliver the fat-soluble vitamins to the body (A, D, E, and K), provide energy for low intensity activity, and are a substance in many hormones. Most literature suggests athletes consume no more than 30% of their calories from fat. Although most people, athletes included, need to restrict their daily fat intake, there are many healthy benefits derived from fat. Your body requires essential fatty acids that you can only get from the food you eat. Good sources of the essential fatty acids are obtained from vegetable oils and the oils of cold-water fish. Patricia Chuey suggests the following ways of avoiding the “bad” forms of fat in her book Eating For Energy: eat lean meats, trim visible fat off meats, restrict your intake of pink coloured processed meats, avoid frying foods, choose lower fat dairy products, limit your intake of desserts, spreads, sauces, and dressings. In general remember fat is an essential nutrient for performance, but needs to be limited to ensure it doesn’t negatively impact your performance.
Vitamins
Vitamins are essential for tissue function and health, immune function, energy metabolism control, nutrient absorption, nervous system maintenance, and protect cells from damage. Vitamins are divided into water and fat-soluble categories depending on the environment they require to function effectively. All vitamins are needed by the body and are best acquired through eating a variety of healthy food especially fruits and vegetables.
Minerals
Minerals are essential for skeletal strength, nervous system function, and control of pH levels, oxygen transport, water balance, and energy metabolism. Minerals are indestructible and, therefore, once in a food will always be present despite how the food is prepared. Again minerals are very important to any nutritional plan, and are best acquired through eating a variety of foods.
Water
Water is part of the body’s coolant system. It carries nutrients to cells, removes waste from cells, and is an important component of muscle tissue. The best advice follow in order to get enough water is to carry water with you everywhere and drink a little water constantly throughout the day. By the time you get thirsty it’s too late, your body is already dehydrated. Two hours before training aim to drink 2-3 cups of fluid (preferably water). While training drink little amounts of water, at least ¼ cup at regular intervals of about 15 minutes. After training try to drink at least 1 to 2 cups. Sports drinks are only beneficial if you plan to train intensely for longer than one hour. It is most effective to primarily drink water to stay hydrated.
