Working out ensures that the body stays healthy and fit. However, without the proper nutrition to accompany it, the benefits are moot and the changes one wants to see in the body will be lacking.
Athletes burn a lot of calories and put immense strain on their bodies. Food packed full of essential macronutrients, such as fats, proteins and carbohydrates, can assist in both workout recovery and having more energy for workouts.
Ann Brown, assistant professor in the Department of Movement Sciences, said student-athletes have a larger energy expenditure than the average college student.
“The amount of time they spend lifting weights or participating in a game or a match really increases the demands for proper feeding,” Brown said. “Making sure they’re getting the correct macronutrients at the right time during the day.”
Brown said for athletes to sustain themselves for physical activity, they need to consider what they eat to stay healthy. Carbs are a good pre-workout food, providing energy the body processes and burns quickly. This increases the amount of exercise someone can do without exhausting themselves. Proteins are key after a workout because they help repair any damaged muscle tissue and provide more resources for muscle growth.
Different foods have varying levels of proteins and carbs. Most believe meat is a main source of protein, but rice and beans are also good sources and cheaper alternatives. Pasta is a great carb intake, but unprocessed sugars along with plenty of fruit and vegetables are also rich in carbs.
For athletes who live off-campus and might not have access to nutritious food, Brown said students should look at the ingredients in the food they buy when they go grocery shopping. Foods with unfamiliar and processed ingredients, along with ingredients with unpronounceable names, should be avoided, Brown said.
Athletes need to make sure they are getting a good amount of every type of nutrient to ensure they are getting the resources their bodies crave.
Fruits and veggies are healthy, but to get extra calories and nutrients, an athlete can add something extra to them, like peanut butter on a celery stick or ranch with carrots.
However, Brown said if an athlete really wants to see gains from their workout, they should eat some sort of protein within 45 minutes after stopping. This 45 minute window is known as the anabolic window. During that time frame, an athlete should eat or drink something nutritious in order to provide their body with essential nutrients, speeding up recovery.
“When we exercise, there’s a lot of different physiological processes that are heightened during exercise, one of them being increased blood flow,” Brown said. “Your heart’s beating faster because your sympathetic nervous system is increased in response to exercise. So, we can actually deliver nutrients that we consume much faster to damaged tissue within that period because the body has these heightened responses going on.”
Brown said chocolate milk is a good post-workout drink. It has a good amount of fat and carbohydrates. Protein shakes are good as well, but the nutritional value depends on the person, what they did, how they are built and what else they have in their diet.
Kaitlyn Uemoto, a forward on the women’s soccer team majoring in exercise, sport and health science, knows about the anabolic window and how to utilize it. She said she was always taught to eat clean, fresh foods that skip processing before being sold, before games and practices. However, she said it is important to include basic foods, like carbs, proteins and fats in your diet to give yourself an overall good performance as an athlete.
Uemoto said after most workouts and practices, she goes to the Hub and loads up on protein like eggs, sausage and bacon, but includes starches like potatoes as well. She said coaches want to make sure their athletes are eating enough and getting the nutrients they need in order to perform well, stay healthy and win.
Uemoto said her and her team utilize the Nutrition Station in the Kibbie Dome, where the gym they use is. It is full of nutritious food like granola bars and yogurt which are good before and after workouts.
“We take these questionnaires before and after practice about how our bodies are feeling,” Uemoto said. “One of the questions is ‘Have you ate before? Have you eaten something after the workout?’ They make sure that we’re eating.”
Ryan Hill can be reached at [email protected]