Food and Sport by Cristian Artigas

                                FOOD AND SPORT

In this post I am going to speak about the relationship between food and sport.

Nowadays it is more and more usual to see on sports articles the presence of a dietician. This figure is as important as a physical trainer, a tactical trainer or any other member of the team.

In football case, the food before the match is essential to have a great performance, specially in top categories.

It is very difficult to explain the diet of an athlete, but normally, regardless the sport you practise, you can follow the following  pieces of advice:

Ten athlete rules.  More frequent food habits.

1.      Be natural

This mean to return to natural food, try to eliminate processed food.

2.  Eat a rainbow frequently

The main vitamins and minerals our body needs come from fruits and vegetables. Then it is very important to eat varied meals and with different colours.

3. Protein is good

Protein is a fundamental piece in the athlete's diet. Fish, chicken and turkey contain more quantity of protein per gram.

In case of very active and sporty persons, especially in hard sports, more proteins are needed and they are very advisable because they help to build muscle.

4. Eat fats that provide something

It is recommendable that 20-30% of calories we consume came from fat.

The best type of fats are the ones contained on nuts, seeds, olive oil and fish as salmon or tuna.

5. Three for three

Combine the three principal nutrients (carbohydrate, protein and fat) every three hours.

 Avoid copious meals.

6. Have breakfast every day

It is very important to start the day with energy.  Excuses as “I don’t have time” are not valid.

7. You need drink much water

Dehydration involves low performance.

When we think about hydration, it is necessary we think of it along the day not only during the training.

8. Training and then eating

In order to optimize the training and recover the important consumption of calories, just eat after finishing the training. This food must contain both proteins and carbohydrates.

9.  Supplement wisely
Supplements could be a complement of food but never eliminate a meal for a suplement as a shake. Its own name describes these products: just suplements.

10. Coming back to kitchen
In a fast food world, trips, and meals out of home, we visit restaurants. These restaurants don't take into account our caloric intake. Whenever you have the opportunity of cooking in your kitchen, appreciate it and try to cook healthily. 

http://www.altorendimiento.com/blog/2012/07/las-10-reglas-del-deportista/

What do you think about these pieces of advice?

Do you follow them? Which ones?

Do you think they are important for everyone or just for sporties? Why?