Get The Real Deal On Your Sports Meal
Nutrition Month is still upon us and that means we have another opportunity to bust some nutrition myths and help you get the Real Deal on Your Meal!
Myth: It is ok to skip breakfast; it may even help you to lose weight.
This is a myth! Breakfast is one of the most important meals of the day. Breakfast literally means to “break-the-fast” after not eating for the past 8 to 12 hours and gets your body and brain going. Research has shown that children and adults who eat a balanced breakfast are able to concentrate better and perform better in sports because they are getting the important energy and nutrients that they need. By skipping breakfast, we also miss out on important vitamins, minerals and fibre that we need as part of a healthy diet. People who eat breakfast also tend to have healthier body weights because eating breakfast helps to curb your hunger so you avoid overeating later on in the day.
A healthy balanced breakfast is one that contains at least three of the four food groups. Here are some breakfast ideas:
• Whole grain cereal with milk and a piece of fruit
• Yogurt, berries and granola
• Whole grain pancakes with fresh or frozen berries, milk
• Scrambled eggs with a piece of toast, milk
• Fruit smoothie (milk, ice, yogurt, fresh or frozen fruit), whole grain muffin
• Whole wheat tortilla rolled with peanut butter and banana, milk
Myth: It doesn’t matter what you eat before sports and exercise.
Not only does it matter what you eat before sports and exercise to help you perform better, but it matters what you eat throughout the entire day! It is especially important for children and youth to get enough fuel and nutrients to perform at their best, but also to support their growth needs. Eating and drinking before sports and exercise is important to provide energy to sustain activity and prevent hunger and dehydration during activity. Before activity, eat lean protein and carbohydrates and drink plenty of fluids. Stay away from energy drinks and caffeinated beverages as they can interfere with performance. Pre-exercise meals can be eaten 2-4 hours before activity and snacks 1-2 hours before.
Here are some examples of pre-exercise meals and snacks:
• Oatmeal, toast, an egg, milk or 100% juice
• Pasta with meat sauce, salad, water or 100% juice
• Chicken, rice, vegetables, milk or 100% juice
• Cheese and crackers, water or 100% juice
• Toast with peanut butter, water or 100% juice
• Homemade pita pizzas, water or 100% juice
You may have also heard about carbohydrate loading as a pre-exercise technique. This technique is commonly used by endurance athletes to improve stamina for endurance events. Carbohydrate loading involves eating more carbohydrate rich foods while decreasing the amount of training completed right before events. Carbohydrate loading is meant for athletes who are involved in at least 90 minutes of endurance activity such as marathons, triathlon, distance swimming or cycling, or lengthy cross-country ski events. People taking part in sports that are more “stop and go” such as soccer, hockey, lacrosse or gymnastics will not benefit from this technique. There is no need to carbohydrate load if you are moderately active for less than 90 minutes per day. Instead, it is important to focus on enjoying a wide variety of healthy foods from Canada’s Food Guide to get optimum energy and nutrition.
If you have questions about healthy eating call EatRight Ontario toll-free at 1-877-510-5102 or visit www.eatrightontario.ca and www.dietitians.ca.
Follow the Chatham-Kent Public Health Unit to good health at www.ckphu.com and www.facebook.com/ckphu.