Rule 5. Eat Frequently
Athletes in all sports benefit from developing a lean body composition, where muscle is preserved or added and excess fat stores are whittled away. Frequent eating (four to six meals and snacks per day) is a dietary pattern that's proven to assist athletes in getting leaner, independent of total calories consumed or macronutrient breakdown.
When you divide your daily calories into more meals, you're less likely to consume more calories than you need to supply your body's immediate energy needs. As a result, fewer excess calories are stored as body fat. Many women are concerned that by eating more often they will eat more calories each day, but research has shown that those who eat fewer meals tend to consume more total calories each day. Here's a sample six-times-a-day eating schedule:
7 a.m. Breakfast10 a.m. Healthy snack (fruit, nuts, low-fat yogurt, etc.)
12 a.m. Lunch
3 p.m. Healthy snack
6 p.m. Dinner
8:30 p.m. Healthy snack
Rule 6. Train on a Full Tank
If you want to maximize your fitness, it's not enough that you simply do your workouts—you also need to do well in your workouts. This requires that you start each workout with muscles that are well stocked with glycogen—their favorite fuel.
Since glycogen comes from dietary carbohydrate, the best way to ensure you train on a full tank is to consume a high-carbohydrate pre-workout meal. But since training on a full stomach is likely to cause GI distress, this meal should be eaten well before your workout.
A meal containing at least 100 grams of carbohydrate consumed three to four hours before your workout is ideal. One example of a perfect pre-workout breakfast is a cup of old-fashioned oatmeal (54 grams of carbs) with banana slices (29 grams) and an 8-ounce glass of orange juice (25 grams) for a total of 108 grams of carbohydrate.
5 High-carb Pre-workout Meals
- Chicken stir-fry
- Spaghetti with marinara sauce
- Grilled cheese sandwich with vegetable soup
- Cereal with milk
- Fruit smoothie
Rule 7. Hydrate
When you work out, you sweat; and when you sweat, you lose body fluid that must be replaced. Failure to fully rehydrate between workouts will compromise your recovery and your performance in subsequent workouts. Drinking during a prolonged workout or race (lasting an hour or more), especially in the heat, will help you delay fatigue and reduce the risk of heat illness.
Sports drinks are better than water for hydration during workouts because they provide sodium to replace the salt you lose in sweat, plus carbs for quick energy. Drink at frequent intervals according to your thirst. After workouts, water will do. Drink enough throughout the day to keep your urine pale yellow to clear in color.
Rule 8. Eat for Recovery
When you finish a workout, many of your muscle fibers are damaged from exertion, your muscle fuel stores are low, and you're at least slightly dehydrated. Nutrition is required to rebuild and refuel your muscles and rehydrate your body. Specifically, you need protein for tissue repair, carbohydrate to restock your muscles with fuel, and water to rehydrate.
The sooner you supply your body with these nutrients, the better. In the first hour after exercise, the muscles in particular are able to use nutrients for recovery much more effectively than at any other time. A study from Vanderbilt University found that the leg muscles were able to rebuild and refuel nearly three times faster when a carbohydrate-protein supplement was consumed immediately after a one-hour stationary bike ride than when the same supplement was consumed three hours after the same workout.
While post-workout recovery supplements such as Endurox R4 and Cytomax Recovery are convenient and ideally formulated for the job, regular foods containing carbs and protein and plain water are probably just as effective. Strive for a 4-1 ratio of carbs to fat.
5 carb-protein post-workout meals
- Grilled chicken breast and baked sweet potato
- Vegetable omelet and an orange
- Beef stew
- Turkey sandwich and an apple
- Broiled salmon and rice pilaf
Rule 9. Avoid Common Deficiencies
Female athletes commonly suffer from a handful of specific nutrient deficiencies. These deficiencies have negative consequences not only for athletic performance but also for general health. Fortunately, they're all easily avoided with a balanced diet.
| Nutrient | Consequences of not getting enough | How to get what you need |
|---|---|---|
| B vitamins (particularly B-12) | Reduced athletic performance | Eat three servings of meat, fish and/or eggs daily. Vegetarians: Take a daily vitamin B-complex supplement. |
| Calcium | Increased susceptibility to bone strains and stress fractures | Eat three servings of low-fat/non-fat dairy foods daily. |
| Iron | Fatigue, anemia | Make iron-rich foods such as tuna and chicken a regular part of your diet. |
| Omega-3 fatty acids | May compromise recovery | Supplement a balanced diet with omega-3-rich fish, flax oil and walnuts. |
For more information and Recommended Daily Allowances, see "Dietary Guidelines" on fnic.nal.usda.gov.
Rule 10. Reward Yourself
One of the benefits of being an athlete is it gives you a little extra leeway to eat some foods that aren't 100 percent wholesome without adding on pounds. If you're sustaining a consistent pattern of vigorous exercise most days a week, you shouldn't worry about including a few treats (potato chips with lunch, a cookie or a few chocolates for dessert) in your daily eating.
Matt Fitzgerald is a runner, triathlete, coach and author of several books on fitness and nutrition, including Performance Nutrition for Runners (Rodale, 2005). He is also an International Society of Sports Nutrition-certified sports nutritionist.