Food plays a tremendous and necessary role in an athlete’s diet. Athlete food is not just about food! It’s about what to eat and how to eat to get better results for health issues. Foods affect body performance. Lots of proteins, fats, nutrients, and minerals like proteins and vitamins are consumed every day with every meal. But the matter is when and how much we take the minerals. Which one has the most energy when it finishes the morning or is appropriated for the midday or the best for the night and sleeping well?!

Athlete food is not a special diet that is different from others. It is a variety of foods just the same as other people, but the important thing is the amount and the time of eating.

Breakfast and athlete food

 There are thousands of studies that discuss the importance of breakfast for being healthy. People eating patterns are different. But in a regular eating pattern, breakfast is needed because it gives the essential nutrients to the body. Essential nutrients and minerals increase your body’s immune system. An immune system keeps the body healthy, energetic, and alive. Breakfast is an important meal for the athlete food program. In a normal situation with no eating disorders and problems, a suitable breakfast:

• Reduce the risk of heart disease
• Keeps you energetic and tuned in
• Decrease the risk for diabetes
• Prevents you from overeating or poor food choices during the day
• Keeps you on the shape if you choose it as your largest meal

Key foods for an athletic diet program

There are key foods for an athlete’s food program. These foods are not expensive, and they can easily find in the store. Some of the key foods are as follow:

valuable athlete food

Rice

Gluten-free food with carbohydrates will boost body performance. The brown rice is the best choice as an athlete food, a great source of fibers, vitamin B, selenium, and many antioxidants.

Chicken

White meats promote muscle development, maintains them, and participates in recovery. These meats have low fat, lots of protein, phosphor, zinc, selenium, vitamin B3, and B6.

Fish

Eating fish twice a week increases the omega 3 in the body, improving neuromuscular function and reducing fatigue. Protein and vitamin B are two other important minerals for fish and white meat.

Green vegetables

Green vegetables like spinach are good sources of iron, vitamins, and mineral, which improve sports performances. Besides, green vegetables prevent certain cancers and protect the body against oxidative stress.

Fruits

Banana, apple, orange, and many other fruits can boost body energy and performance. With no fruits, there are lots of diseases because the immune system is not strong enough. Fruits can increase the body’s immune system and have necessary minerals, vitamins, iron, antioxidants, and many other nutrients.

Nuts

Most nuts such as almond, pistachio, peanut, walnut, and raisins are full of nutrients. They have benefits for the health of the body and the brain. They are good sources of iron, calcium, magnesium, antioxidants, vitamins, and energy suppliers.

Foods to avoid

There are lots of foods which are really delicious but very harmful as athlete food. Some conditions like pregnancy, diseases, or being an athlete need special diets according to age, weight, and lifestyle. One person needs proteins more than vitamins, and the other needs fiber more than carbohydrates. It’s better to checkup the body health and consult with a doctor. But it is for sure that some foods have no particular nutritional value, and they are very harmful to the body and athlete food program. Some of these foods are:

• Canned soup
• Diet soda
• Rice cakes
• Sugary cereal
• Microwave popcorn
• Alcohol
• Flavored yogurt
• Sport drinks
• Pretzels

An athlete should be alerted of what is acceptable to eat and how the foods impact health. Being active is happiness! If you want to be happy, watch out your diet!