BE DISCIPLINED, EAT RIGHT
Last year we asked our team, what would you give up or sacrifice in order to win a State Championship? Hair, ice-cream, pop, alcohol, clothes, cell phones…… These were some of the answers you guys gave us. The one thing we feel that can help us achieve our goal is for you guys to give up your current eating habits, and start EATING RIGHT!
Our society wants everything now; many high school kids are taking performance enhancing drugs to get bigger, faster and stronger. We don’t want to trade your health for even one high school football victory, not when you can get the same results doing things the right way. Everybody, deep down inside, wants to be the strongest or fastest guy on the team. But how many of you want to do what it takes to get there? You must master four areas to be the best you can be. Sleep, Hydration, Nutrition and Workouts.
SLEEP- You need to discipline yourself to get 8-9 hours of sleep each night. Athletic performance studies have shown that every hour you go to bed before midnight counts as two hours of good sleep after midnight. R.E.M sleep, the deepest of all sleep patterns can only be achieved when you go to sleep before midnight. The body cannot recover between workouts without enough rest, lack of sleep leads to smaller gains and injuries.
HYDRATE- Drink plenty of water, you must drink a minimum of 8-10 large glasses of water or sports drink daily. You know you are drinking enough if you have to urinate at least once every hour, and once during the night. Water makes up about 60% of a persons total body weight, without water oxygen, glucose, fatty acids and amino acids can’t be transported to your active muscles and waste products can’t be eliminated from the body.
NUTRITION- Today’s athletes often need around 3000 calories each day. Out of these 3000 calories 60% should come from carbohydrates, 15% from fats and 25% from protein (depending on your current %bodyfat, weight, goals). CARBS, we have included a chart that will tell you which carbs are the best choice for you, complex carbohydrates are those that are found in foods that can be picked off a tree or dug out of the ground. (Things that grow) These types of carbs enter the blood stream slowly and help keep the body’s insulin level at a steady state. FATS, unfortunately fat provides a flavor enhancement for all food and provides the necessary elements for the release of long term energy. Cutting the fat intake to around 10% will enhance the short term and help lower the athlete’s body weight and body fat ratio. PROTEIN, protein is needed for the continuing growth and development of the athlete, as well as for repair after strenuous activity. When eating meat the athlete should try to include chicken or fish in their diet whenever possible for their source of protein. Red meat can take as long as 48 hours to be digested by the body, therefore we suggest red meat be used in moderation several days before a big competition. We have included a chart that will tell you which sources of protein is the best choice for you, remember protein is also found in foods such as beans, cheese, clams, eggs, and macaroni and cheese.
MORE NUTRITION-
* Eat plenty of fruits and vegetables every meal, they provide the type of carbohydrates, vitamins and minerals your body requires to work properly. Eat something green at lunch and dinner. Not lime jello or sherbet.
* Drink milk, natural muscle contraction cannot occur without a high level of calcium in your body, low levels of calcium will cause you to have leg cramps and muscle pulls. To increase the calcium level in your system, you must either drink at least one glass of milk, take calcium supplements or eat a pint of yogurt daily.
* Potassium, eat one or two bananas each morning to ensure that the muscles in your body have enough potassium to endure grueling workouts.
* Scientific studies have shown tremendous gains in strength for athletes who ate a small portion (3oz.) tuna or turkey prior to bedtime. Tuna and turkey contain tryptophan and other amino acids that aid in establishing deeper sleep patterns and strength gains.
DANGER, DANGER- The F.D.A. is trying to get the government to put warning labels on soft drinks, much like they do now on cigarettes. They are being fought by the powerful soft drink companies. Every parent should read this report and decide if you want your son drinking soda pop. (
www.cspinet.org/new/pdf/final_soda_petition.pdf ) Carbonated beverages are very acidic, one of the ways the body neutralizes the acid is to use the calcium found in our bones. This loss of calcium is the first obvious negative result of prolonged consumption of carbonated drinks. One study found a significant higher rate of bone fractures among collage athletes who consumed more soft drinks. (
Focus on Nutrition- Carbonated beverages can wreck havoc within our body. ) Caffeine in soft drinks keeps athletes from sleeping at night. Which is counter productive to our sleeping goals.
The Food and Drug Administrations study on teenagers found that the following percentages of the recommended daily requirement were being met. Vegetables 39%, Fruits 13%, Dairy products 29%, fact is our athletes don’t eat right. If you just can’t get yourself to eat fruits and vegetables look into Fruit Power and Veggie Power (
Nutrition for Speed, Strength & Endurance ) these supplements will bridge the gap in your diet.
If you want to learn more about diet and exercise we recommend the following sources. (
Weight Training, Exercise Instruction & Kinesiology ) This is a great web site. Also we have a book in the office (Complete conditioning for Football, Nebraska) that is a great resourse. Or contact Darren Downing at Muscles in Motion.
WORKOUTS- Just show up and give 100% effort and we will make great gains and win many Football games.
“The best way to improve your team, is to improve yourself”.
Is there anything you would add or delete to this????????????????
Nutrition for HS Football players
