Feb 12, 2020 / Sports Medicine
Is Your Athlete Getting Enough?
What is enough?
Your body needs fuel to grow, learn and perform. Food provides this fuel. You need to change how much you eat depending on what you are doing. You also must be careful to eat enough of the right foods to fuel your body for growing and to perform in your sport.
What happens if you don’t get enough?
Here are some signs that suggest you may need more fuel:
Whether you are hungry or not, eating three meals a day with two to three snacks is a must for active, growing athletes. To be sure you are eating the right foods, mix food groups at each snack and meal and be sure to eat all food groups each day.
An example of what this may look like:
MEDITERRANEAN LUNCH WRAP RECIPE
Are YOU getting enough?
When you feel healthy and participate in classroom, activities and sports without becoming excessively tired or injured, you’re off to a great start of eating enough and eating well. Keep up the good work!
Our sports medicine team includes a dietitian with a special interest in young athletes. A former figure skater, Taylor Morrison, M.S., R.D., CSSD, L.D., visits with several types of patients in our clinic. Here are some situations where a sports dietitian can help an injured athlete get back to action:
Your body needs fuel to grow, learn and perform. Food provides this fuel. You need to change how much you eat depending on what you are doing. You also must be careful to eat enough of the right foods to fuel your body for growing and to perform in your sport.
What happens if you don’t get enough?
- Time out of sports from illness and injuries like stress fractures
- Prolonged recovery from injuries
- Not growing to full height
- Not able to build adequate muscle strength
- Other medical problems that can last a long time
Here are some signs that suggest you may need more fuel:
- Feeling tired a lot
- Feeling moody
- Getting injured easily
- Getting sick often
- Not improving strength and skills despite effort
- Decreased performance
- Losing weight
Whether you are hungry or not, eating three meals a day with two to three snacks is a must for active, growing athletes. To be sure you are eating the right foods, mix food groups at each snack and meal and be sure to eat all food groups each day.
An example of what this may look like:
MEDITERRANEAN LUNCH WRAP RECIPE
Are YOU getting enough?
When you feel healthy and participate in classroom, activities and sports without becoming excessively tired or injured, you’re off to a great start of eating enough and eating well. Keep up the good work!
Our sports medicine team includes a dietitian with a special interest in young athletes. A former figure skater, Taylor Morrison, M.S., R.D., CSSD, L.D., visits with several types of patients in our clinic. Here are some situations where a sports dietitian can help an injured athlete get back to action:
- History of repeat injuries
- Restricted diet due to preferences - choice to be vegetarian or due to food allergies
- Difficulty fueling to meet the demands of training and recovery
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