Food tips and nutrition information to keep swimmers and other athletes fueled for top performance. What swimmers can eat and drink and when swimmers should eat and drink for before, during, and after a swim practice or swim meet.
Body Composition is the technical term used to describe the different components that, when taken together, make up a person's body weight. Athlete's are different from the normalized population.
Body Composition: what it is, how it's measured and how important it is to athletic performance.
Barbara Chin, About.com Guide to Gymnastics, gives an in-depth explanation on why protein is so important in your diet.
There is a lot of conflicting advice out there. What to do, what to do....
The About.com Walking guide's page of links.
More from the About.com, aimed at athletes, from the Sports Medicine guide. What to eat and why from an athlete's point of view.
Some general guidance on what and when to eat, from the About.com
Swimming guide.
Rick Hall, About.com's
Nutrition guide, lists many resources on this link page.
A closer look at energy gels, from Holly Hargroder and CarbBoom.
The basics of the calorie, including what is what and where they originate, from the
Mayo Clinic.
Carbohydrate loading may give you the endurance you need to accomplish your goal.
Susan M. Kleiner, PhD, RD, explains the concept behind the energy diet - if you don't have enough energy, you can't do much - from
The Physician and Sports Medicine.
Avoid fat; fat is ok, eat it up. Avoid carbohydrates; carbohydrates should be the major portion of your diet. Consume a high amount protein; eat balanced portions of proteins, fats, and carbohydrates. There is a lot of conflicting advice out there.
The
Mayo Clinic's guidelines on making healthy choices while dining out on the town.
PBN regularly updates this section with articles of interest to endurance athletes.
"Getting energy first" is one of the key ideas behind this groups total plan that includes nutrition, exercise, and supplementation.
Edmund Burke, PhD, in
Muscular Development, explains what this means and how this could help you perform better.
Report on the Zone Diet and why it is not what it claims to be.
Kristin Fusco and
Swim Gold present some ideas on making what you eat work better for you.
Colorado State University and J. Anderson give a good overview eating and athletics, including some sample menus.
Women's Cycling's collection of nutritional information sites.
A primer on eating for athletes from Sports Coach. Don't stare at the spinning apple too long.
Restoration and regeneration as essential components within training programs by Angie Calder, B.A., M.A., from the
ASCA.
Athletes use up more energy than the average person. The ideal source of the extra energy needed for sport is carbohydrate. This is the body’s preferred source of energy.
The
Mayo Clinic's ten red flags that can be found in the claims of some diets.
It's pretty hard to miss. Turn on the tube to watch the Olympics, World Championships or any major meet and you'll notice that the winners tend to look alike: long, lean and supple.
Nancy Clark, MS, RD, asks and answers many questions about the place protein takes in nutrition, including how much is adequate, sources of protein for vegetarians, and why it is important for athletes, from the
ASCA.
The
Mayo Clinic discusses some of the negatives of high protein diets.
A description of what is called "Carbohydrate Addiction", from the
Carbohydrate Addict website.
Edmund R. Burke, PhD, explains some of the reasons behind good hydration and carbohydrate intake prior to and during exercise, from
Muscular Development.
I am always at a loss for what to feed my swimmers before a big meet. I stress out for my children! They look to me for "what to eat" (not how to swim). What specific food should my children eat before their next swim meet?
