Football is the epitome of an anaerobic sport, requiring a high level of strength and speed of short duration but high frequency. The length of plays almost never exceed 15 seconds, followed by a rest period between each play. When the ball is in play, players are giving maximal muscular effort to move, or stop the movement of, the ball. Football players also carry the extra burden of heavy equipment. This type of activity requires a high level of carbohydrates to properly fuel the muscles.
Football players may burn 700-1000 calories a day during their workouts alone. During the season, they can burn anywhere from 500-800 calories during practice.Eating enough carbohydrates is critical.
55-60% of caloric intake = carbohydrates
15% protein
30% fat
(2/3 carbohydrates, 1/3 protein)
Tuesday, December 2, 2008
Protein
A typical football player should intake 15% of their diet from protein. Football players do need protein but they don't need too much, one-third of their meal should be protein. Basically, proteins are made up of long chains of amino acids. There are 22 types of amino acids and the body needs all 22 of them in order to function properly. There are complete and incomplete proteins but when eaten together the amount of amino acids from the proteins are fulfilled. A complete protein has 8 amino acids and examples of foods with complete proteins are: meat, dairy products, eggs, shellfish, and poultry. Examples of incomplete protein food are: vegetables, fruits, pulses, grains, and nuts.
Instead of eating:
Big T-Bone Steaks
Prime Rib
Tator Tots or French Fries
Fettuccine Alfredo
Brownies/Ice Cream
Milk/Juice
Biscuits
Whole Pieces of Fruit
Eat:
Filet or Chicken
Flank Steak
Oven-Baked Wedges/Mashed Potatoes
Pasta Marinara w/Parmesan Cheese
Soft Serve or Parfaits
Low Fat Milk/Sports Drinks
Rolls
Cut up Fruit
"Protein." 9 Dec. 2008 <
Carbohydrates
Football players need more than 2.7 grams of carbohydrates per pound of body weight per day. If you have/had an intense practice or training you will need more than 3.6-4.5 grams of carbohydrates per pound of body weight per day. Football players need between 5,000 and 10,000 calories per day. Carbohydrates in a football players diet should be more than 60%. Football players weigh over 200 and if they practice hard that’s more than 800 grams of carbohydrates. To meet these standards they could eat grain breads and cereal, and also fruits and vegetables.
Your body needs carbohydrates and prefers carbohydrates as the major body energy source. The thing with carbohydrates is that it stores a limited amount of food for a limited amount of time. Carbohydrates are pretty much sugar and starch. When you use carbohydrates as energy it fuels your brain and muscles. A regular body can store up to half a days’ worth of glycogen. If your body has no use for the glucose, it will be converted into glycogen and will be stored in the liver and muscles as a long term energy source. After the glucose is converted, the new glycogen will be harder to burn off. After a football player uses his/her energy/carbohydrates on the field, they need to replenish them within two hours after their activity for the most efficient storage.
Simple Carbohydrates are pretty much blood sugar or glucose. Foods that contain simple carbohydrates have more of a sweet taste, such as fruits, honey, cookies, candy, sugar, cake, etc. The things about simple carbohydrates are that they’re in a form that is close to the digested form, so they go through your bloodstream almost immediately.
Complex Carbohydrates are molecules that have more ingredients in them, to help feed your body nutrients. Both simple and complex carbohydrates provide the glucose needed by the body but the complex carbohydrates give multiple nutritional advantages. They also give additions minerals, vitamins, and fiber that are needed for a good performance and health. You can obtain these carbohydrates by eating grains and vegetables
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Your body needs carbohydrates and prefers carbohydrates as the major body energy source. The thing with carbohydrates is that it stores a limited amount of food for a limited amount of time. Carbohydrates are pretty much sugar and starch. When you use carbohydrates as energy it fuels your brain and muscles. A regular body can store up to half a days’ worth of glycogen. If your body has no use for the glucose, it will be converted into glycogen and will be stored in the liver and muscles as a long term energy source. After the glucose is converted, the new glycogen will be harder to burn off. After a football player uses his/her energy/carbohydrates on the field, they need to replenish them within two hours after their activity for the most efficient storage.
Simple Carbohydrates are pretty much blood sugar or glucose. Foods that contain simple carbohydrates have more of a sweet taste, such as fruits, honey, cookies, candy, sugar, cake, etc. The things about simple carbohydrates are that they’re in a form that is close to the digested form, so they go through your bloodstream almost immediately.
Complex Carbohydrates are molecules that have more ingredients in them, to help feed your body nutrients. Both simple and complex carbohydrates provide the glucose needed by the body but the complex carbohydrates give multiple nutritional advantages. They also give additions minerals, vitamins, and fiber that are needed for a good performance and health. You can obtain these carbohydrates by eating grains and vegetables
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Fats
A football player's diet should include 30% of fat. Fat is a long term energy source stored in the body necessary for a high energy performance.Eating fats take longer to digest, so high-fat (especially pregame) meals can leave the athlete with a full, heavy stomach and not enough energy to perform at their best. Too much fat might slow a player down, but too little might not provide him with proficient energy. The perfect amount would be just enough to sustain him and help him achieve an ideal weight/size.
Good fats that players should moderately consume include monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fats. Monounsaturated fats (MUFAs) lower total cholesterol and LDL cholesterol (bad) while increasing HDL cholesterol (good). Polyunsaturated fats also lower total cholesterol and LDL cholesterol. The bad fats to stay away from are saturated and trans fats. Saturated fats raise total blood cholesterol as well as LDL cholesterol. Trans fats are fatty acids found in hydrogenated foods intended to withstand the food production process and provide a better shelf life.
Good fats that players should moderately consume include monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fats. Monounsaturated fats (MUFAs) lower total cholesterol and LDL cholesterol (bad) while increasing HDL cholesterol (good). Polyunsaturated fats also lower total cholesterol and LDL cholesterol. The bad fats to stay away from are saturated and trans fats. Saturated fats raise total blood cholesterol as well as LDL cholesterol. Trans fats are fatty acids found in hydrogenated foods intended to withstand the food production process and provide a better shelf life.
3 Day Diet Plan
Meals
Breakfast
1: Pancakes, Sausage, Brown Rice, Orange Juice
2: Oatmeal w/ brown sugar, granola, milk
3: Honey Nut Cheerios, Milk, Apple w/ skin
Lunch
1: Chicken Caesar Salad w/ croutons, water
2: Ham Sandwhich w/lettuce, low fat cheese, tomatoes
3: Chicken/Alfalfa/lettuce wrap w/peanut spicy sauce, water
Dinner
1: Fish [broiled], Mixed brown/white rice, milk
2: Steak, Mashed potatoes, small salad, water
3: Beef/Brocoli Stir Fry, White/Brown rice, water
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