DR. PAUL'S DISCUSSION

In my last post, "You Need to Eat "IT" to Get "IT", I was explaining the importance of “real-life” connections between “what” you eat and your athletic performance on any given day.  To begin, I emphasize to athletes all the time that your performance on race/event day is almost always dependent on how well you eat and rehydrate immediately following the previous days’ workout or event.  What this means is that if you want to perform your best on race day, make sure you have consistently nourished your muscles (and body) with “gold” medal type foods immediately within the first hour following all your workouts, especially the day before the race. We refer to this time-period as “post-exercise recovery nutrition”.  Many sports-performance nutritionists, me included, believe this is the most important time to nourish your body in relation to the exercise you perform. Before I share with you the best post-recovery nutrition, here are some great food choices for everyday nourishment for optimal performance.

DAILY TRAINING/WORKOUT AND DAY BEFORE COMPETITION FOOD LISTS (eat a combination of these food:  Carbohydratesz(CHO)-50%; PROTEIN-25% ;  FAT-25% ... every 2-3 hours during the day!   That's about 6 small meals)

Gold Medal Carbohydrates
Carbohydrates are important to maintain blood glucose levels and replace your muscle energy stores of glycogen, lost during bouts of exercise. Carbs should comprise 50% of your total food intake at each meal and consist of:

Whole Grains – whole grain pasta/breads/rice cakes/cereals, steel cut oats, millet, quinoa, wild/brown rice, barley, spelt, buckwheat
Vegetables – all types of leafy greens (spinach, lettuce, kale, escarole, chicory, collard greens, beet greens, mesculin greens, arugula, etc), summer/fall squashes, pumpkin, sweet potatoes, broccoli, peppers, carrots, etc.
Fruits – all types of berries (blueberry, boysenberry, cranberry, acai, blackberry, strawberry, raspberry, etc), pomegranate, apples, bananas, melons, oranges, grapefruit, kiwi, pineapple, etc.

Gold Medal Proteins
Protein is essential for muscle growth and function, as well as a strong immune function to resist infection. You should consume at least 25% of your total food intake as protein at each meal, consisting of:

Fresh Poultry – free range, anti-biotic and hormone free turkey or chicken
Fresh eggs – free range eggs (especially egg whites)
Fish – wild salmon, haddock, orange roughy, halibut, tuna, cod, snapper, wahoo, mackerel, sardines, etc.
Wild game meat – free range beef, cattle, bison, etc. 

Whey Protein, micro-filtered isolate , concentrate
Dairy:
Milk (low-fat, skim, chocolate)
Yogurt (Greek, regular low-fat)
Cottage Cheese
Legumes – split green peas, lentils, black/kidney/garbanzo/chickpea/cannellini/pinto beans, etc. 
Nuts/Seeds – walnuts, peanut, almonds, pumpkin, sunflower, flaxseed, etc.

Gold Medal Fats
Fats are essential for healthy nerve development and function which in turn helps your muscles function better. Fats also help make hormones our body’s need and provide insulation and a strong immune function to resist infection. Fats should comprise 25% of your total  intake at each meal and consist of:

Avocados,
Olive oil,
Flaxseeds,
Nuts (Walnuts, almonds, peanuts, etc.) Fish (and fish oils) and
other vegetable Oils (sunflower, safflower, canola)

As a sports-performance nutritionist, my primary goal is to provide athletes with the best chance of "optimal performance" each and every time you train or compete. So, I recommend you consume a combination of: nutrient dense carbohydrates; lean proteins; and healthy fats throughout the day and following all your training workouts and races.   My next post will cover the "day of" and "post-training/event" meals.