For 28 years, I’ve worked as the sports dietitian for NFL teams — first with the Pittsburgh Steelers and now with the Kansas City Chiefs — and boy, how athletes’ nutrition has changed. What used to be diets heavy on meats and fried foods are now meals focused around plants — think stir fries, composed salads, acai bowls, and fruit and vegetable smoothies.
Although most of us are not professional football players, we have our own reasons to feed our bodies well, whether that’s more energy, a flatter stomach, diabetes management or improved physical fitness. And while we don’t all have chefs and food service staff members in our kitchens, we can implement some of the players’ fueling strategies into our lives. Here’s how:
1. Create a hydration station.
Football players sweat (a lot) and need to replenish the fluid they lose. If you play tennis, walk, run, bike or hike in the heat, you know you need to drink enough. But plain water can be boring. To take your fluid to the next level, consider adding flavor with cut-up fruits and herbs such as orange and mint, lemon and ginger or watermelon and basil. Slushies made with crushed ice and a sports drink or a little bit of juice concentrate are refreshing and hydrating. Chilled herbal tea flavored with a little bit of fruit juice is low in calories but high on taste.
[See: 8 Ways to Stay Hydrated This Summer Without Drinking Water.]
2. Sneak in fruits and vegetables.
Although football players may meet their protein needs, they don’t always do a great job of consuming enough fruits and vegetables. But that’s easy to change by adding vegetables to meatloaf, meatballs, spaghetti sauce, tacos, stir fries, smoothies and even sweets (as in carrot or zucchini muffins). You can also make spiralized noodles from zucchini, carrots, sweet potatoes or even beets — these options were a hit at our training camp pasta station. As for fruit, try making smoothies with beets, rhubarb, spinach and pineapple to provide produce and an anti-inflammatory punch, as well as hydration. Finally, try freezer pops made with banana, pineapple, mango and coconut water or watermelon, strawberries and orange juice.
[See: 5 Healthy — and Tasty — Smoothie Ingredients.]
3. Find snacks that stack up.
Who doesn’t enjoy a snack? For our players, the “fourth meal” is intended to be a treat, but that doesn’t mean it has to be devoid of nutrition. You can get protein and produce into a snack — think ice pops made with yogurt, milk and frozen fruit, or banana ice cream with dark chocolate peanut butter. For the crunch, how about popcorn with nuts, roasted chickpeas, seeds or freeze-dried fruit? Baked potatoes with broccoli and cheese or a taco topping are quite popular with NFL players, and some guys choose a smoothie to help curb those late-night hunger pangs. A well-chosen snack can help you reach your daily produce needs, optimize protein intake and maximize fluid intake.
4. Personalize your plan.
You may think that all football players are larger than life and, truth be told, when they are in pads and uniforms, they can look quite formidable. But in reality, they vary greatly in size, height and weight. The offensive linemen are much larger than the wide receivers, so they don’t all eat the same amounts. You too need to strategize to find the right portion sizes for you based on factors like gender, height and weight, activity level and health goals.
Quality is important, too, of course, and “high quality” looks different for every player. We have vegan players and players with food allergies, food intolerances and health concerns like diabetes. Yet everyone who walks into the dining area can find what he needs to meet his body’s needs. So in planning your own training table, think about what you like, how much time you want to put into preparation and how much you want to spend.
[See: 9 Meal Tips From Doctors Who Are Also Experts in the Kitchen.]
5. Eat for pain relief.
Players who are in pain cannot give 100 percent on the field. Likewise, if you overextend at CrossFit or tweak your shoulder after several hours of yard work, you may not be able to give 100 percent to your work or family. Incorporating anti-inflammatory foods into your diet, however, can be helpful in pain reduction. At training camp, we offer fatty fish such as salmon and tuna several times a week. Greens are available at every meal, and foods are cooked in olive oil. Nuts, nut butters and seeds, which are all anti-inflammatory, are in the dining hall as well as in to-go containers. Berries are on the salad bar, yogurt bar and smoothie bar. Stir fries, grilled vegetables, cut-up fruit, salad and whole grains are standard items on our line. Make some or all of these foods part of your daily playbook to minimize pain and maximize health and fitness gains.
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What Do NFL Players Eat? originally appeared on usnews.com
