Tips and Tricks for D3 Athletes

There are a lot of demands on a working athlete, time gets sucked away, but we don’t want our nutrition to suffer.  Here are some simple tips to keep your diet healthy and stay on top of your eating patterns.

• stay hydrated, carry a water bottle with you and use thermal ones in the summer, load them in your car on long days so you have water all the time, water is our most essential nutrient
• smoothies or shaker mug, thermal container again for warm days
• freeze soups and take in suitcase when traveling, they count as a solid that wayJ
• do a search of where you are going if you’re traveling and find out if there are healthy places to eat
• Take snacks with you at all times, put almonds, raisins, and dried coconut in a baggie and keep it in your purse, or gym bag etc, try other treats like healthy jerky and dried apricots for post workout.  These snacks don’t go bad, but it’s always preferable to do something more fresh like apple and almonds and carrots or your next meal.
• Make healthy muffins or bars that you can eat after a long training day
• Put a crockpot on before heading out for a long ride or long training days
• Cook a big dinner the night before a long couple days of training, use the leftovers for the next 2 days to ease your time commitments
• Keep gu’s or chews that have caffeine in them in a pocket always when doing a longer workout, they tend to be the best for getting home when you bonk, the caffeine helps most people regain more energy and use fat for fuel.
• Take electrolytes with you in case the day gets warmer then expected
• Drink 16-20 ounces of water upon waking, we are all typically dehydrated when we wake up
• Give yourself about 90 minutes or a 2 hour cutoff from drinking water before bed so you use the restroom BEFORE going to bed

Enjoy your season and eat well!