West Haven Wizards Swim Team

Nutrition

Hard work and a great attitude are two key components to being a successful swimmer, but taking care of you body with healthy nutrition and preparation and also provide huge dividends. This page is dedicated to giving swimmers the tips to keep themselves in great shape and properly fueled for meet day.

Eat Right and Feel Good

One of the most overlooked sources of carbohydrate is fruit. Yes, FRUIT. Fresh, canned, frozen, dried or juiced. No matter how you look at it, fruit is an excellent source of carbohydrate. Not only does fruit provide carbohydrate in the form of natural sugars (versus refined sugar), the bright colors of fruits indicate that they are also excellent sources of vitamins and minerals, including a sub-group called anti-oxidants.

You might recall that exercise is the stimulus that leads to training adaptations. And that adaptations to training occur ONLY is you give the body the right kinds of fuels during periods of rest.

Well, one of the side effects of exercise is the generation of “free radicals.” Free radicals are molecules that can actually cause damage to muscle tissue above and beyond the damage caused by exercise. The damage caused by exercise is normal. It serves as part of the stimulus for training adaptation to take place. But damage caused by free radicals is NOT a desired part of the training process. Damage caused by free radicals (aka “scavengers”) circulating in the bloodstream after workout can continue well into the recovery period. This is when the body is supposed to be adapting!

Anti-oxidants “absorb” free radicals, neutralizing their effect in the body before their damage to muscle tissue can amount to much. A diet consistently rich in fruits (and other colorful foods, such as VEGETABLES) is apt to keep the body consistently supplied with anti-oxidants, which will assist the body in keeping free radical formation to a minimum. This a good reason to eat lots of colorful foods during the recovery time between workouts.

Colorful foods include, but are not limited to:

Apples, Strawberries, Blueberries, Bananas, Oranges, Kiwi, Watermelon, Raspberries, Grapes, Mango, Papaya, Apricots, Red peppers, Broccoli, Corn, Squash, Carrots, Peas, Green beans, Tomatoes

Colorful foods DO NOT include: Skittles, Jelly Beans, M&Ms, Mike&Ikes, Fruit Loops

From: usaswimming.org

Diet - Pre-Meet

Snacks before Practice or Race

• Raisin box

• Oatmeal

• Fruit cup

• Banana

• Oranges

• Watermelon

• Fruit smoothie

• V8 juice

• Animal crackers

• Sport drink

• Granola bar

• Cereal bar

• Bagel with peanut butter

• Pretzels

• Crackers

• Fig Newton

• Rice cakes

• Cheerios

• Dried fruit

From: www.teamunify.com

Diet - during the meet

#1 priority is to Hydrate Hydrate Hydrate. It's a long day in a warm building and you need plenty of fluids to keep your body going. Don't be fooled by fancy shmancy energy drinks, good old water works best. Drink slowly but steadily throughout the day, and start well before the meet itself. If you are thirsty you are already dehydrated.

What's good to eat at a meet? (if you are swimming)

•Mini cereal box

•Bagel and tuna

•Low fat muffin

•Fruit bar

•Canned fruit

•Fruit puree cup

•Cheese strings

•Baby bells

•FRUIT !!!

•Raw peas

•Carrots and dip

•Sport bar

•Sandwich

•Pita wrap

•Trail mix

•Peanuts

•Popcorn

What's not good to eat?

Nachos and cheese

Fast Food Cheeseburgers

Fried Food

Candy

From: www.teamunify.com

After meet/practice nutrition

Replenish your body! Hydrate Hydrate Hydrate! Drink plenty of water and pick on some FRESH FRUIT to absorb those free radicals released by all your hard work. Choose one of these healthy snacks when you get home from practice:

REMEMBER TO:

• include 2 food groups

• eat unprocessed REAL foods

o Sliced fruit and yogurt

o Cheese, crackers

o Trail mix with extra raisins

o Fruit to go bar

o Peanut butter and banana

o Carrot sticks and hummus

• Yogurt drink

• Fruit Yogurt

• Milk

• Booster juice

• V8 juice

• Carnation Instant Breakfast

• Chocolate milk

• Cheese strings

From: www.teamunify.com

Other tips for great meets

1. Go to sleep! Your body needs plenty of rest so get to sleep early and use Tivo so you can catch up on TV later.

2. Visualize your races. Picture what your perfect race will look and feel like. If you can think it, you can do it.

3. Be mentally prepared. Be ready for the long day and excited yu are a part of it. Do not let any negative thoughts go through your head and be ready to compete in top form!