For many people, sports, exercise, gymnastics, fitness are not empty words, but a way of life. True adherents of an active lifestyle know everything not only about sports, but also proper nutrition under sports loads. However, there is another category - beginners, that is, those who finally decided to end the sedentary lifestyle and enrolled in the gym. If you belong to this category, then this article on proper nutrition when playing sports will help you to balance your diet in accordance with a new way of life. It will be useful to professionals who, after reading the article, will certainly be able to learn something new for themselves.
Doing sports involves an increased strain on the entire body, including muscles. In order for the muscles to work properly, as well as to achieve certain sports results( for example, build muscle mass, etc.), you need to include more protein in the diet, because it is the protein that is involved in the formation and recovery of cells of the body and tissues.
On carbohydrates, however, forget, too, is not worth it. Some people exclude carbohydrates, thinking that they will cause considerable damage to health and figure. In an unlimited amount of carbohydrates, of course, are harmful, but they should not be completely excluded from the diet. The fact that carbohydrates - an excellent source of energy, and energy when playing sports we are particularly needed. By the way, fats are also a source of energy.
From here it is possible to draw the following conclusion: if you are engaged in sports, your body needs all nutrients without exception, and these nutrients under physical exertion should be more!
Beginning of workouts
If after a long winter you have found yourself with excess fat in the abdomen or hips, then it's time to enroll in the gym to be back in shape by the beginning of the summer season.
The first workout for an untrained body is always a great stress, so do not try to lose weight at an accelerated pace. A daily visit to the gym and "puncturing" on the racetracks by the hour will only deplete your body, well, spring depression and vitamin deficiency will also do their black work, adding to you a couple of troubles.
At first it's better to visit the gym 2 times a week, and when the body gets used to the load, if necessary, you can increase the number of visits up to 3 times.
Before starting workouts, you should consult a doctor, not with a doctor who is assigned to the gym, but with your therapist or a specialized doctor. Do not be too lazy to spend for this time, after all, so you will get a good consultation on the intensity of physical activities that your body can withstand, and also learn about the state of your health. Especially go to the doctor if you have any symptoms. Spring exacerbation of diseases of the digestive tract? In this case, you may not be able to play sports. Joints ache a bit? Perhaps it is arthrosis or arthritis, therefore, some exercises you can not perform.
If the doctor gave you training permission, then go safely to the gym. At first it is better to use the services of a coach who will develop a set of exercises for you and show you how to use the simulators.
Food and exercise
After the first training, you will most likely not be up to the right diet - the body will be very sick. However, in time you will adjust to a new rhythm of life, and the pain will go away. This means that you can now think about proper nutrition.
Any professional trainer will recommend you eat 5-6 times a day, since this way of eating most meets biorhythms of the human body. However, such a diet will recommend to you and any gastroenterologist. Now you should have more than one breakfast, and two, as well as lunch, afternoon tea, dinner and eating after a workout. Do not overeat before and after training.
So, what do we have? The first breakfast should not be plentiful( about 5% of the total calorie intake for 24 hours).Drink tea, a glass of kefir or yogurt, eat a little cottage cheese. Then the second breakfast - 30% of the daily calorie rate, lunch - 30%, afternoon snack - 5%, dinner - 25%, food after training - 5%.Try not to overeat. At a weight of 70-80 kg per day you should eat no more than 4 kilograms of food. Fruits and vegetables should be at least 20% of your diet.
Of course, not everyone can follow such a diet, but a few other options are always possible! For example, you can have breakfast only once - and nothing terrible will happen to you. Just remember that breakfast and lunch on the day of training should be more nutritious.
The snack should be about 2 hours after lunch. Generally, in the afternoon you can eat a little every two hours, and if it's a day of training, then the food must contain carbohydrates - this will give the body extra energy. Your diet should be designed so that the last meal is 1.5-2 hours before training. And an hour before exercise, you can drink a little non-carbonated water or juice.
The food should be varied. Do not need every day to eat only dietary chicken breasts and cottage cheese - it will quickly get bored. Oatmeal with milk, beans, boiled meat, low-fat soups will be an excellent source of energy.
To ensure that the meal schedule is not lost, wear ready-made food for work. Do not be shy, because you care about your figure and health. By the way, your diet should include not only chicken and meat, but also fish. As a side dish to meat and fish, you can take buckwheat, rice, potatoes and pasta from durum wheat without fatty sauces.
The daily calorie rate depends on the air temperature. In summer, you can eat less calorie foods, but in winter you should increase your protein intake and reduce fat intake.
During and after the workout
During training it is forbidden to eat anything. As already mentioned above, the last meal should be 1.5-2 hours before training. However, during the training you can drink water - a few sips every 20-25 minutes. Do not swallow water immediately. To better quench your thirst, you should hold water in your mouth for a while. Naturally, it is allowed to drink only non-carbonated pure water - no lemonades or colas. Also try not to drink cold water. During and after training, you can become very hot, and cold water will play a bad joke with your body.
Do not limit yourself in the water during training. Lack of fluid in the body during physical exertion can overload the heart, cause a fluctuation in pressure and lead to dehydration.
To drink or not to drink after a workout is up to you.
Now let's talk about food. During training, you have spent a lot of energy, therefore, you will want to eat. You can eat right after the workout, just remember that you should not overeat. Fresh fruit, a plate of buckwheat, a salad of vegetables - this will be enough.
What you can not
Some products in sports are best not to use. These include sweet fizzy drinks, tea and coffee with sugar, pastries, any sweets, cakes and cakes, cheap pasta. Of course, you should not set a strict ban and completely abandon all goodies. Sometimes you can pamper yourself with these products, but remember that everything is fine in moderation.
Sample menu
First breakfast: 200 g low-fat cottage cheese, apple / orange, tea with milk, several spoons of dried oatmeal.
Second breakfast: a glass of yogurt, 100 g of cottage cheese, apple / orange, 50 g of hard cheese.
Lunch: 250 g low fat meat / fish, pasta, greens.
Snack: at this time is better to eat what you have not eaten, such as vegetable salad, fruit, yogurt, eggs, etc.
After training: salad of white cabbage, greens and cucumber, 200 g of meat / fish.
Before going to bed: a glass of low-fat kefir, green tea with milk.
To eat properly, you need to know how many calories you burn during training. In our article, we talked about classes in the gym, but sport can be practiced not only there.
As a supplement to nutrition, vitamin complexes( not dietary supplements!) Are used. Before using them, consult a physician.