Fastpitch Nutrition Tips
As we head into the season and the time of year where we’re we have long tournament days, one thing that can suffer is our nutrition. I know I’m completely guilty of this. Softball season gets so crazy busy that home made meals often get replaced with the most convenient fast food available. It’s probably not the most healthy choice and poor nutritional habits can not only hurt softball performance, but may end up becoming long term bad habits. So what are some of the things softball players should be aware of as far as diet and nutrition is concerned?
I’m going to share a short, but useful list of tips compiled by Patrick Beith, creator of Complete Speed Training.
Nutrition Tips for Athletes
By Patrick Beith
* Do not skip meals
* Eat 4-5 meals a day
* Eat breakfast everyday
* Eat most of your vegetables and fruit in raw form
* Try and eat all the colors in the crayon box (fruits & vegetables)
* Sufficient protein should be present in all meals (especially breakfast) to prevent extreme insulin fluctuations due to rapid digestion of carbohydrates
* Highly processed foods (such as sugars, oils, and flour) should be avoided in excess. They are not recognized by the body and make them difficult to process.
* Design your diet so that you receive a complete mix of all the nutrients everyday to promote recovery and restoration and to enhance your immune system function.
* Post workout nutrition can drastically reduce the time needed to recover. (this is something most athletes and coaches never pay attention to)
* The body is much more efficient in restoring carbohydrates 15 minutes after a strenuous workout. Carbohydrates are the primary fuel during exercise – needs to be restored by the body.
* Post workout drink: 1 gram of protein for every 3 grams of carbohydrate. (.3gm of protein/lb. of lean body weight)
* Drink approximately 64 oz. (8 glasses) of water daily. Bring a water bottle with you everywhere (especially practice).
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Now even if you can’t follow each and every guideline shown above, making a point to do 1-2 things you may not be doing now is a great step in the right direction. Once those 1-2 things becomes a regular habit, add another, then another, then another and next thing you know, you’re nutritional habits have improved substantially which will probably also translate to better performance on the field.
If you liked these tips from Patrick Beith, you may also enjoy his free short report on Developing Dominant Speed. He also gives away 2 full hours of speed training video with tips, techniques and methods of developing the fastest athletes. Grab your copy of this report and speed training video tips free.
The other thing I wanted to mention is Patrick’s Speed Training Program. I happen to know that a number of softball players and teams are snatching this thing up. I can hardly believe it because we’re in this whole economic “recession” and this program is not cheap. However, it seems to be selling like hotcakes right now. Maybe it’s just the time of year (start up of season or a tax return present), but according e-mail correspondence I’ve had with Patrick, there are just so many more softball people picking up this program than in the past. Like I said, it’s a bit surprising given the economy and all. You’d figure there would be less people spending a decent chunk of money on this Speed Training Program. But for some reason that’s not the case. I haven’t seen it, but it must be one heck of a program!
