Meal Prep For Athletes
Nutrition plays a critical role in athlete performance. With the right food, athletes can build more muscle and recover properly. Today, many athletes, such as student-athletes, find it hard to get healthy and nutritious meals due to their packed schedules and lack of time to cook daily. This causes them to turn to fast food which could have detrimental effects on their health and performance. However, meal prepping might be the solution for those looking to get the proper nutrition without spending time every day in the kitchen.
What Is Meal Prepping?
Meal prep, as the name suggests, is simply preparing your meals ahead of time, usually for the week. For example, one could have a large cooking session on Sunday to prepare all the meals for the week (Monday - Friday) and store them in the fridge.
This approach is popular not only among athletes, but also busy moms and families, working professionals, and more. With that said, there is no one-size-fits-all meal-prepping plan. Different people will have various meal-prepping approaches that are designed to fit their lifestyles and needs.
Benefits of Meal Prepping For Athletes:
Meal prepping has multiple benefits for athletes. While it may not be essential, it helps many athletes achieve their performance and nutritious goals. Below are some major benefits of meal prepping for athletes:
Significant Time Reduction: Meal prepping will cut down a lot of time on cleaning up and preparing the food.
Meals become easily accessible and convenient: For a lot of athletes, it will be a lot easier to come home after training and go straight into the fridge for their meals rather than spend more energy cooking in the kitchen.
The nutrition becomes easily planned and more controllable: When athletes are making their food, it is easier to track the different macros and nutrition that would help meet their goals.
General Guideline on What Foods to Prep:
It is also important to note that some foods work well with meal prepping while some don’t. Foods that are compatible with meal prepping include:
Cooked grains & pasta
Cooked beans
Cooked meat
Roasted vegetables
Hearty fresh vegetables (think celery, carrots, peas, bell peppers, kale, cabbage, radishes, etc.)
Whole fruit (apples, oranges, stone fruit)
Nuts & seeds
Cheese
Sauces and dips (like salad dressings, hummus, salsa, sour cream, etc.)
Common Meal Prep Mistakes:
Meal prepping should be easy and not complicated at all. It should be a sustainable approach to nutrition. However, beginners often make mistakes when it comes to meal prepping which eventually leads them to give up.
One of the most common mistakes is making the meals too repetitive. Nobody wants to eat the same thing over and over again, and therefore it is crucial to include a diverse range of food options that changes from week to week.
The second mistake is not customizing meal prep to specific needs. Back to the fact that there is no one-size-fits-all meal prep plan. Each individual must create a plan that corresponds to their own goals and needs, and not someone else’s.
Conclusion:
Meal prep is a promising solution to many troubled athletes' worries about not reaching their nutrition goals. Whether it be a packed schedule or not enough energy cooking, with meal prepping, athletes can overcome those challenges and make accessible meals that achieve their nutrition goals. It is also important to experiment and try different things to keep things interesting and fit personal needs.
Sources:
Moore, Emily. “Meal Prep for Athletes: A 6-Step Guide.” The Dietitian Runner -, 23 Feb. 2024, thedietitianrunner.com/meal-prep-for-athletes/.
S, Sarah. “Simple Meal Prep for Athletes.” Bucket List Tummy, 5 Mar. 2024, www.bucketlisttummy.com/how-to-simplify-meal-prep/.
Www.facebook.com/alexlarsonnutrition. “The Ultimate Guide to Meal Prepping for Athletes.” Alex Larson Nutrition, 20 June 2023, alexlarsonnutrition.com/athlete-meal-prep/.