Muscle-bound athletes are everywhere. We see them competing in professional sports, banishing the bad guys in films and hawking their products on television. Have you ever wondered how those muscular specimens achieved such dynamic bodies and what they eat to maintain their high-performance conditioning?
The simplest answer is that athletes exercise and practice for long hard periods. To spend so much time exercising, their muscles demand constant nourishment. They require fuel, and food provides the fuel they need. It would be easy to think that there’s one magic fruit or vegetable that can adequately stoke an athlete’s furnace, but the truth is that an athlete’s meal plan must contain a variety of food for peak performance and endurance during extended workout sessions.
Professional athletes frequently hire dieticians and nutritionists to devise a special diet geared specifically for their particular needs. Those needs vary by gender, size and the type of sport that the athlete plays. Usually, an athlete’s meal plan is very different from the diet of an average person.
One way that muscle-builders build muscles is by storing carbohydrates. Carbs provide needed calories for the muscles to burn when competing or during training. Carbs also supply the brain with energy. Every athlete must have a ready supply of carbs to perform optimally. If you don’t have enough carbs, your body will use stored fats and proteins for energy. Fat can power muscles, but it won’t fuel your brain adequately. When you don’t have enough carbs, your body will use the protein in your muscles for energy, which causes the muscles to atrophy and weaken.
The Catered fit Athletes meal plan is created for those looking to add LEAN MUSCLE MASS and burn BODYFAT by supplying your body with the proper nutrients at the appropriate times to put your muscles through a continuous 24-hour growth cycle.
An often overlooked component of an athletes meal plan is good old water. Athletes must stay hydrated to ward off fatigue and cramping of the muscles. Physicians recommend six to eight ounces of water per day, but athletes require more than that. It’s important to drink water before, during and after a long workout to maintain your hydration level.
Sports nutritionists are learning more about the foods that fuel our muscles and those that don’t. It seems that some new wonder supplement is introduced to the fitness market almost every month, but basic food and water is enough to keep your body in top working order. Regardless of your sport, you need the proper nutrients to maintain your fitness level and perform at your peak.
Your body is a high-performance machine. Give it the nutrition it demands for long hours in the gym and on the field. Don’t go to battle with an empty tank. Fuel your body with the foods it requires. ” You are WHEN you eat!”