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 Healthy HabitsWhat you do away from practice is just as important as what you do during. You can run lights out workouts and all the mileage in the world, but if you’re not taking care of your body at home and at school, you will not see the benefits. Nutrition: Healthy eating habits are absolutely essential to facilitate maximum performance. Follow these simple guidelines:Avoid fried foods. The saturated fat in fried foods adds extra weight and is an inefficient fuel source.Eat lean meat (turkey, chicken, leave beef). You need the protein found in these food sources.Limit simple sugars. This includes chocolate, candy, Kool-Aid, ice cream, cookies, etc. These things are fine in moderation, but they should not be relied upon to meet your energy needs. Simple sugars provide a quick spike in your energy levels, but leave you feeling fatigued and lethargic, both physically and mentally, later. Absolutely cut out soda if possible – it does nothing beneficial for your body. That goes for energy drinks (Red Bull, Monster, etc.) as well. Eat lots of complex carbs. Primarily rice and pasta. Fad diets will tell you to avoid these things. Fad diets are not designed for distance runners. Wheat bread is another good source – opt for wheat bread instead of white – white bread lacks the nutrient content found in wheat.Eat lots of fruits and vegetables. The best way to get your vitamins and minerals is from natural sources. Opt for low fat dressings on your salad. Fruits also provide you with the natural sugars you need, while vegetables also provide plenty of natural fiber.Stay hydrated. Keep a full water bottle with you at all times, and drink throughout the day. Your body can absorb about 4-5 ounces of water an hour. This means sipping and drinking consistently throughout the day is more beneficial than chugging water right before and right after practice. You need about 100-120 ounces of water a day. At school, if you cannot take a water bottle with you from class to class, make sure to stop at a water fountain between every class, even if you don’t feel thirsty. Once you feel thirsty, you’re already dehydrated. Avoid coffee, tea, and soft drinks – the caffeine will hinder iron absorption and drain fluids from your body. Water is your best friend. Sports drinks (Gatorade, Powerade) are good to drink right after a workout, but that’s about it. The simple sugars in sports drinks will speed muscle recovery if you drink them directly after a workout. The rest of the time, however, these simple sugars are just a waste. Peanut butter is excellent in moderation. It provides essential fats and proteins, and when eaten in the form of a PB & J sandwich along with a glass of milk or fruit juice and some pretzels, it makes for a quick, simple, high powered lunch. Peanut butter is also a great recovery food – eaten directly after a workout.Beans – High in protein, rich in nutrients. Red beans and rice is hard to beat for a complete, healthy dinner.Eat a light lunch. You want your lunch to be completely digested by the time we start practice (3:20). To train at your best, you need stable blood sugar levels and an empty stomach. A heavy lunch will leave you feeling sluggish during your workout. Eat something small between lunch and practice. Not to contradict the above rule, but you may want to eat something small about 30-60 minutes before a workout. Going 3 hours without eating should allow your body to digest your lunch, but you may need a little fuel going into a workout. A small granola bar or some pretzels should be sufficient. Refuel directly after a run/workout. Taking in fuel within a 30 minute window after a workout is crucial to proper recovery. Along with water, consuming some sports drink, banana or other source or fruit, pretzels, peanut butter, granola bar, protein bar, etc. will help your muscles to recover quicker and allow your body to recover properly. Try to have something with you to eat directly after practice. Do not drink alcohol. This needs no explanation. Supplements:Take a multi-vitamin daily. This is just insurance to make sure you are getting all the vitamins and minerals your body needs for proper function. If there is a magic pill (other than water) to staying healthy, this is it. Iron – A daily iron supplement may be something to look into. Talk to your doctor first to discuss whether or not you need an iron supplement. Athletes can be prone to iron-deficiency, which is detrimental to performance. Without enough usable iron, your body cannot build and replace red blood cells. Red blood cells transport oxygen. Without oxygen transportation, you can’t run. Always take iron with Vitamin C (a glass of orange juice for example). This will aid in iron absorption. Coffee and tea actually hinder iron absorption, another reason to avoid them. Don’t take iron directly with milk, as calcium will block iron absorption. A good rule of thumb is to take iron with a glass of orange juice before bed, a few hours after you’ve had dinner and probably had some milk. Sports drinks – Best to drink within 30 minutes following a run or workout. This is when your body needs it. Sports drinks put back the fluids, electrolytes, and sodium you lost during a workout. Muscles recover faster if carbohydrates available in the form of a sports drink are ingested during this 30 minute window of opportunity. A good rule of thumb is limiting sports drink consumption to 32 ounces a day. Any more than that may put too much sodium in your body that it doesn’t need. Sleep:You need, at a bare minimum, 8 hours of sleep each night. You must be consistent – you cannot simply “catch up” on sleep if you miss – you can only get back on track. Your body does not like disruptions in its sleep patterns. A 15 minute window is optimal for a bedtime; for example, if you go to bed around 10:00 every night, make sure you are in bed between 9:45 and 10:15 each night if you want to maximize your sleep. Research shows that a consistent bedtime is more critical than simply getting the number of hours of sleep every night but at different times. Staying up a little on the weekends is not going to kill you, but staying up until 2:00 or 3:00 in the morning on the weekends routinely will inevitably result in illness. When your body is deprived of sleep, your immune system weakens and you become sick. While getting sleep consistently is important, two nights before a meet is the most beneficial night for sleep. Limit naps to 60 minutes max; 20-30 minutes is optimal. Stretching: Follow the dynamic warmup (drills) routine and be sure to stretch after each workout. This is absolutely the most effective way to increase your range of motion, speed recovery, and prevent injuries. Stretching effectively (as opposed to just going through the motions) does all of these things…do not underestimate its importance. Strength Training:Do not cut out the core and weights routines that we do - this is a very critical part of our training! If it were not important, we wouldn’t waste our time doing it! If you find yourself weak in certain areas, do some of the routine at home while you’re watching TV or taking a break from homework. Doing 30-50 pushups when you wake up in the morning a few days a week will only help make you stronger!The Mind-Body Connection:Your body will only do what your mind believes to be possible. Fatigue will limit your cognitive function, so stay rested and mentally sharp. Eliminating stress by staying on top of your academics and other responsibilities will also help. In short, take care of business and don’t sweat the small stuff. Spend time preparing your mind for races and key workouts. Visualize yourself successfully performing the task you aim to accomplish. This lays the mental wiring that must be in place when it comes time to actually do it. ................
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