The Postseason 2

So I've had so more thoughts on the post season to help you with the transition.

I've said before how I like whole foods and dislike super-manufactured foods. But for us athletes they can be beneficial to our sport because of the nutritional differences. In the post season, I think it is a good idea to give your some of your favorite products the chance to prove themselves in the "low fat!" and "low cal!" type departments.

During the season we need a lot more of certain things. The ones that come to mind are calories, protein, carbohydrate, iron, electrolytes, calcium, sodium, among other small vitamins and minerals. This is why for one reason it can be OK to eat a lot of food and a lot of different foods. For the most part, if you watch your fat intake and are eating nutritionally dense (lots of micronutrients) foods, you will be fine! When it hits post season, all of a sudden we don't need all those foods and treats. But we still need all the good stuff! For this reason, give a try to some of the altered foods that have had their calories lowered, fat lowered, or anything else you are trying to keep out of the diet (cholesterol, sugars, trans fat, etc.)

When it comes down to really thinking about the off season eating, you should be eating "like a normal person." Since it seems like no one eats like a "normal person" anymore this is still difficult. I recommend just taking a peak at the MyPlate, the governments nice little representation of what your plate should look like at every meal. If you don't feel like researching yourself (lazy!) it basically is a circle plate split into 4 quarters. One quarter is fruit, one is vegetables, one is grains, and one is protein. In the top corner is a small circle of dairy (which is their hint at making this milk!). I find it hard to get all four sections on my plate, but for the most part I can keep things pretty balanced.

Take a look at the site! It's actually pretty nifty now.


http://www.choosemyplate.gov/food-groups/

Going into the different sections will show you an exact example of what is a serving of different kinds of foods. That's my favorite part to the website. This way you can see you are taking waaaaay too much rice or that the apple you just ate is closer to two servings of fruit than one. Cool!