NUTRITION FOR THE TIME-CRUNCHED ATHLETE


By Joanna Berentsen, USA Triathlon Level I Certified Coach


COOK WITH THEM Many athletes are open to eating well, but


are intimidated by food preparation. I had never enjoyed sweet potatoes until one of my training partners taught me how to roast them as a savory side dish. If we teach our athletes to cook (instead of just telling them about the fact that they should), then we empower them to embrace proper eating habits, even when they are crunched for time. I like to invite my athletes to my house for


respond, “But I don’t have enough time to eat well!” It’s true — we do ask a lot of our athletes; balancing a job, a family,


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a social life and training is a demanding proposition. nutrition has to be a priority. In addition, if your athletes are not eating well, then they are not training to their full potential. how can you help?


ENCOURAGE YOUR ATHLETES TO MAKE DAILY NUTRITION A PRIORITY While preparing healthy foods every day can be time consuming,


anyone has time to eat healthy if they do a little planning. As a coach, you can help your athletes analyze their time commitments. As a part of their training schedules, mark off time for food preparation. I like to cook on Sunday afternoons — I allow myself space to mentally prepare for my week. As I cook, I think about what might lie ahead that week at work, for my training, for coaching. I cook a week’s worth of food — food that will keep well — so that when I get home at night (usually around 7:30-8 p.m.), all I have to do is heat up a plate of food. It’s homemade, it’s healthy and it’s mentally and physically satisfying.


MAKE A LIST or better yet, take your athletes to the grocery store. often, athletes


will say they don’t have time to eat healthy, but in reality, they don’t know how easy it is to accomplish. By taking them to the grocery store, you can assist them by comparing ingredients, calories and general nutrition guidelines. Talk to them about natural carbs and proteins. Allow them to ask


questions about foods they’ve never tried, and suggest some items that may be ‘out of the box’ for them. Coaching your athletes from a distance? provide sample grocery lists that include lots of fresh fruits, vegetables and proteins.


a cooking lesson. This gives them hands-on experience so they can learn how to cook highly nutritious foods. During this time together (which also allows for an added layer of relationship building), I encourage them to think creatively about foods that they might not have tried (like roasting beets, sweet potatoes or Brussels sprouts). I also try to get them to think about


ow many of you have had an athlete complain about his or her performance only to find that daily nutrition is lacking? When you push these athletes on the subject they often


foods that keep well. As a coach, you can provide healthy meal ideas that can be made in an hour or less — and that one-hour investment can pay dividends throughout a training week. If you are coaching remotely, provide them with some of your


favorite recipes (including step-by-step instructions. I’ve included some of my favorites). Ask them to send you pictures of their meal plates so you can see what they are eating. This is easier — and faster — for our time-crunched athletes than keeping a food journal.


SINGLE SERVING SNACKS It’s not all about dinner. I have been known to graze throughout


my day, but I like to do this in a healthy manner and encourage my athletes to do so as well. My weekly grocery list consists of items that I think of as single serving snacks — they’re portable, easy and quick. Some examples of single serving snacks include granola bars, yogurt cups (think Chobani greek yogurt), shakes with a good protein-to- carb ratio, string cheese, apples, bananas, tuna, grapefruit, a handful of nuts, lox, blueberries, mangos and pineapple (to name a few). Also on my grocery list are pre-made salads — not a salad in a bag, but a fresh salad made at the grocery store. These are chock full of spinach, tomatoes, carrots, onions, mushrooms, cashews, walnuts… you get the idea. These are quick and easy, and are perfect for lunch during the workday.


ALLOW THEM TO PARTAKE IN SMALL INDULGENCES fast food is certainly convenient, but there is also a level of


comfort that is satisfied by eating a greasy, not-so-good-for-you meal. If your athlete claims to eat fast food due to time constraints, challenge them to do a little planning (by having grocery shopping/ food prep/single serving snacks) as part of a weekly routine. If you still see ‘junk’ in their pictorial food journals, then give them an out: add ice cream to the shopping list, or maybe hershey’s Kisses — the dark chocolate kind. Sometimes a single serving sweet treat provides just enough comfort to commit to planned nutrition eating habits.


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