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Healthy Diet for Athletes
Healthy Diet Guidelines
Whether you decide to eat for health, to slim or to gain muscle, the
diet remains the same throughout. All bad foods should be avoided and
all the good foods should be provided to give you a balanced intake of
energy and nutrients. The same applies to slimming, but the energy gained
from the food should be burned off with exercise to promote weight loss.
Athletes also need to watch their diet as the wrong foods can hinder
the muscle building process. In this case, the amount of calories should
be increased to compensate for the higher activity level, but instead of
increasing the size of your main meals a selection of smaller snacks
can be eaten between them - and so prevent the feeling of hunger. Even
if you don't consider yourself in need of muscle gain or a loss of fat,
it is still important to eat correctly to improve your health, your
energy levels and your ability to fight off disease.
A good idea is to study a calorie chart and find all the foods you
want to include within your diet. Try to make your meals as varied as
possible to keep you interested and to prevent you from cheating! Never
try to include your chosen items in every meal - such as a stew, broth or
soup mix as this will lead to boredom with your diet and a craving for
less health options. A simple seven day menu can be found below based
on 1,200 calories per day and contains all the nutrients you need in a
diet. Non-slimmers may wish to add a little more to this menu to give
them the 2,000 calories normally recommended for daily consumption.
Vegetarians should note that the diet is also mostly suitable for them,
although you will need to substitute all meat products with vegetarian
alternatives (pasta, rice, jacket potato). Extra advice for bodybuilders
can also be found at the end.
- DAY 1
BREAKFAST - 1 orange
1 boiled egg
1oz/30g wholemeal bread
2tsp low-fat spread
LUNCH - 3oz/90g tuna fish
Salad of lettuce, onions and 1 tomato
2 celery sticks
1oz/30g beetroot
2tsp salad cream
2 crispbreads
1 apple
DINNER - 3oz/90g chicken without skin cook in casserole with
3oz/90g carrots
4oz/120g onions
2oz/60g parsnips
3oz/90g turnips
3oz/90g jacket potato
4oz/120g cooked green vegetable
1 pear
- DAY 2
BREAKFAST - Half grapefruit
1oz/30g bran cereal
2.5 fl oz/75ml natural yoghurt
LUNCH - 3oz/90g lean ham
3oz/90g mixed bean salad (red/haricot/chick/butter)
1tsp chopped parsley
2oz/60g chopped onions
Salad of lettuce, 1 tomato, cucumber and celery
2tsp vegetable oil
1 medium slice melon
DINNER - Vegetable soup using 1 stock cube, and 6oz/180g
celery, onion and carrot
4oz/120g white fish cooked with 4floz/120g skimmed
milk, thickened with 1tsp cornflour and parsley
4oz/120g green beans
1tsp margarine
1 baked apple
- DAY 3
BREAKFAST - 4oz/120ml unsweetened orange or grapefruit juice
2oz/60g drained sardines
1oz/30g brown bread
2tsp low-fat spread
1 tomato
LUNCH - 4oz/120g cottage cheese
2 crispbread
Salad of 1 tomato, celery, cucumber, grated carrot
shredded cabbage, onion and red pepper
2tsp low-fat spread/cheese
1 banana
DINNER - 3oz/90g sauteed onion in 2tsp vegetable oil with
3oz/90g liver and saute for 7 mins
3oz/90g cooked brown rice
4oz/120g spinach
1 tomato
4oz/120g mushrooms
4oz/120g fresh fruit salad
2.5oz/75ml natural yoghurt
- DAY 4
BREAKFAST - 4oz/120g grapes
1 scrambled egg
1 tomato
1oz/30g brown bread
2tsp low-fat spread
LUNCH - Macaroni cheese made with 3oz/90g cooked macaroni
2oz/60g grated cheese mixed with
3oz/90g mushrooms and
3oz/90g cauliflower
2floz/50ml skimmed milk
Serve with salad
1 orange
DINNER - 4oz/120g mackerel, canned or fresh
3oz/90g potato
3oz/90g peas
3oz/90g carrots
1 apple
- DAY 5
BREAKFAST - 3oz/90g stewed prunes with their juice
1.5/45g muesli
5fl oz/150ml natural yoghurt
LUNCH - 3oz/90g baked beans
1 egg (not fried)
1oz/30g brown bread
2tsp low-fat spread
Salad of grated cabbage, onion, carrot, celery and pepper
4oz/120g pineapple
DINNER - 4oz/120g salmon, fresh or canned
Cucumber
2oz/60g corn on the cob
2oz/60g green beans
2oz/60g pepper
2tsp low-fat spread
1 orange
- DAY 6
BREAKFAST - Half grapefruit
1 poached egg
1 tomato
3oz/90g mushrooms
1oz/30g wholemeal bread
2tsp low-fat spread
LUNCH - 3oz/90g jacket potato filled with
3oz/90g shrimps
Chopped parsley
2tsp low calorie salad cream
Salad of lettuce, celery, cucumber, pepper, onion
1 pear
DINNER - 4oz/120g cooked turkey without skin
3oz/90g cooked pasta mixed with
2oz/60g cooked peas
2oz/60g cooked celery
1tbsp chopped chives or spring onion
1tsp vegetable oil
4oz/120g spinach
5oz/120 blackcurrants
2.5fl oz/75ml natural yoghurt
- DAY 7
BREAKFAST - 4oz/120g pineapple
1oz/30g porridge
5fl oz/120ml skimmed milk
2tsp honey
LUNCH - 3oz/90g lean beef
3oz/90g baked jacket potato
2tsp low-fat spread
4oz/120g spring greens
3oz/90g carrots
3oz/90g boiled parsnips
5oz/150g strawberries
2.5fl oz/75ml natural yoghurt
DINNER - 3oz/90g canned drained pilchards
Mixed salad of lettuce, tomato, celery
cucumber and peppers
3 crispbreads
2tsp low-fat cheese
4oz/120g plums
If you can't eat lunch at home, you can prepare meals beforehand and
take them out with you.
TAKE OUT - 2oz/60g low-fat cheese
2oz/60g brown bread roll
Mixed salad
2tsp low-fat mayonnaise
1 orange
TAKE OUT - 2oz/60g large bread roll and fill with
Mixed salad
2tsp low-fat salad cream
Other product (shrimp, ham or egg)
This is a sample menu for just one week. Try to invent similar meals
for a whole month to start you off, then mix up the meals you have tried
already with new ones for subsequent months. If you like a number of
meals you have chosen, try to include them frequently so you can look
forward to them during the week. Many people include a 'break day' once
a week where they can relax their eating habits a little. This day
should be a Monday or Friday if possible so you can look forward to it
over the weekend or though the week. Never use a Saturday or Sunday
when you may be tempted to eat snacks during the day or over-eat in the
evening. Try to be sensible - you don't want to undo all the hard work
of the last 6 days by being greedy on day 7. Keep an accurate record of
your weight and reward yourself a luxury if you have made good progress.
For example, you may loose 6 or 7lb after a month of eating healthy meals,
don't you deserve a cream cake or a bar of chocolate. Eating for health
doesn't have to be all lettuce and tomatoes, just common sense.
Bodybuilders and weight trainers should also eat healthy foods such as
these for best muscle growth. When a muscle is trying to grow, it will
get its building material from the food in your body. A muscle built on
fresh fruit and vegetables will grow strong, a muscle built on burgers
and chips will grow fat! Because bodybuilders need more energy for their
physical activities, they also need more food to make energy and an
average bodybuilder should look towards a 3,000 to 5,000 calorie per day
diet. To achieve this you can sense the diet above with snacks in
the morning, afternoon and evening. Such snacks can include:
1 sausage roll or small pie
1 peanut butter sandwich using wholemeal bread
2oz/60g cereal with 10fl oz/300ml milk
2oz/60g ice cream with 2 shortbread biscuits
1 slice fruit pie with 5fl oz/150ml milk
6oz/180g rice pudding with 1 sliced pear
2 slices of date and nut bread
3oz/90g sardines on toast with 2tsp margarine
2 oatcakes with 3oz/90g cream cheese
2 digestive biscuits
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