It is so crucial for college athletes to develop nutrition plans to maximize their athletic performance. A well-planned and tailored diet enhances an athlete’s performance, recovery, and academic success. NCAA.com shares that an ideal nutrition plan should include identifying the correct quantity, quality, and proper timing of food and fluids needed to support regular training and peak performance. 

As training demands shift during the year, student-athletes must also adjust their intake and distribution of essential nutrients while maintaining a balanced diet that supports their academic, training, and competition needs.

We’re breaking down some of the pillars of building a nutrition plan that works best for most athletes. Here’s the college athlete’s guide to nutrition.

College athletes should eat a well-balanced diet

Many nutrition and fitness experts share the importance of eating a well-balanced diet. The repetition of this message is not just for kicks – athletes need a consistent mix of protein, carbohydrates, and fats. 

Here are two great graphics from Ohio State and Trifecta.com that demonstrate how you can use your plate as a guide based on your athletic goals:

Eat Frequently & Consistently

While it is easy to assume that overeating would have a negative impact on an athlete, eating more frequently while eating the right foods is actually helpful. We recommend eating five meals a day. Eating frequently and consistently increases your energy levels, reduces food cravings, reduces body fat storage, controls blood sugar levels and insulin production, and maintains & increases lean muscle mass.

Hydrate, Hydrate, Hydrate

Staying hydrated is crucial to being healthy and having a strong overall nutrition plan. Water is always the first choice, but you should generally have 8-10 8oz glasses of fluid daily. This could include water or sports drinks (like Gatorade) which provide carbohydrates and electrolytes lost in sweat. 

Other drinks, like coffee, energy drinks, and alcoholic beverages, are not recommended when trying to maintain a healthy diet. These drinks have caffeine, sugar, and a host of other counterproductive ingredients that negatively impact your athletic and nutritional goals. 

And note that when you consume an excessive amount of caffeine, you can test positive during random drug testing – which would be a disaster for any athlete!

Build Healthy, Dense Bones

Every athlete needs strong and healthy bones to perform in their respective sports, but when they build strong bones in their early years, they create a dual benefit of having strong bones in their later years. The best way to strengthen bones is to include calcium-rich foods within your diet. Here’s a list of some of the best calcium sources: 

• Dairy foods (milk, eggs, cheese, yogurt)
• Leafy green vegetables (collard greens, spinach, bok choy)
• Fruits (Figs, oranges, kiwi)
• Broccoli
• Fortified cereal

Calcium is best consumed in smaller amounts throughout the day, and eating citrus fruit with your calcium-rich food helps with digestion. Throughout their lives, both women and men need about 1,200 – 1,300mg of calcium each day; however, during the ages of 19-50 (also the peak college athlete age), this average intake number decreases to 1,000mg per day.

Minimize Alcohol Intake

We know that an athlete’s college years are for more than playing sports and hitting the books. College is a time that students also network, make new friends, and…party! We are aware that most college parties have alcohol and that it is likely that college athletes will give in and possibly try alcohol; we warn college athletes (especially those under the age of 21) that alcohol is illegal. Outside of alcohol being illegal, consuming alcohol has a negative effect on sports performance. 

For starters, alcohol is a depressant that slows down coordination and reaction time and increases poor judgment. Alcohol also leads to dehydration and increases recovery time. We advise college athletes to avoid alcohol for nutrition, legal, and safety reasons. 

Women Athletes Have Special Nutritional Needs

All athletes need to pay attention to their iron intake since iron helps to deliver oxygen to the muscle cells. Women athletes must pay special attention to their iron intake, and here’s why:

Athletes tend to get cuts and bruises from training, practice, and regular season play. The loss of blood from a cut or bruise depletes iron which can cause fatigue and impact athletic performance. Women athletes are at risk for performance injuries, but they also have menstrual cycles, which causes them to bleed and regularly puts them at risk for the same iron deficiencies as cuts and bruises. Women athletes must consume iron sources like leafy greens, whole grains, nuts, red meat, dark poultry, and fish to manage their diets during menstrual cycles effectively. 

Supplements Can Be Helpful, but Be Safe

Many athletes use supplements (vitamins) to assist with individual deficiencies, which can be helpful; however, when using supplements, it is important to remember that a supplement is an addition and not a replacement for a healthy diet. It is important to note that supplements are not as regulated as food which can put an athlete at risk for unknowingly consuming illegal or performance-enhancing substances. If selected to take a drug test, the results could be devastating for an athlete who is innocently trying to improve their diet. Because of this, we strongly encourage athletes to work with a dietician or doctor to devise a plan on how to best use supplements. 

What Should an Athlete Eat After a Game or Workout?

It is important to replace the fuel (food) and fluids (water) lost during a game or workout. We recommend eating 15 minutes to an hour after a session to help your body recover and repair itself properly. Eggs, smoothies, and fruit are all excellent recovery nutrition options. 

Athletes, parents, coaches, doctors, and trainers should collaborate to develop a strong and winning nutritional strategy because what athletes put on their plates can make or break their performance when it’s game time, and we want to see them win!