Nutrition

[CirrusFalcon]

Now I know eating healthy is vital to a boxer's performance, you can't rely on just exercise and rest. I was wondering if anyone out there had some great tips for diets to go on, as there are so many. What diet is most effective? (By this I mean, I won't be dead tired, etc.) If not a diet, then what types of food should I be eating, any suggestions? I do avoid the snacks and such and do get plenty o' the water.

[northpaw]

Gidday Cirrusfalcon. In answering your queries, it would be good to know what your specific goals are; but considering that you're posting here I will assume that you're interested in peak athletic performance and maybe weight management.

Firstly, keep things simple. The majority of your meals should be made up from unprocessed foods. Keep avoiding the crappy snacks and highly processed rubbish such as chips, chocolate bars and deep fried foods(anything that tastes too good). These will not only add unnecessary empty calories to your diet, but will also rob you of energy through cellular and hormonal disruption. Indulging in a little junk food now and then, however, isn't a bad thing for a hard training athlete. It allows for a psychological break and upregulates your metabolism. Ya gotta live a little.

Try and eat 4-6 times daily! I know it seems excessive, but ingesting more smaller meals throughout the day will improve athletic performance through ensuring stable blood sugar levels. If you wait too long between meals you get tired, cranky and weak; then you binge on whatever food is available and have a massive blood sugar crash(hypoglycemia) an hour later. Furthermore, keep the water levels up between meals.

Each of your meals should consist of: a lean protein source(chicken breasts, fish, eggs, trimmed steak, low-fat milk); a carbohydrate source(rye bread, oats, rice, pasta, fruit); and vegetables. Eat at least 5 serves of veges a day and a couple of pieces of fruit. If you're trying to lose weight, drop or limit the carbohydrate servings.

Here's a basic meal plan:
Breakfast- muesli and low-fat milk
Morning tea- 2 boiled eggs and apiece of fruit
Lunch- chicken and salad sandwich
Mid arvo- yoghurt and fruit
Dinner- steak, rice and veges
Bedtime- glass af low-fat milk and a small piece of fruit

Furthermore, always ensure that you refuel after training ASAP. This is where a protein/carbohydrate drink can come in handy.

Hope this helps and all the best with your training.

[Hornfinger]

yeah thats a good answer north paw.

you could swap the musli for porridge if you want.

Basically i advise go for high protein low carbohydrate foods. Tuna is awsome. loads of protein hardly any carbs.

[Body and Soul]

Excellent points. I try and keep it as simple and limit my carb intake as well. If you're going to eat meat, like a hamburger, 86 the bun. You can still eat cheese because cheese has the kind of fat which is okay for you. No snacks, cakes, cookies, ice cream or any of that garbage, anything that will make you feel BLAH and really slow you down. A strong high protein diet is definitely your best bet hands down. Alot of times though it varies on the individual so it's really what you feel comfortable with and what fits into your training and health regimen. Another good thing to do is avoid fruit juices and stick with only water or Gatorade (you can dilute your Gatorade too). Fruit juices tend to be extremely high in carbs and all that excess sugar will only turn to fat if not burned off consistently so it's better to avoid them. No sodas either. Another good rule of thumb...................don't eat anything after 8 pm, works for me anyway.

[JimC]

Some great advice there for you mate.

I heard that you are not supposed to eat after 7pm at all, not even a grape because you're body goes through metabolism changes then and you stack on more when eating then.

Best of luck mate, i'm off me training so i'll have your snacks

[Fantana]

I heard eating an apple was bad for you if you eat it 3 hours before you go to bed?>

Is that true?

Oh and becareful with the tuna make sure its in water and not salt

[CirrusFalcon]

Wow, thank you all, great advice. I've already started to put these tips into effect, and the results have proved your advice correct. I was unaware of that after 7pm rule, that is very handy to know. Thanks all again, and enjoy those snacks Jim (you never truly love something until it's gone)

[Andre]

Great responses .
Some other things to think about.
life can only exist below a certain temperature (which is way below boiling or steamng point) so if you want to get the most out of what you eat then eat it raw and from an area that has a downfall of water from a treed hillside as you will actually get minerals out of your vegies that usually lack ,otherwise the vegies look great but they are just pumped up with super phostphate and other cemicals.
Organic is better all they way.

Water is right (not tap water) filtered rain in country areas or for tap water boil a few kettles and let the water stand in an open stainless pot overnight to allow the additives that are put in there by law, to dissapate (like florides etc which are deadly in high doses).

You can actually wash out needed minerals from your system with plain water and a squeeze of lemon or orange holds them in. Added colodial minerals is better but very expensive. As a 500ml bottle is 40 bucks, but you only need 3 eye drops worth in each glass if youre into the 3 litre minimum a day thing.