Food and Sports

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Food and Sports

Billions of people around the world enjoy playing or watching sports as a great recreational activity. The object of almost any sport is to be the best at something. To be the best, an athlete must practice and train and consistently perform at the highest level possible. An athlete must push the body to the limit. If an athlete is to gain the best possible results from training and practice, the value of food and well balanced diet is of the utmost importance.

Food becomes the main component of the human body. Even as food is being savored, it is meeting nutritional needs. Every humans life relies on food to provide daily energy. Food is the tissue in bodies, and is the regulator of metabolic functions. Food is directly related to sports. Sports burn energy, and are impossible without bodily tissue. Sports rely on metabolism to keep the body moving. Food provides every organism with the means to live. While people understand the importance of eating, people do not understand the importance of what is eaten. Six kinds of nutrients are essential to all body systems. The six classes are water, minerals, vitamins, proteins, fats, and carbohydrates. Most anyone, who swallows food throughout the day, has these kinds of nutrients; however, most people ingest them in the wrong amounts or with excess food that is useless.

Water is the most important of all the nutrients. An athlete depends on water. Water is necessary for all energy production in the body, temperature control, and elimination of the by-products of respiration. Water is essential, for without it energy production and endurance are limited.

Minerals and vitamins are other nutrients that ...

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... from the grain group, and the fruit and vegetable group. These servings will provide all the necessary nutrients for an average person, but this diet will not meet the energy needs of an active athlete. An athlete can do a number of things for excess energy. Most athletes simply increase the plan by adding second or third helpings or by eating extra large servings. The athlete must use caution with excess animal fats; however. Water is perhaps the most important part of the diet. For a moderately active person three quarts of water are required. An athlete must have regular water drinking habits. Milk and soft drinks are not viable substitutes. If an athlete abides by a well balanced diet, only the amount of effort put out by the athlete will determine the level play.

Smith, N. J. (1976). Food and sport. Palo Alto, CA: Bull Publishing Company.

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