Eating healthy is a key to living a healthy lifestyle. It is something I have prided myself on because I feel so much better when I eat right. With coming into college I thought I had the whole nutrition thing under control. Boy, was I wrong. In college, especially as a freshmen, you are forced to fend for yourself in the cafeteria where many times the only options for food are the salad bar and the pizza... and we know how quickly that gets old. There is of course the trusty Subway on my campus, but there is only so many times I can eat a turkey sub. As I made my little escapade through freshmen year with the late night Cookout runs and Domino's orders, I finally made it into my sophomore year.
This year I finally have a miniature kitchen. Nothing too extreme, but I can finally cook meals in my room without having to fight my building to use the singular stove. Although the cafeteria is there, I will be honest and say that I visit it a max of five times a week and that is mainly to see the omelette lady. I trust her omelettes. Other than that I have eaten in my room.
In the beginning of my season I was able to get away with not eating a lot of food in a day. Over time as the practices became more intense and we added in weights in the mornings, I found myself getting tired around hour two of my swim training and feeling completely tired after practices. Knowing that something was wrong I visited my trainer. I recommend to every single athlete to visit your trainer whenever something is wrong or if you want to visit them to check in about your diet. What we found was that I was eating around 2000 calories a day. That's right. For an athlete who trains upwards of three hours a day or more, I was eating the recommended amount for narps (non-athletic regular person). So the obvious fix was to get my calorie count up and I was sent to see the nutritionist for some tips on what to eat and when.
My best advice for any athlete coming in, despite your background, is to see the trainer and nutritionist to make sure you are eating what you need to at appropriate times and you are eating enough. I was told to begin using MyFitnessPal and it has honestly been a lifesaver. I can easily track my exercise and how much I should be eating in a day. I have now raised my calorie consumption to over 4000 calories a day just by looking at what I have eaten and considering what I need. I am now knowledgeable on how much protein, carbs, and fats I am consuming and if I am eating appropriately. My training feels a thousand times better now and I am able to complete workouts without feeling like I need to pass out. I also am able to properly fuel myself for before and during my meets.
Being a swimmer is tough with the demands on the sport for how the body should appear and how we want to feel light in the water. Seeing the nutritionist and listening to my trainer have helped me to get on the right track for my training and for feeling better during competitions. Before, I would swim some races completely drained whereas now I know what I need to eat to fuel myself and when I should do it. As an athlete, my focus isn't to lose weight, but to make sure I am fueling my body to get what it needs to do done. Watch for my next article on what I eat and when to get the utmost performance.
