What Should I Eat or Drink?

Here’s the best the precompetition meal can do for you: help you stay hydrated, top off your carbohydrate stores, provide blood glucose and leave you feeling physically and psychologically comfortable.
Considerations for Food Choices
There are no hard-and-fast rules for everyone to follow when choosing a precompetition meal. One consideration is your sport or event. If you are about to compete in an aerobic endurance event, such as a marathon, a triathlon, distance cycling or cross-country skiing, it may help you to “top off” the energy stores in your body with a high carbohydrate meal.Athletes who participate in sports like soccer, distance swimming, volleyball, basketball and hockey may also benefit from including carbohydrate foods and drinks in the pre-event meal. For power and sprint athletes, like football players, sprinters and baseball and softball players, the primary purpose of the precompetition meal is to provide some of the fluid and
energy you’ll need to stay comfortable and hydrated during the event. While carbohydrate foods like pastas are often

Handling the ButterfliesThe adrenaline that flows when you are pumped before a game or a competition is a great performance booster, but these stress hormones can have a negative influence on your
digestive tract. Nervous tension can have a definite effect on how well food settles. Some athletes feel nauseous, some get diarrhea. Knowing how your body reacts to precompetition jitters will influence your food choices. For example, if you get diarrhea, you may need to decrease fiber and spicy foods a day or two before and the day of competition. If you get nauseous, you may find that mealreplacement drinks, shakes or smoothies settle better than solids.
digestive tract. Nervous tension can have a definite effect on how well food settles. Some athletes feel nauseous, some get diarrhea. Knowing how your body reacts to precompetition jitters will influence your food choices. For example, if you get diarrhea, you may need to decrease fiber and spicy foods a day or two before and the day of competition. If you get nauseous, you may find that mealreplacement drinks, shakes or smoothies settle better than solids.
Keep it Simple
Two simple rules will help you avoid disastrous side-effects of precompetition eating:1. Eat foods you like.
2. Eat the same kinds of foods you eat all the time.
The precompetition meal is not an experiment. It should be like a pair of old shoes...familiar and comfortable. Choose foods that you like, foods that you normally eat and foods that you tolerate, even when you’re stressed. The day of competition is not the time to try a new food or beverage. This can be challenging when you’re on the road, so plan ahead and make sure you’ll have the foods you like around, even if it means packing your own cooler. What, where and when you eat the precompetition meal should be fairly consistent. Successful athletes often make precompetition eating part of the ritual of mental and physical preparation that occurs before the event. If you have not yet determined your game plan for precompetition eating, start by writing down what you eat before and how you feel after several competitions. Make changes until you have figured out what works for you. The precompetition meal can hinder your performance if you eat something that doesn’t agree with you. It can help your performance if it leaves you physically ready and mentally prepared. The psychological and the physical aspects of the precompetition meal are important, but they will never outweigh the long-term nutritional, physical and mental preparation required for top performance.
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