As far as food is concerned, I used to be a burger and fries kind of guy. Lately I have noticed that steak, baked potatoes, and subs seem to "work" better with me. I am one of those rare people who is slender and could afford to gain a few pounds (I know most people have the opposite problem
). I think that subs and steak/potatoes offer me higher quality proteins and more complex carbs, and actually allow me to finally put on a bit more mass. Also, the carbs tend to give my body a bit more energy during the training.
I have also noticed that my "Gatorade budget" has increased. I used to have Gatorade around to drink as needed, but now I drink almost completely Gatorade, iced-tea, juice, and of course the occasional beer
. I used to get dehydrated after practice, but I devised a little "cocktail" to help out. I mix orange Gatorade with orange juice, about half and half (because i don't like the acidity of OJ) and i sprinkle a small amount of salt in. This will give me some H20 and some potassium, sodium, and chloride (all electrolytes). I also tend to take a small bottle of Gatorade with me to drink immediately after practice so that I can start getting re hydrated before I try to eat anything.
I am
not a nutritionist, but I don't think over hydration is an issue unless you
really overdue it. Also, you need to take in some sodium or other electrolyte with all the water you bring in, which usually isn't a problem since we tend to over salt our food, and often we "overdue" the salt intake anyway, reversing the problem.
I never eat sooner than two hours before training, unless it is something very light (a few crackers, a fruit, etc). It is kind of strange, very often after training, I stop by Subway and grab a turkey breast on white bread sub-sandwich, with extra cheese! I have also been craving sushi.
Jeff Gros, I am not positive, but I think the difference between complex and simple carbs is as follows. Simple carbs are the basic sugars, like glucose, fructose, etc. Complex carbs are long molecules that are really strings of basic sugars, or polysaccharides (spelling?) usually available in pastas, bread, rice, potatoes, etc.
Ultimately the product in metabolism is the same, you get sugars, and those end up being converted to energy for your body. With polysaccharides, the breakdown of long chains of simple sugars is a slow process, allowing your cells to do it slowly, and therefore the energy can be properly processed and stored in your body. The energy will also be slowly released and available longer. Simple sugars being already processed, broken down, or simple to begin are quickly metabolized, offering a
huge excess of energy all at once, or a so-called "sugar-high." This energy is quickly expended and often wasted. Also, the excess energy will be be reprocessed by the body and stored as fat. This is why I think something sweet may be craved immediately after a workout, and eating potatoes, pasta, etc well before a workout tends to work better as the energy is slowly and constantly available.
Not sure if I am 100% correct here, but this is what little I think I learned in my cell-bio and bio-chem classes!
It tends to work for me at least! Anyway, that was meant to be my $.02, but I think I accidentally gave my $1.50
Hope you you found it of interest!