EAT EXTRA CALORIED FOR EXCELLENCE
And while you're picking foods from the Food Guide Pyramid, it's very important that you are eating enough every day. Athletes should never skip meals.
Dieting is not a part of being an athlete, unless your doctor gives you instructions to do so. Most athletic teens need all the calories they normally consume to give them power and strength, and cutting calories can not only hinder performance, it can even be dangerous. This is especially true for teens who are wrestlers, swimmers, dancers, or gymnasts, because they are especially likely to be weight-conscious about their sport.
In addition, the growth spurts that teens undergo require some extra body fat, which translates to extra calories consumed. If anyone - a coach, a gym teacher, or another teammate - says that you should go (or have to go) on a diet, don't do anything until you talk to your doctor. If your doctor determines that a diet is necessary, he or she can work with you - or have you work with a dietitian - to get your program going.
What can happen if teens don't eat enough during heavy exercise and training? Lean body tissues, including the muscle mass necessary for peak performance, can break down. Simply put, you won't be as fast and as strong as you could be without taking in enough healthy calories every day. It can be difficult for your body to maintain its proper temperature, leading to illness and making you feel worn out - you'll be "hitting the wall" before your body can get fully warmed up. Your blood volume will drop, too, which means your tissues won't get the best oxygen, minerals, and nutrients they need. This hurts any active, growing teen, let alone an athletic teen in training.
Supplements, Sports Drinks, and You
Some athletes have the idea that while regular food is OK for building strength, supplements and sports foods and drinks must be used by athletes who want to win. Right? Wrong.
It's easy to get tempted by the hundreds of sports bars, gels, supplements, protein powders, amino acid powders, and other products out there. Their commercials and packages make many promises about building athletes up, increasing their power and strength, and making them healthy, but the truth is that these products just aren't necessary, and usually aren't suitable for teens.
When an athlete drinks a mixture made with a protein product, her body has no idea that it's a sports supplement - it just treats it like plain, regular protein from food. In fact, most protein supplements offer the body no more protein than a cup (or 1/4 liter) of milk or one serving of meat, which is usually more tasty, anyway! In other words, these products don't provide you with any more energy that you would get from eating regular food from the Food Guide Pyramid. And regular food is a lot cheaper, too - sports bars and other supplements can deplete your savings because they tend to be very expensive.
Though none of these supplements do a whole lot of good, they won't really do you too much harm - except in the case of salt tablets. Athletes should never take salt tablets in an effort to compete better. These only serve to dehydrate you and could do potential damage to the lining of your stomach.
