Nutrition for Wrestling
by Julianne Koritz, RD, LDN
Consultant in Nutrition
Avoid rapid weight
loss, such as more than 3-5 pounds in a day. The adverse effects are known to
be:
Loss of performance
(means you will more than likely lose the match)
Loss of energy stores
Dehydration
Loss of memory
Decrease in muscle
mass
Maintain your weight by
eating the same quantity of food and beverages every day.
Consume the majority of
your food during the day and not at night. That means eating breakfast is
important to your weight.
Drink 2 liters of water
through out the day.
Avoid sodas and
beverages with caffeine
If you need to lose
weight, avoid all fast food restaurants and do more aerobic exercise. Aerobic
activity (jogging) for 30 minutes a day will help maintain weight and may even
decrease your weight.
Do not sweat in excess
to make weight or lose weight before a weigh-in. This puts the athlete in a
dehydrated state, which can lead to heat stroke, heart failure and death.
Eat a high carbohydrate
diet, and a moderate protein diet.
Be aware of all
nutritional supplements - they are not regulated by the FDA (Food and Drug
Administration) and may not contain the ingredients you need.
The average high school
male athlete should consume at least 3,000 calories, 125 grams of protein, 488
grams of carbohydrate and 67 grams of fat.
Consume several (4-6)
small meals throughout the day instead of one or two large meals. Eating large
meals causes an increase in fat stores since the body may not use all of the
energy (calories).
