Perfect Diet for a Women’s College Basketball Player

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Introduction

Basketball is an intense sport that involves rigorous mental and physical activity. Basketball Players, therefore, require a lot of energy if they are to perform optimally during a game. A player requires a proper nutrition plan that will help her stay focused, avoid fatigue, stay hydrated, and most of all, avoid sports-related injuries. The aim of the working out diet is to offer sufficient energy for recuperation and tissue darn fast and ably. Further, the diet is meant to prevent the accumulation of body fat. As dieticians and wellness enthusiasts tell, the human body can be compared to cars; if a car owner does not take good care of it, it will eventually develop mechanical problems. In a similar manner, basketball players should always take good care of their bodies through proper nutrition and engaging in a good exercise regimen. By indulging in unhealthy, highly refined foods, an athlete is likely to have calories building up, which eventually hinders them from reaching their optimal athletic potential.

The importance of a healthy diet during active seasons, and the less active seasons, cannot be overemphasized. In fact, dieticians recommended that players should not alter their diets much regardless of the season. Due to the intensity of physical activity that the player engages in during the basketball season, their daily calorie intake should be higher than would be the case during seasons when they are resting. This means that basketball players have an obligation to watch their diets more during the g off-season. The accumulation of energy is vital when it comes to the season, and that is why they need more protein and calories as compared the normal persons. If a player has enough energy stored, then their performance will be good. A good basketball diet majorly consists of carbohydrates, proteins, fluids, vitamins, and minerals. As such, this essay seeks to provide proper nutritional guidelines for use by female basketball players during the inactive sports season.

Nutrition for basketball players

Basketball is a challenging sport that needs energy and speed. Additionally, a player requires both mental and physical focus. To play actively throughout the game, a player further needs to have sustaining power. Since players do not get sufficient breaks to replenish their energy levels through a game, it is therefore important that they build sufficient energy reserves when they are off the pitch. Most basketball players especially non-professionals tend to pay less attention to their daily dietary needs. However, this should be avoided at all costs; instead, players must pay attention to their nutrition by going as far as drawing up an eating arrangement. A suitable diet for a basketball player should contain calories to provide them with enough energy levels to sustain them during the entire duration of the game. In that case, carbohydrates become a very vital part of the meal.

Building and maintaining one’s physical health is another vital profit the life of a basketball player. Considering that, a player will inevitably lose muscle or suffer tissue damage, foods rich in proteins are also a vital inclusion in the diet. This is because proteins are bodybuilding foods, and are therefore essential in the repair of tissues. Additionally, proteins are a good source of stored up energy in the body, an aspect they derive from their complex nature. Due to their complexity, proteins take a while in the body and that means that a lot of energy will be kept in the body only to be released at intervals when the body needs it.

Finally, water is an essential part of the body requirements of a player. The female basketball player, just like other athletes, should stay well hydrated as the strain put on her body by the game leads to loss of water through sweat, and rapid breath (Jones 1).

Required amount of carbohydrates

Female basketball players, just like their male counterparts, require a high-carbohydrate diet to maintain stamina. Off-season, it is recommended that players eat high carbohydrate diets, which are taken up by the body and stored as glycogen in the liver and muscles. Upon resuming active matches, the stored glycogen acts as a vital source of energy. When the reserves are low however, the female basketball player may become less attentive and sluggish during a game.

According to (Fong 1), a normal diet should contain 60 to 65 percent of carbohydrates, with basketball players requiring about six grams of carbohydrate per kilogram of body weight. Failure to take this required amount may lead to fatigue, a reduction in speed, and a general loss of mental focus, which can ultimately have dire consequences on the performance outcome of the athlete during high-intensity matches (Fong 1).

The amount of calories required

On average, the normal, healthy adult requires about two thousand calories per day (Schofields 1). Athletes on the other hand, need an additional one thousand to one thousand five hundred calories. Should a female basketball player take the calories recommended for the average person without considering the energy spent during games, she exposes herself to weight loss and fatigue. In extreme cases, the player may even suffer from malnutrition or even a loss of both physical and mental stability. As (Schofields 1) observes, the amount of calories that a sportsperson needs depends on the intensity of the activities she undertakes. However, it is desirable that each athlete come up with good calculation of calories, which will enable her to calculate the amount of carbohydrates grams she needs to consume. This would enable her strike a balance in her diet, and create a scenario where she does not overindulge or consume less nutrients than the suitable amounts (Schofields 1).

Amount of proteins and vitamins needed

According to Mullins et al. (cited by Houtkooper et al. 44), the daily recommended protein intake for female athletes is 1.4 grams per kilo of body weight during the active season. However, during off-season, the female athletes should lower their protein consumption to approximately 0.8-1.0 grams per 1 kg body weight. The Recommended Daily Allowance (RDA) of 0.8g/kg bodyweight per day protein is based on what is healthy for the average sedentary individuals. However, such amounts would be insufficient for athletes. According to (Houtkooper et al. 44), proteins are not only important for muscle repair, but also as an extra source of energy. During times when the body is running low on carbohydrate supplies, the body will use its own muscle as an energy source. Since muscle is very hard to build, (Fong 1) recommends that basketball players should be very careful not to lose it. Sustaining muscle however, is something that will require the female basketball player to have sufficient carbohydrates and proteins in her diet. As explained elsewhere in this paper, the body only uses muscle as a source of energy after extinguishing glycogen stored in the liver and muscles. To guard against such an occurrence therefore, a female athlete would need to ensure that her diet has sufficient protein and carbohydrate servings.

The Amount of Fat Required

Fat intake should take up about 20 per cent of the total calories or 1gram per kilo consumed in a day. During off-season, a female basketball player should ensure that her fat intake consist of monounsaturated fats. Among the most crucial fats are the essential fatty acids, which the body cannot create. Such are usually found in fish, flax seeds and walnuts. Monounsaturated fats contain one double bond. Sources of such fats include olive or canola oil seeds, and/or avocados. A dietary requirement of two thousand calories a day should be met by including at least four hundred calories worth of fat. This is equivalent to forty-four to sixty-seven grams. According to (Kraemer et al. 270-279), the human body usually requires fats for neural recovery. Additionally, fats act as fuel to the body thus giving it additional enduring power. The off-season fat intake per day for a female basketball player should be above 15 per cent, as such would help her body absorb the vitamins that can only be absorbed in fats (Kraemer et al. 270-279). However, the athlete should avoid too much fat intake as (McAllister sn04) notes that over-indulgence may make the “heart much less efficient”.

Hydration requirements

Fluids are a very essential part of a person’s diet and with the availability of Gatorade in the market, there is no excuse for not staying hydrated. Although the recommended intake is 10 per cent Gatorade and 90 per cent of pure water, they are countless choices in the market that a basketball player can make to meet her hydration requirements. Such choices range from energy drinks to the normal drinking water. As most dieticians would advice however, athletes should avoid taking energy drinks before a sporting event, because their effectiveness and safety is not yet proven. It is worth noting that there is no caveat issued about the consumption of such drinks in the off-season. As such, a female basketball player can moderately indulge in them, as one way of obtaining calories. Notably however, most of this energy drinks contain sugar and caffeine. These two ingredients dehydrate a person, and in an athlete, may end up slowing down his or her general performance. With this in mind, a female basketball player should not jeopardize her performance abilities and should therefore stick to drinking water as her number one choice. Unlike the energy drinks, clean and safe drinking water has no side effects. As (Houtkooper et al. 47) observes, athletes (including basketball players) can indulge in beverages that can replace body electrolytes lost during the active seasons. When an athlete looses water through heavy sweating or breathing, (Houtkeeper et al. 47) states that, it is not only weight that is lost, but also electrolytes such as sodium. This may end causing a chemical imbalance in the body, which if not corrected, may lead to poor performance in the peak sports season.

Off season nutrition

During off-season, the players’ focus should be on creating enough energy resources to utilize during the peak sports season. However, a female basketball player, just as other athletes, should avoid building body fat as such cannot serve her energy requirements well. One of the reason why it is inadvisable to put on body fat, is that such tend to burn out so fast once the player resumes actives games, and has no long-term benefits. Besides, putting on fat can inhibit the basketball player’s ability to catch-up fast in readiness for the basketball matches (Lamb and Murray 120-130).

The female basketball player should also focus on maintaining muscle during off-season. Apart from watching the amount of calories that one takes during this season, a basketball player should ensure that her diets include at least 60 per cent carbohydrates, 20 per cent protein, and 20 per cent fat (Lamb and Murray 120-130). Foods that take so long to digest should be avoided at all costs since the player is not active at this period and such foods might cause discomforts.

Reasons for required meal

Each of the identified food groups serves a specific purpose in the athlete’s diet. Carbohydrates’ main purpose is to keep the body energized. If the body were to be compared to a car, carbohydrates would play the role of the fuel. A player requires six grams of carbohydrates per a kilo of body weight. A decrease or lack of carbohydrates in the player’s body can cause fatigue, loss of focus mentally, a reduce in speed due to less energy or even collapsing of the player for lack of stamina (Beals 13).

The main role of protein in the body is to make and preserve the muscle tissue. Proteins also have a high energy level since they stay longer in the body. Lack of enough proteins might lead to breathing problems since there will be no enough tissue to carry the oxygen throughout the body. A player will also tend to feel tired and dizzy and they will experience slowed performance due to lack of energy.

The body uses fats if there is a shortage of carbohydrates and proteins. Fats act as a reserve or a backup plan. As such, it is the obligation of each athlete to ensure that she consumes healthy fats in the right quantities.

Fluids, and mainly water, are required in the body in order to keep it fresh and to act as a backup for the fluids that are lost during exercising. Lack of fluid in the body can cause fatigue, poor, or average performances, and dehydration which may lead to loss of blood and other serious complications (Jones 1).

Making wise food choices

Proteins can be divided into two major categories- animal and plant proteins. Plant proteins include grains such as beans, while animal protein consists of meat, eggs, and milk. In a report authored by the (American Dietetic Association et al. 509), it was found out that plant proteins are not digested as fast as animal proteins. As such, the report recommends that athletes who rely on plant proteins on and off-season should increase their intake by at least 10 percent of the recommended daily allowance. A female basketball player, just like other female athletes should incorporate animal proteins in her diet because besides providing her with amino acids, they are also a good source of “fat, vitamins B-12, riboflavin, vitamin D, iron and Zinc” (American Dietetic Association et al. 509). Iron is especially important to a woman basketball player since it prevents her from developing anemia. Some of the healthy food items that the player can incorporate in her diet include turkey, chicken breasts, fish( halibut, tuna and cod), beef, beans, legumes, soy and sea food (Jones 1).

Sources of healthy fats for consumption by the female athlete during off-season include vegetable oils, olive oil, nuts fish fat, and avocados. Butter and cream should however be avoided.

The female basketball player should also include fruits, grains, vegetables, and milk in her diet, since such are good sources of carbohydrates. Others include rice bread and pasta. However, the athlete should consume whole meal foods instead of the highly refined ones. Fluids recommended for players should be without alcohol, caffeine or carbon (Schofield 1-2).

Conclusion

The importance of good eating habits for an athlete cannot be understated. Generally, athletes need more energy than people who live sedentary lifestyles, or those who exercise for fitness reasons. Having an eating plan is the best way to ensure that there is a balance between the energy spent during a game, and the energy consumed. A deficit created through poor diets would no doubt cause poor performance, while too much eating would result in the body storing fat.

The off-season diet is just as important as the diet an athlete takes during active seasons. Considering that an athlete is probably not as active in the off-season, foods should be taken in moderation, and according to how often the athlete trains. The relatively laid-back lifestyles that athletes lead during off-season, could lead to storage of fats in the body should they indulge in too much calorie consumption. A player should remember that what they eat during off-season contributes to the energy reserves and the muscle build-up needed for the active sports season. As such, the athlete should always be on the lookout for diets that serves her health and body interests well in anticipation for the active sports season.

Works Cited

American Dietetic Association, Dietitians of Canada, and the American College of Sports and Medicine. “Nutrition and Athletic Performance.” Journal of American Dietetic Association. 109 (2009):509-527. Web.

Beals, Katherine. Nutrition and the Female Athlete. Chicago: CRC Press, 2012. Print.

Fong, Bethany. “Balanced diet of a basketball player” Demand media 2011: 1. Print.

Houtkooper, Linda, Jaclyn Abbot, and Myra Nimmo. “Nutrition for Throwers, Jumpers and Combined Event Athletes.” Journal of Sports Sciences. 25. Supplement 1 (2007):39-47.

Jones, Courtney Ivan. “Nutrition for basket ball players.” Articlebase, n.d. Web. 2011.

Kraemer, William, Jeff Voles, Kristine L. Clark, Scott E. Gordon, Travis T. Incledon, Susan M. Puhl, Travis Triplett-McBride, Jeffrey M. McBride, and Wayne.J. Sebastianelli. “Physiological Adaptations to a Weight-Loss Dietary Regimen and Exercise Programs In Women” Journal of Applied Physiology, 83.1 (1997): 270-279. Print.

Lamb, David and Murray, Robert Coyle. Optimizing Sport Performance: Perspectives in Exercise Science and Sports Medicine, New York: Cooper Publishing Group, 1997. Print.

McAllister, Rallie. “Effects of Holiday Binges.” Buffalo News. 2010: SN04. Print.

Schofields, Brain. “Diet nutrition tips for basketball players” women channel 2011: 1-2. Print.

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