Nutrition

Most of the knowledge that I have gained over the years has come from two people: my eighth grade health teacher and the trainer at my school, Coach Poulin. I never realized how important nutrition is when it comes to working out or getting on the field. I always knew that food was a fuel source for the body, but I never thought it really mattered what I ate before a game as long as I had something in me. In my mind it’s like getting gas where the cheapest, most convenient gas station is; they could dilute it with water for all I car as long it runs my car for that price. Now I know that I was very wrong.

 Have you ever felt lethargic before a game like you just don’t have it in you? I can tell you right now that’s a result of malnutrition. For the first time in my life, I felt the effects of malnutrition. Maybe I’m getting old and my body is showing me it’s about time I start watching what I stuff down my pie hole.

It was a warm Saturday afternoon at baker field, we were playing Roxbury Latin and all I had for breakfast was an ice coffee, the usual dark roast with cream and sugar. No matter now hard I tried to zone in on hitting a ball, I couldn’t make solid contact. After that one game, where I went 0-2 with a walk and we lost one of the biggest games of the season, I never want feel like that ever again.

My trainer, Coach Poulin, put nutrition into perspective for me this winter, which really allowed me to understand it. Our stomachs are like a lines graph; let the X and Y coordinates represent how much we eat and when we eat it. If you’re one of those people who think it’s smart to skip breakfast and eat a big lunch, well I can tell you that is not healthy what so ever. Huge spikes in your line graph are bad and result in two things, one is muscle loss and two is weight gain. The best way to keep an even lines graph is to eat 6 smaller meals that way there is no point in time where you are over-loading your stomach. I have been experimenting with this over the past weeks, and I can tell you my energy level has spiked, my weight is falling, and I’m keeping my strength in season.

A great example is my father. My mother and I can’t fathom how my father stays so skinny and with this knowledge, it all makes sense now. My father will snack almost all day and it seems like he never stops eating when in reality he is keeping a steady line on his line graph with very few spikes along with regular daily exercise.