Must-Make Easy Recipes for Game Day! (2024)

FAQs

What to eat on game day? ›

Athletes should eat a balanced meal containing carbohydrates, protein, and fruit or vegetables 2-3 hours before game time. Make sure to drink 12-24 ounces of water with a pre-game meal to stay hydrated. Pre-game meals may include: Whole wheat chicken sandwich with vegetables.

For instance, starchy carbohydrates are ideal as they break down and can be stored as glycogen to provide the body with a consistent energy source over a few hours. Potatoes, pasta, rice, bread (ideally wholemeal unless just before a game), oatmeal, cereals, vegetables, and fruit are healthy carb options.

Night Before the Game: Carb-load and Avoid New Foods

Starchy foods like whole-wheat pasta, rice, potatoes, beans, broccoli, and grilled chicken offer a carbohydrate-rich meal that will provide the right fuel for the next day's event and protein to fuel recovery. Broccoli adds calcium, vitamins A and C.

Fresh Fruits and Vegetables – are the simplest appetizer. Fruits are good appetizers because they give an attractive appearance, fragrance, appealing taste and delicious flavor. For example, you could serve a platter of thinly sliced cucumbers, chunks of red bell pepper and baby carrots.

Before a game, some athletes also avoid fatty, foods that are slow to digest and try to eat mainly familiar, easily digested, high carbohydrate foods. High-fiber foods such as raw vegetables, seaweed, and mushrooms tend to cause a buildup of gas, so athletes have to avoid eating too much of them.

3-4 Hours before a game:

This means you can have all the nutrients on one plate including lean protein, complex carbs, fat, and fibre. A great pre-game meal 3-4 hours before a game could be: Chicken, rice, and broccoli. Whole grain pasta, tomato sauce, and meatballs.

Carbohydrate is essential as the most immediate and efficient fuel to the muscles. In its circulating form in the blood, carbohydrate is called as glucose, and its storage form in muscles and in the liver is called as glycogen.

What do NFL players eat on game day? ›

Bonci also shared other foods she says are popular among NFL players. They include yogurt, Greek or regular, by itself or as a parfait; smoothies that are usually fruit-based mixed with protein powder, vegetable stir-fry, eggs, and pastas.

Carbohydrates: Carbs provide energy for the body and are an important source of fuel for a young athlete. Without carbs in their diet, kids will be running on empty. When choosing carbs, look for whole-grain foods like whole-wheat pasta, brown rice, whole-grain bread and cereal, and plenty of fruits and vegetables.