Food for fitness buffs; principles for getting the most from your exercise program

Paul Anderson, who once raised the greatest weight ever lifted by a human--6,270 pounds--had a special drink he used while in training. Using his bare hands, he would squeeze the blood from two pounds of raw hamburger into a glass of tomato juice, then drink the mixture.

Milo of Crotona, the legendary Greek wrestler who never once was brought to his knees over five Olympiads, from 532 to 516 B.C., ate gargantuan quantities of meat. Swimmer Jim Montgomery, winner of four gold medals in the 1976 Olympics, normally ate a breakfast consisting of eight eggs, a pound of bacon, a loaf of bread, and a quart of orange juice.

On the other hand, there are many fine athletes who are very meticulous in their diets. Nancy Ditz, one of America's top-ranked female marathoners, emphasizes carbohydrates in her diet. Dave Scott, former world record holder in the Ironman Triathlon, eats a diet high in complex carbohydrates, consisting of brown rice, tofu, low-fat dairy products, and up to 20 pieces of fruit and vegetables per day. Olympic marathoner Margaret Groos also emphasizes a high-carbohydrate diet, eating such foods as English muffins, rice cakes, fruit, pasta, high-carbohydrate drinks, and low-fat dairy products.

These examples point out the obvious: Among top athletes, dietary practices may range from bizarre to excellent. This has presented a confusing picture to many fitness enthusiasts who look to the lifestyles of athletes for guidance as to how they should eat to get the most from their exercise programs. What is the best diet for people who are serious about exercise? Here are six key nutritional principles:

Principle 1: Start with the basics. The same basic diet that enhances health (the one recommended for all Americans) is also recommended for all of you fitness enthusiasts -- those who exercise three to five days per week, 15 to 60 minutes per session. As you spend more time in aerobic-type exercise (running, swimming, bicycling, etc.), fat in your diet should decrease and carbohydrates increase. You can best do this by eating less visible fats (margarine, oil, salad dressing, mayonnaise), less high-fat dairy products (cheeses, whole milk, butter, cream cheese, etc.), less high-fat meats (fried meats, bacon, corned beef, ground beef, ham, sausages, processed meats, etc.), and more grain products (pasta, bagels, breads, brown rice, cereals), tubers (potatoes, yams), legumes (kidney beans, pinto beans, etc.), dried fruit (raisins, dates, etc.), fresh fruit, and fresh vegetables. In other words, eat more plant foods (naturally high in carbohydrates, while low in fat), while avoiding high-fat dairy and meat products. This becomes even more important for the heavy-endurance athlete (one who trains more than one hour a day).

Principle 2: Increase total energy intake. If your weight is normal and you are exercising regularly, you will need to eat more than the average sedentary American to maintain body weight. The more you exercise, the more food you should eat. Most of this extra energy should come in the form of carbohydrates from cereals, dried fruits, breads, and pasta. See the calorie intake and exercise chart.

Principle 3: Keep the carbohydrate intake high (55 to 70 percent). A high-carbohydrate diet is probably the most important nutritional principle for people who exercise. During exercise, your body prefers to use carbohydrates to supply energy to the working muscles. When your body's carbohydrate level drops too low, your ability to exercise falls, and you feel stale and tired, and are more prone to injury.

Principle 4: Drink water. Probably the second most important dietary principle for people who exercise is to drink a lot of water. As little as a three-pound drop in your body weight from water loss from sweating (which can happen within one hour, especially on hot, humid days) decreases your ability to exercise. And the thirst of the exercising individual lags behind actual body need. So before, during, and after the exercise bout, you should drink plenty of fluids, even beyond what you feel like drinking. A plan recommended by some sports medicine experts is to drink two cups of water immediately before the exercise bout, one cup every 15 minutes during the exercise session, and then two more cups after the session.

                 Recommended Diet
              for People Who Exercise
Percentages of Total Caloric Intake
                 Intake of    Fitness       Heavy-
                 Average      Enthusiast    Endurance
                 American                   Athlete
Carbohydrates      48            55            70
Fat                37            30            15
Protein            15             15           15
          The Relationship Between
         Caloric Intake and Amount
                 of Exercise
                               Caloric Intake
                              Males     Females
Average sedentary American    2,550     1,600
Fitness enthusiast            2,700     1,800
Heavy endurance athlete       3,500     2,500
                  High-Carbohydrate
              Foods--One-Cup Portions
Foods                       Grams of    Calories Percentage of
                          Carbohydrates per Cup   Calories as
                            per Cup              Carbohydrates
Dates (chopped)                131        489         100
Raisins                        115        434         100
Prunes                        101          385         100
Grape Nuts                     94         407          92
Whole-wheat flour             85          400          85
Dried apricots (uncooked)      80         310         100
Sweet potato (mashed)          80         344          93
Brown rice                     50         232          86
Prune juice                    45          181        100
Kidney beans                   42         230           73
Rolled wheat (cooked)          41          180         91
Macaroni (cooked)              39         190          82
Lentils (cooked)               39          210         74
Grape juice                    38         155          98

Principle 5: Vitamin, mineral, and protein supplements are not needed. Studies show that people who exercise are at an advantage here because they tended to eat more than sedentary people, filling their bodies with higher quantities of vitamins, minerals, and protein. The American Dietetic Association in its publication "Nutrition for Physical Fitness and Athletic Performance for Adults" has stated that heavy endurance exercise "may increase the need for some vitamins and minerals, but this can easily be met by consuming a balanced diet in accordance with the extra caloric requirement."

Some of you who exercise, especially weight lifters, may feel that eating high protein foods and taking supplements are necessary to build muscle mass. But the average American diet has more than enough protein to meet the needs of all types of exercise programs.

Principle 6: Good nutrition means more than good performance. People who exercise, even athletes, have no guarantee of protection from heart disease unless they continue good habits of exercise and diet throughout their lifetime. Even during heavy training, a high saturated-fat diet (a diet high in butter, red meats, high-fat dairy products, etc.) raises serum cholesterol to alarming levels. So you should not think that you can eat whatever you want because your exercise program will "burn it all up." A high saturated-fat diet causes harm in both the bodies of inactive and active people.

Do you get the picture? A healthy balanced diet, high in carbohydrates and low in fat, along with plenty of water, will help you feel better when you exercise and promote your health at the same time. It's an unbeatable combination.

David C. Nieman, D.H.Sc., M.P.H., F.A.C.S.M., is in the Department of Health, Leisure, and Exercise Science of Appalachian State University, Boone, North Carolina.

COPYRIGHT 1991 Review and Herald Publishing Association
COPYRIGHT 2004 Gale Group