Olympians and 2000 Years of Sports Nutrition: Health and Wellness Blog

London: the 29th Summer Games.

Sports nutrition has come a long way. According to Shaklee, two thousand years ago, meat was a staple of the athlete's diet. Even alcohol was accepted for use during training and before competition.

It has been reported that marathon runners drank cognac to enhance performance in the 1908 Games. And in the 1952 Games in Helsinki, Finland, the average athlete consumed a high-fat diet with 40 percent of calories coming from fat, another 40 percent from carbohydrate, and the remaining 20 percent of calories from protein.

Then, in the 1970s, researchers began studying trained athletes, and much of the initial research focused on hydration, sports drinks, and carbohydrate intake. In the 1980s, as the value of proteins and carbohydrate for recovery became clear, strength athletes began to more carefully consider their carbohydrate intake, and endurance athletes were better educated on the importance of protein consumption.

In the past 25 years, hundreds of research studies have helped us to better understand the true value of sports-nutrition strategies. As a result, most of today's athletes preparing for competition are well versed in the benefits of proper hydration—as well as a healthful diet rich in carbohydrates and lean, high-quality protein, but with a limited fat intake.

Wow, neither cognac nor a high fat diet sound appetizing to me. Even though I do not come close to an Olympian, I would still like an effective, healthy experience when I walk, bike, Zumba, or just mow the yard :).

For many Iowans, RAGBRAI will require these sports-nutrition strategies plus the summer safety tips I shared last week. The cool part – we can achieve this healthful diet by implementing a plant slant from the Blue Zones Power 9™. I appreciate that creating healthy habits in one area of life often helps me achieve the health goals in another area of life – I love multitasking :).

Would you like natural options for your sports-nutrition strategy? For your FREE consultation (in person, over the phone, via email), speaking and training needs, tips, or gift certificates, please contact Jessica Crouch: www.ChooseToImprove.com, Jessica@OrganizeAnywhere.com, 319-504-6689.

Remember, reaching a goal with help is better than not reaching it at all: working with busy women who are passionate about making a change in their health because they are “sick and tired” of being sick and tired - mentoring them using natural health & wellness so they can save money and sick days!