Before game, between game, during game and after game nutrition.

[YOCOACH]

A girl will burn more calories eating a celery stick than she will get from it!

CJD...the veggies are more for the parents watching their waistlines than the girls

As for the sugared drinks, I should have been more specific. We prefer the team not have drinks where sugars have been added as opposed to those with naturally occurring sugars such as fruit juices.

Also, as an aside, I have personally had a girl on my team go down due to dehydration drinking only sports drinks on a hot day during a tournament. The doctors told her family that sport drinks create a false sense of security since they only provide certain electrolytes and not all of the ones that the body needs. He also told them that a sport drink/water combination is the absolute best way to hydrate and to stay that way. I checked with a sports nutritionist and she said the same thing and that a1:1 ratio of water to sports drinks is what you are after. Ever since instituting the ratio rule as I call it, I haven't had a problem.

 

[CJ D]

If a girl is not drinking as much sports drink as she would water, then you are 100% correct. My daughters are the opposite. In addition, they say the lack of sodium in straight water will fool the body as not as much is absorbed, and the kidneys have to process more.

Bottom line though, is that if you are drinking enough of either you will be fine.

 

[starsnuffer]

These kids don't need nearly as much food as some people think they do. It's not like they're out running a marathon for 7 hours.

Feed them enough healthy food (complex carbs with some protein thrown in), but pay close attention to sugar balances. What you want is for them to perform consistently through the day with no highs and no lows. Simple carbs and sugars along with caffeine wreak havoc on this, which is why it drives coaches crazy.

-W

 

[Etdad]

Is that right 3/4 CUP of truvia

 

[58sdad]

My DD always fueled up with Cliff Bars between games.. especially when you only have 15 minutes and have to move your stuff to another field.. They taste good and give you a decent energy boost.. they are portable and don't need refrigeration.. A lot better than the crap they sell at most concession stands I've been to..

 

[softball_mom#7]

My DD loves the Power Bars in the green wrapper.

My DD always fueled up with Cliff Bars between games.. especially when you only have 15 minutes and have to move your stuff to another field.. They taste good and give you a decent energy boost.. they are portable and don't need refrigeration.. A lot better than the crap they sell at most concession stands I've been to..

 

[slingnit]

These kids don't need nearly as much food as some people think they do. It's not like they're out running a marathon for 7 hours.

Feed them enough healthy food (complex carbs with some protein thrown in), but pay close attention to sugar balances. What you want is for them to perform consistently through the day with no highs and no lows. Simple carbs and sugars along with caffeine wreak havoc on this, which is why it drives coaches crazy.

-W

Saying kids do not need near as much food as we give them, not running 7 hour marathon. Your right! Get to the fields at 7AM, warm up for 45-60 min., play 75 min game. That's over 2 hours. Now have them do that for 3-5 games a day for 2 days and throw in one more on Friday. That's over 14 hours of ball in 2 1/2 days! So they are running two 7 hour marathons. Feed them a quarter lb w/ cheese 520 cal 26 gram fat, 25 gram protein. Large fries 500 cals, 25 fat, 6 protein. Med soft drink 200 cals of nothing but sugar.(55 grams of sugar. A teaspoon of sugar has 4.2 grams of sugar(carbs). Would you purposely give your kid 10 teasp[oons of sugar 3 times a day???? That is over 1200 calories in ONE meal! That is over 1/2 the amount of calories you would feed an active 130 lb girl for the day. And many kids get that 3 times a day. Now take a turkey, spinach, cheddar sandwich, on wheat. 313 calories, 12 grams fat, 13 carbs, 20 protein. They would have to eat almost 4 of them to equal ONE McDonalds meal. So you may be right! We are over feeding our kids, but under nourishing them!

 

[slingnit]

Lol. Well thx for not judging. I really expected to get on and see about 20 blasts. Lol

A couple things...first, my truck will blow up on 94 octane. Lol. Most vehicles will that are not designed for it. But that is neither here nor there in this discussion. Lol

I see lots of suggestions on here about water over sports drinks, no drink with sugars (which would include grape juice, etc) no egg yolks, etc. Guys, I'm not altogether certain how much high performance lifting/training you have done yourself recently, but there is a wealth of recent studies out there that debunk a lot of the old "standards" on some of this stuff. Not to say in any way that what you are professing is in any way detrimental to your DDs or players, but sheesh. A girl will burn more calories eating a celery stick than she will get from it!

My DDs both eat healthy. They really do. During the week they eat good meals. They have to. There's not much else for them to eat around here. The reason I will get them a dr pepper on the way to the park if they want it is because, for one, they want it. No, my kids don't get everything they want. They are exceptional kids with 4.0 averages that cause zero problems. But the ball experience is supposed to be fun. Not just on the field. The whole experience. And when they are getting up at 5 am to get ready for a tournament and we are whipping through at drive through at 6 to be at the park at 7, the caffeine and sugar sure help their eyes open up! It's the same reason I drink coffee as my per workout drink. Yeah, on occasion I'll throw some no xplode or superpump in too. But the coffee taste better and it's the same thing, minus the BAA which I'll get enough of anyway. Once at the park, they will drink Gatorade or powerade. No water. They won't drink near as much water as they do the other, and the water contains zero carbs and zero sodium. The sodium is what helps their body retain the water they are drinking. Maybe it's just cause were used to our tournaments lasting 12 hours every weekend day and its usually 95 degrees +. The sports drinks will do a better job of hydrating them.

Again, I think it's really great that you go this far above and beyond. I really do. I'm not at all judging what you are doing for your DD. But there are still a lot of "everyday" folk that go to ball tournaments and that read on here. On game day, I am one of them. The lines at the concession stands say the same thing.

While we work hard, study, practice, watch video.....none of us in my household are hoping or counting on a softball scholarship to pay for college. We all want for them to be the best that they can be....without sacrificing their lives, their enjoyment, or my sanity.

I am not opposed to caffeine at all. I am not opposed to simple sugars in moderation. It sounds as if your kid(s) eat pretty decent most of the time. That is not true for the majority of kids in America. The number of Americans with diabetes skyrocketed over the last 15 years, as diabetes cases rose by 50 percent or more in 42 different states — and by 100 percent or more in 18 states — during that time period, according to a recent report from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Not to mention child obesity.I think that is why so many on here are stressing anti sugary drinks no fast foods. For me it is not as much as not having cokes or fast foods but trying to set better habits that they will live with the rest of their lives. And for debunking old standards, for any study that you or I can provide there will be another that saying the opposite. I'm a gym rat, in there 4-5 times a week. By no means am I Arnold but I am no small fry either. 5'10, 225. Personally I can see a huge difference in my lifts, my attitude, and my stamina when I'm eating cleaner and using supplements. And I mean protein, caffeine, multivitamin, BCAA, and cycle a pre workout, that's it. I can see/feel a difference from day to day and sometimes meal to meal when my diet is out of whack. And think these kids(maybe not yours) do not get what their bodies' need near as often as they should. And that affects muscle and bone development, can cause obesity, and from a mental standpoint they can suffer anxiety or learning disabilities. So just my 2,4,6 hell buck fifty worth. You can probably tell I am very passionate about this subject. lol

 

[slingnit]

Is that right 3/4 CUP of truvia

I use Splenda, I assume they are all the same.

 

[Etdad]

I use Splenda, I assume they are all the same.

I mean 3/4 cup seems like a lot