As a parent of a young athlete, you’re likely going to be on snack duty at some point during the season. For some competitions or practices, this will be easier: a few granola bars, orange slices, and you’re good to go. But for longer days, like track and field meets or regional matches that involve travel, warm-ups, and post-game awards ceremonies before heading home, you may be asked to provide meals or snacks to keep athletes satiated from breakfast to dinner. Here are a few foods to avoid bringing — and what to bring instead.
Kids who are participating in all-day events need a steady intake of carbohydrates, as well as proteins and fats, throughout the day. Often, parents on snack duty think about energy and then bring carb-rich foods like gummies, granola bars, cookies, and pastries. While small amounts of low-fat versions of these can be useful in between races and in the middle of games, all-day events require snacks with proteins and fats to keep athletes satiated. Do: Plan out the day’s meals and snacks around when athletes are going to be working the hardest. In the hour before competition, prioritize simple carbohydrates with easy-to-eat snacks like granola bars, fruit snacks, krispie rice treats, fresh/dried fruit, or fruit juice. For track and field meets where there are multiple races throughout the day, post-race snacks should focus on carbohydrates but include protein as well. Great options with both carbs and protein include chocolate milk, yogurt with fruit, cheese and crackers, a granola/energy bar that includes at least several grams of protein, or even a small sandwich with deli meat. To properly fuel athletes a couple hours before competition or after events, provide a meal that will keep them satisfied and energized until the event starts without being too heavy on the stomach or too large. Examples include a grain bowl including a source of protein like chicken, a deli meat and cheese sandwich or wrap with veggie toppings, a breakfast burrito, or a larger yogurt parfait with granola and fruit.
Teens are more sensitive to caffeine than adults, so while your cup of coffee or soda at the game may keep you awake during the slower moments, it may have a negative impact on your young athlete. Caffeine can make kids jittery, exacerbate nerves, and lead to an energy crash that impacts their performance. While some young athletes may tolerate caffeine better than others, it’s safest to avoid foods or drinks with caffeine in these situations, especially for kids and teens who haven’t tried caffeine before. Do: Make sure to have enough carb-rich snacks and balanced meals available throughout the day to keep athletes fueled and energized. Caffeine doesn’t provide actual energy to power muscles, but foods do. Provide drinks like water, juice, and sports drinks to keep energy and hydration up as well.
Foods rich in fat, such as pepperoni or meat sticks, pizza, quesadillas, burgers, fries, and many desserts like ice cream, aren’t ideal between events in most cases. They’re hard to digest and can lead to gastric distress in athletes, especially during harder efforts, and they won’t effectively fuel athletes as their glycogen stores drop throughout the day. Do: Carb-rich foods will recharge glycogen stores to help athletes get ready for the next event. Try easier-to-digest food like pretzels, granola bars, any type of fresh or dried fruit, or crackers while the competition is going on and when there is little time between events.
More than 6 million children in the U.S. have a food allergy, according to the American College of Allergies, Asthma and Immunology. A whopping 2.5 percent of children have peanut allergies alone. Nut allergies, as well as lactose and gluten intolerances or sensitivities, are common. Ask ahead of time if any athletes have allergies, and you can even check with your school or sports association since there may be some rules in place for what you can and can’t bring. Do: Bring fueling foods that are free of the top allergens. Ideas include fresh fruits, seed-based bars, some krispie rice treats, fruit snacks or gummies, and gluten free granola bars. If you’re bringing milk products, such as chocolate milk, try to also have a lactose-free option.
It may seem that foods we think of as healthy are the best option for athletes to perform at their best. While nutrient dense foods like veggies are absolutely helpful for athletes’ health in their typical diet, they are not ideal to focus on around competition. This is because foods like vegetables or those low in calories like a salad or ‘diet snacks’ do not provide essential carbohydrate energy to power athletes up for competition and help them recharge afterwards. They can also be high in fiber, too much of which can cause stomach and intestinal upset like cramping or bloating that may impair focus and performance. Do: Bring energy dense foods that fuel performance as outlined in the sections above. Nutrient dense options like fruit, 100% juices, whole grain crackers, and chocolate milk provide both energy for performance and micronutrients for good health. ‘Healthy’ snacks like cut veggie sticks are fine to provide too, just don’t make them the only snack available.
For obvious reasons, your child’s coach would prefer that you save the sloppy joes for times when athletes aren’t in uniform! Do: Stick to options that are easy to eat and aren’t likely to become a distracting mess or cause a stained uniform crisis. Ideas include cold sandwiches, grain bowls, PB&J’s, trail mix, and yogurt parfaits. And always bring a roll of paper towels!
Properly fueling athletes for competition, especially at all-day or all-weekend events, is no easy task, but there are some basic guidelines to help make the decision-making process a little easier. In general, stick to easy-to-digest snacks rich in carbohydrates, and meals that are easy on the stomach balanced with carbs, protein, and moderate fats and fiber.
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