Breakfast and sport, handbook for the athlete’s meal

Nutrition and lightness are the watchwords that must characterize the ideal breakfast for those who practice sports. It is essential that the first meal of the day is healthy, genuine and a source of energy, but also a moment of relaxation and gratification, to start the day well. ‘Io Comincio Bene’, the Unione Italiana Food campaign that has been promoting the value of this meal in Italy for several years, with the advice of the sports nutrition expert, Michelangelo Giampietro, reaffirms its importance through a vademecum of dedicated guidelines. at the breakfast of the professional and amateur athlete. “Nutrition allows us to acquire the energy and nutrients necessary for maintaining a good state of health: only an athlete in good health can train to the best of his ability, also hoping for an optimal race result”, explains Giampietro. “Breakfast fits into this program of proper nutrition: the hourly distribution of food throughout the day includes 5 appointments, breakfast, lunch, dinner and two snacks (one mid-morning and one mid-afternoon) – he continues – Among these, breakfast is the fundamental meal because we come from fasting at night, during which we do not take liquids or solid foods, so when we wake up our body is in a condition of energy and nutritional crisis and must be supplied in an appropriate way to guarantee the best possible efficiency, both physical and cognitive, from the early hours of the morning “. In the morning, it is always better not to train on an empty stomach. “After fasting at night we are dehydrated and drained of energy, because during the night we used the carbohydrate reserves of our body. A molecule that takes the name of glycogen, made up of chains of single glucose molecules accumulated both in the muscles and in the liver. , allows us, in periods of fasting, to detach the glucose molecules from the glycogen of the liver, put it into circulation and keep the blood sugar constant. It is a mechanism that the body uses to avoid those negative and opposite phenomena. to sports, typical of hypoglycemia. Among these: drowsiness, sweating, fatigue, light-headedness and poor balance, headache, difficulty concentrating and calculating, reduced precision in movements “, comments the expert. In general, the athlete’s breakfast must cover 20-25% of the total daily energy and it is essential that it is structured by conditioning the choice of foods based on the training or competition time. Breakfast should be measured on the basis of the time available before starting the workout and on the basis of how digestible what we introduce is. Obviously, the more digestible a food is, the less time it will be necessary to spend before training which, in this case, can also be more intense. From swimming to fencing, from tennis to cycling, to triathlon, every sport has its rules as well as its ideal breakfast. For example, for swimmers, light and digestible foods are to be preferred, while for triathletes hydrating and energetic foods, low protein and no fat or fiber for tennis players and super ‘reinforced’ meals for cyclists. But beyond the differences that exist between the various sports disciplines, each with its own characteristics and with a different nutritional requirement, for all athletes, breakfast must be complete, balanced and digestible. As Giampietro points out: “The sportsman’s breakfast, as well as that of the general population, should be as complete as possible. As for liquids, in addition to water, all drinks, from tea to fruit juice, centrifuged, milk, coffee, barley, are fine. To obtain good hydration it is important to take a generous amount of liquids (2-2.5 liters per day), to sip and not to concentrate in large quantities a few times in the course The drinks can be either hot or cold, depending on the taste and the seasonal temperatures. In addition, fresh fruit and yogurt, at breakfast, also provide good quantities of liquids. As for the solid component, however, it must be varied, meeting everyone’s tastes “. So what is best to bring to the table for the athlete in the morning? The typical sweet Italian breakfast is an excellent solution, being able to alternate drinks such as barley, coffee, tea, milk, yogurt, juices, fruit juices, but also cereal-based products (bread, biscuits, rusks, wholegrain or non-wholemeal cereal flakes, muesli, packaged or homemade low-fat baked desserts), spreads, desserts and fresh seasonal fruit. If, on the other hand, you opt for a savory breakfast, green light for the right mix of cold cuts (defatted raw ham or bresaola or turkey breast), eggs and low-fat cheeses or ricotta, not forgetting the correct weekly consumption frequencies, but without giving up seasonal fruit or fruit juice, a glass of milk or, alternatively, a yogurt with cereals. For both menus, milk is a drink not to be underestimated. Being mainly made of water, it is a precious source of liquids, able to hydrate the body very well, not only for those who play sports. In milk there are also sugars and proteins, even in the skimmed version, which mutually help each other to favor the anabolic processes that are so important, especially in the immediate post-workout / competition.