A Balancing Act

A Balancing Act

By Kathleen Woolf, PhD, RD//Correspondent

What you eat can have a big impact on your health and performance both inside and outside of the pool.  This isn’t news.  Hippocrates recognized the relationship of food and health when he stated, “Let food be thy medicine and medicine be thy food”.
 
Today, registered dietitians/nutritionists promote the food and health relationship by recommending a balanced diet. What exactly does this term mean? A balanced diet is one where you eat a wide variety of foods in moderation.  You consume enough, but not too much, of a broad range of different types of food.  
 
Several nutrition tools are available to help you plan a balanced diet.  The U.S. Department of Agriculture developed “My Pyramid” to help us determine the kinds and amounts of foods to eat every day.  A balanced diet would include a variety of foods from the five food groups: grains, vegetables, fruits, milk, meat and beans, and oils.  After entering your age, gender and activity level on the “My Pyramid” Web site (www.mypyramid.gov), you are given a personalized plan describing the daily amounts to consume from each food group.
 
Once you have your personal plan, select different foods from each of the groups across a week’s time.  For example, you might have raw carrots at one meal and spinach salad the next day.  Some days you might have whole wheat pasta while other times you choose brown rice or rye bread.  Foods that are high in fat and sugar (e.g. hot dogs, fast food, baked goods, candy, soda pop) should be limited to special occasions.  Fruits, vegetables, low-fat dairy, and whole grain products should be the core of your day-to-day diet.
 
Planning a healthy diet without overeating requires some practice.  Balance also plays a key role. Energy (or calorie) intake should be matched to your physical activity level.  A long-distance swimmer training for competition requires more energy compared to a sedentary friend.
 
Avoid an “unbalanced” diet by making healthy food choices. By eating a wide variety of foods in moderation, you will provide your body with the nutrients you need for growth, development, health and exercise performance.