THE REFERENCE DAILY INTAKES. THREE BASIC KEYS TO HEALTHFUL EATING

THE REFERENCE DAILY INTAKES.

To help you determine whether you are getting the right balance of these nutrients, the government has established the Reference Daily Intakes (RDIs) as a standard for nutrient intake. Their recommendations for protein, vitamins, and minerals exceed the average nutritional requirements to meet the needs of nearly all people, including athletes (see table 1.1).
In the following posts you will learn how to eat a high-energy. healthful combination of foods that provides the daily requirement of these important nutrients and promotes your health and fitness.

THREE BASIC KEYS TO HEALTHFUL EATING

When choosing your meals and snacks, try to base your nutrition game plan on these three important keys to healthful eating:

1. Variety. There is no one magic food. Each food offers special nutrients. For example, oranges provide vitamin C and carbohydrates but not iron or protein. Beef offers iron and protein but not vitamin C or carbohydrates. You’ll thrive best by eating a variety of foods.
I often counsel athletes who severely restrict their diets. One runner, for example, limited herself to plain yogurt, rice cakes, and oranges. Besides lacking variety, her diet lacked iron, zinc, vitamins A, E, K, and much more.

2. Moderation. Even soda pop and chips, in moderation, can fit into a well-balanced diet. Simply balance out refined sugars and fats with nutrient-wise choices at your next meal. For example, compensate for a greasy sausage and biscuit at breakfast by selecting a low-fat turkey sandwich for lunch. Although no one food is a junk food, too many nutrient poor selections can accumulate into a junk food diet.

3. Wholesomeness. Choose natural or lightly processed foods as often as possible. For instance, choose whole wheat rather than white bread, apples rather than apple juice, baked potatoes rather than potato chips. Natural foods usually have more nutritional value and fewer questionable additives.

Table 1.1 Reference Daily intake.

The Reference Daily Intakes (RDIs) are not requirements but rather an
estimate of safe and adequate nutrient intakes for proteins, vitamins,
and minerals that will maintain good health for almost all people. The
values are designed for the age group with the highest needs. For
example, the RDI for iron is based on a woman's need and is a number
overly generous for men. You should try to meet the RDIs on a daily basis. If your daily nutrient intake varies, but your average weekly intake meets the allowances, you are unlikely to suffer from nutritional deficiencies.
The Daily Values expressed in percentages of the RDIs on the nutrition facts on food labels are based on the following intakes:

SIX BASIC NUTRIENTS FOR HEALTH

Food is more than just fuel that stops your hunger. Food contains nutrients essential for maintaining optimal health and top performance. There are six types of nutrients.



Carbohydrates

Carbohydrates are a source of calories from sugars and starches that fuel your muscles and brain. Carbohydrates are the primary energy source when you're exercising hard. You should get about 60 percent of your calories from the carbohydrates found in fruits, vegetables, breads, and grains.

Fat

Fat is a source of stored energy (calories) that is burned mostly during low-level activity (e.g., reading and sleeping) and long-term activity (e. g., long training runs and gentle bike rides). Animal fats (butter, lard, fat in meat) tend to be saturated and contribute to heart disease and some cancers. Vegetable fats (e. g., olive oil, corn oil, canola oil) are generally unsaturated and less harmful. I recommend that my clients limit their fat intake to about 25 percent of their daily total calories.

Protein

Protein is essential for building and repairing muscles, red blood cells, hair, and other tissues, and for synthesizing hormones. Protein from food is digested into amino acids, which are then rebuilt into the protein in muscles and other tissues. Protein is a source of calories and can be used for energy if inadequate carbohydrates are available (e.g.,during exhaustive exercise). About 15 percent of your calories should come from protein-rich foods such as fish, poultry, meats, tofu, and beans.

Vitamins

lhtamins are metabolic catalysts that regulate chemical reactions within the body They include vitamins A, B complex, C, D, E, and K. Most vitamins are chemical substances that the body does not manufacture, so you must obtain them through your diet. Vitamins are not a source of energy.

Minerals

Minerals are elements obtained from foods that combine in many ways to form structures of the body (for example, calcium in bones) and regulate body processes (for example, iron in red blood cells transports oxygen). Other minerals are magnesium, phosphorous, sodium, potassium, chromium, and zinc. Minerals do not provide energy

Water

Water is an essential substance that makes up about 60 to 75 percent of your weight. Water stabilizes body temperature, carries nutrients to and waste away from cells, and is needed for cells to function. Water does not provide energy

A GAME PLAN FOR GOOD NUTRITION

Dear friends,
Last Friday I have got permit from NANCY CLARK, MS, RD to publish some of the articles of her famous "SPORTS NUTRITION" course. From today I'll be posting some parts of her lessons. Enjoy!
NIKALE1 A'ka ALEX

Food is one of life's pleasures. Food is also important for fueling your body and investing in your overall health. As an active person, you may want to eat well but you struggle with juggling food and good nutrition with your busy schedule of work and workouts, family and friends. Students, parents, businesspeople, and athletes alike repeat-edly express their frustrations with trying to eat high quality diets. "I know what I should eat," they tell me. "I just don’t do it." Although they take time to exercise, they don’t always make time, or know how, to eat right.

One basic trick to winning with nutrition is to prevent yourself from getting too hungry. Hunger depletes the energy you need to choose the foods that both support your sports program and enhance your health.

This course is dedicated to teaching you many tricks so you can easily enjoy an optimal sports diet. In this chapter, you’ll learn how to design your personal good nutrition game plan, regardless of a busy lifestyle.
Whether you are a fitness exerciser or an Olympic athlete, you can nourish yourself with wholesome foods, even if you are eating on the run.
Keep reading!