How to Buy Healthy Foods for Young Athletes

Everyone needs to eat a balanced meal, but your young athlete might have different nutritional needs than your other children. Feeding your athlete the right menu can help optimize his performance and keep him healthy in the process. Making the right choices at the grocery store will help you be prepared so you can grab the right foods and hit the road for the big game.

Instructions

Difficulty: Easy

1. Determine what your athlete needs. Different sports require different diets. Talk to your doctor about your child's nutritional needs during sports. Some sports emphasize weight, but you should not encourage your child to lose weight without first getting advice from your physician.
2. Prepare before you hit the store. The United States Department of Agriculture has a Food Pyramid, which is a guideline of what should be included in a healthy diet. You can customize this pyramid for your young athlete to see the types of foods he needs.
3. Choose brightly-colored produce. These are usually packed with vitamins and minerals.
4. Visit the dairy aisle. Calcium is extremely important for your young athlete. Calcium rich foods like milk, yogurt and cheese are must haves from the grocery store.
5. Look for iron rich foods. Meats, eggs, broccoli and green leafy vegetables are all a good natural source of iron.
6. Stock up on healthy carbohydrates. These are used as fuel for your young athlete's body. Look for whole grains that are high in fiber.
7. Keep a lot of liquids on hand. You should buy a variety of liquids to help keep your child hydrated when he's on and off the field.
8. Buy what your athlete craves, if it's healthy. In general, our bodies let us know when we're deficient by allowing us to have cravings. If your child is craving water, you might want to stock up on bottled water. Or maybe he's craving peanut butter crackers. Then, you know to keep that on hand. Listen to your child's body and keep that in mind when you're at the store.
9. Skip sports marketing. Your young athlete doesn't need sports drinks, energy bars or gels. They can get these vital nutrients through a healthy diet.