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Diet Plan to Lose Weight for a Sport

Athletes need to be at their physical best to achieve optimum performance in sports. To do this, weight management, using a healthy diet along with good workout program, should be followed.

  1. Avoid Crash Diets

    • It is important for athletes to maintain their ideal weight, especially during offseason, to come prepared when it is gametime. It is especially important to avoid crash diets, as this technique may backfire and result in lean muscle weight loss and lack of sufficient energy when it is most needed during your athletic activities. Your focus should be on losing excess body fat the proper way.

    Losing Weight

    • Athletes know the importance of physical activity in fitness and in losing weight. If you realize you have gained excess pounds, then the solution is as simple as combining a healthy diet with exercise.
      According to the University of Michigan Health System, exercising 3 to 6 times per week at 60 percent to 80 percent of maximum heart rate is advisable. The length per workout session should be 30 to 60 minutes each. Your goal should be to burn at least 300 calories per workout.
      The equivalent of this in physical activities would be about a 1-mile swim, 12-mile bicycle ride or a 3-mile jog. See the resources link below for a chart with more examples of calories burned for different types of exercise.
      When it comes to following a healthy diet, the goal is to reduce fat intake. You should eat enough complex carbohydrates, as you will need it to fuel your body for exercise. Rather than focusing on lowering your calorie intake, focus on making healthier food choices, as this will be more beneficial in the long run to maintain a healthy weight and keep excess body fat out.

    Maintaining Weight

    • Calorie needs are dependent on individualized factors such as activity level, your age, sex, and weight. The best way to maintain your weight is to make your calorie consumption equal to the calories you burn. This means that if you consume 3,000 calories a day, then you must burn all 3,000 calories by exercising to keep your weight the same.
      Your body weight will change when there is a difference between calories intake and calories expended.

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