A Guilford athlete enters the cafeteria in Founders. He or she sees the juicy cheeseburger in one area and the lush green salad bar in another area. Who knew this would be the time of big life decisions? A balanced meal usually includes all the food groups which involve a meat or protein, grains, vegetables, fruit, dairy products (or substitutes), and fat.

“Definitely try to get everything on your plate,” first-year cross-country and track runner Travis Robinson said. “Go back up to the buffet if you feel like you missed something.”

An athlete who goes to the cafeteria can scan each area, making sure he or she fills their plate with the required portions of each food group. This involves a colorful plate that gives your body the nutrition it needs.

“You can eat healthy in the cafeteria,” Assistant Professor and Coordinator for Sports Medicine Craig Eilbacher said. “Know what to eat and don’t overindulge.”

Eilbacher will share basic information on nutrition to his students, but is the first to refer someone to a nutrition specialist if they have any detailed questions.

“I stand up in my class and hold up a nutrition book,” Eilbacher said. “I tell my students that this is somebody’s profession. ”

The basic foundation of nutrition is learning about the food groups and the choices within those categories that give your body energy. Experimenting with this process can open your taste buds to new healthy options.

Time management is another part of not slipping into unhealthy eating habits. Athletes’ days are a juggling act of class, homework, practice and sometimes a job. Junior Paulette Wyatt played tennis and basketball and knows how hard time management can be.

“At the beginning of the semester, you’re getting used to your schedule,” Wyatt said. “You’re eating while studying. Going out for practice, I didn’t have time to eat well. I’d sometimes grab a piece of candy, or if I could a banana.”

Wyatt lived on-campus and did not have the time to sit down and eat; an athlete that lives off-campus also may not have time to cook fresh and healthy meals three times a day. Preparation is the key word in this situation. Brett Ray a certified personal trainer, owner and fitness director of Studio Fitness in Greensboro, N.C., has some advice for people that do not feel like they have the time to cook.

“Cook protein, grains, and vegetables at home and freeze them,” Ray said. “Clean out your refrigerator of bad foods. This makes it easy to grab the foods you made and not reach for fast foods.”

Carbohydrates are a type of food that is avoided by some athletes or is used to excess by others.

According to Edinformatics, an online article about health and fitness education, carbohydrates “are sugars and starches that are found in foods such as breads, fruits, vegetables and pasta. They are broken down and used by your muscles for energy.”

The article also says that the athletes that avoid carbohydrates are depriving their bodies of the necessary source important for restoring and energizing the body.

“Carbs are not the enemy,” head cross country coach Heidi Pinkerton said. “They’re your main source of fuel. After workouts you need lots of carbohydrates and protein. This restores your glycogen levels and restores your muscles.”

The fear of carbohydrates started with the introduction of the Atkins Diet and the South Beach Diet in early 2000.

“When the South Beach Diet was popular, my family was trying it,” said Eilbacher. “I thought, I’m going to try this (and) I was miserable because I was lethargic and had no energy.”

The other end of the carbohydrate imbalance is a technique used by some athletes that involves loading up on carbohydrates before an event.

“I was encouraged to eat spaghetti and lots of cheese the day before my matches or games,” Ray said.

The key fact missed by some athletes is that this process is more effective if started several days before a game or match.
If an athlete is interested in carbo-loading in the correct manner, Eilbacher recommends the Mayo Clinic article “The Carbohydrate-loading Diet.” The article educates athletes on the correct step-by-step way to use carbohydrates.

According to the Mayo Clinic, this process “involves increasing the amount of carbohydrates you eat and decreasing your activity several days before an athletic event to help maximize energy and boost your athletic performance.”

However, this process is not recommended for all athletes because it could involve side effects such as digestive discomfort before a work-out. This discomfort can be caused by unusual caloric intake.

Caloric intake is similar to water intake because no one quantity fits all; for the athlete that burns ‘x’ many calories daily, it is necessary to keep up caloric intake to match that.

The amount of calories a person needs to ingest per day varies.