NFL nutritionist's recommendations for staying healthy and getting into shape

Whether you are an NFL fan or not, everyone knows that NFL players are in shape.   Many teams now have a dietitian/nutritionist coaching them on good nutrition.  In the nutrition class I taught, I showed a video of an NFL team being consulted on eating to win with nutritionist/dietitian Leslie Bonci.  In the video, an NFL player noted how he ate 3 chicken breasts and 8 egg whites for breakfast. Bonci showed the team members that protein is important but so are other foods like fruits and veggies.  Recently, MSN has a great article on 3 simple principles to follow to get in shape and stay healthy for life, according to an NFL nutritionist ,  Mike Minnis.   Sounds easy.  What are these 3 principles?

 Principle 1:  Maintain a healthy weight by understanding energy balance

Nutritionist Minnis says understanding energy balance means: the balance of the calories you take in versus the calories you burn up. 

Take in more calories than you burn = not just weight gain but other issues as well.  “Eating too much can lead to visceral fat (stomach fat), that internal fat that has been shown to lead to metabolic dysfunction and a whole cascade of issues…” 

Take in too few calories and you can “lose muscle mass, be fatigued, and have increased risk of injury “. 

Focus on the right priorities.  Forget the organic foods, taking lots of supplements, artificial ingredients in foods, focus first on “whether you’re eating the right amount for your body and activity levels”. 

He notes, “If someone’s calorie budget is 2,000 calories a day and they are eating 2,500 calories a day, it does not matter if they are only eating grilled chicken, broccoli, and brown rice.  They will gain body fat.” 

On the other hand, there are athletes burning up huge amounts of calories per day and then losing weight, they don’t want to lose because they are burning up more calories than they are taking in. 

Principle 2: “Eat more protein, even if you are not an athlete”

Almost every male student in my class was focused on eating more protein.  They did not focus on the quality of protein nor did many understand that just eating more protein will not build more muscle.  Athletes do need high quality protein in their diet but they also need many other nutrients and exercise to build muscle.

Even those who are not athletes should focus not only on the amount of protein in their day, but focus on eating some high-quality protein at each meal. 

“People have a misconception that they don’t have to have much protein because they’re not working out (or they’re not working out as hard), or people get older and they think they don’t need much protein anymore, which is literally the opposite of what’s true,” Minnis said. 

But I do not want to put on muscle.  Eating enough high-quality protein helps you maintain the muscle you have and you do not want to lose muscle mass.  As people age, they begin to lose muscle and gain more fat.  To help prevent this, one wants to have enough high-quality protein in their diet.  (See:  Are you getting too much or too little protein? )  

Principle 3:  Eat enough fiber

Many students in my classes thought they were eating a “healthy diet”.  Almost no student could say how much fiber they needed each day and most had no idea what their fiber intake was.  Then they analyzed how much fiber they were getting each day.  Most were surprised at how little fiber they were taking in versus what they needed.  Not surprising as the American Society for Nutrition found that a large majority of us, 95%, have diets low in fiber. 

Are you a good weight with a good percentage of muscle mass and low body fat?  Great, but you still need to be concerned about how much fiber you are eating.  As Minnis notes, “if you’re not paying attention to other factors, such as your fiber intake, you may not be particularly healthy.”  

Did you know that fiber is the food for those healthy probiotics in your yogurt?  Those good bacteria in yogurt and in your gut thrive on fiber in your diet. 

The Mayo Clinic lists many benefits of a high-fiber diet:

•            Normalizes bowel movements
•  Helps maintain bowel health
•  Lowers cholesterol levels
•  Helps control blood sugar levels
•  Aids in achieving a healthy weight
•  Helps you live longer

How much fiber do you need each day? (See:  A power nutrient your diet may be lacking )  

The newest Dietary Guidelines (2020-2025) recommends:

• 25 g fiber/day for females 
• 38 g fiber/day for males

Unfortunately, most American diets are well below that amount ranging from only 16-19 grams of fiber a day.

Start reading packages and looking up the fiber content of the foods you eat and aim for “14 grams of fiber for every 1,000 calories” you eat. 

Many Americans are low in fiber because they not only are eating processed foods but many are focused on ultra-processed foods.  These foods pack on the calories, fat, salt, added sugar and promote weight gain. 

Conclusion:  A few years ago, I was reading an article about the importance of protein at each meal.  Lunch and dinner were no problem but I was not getting much protein at breakfast.  Then I started making my oatmeal with a cup of cow’s milk instead of water.  A great way to add some high-quality protein to my day.  My husband also had a low protein breakfast so he added a cup of Greek yogurt mixed with fruit to his morning.  As noted in a previous blog, years ago my husband found out his cholesterol was too high.  Rather than start on drugs he told the doctor he would try diet and exercise first.  We both began to add more fiber to our day.  It is not easy taking in 25 grams of fiber for a lady or 38 grams of fiber for a guy.  We worked on it slowly as adding too much fiber all at once can lead to “bubble gut” as my daughter calls it.  My husband did get his fiber intake up, added in more exercise and got his cholesterol level within normal limits.  Read some labels this week and see how much fiber is in the bread you eat, the cereal, the pasta.  We started cooking spaghetti noodles with some regular noodles and some whole grain spaghetti noodles to add more fiber into the meal.  What are some ways you can add more fiber to your day?

Sources:  Leslie Bonci , 3 simple principles to follow to get in shape and stay healthy for life, according to an NFL nutritionist , visceral fat , losing weight , Are you getting too much or too little protein? , American Society for Nutrition , Mayo Clinic , A power nutrient your diet may be lacking , recommends  Images:  high quality protein , Fiber , Energy Balance