Nutrition for Dancers

Nutrition for dancers, runners, swimmers and other athletes must incorporate enough essential fats. Essential fats are so called because they are essential for the body to survive, and the body cannot produce them effectively from substances we consume but must come from direct food sources.

Essential fats contribute to increasing energy, performance and stamina. They prevent muscle breakdown, help in the build up of muscles and also assist in fast recovery from fatigue. They speed up healing during injury, and also help cell growth.

These unsaturated fats include omega 3 and omega 6 fatty acids.
Good sources are flax seeds, leafy vegetables, salmon, Herring, mackerel, sardines, tuna, halibut, oysters, shell fish. These types of fats help increase energy, performance and stamina. They prevent muscle breakdown, help in build up of muscles and also assist in fast recovery from fatigue. They speed up healing during injury, and also help cell growth.

Foods high in bad fats, as part of a diet to provide nutrition for dancers and swimmers are not recommended, as these food groups just pull blood into the stomach to help digest it, which may cause cramp, discomfort and at times muscle fatigue. They stay long in the stomach and as such eventually will slow one down during exercise.

Isotonic or sports drinks are a great addition when focusing on nutrition for dancers and swimmers. You can take the drink for exercises that last more than a few hours, as these help the body to re-inject new readily absorbable carbohydrates in the form of glycogen and sugars into the system. Avoid caffeine and chocolate or sugary snacks during training and events. Caffeine and teas increase urine production and can cause dehydration.

Foods and snacks high in sugar give a ‘surge’ of false energy, but are not recommended as they leave the body feeling ‘flat’ after the sugar high, causing the body to feel sluggish and tired.

It is very important to eat about two to four hours before dancing events or athletic events, to ensure all food is absorbed by the body and stored as glycogen, proteins and other essential vitamins and minerals ready to go into use during exercise.

It ensures that the athlete is ‘light’ and is not dancing, running or swimming on heavy stomach which could weigh an athlete down. Important to remember also is that a full stomach causes nausea, stomach upsets, distracting pains, and in some cases even vomiting.

Addressing requirements of nutrition for dancers, swimmers and runners must take into account that a diet high in carbohydrates a night before an exercise or event is great. This is because the body uses it up and stores enough reserve of energy and proteins needed for the dancing events or exercise.

Nutrition for dancers and runners must also incorporate a good breakfast cereal essentially on the day of any dancing event or athlete event, as this is a good source of nutrition which the body absorbs throughout the day, and uses up during the event.

Rice, pasta, spaghetti are all great foods to consume before events because they are high in carbohydrates and also very easy to digest. The wheat versions of these are even better. These foods should be aided with fruits and vegetable salads as these help to digest them better, so the nutrients are more readily absorbed for quick use.

Proteins are vital because they are the building blocks for the body. Mostly stored in the muscles, they help transport nutrients in the body and are also useful in enzyme production. Proteins also help optimise carbohydrate absorption.

Since proteins are not readily stored in the body, regular intake of proteins is vital to the athlete. Examples of protein nutrition for dancers and other athletes include fish, chicken, turkey, beef, milk, yoghurt, cheese, eggs.