A few weeks ago I wrote about what foods we should be putting into our body’s for optimal results from a recovery and health standpoint. But how do we know how much of these foods to eat?
First you need to know what your goal is this offseason! Once you have your goal you will need to alter these to match your goal!
Back to portions! Each Macronutrients has a portion guide, and we make it easy by using our hand as the guide! For Protein, you want to use your palm as your guide. This equated to about 3-4 oz of meat on your plate. For Carbohydrates you want to use a cupped handful as your guide to put on your plate. For Fats you want to use your thumbs as your guide to put on your plate and lastly for Vegetables you want to use your fist as your guide to put on your plate!
Now we know what part of the hand you are using to portion out each macronutrient. Now you have to decide how many portions you need to reach your goals! Let’s start with Protein! Since we are all athletes here, we need a significant more amount of protein than the average human. My suggestion is to start with 2 palms worth of protein at a minimum of 3-4 meals per day! This is pivotal to optimal recovery from your workouts and practices especially if your goal is to get stronger and hit the ball further next season!
Next is carbohydrates, again as athletes we need more carbs than the average human. Carbs are energy so I suggest eating 1-2 cupped handfuls at least 3-4 meals per day. This will fuel your workouts and golf practices throughout the week. If you are feeling low on energy these are your secret for optimal performance in practice and workouts.
Next is fats. You want to eat 1-2 thumbs worth at 3 meals per day. Fats, again are our secondary energy, keeps us satiated for longer and have a lot to do with brain and hormone health.
Lastly we have Vegetables and I even like to add fruits to this as well. You want at least 2 fist worth of fruits and veggies on your plate at your 3-4 meals per day! This will help keep your vitamins and minerals, or micronutrient, levels high to maintain the body’s energy levels.
Now this is just an initial guide of how much to eat of each macronutrient! We can always get way deeper into this depending on how intense your goals are! If you need any help with this make sure you come see us in the gym and we can answer any questions you may have about it! Or if you want extra coaching on the nutrition side, I am always available to get you going on a nutritional guideline plan to help you reach your goals this offseason!
