So I will be featured on the student corner for SCAN (Sports Cardiovascular Wellness and Nutrition) website regarding my sports nutrition program- The Change-Up program. I am very excited and thought I should post the interview with one of my favorite sports dietitians, Cynthia Sass, giving me advice for it.
Me: What professional teams have you worked with or are working with? How are they different?
CS: I currently work with the New York Rangers NHL team and the Tampa Bay Rays MLB team. Previously I worked with the Philadelphia Phillies from 2007-2009. In my work the differences primarily lie in the goals of the team and how nutrition can play a role, but the primary goals for most professional athletes include optimal performance and recovery as well as injury prevention.
Me: What goal do most MLB players want to achieve when working with a dietitian?
CS: I can’t generalize but I can say that most of the athletes I’ve worked with one-on-one are interesting in using nutrition to optimize performance and recovery and prevent injuries.
Me: What is one thing that you think every young baseball player should know about their diet?
CS: Don’t underestimate how important it is. Even if you are genetically blessed and train hard nutrition is a very large piece of the puzzle. The phrase “You are what you eat” is absolutely true – nutrients from food are literally the foundation for the structure, function, and integrity of your tissues, from your immune system to your muscles to your bone…. Your body is continually regenerating and repairing itself, and how healthy and strong those new cells are, and how well you can repair existing cells is directly determined by your diet, because food provides the raw materials. A junk food filled diet low on nutrients doesn’t give your body much to work with (I always say it’s like constructing a house with cardboard and tape instead of bricks and mortar). But a well balanced, well timed, nutrient rich eating plan can help you build cells that are stronger, less susceptible to injury, and heal quicker. When you really think about the power of nutrition, it’s just phenomenal.
Me: How does a baseball players diet enhance or impair their game?
CS: What you eat before a game determines the amount and type of fuel available to your brain, nervous system and muscles during the game. Nutrition has the potential (good or bad, depending on what you eat) to impact concentration, hand eye coordination, strength and power, reaction time and circulation – all key aspects of this sport.
Me: What does a typical baseball players meal look like for:
CS: It depends on the athlete – male or female, height, frame size, muscle mass, the position he or she plays, training program, injury status, age, etc. There is no one size fits all.
Me: If you could encourage the baseball team I am working with to do one thing to better their game, what would it be?
CS: First get enough sleep. That may sound odd coming from a sports nutritionist, but there’s more and more research about how critical sleep is to performance, both mentally and physically, as well as how it impacts immunity and how it impacts hormones, which can ultimately affect appetite and body composition. In addition to making sleep a priority focus on the quality of your diet. You should be getting a minimum of 5 cups (a cup is about the size of a baseball) of fruits and vegetables every single day, preferably 2 as fruit, 3 as vegetables. Choose whole grains rather than refined grains, like brown rice over white and oatmeal instead of sugary cereal, opt for lean proteins like grilled chicken breast and fish over fatty or processed meats, choose plant based fats like an oil based vinaigrette over a creamy salad dressing and limit or avoid processed and fried foods. I see a lot of athletes who disregard quality and feel as if they can get away with eating fast food, soda, candy, etc. because they burn a lot of calories, but even athletes who perform well and are lean could be performing better and optimizing the health of their cells by eating healthfully. Eventually eating poorly catches up to athletes (a run down immune system, a nagging injury that won’t heal, fatigue, etc.) because the bottom line is you just can’t heal and repair cells adequately if the raw materials needed to do so don’t show up for work.
Me: In your opinion, what is the definition of an athlete?
CS: I think there are probably many definitions – perhaps each of us has our own personal definition, but I do believe there is an inner athlete in everyone, because our bodies are meant to move.
Me: What is your advice to the parents of the players I am working with as to how they can help their children?
CS: Be open to change and remember that good nutrition is just as important a tool as training and practice, if not more important.
Me: What advise would you give the baseball team I am working with before pursuing a career in collegiate athletics?
CS: My advice would be to start connecting the dots between how you take care of your body and how you want it to perform. Tune in and notice how you feel when you eat well and get enough sleep compared to when you don’t. Many of the professional athletes I work with tell me they wish they had known about nutrition and started good habits when they were in high school. You have a head start!
*Special thanks to Cynthia Sass for her words of wisdom and support throughout my program!
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