Why I need a dietician in my life and you do, too

​Yes, I know… this is a blog about running and research and recovery written by an athletic trainer/massage therapist… why are we discussing a dietician…  For starters, next to hydration and sleep, fuel is the next best thing for recovery (note, I almost never say food in this context because it is not about food so much as replacing energy that is used for exercise). 
 
While giving my semesterly lecture to undergrad students about healthy sleep, I also give out quite a few crossovers from the information they hear from our director of sports nutrition, Coach Annie, the dietician.  I try not to get too far out of my element in the fuel topics because I know just enough to be informed but not enough to be an expert, which is where I need the dietician in my life to be that expert and help me bridge the gap. There is so much information out there, but with her help I can sort through the relevant and give another voice to this important information.
 
Let’s start with college students and the dreaded freshman 15 (or sophomore 20) and how sleep deprivation comes into play with weight gain.  College students have some of the most upside down schedules, especially student athletes with early classes or practices and late night social activities. Besides the fact that no one makes good food choices late at night (I mean really, who makes a salad or a bowl of fruit at midnight! Cold pizza, anyone? Chocolate cake? Cookies?), being sleep deprived alters the hunger hormones leaving us more likely to snack. Sleep deprivation is also associated with mood changes such as depression and with risk taking behaviors, which may or may not include poor choices in the fueling department.  So if you are struggling with stress and weight gain, take a look at your sleeping habits and make sure you aren’t sleeping like a college student.
 
So where does my dietician come in? Some strategies to employ if someone is having trouble sleeping were quite familiar to the student athletes in the audience listening to my talk. Keeping to a regular meal schedule and having small meals throughout the day is a fueling strategy that they hear over and over from Coach Annie to help them perform, and it can help them sleep better as well.  Having a snack of protein and carbohydrates, like cereal and milk, just before bed can help promote sleep.  Protein before bed can also help to build muscle from the inside and recover from the training, so the bedtime snack is pulling double duty for the recovering athlete.
 
And what about the fuel choices that college student athletes are making? Doing some research for a grant, I was able to delve into some interesting facts about how the eating habits in our early adult lives influences the decisions we make later on in life. Those who are more engaged in preparing meals at home during their late teens and early twenties are more likely to engage in meal preparation later in life, less likely to eat fast food and more likely to have the appropriate number of servings of fruits and vegetables. Education in nutrition also leads to better eating habits.  Those lucky enough to get sound bites from a registered dietician along with a display of appropriate food choices laid for the taking are presented with two of the tools to mold healthy eating habits in their young adult lives.  If the research is correct, this will lead them to healthier choices as they move to the next stage of their life.
 
And about the food choices laid out for the athletes by our dietician, they are backed by exercise and sports science.  I was talking with a football player one day about his exercise physiology class, what they were learning and how it applies to his sport and his future career as a coach. I started by asking him if he thought the strength and conditioning coach just blew his whistle or if there was an actual plan to what they were doing in their summer conditioning.  He couldn't decide, so I prompted, what if he told you to run 2 miles? He wouldn’t, was the quick response. I bet you run at least 2 miles, I reminded him. “Yeah, but not all at once, we do quick sprints.” And what fuel are you using… the light bulb turned on for a second. “Carbs, which is what Coach Annie tells us to eat before practice.” (I would love to revel in my triumph on this one, but about a week later he couldn’t remember if it was carbs or fat he was burning, but he got there eventually)
 
We can’t be the experts on everything so we need to listen to the experts around us and take in what they say.  Make refueling choices based on the science and not on what is popular in the media. While not everyone can keep a registered dietician around for those dietetic emergencies, it is nice for me to have one to impart her wisdom and make sure I always have access to fruit snacks and animal crackers for my runs.