The Importance of Keeping a Schedule

Written by Maria Di Iorio, RD, CD

Even though you may not be on campus anymore, it is important to keep a routine! Holding yourself accountable will allow you to continue to male progress in your academic and performance goals even if you are now doing so in an alternative environment.

• Go to bed and wake up around the same time every day.

• Avoid having breakfast at 12 or 1 pm. Wake up earlier to get breakfast in!

• Have 3 balanced meals each day with 2-3 snacks per day or 6 smaller meals, depending on what works best for you and your fueling goals.

• It is still important to eat every 3-4 hrs! This will help you fuel your at-home workouts and complete your online classes. 

Example Fueling Schedule:

• 8:30 am- Wake Up!

• 9 am- Eat a balanced breakfast (grain + protein + color + fluids)

• 12:00 pm- Eat a balanced lunch (grain + protein + color + fluid)

• 3:00 pm- Have a balanced snack (grain + protein)

• 6:00 pm- Eat a balanced dinner (grain + protein + color + fluid)

• 10:00 pm- Optional bedtime snack (grain + protein)

Contact your team’s Sports Dietitian if you would like assistance creating a personal fueling schedule!

Energy Expenditure & Staying in Energy Balance ​

GOAL: If “energy in” or “energy out” is greater than the other you could experience unwanted weight gain or weight loss, particularly muscle mass loss.

​How to stay in “Energy Balance”?

​ Evaluate your energy expenditure: What are your activities of daily living NOW? Are you walking around campus all day? Sitting at home on the couch watching Netflix all day? A mixture of sitting to do homework and getting up to do a workout?

What type of physical activity you are doing NOW, the intensity, and for how long each day? If you’re having trouble truly evaluating, reach out to your performance team (Dietitian, Strength Coach, or Athletic Trainer)​ for help! 

Ask yourself: Are my activities of daily living (ADL) AND physical activity, intensity, and duration less than, equal to, or more than what I was doing before campus closed?

[ADL: Activities of daily living example: walking around campus for practice/classes versus staying home to complete online classwork.]

​If it is LESS:

Consider adjusting portion sizes to help reduce “energy in” (food intake).

It is important that you KEEP FUELING but are more mindful in what and how much you eat. Structure your plates to look like the “Easy Training Day” Athletes Plate.

1. Focus more on eating fruits and veggies, this will help fill you up!

Note: During this time, your fruits and veggies may look different - frozen or canned instead of fresh. ALL are great options and provide valuable vitamins, minerals, and fiber.

2. Fruits and veggies are an excellent snack choice!

Sliced apples with 1-2 tbsp of peanut butter Baby carrots with ¼ cup of hummus Sliced strawberries with a drizzle of chocolate syrup

3. Keep the portion of protein the same, to help maintain muscle mass! ​It is important to eat a protein filled food item at least every 4 hours. This will make sure your muscles always have fuel present to utilize.

• 1 pouch nuts (Any type of nut. All are packed with awesome minerals!)

• 8 oz. Greek yogurt

• ​2-3 slices of deli meat

4. Adjust the amount of grains down.

If it is the SAME: ​Continue fueling like you normally would!

If it is MORE or you are working with your team dietitian to GAIN WEIGHT:

​Consider increasing “energy in” (food intake). Think of the “Hard Training Day” Athletes Plate.

1. Focus more on carbohydrate intake to provide sufficient energy for increased activity and added calories.

2. Keep the portion of protein the same, to help maintain muscle mass!

3. Adjust the amount of fruits and veggies down.​​

​4. ​Utilize calorie dense liquids (like smoothies) to pack in nutrients without feeling overstuffed with larger volumes of food.

Images utilized from: Bing Search Balance Scale Bing Search Athletes Plate Citations: ​Doyle, A. Dunford, M. Nutrition for Sport and Exercise. Third Edition. Stamford, CT: Cengage Learning; 2015.