Nutrition and the Dancer

Dancers, like all other athletics, require the proper nutrients to sustain energy for optimum performance. Improper nutrition has long-term effects on our bodies, so why not seize the moment to properly maintain the bodies we currently live in? Choosing to eat incorrectly for the activities we participate in is like choosing the incorrect shoe size for our feet – the long-term effects are devastating and remain with us for the rest of our lives.

Breakfast Ideas:
• Whole-wheat (multi-grain) toast w/a teaspoon soft margarine
• Cantaloupe
• 1 cup sliced Strawberries, cantaloupe, peach
• 1 cup Blueberries
• Orange
• Raisin Bran cereal w/skim milk (you can add extra raisins)
• Toasted bagel w/a tablespoon whipped cream cheese
• ½ ruby red grapefruit (no sugar added)
• All-Bran cereal w/skim milk and ½ cup sliced banana
• 100% Fruit Juice (NOT Fruit Beverage)
• Tomato Juice or V-8 Juice
• Soft-boiled egg
• Honey-bran muffin
• Fruit Yogurt
• Low-fat Cottage Cheese w/fruit
• Poached Eggs w/toast and 1 teaspoon soft margarine
• Oatmeal, with or without fruit
• One large, scrambled egg
• 2-egg cheese omelet, easy on the cheese

Lunch Ideas:
• Shrimp or Crab or Tuna or Chicken salad sandwich on whole-wheat (multi-grain) bread Hints: Put apple in your Tuna or Chicken salad. Use Light Mayonnaise. Add lots of chopped garlic, celery and onion.
Go easy on the salt.
• Any raw vegetable
• Fruits
• Cheese Sticks
• Cottage Cheese w/fruit
• Peanut butter and jelly sandwich on whole-wheat (multi-grain) bread
• Chicken-noodle soup
• Clam Chowder w/two bread sticks
• Green Salad: Lettuce, tomato, cucumber, carrots, garbanzo beans, kidney
beans w/1 tablespoon Italian dressing
• Meat and Cheese sandwich w/lettuce, tomato, light mayonnaise mustard and dill pickle
• Chef Salad – Hint: Don’t pour your dressing on the salad. Dip your fork into a container holding two tablespoons of light salad dressing.

Dinner Ideas:
• Poached or Baked Chicken (no skin)
• Poached or Baked Fish
• Steamed Rice
• Zucchini (or other squash) sautéed in olive oil, garlic and herbs
• Steamed Broccoli, cabbage, green beans, asparagus spears, etc.
• Small Baked Potato w/non-fat sour cream and butter
• ½ to 1 cup of spaghetti with sauce and grated cheese
• Shrimp Creole w/rice and dinner roll
• 4-oz. sirloin steak, broiled

Dessert or Snacks
• Frozen Yogurt, Frozen Juice Bars or Sherbet INSTEAD of Ice Cream !
• 2 cups Popcorn, NO butter
• ½ cup fruit

Measurements Guideline:
• 4 oz meat: Fish 4x week, Chicken 2x week, Pork 1x week, Beef 1-2x month
• ½ cup of vegetables: 4-6 servings daily
• 1 cup of fruit: 4-6 servings daily
• ½ cup of rice or noodles: 1 serving daily
• 8 oz of fruit juice: 3-4 servings daily
• 1 tablespoon of sour cream: optional
• 1 teaspoon or 1 pat of butter: optional
• 1 tablespoon of salad dressing: optional
• Salt (sodium) sparingly: optional
• 16-32 oz of WATER EVERY DAY

Thoughts:
• Keep your food intake to a healthy minimum.
• Eat a well-rounded, balanced variety of foods.
• Keep exercise and physical activity a part of your “diet”.
• If you ate more at breakfast, lunch or dinner, don’t snack between your meals and don’t have a dessert.
• What you eat each day must be burned off with your daily activity or it will be stored as fat.
• It’s OK to eat out at restaurants. Choose your meal wisely and take home what you can’t eat. Opt out of the dessert unless you plan for it !