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6 Steps for a Healthy Off-Season Nutrition Plan
Step 4: Make a daily checklist for success
By targeting to eat some key foods and maintain good habits each day you are more likely to have a successful day, week and off-season. Place checklists in a place you will pass in front of often throughout the day. For instance, this 5-target checklist could be pinned to your refrigerator to remind you of the goals you have for the day ahead.
Step 5: Make meal plans
Meal plans can simply be lists of meals and snacks that you know you want to eat next week. Some people love planning out exactly what breakfast they will be eating on Wednesday and others like to keep their tastebuds guessing! Meal planning will help either way. Make a meal plan by listing all the foods and the meals you love to eat. Online recipe databases like the one from SOSCuisine are very helpful to get you inspired. There are many to choose from and selecting 2 to 6 to try next week will help you achieve your off-season goals. Here are a few exemples:
- Athlete Meatballs
- Peak Lasagna
- Les Canadiennes’ Shepherd’s Pie
- Butternut Squash, Chickpea and Zucchini Soup
- Vegetarian Wrap
Step 6: Track your goals
The final step in a good off-season nutrition program is to track your goals regularly. The amount of time between tracking depends on the goal. For instance, you can check your goal to improve your snap shot accuracy weekly. But a body composition goal would be better to check every 2 to 3 weeks depending on the technique used. By tracking your goals throughout the off-season you will be able to see if your hard work is getting you to the big goals you have set for yourself. So dig in, start your off-season plan, and I bet you will enjoy a wonderful return to the hockey season (ahead of the competition).
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Author
Pearle Nerenberg, MSc., R.D. is Canada's leading expert on hockey nutrition, and author of the book The Nutrition Edge for Hockey Performance. She co-founded and chairs the Hockey Nutrition Network, an international non-profit organization dedicated to linking hockey players with top sports dietitians who have an expertise in hockey nutrition.
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