Just as a car runs best with a full tank of gas, your body needs the right kind of “nutritional fuel”. A balance of carbohydrates, proteins, fats, minerals, vitamins, and water will give your body what it needs for peak performance.

Carbohydrates or “carbs” (found in pasta, bread, cereal, rice, potatoes, fruit, milk, yogurt, etc.) are especially important for athletes because they supply the body with glucose for energy. Extra glucose is stored in the muscles and liver as glycogen, your energy reserve. During short bursts of exercise such as sprinting, basketball, gymnastics, or soccer, your body relies on glycogen to keep your blood sugar levels stable and thus maintain your energy. If you don’t have enough glycogen, you may feel very tired or have difficulty sustaining the activity – effects that will, undoubtedly, impact your performance! During longer exercise, your body uses your glycogen stores first, next turning to fats stored in your body to fuel performance.

Fat is an important source of energy used to fuel longer exercise and endurance activities, such as hiking, cycling, and long-distance running. Eating a diet that is too low in dietary fat may decrease athletic performance and cause other health problems, such as deficiencies of certain vitamins which require fat to be absorbed.

Protein is needed for your body to build and repair muscles. Small amounts of protein may also be used for energy.

Vitamins and minerals are not sources of energy, but they have many important functions in the body. For example, vitamin D and calcium are needed for strong bones, and iron is needed for blood cells to carry oxygen throughout your body. Certain minerals, like potassium, calcium, and sodium are called electrolytes. They are important during exercise because they have an effect on the amount of water in your body and on how your muscles work. Athletes