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 GET
THE NUTRITION EDGE
How to Look Healthy, Fit and Strong and Outlast Anyone on
the Dance Floor.
Dancers are athletes too. So why is it most dancers do not train
like athletes? Most athletes have a strength and conditioning program.
The smart ones even have a good nutritional strategy.
What about dancers? Do you have a strength and conditioning program?
Do you find yourself sitting around when the DJ or band is playing
one of your favorite songs because you’re too darn tired?
With all the dancing you do, have you ever wondered why your body
is getting more flabby--instead of lean, firm and strong?
Did you know that engaging in hours of intense physical activity
without the proper nutrition could put you at a higher risk for
getting a stroke or a heart attack? And finally, would you like
to look great, while having the energy to outlast anyone on the
dance floor? Read on, I’ll share with you some simple nutritional
strategies for staying healthy, getting lean and dancing for hours
without getting tired.
Why weight training?
I have traveled all over the world and have met many dancers. However,
no matter where I go, most dancers seem to have two things in common.
The majority of dancers I’ve met very rarely engage in weight
training and most have very poor nutritional habits. These are two
very dangerous combinations.
First of all, weight training not only helps to develop lean muscle
tissue, it also helps to build strong bones and to strengthen your
ligaments. Your body takes an incredible beating every time you
go out dancing for 2-3 hours. But you’re not only beating
up your body, you’re also putting a lot of stress on your
ligaments and other attachments.
Without proper weight training, it is much easier for you to pull,
strain or sprain these ligaments. Which could end up taking you
out of commission for a very long time (Click
here for a sample weight training workout).
The Right Macronutrient/Micronutrient Balance
To understand performance nutrition you must first understand the
nutrient make-up of food and how each nutrient contributes to the
energy production cycle. All foods are made up of macronutrients
and micronutrients.
Macronutrients are carbohydrates, proteins and fats. Micronutrients
are the vitamins, minerals, enzymes and other known and unknown
food chemicals. Both food groups are essential to peak performance.
Dancers need to have a diet that is high in complex carbohydrates
and contains moderate amounts of protein and fat. Your diet should
also contain a wide multi-colored variety of fresh fruits and vegetables––these
are the best sources of vitamins, minerals, enzymes and other important
food chemicals.
Keep in mind that the various colors of fruits and vegetables
represent a different group of micronutrients. And they all work
synergistically together, so eat your colors.
The role of carbohydrates, proteins and fats in athletic
performance
Carbohydrates in the body are broken down into sugar molecules that
are then stored in your muscles and liver as glycogen. The body’s
preferred fuel for endurance sports is muscle glycogen.
Dancing is an endurance sport. If muscle glycogen is used up faster
than it is replaced, your glycogen stores become depleted. Glycogen
depletion leads to fatigue and the inability to maintain a high
level of intensity during training and competition.
To prevent this from happening, the endurance athlete needs to
get about 60-70% of his/her daily total calories from complex carbohydrates.
The best sources of carbohydrates are whole grains--––
such as whole wheat breads, cereals, and pasta––legumes
(beans and peas), and of course fruits and vegetables.
To figure out how many grams of carbohydrates you should be consuming
each day, multiply your weight in pounds by 3.2. In my new book,
Simply DELicious, I outlined a step
by step process for developing your own nutrition program.
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