What Diet Do Footballers Have to Stick to?

If you are looking for ideas for healthy food choices, then perhaps you might be inspired by footballers’ diets. Professional footballers have diets designed by experts to help them excel as athletes and meet their demanding training and playing schedules.

Would these diets work for you? Keep reading to find out more.

Variation is essential

Of course, not every professional footballer is eating the same food and it will vary between different positions, clubs and leagues – if you want to be the next Mohammed Salah, your diet is going to be vastly different from that of a League One or Two player.  A typical Premier League diet will look something like this:

Breakfast: Fruit, porridge, wholemeal bread with jam, fresh juice, yoghurt, cookie

Lunch: Grilled chicken or tuna, bagel, salad, low-fat milk, bran muffin, banana, nuts and raisins

Dinner: Pasta or rice, tomato sauce, lean beef mince, chicken or grilled fish, vegetables, ice cream and strawberries

And yes, some top football players are vegan.

Balance is Key

Balance is key for professional footballers as they require different food groups to ensure sufficient benefits, such as helping the body to recover after a match, providing energy for training/matches and making sure that the body is hydrated. This also means that their meals are centered around what activities they have each day.

Time of Year

Following on from this, the time of year is also a factor for professional footballers. During the offseason over the summer months, it is common to reduce intake as they are not as active and players may be able to enjoy treats that are limited during the season, such as alcohol.

As pre-season training starts, they will up their intake to keep up with energy output and be more strict with their diet to get their fitness up to speed.

Match Day

A meal on match day will be different from other days and generally involves more carbs so that players can store energy for more than 90 minutes.

Around 2-3 hours before kickoff, players will generally have a meal rich in carbohydrates, moderate protein, and low in fibre and fat to avoid bloating and stomach cramps. If a player is likely to play 90 minutes and use up a lot of energy, they will probably have a snack like a banana an hour before the match starts. After the match, high-quality protein is key to aiding recovery as well as rehydrating.

Professional footballers must stick to a strict diet, especially during the season, and this can make a huge difference to their performance levels.

Are you inspired by footballers’ diets?

Unless you are a professional athlete or are intending to pursue the same levels of activity as a professional footballer, it’s probably not the diet for most people. In fact, the levels of carbs and energy-boosting sugars in a typical top-level footballer’s diet would form a very poor option for most people, even those who are moderately active.

But nonetheless, it is important to remember that we are all different, and our lifestyles mean that our needs are different.

But as with professional footballers, do remember that variety is key to a healthy diet and that a plant-based diet can be suitable for anyone.