Sports snacks that won't slow kids down

[Slipper]

My daughter is a cheerleader for the youth football league. We live in a small area so there were not many girls participating. The football league decided that her cheer team would cheer for the middle and upper football games (which are back to back).

 

Last night was our first time to cheer in this fashion. We arrived at 5:45 for the game that started at 6:30. She cheered non-stop until 10:30. During the second game, the coach let them have a 15 minute break to eat a snack.

 

My daughter has celiac disease and cannot eat from the concession stand. I need suggestions on snacks to send that won't make her feel sluggish or sick. She's small so she's usually on top of the pyramid (jumping down with spotters) and turning flips.

 

The best I can think of is a banana and gatorade. (She went through a gatorade and nearly two water bottles last night).

 

Any thoughts?

[Mrs Mungo]

We usually do fruit and cheese or peanut butter.

[Slipper]

We usually do fruit and cheese or peanut butter.

 

Thanks, I'm not sure why I didn't think of cheese. That would work out well with a banana.

[Momof3littles]

Lara bar?

 

Small amount of low sugar trail mix, or just a handful of plain almonds?

[Slipper]

Lara bar?

 

Small amount of low sugar trail mix, or just a handful of plain almonds?

 

Thanks, she loves nuts and almonds especially.

[Mommyfaithe]

My swimmers would bring protien shakes, nuts, fruit, and protien bars I made at home....not the sugary junk they call power bars:tongue_smilie:

 

Orange juice and a protien snack was good too. I never could understand how some kids ate candy bars and hot dogs....blech! How were their muscles supposed to repair without any nutrition? Seeing all that going on encouraged my dd to become a dietician....lol.

[Katy]

Snickers?

 

A sandwich brought from home in corn tortillas or gluten free bread? Or a lettuce roll up with gluten free deli meat and cheese (make sure it's gluten free, many are contaminated with modified food starch).

 

A salad made with a diced apple, raisins, chopped celery, and dressed with a mixture of vanilla yogurt and a spoonful of peanut butter? (this was the Weight Watcher's Waldorf salad recipe in the early 80's, my mom used to make it for lunches and we love it).

[magic]

My boys are cross country and long distance track runners. I have found that they like little snacks to refuel after a race, but not much if they have another race that day. Some of their favorites are:

 

sliced apples and grapes with pb or caramel

clementine and nuts

pretzels or sliced peppers and hummus

handful of homemade trail mix- nuts, dried fruit, coconut, etc

fruit smoothie and protein bar

and always a gatorade

 

Most of their meets are 2+ hours from home and they cannot leave the meet area. I send a variety for them since I never know what they will want to refuel with.

[Ferdie]

My dd runs CC so she needs protein between races. She drinks chocolate milk instead of Gatorade, (the recovery kind has 20 grams protein), hard boiled egg whites, or soy beans, and some fruit.

 

Her coach likes Supreme protein bars because they are high in protein and low in sugar. I get them at Walmart and cut them in half.

 

http://www.supremeprotein.com/products.html

[Pawz4me]

My son's cross country coaches recommend fruit, granola bars, yogurt, cheese, pretzels -- things like that. They won't let their runners touch Gatorade. Only water.

[Hikin' Mama]

My son runs cross country and track long distance and also cannot eat gluten. He takes Lara bars, Tiger Milk bars, GF bagels, apples with peanut butter, and water. He doesn't do Gatorade at all, but drinks chocolate milk after he's done running.

 

P.S. He doesn't eat all those things at once. Those are just some of his pre-race fueling choices.

[LaxMom]

Lara bar?

 

Small amount of low sugar trail mix, or just a handful of plain almonds?

 

That's what I was thinking, too. I make Protein Powder Balls from the DAMY Health website for between game snacks during lacrosse season. She has larabar recipes, too.

[busymama7]

My son's cross country coaches recommend fruit, granola bars, yogurt, cheese, pretzels -- things like that. They won't let their runners touch Gatorade. Only water.

 

What is the reasoning behind banning Gatorade? I am trying to figure this all out with my son because he is also a runner but fainted from dehydration last week and both dr and coach encouraged me to lift Gatorade ban :-)

[Ferdie]

What is the reasoning behind banning Gatorade? I am trying to figure this all out with my son because he is also a runner but fainted from dehydration last week and both dr and coach encouraged me to lift Gatorade ban :-)

 

Not sure why the ban, but our CC coach says there are different types of Gatorade. He only recommends Gatorade G2 for recovery because it is lower in sugar, but has electrolytes. My dd doesn't like the taste and prefers Refuel chocolate milk.

 

Throughout the day, he has them drinking water, lots of water, like 120oz each day. The amount of water will vary with each athlete, but one test is to check the color of urine. It should be clear to pale yellow. If it is yellow or darker, drink more water during day. If your son doesn't like the taste of water, then I would try Mio drops for flavoring or let him do Gatorade. Just make sure you avoid soda and anything with caffine because that will dehydrate him.

 

So sorry about your son. Hope he is feeling better.

Edited August 26, 2012 by Ferdie

[Slipper]

Thanks for all the suggestions. I had been wondering about the gatorade ban as well. :) I plan to send one gatorade and the rest water.

[Pawz4me]

What is the reasoning behind banning Gatorade? I am trying to figure this all out with my son because he is also a runner but fainted from dehydration last week and both dr and coach encouraged me to lift Gatorade ban :-)

 

DS's coaches say it's too sugary and doesn't hydrate any better than plain old water.

[Slipper]

You would be amazed at the number of cheerleaders who bring Mountain Dew. :glare:

[busymama7]

Not sure why the ban, but our CC coach says there are different types of Gatorade. He only recommends Gatorade G2 for recovery because it is lower in sugar, but has electrolytes. My dd doesn't like the taste and prefers Refuel chocolate milk.

 

Throughout the day, he has them drinking water, lots of water, like 120oz each day. The amount of water will vary with each athlete, but one test is to check the color of urine. It should be clear to pale yellow. If it is yellow or darker, drink more water during day. If your son doesn't like the taste of water, then I would try Mio drops for flavoring or let him do Gatorade. Just make sure you avoid soda and anything with caffine because that will dehydrate him.

 

So sorry about your son. Hope he is feeling better.

 

He is fine, thank you! He does drink water no problem by I have avoid Gatorade due to high sugar and dye content(yes I know they have clear but around here it is a bit hard to find). We have been encouraging him to measure/track his water to make sure he is getting enough and I bought some Gatorade for after practice. I refuse to buy the G2 though due to artificial sweeteners. We are still looking for the best solution as I know there are healthier options. He loved recharge but it is very expensive.

[busymama7]

DS's coaches say it's too sugary and doesn't hydrate any better than plain old water.

 

See that's what I've always thought. I do realize that electrolyte imbalance is different than dehydration though. I just felt bad that my son got dehydrated and both of them suggested he drink sports drinks. He doesn't dislike water(we have never bought juice or soda for drinking, just occasional treats so he has drank nothing but water his whole life) but with the heat here he just wasn't drinking enough.

[brehon]

Gatorade is mostly used to replace electrolytes. I agree that it is sugary. Although it isn't likely to happen do be aware of drinking too much water which is actually harmful.