A Boxer's Diet

Boxing is a very technical and energy demanding sport, where the right training, boxing equipment and the right food are key to success. As a Boxer you are prepared like finely tuned machines your physical fitness and technical skills have to be at their peak in order to be able to win a fight.

A good diet is crucial for every person to stay healthy, its even more important in boxing as it allows you to be able to keep up with demands of training. A boxer should aim to maintain muscle strength and energy in the ring, and avoid feeling tired part way through the fight. You need enough energy to undertake fights and intensive training sessions while staying in your weight class, so the power and muscle needed has to be conditioned to your weight restrictions.

The main key food groups that you have to eat or include in your diet are carbohydrates, proteins and fats.

Carbohydrates:

• A boxer needs to maintain high levels of energy throughout the 15 round matches so you have to eat carbohydrates which will provide the correct strength, weight and power ratio. 
• Athletes rely on carbohydrates as a source of essential fuel since they are stored in the muscles which are used for physical activity and these have to be continuously replaced. 
• Examples of healthy carbohydrates are beans, oatmeal, yams, fruits and vegetables.  You need to eat a wide range of fruit and vegetable to get the right vitamins. The more colourful the better!  

Proteins:

• Proteins are important for almost every part of the body like; helping repair torn muscles and tissue after workouts, increasing muscle growth and acts as an energy source. 
• Sources of healthy proteins are eggs, tuna, peanut butter, fish, lean poultry and most types of beans. But you have to remember that you are not trying to be a body builder, don’t take too much protein like a whole jar of peanut butter a day. 

Fats:

• You also need a certain amount of fat, about 15% of your daily diet to maintain important internal bodily functions. 
• But they need to be healthy fats like Omega-3 and monounsaturated fats found in seafood, walnuts and olives, they help keep the body working properly, reduces cholesterol and provides the body with vitamin e. 
• Fat may take long to breakdown but once its transferred to your muscles through the blood stream it provides long lasting energy which is vital for boxing. 

And not forgetting water. Drink plenty of water, stay away from alcohol and fizzy drinks as they contain simple carbohydrates that are not easy to breakdown due to their quantity. Boxing is a strenuous sport where you need water to keep you energised and hydrated, it also increases metabolism and flushes toxins out of the body.

Before a fight you need to ensure that you eat food that will provide energy, digested easily and maintain blood sugar levels during a fight, also drink 400-600ml of water 2or 3 hours before a fight. After a fight you need to eat food that will help the body recover, you should eat food high in protein and carbs and low fibre. The combination of carbohydrates and protein help with the repair of muscle tissue speeding up the recovery.

Generally, thing to avoid are eating carbs before bed as your body will not burn them and avoid sugary foods that may potentially reduce your body performance. Food high in fat and sugar only provide short lasting energy which will result in you feeling tired and putting on unwanted weight. One thing to remember is there is no magic diet, supplement pills and lab created substances are not a natural source of nutrients, and they do not provide you with the same level of benefit that real food provides.

Stick to real food to provide you with the right nutrients to be able to move quickly like a fish and fly like a chicken.