Parents Summer schedule and eating

[nycgymmom]

@GYGYMMOM Chips aren't gyms choices or mine even. It is what other parents pack, I am guilty of this also but most of the time we just wait till after to eat.

 

[skschlag]

Ok I am trying to imagine my kid's faces if I gave them salmon for a snack. Do you mean fresh baked salmon or like in a can?

Honey Smoked Salmon. Link Removed

It is one of his favorite snacks!

I agree. These kids need fuel. They burn through it so fast. And they need good fuel. It is tough, but needed. On days he doesn't have snack, he will eat some blueberries and cheese or something quick.

 

[gymmomx2]

Gym snack is one place where I relax my nutritional standards a little...I often pack a yogurt drink as a way to provide calories quickly. That's my "insurance" policy because I know they will drink it. Then I round out the snack with other items like fruit, veggies and hummus, seaweed, cheese and crackers. Those items don't always get eaten and sometimes get traded for other more desirable things LOL.

In the summer their snack time is actually lunch so I pack a full meal, usually last night's leftovers with a salad...and a yogurt drink. They have a microwave to reheat food.

 

[Deleted member 18037]

Ok I am trying to imagine my kid's faces if I gave them salmon for a snack. Do you mean fresh baked salmon or like in a can?

I was envisioning lox.

My kid eats salmon, but not for a snack lol

 

[GYM0M]

I add about 1/4 of a cup of apple juice to my DD's water bottle. It gives her just a few extra calories and helps her esp in the mornings. Our gym does 2-3.5 hour practices with water breaks. 2 hour break in between to eat lunch and rest. Yes, my 11 year old takes a nap every day, even on non-gym days. She's like a toddler if she doesn't get her sleep out! Haha

 

[nycgymmom]

I add about 1/4 of a cup of apple juice to my DD's water bottle. It gives her just a few extra calories and helps her esp in the mornings. Our gym does 2-3.5 hour practices with water breaks. 2 hour break in between to eat lunch and rest. Yes, my 11 year old takes a nap every day, even on non-gym days. She's like a toddler if she doesn't get her sleep out! Haha

I plan on doing the apple juice in drink starting this summer plus pinch of salt. I wish my 9 yr old would nap she is miss cranky pants if she doesn't lol

 

[Mish]

4 hour practices with no real snack break. Water break between rotations and the kids put a quick snack into their mouths. Summer practice has 2 five hour days and 2 four hour days. I forget if there is a longer break on the 5 hr days.

 

[3rd_time_around]

Sometimes you just need to get something into them......................
Sometimes depending on the child chips are a choice............................... Potatoes, a carb.....................

At our gym, no nuts allowed due to kids with allergies.......... So that pretty much rules out many a protein/granola bar.................

While chips are not my choice I know too many kids with all kinds of allergies and other issues. So if a kid eats chips, have at it.

Sorry, I just can't go "oh, ok." There is never justification for chips as a good snack. There are many options for power bars or granola-type bars that do not contain nuts. And sliced fruit is always a good option. I have been around the gym a long time, and gymnasts need real food, not just "food." They don't really need a snack break unless they go over 5 hours or have blood sugar issues. Eat before and after, and stay hydrated during. A quick bite of a power food or super food goes a long way, too. But chips---no.

 

[3rd_time_around]

@GYGYMMOM Chips aren't gyms choices or mine even. It is what other parents pack, I am guilty of this also but most of the time we just wait till after to eat.

I get that. I do. Some parents don't understand how important good, real food is for a gymnast's strength and stamina. I've been guilty of bad snacks myself. The best gymnasts in our gym--the ones that are elite and level 10--have very good eating habits. And it's a major point of instruction from our owners to eat healthy ALL the time, even snacks and beverages.

 

[GYM0M]

I get that. I do. Some parents don't understand how important good, real food is for a gymnast's strength and stamina. I've been guilty of bad snacks myself. The best gymnasts in our gym--the ones that are elite and level 10--have very good eating habits. And it's a major point of instruction from our owners to eat healthy ALL the time, even snacks and beverages.

I agree with you for the most part, but in my experience, there are times when ANY food is better than NO food. My DD does have better workouts when she eats meals with nutritional value, but there are times when she needs something quick in the middle of even a 3 hr practice. Most of the quick snacks you are describing, while they ARE in fact more nutritional and better for the gymnast, they often consist of whole grains (complex carbs) and minimal amounts of sugars (simple carbs). Complex carbs are harder to break down so they provide energy for longer periods of time, but there is some lag time before they are converted to energy. It's during this time that simple carbs are used for the body's energy. When my DD needs a 'quick' pick me up, I usually choose what I call 'healthy' junk, lol! Meaning I choose something that will provide a short sugar rush and sustainable energy, like a Payday bar. So what I really feel like is that the gymnast (or parents) need to learn what their bodies are saying and snack accordingly. Meals should have more thought put into them.

 

[Mish]

Just want to add that I can't imagine not needing a snack for 5 hr practice. I don't ever go that long without eating something, and I'm not working as hard as my DD.

 

[Deleted member 18037]

Sorry, I just can't go "oh, ok." There is never justification for chips as a good snack. But chips---no.

Yeah That was one of those things that I knew all about before I became a parent too. And then met other kids and parents. Especially kids with huge issues surrounding food and trauma. Sometimes chips it is. I realize one snack/meal/day does not make the whole, good or bad.

 

[OzZee]

Honey Smoked Salmon. Link Removed

It is one of his favorite snacks!

I agree. These kids need fuel. They burn through it so fast. And they need good fuel. It is tough, but needed. On days he doesn't have snack, he will eat some blueberries and cheese or something quick.

Can I send my kids over to you?
Salmon is a treat here due to cost not a snack.
(And if the answer is yes just let me know which one/s and they are on the plane . )

Re original question - my kids have trained in various gyms with different policies.
They take a snack - small or cut up fruit (grapes, strawberry, raspberry etc) and crackers, muesli bar bites etc.
If they aren't allowed to eat my kids still manage to eat their snacks if they need them

 

[skschlag]

Can I send my kids over to you?
Salmon is a treat here due to cost not a snack.
(And if the answer is yes just let me know which one/s and they are on the plane . )

Re original question - my kids have trained in various gyms with different policies.
They take a snack - small or cut up fruit (grapes, strawberry, raspberry etc) and crackers, muesli bar bites etc.
If they aren't allowed to eat my kids still manage to eat their snacks if they need them

Send them over! We are trying to figure out how to do the honey smoked part ourselves. We have a smoker, we have salmon. Shoud be easy

 

[Azgymmiemom]

The boys just snack when they need to. It's never been a problem or an issue. The coaches can't work with hungry, cranky kids. The coaches make time for water breaks bc I'm not sure the kids would do it without a reminder.
My dd works out 5 hrs in the summer, and they, too, don't get a dedicated break, but graze throughout the workout. She usually brings things easy to grab just a quick bite. Sliced apples, cheese cubes and oatmeal square cereal bites are her favorites. But she's also taken jerky, frozen grapes and crackers, too. She's not picky. Her coaches have never, ever denied the kids food or time to eat if they need it. I think this strategy works well for her and sustains her energy for the whole workout. I will say, I wake her up a little early so she can eat a good breakfast before she goes to the gym. Usually it's a small burrito with eggs, cheese, ham and green onions and some fruit.

 

[duyetanh]

Yeah That was one of those things that I knew all about before I became a parent too. And then met other kids and parents. Especially kids with huge issues surrounding food and trauma. Sometimes chips it is. I realize one snack/meal/day does not make the whole, good or bad.

We have two kids with hospital type allergies at our gym. Yes there are bars that have no nuts, but even they are sometimes made in factories that make things with nuts. Its just not worth the risk for us. Mine sucks down yogurt pouches, applesauce puches, gatorade bites, and jerky. And has fruit in her water bottle.

 

[VanessaJV]

On the days she goes 7.5 hrs she has a 10 minute snack and a half hour lunch. She can get water throughout. On days she does 5 hours, she has 10 minute snack and water throughout.

 

[M2Abi]

My dd has 4 hour practices. They get a 10-15 min. break to eat something and are encouraged to have their water bottles with them at all times to drink as needed. My son has 2.5- 3 hour practices. Again gets a short break for something to eat and can have water anytime.

 

[crystallions]

DD has 4 hour practices this summer, which is much longer than she is used to. They are given 3 short water breaks, no time for snack. At first she would get really bad headaches. I kept telling her to drink more water, but what seemed to really make a difference was when she started grabbing a tiny snack during those water breaks. (a handful of grapes, or a couple of bites of a food bar etc. - or maybe it was a combination of drinking more + grabbing a couple of bites of food.) The last couple of weeks she hasn't had any headaches, so that is a relief. She usually eats something right before we leave for gymnastics, and then again in the car on the way home.

 

[MILgymFAM]

This week (thank goodness it's just a week) my YDD has super long days. She gets up and eats breakfast at 8. She has ballet from 9am until 1:45. She packed grapes and a piece of toast for her 10 min break. Then she goes right to rhythmic practice from 2-4:30. She'll stay at the gym and eat (I'm packing her apples and chicken), and then she has t&t practice from 5-9. Then she'll eat again after practice.

I asked her to stop rhythmic for a break the middle but since we are moving Friday and it is her last week she wants to max it out. She said she has 3,000 miles to eat/sleep whenever she needs to. Ha.