Winner, Winner, Chicken Dinner!

The bus is cold from the over productive A/C unit and smells of cleats that have been
cooking in the Georgia heat since the soccer team played its last game. The LaGrange Panthers
womens volleyball team is on their way to compete with one of the best teams in the
conference: Covenant. The coach puts down a tray of chicken nuggets from Chick-fil-A, passing
throughout the bus as girls fill their plates. Leaving everybody with happy and heavy bellies,
everybody lets their food settle while taking a powernap before the biggest game of the season.
The bus rolls into the Covenant College parking lot. Each player grabs her bag and makes
their way into the gym to get all their gear on and minds ready to play. The team spends the 60
minutes warming up until it is finally game time. They begin to play, taking the first set with a
big lead, but only to struggle the next few. The team is headed back to LaGrange College with a
loss after playing a full game of five sets. Exhaustion is taking over everybodys bodies. The
only thing keeping the girls awake is the need for a big and nourishing meal. Each member gave
all their energy and fight during the game that we have nothing left to give. In this time where
they find themselves sitting on the bus conflicted wanting so badly to get back to LaGrange in
their beds, and the longing for a meal that satisfies the soul. Usually the exhaustion takes
importance as time is involved in this factor; leading to the inevitable fast food meal.
Katie Daniel, an Assistant Athletic Director at LaGrange College, was interviewed on the
eating habits of college athletes. Prior to her position at the college, she played on the LaGrange
womens soccer team all 4-years she attended at the school. Along with being an Assistant
Athletic Director, Daniel is the trainer for the womens volleyball team. She is available to the
players for anything involving the care of their body, whether that be supplying the team with

treatment before practice, making sure the girls have full water bottles and are hydrated, or
wrapping their ankles, wrists, or knees
Collegiate athletic programs need to focus more on the diets on their athletes on the road.
It is said by athletes of LaGrange College, that they agree that teams have bad eating habits while
traveling. Athletes need to be sure to be sure to load their bodies with the proper nutrients, and
replenish those nutrients lost after competition. When asked her opinion on teams stopping for
meals at fast food restaurants, Daniel replied, Fast food restaurants lack the proper foods needed
for nourishing an athletes body. Sure you can come up with a somewhat beneficial meal, but not
what your body deserves before or after competing.
Having had a poor pre-game meal, players are anxious to order whatever looks appealing
to them, not even considering if the food will be beneficial to their body or not. In Michael
Pollans article, Escape from the Western Diet, he discusses the beliefs of Gyorgy Scrinis, a
nutritionist. Scrinis believes the most important factor of food is not the content, but how the
food was processed. Pollan added a portion of Scrinis book, saying, Whole foods and industrial
foods are the only two food groups Id consider including in any useful food pyramid. As
players order, they lack the thought process of Scrinis. Athletes typically jump to order the
typical meal of chicken tenders or burgers, instead of thinking about how it will replenish their
bodies with what was lost from competing. When discussing the Pollan article and the Scrinis
quote with Daniel, she agreed with the points mentioned. She said, The choice that student
athletes make during travel could be better. Players shouldnt be ordering large chocolate shakes
to wash down the large #1 meal they ordered from Chik-fil-A. She is right. By ordering a fried
chicken sandwich for example, some might believe theyre getting the protein their bodies need

from the chicken. In reality however, the chicken is overpowered by the oil and breading that is
perfectly crisped and soaked into that once healthy chicken breast.
Although it is up to the athletes as to what they order, coaches should have a say in what
their players are consuming. While discussing a coachs authority in what players are eating,
Daniel brought up an interesting point. She said, Because each sport has its different levels and
needs, coaches know them better than anyone. They are able to help guide and suggest what
athletes will need. Daniels opinion here brought attention to one question: as a coach, wouldnt
you want your players to consume a meal that is beneficial to their bodies and performance
levels? When asked for an example of a beneficial post-game meal, Daniel replied, Anything
that can provide your body with protein and carbohydrates. Pasta with a lean meat is a very good
example, providing you with the carbs and protein your body is craving.
The pre-game meal is important to prepare the body for the competition you will be
putting your body up against. A pre-game meal serves to provide the body with the energy that
will soon be burnt off while playing and the results of pushing your muscles to work hard all day.
In a recent study by CSU Extension, a healthy pre-game meal should consist of two ounces of
lean meats, 1/2 cup of fruits, and 2 servings of bread or some sort of carbohydrate (Davis). So
how come coaches allow players to eat fried chicken and french-fries before competitions? And
for breakfasts, allowing them to eat heavy meals like chicken biscuits, or bagels which are sugar
and will have no nutrients to give you energy? The coaches seem as if they do not even care what
their team is putting into their bodies. Even before the volleyball teams game today, for example,
they had a Chick-fil-A catering plate full of fried nuggets being passed around the bus an hour
and a half before they were supposed to be on the court. For pregame meals, Daniel said, It
depends on the sport, but in general you want to make sure that you are filling your body with a

good meal that is not too greasy. As a coach, wouldnt you want your players to consume a meal
that is beneficial to their bodies and performance levels? Daniel was asked if she thought the
food the players eat before a game has any effect on their performance. She then replied, I know
from my experience that the greasier my pre-game meal was, the worse I felt out on the field.
She suggested that a proper meal instead of fried chicken nuggets could be sandwiches, granola,
and fruit. By providing your body with the nutrients she suggested, players bodies would be able
to withstand longer completion and allow themselves to play at the best and highest level of
performance.
There are several ways a collegiate athletic team can improve the way they eat while
traveling. First solution would be to supply players with either a packed-lunch/snack from
campus. By bringing them yourself, you can pack whatever you prefer and are guaranteed to not
be faced with the unhealthy fast food. These lunches/snacks could include anything from what
Daniel suggested (sandwiches, fruit, and granola), to string cheese with whole grain crackers and
grapes.
The second option is instead of spending the time and money on fast food for a postgame meal, invest in ordering a catering size portion of food from a nearby restaurant. After the
competition is complete, you can have a pre-ordered dish ready for the players. For example,
athletes have pointed out coaches ordering off of an Olive Garden catering menu, including a
pasta (either with chicken or lean beef), a salad, and breadsticks. By ordering the team meals
such as Olive Garden, you are not only providing your players with all the options to nourish
their bodies, but also saving time that would typically be spent waiting on orders to complete at
any fast food restaurant.

The third option to healthy eating on the road is self-awareness of the players. Being an
athlete, you must know how to nourish your body and what you need to do to keep yourself
healthy. By self-awareness, this is implying that instead of jumping to order the fried chicken
sandwich, make that decision for yourself to order a grilled chicken sandwich. Instead of
ordering a side of fries, get a fruit-cup as your side. Choose a healthier alternative. When selfawareness was brought up with Daniel, she completely agreed. In her years as an underclassman,
she discussed how she would order what she wanted to eat, not a meal that would benefit her
body. Daniel then mentioned, The better I understood my level and needs of competition, I
changed what I ate. Going along with how she grew to change her eating habits, she said, An
example would be at Arbys. Instead of a #1 with large fries, I would chose a roasted turkey
sandwich with no mayo.
Lets have a new visual now. The bus is cold from the over-productive A/C and smells of
the boys football pads from the game Saturday. The team is traveling several hours to face the
best team in the conference, which they had lost to last time. Coach pulls out a pregame meal of
ham sandwiches, apples, bananas, and granola bars. The players walk into the gym feeling light
and energized ready to get revenge on the team. After a great team warm-up full of the team
cheering, the girls are ready to conquer the team they had once feared. First set is done: they
Panthers win. Second set: another win. Third set comes around and the LaGrange womens
volleyball team takes the win! Coach praises the team on the energy maintained through the
game, as they proceed to board the bus back to LaGrange. After a long day of playing, everybody
is starving and ready for some good food. The coach has dishes of pasta with chicken and side
salads ready for the players. After a successful day, the team finally gets to refuel their bodies.

With stuffed tummies and a W in conference under their belt, the team heads back to LaGrange
ready to conquer their next team.

Work Cited

Clifford, J., and K. Maloney. "Nutrition for the Athlete." Http://extenstion.colostate.edu.

Colorado State University Extension, July 2015. Web. 18 Oct. 2015.
Daniel, Katie. Personal Interview. 17 Oct 2015.
Davis, Elena M., M.S., R.D. "Nutrition of Athletes." Nutrition Reviews 7.10 (1949): 315-17.
Assets.ngin.com. Web. 19 Oct. 2015.
Pollan, Michael. "Escape from the Western Diet." Ed. Gerald Graff and Cathy Birkenstein. "They
Say/ I Say": The Moves That Matter in Academic Writing 3rd (2014): 4207-27. Print.