Cowboys Nutritionist Speaks

[Picksix]

And also, why do they care about what the coaches eat? Other than when Kiffin was here and needing regular fiber.

Good nutrition is important for everyone, not just athletes. Besides, think about all the hours and effort the coaches put in. That takes a lot of energy. In their case, it's more mental, but the brain works better on good nutrition just like the body. Plus, they're always working, and they probably don't sleep a lot. Good nutrition is vital, so when they're still up looking at film at 1:00 in the morning, or they're up and in the office at 4:00 or 5:00, they're thinking clearly. As someone who has a bit of experience working in pro sports, all the work, stress, travel, etc., it takes a lot out of you.

 

[CCBoy]

I have to admit that the Cowboys Organization has some pretty smart women working for it.

 

[DandyDon52]

I'm always interested in this topic when it comes up. A couple of things. One: 'Fueling the Competition' is a dumb name for this article. Just because it's a phrase that has the word 'fuel' in it doesn't mean you can just use it when it means something else entirely.
Two, I heard Amy talk on the radio last offseason and I have to admit I'm surprised by some of the stuff they do. Peanut butter sandwiches at half time, for example. Not the worst thing to eat, but there are better post workout options. I've heard her talk in the past about the difficulty with keeping players hydrated and with enough electrolytes, for example. That seems like a fairly rudimentary problem that they ought to be able to solve for a professional sports team. I think she was only a part-time resource, anyway, which also surprises me. And everything she talks about sounds like it's revolves around body fat/weight. I would think an organization like the Cowboys would be doing full metabolic workups on every player on the active roster. It'd be the kind of endeavor that you'd think would require multiple full-time nutritionists on top of the chef and an app tied to the playbook iPad for tracking pre/post workout means and macronutrients and such.

And also, why do they care about what the coaches eat? Other than when Kiffin was here and needing regular fiber.

The other thing that I always think about with their nutrition plan was the truly poor job they did at training camp of stretching prior and post workouts. They looked like a high school team out there, with guys doing half-hearted hamstring stretches and such. Made me want to go over there and push on their torsos to help them get it right. This, during a season where we were losing guys to hamstrings left and right. The coaches and the trainers were just letting them get away with it.

yeah she doesnt sound like she knows anything but basic stuff, calories etc. Peanut butter ?? lol
And the trainers are not very good either.
But JG must be ok with all this?

 

[Toruk_Makto]

Well proper nutrition is pretty basic. The science has been extensively studied and has been generally well understood for a long time now. If you work out or are focused on eating well then this will all seem remedial. Also she is talking to a reporter for an Internet blog. I doubt she was going to go in depth.

And why are people poo pooing peanut butter sandwiches at halftime? The bread is for carbs which is the quick energy that athletes will rely upon. Also the peanut butter while a concentrated sources of calories and proteins itself.... Due to the higher fat levels it will also slow digestion and help sustain/preserve energy.

Again sometimes... actually often... simple is best.

 

[JBell]

When did he say that

It was a bad Bruce Carter only eats Mickey D's joke

 

[xwalker]

Well proper nutrition is pretty basic. The science has been extensively studied and has been generally well understood for a long time now. If you work out or are focused on eating well then this will all seem remedial. Also she is talking to a reporter for an Internet blog. I doubt she was going to go in depth.

And why are people poo pooing peanut butter sandwiches at halftime? The bread is for carbs which is the quick energy that athletes will rely upon. Also the peanut butter while a concentrated sources of calories and proteins itself.... Due to the higher fat levels it will also slow digestion and help sustain/preserve energy.

Again sometimes... actually often... simple is best.

While peanuts don't have a high percentage of carbs, the carbs that are in them are some of the lowest on the glycemic index. Simple sugar is high on the index and at the opposite end of the scale from the carbs in peanuts. Basically energy from pure sugar burns off quickly while carbs that are low on the index provide energy over the longest duration.

 

[Hoov]

I'm always interested in this topic when it comes up. A couple of things. One: 'Fueling the Competition' is a dumb name for this article. Just because it's a phrase that has the word 'fuel' in it doesn't mean you can just use it when it means something else entirely.
Two, I heard Amy talk on the radio last offseason and I have to admit I'm surprised by some of the stuff they do. Peanut butter sandwiches at half time, for example. Not the worst thing to eat, but there are better post workout options. I've heard her talk in the past about the difficulty with keeping players hydrated and with enough electrolytes, for example. That seems like a fairly rudimentary problem that they ought to be able to solve for a professional sports team. I think she was only a part-time resource, anyway, which also surprises me. And everything she talks about sounds like it's revolves around body fat/weight. I would think an organization like the Cowboys would be doing full metabolic workups on every player on the active roster. It'd be the kind of endeavor that you'd think would require multiple full-time nutritionists on top of the chef and an app tied to the playbook iPad for tracking pre/post workout means and macronutrients and such.

And also, why do they care about what the coaches eat? Other than when Kiffin was here and needing regular fiber.

The other thing that I always think about with their nutrition plan was the truly poor job they did at training camp of stretching prior and post workouts. They looked like a high school team out there, with guys doing half-hearted hamstring stretches and such. Made me want to go over there and push on their torsos to help them get it right. This, during a season where we were losing guys to hamstrings left and right. The coaches and the trainers were just letting them get away with it.

The peanut butter sandwiches are curious for a half time option. I'd like to hear why. You'd be getting something with some protein and healthy fat (assume they are using the non-hydrogenated PB). PB also has sodium and fairly good source for potassium so there's some electrolytes, plus the starch from the bread.

its easier to digest than some other options which is good since your going back out there to play.

Another thing is that you dont want to eat food that are going to give you the runs or cause some bloating or gas before or during a sporting event so that may be another factor.

Fruit and veggies seem like healthy options but all that fiber can be a problem during a sporting event. I know that bikers and runners have to be careful even the night/day before a race with that stuff.

 

[Toruk_Makto]

While peanuts don't have a high percentage of carbs, the carbs that are in them are some of the lowest on the glycemic index. Simple sugar is high on the index and at the opposite end of the scale from the carbs in peanuts. Basically energy from pure sugar burns off quickly while carbs that are low on the index provide energy over the longest duration.

I'm just very curious why people were going in on pb sandwiches. Is it because since they ate them as kids it can't be an appropriate mid game fuel source?

In reality the butter and bread combo from a macro (what do you want to be taking in at halftime) and micro scale (does pb sandwich provide this) are perfectly aligned.

Just a foot in mouth comments by a few folks.

 

[Idgit]

The peanut butter sandwiches are curious for a half time option. I'd like to hear why. You'd be getting something with some protein and healthy fat (assume they are using the non-hydrogenated PB). PB also has sodium and fairly good source for potassium so there's some electrolytes, plus the starch from the bread.

its easier to digest than some other options which is good since your going back out there to play.

Another thing is that you dont want to eat food that are going to give you the runs or cause some bloating or gas before or during a sporting event so that may be another factor.

Fruit and veggies seem like healthy options but all that fiber can be a problem during a sporting event. I know that bikers and runners have to be careful even the night/day before a race with that stuff.

Yeah. The peanut butter itself makes sense. Obviously, you're not going to load up on fiber and run out there. I think I was expecting something more on the order of what cycling teams do to load for energy with soluble protein gels and healthy fat and less like the sort of thing our wrestling team mom's do before a match. More than anything, though, it surprised me that they had a single part-time nutritionist in that capacity for 53-80 athletes. Not just for games and the like but for camp and for the long-haul of a ~19 game season.

 

[xwalker]

I'm just very curious why people were going in on pb sandwiches. Is it because since they ate them as kids it can't be an appropriate mid game fuel source?

In reality the butter and bread combo from a macro (what do you want to be taking in at halftime) and micro scale (does pb sandwich provide this) are perfectly aligned.

Just a foot in mouth comments by a few folks.

I envision a couple people as being the wimpy kid in school that had plans to become a muscle guy and get their revenge on the bullies. In the process, the believed everything in muscle and fitness and now think their m&f subscription made them experts on nutrition and working out.

 

[Hoov]

Yeah. The peanut butter itself makes sense. Obviously, you're not going to load up on fiber and run out there. I think I was expecting something more on the order of what cycling teams do to load for energy with soluble protein gels and healthy fat and less like the sort of thing our wrestling team mom's do before a match. More than anything, though, it surprised me that they had a single part-time nutritionist in that capacity for 53-80 athletes. Not just for games and the like but for camp and for the long-haul of a ~19 game season.

I know the dietitian that worked with the eagles for many years - dont know if she still does. But when she was working for the eagles she was also working with the flyers and sixers. And she was teaching a few college courses as well, so i think a lot of professional teams employ dietitians as a part time or contracted position.

From what she told me, there were heavy workloads at times and then times when there was not much to do.

Im a registered dietitian - i do contract work as a clinical dietitian in the medical field - so different issues/problems then with sports nutrition but the basic fundamentals dont change much. Once you have a form and system in place for individual assessments it doesnt take a lot of time to do a work up for calorie, protein and hydration needs. Then probably a diet history and food pref inquiry for each player to find what they like/dont like and find out about special needs/allergies etc and a personalized diet plan gets created.

Once you have that it may get tweaked here and there over the year if something is not working, but it seems like you would have a lot to do up front at the beginning of a year or for each new "client" but then not so much after that.

Though it seems like this dietitian also does a lot of menu planning, meal prep and so forth with the team throughout the year and that can get pretty involved. Though i'm betting that there are a lot of other staff members that carry out the work once the plan is in place. So after the initial set up it shouldnt require so much time for the dietitian as they probably find something that works well and just make minor adjustments thoughout the year or even from year to year.

 

[Idgit]

I know the dietitian that worked with the eagles for many years - dont know if she still does. But when she was working for the eagles she was also working with the flyers and sixers. And she was teaching a few college courses as well, so i think a lot of professional teams employ dietitians as a part time or contracted position.

From what she told me, there were heavy workloads at times and then times when there was not much to do.

Im a registered dietitian - i do contract work as a clinical dietitian in the medical field - so different issues/problems then with sports nutrition but the basic fundamentals dont change much. Once you have a form and system in place for individual assessments it doesnt take a lot of time to do a work up for calorie, protein and hydration needs. Then probably a diet history and food pref inquiry for each player to find what they like/dont like and find out about special needs/allergies etc and a personalized diet plan gets created.

Once you have that it may get tweaked here and there over the year if something is not working, but it seems like you would have a lot to do up front at the beginning of a year or for each new "client" but then not so much after that.

Though it seems like this dietitian also does a lot of menu planning, meal prep and so forth with the team throughout the year and that can get pretty involved. Though i'm betting that there are a lot of other staff members that carry out the work once the plan is in place. So after the initial set up it shouldnt require so much time for the dietitian as they probably find something that works well and just make minor adjustments thoughout the year or even from year to year.

That all makes sense. I know when Kelly came in, he redid the PHI nutrition program fairly significantly. They started making custom smoothies for each player and brought in a sleep program and the like.

I buy that the setup for the program is where all the work is, but I think I assumed that they'd tailor a diet for each player and that the maintenance of that diet and enforcing it would be the real challenge. With 53 guys, even if you're just meeting with them all for 20 mins every other week, you've still got a lot of work there. And that seems like a reasonable amount of oversight for something like sleep and nutrition if you want to keep guys muscle and fat percentages regular over the course of a 5-6 month period. Just weighing them and using those impedance machines and asking a few questions about their diet for that last two week span, for example, would take up about half her time in-season.

I do remember from the earlier interview she did that she also worked with other semi pro teams and other significant athletes. Don't remember who they were, but she was somebody in some demand locally. She must know what she's doing. But I was still surprised that the program didn't sound more rigorous. Had a hard time getting over the idea that they couldn't get Miles Austin to drink enough water for whatever reason, I think.

Anyway. I'm glad to hear that you're a registered dietician and not somebody who just reads Mens Health mags. I was worried.

 

[Hoov]

That all makes sense. I know when Kelly came in, he redid the PHI nutrition program fairly significantly. They started making custom smoothies for each player and brought in a sleep program and the like.

I buy that the setup for the program is where all the work is, but I think I assumed that they'd tailor a diet for each player and that the maintenance of that diet and enforcing it would be the real challenge. With 53 guys, even if you're just meeting with them all for 20 mins every other week, you've still got a lot of work there. And that seems like a reasonable amount of oversight for something like sleep and nutrition if you want to keep guys muscle and fat percentages regular over the course of a 5-6 month period. Just weighing them and using those impedance machines and asking a few questions about their diet for that last two week span, for example, would take up about half her time in-season.

I do remember from the earlier interview she did that she also worked with other semi pro teams and other significant athletes. Don't remember who they were, but she was somebody in some demand locally. She must know what she's doing. But I was still surprised that the program didn't sound more rigorous. Had a hard time getting over the idea that they couldn't get Miles Austin to drink enough water for whatever reason, I think.

Anyway. I'm glad to hear that you're a registered dietician and not somebody who just reads Mens Health mags. I was worried.

LOL. that was funny.

Enforcing a diet is a challenge - and i loathe that - i hate being looked at like the "food police".

I had a home visit case where a physician was paying me to go counsel his son 1 x week - the money was fine, but the kid just would not make the right changes (actually he was like 23 years old). He would snack all the time and if i could get him to stop eating hot dogs in between meals he would buy soft pretzels - when i got him to stop that he just go to some other snack and eat a lot of it. He just wanted to know what food would "Make" him lose weight and still be able to snack all days - so i just told his Dad i couldnt help anymore after several weeks.

So, I'm also a pretty liberal person as far as diets go because people generally wont follow a restrictive diet for long at all. So i teach people how to eat "better" so that they can make choices that are good for themselves. Most People dont like to eat the same thing every day and they dont always have the same thing in the house plus When you go out to a restaurant - the chances are you have to come off your diet because they wont offer necessarily what you try to follow.

so i want people to understand enough basics to be able to chose from different options where ever they are so they chose whats best to meet their goals - but everyones going to cheat here and there. Food is such a part of our social culture so there needs to be some leeway here and there to a diet if its going to be maintained throughout time.

I love cheeseburgers and will probably never give them up - but i just limit how often i eat them.

But i'm assuming that the teams dietitian is probably not meeting with the indivuals that frequently, unless they are seeking her out - its not really something to force on someone and most dietitians dont operate like that - though i have met a few that are just super crazy about food and unflexable in their thinking, its not really pleasant to be around those types.

 

[FuzzyLumpkins]

I'm getting the feeling gergory doesn't listen to well... didn't he say he had no idea how to eat healthy and still gain wieght? But yet he was in a 1 1/2 hour class on the subject and was given a list (personalized none-the-less) and I'm willing to bet he can go to talk to these ppl anytime he wants...

I'm extremely excited about him, but he seems a little lazy and very boneheaded...

He said after his very first practice that he hadn't eaten enough that day and that contributed to him being unable to finish . He hasn't had that problem since. That was like a week after he was drafted.

 

[AdamJT13]

Well proper nutrition is pretty basic. The science has been extensively studied and has been generally well understood for a long time now.

It might not apply to proper nutrition for pro athletes, but what is proper nutrition for most people -- such as what causes obesity and other health problems -- has been misunderstood (if not backward) for decades, even by doctors and dietitians. We can thank the food industry, the government and bad science for that.

 

[Hoov]

It might not apply to proper nutrition for pro athletes, but what is proper nutrition for most people -- such as what causes obesity and other health problems -- has been misunderstood (if not backward) for decades, even by doctors and dietitians. We can thank the food industry, the government and bad science for that.

yes, this is true. unfortunately there has been a lot of information regarding nutrition that has been pumped out there that later was found to be untrue. an obvious example is the whole idea that butter is bad - switch to margarine to lower cholesterol, and now you read that margarine and trans fatty acids are a big contributor to high cholesterol.

Eggs were said to be a problem and everyone started eating cereal, now it trurns out that eggs are not going to jack up your cholesterol even if eaten daily.

Part of the problem is that people take studies that dont have the propper controls and take a bit of information then make generalized claims to market certain products and steer consumers away from other products. Then the media floods the public with this information and it often turns out to be untrue.

There is still quite a bit to learn. I think of nutrition as a fairly young science in that it is only recently that the science of nutrition is really being explored in the way that it should be. In the past there have been too many assumptions and generalizations made without really controlling for other variables or possibilities, but it appears that that is changing now.

 

[Setackin]

He said after his very first practice that he hadn't eaten enough that day and that contributed to him being unable to finish . He hasn't had that problem since. That was like a week after he was drafted.

I'm talking about when he said something like "Im eating fast food everyday and pizza like 3 times a week... they want me to gain weight and that's how u do it"

 

[Bungarian]

I'm always interested in this topic when it comes up. A couple of things. One: 'Fueling the Competition' is a dumb name for this article. Just because it's a phrase that has the word 'fuel' in it doesn't mean you can just use it when it means something else entirely.
Two, I heard Amy talk on the radio last offseason and I have to admit I'm surprised by some of the stuff they do. Peanut butter sandwiches at half time, for example. Not the worst thing to eat, but there are better post workout options. I've heard her talk in the past about the difficulty with keeping players hydrated and with enough electrolytes, for example. That seems like a fairly rudimentary problem that they ought to be able to solve for a professional sports team. I think she was only a part-time resource, anyway, which also surprises me. And everything she talks about sounds like it's revolves around body fat/weight. I would think an organization like the Cowboys would be doing full metabolic workups on every player on the active roster. It'd be the kind of endeavor that you'd think would require multiple full-time nutritionists on top of the chef and an app tied to the playbook iPad for tracking pre/post workout means and macronutrients and such.

And also, why do they care about what the coaches eat? Other than when Kiffin was here and needing regular fiber.

The other thing that I always think about with their nutrition plan was the truly poor job they did at training camp of stretching prior and post workouts. They looked like a high school team out there, with guys doing half-hearted hamstring stretches and such. Made me want to go over there and push on their torsos to help them get it right. This, during a season where we were losing guys to hamstrings left and right. The coaches and the trainers were just letting them get away with it.

You know I read somewhere that stretching before a workout increases the chance of injuries.

 

[FuzzyLumpkins]

I'm talking about when he said something like "Im eating fast food everyday and pizza like 3 times a week... they want me to gain weight and that's how u do it"

Any calories I put in is good, they don't care what it is. I probably order pizza every other night. The important thing is I'm gaining weight. That's what they wanted.

He has been training nonstop for the past month. It looks like they had to teach him to eat enough to train at that intensity but he talked about it and it resolved itself. It certainly seems like he might struggle to boil water but he is right. Eating fast food will help him gain weight.

At this point it's intellectual triage. He's under Marinelli, Lett etcs thumb. I trust that Garrett and his staff know what they are doing.

 

[gmoney112]

You know I read somewhere that stretching before a workout increases the chance of injuries.

I believe what's referred to as "static stretching" has that effect, basically the prolonged holding of a stretch for like 30 secs etc. Dynamic stretching is supposed to be more beneficial. Basically the line of thinking is dynamic before, static after. And you should try and at least warm up your muscles before doing them.

However, some dudes like me, have to have a combination of both for certain body parts. If I don't incorporate a static stretch + dynamic movement for my hips, i'm probably not going to reach proper squat depth and end up tweaking a hip flexor or something at some point. And those are not cool.

I think it's pretty interesting we saw a lot less injuries last season after installation of the "ballet bars" or whatever they were. Getting younger players + instituting a solid stretch routine with all these heavy movements i'm sure they're doing was desperately needed. With advances in technology, we're getting some really cool info on the effects of different kinds of protocols in athletes. It's going to pay to be ahead of the curve, and we're lucky to have an owner that'll probably dish out for whatever he's told that we need.

He has been training nonstop for the past month. It looks like they had to teach him to eat enough to train at that intensity but he talked about it and it resolved itself. It certainly seems like he might struggle to boil water but he is right. Eating fast food will help him gain weight.

At this point it's intellectual triage. He's under Marinelli, Lett etcs thumb. I trust that Garrett and his staff know what they are doing.

Gregory is what, 22? And a professional football player. There's no telling how many calories these guys burn in a day. You ain't going to replace those calories with chicken breasts, that's for sure.

Besides, not even the coaching staff has any idea how his body is going to respond to any sort of diet at this point, and they probably won't know until 6 months - year have gone by.

The most important thing is a calorie excess so he can put on muscle and have fuel to expend during these offseason workouts. He's not going get "out of shape" at this point unless he has a reason to miss extensive training time. And to be honest, I really don't think he could even force himself to eat that many calories at this point to get him out of shape. Force feeding sucks.