FUELING YOUTH ATHLETES: NUTRITION ADVICE FOR PARENTS
Healthy Tips for Active Kids. It’s Not About the Vegetables.
Does getting dinner on the table every night feel impossible?
Do you stand in the grocery store feeling totally overwhelmed?
You’re not alone. For most parents, cooking dinner isn’t the hardest part — it’s the endless decision-making that happens beforehand. Between school, work, sports, and family commitments, our brains spin with questions:
- Will my kids actually eat this?
- Is there enough protein? Enough veggies?
- Is red meat good or bad?
- And wait… didn’t I just read that rice has arsenic?!
The worries go on and on and the mental overload is real.
Author Michael Pollan sums it up perfectly:
“The sheer novelty and glamor of the Western diet, with its 17 thousand new food products every year and the marketing power—32 billion dollars a year—used to sell us those products, has overwhelmed the force of tradition and left us where we now find ourselves: relying on science and journalism and government and marketing to help us decide what to eat.”
So why is feeding our kids so confusing?
- We obsess over nutrients instead of whole foods.
- The food industry spends billions to sell us ultra-processed snacks.
- We’ve lost touch with food traditions.
- Big, scary claims online get more clicks than common sense.
- And in what Pollan calls the American paradox: the more we worry about nutrition, the less healthy we seem to become.
But here’s the truth: food should not be this complicated.
My Story: From Low Fat Era to Indulgent Nourishment
I started running competitively in middle school, during the height of the low-fat diet craze. By college, I struggled with injuries, low bone density, and amenorrhea. Not one doctor suggested changing my diet. Instead, I was told to take the pill to get my period.
When I later moved to Switzerland, my diet changed drastically. The foods I had been taught to label as “indulgent” — butter, cheese, hearty bread, whole milk, rich meats — actually made me healthier and stronger. I was happier, had more energy, and I got my period naturally.
That experience inspired me to leave a career in marketing to help others escape harmful diet dogmas. I wrote the first cookbook for athletes that didn’t preach calorie counting or protein obsession, but instead celebrated hearty meals that leave you satisfied.
Ten years later, Olympian Shalane Flanagan and I have written three cookbooks, reached the New York Times bestseller list three times, and connected with thousands of families who remind us daily that this message still matters (now more so than ever with our teen athletes reading misleading messages online). Today, as a mom to two young athletes, ages 8 and 11, I see firsthand how important it is to fuel growing bodies well (and set a positive example).
What Growing Athletes Really Need
Here’s the thing: your hungry teen doesn’t need more broccoli. They need Indulgent Nourishment.
Of course, vegetables are essential. But kids’ bodies crave calorie-dense foods after long school days and sports practices — and that craving is biological.
Active kids need:
- Healthy Fats
For energy, hormone balance, and mental health.
Examples: butter, olive oil, avocado, nuts, seeds, eggs, full-fat dairy (cheese, milk, yogurt), dark meat chicken, grass-fed beef, salmon.
- Protein
For muscle repair, bone strength, and satiety.
Examples: meat, poultry, fish, dairy, eggs, beans, lentils, nuts, seeds.
- Carbs (Yes, carbs are cool!)
For energy — especially critical for active kids.
- Simple carbs → before practice or competition for quick energy.
- Complex carbs → after activity to replenish.
Examples: bread, potatoes, yams, pasta, rice, fruit (my kids love buttered pasta!).
- Micronutrients (Vitamins + Minerals)
Essential for growth and performance. Found in all whole, minimally processed foods like fruits, vegetables, whole grains, dairy, meats, legumes, nuts, and seeds.
- Iron
Especially important for teen girls (but boys can run low too) to support energy and performance.
Examples: beef, bison, poultry, legumes, eggs, leafy greens, dried tart cherries, fortified foods.
Tip: Pair with vitamin C (like an orange) to boost absorption. Calcium or dairy can interfere with absorption.
- Bone-Building Nutrients
Calcium, vitamin D, and magnesium are crucial for developing strong bones during growth years. Girls reach peak bone mass usually by age 20 so these younger years are critical.
Examples: whole milk yogurt, whole milk, cheese, greens, almonds, sardines.
The quick, packaged snacks we often reach for — pretzels, fruit snacks, granola bars — are fine in moderation, but they don’t keep kids full for long. Pair them with something more substantial: cheese with crackers, peanut or almond butter with apples, full-fat yogurt with cereal, or a fruit smoothie with yogurt and nut butter.
Practical Tips for Busy Parents
Feeding your family well doesn’t require overhauling your life. Try these time-saving strategies:
- Meal plan & batch cook to reduce weeknight stress. Check out our Meal Prep classes.
- Cook once, eat twice — turn a big batch of shredded chicken into tacos one night and burrito bowls the next.
- Use your freezer to stock quick meals like our fan-favorite Turkey Meatballs (page 147 in Run Fast. Cook Fast. Eat Slow.)
- Embrace theme nights like Taco Tuesday, Friday Movie Night with homemade pizza or pasta and Soup Sunday (leftovers for lunch!).
- Keep staples handy for easy, nourishing meals like bean-and-cheese quesadillas, scrambled eggs and waffles (breakfast for dinner! Check out Rise & Run) or a quick spaghetti Bolognese (ground beef, jar of marinara).
Most importantly: don’t overthink it. Cooking, gathering, and sharing meals should be the most enjoyable part of the day — not the most stressful.
Our growing kids and active teens don’t need fad diets, low-calorie snack packs, or guilt around eating. They need real, hearty meals that fuel their bodies, support their growth, and bring joy to the table.
When we simplify food, we not only raise healthier athletes, we raise happier humans.
