Endurance athlete's grocery shopping list

Triathlon Forum
1

I know different parts of nutrition have been beaten to death on ST; Race nutrition. Supplements. Vegetarian. Diary, Weight loss etc.

I am looking for the big picture to what age groupers and elites do for the daily business of eating.
How important is eating well to recovering?

Is eating ham, lettuce and tomato sandwiches really going to set me back compared to eating chicken breast and whole wheat pasta?

Is cereal in the morning going to make me sluggish compared to oatmeal and fruit?

What is on your list when you go to the grocery store and why?

Thanks.

2

I am looking for the big picture to what age groupers and elites do for the daily business of eating.
How important is eating well to recovering?
I’d say it’s important, it helps keep the weight off and makes you feel great, keeps you healthier in the long run, so less down time being sick

Is eating ham, lettuce and tomato sandwiches really going to set me back compared to eating chicken breast and whole wheat pasta?
No, just eat real ham, real lettuce (not the iceberg crap) etc…, it should look like food, not like plastic (i.e. most packaged foods)
I’d eat a Ham Sandwich over whole wheat pasta any day,

Is cereal in the morning going to make me sluggish compared to oatmeal and fruit?
No, but I try to stay away from the crap that is loaded with vitamins and other stuff, fruit and veges are far more effective to get vitamins (+ much more) than cheap cereals, again IMO

What do you do to keep from eating the same things over and over when eating clean? (seriously)
Mix it up, there is a whole load of fruits and vegetables and meats out there? tons of spices and flavors to throw it together.
Pasta is pasta, bread is bread, but a vegetable is so many things.

Would you be willing to post what you eat normally, what are your “splurge” foods, and what are the “must have” items for recovery?
Breakfast: Eggs and Sauteed Vegetables with some BBQ sauce or salsa, followed up with some fruit and nuts
Lunch: Well today, a sandwich with Avocado, alfalfa sprouts, hummus, mozzarella, turkey
Dinner: Chicken Thighs grilled with Yogurt Sauce, Big ass salad with some grilled vegetables and mushrooms.
I’m a sucker for Ice Cream and a Espresso Drinks.

Biggest tips are, don’t be afraid to cook, if you can cook something from scratch (microwave =/= cooking) then it probably isn’t all too bad for you

3

Ok I’ll bite.

Oatmeal…eat it for breakfast Monday to Friday with two bananas and Boiling water , no milk or sugar of course.

Plenty of fruit and veggies.

Plenty of canned tuna and fresh chicken.

Hommus and other exotic spreads with lebanese flatbreads and wraps.

Lots of pastas with either olive oil or tomato base.

Ceres 100% juices , which I normally drink diluted 1 part juice to 5 parts water.

I drink approximately 4L of water daily which is diluted with 100% lemon juice , to obtain further Vitamin C and a positive electrolyte balance ( average day ). Substantially more depending upon training load.

Eat a fair amount of burgers which I make myself , but no added crap.

I live in South East Asia , so there is an abundance of noodles , rice , veggie based foods available , but caution is required because many have MSG or added lard.

Thai food though is often on our menu as is Japanese and Italian.

Ice cream occasionally , low fat where possible.

Supplements:

  • Vitamin C 2000mg’s daily.
  • Gnc Mega Man Multi
  • B-Complex
  • CoQ10
  • Glucosamine Chondroitin
  • Amino 1800’s ( 4 daily )

Terry

4

Thank you.

As you can see I revised the post a little. Thanks for the great responses.

5

read this www.marksdailyapple.com

go to the definitive guide to the primal blueprint along the right. This is how many elites eat with the added modification of fueling with carbs before during and after workouts.

6

Agreed, Marks Daily Apple is a great site to get some info on how to eat well.
Although he is a hypocrite for pushing his supplements (how the hell is that primal?)

7

I would love to see this thread live on for a long time as I am most interested. Here is what I recently purchased from the supermarket to get me through the week (not a very good example of what “should” be purchased though):

  • Silk Soy milk
  • Quaker instant oats
  • bananas
  • Simply JIF peanut butter
  • canned albacore in water
  • frozen Kashi dinners
  • Smuckers Simply Fruit preserves
  • 6-pack of Bell’s Best Brown Ale
8

you mean Grok didn’t have the damage control master formula back then?

9

I like these kinds of threads as well and there should be “critique my daily nutrition” threads. This an area a lot of athletes can make huge gains. Your list looks very similar to mine although mine also has lots of nuts. I think nuts are the ideal snack.

10

Usually what is on my list are the basics, because I like them and they’re healthy. When I get to the store, then I try not to dilly-dally, but I will take a couple mins. extra to see if I find something interesting that I haven’t tried before.

I won’t list my entire grocery list, but some things I like to get…

quinoa (I’m all about it now…forget rice)
rice noodles (ha!)
cocunut milk
some thai curry pastes
avocado
tomatoes on the vine
baby spinach (the base for all my salads)
1% milk & Chocolate Soy Silk
Non-fat plain yogurt
4 boxes of Clif bars
frozen fish filets
free scoop almond and walnuts
free scoop organic granola (it’s a great addition to the yogurt and I also add that to plain store brand wheat squares with the nuts and some raisins)

11

I would love to see this thread live on for a long time as I am most interested. Here is what I recently purchased from the supermarket to get me through the week (not a very good example of what “should” be purchased though):

  • Silk Soy milk
  • Quaker instant oats
  • bananas
  • Simply JIF peanut butter
  • canned albacore in water
  • frozen Kashi dinners
  • Smuckers Simply Fruit preserves
  • 6-pack of Bell’s Best Brown Ale

I will play by my own rules too:

when motivated:

  • whole wheat tortillas

  • natural skippy :slight_smile:

  • lunch meats

  • Pepper jack cheese

  • 2% cottage cheese

  • Powerade Zero

  • eggs

  • sugar free pudding

  • simply fruit jelly

  • hamburger (lean)

  • whole wheat buns

  • banana

    This will be basically ALL I eat during the day. The wife usually makes a basic healthy dinner for the kids. (pasta, chicken and veges, casserole etc.

when less than motivated:

  • everything above and
  • buffalo chicken strips
  • pop tarts
  • shredded mini wheats
  • cherry garcia
  • peanut m&ms
  • Gatorade AM
  • Cookies (damn wife and her baking)
  • Chipoltle rarely

In writing this down you really get to see what you are eating!

I get some small veges with whatever my wife makes for dinner, but not much at all! And no fruit except for the occasional banana!

12

Eating is everything… and yes, eating poorly, even once, will set you back. Make it your lifestyle, not your fuel choice. Warning, it’s expensive. Some things in my list (most veggies, proteins, fats) are every day essentials, others (carb based) are high volume training fuels. Should be obvious.
Grains whole grain oatmeal whole grain bread whole grain cereals (Kashi is one good brand) whole wheat flour Proteins egg whites, boxes and boxes of eggs lean meats: turkey, chicken breast, tuna, salmon, other fish. Occasional steak low sodium turkey slices low sodium tuna packets Fruits frozen berries… blues, rasps, straws, etc. apples, bananas, oranges other varieties of fruits Veggies fresh broccoli spinach frozen vegetables Fats natural peanut butter almonds, cashews, walnuts olive oil Dairy fat free yogurt, fat free cottage cheese skim milk, soy milk Other coffee protein powder, multi-vitamin, EFA pills (essential fatty acids) Amy’s organic frozen burritos and pizzas raisins, cranberries no sugar added applesauce hummus and babaganoush beans and other legumes

13

I have been eating a balanced diet from the basic food groups for years (i.e., sugar, fat, salt and alcohol) and I did 2 fulls this year.

Seriously, with my tongue only sort of in my cheek, do you really think your body can tell the difference between a peach and a cookie? What about all that GU? What about Dean the Mutant guy ordering a pizza on a 50 mile run? What about Michael Phelps?
Blasphemy, but what about Infinit? Yes, I inhale it.

Eat a reasonable diet and keep it between the ditches. The only caveat I add to the foregoing is make sure you understand your family history and your blood work. As my Dad said after practicing medicine for 50 years: “Pick your parents carefully.” You need to understand your genetics.

And then there is the only cartoon I ever understood from New Yorker magazine:

“Quit smoking in 1978.
Quit eating red meat in 1982.
Quit drinking in 1985
Died anyway.”

Best!

14

Hmm. I am not a good person to advise on nutrition. I was obese as an early teenager and lost a significant amount of weight in a special education phys ed program started in our school district. It changed my life.

Here is about what I eat in a day:

Breakfast: Either nothing or Starbuck’s oatmeal or a bowl of cereal such as Kashi, a Pom juice and a liter of water. Almost always coffee.

Lunch: Usually large- large portion of salmon, eaten almost daily. Small portion of rice and small portion of steamed vegetables. I am across from a market with a fresh food section that prepares hot meals- that is where this meal comes from. Likely a Diet Coke and/or a Red Bull, liter of water.

Dinner: Often nothing or a light snack eatne late. Decaf coffee. Sometimes a sweet in the off season such as a cookie or whatnot.

That is about my typical pattern.

15

Not sure I would eat salmon everyday, eventhough I love it too. Both farm-raised and wild salmon can have alot of mercury buildup. Sardines have much less mercury per pound although obviously don’t tast as good. Maybe substitute chicken or sardines once or twice a week.

16

Breakfeast (Mon to Fri): 3 packs of pop tarts with peanut butter between each pair plus two big glasses of water and a Starbuck’s coffee. 2 to 3 days per week I will get a chicken biscuit at Chic Fil A (usually after a good hard swim workout)

Lunch (weekdays): two peanut butter and honey sandwiches on whole wheat bread

Dinner (weekdays): pasta with buffalo meat and two big glasses of water

On the weekend, when my workouts are more intense, I will eat a big breakfeast of pancakes, eggs, bacon, and biscuits/gravy. Lunch is usually whatever I have on the bike like perpeteum. Dinner is at a restaurant and isusually grilled chicken with rice or salmon with rice.

17

Eating is everything… and yes, eating poorly, even once, will set you back. Make it your lifestyle, not your fuel choice. Warning, it’s expensive. Some things in my list (most veggies, proteins, fats) are every day essentials, others (carb based) are high volume training fuels. Should be obvious.

+1 to that, although a cheat meal here and there isn’t going to ruin you (provided it’s reasonable and your cheat isn’t a whole pizza with 2 dozen wings).
I’ve been on a tri-specific diet now for just over a month thanks to the folks at QT2Systems. It’s amazing the difference I feel already and was well worth the price for the consultation/nutrition plan.

In the last few weeks, despite being in the ‘off season’ I’ve been dropping weight and improving my performance in runs and on the bike trainer. Just yesterday I set a 2 min PB on a 5.5 mile run when I wasn’t even trying, and I attribute it almost all to the new diet and continued weight loss.

It is expensive, but the fresh fruits, veggies and lean meats aren’t cheap. But I figure after spending countless hours training why bother ruining it with bad eating habbits.

Not going to spill all the beans, but to the OP my diet on a typical training day consists of:

Smoothie for breakfast
Snack/protein bar ~10
11:30 some carbs before the lunchtime workout
Recovery after workouts
Yogurt or fruit in the afternoon.
Lean meat/portein dinner w/veggies
Snack ~8
Protein shake before bed.

What I’ve found really key are eating the right foods pre and especially post workouts.

18

What is on your list when you go to the grocery store and why?

I have the advantage of being a college student with a good dining commons, so I can get practically any fruit/veggie that I want there. My dorm complex also has a kitchen so I do have stove/microwave/toaster/fridge, so between the two, I’m pretty well taken care of. The other perk of the commons is that I can get stuff to go - every time I go in I fill a Naglene bottle up with chocolate soymilk so I have that for later, grab a couple pieces of fruit so I have snacks in my room, that sort of stuff. But I can always get melon, apples/bananas/oranges, salad stuff, cooked veggies at the dining commons.

Things I buy:

-cliff bars. Favorite pre-workout snack.
-Stonyfield Yo-Baby yogurt. Because I am 21 going on 2.
-Stonyfield lowfat plain yogurt
-Pepperidge farm whole wheat bread and English muffins. That brand because I collect the Boxtops for Education for my brother’s school. I have far too much fun collecting these then mailing them to him, see above, 21 going on 2.
-Eggs. The scrambled eggs at the dining hall, they pour out of a carton, I like eggs that I can CRACK thankyouverymuch. Also, combined with above bread, FRENCH TOAST!
-Natural peanut butter
-Nutrish milk - I am somewhat lactose intolerant - this stuff with the same bacteria as yogurt doesn’t bother my stomach.
-strawberry jam: not bought, grabbed from home, we pick the berries and make about 3 batches of it in the summer, freezer jam. I have lots of frozen blueberries too, picked on the island this summer, and we’ve got maple syrup from tapping trees last spring. I love living in Maine… anyone from Florida? I’ll trade you for some good oranges and tangerines :smiley:
-qunioa, something they never have at school, I like it with yogurt on it… I’m into bland things…
-bran cereal to make muffins out of.

I think that’s it, I really am pretty spoiled with our school dining halls.

19

Things I buy:
Rice…lots of rice
Pasta…any kind(cheap mostly because I eat lots)
Frozen chicken breast
Frozen cheese tortellini(Costco, good and easy meal)
Pork chops
Sausage
Tuna fish
Cheese
Instant oatmeal(breakfast)
Chocolate soy milk(recovery drink)
Jerky(snack and protein)
Trail mix(recovery food and snack)
Spinach salad
Celery(snack w/ ranch)

I pretty much ate that for my entire Ironman training but I don’t require any variety for food to be happy.

Good luck with your grocery shopping…

20

See list below. I will also note that I like to buy things that are easy to make. For me, the trick is to make eating healthy as easy as possible. I go with frozen veggies or micrwaveable rice all the time. The difference in these type of foods vs “raw food” or stuff made from scratch is pretty minor I think. Not to mention if food prep is too much of a pain in the ass with a busy work schedule, having a personal life and training, I will end up eating out anyway.

Grains/starches
Kashi Cereal (crunch with almond and flax)
Quick oats
Sweet Potatoes
Brown Rice (microwaveable pouches)
Whole wheat bread
Whole wheat tortillas
Whole wheat pasta
Whole what bagels
Kashi cookies
Whole Wheat Boboli
Meats/Protein Sources
Salmon (usually farm raised)
Chicken breast
Ground Turkey (99% FF)
Lean beef
Chicken burgers
Pork tenderloin
Boars Head Sliced Sausalito Turkey
Red and black beans (canned)
Hummus
Gold Standard 100% Whey Protein
Sources of Good Fats
Skippy Natural
Mixed Nuts
Olive Oil
Newman’s Own Light Balsamic Sald Dressing
Veggies
Spinach
Romaine
Brocolli
Frozen veggies and already prepped microwavable stuff
Fruits
Bananas
Apples
Frozen berries (for smoothies)
Fresh Berries
Pears
Jumbo Gourmet Raisons (for oatmeal)
Tomato-based low-sugar pasta Sauce (Classico)
Polaner All Fruit
Dairy
Skim Milk
Soy Milk (for smoothies)
Yogurt (Kroger Carb Control)
Low fat Cheese
FF Mozzerella Cheese
Energy foods
Infinit
HEED
Clif Bars
Roctane GU
Other
One-a-day (mens)