Erasmus Project Healthy body and Healthy mind Italian

Erasmus Project Healthy body and Healthy mind Italian recipes for an athlete’s good diet

The best nutrition for athlets Diet is an essential factor to achieve the best performance in whatever exercise or sport you do. In other words, your engine needs the proper fuel. But everyone’s needs are different. The ideal diet for an athlete is the one that is satisfying and ensures a complete variety of nutrients and an adequate quantity of liquids. Most people need between 1, 500 and 2, 000 calories a day, for athletes, this number can increase by 500 to 1, 000 more calories. A balanced diet should consist of 60 per cent carbohydrates, preferably complex (the main source of energy for the muscles comes from carbohydrates, and is released gradually). Grains are excellent, better if whole, and also starches and legumes. Proteins (10% to 15% of daily calories)are important, especially those from white meat, fish, eggs and milk. These are necessary to prevent the body from consuming the substances that make up the muscle tissues. Even fats are fundamental (especially vegetable-based) because they produce the energy necessary in prolonged efforts that require strength: Peanuts, almonds, walnuts, olive oil and soya are ideal (no more than 30% of daily calories). Fruit and vegetables are natural sources of vitamins, mineral salts and fibre especially when eaten fresh and raw because none of the goodness is lost. The athlete's diet should always be light, easy to digest and easily absorbed by the body. These should be limited or avoided altogether:

• • preserved and canned foods alcohol processed foods rich and processed sauces sugar-loaded, carbonated drinks sweets rich in fats and sugar excessive quantities of tea and coffee sugar and fructose

Ideally, an athlete should consume five small meals a day including two snacks, based on the duration and intensity of the physical activity, in order to achieve the best performance. The diet can be adjusted gradually to new nutritional needs. The amounts will depend on the amount of energy consumed every day based on: • activity levels • basal metabolism • daily routine • the person’s sex • stress level

The Salento food offers a complete variety of nutrients that satisfies and ensures an adequate and balanced diet for athletes. Here is some examples of typical Salento dishes: Africanu: Africans are a biscuits based on egg yolks a sugar typical of the city of Galatina. Used since the last century as an energy food, they are also called «Fingers of the Apostlets» of their tapered shape Arnacocchia: The apricot is a small sweet, with the typical color «coddet» of oranges spotts, delicate peel. The legends tell that the Templars brought the apricot to Salento, and in particular to the area around Galatone, which was a great agricultural center an important crossroads for trade. Pitteddhra: is a traditionally prepared for the Christmas holidays in the Lecce area. It’s a cake similar to tars, from the shape of a small try with raised edges, garnished with grape jam prepared with local grapes of negramaro variety sweetened.

Ciciri e tria: pasta and chickpeas based on fresh pasta without eggs, with flour, re-milled semolina, water and olive oil that is spread thin, trasformed into short noodles handled to give a spiral shape and is seasoned whit the «ciceri» , the chickpeas. Uliata: a small form of bread made with semolina flour, with a dark rind and white crumb. Uliata with Salento olives is a fabulous sandwich typical of Salento, the Uliata can be dressed with onions, peppers, capers, tuna and anchovies. Rucula: is a salad with a particular and pungent taste with good nutritional properties. It is rich in vital nutrients including vitamins, minerals and many other antioxidant compounds

Ua: the grape, the fruit of the vine, is used above for the productinion of wine, but also for food consumption as fruit, both fresh and dry. It’ s rich in potassium. Panareddhra: is a sweet, poor dessert, tasty and cheerful whose characteristic is the hard-boiled egg incorporated into the dessert. The panareddhra has different shapes: the cockerel, the horse, the doll, the heart, the lamb referring to the Easter religious symbols. Cecora rizza is a vegetable rich in properties and health benefits, for this reason it is a valid ally for the kidneys, relieves pulmonary afflictions. Puccia is a bread format, typical of the Salento traditions. It’s cooked in a wood oven and has three variation: soft and crunchy with olives and those to the pizzaiola, fragrant and empty inside the more classical one. It is ideal to fill and ready to accomodate any filling from the simplest ones such as cold cuts and cheeses, to the more elaborate ones.

Here is an example of a Salento diet for athlets: • BREAKFAST: 1. N. 2 Africani (800 kcal) • BREAK: 1. N. 3 Arnacocchie (90 kcal) • LUNCH 1. Ciciri e tria (380 kcal) 2. N. 2 Uliate (400 kcal) 3. Rucula (20 kcal) • BREAK 2: 1. Pitteddhra (320 kcal)

• DINNER: 1. Cicora (15 kcal) 2. Puccia (280 kcal) • OUT OF MEAL: 1. Ua (75 kcal) TOT : 2380 KCAL