This blog has been written by Alice, 12, from Hertfordshire, who wanted to share more about the impact The Greater Game programme and the Eat Well plan has had on her and her match day experiences.
When playing football, it is important to play with a stomach that has been filled by healthy and energising food. Many players do not realise how important food is and how it affects your game time. And I’m not just talking about half time snacks. I’m talking about the food you need to eat pre-match. If you have a match and skip breakfast or have a high sugar cereal or pastries and muffins, it could stop you from playing at your best. This can be changed by using The Greater Game’s (TGG) pre-match healthy recipes.
A delicious breakfast recipe created by TGG is the Back-Of-The-Net Bircher Muesli. This recipe includes 200g of oats, which are carbohydrates. Carbs are the most important type of food to have pre-match because they are the main fuel for both your body and brain. Also included in the recipe are bananas, which give a quick energy boost; apples, which slowly release energy; and raspberries, which keep you alert. The recipe also includes dairy products including Greek yoghurt and skimmed milk. This gives your body sustained energy that will last you an entire match. The recipe is not only packed with energy but is also very tasty!
Last season, I was just eating buttered crumpets or toast for breakfast before a match. And it showed me and my team that we needed more energy pre-match because we only won about 5 games last season and felt tired into the first 10 minutes of each game. However, right at the end of last season, we were invited to TGG’s festival to take part in small matches and learn about eating, sleeping and playing well. We were given goodie bags and inside were some TGG recipes, including the muesli. So, the first match of this season, my dad and I made the muesli before the match and ate it. It was amazing. And we won that match 2-0. Not only did we win, but I was playing at my best and had lots of energy, even after the match.
What well and truly showed the impact of eating well was the weekends where I couldn’t make the muesli for various reasons. I could only have toast or crumpets and felt very tired when I was playing. For all of the matches when I was able to make and eat the muesli, I played at my best, had energy for the full match and really enjoyed myself, regardless of the match result.
It really showed me how the eat well aspect of TGG is essential to playing well and I hope that message has come across to you too!