Good Nutrition

You should always have a good diet, whether you're just practicing or if it's the week before a swim meet. However you should be especially careful the week before a swim meet. The first thing you should do is skip all the desserts and sweets after dinner and lunch. This includes ice cream, cookies, cupcakes, cake, etc. Instead you should pack vegetables or fruit in your lunch, and eat apples or bananas for desert. Also, you shouldn't drink soda because it is full of sugar, and sometimes caffeine. It also makes you float because of all the carbination.

You should also be sure to get a good breakfast. This means no sugar cereals such as coco-puffs, or lucky charms. Instead eat stuff like toast and milk or juice. Maybe even a toasted bagel with butter or cream cheese on top.

Also, don't forget dinner. Good swimming dinners are things like pastas and vegetables. However,the night before the swim meet you should eat something full of protein, like flank steak or a hamburger. If you're going to eat a hamburger you should probably make your own though, that means don't go to fast food joints, they're too greasy.

Then there's the swim meet. While you're at the swim meet you want to eat things between every race. These things should not be too much, otherwise you won't be able to digest them in time. Some of the good things you can eat are bagels, bananas, pretzels, etc. If your going to eat a power bar then you should eat it about and hour before the race so it has time to get into your system, or if your going to use a sports gel than you should probably eat it about ten to twenty minutes before your race.