Fuel, 4 of 9. From Week 4 of the Hockey IQ book.
From the locker room: I eat more rice on game days than my parents do at dinner, on purpose. The rice bowl takes eight minutes and I make it before every late game. Nobody told me to; it just works.
The rule: Carbs are your main fuel for a sprint sport. Fuel up so you can skate fast and think faster.
Why: Adults who sit at a desk eight hours might not need many carbs. You play a sprint sport on top of a school day and a growth spurt. Carbs run your legs, your brain, and your muscles. Ever come home from school hangry, out of energy, moody, and then food fixes it in twenty minutes? That’s the engine on empty. Same kid, same tank, 6:00 pm game. That’s your third period.
Real food vs. a package: Candy, soda, the rink cookie: spike, crash, flat for an hour. Natural sugar in a banana or berries comes with fiber and vitamins. Quick energy without the crash.
Two kinds, two jobs:
- Steady (low-glycemic), meals and earlier in the day: 🟨 oatmeal, whole-grain bread, brown rice, quinoa, sweet potatoes, beans, vegetables
- Quick (high-glycemic), near and during games: 🟨 white rice, pasta, white bread, potatoes, bananas, applesauce, fruit juice, sports drinks
Neither is bad. Steady builds the tank through the day. Quick tops it off near puck drop. Notice the quick list is still real food.
Game day plate: more rice or pasta at the pre-game meal, fruit in the bag, a bagel in the car on early mornings. Rest day: the steady kind does more of the work.
Make it: Game-Day Rice Bowl. Microwave rice pouch (90 sec), leftover chicken or a can of tuna or 2 scrambled eggs, a handful of frozen peas (microwave 1–2 min with a splash of water), soy sauce or lime. Under ten minutes.
Parents: the long version, with the stories, is on the Athlete Nutrition guide.
FIND. A. WAY.
