We’ve partnered with professional athlete Iona Stephen to hear more about the importance of taking a lunchbox and water bottle with you on the golf course.
What to eat on the golf course and when?
What do you take with you when you play a round of golf? I know there is a lot to remember…clubs, shoes, balls, tees…trolly…suncream…the list can be fairly long but close to the top should be some snacks/food. If you have ever played golf hungry, you will know, it’s not fun!! Being hungry or dehydrated on the course, can affect concentration levels a great deal and when you’re heading towards the end of your round, the last thing you want is a drop in concentration and a double bogie on the card!
Maintaining energy levels and concentration on the course comes from good nutrition and hydration.
If you are serious about improving your golf (which I assume you are if you are reading this blog J) then you will need to be prepared to take your own food/snacks with you to the course. We all know the pro shop will provide you with a mars or snickers bar (or a heavily loaded sugary ‘health bar’ if you’re lucky!) but while these might help you for the duration of one hole, over an 18 hole round of golf, they won’t! So, the question remains, what to eat?? Despite recent efforts from the R&A to speed up the game, we all know you’re going to be out there for a good 3+hours and so it makes sense our dietary requirements change as the round progresses. Before a round begins, if you can, you should consume a meal rich in protein (eggs, meat, fish), healthy fats (salmon, avocado, nuts), low-glycemic complex carbohydrates such as fruits, vegetables and beans, and small quantities of whole-grain starches such as potatoes, quinoa, rice or whole-grain breads. Example:
Brekkie (for am tee off): Porridge with berries, peanut butter and nuts & a poached egg on rye bread.
Lunch (for a pm tee off): Salmon and rice wrap with tomato & avocado. Bag of fruit and nuts.
When you’re on the course, it can help to break the round down into 3 lots of 6 holes, and take a snack after each stage. (And drink regularly!)
Snack 1: STABALISE ENERGY: Fruit and Nut snack bar (bars are easy and you can chop them up before you go out If you want to have easy bite size mouthfuls to make the faffing around minimal. I like TRIBE bars the most at the moment. The fibre in the fruit and the fat in the nuts digest slowly to keep your energy level from varying.
Snack 2: MAINTAIN ENERGY: For the more adventurous, homemade protein bars https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZZloaoArSzY are a great option or if you’re not into cooking then a small sandwich with tuna or simply peanut butter will work well.
Snack 3: ENERGY SURGE TO FINISH WELL: A good electrolyte drink will help you stay focused (I use ORS Hydration tabs in my water) along with another snack bar here, ideally with high carbohydrate so perhaps with dried fruit or some dark chocolate. Primal Pantry do a cacao and coffee bar and a small dose of caffeine is not a bad idea at this stage! These options provide instant energy to the brain and muscles.
So when it comes to taking your snacks along with you I would love to encourage you to move away from plastic towards a quality container like these ones from Black&Blum – https://black-blum.com –
The reason I encourage you to move away from plastic, is not only for the environment but your own health! Many cheaper food containers and bottles use sub standard material that either have BPA or other harmful chemicals or even say they are free of them when they aren’t!! These harmful chemicals can leach into your food and water (especially when the sun is out and the heat is on). The other negative of plastic is that they do not age well…the products do not get better with age. Black & Blum have designed a water bottle and lunch box that can be used for years and get better with age, dents and scratches. I take my water bottle with me everywhere I go!
Environmentally speaking, we are all trying to do our bit, so taking your own food and drink will win you massive brownie points here. You will be helping to combat single use plastic and food waste, in turn reducing the amount of food packaging waste and even food waste. Golf courses can often be criticised for their environmental impact and litter can be found flying around, so this can help a massive amount…as golfers we can take responsibility and do our bit.
SO all round, I hope this helps you prepare better for your game of golf and sees your scores improve as a result! Not to mention, you’ll immediately be elevated to ‘good human’ status if you take your food/drink with you in a healthy and environmentally friendly container.
I’d like to thank https://black-blum.com for sending me their lunch box and water bottle, the quality is second to none and the both fit perfectly into my bag.
Happy golfing!!
Iona xx