Diet is defined as the customary amount and kind of food and drink taken by a person on a daily basis describing a particular way of eating e.g. vegan, fruitist, Atkins diet. In simpler terms, it is what gets put into the mouth. Nutrition on the other hand relates more to the process by which a living organism assimilates food and uses it for growth and replacement of tissues, i.e. what goodness is absorbed from the food by the body.
There are six nutrient groups - carbohydrates, fats, proteins, minerals, vitamins and water. Experts suggest that less than 30% of the diet is fat, 50-60% is carbohydrate and 12-15% is protein.
The International Amateur Atheletic Federation ( IAAF) state that ‘getting the right amount of energy to stay healthy and perform well is key to an athelete’s diet.
Consuming too much energy increases body fat: too little, and performance falls, injuries are more likely to occur, and illness results. Chang Ming also recommends food that most effectively allows the body to absorb the energy whilst supporting the lifelines of the body. It discourages over eating and over indulging which is thought to put a strain and overload the systems of the body.
A basic sports athelete’s diet also advises eliminating unhealthy sweets and processed foods, staying hydrated with an adequate supply of water, avoiding alcohol and nicotine, moderating your caloric consumption, gradually ‘upping' the amount of complex carbohydrates in your diet according to the intensity of your training schedule and making sure that you are balancing the percentages of fats, carbohydrates and proteins
in your preferred diet for your type of training.
Similar guidance comes from Chang Ming where refined and processed food, coffees, alcohol and tobacco are advised not to be eaten as it wastes energy in disposing of the toxins. Chang Ming, however, does not recommend drinking too much fluid since the vegetables you eat are thought to contain 80% water and too much fluid is thought to overload the kidneys and stop them filtering toxins properly.
Reference: Chee Soo , The Tao of Long Lfe - The Chinese Art of Chang Ming 5th Edition, Aquarian Press, 1984