Even if you haven’t watched a single second of the Summer Olympic Games in China you likely know the following:
A.) Michael Phelps is an American swimmer.
C.) Michael Phelps ingests 12,000 calories per day to fuel his daily swims.
The latter fact is the one that has sparked the most attention by regular folks who try to maintain their weight (or if they are lucky, lose a few pounds) with daily workouts. While Phelps’ diet is far from thoughtless gorging it certainly has some wondering where he puts it all.
After all, not every world-class athlete gets the opportunity to splurge like Phelps does. For example, the average Olympic discus thrower weighs more than twice as much as Phelps. They’re huge; yet most only take in about 3,000 calories per day.
On the other end of the spectrum are the female gymnasts. American tumblers such 16-year-old Shawn Johnson, who stands a mere 4’9” tall, monitors her caloric intake very closely. According to dieticians, female gymnasts like Johnson have to be extra strict with their diets because size matters. Pound for pound, women burn fewer calories then men. What’s more, female gymnasts who are shorter and lighter typically perform more effectively than those who are taller and heavier. Gymnasts also work in short bursts of energy, so they have the challenge of packing daily nutritional needs into fewer calories.
Olympic dieticians say while size is an important factor in the types and amount of foods athletes eat gender plays an even larger role. Studies show that if a 140-pound female athlete and a 140-pound male athlete ran side by side at exactly the same speed, expending the same amount of energy, the female athlete would still burn 8 to 10 percent fewer calories.
Food for thought as you prepare your next pre-workout bagel.
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