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The esportsman's grocery cart. Why purchasing a mango is always a good idea.

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This is another article in the cycle: «Healthy Dota Player - Healthy Networth». 

It will consider a number of gastronomic problems, typical for representatives of both professional and amateur gamer communities, and also provide some tips for normalizing nutrition in the context of their rhythm of life.

Nutritional introductory


Healthy dota player

The average gamer is a young person, more often a man, and the diet habitual for today's youth does not inspire confidence. Shifting from pizza to raw fish, dousing it all with acidic solutions high in corn syrup, is more of a battlefield than healthy eating. Worms fight with excess flour, which, however, die under an acid shower from another strong energy drink. The wounds received after these battles are often quite carefully disinfected with alcohol.

There is a kind of comical logic in this, but such a state is still as far as possible from the «normality», especially the «normality» for a professional player. As mentioned in the cycle earlier, cyber athletes are athletes, and they show peak results when they are healthy.

A healthy lifestyle begins with proper nutrition. True, in the matter of normalizing the diet, it is impossible to deduce a common position. This is hindered by both the personal condition of each individual and the peculiarities of the regional cookery to which his body is already accustomed, but it is still possible to give some specifics.

Of course, it is better to consult a professional therapist, but you can find some useful information in this article as well.

Calculation of proteins, fats and carbohydrates


Healthy math

A person who has attended school is able to understand the meaning of the word «calorie», and thanks to the Internet, will be able to find the calorie value of any product available to him. It remains to understand the following things:

The number of calories indicated on the label corresponds to the heat generated when the object is burned in an oxygen oven. It is unlikely that the human body is capable of absorbing energy from food with the same efficiency. In addition, each person assimilates it differently: some people spend more «preserve», while others are not at all capable of fully digesting certain food groups.

Also, the body does not consume everything, but only what it needs at the moment, and only the amount that it is able to assimilate.

But even with the foregoing, it is worthwhile to understand that it is better to rely on quantifiable data than to act on a whim.

So - proteins, fats and carbohydrates, if we take one gram of each we get: 4, 9 and 4 calories. It is the bulk of our food, and before deciding what to eat, you need to understand how much food is needed.

This can be calculated using the Harris-Benedict formula. Delving deeper into the study of these calculations, you can come across the term «basic metabolic rate» or BMR - these are those calories that are burned by the body unconditionally.

As an example, let us analyze the case of a young man of 25 years old, 180 cm tall and weight 80 kg, who, although subjected to some kind of load, often stressful, but leads a sedentary lifestyle (suppose that this corresponds to a coefficient of 1.375 according to the daily activity table).

Check the following formula:


BMR = 9.99 * weight (kg) + 6.25 * height (cm) - 4.92 * age (number of years) + 5

Further, the result obtained is multiplied by the coefficient of daily activity and we get a number that can be rounded up to 2500 calories. This is how much the body of this hypothetical person should consume per day to maintain weight, under the given conditions.

The recommended distribution of PFC for a healthy diet corresponds to the proportion: 30/30/40. Thus, taking into account the calorie content of each element, we get grams and round them for convenience:
  • Protein - 190 g
  • Fat - 85 g
  • Carbohydrates - 250 g
This is the daily allowance for the man discussed above, derived with the expectation that his goal is to maintain weight.

An interested person is quite capable of independently making this calculation based on his personal parameters, or using open tools on the Internet.

If you want to gain weight, it is enough to increase the amount of daily food by up to 20%, if you want to lose weight, reduce it within the same value.

Product recommendations


Healthy food

To the question «what should to eat?» there are thousands of answers. They are in the nutritional segment of the fitness industry that is entirely dedicated to healthy and sports nutrition.

The answers can be simple - these are the formulations of which contain the words «broccoli» or «avocado», and also complex ones - full of phrases such as «glycemic index» or «slow carbohydrates», these take time to get acquainted with the «theory of processes», but if you try to summarize all these answers, you can get the following:

A variety of fresh, locally sourced food prepared without the use of trans fats or other chemical additives.

What it will be depends on the region and the needs of the person.

If you offer something specific, it is worth remembering that this article is intended to familiarize people who initially did not shine with absolute health. The lifestyle of an amateur or professional gamer leaves its scars, including vitamin deficiency.

Lack of vitamins is the problem that the average person remembers in the last place, and in vain. With a proper understanding of your own health, you can fairly accurately determine the lack of one or another vitamin.

For example, let's look at the symptoms of a lack of vitamins A, B and C. The redaction advise you to consult with a specialist, but if you have already noticed the following symptoms, then perhaps the following tips for improving nutrition may be useful:

Vitamin A (daily requirement 1000 micrograms)
  • regular acne appearance;
  • decreased or loss of appetite;
  • periodic short-term visual impairment;
  • frequent colds;
  • long-lasting calluses.
Conclusion: Your menu is low in fatty foods. Vitamin A is not assimilated on its own, fats, plant and animal fats are needed. 

The diet should include yellow-orange vegetables and fruits, horse mackerel, mackerel or other fatty fish, butter, milk.

Foods containing the largest supply of vitamin A: carrots, parsley, spinach.

Vitamins of group B (daily requirement: B1 - 1.5 mg; B2 - 1.3 mg; B5 - 4-7 mg; B6 - 1.6 mg; B12 - 2 mg)
  • insomnia;
  • hair problems, dandruff;
  • bad breath;
  • dizziness and headaches;
  • the formation of wounds in the corners of the mouth;
  • depressed mood;
  • deterioration of intestinal permeability.
Conclusion: Lack of fiber with subsequent deterioration of the gastrointestinal tract and disturbance of intestinal motility, where vitamin B is absorbed. Also, B vitamins are responsible for the condition of hair and nails, which, in turn, are the first to signal their lack.

The diet should include more cereals, wholemeal breads, vegetables and nuts. Vitamin B12 is found in beef, pork, milk. There is a lot of vitamin B3 in poultry meat, sea fish, legumes, wheat seedlings.

Products containing the largest supply of B vitamins: brewer's yeast, sprouted wheat grains, bran, liver.

Vitamin C (daily requirement - 60 mg)
  • constant fatigue;
  • long healing of wounds, even small scratches;
  • unjustified dietary weight gain;
  • bruises often remain on the skin.
Result: Lack of sleep and an unhealthy lifestyle. Smokers require large amounts of vitamin C, since nicotine quickly removes it from the body. Alcohol is no less destructive for vitamin C.

It is worth including more citrus fruits in the diet, but this is not always a solution due to the possibility of an allergic reaction. What to eat: kiwi, broccoli, spinach, syrup or rosehip infusion.

Products containing the largest supply of vitamin C: strawberries, black currants, sorrel.

There are only three vitamins, but there are already so many difficulties, and there are more vitamins, as well as problems associated with a lack of other essential substances. Study your own body and its needs, the provision of which will only benefit you.

Drinking and mineral balance


Healthy Water

For a gamer to stay healthy, he needs to drink a lot.

The main principle of good drinking behavior is that all liquids, except pure water and, at some discount, green tea, are food, but not drink.

The more «free» water passes through the body, the easier it is for the lymphatic system to cleanse it regularly. A person who drinks from 2 liters of water a day is less likely to get sick, has fewer skin problems and does not get tired so quickly.

A cyber athlete, as an athlete, should drink even more, up to 4 liters per day, but even water should be used wisely:

First, it is recommended to drink a portion of liquid in 150-200ml at a time, it is also not recommended to drink more than 600ml of liquid per hour, if we are not talking about a period of increased sweating.

Second - with the release of fluid, trace elements leave the body. For example, with a liter of sweat, the body loses the following:
  • 1200mg sodium;
  • 1000mg chlorine;
  • 300mg potassium;
  • 160mg calcium;
  • 36mg magnesium;
  • other losses, smaller in volume, but not in value.
These minerals are essential for maintaining electrolyte balance so that signals can flow through the nervous system. Maintaining the right amount of electrolytes gives speed to reflexes and prevents seizures.

Essential elements can be found in increased concentration in sea salt. Also, iodine stands out among these substances; it should not be neglected for the sake of preventing thyroid diseases, especially as a resident of regions adjacent to places with an increased radioactive background. Iodized salt and vegetable seafood will help here.

Different routines - different diets


Healthy work day

Normalizing proper nutrition for an active athlete is not an easy task. If to take a cyber athlete performing in the Dota 2 discipline, you can see that his life is associated with a constant change of modes, of which three main ones need to be distinguished: bootcamp, competition and off-season.

Bootcamp is passive stress, lack of sleep, overtraining and overload of the nervous system in the absence of time for serious physical activity. Some teams do not even have meal times on their schedules. They only manage to eat measuredly while watching replays.

For the human body, such a regime threatens with many gastronomic risks, especially considering what usually athletes have to interrupt during the day.

It is advisable to raise the number of full meals to at least two, morning and evening, and combine them with the windows of physical activity.

Two hours after a breakfast containing many long carbohydrates, athletes should be given strength loads (no more than half an hour) to boost their metabolism.

After dinner, mainly protein, combined with watching replays, a cross-country walking cross is recommended (no more than an hour) in order to saturate the athlete's body with oxygen before bedtime.

Intermediate meals of inadequate food should be replaced with additional nutrition in the form of sports cocktails, which, for example, will be based on oatmeal and casein. Together with energy drinks, this diet will provide sufficient energy and help manage sleep deprivation.

But whatever physical form the athlete gains, his condition will decline in order to achieve peak competencies in the e-sports discipline. The task of the nutritionist during this period is to preserve the physical health of the athlete before the competition.

Competitions are unpredictable. The athlete's stored resource is used to its fullest during this period, so that the nutritional framework is expanded in order to provide any amount of calories that the player will need during the most important tournament.

Fast carbohydrates, chemical additives and other substances that will increase the efficiency of the athlete - everything goes into action, since it will take longer for him to recover.

Off-season - this period is so named conditionally, since teams may well participate in tournaments to maintain their shape and improve statistics. True, the level of these competitions is much lower.

The athlete should use this time to restore his peak physical condition: to return to his optimal weight, adjust metabolism and create a certain «margin of safety» that will make it possible to successfully survive the bootcamp and hold important competitions.

A conditional «amateur» is always in the «off-season» in a good way, as he understands that professional sports and its requirements for the body are always fraught with risks. For him, electronic discipline remains a game sports leisure activity, which should bring its own bit of benefit. Of course, this is only relevant until the moment when the amateur wants to become a pro, then you will have to give your best.

Analogues to energy drinks


Healthy energy drinks

Before summing up, it is worth giving this article a little momentary applied benefit. It will consist in providing an alternative to store energy drinks, in the form of homemade less harmful sources of caffeine, vitamin C and fast carbohydrates.

They vary in recipe, but they are all united by the way they are consumed: the fourth or third part before serious training or play, the rest - during the event, or free drinking throughout the day to maintain tone.

Recipe «С-energy drink»
  1. Liter of still water;
  2. 2 tablespoons honey or raspberry jam
  3. 2 tablespoons rosehip syrup
  4. lemon juice - to taste;
  5. ascorbic acid | 150-200 mg of vitamin C | (crush the tablets and dissolve in some of the warm water from point 1).
Recipe «Electrolyte»
  1. Liter of still water
  2. 600 ml fresh citrus juice
  3. 3 grams of sea salt
  4. 50 grams of sugar
Recipe «Adaptogen»
  1. 0.5 liter of still water
  2. 2 tablespoons honey
  3. 0.2 grams of succinic acid and an alcoholic tincture of the adaptogen of your choice (echinacea, ginseng, etc.)
Recipe «Caffeine» (blender cooking)
  1. 200ml low-fat milk
  2. a portion of espresso (30-50ml)
  3. 1 tablespoon honey
  4. 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
  5. 80g berries according to preference
  6. pinch of cocoa powder
These recipes are suitable for the period of rest of the body from taurine and guarana, or if a person wants to completely abandon drinks containing them.

Proper nutrition is the foundation


Food is a basic human need, the only source of energy and building materials for our body. The basis for good bodywork is to combine healthy food and proper nutrition. The rest of the activities only help food to be assimilated for future use, letting the received energy or mass into the direction that a person needs.

Esports tends to develop only in places with a sufficient technical level for this. A level that tells of a certain wealth, at least wealth in good products. High-quality work of the body is an advantage in any sport, so it is worth striving for it, if possible.

This article mentioned some supplements that you can get more from the pharmacy than from the grocery, and also mentioned the issue of physical activity for gamers, but only in passing. This is because these issues will receive wider coverage in the following articles in the series:

«Healthy Dota Player - Healthy Networth».
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