Healthy Post Game Soccer Snack

The average soccer player can easily run up to 7 miles and burn 1,000 calories during a competitive game; that's more than enough to work up an appetite. Plenty of post-game snacks fill a soccer player's stomach after a game. Eating the right snacks refuels a player's body more efficiently and speeds up recovery for a player's next game.

Fruits

Orange slices have become a traditional halftime or post-game snack for soccer players of all ages and skill levels. Fresh fruits offer plenty of vitamins and minerals lost through sweat during exercise; they also help rehydrate an athlete after a game. Oranges, apples, berries and melons add high quantities of vitamins A, C and E to a post-game snack, boosting a player's immune system after game-time high levels of physical exertion and stress wear down a player's immunity. Bananas offer rich sources of potassium, which helps fight off muscle cramps sustained during a strenuous game.

Carbohydrates

Within 30 minutes after a game, an athlete should eat a small snack to replenish depleted stores of glycogen, the body's inner fuel; the stores are often burned during the sustained exercise of a 90-minute soccer game. Athletes can find all-natural sources of useful carbohydrates from whole-grain breads, trail mixes or energy bars, providing a moderate source of energy to restore blood sugar levels to normal and repair tired muscles.

Protein

While protein is not the main catalyst of muscle growth, it does aid in the process of muscle repair, making it an integral part of a post-game snack. Approximately 10 to 15 percent of an athlete's calorie intake should come from protein, which could be eaten in a post-game snack in the form of a serving of nuts, peanut butter, low-fat milk, low-fat yogurt or a protein shake.

Mixing the Ingredients

A post-game snack is most effective at repairing muscles when eaten within 30 minutes of a game's conclusion, so soccer players should choose snacks that are pleasing to the palate and easy to digest. A post-game snack of 200 to 300 calories could include a piece of fruit and a slice of whole-grain bread, a cup of yogurt with fresh fruit and granola, or a protein shake mixed with low-fat milk and fresh fruit. A soccer player should drink plenty of water while she eats her post-game snack, then eat a regular meal within the next one to two hours.