Athletes and coaches always seek the most effective strategies to enhance and improve sports performance. 

Below, we’ll look at how Diet, exercise and mental preparation have played a vital role in modern sports culture. 

The perfect Diet 

Diet is arguably the most essential part of sport. Most of an athlete’s vitamin and mineral requirements should be covered by a well-planned, nutrient-rich diet, including adequate protein to support muscle development and repair.

Athlete diets also show the importance of our food and how it affects us. There is no perfect diet- but there are strategies one can use to create a diet that suits their needs and goals. 

According to Healthline, the best Diet for athletes is the Mediterranean Diet. 

The traditional diets of nations like Italy, Spain, and Greece inspire the Mediterranean diet. It discourages the consumption of processed foods and promotes the consumption of fruits, vegetables, whole grains, and heart-healthy fats like olive oil, nuts, and seeds. One can try hundreds of Mediterranean recipes with cost-effective food specials from the Publix weekly flyer. 

Research shows that the Mediterranean diet enhances physical fitness and athletic ability and provides athletes with Iron, magnesium, and calcium, which are essential for athletes.  

People use many other Diets and health strategies to get their bodies to peak performance. Some go for The Blood Type or Body type diets (Ectomorph, Mesomorph and Endomorph). These focus on specific features of an individual and what is needed to reach their health goals. 

Healthline also gives different diets for different purposes, such as the Flexitarian Diet for men, the DASH diet for women, the paleo diet for gaining muscle, the Noom diet for losing weight and the Nordic Diet for endurance. 

Ultimately, the diet athletes choose to suit their preferences and goals. There isn’t a right or wrong that encompasses all athletes. 

Mentality check 

According to Jack J. Lesyk, PhD, there are nine mental skills that athletes need to develop to be successful in sports:

He divides these nine skills into three levels. 

• Level 1 is a tactic that athletes can use to achieve their long-term goals. These require daily practice. The skills include maintaining a positive attitude, self-motivation, goal-setting and people skills. 
• Level 2 skills are the skills athletes use to prepare for a performance. They can be used before an event or match, or they can be used before a specific action, such as scoring a goal in football. These skills include positive self-talk and using mental imagery. Both activities require realistic and detailed action. Self-talk regulates thoughts and feelings and helps an athlete to maintain self-confidence. Mental imagery helps an athlete to prepare for a performance by imagining their success. 
• Level 3 skills are used during the performance or action in sport. These include concentration skills, dealing with anxiety and managing emotions. Successful athletes accept that anxiety is part of the sport and have learnt how to reduce it when it threatens their performance. They can also use strong emotions like excitement, disappointment and anger to improve while also being able to maintain their focus, resist distractions and be mentally present in the sport they are playing. 

Some of the best athletes in the world use these tactics in addition to developing the skills above.  

1. Mindfulness and meditation to take control of their day
2. Preparation routines. These are personal and repetitive actions taken daily to prepare for a performance. For example, in Golden State Warriors basketball Steph Curry takes 2-hour naps at the same time every day, practises shooting and has the same breakfast daily. 
3. Music for motivation. Creating pregame playlists. MMA fighter Adesanya used to blast music and dance on his way to the ring before every fight. 
4. Consistency. The best athletes practise daily, regardless of season, mood or environment. 
5. Conscious breathing. In sports where millions of fans surround athletes, practising conscious breathing helps athletes to focus and get their heads in the game.
6. Film analysis. The best athletes watch recordings to see what they need to practise and where to improve. 

Exercising for optimum performance 

Many exercises can be used to gain muscle, improve speed or enhance performance, but the focus on functionality works to the advantage of professional athletes looking for a competitive edge. Over the past few decades, functional training has become necessary for athletes. Practical training is shown in research to help with preventing injuries, increasing strength, shortening recovery time and improving core strength and posture. 

Some of the exercises used include: 

1. Trap Bar Deadlift 
2. Single Leg Deadlift 
3. Front Squat
4. Suspense Row with feet elevated
5. Sled Push
6. Ring chin up
7. Medicine Ball Toss 

These exercises engage different parts of the body, and enhance performance through improving movement and functionality. 

Some other strategies used during training include: 

• Varying workouts – different kinds of exercise that are changed every 2 to 3 weeks produce amazing results due to muscle confusion. 
• Dedicated recovery time – the best athletes practice everyday but also allow their bodies to rest and recover. This prevents injury and replenishes energy. 
• Simulating training in competition. This includes training in competition gear, at competition pace and in a similar environment to where the athlete will compete. The likelihood of success increases by training for a desired outcome and preparing for the conditions of the performance or competition.