Food Is Fuel: How Young Hockey Players Can Build Better Nutrition Habits

Every hockey player wants more energy.

More energy at practice.

More energy late in games.

More focus when the coach is explaining something.

More jump in the third period when everybody else is starting to slow down.

Players often look for that extra edge through skating lessons, stickhandling drills, workouts, and more ice time.

But there’s another part of performance that happens long before you step onto the rink:

What you eat.

On The Ride to The Rink, Lee Elias, Mike Bonelli, and Christie Casciano Burns talked directly to young players about nutrition, routines, healthy food choices, and how simple habits away from the rink can help support performance on it.

The message wasn’t that every meal has to be perfect.

It was that young players can start learning how to fuel themselves better—and those habits can grow with them throughout their hockey journey.

Think of Food as Fuel

Christie gave young players an easy way to understand nutrition.

Think about a car.

A car needs fuel to run.

Your body does too.

When you practice, play games, train, go to school, and move through a busy hockey schedule, your body needs energy.

That energy comes in part from what you eat.

So instead of thinking about food only in terms of what tastes good in the moment, athletes can start asking a different question:

What will help me feel good and perform well?

That shift matters.

Young players don’t need to obsess about every ingredient or create a complicated nutrition plan.

They can simply become more aware of the connection between food and how they feel.

Did you have enough energy at practice?

Did you feel tired halfway through a game?

Were you hungry before you even got on the ice?

Did you feel focused?

Over time, noticing those patterns can help you and your family make better choices.

Good Nutrition Doesn’t Have to Be Complicated

Busy hockey families know the challenge.

School ends.

Someone has practice.

Another child may have an activity somewhere else.

There’s traffic.

Equipment needs to get packed.

Everybody is hungry.

Fast food can feel like the easiest answer.

But healthier options don’t always have to mean complicated recipes or hours in the kitchen.

The episode shared several simple snacks young players may enjoy, including:

• Bananas with peanut butter

• Greek yogurt with berries

• Apples

• String cheese

• Applesauce

• Small turkey wraps

• Oatmeal with sliced banana

• Fruit smoothies

None of these require a restaurant chef.

That’s the point.

A strong nutrition routine can be built around foods that are simple, familiar, and easy for families to prepare.

The best plan is often the one your family can actually follow.

Build a Routine Around Food

Mike connected nutrition to something hockey players already understand:

Routine.

Players have routines everywhere.

You may tape your stick the same way.

Put on your equipment in the same order.

Warm up the same way.

Take the same route through your pregame preparation.

Nutrition can become part of that structure too.

Mike noted that retired NHL players can often remember exactly what they ate before games. Some players used the same meal again and again.

Why?

Part of it is physical preparation.

But routine also simplifies things mentally.

When you already know what you’re eating and when you’re eating it, that becomes one fewer decision to make on game day.

Instead of wondering what food is available or whether you’ll be hungry before the game, you have a plan.

Young athletes can begin practicing that type of preparation now.

It might be as simple as knowing what snack you normally bring before practice or helping your family plan food ahead of a tournament weekend.

Healthy Eating Is a Habit

One of Lee’s biggest messages to young players was that eating habits are exactly that:

habits.

And habits become easier to maintain when you practice them consistently.

If your normal routine is always grabbing whatever is fastest, changing that pattern later can be difficult.

That doesn’t mean you can never eat fast food or have dessert.

The larger lesson is about what becomes normal.

If fruit, yogurt, wraps, oatmeal, water, and other useful foods are regularly available, those choices start to feel normal too.

Young players have an advantage here.

You have time to build these habits.

You don’t have to wait until you’re trying to make a varsity team, play junior hockey, or compete in college to start paying attention to nutrition.

You can begin now.

Kids Can Learn to Cook Too

Hockey players are constantly asked to become more independent.

Pack your equipment.

Remember your water bottle.

Get yourself dressed.

Listen to your coach.

Take responsibility for your development.

Lee encouraged kids to extend that independence into the kitchen.

Young players can learn how to cook and prepare food.

You might not be making an elaborate dinner by yourself tomorrow.

That isn’t necessary.

Start by helping.

Learn how your meals are made.

Prepare a snack.

Help wash or cut ingredients with appropriate supervision.

Make a sandwich or wrap.

Learn how to prepare oatmeal.

Help blend a smoothie.

The more involved you become, the more comfortable food preparation can feel.

It also turns nutrition from something your parents do for you into something you can participate in yourself.

That’s an important life skill whether hockey takes you to college, the pros, beer league, or anywhere else.

Better Food Can Also Be Budget-Friendly

One misconception families sometimes face is that healthier eating always costs more.

The episode challenged that idea.

Lee discussed how certain simple foods prepared at home can cost less than regularly buying individual fast-food meals.

That matters for hockey families.

Hockey already comes with expenses.

Equipment.

Registration.

Travel.

Tournaments.

Hotels.

Gas.

Meals on the road.

Finding foods that are affordable, easy to prepare, and useful for athletes can help both performance and the family budget.

Again, the answer doesn’t have to be complicated.

Simple ingredients and some planning can go a long way.

Picky Eaters: Try One New Thing

Some young athletes hear the phrase “healthy food” and immediately think:

“I’m not going to like that.”

The hosts understand that picky eating can be difficult.

Their challenge was simple:

Try something new.

And just as importantly, don’t decide you hate it before you taste it.

Your expectations can shape the experience.

If you spend ten minutes telling yourself that a food is going to be terrible, you’re probably not giving it much of a chance.

Instead, be curious.

Maybe you won’t like everything.

That’s fine.

The goal isn’t to love every healthy food on Earth.

The goal is to discover a few more options that work for you.

Try a different fruit.

A different wrap.

A smoothie combination.

A new way of preparing something you already know.

One new food at a time can slowly expand your choices.

Make It a Family Effort

Nutrition is much easier when young players aren’t trying to change everything alone.

Christie encouraged kids to talk to their parents and say:

“I want to start eating better. Can we figure this out together?”

That conversation can make a big difference.

Families can plan snacks together.

Players can help choose foods at the grocery store.

Kids can participate in meal preparation.

Parents can make grab-and-go options easier to find.

Everyone benefits from having a plan.

And the idea can extend beyond the family.

Christie also suggested sharing healthy ideas with teammates.

If a group of players starts bringing useful snacks and making good choices together, better habits can feel normal instead of unusual.

Team culture doesn’t only exist in the locker room.

Sometimes it can start with what everybody is bringing to the rink.

Pay Attention to How You Feel Late in Games

One of the easiest ways for young players to understand nutrition is by paying attention to performance.

Think about the third period.

Are you still moving your feet?

Can you concentrate?

Do you have energy?

Are you struggling more than usual?

There are many reasons a player may feel tired, and food alone doesn’t explain everything.

But the episode encourages kids to become aware of how preparation connects with performance.

That includes sleep.

Hydration.

Training.

And nutrition.

When you start building better habits in all of those areas, you give yourself a stronger foundation for hockey.

You Don’t Need to Be Perfect—Just More Intentional

Young hockey players do not need to become nutrition experts.

You don’t need a perfect diet.

You don’t need to panic every time you eat something just because it isn’t the healthiest option possible.

What you can do is become more intentional.

Plan ahead when you can.

Eat foods that help you feel energized.

Learn a few simple snacks.

Help your family prepare meals.

Try new things.

Build routines.

Pay attention to how different choices make you feel.

Those are skills you can use for the rest of your life.

And if better preparation helps you hit the third period with a little more energy?

That’s a pretty good bonus.

🎧 Listen to the full episode of The Ride to The Rink for more kid-friendly advice on nutrition, hockey habits, and preparing yourself to play your best.

Then take the episode’s challenge: try one new food this week.

Keep learning, keep fueling, and keep enjoying every mile of your hockey journey.