My first thought was nuts, walnuts occurred Further thought is banana is always good, so maybe work on a variation of banana bread. Starting with subbing half oats for flour, add tons of nuts. Maybe even make a sandwich with the banana bread with some nut butter on it and sliced banana?

I used to have a yogurt after school and before dance classes from 4-6pm. Mostly more important to stay hydrated than to eat. Getting overly thirsty can reduce energy. For that, water is best.

I was going to say nuts...maybe something like granola or gorp...protein is important...maybe string cheese and carrot sticks...

I was astonished at the footage devoted to energy bars at my chain grocery store. Something for everyone there. An energy bar and an apple might work. Or those big Snyder's pretzels. That's a tough schedule.

All the usual things that could survive a day of punishment without refrigeration: nuts, pretzels, granola bars, bananas, apples, oranges, candy bars, mini cheese packs, peanutbutter & crackers, and beef jerky come to mind.

I don't think I'd want to eat yogurt or string cheese after it sitting in a warm locker all day...

So I'd look for something like these. the only ones I've tried are the Square bars and they are Yummy!

Here is a link that might be useful: High protein organic energy bars

Back in the day, ballerinas lived on honey and cigarettes. :) Tap dancers lived it up on burritos and Diet Coke. Not a healthy diet, but then most retire by age 30. You didn't say what kind of dance. Hiphop, for instance, probably requires more sugar than ballet, though guys in ballet do get to do some explosive movements as well.

Trail mix can be very well balanced, with protein, fats and sugar, but still real food. Trader Joe's has excellent choices. It's also good for eating on the go.

The PopSome dispensers from Vacu Vin, or something similar, are a good way to not dribble all over the street.

I've found the formula for making protein bars, in this blog, useful.

If he is doing something explosive and highly sweaty, more Lindy Hop than tango, energy drinks are a good idea. There are more natural alternatives to Gatorade, with the sugar and electrolytes but not the dayglo colors.

GoGurt advertise that you put them in the freezer and they're thawed by lunch time. Put one in an insulated envelope and it should be good after school. It's Yoplait yoghurt that squeezes out of a tube like energy gel, but it has protein as well as sugar.

For even more protein, how about something like diced, grilled chicken? It can also be eaten with fingers, or have a travel container of some kind of sauce if there's time to sit and eat it with a fork. This could be done with any kind of meat, though chicken is lighter in the tum during jumps. The moister it is, the more appetizing it will be, so maybe poached would be better than grilled. Individual cans of tuna can be good too, with a little lemon juice and pepper. Mayo is lead before dancing, however.

Look in the Asian snack foods for things like bonito snacks. Em..but be careful on the flavors, and the tuna too, or his partners won't be happy with him.

Any kind of fresh fruit is good, but not enough. He needs more than sugar.

The chicken or tuna is probably the best for between school and class. Protein that isn't made leaden with fat. Then the sugary things to get through the hours.

The higher end tuna in olive oil and a can opener in the backpack is great for more protein. I ate that straight from the can today and it was so much better that the "known" brands. If he can handle canned oysters, they're a favorite of mine for zinc.

I also thought of nuts, granola, peanut butter, fruit, pretzels. Protein and carbs for sustainability, as well as real food with other vitamins/minerals.

Thanks for all the ideas!

I got to thinking that sufficient and appropriate snacks is a problem that all the kids in his class (about 20?) must have. Looking at Costco, things like yoghurt cups, GoGurts, chewy bars, are around $12-18 for 24#-48# and fresh fruit is inexpensive in quantity. I wonder if I could organize the parents to take turns providing snacks.

I also learned that there is a refrigerator at the studio. Which suggests that I could provide him with snacks that don't need to survive a day in his bag - we could keep them at the studio (probably - need to ask).

I feel badly that I didn't think about this problem before. He was very active for the first half of the summer, then was more or less a couch potato for the second half. School started and he launched into riding his bike with a heavy book bag 5 miles to school, a full day of classes, after school dance, then riding home and eating dinner late. Without any consistent nutrition from 1 pm until dinner around 7-8 pm, no wonder he's tired.

Plllog, it is several sorts of dance - modern/jazz, ballet, hip-hop, some African. They are doing "conditioning" sessions too - core strength, etc.

One of my sons uses Cliff bars when his schedule doesn't allow a meal or he needs something extra on the go. He gets protein (helps the energy last longer) and more nutrition than just energy. The other son used packets of peanuts or cashews (we bought boxes of those single serving sleeves at Costco or Sam's) for his long days (he would leave the house at 6:30 pm and sometimes not get home until 10 pm with combinations of marching band, choir, show choir, musical rehearsals -- I understand the challenge).

Peanut butter and cracker sandwiches (you can buy them made or make them yourself and control what's in them -- there are individual serving tubs of peanut butter too, but I'm understanding that he needs something he can eat on the move or at least not have to sit down and fuss with), pretzels (esp with PB or cheese), granola bars, string cheese and occasionally trail mix.

Tortillas make a good wrap if you can keep what's inside cool or if it's non-perishable enough. Certain fruits keep well, transport and help maintain hydration, but they would be harder to eat on the run or get enough of to be filling.

Gatorade or an energy drink might also help provide both energy and maintain hydration -- and lots of water.

Based on the releases of bodily gasses from both ends of some teen boys we've been around after they ate jerky and Slim Jims, I am not going to recommend those. YMMV, but that brings back memories.....LOL

Banding together with the other parents is a great idea, so long as they're going to be responsible about it. Maybe there should always be gels and trail mix in the backpack just in case.

The conditioning is the worst. Your son needs protein. Lots of it. Protein bars. Protein shakes. Meat. Quinoa nut butter bean dip. Protein! Some fat and sugar, plenty of vegetables, probably a multi-vitamin to pick up the slack, but protein. The whole point of conditioning class is to create a lot of long lean muscle mass for power and explosiveness. They may also be doing breath conditioning, which helps getting through a show without puffing and minimizing lactosis (I can't hear Pineapple Rag without breathing hard to this day!). Even more than the snack duty, you might want to get the parents to get together with a sports nutritionist to learn how to best support the kids. The multiple disciplines are a good hedge against injury, but if they're doing all that, they desperately need to be well fed. That will help a lot with injury prevention.

African and especially hiphop are constant movement and might need more sugar. The traditional disciplines are all core strength and extension. Tricks, especially boy tricks, and partner work in any of them, require power. Muscles need protein.

Give that boy a chicken!

I feel so guilty that I have gotten up at 7 am to make him a big breakfast omelette with chicken! Today we'll go to the store and buy a sampling of snack things, he can test them out next week before I start buying or making in bulk. I'll check with the studio about stocking snacks in their refrigerator and what they'd permit the kids to bring. I'm also going to check with some other parents to see how they are handling this.

I agree with plllog, it's about the protein.

My 42-year old daughter loves this recipe for Recovery Rice Krispies she found at livestrong.com. She adds chia seeds (whole or milled in a coffee/spice mill) to it so she has more stamina and endurance for long mountain biking runs, and uses a crisp brown rice cereal, not Rice Krispies. She is a workout dynamo and wouldn't be without chia seeds. She adds them to pre-workout food and drinks. According to "The Magic of CHIA" - by James F. Scheer, Native American tribesmen would fill a pouch with chia seeds, often the only food taken, along with a gourd with water, and running for days, covering 300 rugged miles along the Mojave Trail from Needles through the Cajon Pass to the California coast. We always add chia seeds and/or whey to our water when we work out or do a lot of strenuous yard work. -Grainlady

RECOVERY RICE KRISPIES:
1-1/2 cups Rice Krispies cereal
1-1/2 tbsp. honey
2 tbsp. reduced fat butter
1/2 cup oatmeal
1/2 tsp. vanilla extract
2 scoops vanilla protein powder

DIRECTIONS: Preheat oven to 325 F. Lightly coat a 9x9 baking pan with cooking spray. Mix all the ingredients together in a large bowl, then scoop onto the baking pan. Bake for 10-15 minutes or until the mixture is crisp.

When our son played competitive soccer parents took turns providing these bars. Recipe from one of the local grocery (Hy-Vee) stores. I have used reg, oats with no problem in them.

Serves 16.
Source: Hy-Vee Seasons Health 2011, Hy-Vee HealthMarket, October 2011.

All you need:

2 c. Hy-Vee quick oats
1 c. natural peanut butter (creamy or chunky)
1 c. Hy-Vee honey
1 c. dark chocolate chips
1 c. Hy-Vee dried cranberries
1 c. milled flaxseed
1 c. vanilla whey protein powder

All you do:

Mix all ingredients together and stir until blended. Spread mixture into a 8-by-8-inch pan and refrigerate until ready to serve. Store in refrigerator for 1 to 2 weeks.

Nutrition information per serving:
Calories: 340
Carbohydrate: 45g
Cholesterol: 5mg
Dietary Fiber: 5g
Fat: 16g
Protein: 10g
Saturated Fat: 4.5g
Sodium: 70mg
Sugar: 31g
Trans fats: 0g

Daily nutritional values:
0% vitamin A
2% vitamin C
4% calcium
6% iron

Would he eat hard boiled eggs? Kept with a frozen ice pack? Would it be possible to load up a bunch of refrigerated food and drop it off at the studio a few times a week?
Just another thought. What about a dorm fridge for about $100 kept at the studio-maybe shared with other kids-oh I do see the problem there-calling him a prima donna?

He's a great, gorgeous kid, John. Both of them are huge blessings

No one's mentioned hardboiled eggs yet.

I'm big on the protein snacks. You can make a lot of hummus and freeze it in those little round plastic containers in individual serving sizes. That and baby carrots is a favorite of mine. Also they sell tiny cans of tuna with pop tops. I save packets of mayo and sweet pickle relish to make quickie tuna salad with that. I lived on granola bars, gorp, crackers and cheese or pb and "Revive" when I was working out in the field all day in the 90+ degree heat. Hard boiled eggs and yogurt are good if they have a fridge, I often took that for lunch.

The Rice Krispie idea above also reminded me of a recipe I saw in a discussion about a gluten free, vegan snack. It was a peanut butter based Rice Krispie bar. I add things to mine all the time -- nuts, coconut, dried cranberries, dried apricots, chocolate chips, etc.

Also, you may not want to rely on cookies, but there are a number of heartier cookies that could add some variety to his routine or an extra snack in addition to the sides of beef, etc. (JK -- my DH used to say we were going to put the boys in a pit and throw them sides of beef) -- ones with nuts, nut butter, oats and other grains, coconut. I'm thinking of ones called Monster Cookies, Ranger cookies, Breakfast cookies, Carrot or Zucchini Cookies. My grandmother made cookies my mom just called Crispy cookies made with Rice Krispies, oatmeal and coconut. I'd be lying if I told you I'd never grabbed a couple with some juice or coffee and called it breakfast when there wasn't time to fix anything.

Muffins too. I've seen bacon and cheese muffins, pepperoni pizza muffins. Slices of banana bread, zucchini bread -- spread with cream cheese?

In addition to the protein bars/snacks, I would recommend adding some dried fruit. I easily find Medjool dates from local date farms in the markets here, and I expect that they make it to Oregon as well. The really fresh ones are soft and very tasty.

I find a good selection of dried fruits at a Thai market that I go, and my favorite is mango, but I also like dried jackfruit, even though I am not crazy about fresh or canned jackfruit.

Also recommended (although not as much) are dried cranberries, dried cherries, coconut, and raisins. I don't particularly like dried figs because the fresh ones are so much better, but they are not bad. I do not like prunes at all, however, nor do I like dried apricots. I will eat dried apples, but they are not one of my favorites.

I keep dried fruits at my desk at work, and I find that a date makes a very good mid-afternoon snack and does not have salt, which I try to avoid.

Lars

Both the girls liked these when they were playing basketball or running track, they were portable and I changed them endlessly, depending on what dried fruits or nuts I had on hand. I usually used maple syrup, because that's what I had. I didn't have a food processor then, so I did it in batches in the blender.

Energy Bars

Calories: 105.2
Fat: 1.7g
Carbohydrates: 19.9g
Protein: 3.8g

1 cup quick cooking rolled oats
1/4 cup raw unsalted sunflower seeds
14 cup flax seeds, ground
1/2 cup toasted wheat germ
1/4 cup whole-wheat pastry flour
1/2 cup dried apricots
1/2 cup raw almonds
1/2 cup dried cherries
1/2 cup pitted dried dates
1/2 cup powdered nonfat dry milk
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/3 cup honey or maple syrup or agave syrup
1/2 cup egg whites

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Coat a 9 by 13-inch baking pan with cooking spray or use a non-stick pan.

Place all ingredients except the agave nectar and egg whites in a food processor and pulse until the mixture is finely chopped. Add the syrup and eggs and pulse until the mixture is well combined. It will resemble a coarse paste.

Transfer to the baking pan and spread evenly. Bake until just done, about 20 minutes. Cut into 20 squares.

I also made homemade trail mix, because I could use the ingredients the kids liked. Mine usually had sunflower seeds, peanuts, M&Ms, raisins or dried cherries, dried pineapple, whatever else we had that sounded good.

At that time my ex and I owned the health food store, so we often added whey protein powder to various bars and snacks, although I could never stand the stuff, or the premade bars. I can only hope those have improved over the years.

Good luck, I do hope you can get use of the refrigerator, that would make things much simpler. If you can get other parents on board, double bonus.

Dancing is hard work, he definitely needs fuel.

Annie

We like the Organic Raw Cacao Goji Energy Squares at nuts.com.

Thanks for the recipes! I'll try making some.

He likes hard boiled egg whites but not egg yolks.

I think I need to also start making beef jerky again.

Dancing is indeed hard work, plus the daily bike commuting. I have been bike commuting so long, I forgot how tiring it is when you first start doing it, before your bike muscles are built up.

He also takes a circuitous route home from dance. I showed him a good biking route home from school, and he has been using that route home from dance even though there is a more direct route. I rode with him to the studio on Saturday to show him the direct route, then went to the office until it was time to ride home with him. He was so hungry that we stopped at a fast food place to get him food (we go to McDonalds like 3X year, but I felt this was a pressing need).

I calculated that he is burning something like 8,000-10,000 calories a week from dance and biking, on top of what he burns just being a 15 y/o boy. I definitely have not been providing him with enough food at the necessary times.

John, don't beat yourself up. Lots of parents go through this. Little kids will run run run until they're overtired, but they'll just sit down, and/or cry, if they're tired or hungry. Then, when they become adolescents, they get the determination to finish whatever it is and start ignoring the tired and hungry sensations. They don't even realize that they're growing and doing more challenging things and need more food. You're doing great. You noticed the new pattern after a really short time. And applied omelette to it. :)

Think of the biking as warm up and warm down time. :) Not to mention that it's great for core strength. ;)

Also, since your son is at furnace level, it's only the quality that you have to worry about with the fast food. The contents, including the salt, are just fuel for him. Tap dancers eat burritos for a reason. :) They're too heavy right before class, but they're kind of ideal, especially if there's a generous portion of meat, in terms of fuel. :) Maybe better with olive oil rather than animal fat, but the fat's good too. Hamburgers, too, have it all. With veg and fruit on the side, of course.

Since he likes eggwhites, why not make some eggwhite omelettes and freeze them? Use them as sandwich decor. I've been told (I don't like PB so don't know first hand), that peanut butter and eggwhite on toast is good. :) Also, bump up the protein in a salad of any kind with chopped hard boiled eggwhites.

Another thing you can do is take a good look at his routes to the studio and home and see if there are places where he can grab some quick refueling that have better quality ingredients than chain fast food. If you find a good one, you might even be able to set up a house account for your son so he can sign and dash.

Also, have good late evening things to chow down on. It's not necessarily the best habit, but sometimes after that much activity it takes a couple of hours to really get an appetite back.

One more thing. While you're working so hard to shove enough food into your son, it's also a good idea to teach him to be mindful of his intake. To track what he's eating and how it makes him feel, and how well he's hitting his nutritional goals. Then also to have goals for during the season, and also for while he's vegging out. Those veg out times, like he had this Summer are really important, but more than a week without the kind of output he does while he's in class, and on the bike, means he should be paring down his intake goals. If he learns all this now, later on, when he's no longer on hungry boy burn and constant athletic work, he'll be able to adapt to changing metabolic needs more easily.

johnliu-

You can make hard cooked egg whites using liquid egg whites from a carton and "Eggies". Works like a charm! If you check Amazon, you can buy a box of 6 "Eggies" for 90-cents.

I've also used silicon muffin cups (mini- and regular-size) floating in boiling water (5-6 minutes - or until set - depending on how full you fill them) - which is essentially what the "Eggies" do, if you don't mind them not being egg-shaped. I also have silicon cups for making poached eggs, but I only have two of them, but I've also made hard cooked egg whites in them as well. I occasionally finish up a carton of liquid egg whites this way (you can use as little as 2 T. of liquid egg whites for one "Eggie") and use them any way I would use a hard cooked whole egg.

It's also how I make hard cooked eggs with reconstituted powdered whole eggs (whites and yolks). In that case, they are all yellow, but can be used anywhere you would use a hard cooked whole egg - and both can be used cubed, sliced, grated - on a green salad, potato salad, as a garnish, mashed for egg salad......

-Grainlady

Here is a link that might be useful: Amazon.com - Eggies

I'm not one to eat protein/energy bars but I do like Clif bars for those times when I need a snack on the road (the fudge brownie is darn good). Nuts or some kind of trail mix are other great choices. None require any refrigeration and can certainly be kept in a backpack for several days or even a week.

I noticed these at my food co-op yesterday. They do have to be refrigerated, but maybe could work in a cold bag with blue ice. Or in the refer at dance studio. They have lots of high protein choices and they are calorie dense, quick to consume and tasty.

Here is a link that might be useful: Odwalla protein drinks

I had a sample of an Aussie Bite at Costco this morning -- very good.

Here's a homemade vegan version, too. But it's awfully easy to just get a pack at Costco!

Here is a link that might be useful: Aussie bites.

I calculated that he is burning something like 8,000-10,000 calories a week from dance and biking, on top of what he burns just being a 15 y/o boy. I definitely have not been providing him with enough food at the necessary times.

My way of coping with that much calorie burn was to drink Carnation's Instant Breakfast as a milkshake with Ice cream when I got home from judo. It was super high calorie, but not a heavy meal that kept me from sleeping.

If he has enough stored fat, he only needs a bit of glucose to mobilize it into energy for use during class. A series of light snacks to keep his blood sugar up - but not so sweet that he gets a sugar rush followed by a blood sugar crash - should do it. Complex (non-sugar) carbs that will be digested a bit more slowly, evening out the blood sugar.

Oatmeal-raisin cookies (the original energy bars!)

You don't have to meet nutritional needs continually, your body has a "slush fund" of amino acids, fats and glycogen to use when demand is high. That 3-egg omelette he had for breakfast is still available at 7PM.

===========
According to "The Magic of CHIA" - by James F. Scheer, Native American tribesmen would fill a pouch with chia seeds, often the only food taken, along with a gourd with water, and running for days, covering 300 rugged miles along the Mojave Trail from Needles through the Cajon Pass to the California coast.

Unlikely, because chia wasn't cultivated in that area. (term paper for College Anthro on the crops of the pre-Columbian Mohave villages.

It's the last thing a runner would want to be eating exclusively because it soaks up water, turns to a slimy gel and has laxative properties if eaten to excess.

I wonder about chia. We have a bag of it here somewhere. For awhile daughter had me putting chia in my tea and so on. I didn't notice any particular effect. What am / was I missing?

What about the bottled meal replacements like Ensure or even SlimFast or the Atkins drinks? Even though they are supposed to be for weight loss they still will give him a protein boost and are sure easy to gulp down while going to and fro. Just a thought.
Edie

I've taken to eating raw seeds as a snack. They have substance, and are easier on the digestion than nuts. It happened accidentally. I was just looking for something to nibble and took a few sunflower seeds. I have raw shelled sunflower seeds for baking. They were okay. So were the pepitas. Much better when I mixed a pinch of each. So, next time I put a pinch of everything that was out in a cup: Sunflower seeds, pepitas, hemp hearts, and flax seeds, with two pinches of plain raw rolled oats for sweetness (they're amazingly sweet if you don't eat a lot of sugar) and a pinch of sweetened cocoa nibs for crunch and a zing of flavor (raw would be good, but the sweetened were on the counter). Really yummy, and no need to prepare anything, or worry about it going off. :)

I haven't tried chia in the mix, though. Chia seeds are supposed to be more digestible than flaxseeds. Both chia and flaxseeds make goo when wet and make good egg substitutes in vegan baking. They're supposed to have a lot of minerals and antioxidants. Like hemp and quinoa (both also seeds), chia is said to have a "complete" protein, but it's a seed, so there's twice as much fat as protein, and nearly three times as much carbohydrate. That is, the protein is very good protein, but it's a well rounded nutrition source, not a protein, per se. Chia has also been associated with anti-inflamatory properties, which may just be because it has a lot of fiber.

In other words, seeds are good nutrition. And can be yummy. Chia seeds are good, particularly nutritious seeds. And you can smear them, wet, on funky clay sculptures and watch the sprouts grow. :) But that's about it.

If he's got room in that backpack for a chill pack, any protein rich food tucked into a wrap would be fast and easy to eat, and wouldn't be messy, either. Egg salad (made only with the whites) or chicken with walnuts, or sliced leftovers from last night's dinner--many things can be good in a wrap. When my daughter was younger, I'd pack crackers and cheese slices/sticks for her. Now she packs her own snacks--but cheese is still often on the menu, as are boiled egg whites. (No yolks for her, either). Everyone is different--I don't care for something sweet when I'm wanting an energy boost, so my ideas run to savory items.

You've got a lot of great ideas here, I hope some of them appeal to your son.

Cj

plllog-

If you soak nuts and pepitas (pumpkin seeds) in lightly salted water 12-24 hours and dehydrate them until they are crispy dry, they are easier to digest and you increase the nutrients. For more information check out "Nourishing Traditions" by Sally Fallon and Mary G. Enig, Ph.D. I use this method with all nuts and peanuts we consume because it germinates the nuts which increases the enzyme activity. Another way to offset difficulty digesting large quantities of nuts is to take an enzyme supplement to neutralize the enzyme inhibitors. I also stick to sprouted and dehydrated sunflower seeds for the same reason. You can purchase sprouted seeds from Nuts.com or goraw.com, but I make my own.

Here are some tasty ways to consume chia seeds.

CHAI CHIA PUDDING
2 c. boiling water
2 Chai tea bags
3 T. chia seeds
small amount of milk of choice (cow, goat, nut milk)
sweetener of choice (to taste)

Steep tea bags in boiled water for 15-minutes. Remove bags and add sweetener and a small amount of milk to "lighten" the mixture. Add chia seeds, mix well. Let sit for 5-minutes and mix again. Refrigerate overnight.

-Chia gel works in hot or cold beverages Add it to 100% fruit juice beverages, coconut water, etc.

WATERMELON CHIA SLUSHY
(source: "Chia Seed Remedies"
2 c. watermelon chunks
1 T. dry chia
1/2 c. crushed ice
squirt of lime juice
Sparkling water or seltzer
In your blender, plus or chop the watermelon chunks. Be careful not to reduce it to liquid. Add the chia to hydrate and wait about 10-minutes. Add a squirt of lime juice, the crushed ice, and your amount of sparkling water. Pulse once to combine. Now you're ready to pour a glass of sweet, cool, refreshment.

-I add chia seeds to my homemade popcicles. homemade tortillas, homemade pudding, granola......

CHIA COCONUT PUDDING (1 serving)
1-2 T. chia seeds (I like to use white chia seeds in this recipe)
1 T. coconut milk powder (Wilderness Family Naturals)
1 c. water
Grind seeds or use whole (I grind them). Mix milk powder and water and heat to boiling point. Whisk seeds into liquid. Whisk again after a few minutes. Serve hot or cold with a drizzle of honey.

-Add 2 T. chia seeds along with bread crumbs per 1-pound of ground meat when making meatballs or meatloaf.

I use 3 to 5 pounds of chia seeds each year.

-Grainlady

I add a couple tablespoons each chia seeds and sunflower seeds to yogurt or cereal with fruit for breakfast. Good source of protein. I rotate those choices with eggs on sourdough.

This time of year, almond butter and apples make a great combination of protein and fruit energy. (The butter is easier to eat quickly than the plain nuts). They also transport well in a backpack. For those times you can't make homemade snacks people have suggested, I am a fan of the NuGo products at Costco. The chocolate mint is sinful and full of protein (non GMO and gluten free, but do contain soy and agave -- but still probably better than goo).

I remember being starved and weak after the end of gymnastics practice. Keeping the weight up was a challenge. Your are doing fine by him.

This post was edited by gooster on Thu, Oct 16, 14 at 14:46