“Healthy Nutrition helps to build many strong foundations in Special Olympics Athletes. Not only will it help to fuel physical activity and sport, but sound nutrition contributes to a healthy body weight, optimal growth and development and disease prevention.”

Feeding yourself is more than just putting food on the table; it is about making healthy decisions at the grocery store, eating the appropriate food throughout the day, and making the right choices towards a lifestyle of healthy eating.

Special Olympics Canada recognizes the importance of good nutrition in supporting you, the athlete, both on the field of play and in your daily life. For this reason, Special Olympics Canada has produced a nutrition guide that can give athletes the energy to participate fully in our programs, while developing strong, healthy eating habits for a lifetime of activity.

To accomplish the goal of developing guidelines and support for a healthy lifestyle, Special Olympics Canada has worked with a registered dietitian to create this online nutrition guide. This guide will equip athletes , with nutritional information and easy recipes for breakfast, lunch, dinner, and snacks, while incorporating fun activities that will help athletes develop a love for healthy food.

Jennifer Gibson, a registered dietitian, has worked with a number of sport organizations, providing nutritional advice and guidance to athletes from Canada’s Women’s Soccer team, Canada Snowboarding, and Softball Canada. Whether it’s a “Breakfast Frittata” or “Crunchy Fish Burgers”, Jennifer has drawn on her experience, offering resources and recipes that are simple to make while providing the energy an athlete needs. We are pleased to have collaborated with Jennifer on this guide.

We realize the importance of providing our athletes with the best nutrition information so they can learn and practice the skills required by the sport programs. We hope that our Online Athlete Nutrition Guide is a useful tool to help keep you active for life!

Special Olympics Canada Online Athletes Nutrition Guide - Developing Healthy Eating For Life!

The Special Olympics Canada Online Athletes Nutrition Guide is a resource for athletes, coaches, parents, teachers, and caregivers. The purpose of this guide is to help athletes build a foundation of healthy eating skills that complement the physical activity skills developed in their Special Olympics sport programs.

The Online Athletes Nutrition Guide includes:

• Healthy nutrition guidelines for athletes with an intellectual disability
• Interactive healthy eating activities for athletes 
• Easy and nutritious recipes
• Nutrition resources and references

Working hand in hand, a healthy diet and physical activity are truly a winning combination!