Already lauded for his world-class training habits, Phoenix Suns point guard Steve Nash has become renowned for yet another area of his health… his diet.
太陽隊的 Nash 已經以世界級的訓練聞名，他現在還有另一方面為人津津樂道，他的飲食 。
Towards the end of last season, subtle rumblings began to emanate out the Suns' locker room about the mysterious “Nash Diet.” Already well-known for being ultra-progressive with his training regimen, one would surmise that Nash's approach to his eating habits would be just as complex and interesting.
Athletes, and people for that matter, are always looking for the “next” great solution when it comes to regulating their diet: whether it's Atkins, South Beach to macrobiotics. Once word spread that the two-time MVP's diet had found disciples in Grant Hill, Shaquille O'Neal and Jared Dudley, it became apparent that a closer examination was needed.
運動員永遠都在追求下一個更棒的飲食規範，無論是 Atkins(食肉減肥法)或是 South Beach。當兩次MVP得主的營養餐的信徒已經擴張到 Grant Hill, Shaquille O'Neal and Jared Dudley，我們需要更近的觀察這倒底有什麼奧秘。
However, once Nash was pressed to reveal his secrets, it turned out that the wizard behind the curtain was just someone who's performed a great deal of intelligent research. There was no cure-all, panacea or quick-fix in his approach.
He's not boycotting carbs or eating only protein. The six-time All-Star just tries to make the best choices out of what he has available at the time and proactively plan for moments in the day when his choices are limited.
他不是拒吃澱粉或是只吃蛋白質，這個入選六次明星賽的球員只是有選項時做更好選擇， 無選項時事先預防。
Nash isn't counting calories, following a schedule or cooking out of a textbook, he is just abiding by some core principles. The first and foremost is that he tries to eat organically as much as possible.
“I'm not perfect but I try to eat healthy, and I try to eat as much natural stuff from the earth as I can,” he said. “I stay away from all the processed foods, as well as pastas, rice and breads.”
The core of his diet consists of fruits, vegetables, raw nuts, chicken and fish. He also supplements by taking vitamins that you can find at any supermar\
ket.
他營養餐的中心是水果、青菜、原味堅果、雞跟魚。他也隨時以超市都買得到的維他命補 充其他養分。
A typical breakfast for the team's playmaker would be wheat-free cereal with non-dairy milk (almond milk), while lunch and dinner would be a chicken or fish salad. In between meals, one can always find Nash snacking on fruits, raw nuts and natural energy bars.
Nash 早餐吃無麥穀片，無乳奶品 (杏仁奶)。（TK註：Nash 不吃麥不是因為麥不營養， 而是因為他的檢測報告顯示他對麥類敏感，為了維持運動員身體的良好狀態，他需要盡量 避免過敏源）早餐跟晚餐吃雞肉或是魚肉沙拉。餐與餐中間，你隨時都可以看到他在吃水 果、原味堅果跟天然 energy bars。（TK註：這是一種雜糧棒，美國廠牌的 Nature Valley 算是這個領域聞名的佼佼者，只是 Nash 應該是吃無糖的，這種口味蠻不好找的 ）
It seems that Nash's diet is as much as what he eats as what he doesn't eat. Before practice the rookies always bring doughnuts for the veterans, but Nash never partakes. After games, there is a huge spread of food laid out for the players, but he rarely eats any of it.
Those habits are what caught the eye of Suns swingman Jared Dudley. Whenever the team was flying on the franchise's charter plane, Nash would almost always pass on the food prepared and order a salad. In addition, Dudley would overhear Hill and Nash discussing different nutritional strategies and he figured he'd seek out some pointers from the two co-captains. After losing 10 pounds, the third-year man officially became a convert.
這特殊的習慣被眼睛尖的 Jared Dudley 發現了。當球隊在搭乘隊上的私人客機時， Nash 幾乎都會跳過飛機餐，另點沙拉。另外 Dudley 還偶然聽到(根本是耳朵撐大大 的在偷聽) Hill 跟 Nash 討論說各種不同飲食策略。他決定他跟這兩位隊長討教個兩招
。
在瘦個十磅後，他就正式的也成了信徒。
“You ask them for hints and you try to use those tips because you see the ways your body reacts after you junk food,” Dudley said. “Those guys have played 13, 14 years and a lot of that has to do with God-given ability, but you see Steve and somehow his body is in shape and you know that if he just ate junk every day, I bet you he wouldn't be the player he is now.”
『你問他們些訣竅然後貫徹了這些理念，是因為你看到你身體在吃過這些垃圾食物後的反 應。』Dudley 說：『這些人都打了13、14年了，這很多是天賜的才能，但你看看 Steve 是怎麼樣的保持身體在最佳狀況，而你知道說他如果每天吃垃圾食物，那我跟你賭說，他 不會是他今天這樣的球員。』
For Nash, his interest in eating correctly harkens back to when he was a junior in college. Although he had the temptation of an all-you-can-eat buffet at his college cafeteria, the Santa Clara product first began making alterations to his diet in order to increase his performance on the basketball court.
以 Nash 來說，他對於吃的講究從大二就開始了。雖然說他對大學餐廳的吃到飽也是覺得 深受引誘，Santa Clara 人先開始對他的飲食改變來增加他場上的表現。
“It's really just a natural evolution of my interest in being the best athlete I can be and being a healthful person who prevents injury and illness \
and
can perform at my highest level,” he stated on his Facebook page.
“I feel there are two areas of life that are greatly overlooked, misund erstood or not credited with their importance in our ability to reach our opti\
mal
levels of performance and also our greatest quality of everyday life… diet and sleep.”
『我覺得生命裡有兩項是常常被世人給忽略、誤會或是不夠理解這對於生活提升的重要性 ─飲食跟睡眠。』
Dudley took those ideas to heart, trading in doughnuts, soda, Gatorade, fried foods and Lolo's Chicken and Waffles for Propel, baked foods and the organic restaurant, True Food Kitchen. For Dudley, the change in his diet was motivated by the lack of playing time he received after coming over in a trade from Charlotte in December.
Dudley 把這些牢記心中，繳出了甜甜圈、汽水、Gatorade、炸的食物、Lolo's Chicken and Waffles (鳳凰城的餐廳)，換到了 Propel(另一種運動飲料)，烤的食物跟有機餐廳 。Dudley 改變飲食的動力，是自從12月從 Charlotte 轉隊到太陽後，稀少的上場時間。
“I noticed the difference in my body and I don't get as sore and I can go a little bit longer,” Dudley said. “It's how you feel on the court. Sometimes you have it, sometimes you don't, but since I've been eating better, I have a lot more to give.”
“I'm trying to get to Grant's level, but I'll never get to Steve's,” he said. “I like too much stuff to be able to do what he does.”
『我正試圖達到 Hill 的境界，可是我永遠都不可能達到 Nash 的境界。』他說『這世上 還有太多我喜歡吃的食物。』
Dudley claims that if there was a percentage breakdown, Hill eats healthy 80 percent of the time, leaving 20 percent of his diet comprised of food that isn't being eaten for nutritional purposes. While that may be outstanding, he estimates Nash's ratio to be more like 95 percent healthy to five percent junk.
In fact, Nash is so gung-ho that he was tested by Dr. Suneil Jain, a naturopathic doctor, to see what type of food sensitivities he possesses. The 6-3 guard learned that he was sensitive to wheat, gluten, dairy, tomatoes and onions and returns regularly to the naturopath for IV's of vitamins and trace minerals that may be low from the wear-and-tear of the season.
Nash狂熱到他跑去給自然療法醫生 Dr. Suneil 檢查說，他到底對哪些食物敏感。六呎三 的後衛發現說他對麥、麵筋、奶、番茄、洋蔥敏感。他定時會回去醫生那打點滴，補充那 些在打球時所減少的維他命及礦物質。
Here as excerpt from Nash's Facebook page on what he will eat on a typical day:
這是 Nash 臉書上說他一天通常吃什麼：
Breakfast. It is the most important meal of the day.... along with lunch and dinner. I feel if your diet is consistent and well balanced (think long term rather than short term) it isn't so important what you eat right before you play or the night before because your energy levels and recovery will be on target from the quality of your previous three to seven days of meals.
-Gluten and wheat free cereal, sliced almonds and almond or rice milk. (If you don't have the sensitivities I have look for a high fiber cereal. At least 4 grams of fiber.) I will also have a whole fruit smoothie or an apple, banana or orange. Green tea.
Lunch. A salad with grilled chicken or fish, vegetables, raw nuts and dried fruit. I will also have fruit afterwards.
午餐 -- 有混烤雞或是魚的沙拉、蔬菜、原味堅果跟乾水果。我也會飯後吃水果。
Dinner. Grilled or baked fish or chicken with vegetables. Sometimes I'll have brown rice.
晚餐 -- 火烤或是烤過的魚跟雞、蔬菜。有時會吃糙米。
Again, plan ahead. If you get hungry between meals have a plan as to what foods you'll turn to and make sure you have plenty of them so your only options aren't will power or ice cream. My snack foods are, dried fruit, whole almonds or whole cashews. All natural, raw foods energy bars. Raw vegetables like carrots and celery. Whole fruit or whole fruit smoothies. It goes without saying drink water throughout the day to stay hydrated. If you feel like you need electrolytes coconut water has the highest concentration of electrolytes but if your diet is good you should have plenty of electrolytes.
If this diet sounds boring it can be if you don't like fruits, vegetables and grilled, steamed or baked chicken or fish. On the other hand there's so many healthful ways to prepare your food and there's tons of fruits and vegetables that offer you slightly different nutritional values and tastes. It may take a lot of discipline and time to train yourself to eat well but it's incredibly worthwhile for your short term and long term goals.
While Nash may be a little extreme, the Suns' trainers and strength and conditioning coaches just try to provide sound advice for athletes that are constantly traveling.
Nash 聽起來可能有點誇張，太陽的訓練力量和調節教練提供些給常在旅行的運動員建議 。
“You're not going to have an athlete getting on a plane looking at food labels and worrying about rationing what they put into their bodies,” former strength and conditioning coach Erik Phillips said. “You're trying to give really simple opportunities for these guys to know what's good and what's bad. We know that guys are going to leave the arena and get something on the way home, and we try to educate them on what's their best option.”
『你不會看到搭機的運動員上飛機，注意食物標籤，擔憂說吃進去了多少食物在身體裡』 前力量和調節教練 Erik Phillips 說『你試圖給些很簡單的機會讓這些人知道說哪些是好 的跟壞的，我們知道說你們會離開球場，在回家途中找些東西，而我們就教育他們說哪些是 你最好的選擇。』
If everyone was to follow Nash's example, they would eat around six small meals a day, or at least three major meals with a lot of snacking in between. Besides cutting out late-night meals, Nash always has healthy snacks with him so he's not fighting off hunger with junk food or willpower.
The 13-year veteran attempts to take a big-picture point of view towards his diet, concentrating on building consecutive weeks and months of good eating practices. By establishing that base, it's not as important what he eats right before a game because his body is feeding off of the energy he's stored from his previous seven meals.
As disciplined as both Hill and Nash are, they both cheat from time-to-time and believe in the principle of rewarding themselves in moderation. For example, Nash can be caught eating ice cream while Hill can be seen munching on a cookie on the team's charter.
雖然 Hill 跟 Nash 都同樣的擁有強大的意志力，他們偶而會作弊，相信著說偶爾給點獎 賞給自己。譬如說 Nash 有時會在飛機上被人發現吃冰淇淋，而 Hill 會被發現吃餅乾。
While Hill only drinks water and tea, he insists that every person find a strategy that works for them. When Hill and Nash went to eat the exact same pregame meal at a local organic restaurant together, Hill told Nash after the game that he was completely sapped of energy while he was playing. Unfortunately for Hill, Nash failed to tell his fellow co-captain that in order to ascertain a much-needed energy boost, he snacked on a few other items before tip-off.
Due to health problems and his drive to succeed, Hill has been tinkering with his diet for the last 10 years. The seven-time All-Star is an advocate of the macrobiotics diet, which is defined as “a practice of promoting well-being andlongevity, principally by means of a diet consisting chiefly of whole grains and beans.”
As much as both athletes are concerned with maintaining a competitive advantageover their peers, Nash and Hill are more interested in maintaining their overall well-being and energy level. Despite it being their original motivation, their nutritional choices now extend much further than basketball.
兩位球員都為了保持跟其他球員比的競爭力，Nash 跟 Hill 更有興趣的是保持自身的好 跟精力。無論他們一開始的理由是什麼，他們的營養選擇將比籃球延伸得更久。
“I look at being healthy and really understanding the body and what works and what doesn't work as opportunity to extend my career and play at a higher level at an older age,” Hill said. “But also hopefully extend my life and still be an active when I'm done playing.”
Bill Simmons The trade value list: No. 40 to No. 1
Originally Published: February 16, 2010
17. Steve Nash
Better than ever, which really shouldn't be the case because, you know, he just turned 36. We invited him to an ESPN dinner at Sundance, and he told us there were three reasons he's not aging: a no-sugar diet, a sleep journal and a steady supply of undetectable PEDs from the revolutionary Suns training staff. (Fine, I made the last one up.) He said the no-sugar diet made him recover faster after games and especially for back-to-backs. In fact, half the Suns are watching their sugar intake now. Nash brought Jared Dudley with him to dinner; Jared was reading the menu and asking Nash, "Can I have this? What about this?" like he was eating with Harley Pasternak or something. It was high comedy. Not only does Nash make his teammates better, he orders for them. Anyway, I don't see him going downhill anytime soon.
