I get asked a lot by wrestlers, coaches and parents what the best meal for wrestlers is…

In order to answer that you have to first consider what you’re trying to achieve.  In the case of most wrestlers the answer is the same…

- Keep strength up

- Keep energy levels up

- Help repair lean muscle tissue and recovery

- Minimize extra body weight and bloating

Considering these goals above the answer is simple:

“Meal Replacement Drinks”

If you’ve read my ’63 Strength, Conditioning and Nutrition Tips for Wrestlers, Coaches and Parents” you know that I’ve always been a fan of using Meal Replacement Drinks for wrestling.

Meal Replacement Drinks aren’t magical… they’re not even what I consider supplements.  They are simply food.

But, they are extremely calorically-dense food.  This means that for every calorie you ingest you get maximum micronutrient and macronutrient quality.  In other words, there are no wasted, empty calories that serve no constructive purpose in your wrestling nutrition plan… and therefore, mat performance.

In the past, I always recommended the original brand of meal replacement powder… but that’s all changed.

I’ve noticed a steady decline in the quality of most of the commercial meal replacement powders.  The quality of ingredients have diminished (so they can make more profit per unit). I still really like Prograde Nutrition Meal Replacement Drinks because they are natural, don’t add a lot of fillers and I personally know the fitness guys who started the company… and trust them:)

But… the focus of this article is to show you how to make your own meal replacement drinks so you are getting the best nutrition without all of the chemicals and fillers found in most commercial MRD’s.

Here’s my newest (and tastiest) recipe:

Steve’s Home-made Meal Replacement Drink

- 1 or 2 scoops of 100% natural whey protein powder

- 1 banana

- 1/4-1/2 cup dry whole oatmeal

- 1/4- 1/2 cup Total cereal

- 2 tbsp honey

Add all of the above ingredients to your blender.  Then add 12-16 oz water + 3 ice cubes. Blend at high speed for 30-40 seconds.  Pour and enjoy.

* Use the lower end of ingredient amounts if under 120 lbs.  You can add to or subtract from the ingredients to suit your needs.  Generally, you up the protein and lower the oats and cereal when cutting weight… and do the opposite when trying to bulk up:)