NRLW greats share number one nutrition hack

Kimberly Gillan | Presented by Lite n' Easy

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When you're flat out juggling a professional sports career, a full-time job and often a family too, meal planning and food prep can quickly become a source of stress for top female athletes.

But that sustenance stress has been all but eliminated for many of our top NRLW players, who are flocking to Lite 'n Easy to fuel their bodies. The dietitian-designed and chef-prepared meals are carefully designed to boost athlete performance and recovery, meaning meal planning is now firmly off the mental load.

We caught up with three of the League's stars to find out how Lite n' Easy is fuelling them on the field, while giving time back to help them manage all of life's moving parts.

The team captain: "My team needs nutrition for peak performance"

As the most decorated player in rugby league history, Brisbane Broncos, Queensland Maroons and Australian Jillaroos captain Ali Brigginshaw learnt early on the importance of the right fuel for performance and recovery.

But where she once relied on a quick bowl of cereal before bed after a hard training session and a 40-minute drive home, she's now eating a Lite n' Easy meal and reaping serious performance benefits.

"Nearly every female athlete I know is eating Lite n' Easy at the moment," she says. "To know that I've had a big meal before bed and getting enough nutrients, I feel unbelievably better the next day. You don't have to think, 'Am I having enough protein? Is this good enough?' You just know that it is."

And as the Broncos attempt to add a fourth Grand Final to their record this October, Brigginshaw is relieved to know her team's nutrition is on point.

"Every night we finish training and the team grab a Lite n' Easy meal – it means I know the girls are eating the right food," she says. "I've seen a difference in the way the girls are eating, and [subsequently] in performance."

The career juggler: "I was finding it hard to keep on top of my nutrition."

It's all well and good to know the theory of fuelling your body for peak performance, but when you're juggling full time work with professional sport commitments, exhaustion can quickly get in the way of quality meal prep.

Just ask Sydney Roosters star Brydie Parker, who works as player operations manager for the Rugby League Players Association each day from 8am-4pm before doing three hours of NRLW training. Throw in the final units of her physiotherapy degree and you've got yourself the definition of a busy schedule.

But since Parker started using Lite n' Easy in the NRLW pre-season, she's been able to fuel her performance far better on all fronts.

"Earlier this year I was juggling all these things and was finding it hard to keep on top of my nutrition – it was like, 'Oh I've got to get to the grocery store and get all these things' and sometimes I'd just grab whatever I had instead of what would be the best fuel for recovery," she says.

"When I heard Lite n' Easy were fuelling people within sport – particularly women – I was like, 'Oh, this is interesting'. It takes the stress out of knowing what to eat – I know I've got options on hand and I'm eating good food."

The fact that the meals were portioned out and pre-chopped was an added bonus when Parker broke her forearm.

"All I had to do was unpeel a packet and everything was set out for me," she recalls.

"The breakfasts and lunches are so fresh and there's so much variety – you just need to spend five minutes cooking and getting it ready. You've also got the option of frozen and pre-made meals. I'm really grateful for the convenient, nutritious options they have."

The Origin debutante: "I've always been a massive under-eater"

Everyone at the North Queensland Cowboys noticed something different about Makenzie Weale earlier this year – she was happier, more energetic and had more to give on the football field.

While a lot of that came down to finding a nice life balance between her diesel mechanic apprenticeship and playing great football – including wearing Maroon in her State of Origin debut – it also had to do with getting her nutrition right, thanks to Lite n' Easy.

"I was never really one who took nutrition too seriously and I was pretty tired," she recalls.

"I've always been a massive under-eater in terms of what I actually need and struggled to get the right kind of food. Having the nutrition for what I was expending was so much better; being able to re-fuel and not have to think about it is very helpful."

While Weale's currently sidelined with some concussion issues, she's hankering to get back to work and footy, knowing her nutrition is in the bag.

"I'm a sucker for the chicken red curry, and there's some really nice chicken salads and pastas as well," she says.

"After having such a big day at work and coming home late, I can never be bothered staying up to cook a meal, so I'd just chuck a meal in the microwave and take another one for lunch the next day at work. When I have more time, I use their ready meal kits [to cook fresh]."

Lite n' Easy customers can save over 8 hours per week shopping for groceries and cooking dinner so they have more time to train n' play. With over 235 breakfasts, lunches, dinners and snacks to choose from, and a range of dietary preferences including higher protein meals catered for, the core part of your healthy diet is taken care of. To learn more about Lite n' Easy's delicious and nutritious meals, head to liteneasy.com.au/active-lifestyle.