Organic on the ice
Monarch Noah Clarke says hold the fries, pass the baby carrots
By Susan Reilly news@hippopress.com
Noah Clarke, left wing for the Monarchs, has spent four years in Manchester and has played five games with the L.A. Kings. His hometown is LaVerne, Calif.
Clarke, 27, shuns fast food in favor of organic and local whole foods. He opened his refrigerator and offered his insight into eating well.
What is in your fridge?
A huge bag of raw almonds, baby carrots, organic eggs, wheat bread, yogurt and a large bottle of Udo 3-6-9 Omega fats which I buy at A Market. It is awesome stuff.
How do you take the Udo 3-6-9?
I drink a teaspoon straight in the morning and then have it in a smoothie at night. I make a smoothie of orange juice and frozen, organic berries.
Do you try to eat organic?
I do, as much as I can. My grandparents had a dairy farm and I grew up drinking organic, raw, unpasteurized milk right from the cow.
My parents carried on with the organic foods. Instead of chocolate we had carob, and wheat bread instead of white. I hated eating like that as a kid, but now I like it. I feel better when I eat organic, whole foods.
Your fridge is well stocked. How often do you grocery shop?
A couple of times a week, in the afternoons, but it depends if we are on the road, because I don’t want to stock up on fresh food.
Where do you shop?
A Market and Shaw’s. Both have a great selection of organic foods.
Do you eat differently on game days?
Yes, in that I eat the standard hockey meal of chicken, pasta and a salad at lunchtime. It is all about getting enough calories before a game. A lot of the team goes to Piccola’s for the meal, but I usually cook it myself at home.
Do you eat out? What are your favorite restaurants in Manchester?
I like Piccola Italia, I usually order the chicken piccatta or chicken marsala. I like the Gala wrap at Gala Café and the steak tips at the Wild Rover for lunch. The team eats post games at JW Hills, which is excellent.
Do your teammates eat as well as you do?
I think a lot of them do. The biggest challenge we have is staying hydrated and taking in enough calories during the season.
What do you do about that?
My weight, like others on the team, seems to drop during the season because I just can’t seem to get enough calories. So I am trying to eat five or six small meals every day and trying to get enough of the good fats, like peanut butter, avocado and flax seed in my diet. But, I stay away from fast food.
No fast food ever?
Never. I take care with what I eat and I think that processed foods are the easy way out. They are made so that they can have a long shelf life and be shipped anywhere, and that just cannot be good for you.
It isn’t easy eating the way you do?
It isn’t. But I think that if more people tried it and supported small local markets like A Market, it would be easier because there would be more places to get the products rather than relying on foods shipped from who-knows-where.
Do your parents still follow an organic lifestyle?
They do. They grow their own organic vegetables. I swear, organic or locally grown food just tastes different. You can’t compare it to produce you get in a big supermarket..
|
Navigation
