Local food delivery service fuels Indy Eleven athletes

INDIANAPOLIS (WISH) — Eating right is part of the gig for a professional athlete. But when their day is filled with hours of training, lifting and rehabilitation, that doesn’t leave a ton of time to make sure that happens.

“People want something easy and convenient, and usually that’s just a stop on the road on the way home,” said Indy Eleven striker Duke Lacroix. “People are usually tired after training, so it’s tough to find a good, healthy outlet.”

That’s why the team is partnering with Green Bean Delivery, a local service that delivers bins of organic local produce and natural groceries right to the team’s training table. Every week, they bring snacks and recovery meals like fresh fruits and vegetables, yogurt, meats and bread to the team’s headquarters at Grand Park in Westfield.

“Healthy eating changes everything,” added Lacroix. “You can definitely feel the difference as a player between when you eat a burger and when you eat pasta prior to a game.”

“When you’re training, you work really hard, you deplete a lot of your energy sources. So, your window for after training is very small and very short as far as getting the right nutrients into your body and recovering,” said Indy Eleven defender Judson McKinney. “Once I started making those small changes, it has completely changed the way I feel after training, and how fast I recover.”

The team’s nutritionist has curated the box, tailoring the snacks and recovery meals to the team’s needs.

“It’s very difficult, you really have to cut a slice out of your day just to find time to cook something for yourself,” said Lacroix. “At times, it could be tiresome labor but you have to do it in order to put the proper stuff into your body.”