The Professional Musician’s Guide to Optimal Health and Nutrition

Behind every chart-topping hit and every sold-out show is an artist who needs more than just talent to survive—they need stamina. For the modern musician, your body is just as important as your instrument. Whether you are hitting high notes in the booth or jumping across a festival stage, the fuel you put into your body directly dictates the quality of your sound and the longevity of your career.

Nutrition experts at the Harvard School of Public Health and the editors of Harvard Health Publications have created a guide to making healthy, balanced meals.The proposal advocates dividing the plate so that half is filled with vegetables and the other half, a quarter is allocated to proteins, and the rest to carbohydrates. What they call a “healthy eating plate” is also known as a Harvard plate.

In the proposal that the research gives us, the priority is clearly vegetables and greens.

Here is the list of the best nutrients for a healthy life.

Spinach: Their versatility makes them the perfect weapon for anyone in the real world. Raw or cooked, they are a good source of micronutrients such as calcium and vitamin K. If what you are interested in is absorbing their iron as much as possible, try eating them cooked from time to time because when raw, the antinutrients that compose it can prevent a correct absorption of this mineral.

Pepper: It is one of the foods with the highest vitamin C content, and we always have it on hand. Like spinach, it allows great versatility in its use and cooking. But not only that, but it also contains a lot of antioxidants that will help the body reach homeostasis more easily.

Carrot: The quintessential vitamin A precursor, perfect for improving our vision, as well as helping our body get rid of any dead or potentially dangerous cells.Beetroot: It is a great source of iron, and it is perfect for women with very intense menstruation since at that time it is easy to have a deficit of this mineral. It is super versatile when it comes to eating: raw, cooked, or pureed it is perfect.

Broccoli: Literally a bomb of minerals and vitamins that will not go unnoticed. Our recommendation is that we always have a few cooked broccoli florets in the fridge so that they are a simple resource when it comes to introducing them into our diet. The trunks can be used for purees or creams, do not throw them away!

Egg: The most complete and noble protein, perfect for day-to-day and for those of us who have little time. To make the most of its nutrients, we must eat the white cooked (since it contains antinutrients that can hinder the absorption of all its properties) and the raw yolk, in this way we will absorb all its benefits.

Quinoa: Although it is cooked like cereal, it is more of a pseudo-cereal. This means that the plant from which it comes is different and that it has more protein than other similar foods. We recommend that you wash it and soak it for about 30′ in warm water before cooking it to remove any antinutrients and thus make it more digestible.

Sweet potato: The hydrate is good and necessary, and the sweet potato is a very good option. Source of beta carotene (among other micronutrients), you can introduce it in small amounts in your food. Also, if you leave it cooked beforehand, the carbohydrates will become a wonderful fermentable fiber for your microbiota.

Conclusion: Your Body is Your Greatest Instrument

At the end of the day, your gear, your plugins, and your stage presence are only as effective as the person behind them. A music career is a marathon, not a sprint. By mastering these nutritional secrets—from systemic hydration to stable energy management—you aren’t just “eating healthy”; you are building a foundation for a career that can last decades.