Performance nutrition is a profession that has come to the
forefront of elite sports performance over the past 5 years. Many
organisations such as The English Institute of Sport, Premiership
football clubs, England Rugby and the Lawn Tennis Association now have
nutritionists on staff and these expert nutritionists undoubtedly help
athletes improve their performance and recovery. However at amateur
levels of sport there remains many misconceptions about performance
nutrition. Some of these include carbohydrate loading for sports,
getting carbs from jelly beans, jaffa cakes, pasta and potatoes and that
fat makes you fat and should be avoided.
Having worked with many top athletes I am still amazed how many athletes eat a poor diet and either rely of sports supplements and sports drinks to get them through their events or just have a really poor understanding of how important nutrition is. I have also found that with a little bit of education this can be turned around and athletes feel and perform a lot better.
General nutrition advice
These are some of the common mistakes I find athletes making.
Pre-exercise:
Aims of the pre training/ event period are:
Maintain hydration at all costs. Consume 30-60g of glucose per hour of exercise with water and electrolytes. It should be at about 15-20ºC for rapid absorption.
Post exercise:
Aims of the post training/ game period are:
Re-hydrate and replace lost electrolytes.
A 4:1 carbohydrate / protein solution should be consumed to restore muscle glycogen and amino acids immediately post exercise. Liquid meals work best for glycogen re-synthesis and adding protein / 2-20g BCAA's to the liquid carbohydrate solution will markedly increase the glycogen content of muscle. Consuming glutamine following exercise can also accelerate muscle glycogen re-synthesis.
20 minutes - 2 hours -
Continue to re-hydrate and replace lost electrolytes and carbohydrates. In this time eat a solid meal. Continue to take in higher GL carbohydrate, however, limit the use of grains in the post workout window as they do provide carbohydrate, but they are nutritionally useless, and inferior in calories, micronutrients, antioxidants and fibre compared to fruits and vegetables. They also contain gluten that may cause food intolerance and slow down thinking and reaction times. Continued consumption of protein (25-30g) will provide valuable BCAA's that are an important regulator of protein synthesis through reducing protein degradation in humans. Consume fish and fish oils on a daily basis to match the ratio of omega 3 to omega 6 fatty acids will help to reduce inflammation.
2 - 4 hours post -
Continue to re-hydrate and replace lost electrolytes and carbs. If hungry snack again with higher GL carbohydrate, protein and essential fats such as fruit and nuts.
By using these recommendations you will break through the myths and hype about sports nutrition and be doing yourself and your performance a huge favour.
Having worked with many top athletes I am still amazed how many athletes eat a poor diet and either rely of sports supplements and sports drinks to get them through their events or just have a really poor understanding of how important nutrition is. I have also found that with a little bit of education this can be turned around and athletes feel and perform a lot better.
General nutrition advice
These are some of the common mistakes I find athletes making.
- Not eating breakfast. This really upsets your hormone and energy balance and can lead to excess body fat accumulation.
- Carbohydrate loading. This is not necessary for events under 90-100 minutes, however it is advisable for events longer than this such as 10k, triathlon and marathons.
- Eating / drinking too much carbohydrates on a daily basis. Carb intake of between 7-8g and 10-12g of CHO / kg BW / day are only necessary for ultra long events such as marathons, triathlons etc... Otherwise I have found that athletes get excess body fat which has many associated negative effects on performance.
- Consuming too little protein. Protein recommendations are generally too low, whether they are for the general population or athletes. Eat between 1-2g of protein /kg BW / day.
- Avoiding fats because fats re unhealthy and make you fat. This is nonsense. Essential fats are required in the diet.
- Not eating enough fruit and vegetables and relying on foods such as rice, pasta, potatoes and beans for nutrition. A diet rich in antioxidants, vitamins and minerals is essential for an athlete - so eat lots of fruit and vegetables.
Pre-exercise:
Aims of the pre training/ event period are:
- Eat sensibly and continue to restock muscle glycogen if it's been severely depleted from a prior training session - this includes eating fruits and vegetables and a little whole grain rice or quinoa along with some protein and fats in the pre-event meal.
- Eat to boost acetylcholine and dopamine and get plenty of B vitamins, minerals and antioxidants that are needed for energy pathways and to convert nutrients into neurotransmitters. Ideal pre-event foods therefore include meat, poultry, cold water fish, eggs, nuts and seeds, green leafy vegetables, berries, fruits, oats, avocado and brown rice.
- Hydrate well - drink as much water as tolerable, water and low sugar sports drinks (10g glucose per 500ml) only.
- Prevent hunger - so eat breakfast or lunch and stabilise blood sugar.
- Provide the body with host of antioxidants that will protect your body from the free radicals generated during the event.
- Ten minutes before training / playing consume 20g of BCAA with a low sugar carbohydrate sports drink. This helps protect your muscles from damage during the event.
Maintain hydration at all costs. Consume 30-60g of glucose per hour of exercise with water and electrolytes. It should be at about 15-20ºC for rapid absorption.
Post exercise:
Aims of the post training/ game period are:
- Replace water and electrolytes (1.5 litres of water per kg of BW lost)
- Restore muscle and liver glycogen (this is highest in the first hour post exercise), so use liquid then solid meals containing protein and carbohydrate.
- Consume 1-1.2g CHO/kg BW per hour for up to 4 hours - e.g. 80kg athlete would consume 80-90g CHO per hour to restock muscle glycogen.
- In this period use higher GL carbs such as fruit, dried fruit, whole grains and sports drinks.
- Provide good quality proteins for protein synthesis and repairing muscle.
Re-hydrate and replace lost electrolytes.
A 4:1 carbohydrate / protein solution should be consumed to restore muscle glycogen and amino acids immediately post exercise. Liquid meals work best for glycogen re-synthesis and adding protein / 2-20g BCAA's to the liquid carbohydrate solution will markedly increase the glycogen content of muscle. Consuming glutamine following exercise can also accelerate muscle glycogen re-synthesis.
20 minutes - 2 hours -
Continue to re-hydrate and replace lost electrolytes and carbohydrates. In this time eat a solid meal. Continue to take in higher GL carbohydrate, however, limit the use of grains in the post workout window as they do provide carbohydrate, but they are nutritionally useless, and inferior in calories, micronutrients, antioxidants and fibre compared to fruits and vegetables. They also contain gluten that may cause food intolerance and slow down thinking and reaction times. Continued consumption of protein (25-30g) will provide valuable BCAA's that are an important regulator of protein synthesis through reducing protein degradation in humans. Consume fish and fish oils on a daily basis to match the ratio of omega 3 to omega 6 fatty acids will help to reduce inflammation.
2 - 4 hours post -
Continue to re-hydrate and replace lost electrolytes and carbs. If hungry snack again with higher GL carbohydrate, protein and essential fats such as fruit and nuts.
By using these recommendations you will break through the myths and hype about sports nutrition and be doing yourself and your performance a huge favour.
Steve Hines is an expert sports nutritionist who runs the popular
website sports nutritionist London specialising in nutrition and
exercise for elite performance. If you found this article useful and
want to know about how you can improve your sports performance visit http://www.sportsnutritionistlondon.com
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