Sports Performance Tips

In order for Optimal Performance why is Nutrition important?

• General Health
• Prevention of fatigue
• Hydration
• Body composition. Body fat levels vs muscle mass

Guidelines for Healthy Eating

• Wide variety of food choices
• Low fat/moderate Protein/High Carbohydrate (CHO)
• Adequate fluid intake
• Regular eating, spaced over day

How much of CHO, Protein and Fats should I be eating?

• Carbohydrates
  E.g. Bread, cereal, pasta, rice, potatoes, fruit
  60% total energy intake
• Protein
  E.g. Meat, chicken, fish, dairy, legumes, soy products
  12-15% total energy intake
• Fats
  25-30% total energy intake

What's the deal with CHO and which foods are high CHO?

The preferred fuel for our muscles is carbohydrate. This is broken down into glucose and stored as glycogen in muscles and liver. The body can only store a limited amount of glycogen. Therefore it important to keep these stored up pre, during and post exercise, by eating a carbohydrate rich diet.

The best type of carbohydrates for refueling after exercise is high to medium GI foods.

One of the most consistent findings in sports nutrition research is the importance of carbohydrate in enhancing the energy, recovery, performance and health of an athlete.

Foods containing a large % of CHO ~
Bread, Cereal, Crumpets, Muffins, Pasta, rice, Noodles, Muesli bars, breakfast bars, fruit, starchy vegetables, fruit yoghurt, milk drinks, cordial, juice, sports drinks, jelly lollies, dry/sweet biscuits

Foods containing approx 50g of CHO ~
2 medium bananas, 2 cereal/muesli bars, 4 pieces of bread, 1 jam sandwich, 4 pikelets with jam, 2 carbohydrate gels, 2 average scones, 60g pretzels/rice crackers, 4tbsp dried fruit, 50-60g jelly lollies, 700-800ml Sports drink/cordial

What happens to your performance when you have inadequate CHO stores?

Both your glycogen stores have been depleted and blood glucose levels have dropped. Your muscles will start to fatigue, in turn causing a reduction in exercise intensity as your body moves over to your fat stores and breaking down muscle for fuel. You also will suffer from reduced concentration, dizziness and nausea. Consuming CHO during exercise by using a formulated sports drink have shown to improve performance up to 12%, double that of water

What are your CHO requirements during activity?

• To maintain blood sugar levels it is essential to consume CHO during the event.
• General rule of thumb is 1kg CHO/kg body weight/hr during the event

What is your Daily intake of CHO requirements?

• General Sports Activity (<60 minutes per day, low intensity)
  5-6g/kg body weight
• Moderate Training (1 -- 2 hours per day, intense)
  6-8g/kg body weight
• Endurance Training (>2 hours per day, intense)
  9-10g/kg body weight
• Extreme activity (5-6 hours per day, intense)
  12-13 g/kg body weight

Some Facts on FATS?

A diet high in fat can take the place of consuming enough carbohydrates in your diet. Fats are not an efficient fuel and are foods that are slower in metabolising. Too much fat in a diet can lead to an increase in body fat levels. You should never worry about running out of fat as fuel, no matter how lean athletes are they still have fat calories to spare.

What's the deal with PROTEIN?

Two roles protein plays in our body are for the growth and repair of muscle or burned for energy, like CHO or fat. Most people can get the recommended daily intake (RDI) through a good balanced diet. Athletes in both strength and endurance events may require an increased levels during training as the body requires the protein for repair of muscle and as an energy source. The higher food intake (presuming a balanced diet) of athletes normally means that a required amount of protein is easily obtained through there diet.

Foods high in Protein? Lean meat, fish and seafood, Low-fat diary foods, Legumes -- lentils, chick peas, kidney beans, Eggs, Nuts, tofu

Foods containing approx 10g of Protein. ~ 70g cottage cheese, 40g cheese, 2 medium eggs, 30-35g beef, lamb or chicken, 50g fish, 150ml liquid meal supplement, 200ml yoghurt, 300ml milk, 100g Wholemeal bread (about 3 slices), 90g breakfast cereal, 220g baked beans, 150g lentils, 300ml soy milk, 120g tofu, 2 cups steamed rice, 50g nuts

What should you DRINK and how much?

Water is sufficient for shorter training sessions as long as your diet is adequate for stored energy. Longer events sports drinks should be introduced to replace fluid, CHO and electrolytes. Combination of water and sports drink is an ideal plan. Do not wait until you are thirsty, as you should plan a regular fluid intake over the day.

Fluid Requirements (could be specific to individual's rate of sweat)

• Pre-exercise -- 300-400ml
• During exercise -- 150-250ml every 10-15 minutes (600-1000ml per hour)

Testing your requirements for correct hydration

1. Measure body weight at beginning and end of training session.
2. Then measure fluid consumes
3. Calculate body weight change 1 kg = 1 litre fluid (approx)
4. Urine colour can also show how well your are hydrated

Dehydration - If you are not replacing fluids lost during the activity then you could become dehydrated. Signs of dehydration would be impaired concentration and coordination, increased heart rate and body's core temperature and fatigue

Once I have completed my activity what should I do now?

Your main priority is to replenish glycogen stores and fluid lost during exercise. CHO rich foods (1.5g/kg in the firsts 2 hours) should be consumed within 30 minutes following a training session or event. This will also ensure that the food will be stored as muscle glycogen rather than body fat. Keep the fluids up to re hydrate. Aim to drink 150% of estimated losses. Small amount of protein may help maximize glycogen restoration.