A well-chosen diet offers many benefits to all athletes and if combined with a proper training program it will lead to enhance performance. 

Diet may have its biggest impact on training, and a good diet will help support consistent intensive training while limiting the risks of illness or injury. Good food choices can also promote adaptations to the training stimulus.

Getting the right amount of energy to stay healthy and to perform well is essential. Consuming too much energy increases body fat. If athletes do not eat enough, performance falls, injuries are more likely to occur, and illness results.

Carbohydrate supplies the muscles and brain with the fuels they need to meet the stress of training and competition. Athletes must be aware of what foods they should choose to meet their carbohydrate needs, how much should be eaten, and when these foods should be eaten.

Foods rich in protein are important for building and repairing muscles, but a varied diet containing everyday foods will generally supply more than enough protein. With protein also, the timing of intake in relation to training and competition may be important as well.

A varied diet that meets energy needs and is based largely on nutrient rich choices such as vegetables, fruits, beans, legumes, cereals, lean meats, fish and dairy foods should ensure an adequate intake of all the essential vitamins and minerals. Excluding any of these food groups increases the risk of missing out on important nutrient needs and means that more careful food choices must be made.

Maintaining hydration is important for performance.

Fluid intake before, during (where appropriate) and after both training and competition is important, especially in hot climates. When sweat losses are high, foods and drinks must also contain sufficient salt to replace the salt lost in sweat.

How much food is enough?

How much food an athlete needs to eat will depend largely on energy needs, and there is no simple formula to predict this. Remember that body weight is not a reliable or accurate indicator of energy balance or physical condition. Monitoring body weight can be misleading, and the information can be misinterpreted.

Monitoring of skin fold fat thicknesses across the season can provide more accurate and useful information about changes in body fat stores. In case you need to lose body fat don’t try this on your own. Ask the help of a sports nutrition expert (sports dietitian), so you will avoid damage and performance decline.

The Importance of Protein

Protein has been considered a key nutrient for sporting success by athletes of all eras and in all sports. Protein plays an important role in the response to exercise. Amino acids from proteins form building blocks for the manufacture of new tissue including muscle, and the repair of old tissue. They are also the building blocks for hormones and enzymes that regulate metabolism and other body functions. Protein provides a small source of fuel for the exercising muscle. Recent studies have focused on the acute response to workouts of both endurance and resistance training.

Enhanced protein balance is a desirable goal of the recovery phase – to overturn the increased rates of protein breakdown that occur during exercise, and to promote muscle growth, repair and adaptation following the exercise stimulus. These studies have found that eating a small amount of high-quality protein, combined with carbohydrate, enhances protein synthesis during the recovery period. There is some evidence that the response is enhanced when these nutrients are provided soon after exercise, or in the case of a resistance workout, perhaps before training. Further work is required to fine-tune guidelines for the optimal amount, type and timing of intake of these nutrients, and to confirm that these eating strategies lead to an enhancement of the goals of training.

Carbohydrates – The Energy you need!

Carbohydrate provides an important, but relatively short-lived, supply of fuel for exercise that must be refilled each day from carbohydrate foods in the diet. Everyday eating and drinking plans for athletes need to provide enough carbohydrate to fuel their training programs and to optimize the recovery of muscle glycogen stores between workouts. Adequate energy intake is important for optimal glycogen recovery. DO NOT FAST WHEN YOU TRAIN. When the gap between training sessions is less than 8 hours (as when training twice daily) carbohydrate intake should start as soon as practicable after the first session to maximize the effective recovery time. During longer recovery periods (24 hours), the pattern and timing of carbohydrate-rich meals and snacks do not appear to be critical, and can be organized according to what is practical and comfortable for each athlete.

Drink…drink…drink…!

Fluid intake before, during (where appropriate) and after both training and competition is important, especially in hot climates. When sweat losses are high, foods and drinks must also contain sufficient salt to replace the salt lost in sweat.

A good hydration strategy is an essential part of every athlete’s preparation for competition. The athlete should limit dehydration during training and competition by drinking water or a sports drink. If the climate is warm proper hydration is essential to keep performance in high level and not risk serious injury or other health problems. Rehydration after exercise will boost recovery and is essential as part of the preparation for the next exercise session. Replacement of sweat losses is a very important part of this process. Both water and salts lost in sweat must be replaced.

Try to drink about 1.2-1.5 liters of fluid for each kg of weight lost in training or competition. Drinks should contain sodium (the main salt lost in sweat) if no food is eaten at this time. Sports drinks that contain electrolytes are helpful, but many foods can also supply the salt that is needed. A little extra salt may be added to meals when sweat losses are high, but salt tablets should be used with caution.

Vitamins and Sport Supplements

Adequate intakes of energy, protein, iron, copper, manganese, magnesium, selenium, sodium, zinc, and vitamins A, C, E, B6 and B12 are particularly important to health and performance. These nutrients, as well as others, are best when obtained from a varied diet based largely on nutrient-rich foods such as vegetables, fruits, beans, legumes, grains, lean meats, fish, dairy products and unsaturated oils. Dietary surveys show that most athletes are able to meet the recommended intakes for vitamins and minerals by eating everyday foods.

However, in case a proper diet is not possible to be followed, then the need of sport supplements might be essential to support the body needs. All athletes should look carefully at the risks and rewards of individual supplements before trying them.

The best way to correct such a situation (inadequate diet) is to seek advice from a qualified sports nutrition expert such as a sports dietitian. In any case, remember that few of the products “out there” and widely used by athletes, are supported by a sound research base and some may even be harmful. Contamination of such products can lead to a positive doping test and destroy an athlete’s carrier.

References

IAAF International Consensus Conference "Nutrition for Athletics", Monaco - April 2007