This negatively impacts athletic performance, and has adverse repercussions for general health and wellbeing. Athletes who are wishing to lose weight should do so during the off-season. Eating before competition can increase performance when compared to exercising in fasted state.

A pre-game meal three to four hours before the event allows for optimal digestion and energy supply. Most authorities recommend small pre-game meals that provide to 1, calories.

This meal should be sufficient but not excessive, so as to prevent both hunger and undigested food. The meal should be high in starch, which breaks down more easily than protein and fats.

The starch should be in the form of complex carbohydrates breads, cold cereal, pasta, fruits and vegetables. They are digested at a rate that provides consistent energy to the body and are emptied from the stomach in two to three hours.

High-sugar foods lead to a rapid rise in blood sugar, followed by a decline in blood sugar and less energy. In addition, concentrated sweets can draw fluid into the gastrointestinal tract and contribute to dehydration, cramping, nausea and diarrhea.

This may lead to premature exhaustion of glycogen stores in endurance events. Pregame meals should be low in fat. Fat takes longer to digest, as does fiber- and lactose-containing meals.

Take in adequate fluids during this pre-game time. Carefully consider caffeine consumption cola, coffee, tea , as it may lead to dehydration by increasing urine production.

It is important to eat familiar foods before an event, so it is known that they can be tolerated before exercise. Smaller meals should be consumed if less time remains before an event. If a competition is less than two hours away, athletes may benefit from consuming a liquid pre-game meal to avoid gastrointestinal distress.

A liquid meal will move out of the stomach by the time a meet or match begins. Remember to include water with this meal. Regardless of age, gender or sport, the post-game competition meal recommendations are the same. Following a training session or competition, a small meal eaten within thirty minutes is very beneficial.

The meal should be mixed, meaning it contains carbohydrate, protein, and fat. Protein synthesis is greatest during the window of time immediately following a workout and carbohydrates will help replete diminished glycogen stores.

However, consume food within the 30 minute window may be difficult for athletes—they often experience nausea or lack of hunger.

Options to address this difficulty include:. Athletes should be wary of ergogenic aids, which claim to enhance athletic performance. Many of these claims are unsubstantiated, and some aids may be dangerous or hinder performance. It is crucial to maintain nutritious eating not only for athletic events, but all the time.

A pre-game meal or special diet for several days prior to competition cannot make up for inadequate nutrition in previous months or years. Lifelong nutrition habits must be emphasized. Combining good eating practices with a good training and conditioning program will allow any athlete to maximize their performance.

American Dietetic Association. Position of the American Dietetic Association, Dietitians of Canada, and the American College of Sports Medicine: Nutrition and Athletic Performance.

Journal of the American Dietetic Association, 3 , Grana, W. Advances in Sports Medicine and Fitness Vol 2. Chicago, IL: Year Book Medical Publishers. Mahan, L.

Louis, MO: Saunders. Ormsbee, M. Pre-Exercise Nutrition: The Role of Macronutrients, Modified Starches and Supplements on Metabolism and Endurance Performance. Nutrients, 6 5 , Phillips, S. Dietary Protein for Athletes: From Requirements to Optimum Adaptation.

Journal of Sports Sciences, 29 S1 , SS Ratzin Jackson, C. Nutrition for the Recreational Athlete. Boca Raton, FL: CRC Press. Raymond, J. Louis, MO: Elsevier Health Sciences. Sawka, M. American College of Sports Medicine Position Stand: Exercise and Fluid Replacement. Journal of the American College of Sports Medicine, 39 2 , Williams, M.

Maloney, graduate student in the Dept of Food Science Human Nutrition. Original publication by J. Anderson, Colorado State University Extension foods and nutrition specialist and professor; S.

Perryman, CSU Extension foods and nutrition specialist; L. Young, former foods and nutrition graduate student; and S. Prior, former graduate intern, food science and human nutrition. Colorado State University, U. Department of Agriculture and Colorado counties cooperating.

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Online Directory. Providing trusted, practical education to help you solve problems, develop skills, and build a better future. In general, no vitamin and mineral supplements are required if an athlete is consuming adequate energy from a variety of foods to maintain body weight.

Supplementation recommendations unrelated to exercise, such as folic acid for women of child-bearing potential, should be followed. Single-nutrient supplements may be appropriate for a specific medical or nutritional reason, such as iron supplements to correct iron deficiency anemia.

Athletes should be counseled regarding the appropriate use of ergogenic aids. Such products should only be used after careful evaluation for safety, efficacy, potency and legality.

Vegetarian athletes may be at risk for low intakes of energy, protein, fat, and key micronutrients such as iron, calcium, vitamin D, riboflavin, zinc, and vitamin B Consultation with a sports dietitian is recommended to avoid these nutrition problems.

Source: www. See a Doctor Facebook Twitter YouTube. Protein Protein recommendations for endurance and strength-trained athletes range from 1. Restricting Athletes who restrict energy intake or use severe weight-loss practices, eliminate one or more food groups from their diet, or consume high- or low-carbohydrate diets of low micronutrient density are at greatest risk of micronutrient deficiencies.

Before Exercise Before exercise, a meal or snack should provide sufficient fluid to maintain hydration, be relatively low in fat and fiber to facilitate gastric emptying and minimize gastrointestinal distress, be relatively high in carbohydrate to maximize maintenance of blood glucose, be moderate in protein, be composed of familiar foods, and be well tolerated by the athlete.

During Exercise During exercise, primary goals for nutrient consumption are to replace fluid losses and provide carbohydrate approximately 30 to 60 g per hour for maintenance of blood glucose levels.

Nutrition for Athletes: A practical guide to eating for health and performance. International Olympic Committee. Nutrition and Athletic Performance. Position of Dietitians of Canada, the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics and the American College of Sports Medicine.

Kreider, RB et al. Journal of the International Society of Sports Nutrition. The information presented in SIRC blogs and SIRCuit articles is accurate and reliable as of the date of publication.

Developments that occur after the date of publication may impact the current accuracy of the information presented in a previously published blog or article.

News travels fast. Home Key Nutritional Needs for Athletes. on Facebook on Twitter on Linkedin via email. Key Nutritional Needs for Athletes February 21, View All Blogs and Articles. Athlete Development Nutrition and Hydration. Canadian Sport Daily News travels fast.

The nutritional intake of elite athletes is a critical determinant of their athletic performance and ability to compete both physically and mentally. However, their demanding training and travel schedules in addition to a possible lack of nutritional knowledge may prohibit them from maintaining an optimal dietary intake.

Sound scientific data about the nutritional habits of elite athletes are limited and, therefore, it is not clear as to whether elite athletes are following nutritional recommendations and maintaining nutritionally sound diets.

This review takes a comprehensive look at 22 recent dietary intake studies, including 50 groups of elite athletes. The time period for food record collection ranged from 3 to 7 days except for 2 studies which collected records for 21 and 22 days.

Bodyweight should be monitored frequently as a check on calorie intake. Athletes are recommended to ensure that they add carbohydrate intake before and after training sessions.

Carbohydrates are not just for endurance athletes, short duration events also require glycogen stores to fuel performance. Timing of fueling, loading and refueling also play key roles. Protein Research over the last years now indicates that athletes engaged in higher intensity exercise need to consume more than the Recommended Daily Allowance RDA of protein which was the former way of thinking, perhaps even twice as much.

Dietary protein promotes greater adaptation to training and low protein intake may reduce training outcomes and slow recovery.

Different types of proteins are ingested at different rates and have different properties, so a nutritional plan should be made to make sure it includes enough protein that is high quality.

The best dietary sources of low fat, high quality protein are light skinless chicken, fish, egg white and skim milk casein and whey. Fat Dietary recommendations for fat are the same or slightly higher for athletes than the average person. In general, research suggests that high-fat diets does not enhance performance, however, reducing fat intake in an effort to lose weight or improve body composition often means reducing the absorption of essential nutrients.

Vitamins Vitamins are essential organic compounds that serve to regulate metabolic processes, energy synthesis, neurological processes, and prevent destruction of cells. Consuming the recommended daily amounts can help maintain general health. While vitamins in and of themselves do not have direct performance enhancing properties, consuming RDA amounts may help athletes tolerate training better by reducing oxidative stress vitamin E, C and boost the immune system vitamin C , which may lead to greater tolerance for heavier training.

Minerals Minerals serve as structure for tissue, important components of enzymes and hormones, and regulators of metabolic and neural control. Unlike with vitamins, dietary supplementation of certain minerals can improve exercise capacity. Some of the more impactful minerals include calcium, iron, sodium phosphate, salt, and zinc.

Sweat consists of mostly water, but it also causes losses of sodium, potassium, calcium and magnesium. During most types of exercise, the amount of sodium lost is very small, and drinking water after a workout will replenish the sodium in the body.

However, during long endurance exercises, such as a marathon or triathlon, sodium losses are larger and must be replenished. If water is replenished without sodium, the sodium already in the body will become diluted.

These low levels of sodium in the blood will cause a condition known as hyponatremia. When sodium levels in the blood are decreased, water moves into cells through osmosis, which causes swelling.

Accumulation of fluid in the lungs and the brain can cause serious, life-threatening conditions such as seizure, coma, and death see Unit 9. In order to avoid hyponatremia, athletes should increase their consumption of sodium in the days leading up to an event and consume sodium-containing sports drinks during their race or event.

A well-concocted sports drink contains sugar, water, and sodium in the correct proportions so that hydration is optimized. The sugar is helpful in maintaining blood-glucose levels needed to fuel muscles, the water keeps an athlete hydrated, and the sodium enhances fluid absorption and replaces some of that lost in sweat.

The American College of Sports Medicine states that the goal of drinking fluids during exercise is to prevent dehydration, which compromises performance and endurance.

Note : The nutrition profile of commercial sports drinks is 50 to 70 calories per 8 ounces, with about milligrams of sodium. Following is a simple recipe that offers this profile, but at a much lower cost than expensive store-bought brands—without additives, colors, or preservatives.

Nutrition Information : total calories; 50 calories per 8 ounces ml ; 12 g carbohydrate; mg sodium. Reprinted with permission from N. Champaign, IL: Human Kinetics, , The hydration goal for obtaining optimal endurance and performance is to replace what is lost, not to over-hydrate.

Perspiration rates are variable and dependent on many factors including body composition, humidity, temperature, and type of exercise. Scientific studies show that, under certain circumstances, consuming sports drinks instead of plain water during high-intensity exercise lasting longer than one hour significantly enhances endurance, and some evidence also indicates it enhances performance.

There is no consistent evidence that drinking sports drinks instead of plain water enhances endurance or performance in individuals exercising less than one hour at a time and at low to moderate intensities.

Children and adult athletes exercising for more than one hour at high-intensity tennis, rowing, rugby, soccer, etc. may benefit from consuming a sports drink rather than water. However, consuming sports drinks provides no benefit over water to endurance, performance, or exercise recovery for those exercising less than an hour.

In fact, as with all other sugary drinks containing few to no nutrients, they are only another source of calories. Drinking sports drinks when you are doing no exercise at all is not recommended. definition Substances used to enhance performance. The amount of fluids lost through sweat during exercise; it is calculated by measuring weight before and after exercise and is useful for determining hydration needs.

Nutrition: Science and Everyday Application, v. Skip to content Nutrition is essential to your performance during all types of exercise. Macronutrient Needs The composition of macronutrients in the diet is a key factor in maximizing performance for athletes.

Carbohydrates Carbohydrates are an important fuel source for the brain and muscle during exercise. Homemade Sports Drink Note : The nutrition profile of commercial sports drinks is 50 to 70 calories per 8 ounces, with about milligrams of sodium.

Ingredients: ¼ cup 50 g sugar ¼ teaspoon salt ¼ cup 60 ml water ¼ cup 60 ml orange juice not concentrate plus 2 tablespoons lemon juice 3 ½ cups ml cold water Method: In the bottom of a pitcher, dissolve the sugar and salt in the hot water.