If you take your sports training seriously and want to maximise the benefits of your programme then you need to consider a nutrition plan that will enable you to achieve your training & performance goals.
Our food provides us with the energy we need to fuel all our daily activities, but it also needs to provide the athlete & sports person with the energy to optimise their training, perform at their best, and repeatedly recover whilst remaining free from injury & illness.
Without an in-depth dietary analysis, it is impossible to ascertain whether you are achieving the correct balance of carbohydrate, protein, fats, vitamins, minerals & antioxidants; achieving this balance is vital if you want to improve your performance and recovery.
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Ensuring you are well nourished can:- | |
| • | Improve concentration & focus | |
| • | Increase energy levels | |
| • | Improve physical capacity, strength & resistance | |
| • | Enhance performance | |
| • | Help achieve correct bodyweight | |
| • | Alleviate tiredness & delay fatigue | |
| • | Improve immune function and increase resistance to illness | |
| • | Ensure good bone health to reduce the risk of stress fractures | |
| • | Prevent injury due to muscle fatigue | |
| • | Ensure rapid recovery | |
Scientific knowledge has to be translated into everyday eating as both food & fluid intakes are of paramount important before, during and after training. This knowledge is also essential in providing the athlete with accurate advice on the correct use of supplements; some of the promises made by the latest fads & trends can distract attention away from performance enhancing, sports-specific nutrition matched to an individual’s requirements.
Female athletes are nutritionally vulnerable and special attention needs to be given to their specific, nutritional requirements; some studies have revealed that female athletes report energy intakes that barely cover their basal metabolic needs, let alone the energy requirements of their training.
Reaching your highest sporting potential requires commitment, not only to training but also to ensuring you provide your body with the nutrients it needs to train and recover and to compete and keep on competing, whilst staying healthy and free from injury. Nutrition can literally make the difference between winning and losing and anyone who trains on a regular basis, from a professional athlete to someone preparing for their first 10k and who takes their training seriously, has to realise that poor quality fuel = poor performance = never reaching their full potential.
