Category: Cardio

Proper nutrition for athletes is necessary when preparing for an endurance event to ensure you have the energy and strength to train effectively, perform on event day, and maintain immunity during the rigor of regular intense athletic pursuits. 

Nutrition for athletes must include all of the macronutrients:

• Complex carbohydrates — whole-grain bread, oatmeal, sweet potato
• Complete proteins — eggs, salmon, chicken, leafy greens
• Healthy fats — avocados, oils, nuts, and seeds

Amounts of each will vary depending on individual metabolism and the length and intensity of the day’s training, so it’s important to experiment on what combination works for you. Generally, you should aim for a 60:15:25 carb:protein: fat ratio.

When you eat can be as important to consider as what you eat.

What to Eat Before a Workout

Carbs are easier to digest than proteins and fats, so their ratio should be higher in meals and snacks eaten before a workout.  Allow adequate time for digestion to prevent body systems from competing (the body’s focus is on your workout instead of digestion.) Don’t forget that carbs have a tendency to get stored as fat if not utilized properly, so don’t go overboard unless planning a particularly intense session.

What to Eat After a Workout

Your body is most receptive to the replenishment of glycogen reserves in the time period immediately following your workout. Consuming some simple carbs and proteins within the first hour will aid in muscle recovery and prepare your body for your next session. Avoid empty simples like sweets and juices in favor of fiber-rich whole fruits. Adding in a handful of nuts or some other healthy fats helps replenish lost energy.

While it can be tempting to indulge in junk foods after an intense workout, it’s not a good idea to do so regularly. Your body gets more efficient as you get deeper into your training and you’ll begin to burn fewer calories with the same workout over time.  Junk foods with their empty calories will neither help you perform nor recover.

What to Eat the Day of an Event or Competition

Everyone is different, so it may take some experimentation to determine how you perform after certain food and supplement combinations. By focusing on sports nutrition early in the training process, you’ll have time to fully understand your body’s needs and responses to foods and better know how you should eat in the days leading up to your endurance event.

Some like to carb load the whole day prior, while others prefer a carb-heavy breakfast and lunch followed by a light dinner. Work to determine your best combination of fiber, fat, and protein to keep you satiated, but not so full that you can’t get a good night’s sleep.

On event day, sports nutritionists generally recommend a light, easy-to-digest breakfast that packs an energy punch. Whole grain toast or a bagel with peanut butter and a banana, for example. 

The Big Finish

After the big event, what your body needs for recovery will be determined by the intensity of your experience, the weather, and how effective your training program ending up being. In general, your first goal should be to consume a light snack comprised of carbs and protein aimed at initiating your immediate recovery needs.  A recovery drink or shake may do the trick.

Your body will be working to rebound from the exertion of the event and will thank you for saving any heavy meals for several hours after completion.

Food is both fuel and medicine.  Nutrient-dense foods and snacks eaten in the right combination and at the right time throughout your training can effectively prepare you for — and help you recover from — your endurance athletic events. Make sports nutrition a priority component of your training.

What to Eat When Training for an Endurance Event

Whether it’s your first attempt or your 50th, preparing your body for a major athletic event such as a marathon, century bike rally or triathlon goes well beyond “eating healthy.”  It requires a complementary combination of exercise and sports nutrition designed to fuel your body through vigorous training sessions and aid in muscle recovery afterwards. 

While most dedicated athletes eat fairly well, as a rule, they often have different fitness goals. Some want to lose weight as they train while others just need to change their body composition and work on endurance, so nutrition for athletes should be individualized to both body type and desired outcomes. 

Proper sports nutrition requires the right ratio of carbs, protein, and fat for adequate dietary support to ensure your body will perform at optimal levels during training sessions and, ultimately, on the big day/s.  Because everyone is different, it may take some experimentation to determine how you perform in training after various food and supplement combinations, so focusing on sports nutrition early in the training process will allow you to fully understand how your body adapts to certain foods and plan accordingly for event day.

Individual goals lead to variations in sports training diets, but there are some general guidelines that can assist you in preparing your body to compete.

Carbohydrates serve as your main source of fuel as well as the body’s means for replenishing and maintaining glycogen stores. While simple carbs can be useful for providing fast energy right before a workout or other high-activity period, complex carbs are better before endurance activities or a particularly intense training session, and should comprise at least 60% of total calories. Whole grains and foods are always better than their processed or enriched counterparts.

Protein, needed for muscle growth and repair, should make up approximately 15% of your daily calories. Without it, instead of building and maintaining muscle, the body will break it down to use as fuel. Eggs, oats, nuts, and seeds, along with lean meats and fish are all good sources of protein.

The consumption of healthy fats is known to increase endurance. While you should aim to keep consumption of fats to 25-30%, the inclusion of plenty of positive fats such as avocados, oils, nuts, and seeds, will allow you to train for longer periods.

Supplements, sports drinks, bars, and gels have their place in sports nutrition, but should not be considered replacements for real, whole foods.  They are best used during actual prolonged training periods and on the day of the event for immediate replacement of sugars and fluids lost during exercise.

Eating a well-balanced diet comprised of nutrient-dense meals and snacks throughout training is the best way to ensure you have more effective workouts and perform at your best on event day.

The attention you pay to sports nutrition while training for an endurance event is just as important as the intensity and duration of your workouts.