Athlete nutrition

A diet for athletes and sports teams.

This basic food group diet plan should be used as a guide to meeting nutritional requirements during training and heavy load playing conditions (e.g. classics or weekend tournaments).

During the training phase.

While high intensity training is taking place, the body constantly requires replenishment of vital nutrients to replace damaged tissue within the body. (e.g. muscle tissue gets destroyed, as do skin cells, nervous system tissue, and the tissue that makes up your bones and ligaments.) The longer the exercise goes, the more you need to consume of the replacement foods required to repair the damage.

Muscles are built from protein so we need to replace protein following exercise.

PROTEIN- The best sources of protein are: Red meat, white meat, (poultry, fish and sea food), beans, pulses (lentils, peas, etc) dairy products, tofu, and eggs. (Especially when training at peak, or when muscle tissue is being recreated following lots of running, swimming, body contact etc.)

It’s not a good idea to have a steak or a hamburger before a game, because instead of delivering oxygen to your muscles, the blood supply will be busy digesting the food you have just eaten.

Muscles require Glucose to function and this is best manufactured by the body from carbs, and fats as well as sugars.

CARBOHYDRATES- Carbohydrates (carbs) provide much of the body’s energy and it is important to consume the carbs in a useable format. (For instance, roast potatoes contain carbs, but take some time to digest and it would not be an asset to have 3 roast potatoes banging about in your stomach during a game). A banana, a glass of milo would be more beneficial. Other easily digestible foods include: (completely unrefined/ unprocessed) wholemeal pasta, brown rice, pasta, other rice (basmati is good and low G.I.) potatoes, corn, beans. etc. Avoid products containing corn starch.

The nervous system and the brain require products made from the fats and oils we eat as part of our diet in order to repair and regenerate themselves.

FATS AND OILS- Come from animal fats (saturated) dairy products (saturated) canola oil, olive oil etc, omega fats, vegetable fats (unsaturated)

SUGARS- The body will also use sugar as an energy source, but for exercise purposes it is less effective than carbs as an immediate energy source. Sugars are found in many foods and get there in many ways, included being added to processed foods to make them taste better. Be sure how much sugar is in the pre packed food you eat. The amount and the daily requirements can be found on the package labelling.

Citrus and tropical fruits are good sources of sugar, and provide other health benefits as well. Bananas are best of all because of the mineral content .Sugar free and fructose based lollies are acceptable, but not often. Chocolate is low GI, but should be taken infrequently.

Minerals and Vitamins- found in all fruit and veggies especially leafy green veg which also contain iron.

Iron- important for oxygen (O2) delivery all around body, the best source being red meat, also found in poultry, fish, eggs, pulses and spinach amongst other things.

Calcium- is important for bone strength and growth and an important chemical reactor during exercising

Best sources: most foods include dairy, milk, cheese etc and red meat and shellfish.

Pre-game meal 2.5 hours before training or competition:

Eat more carbs- easy to digest, e.g. noodles, bananas, milo, muesli energy bars etc. Fill your glucose stores up with these easy to break down carbohydrate laden foods

Decrease protein, as it takes too long to digest. Increase the glucose i.e.; natural sugars (fructose etc), tropical fruit. Snakes etc, bananas, pineapples, watermelon

Between games (where 2 + games in one day):

Bottle of Gatorade. Start taking after 20-30 min of aerobic work and then ingested intermittently during the rest of the contest. If backing up the next day, drink another bottle in the evening to restore electrolyte balance.

Water in abundance.

Bananas & tropical fruit

easily digestible carbs (2 min noodles), white bread, bananas. Avoid any kind of fried foods or pre-prepared foods with additives.

After Games – GO THE HACK

Increase carbohydrate intake – rice, noodles, and stay with natural complex foods such as potatoes, corn, pulses, vegetables, salad etc

Increase saturated and unsaturated fats for replacement

Increase protein intake to replace muscle tissue

Increase minerals & vitamins

Gatorade

Leafy veg, root veg, pulses

Focus on natural unprocessed food

Breakfast – multi grain toast with banana or vegemite, low fat muesli, porridge, nutri grain or similar, Milo or orange juice. NO Frosties or cocoa pops etc

Lunch – multi grain/brown/whole meal sandwich or roll with salad veg, chicken, ham etc, cheese, egg, fruit juice or milk based drink, 2 pieces of fruit, biscuits or cake, bananas.

After school and pre-training – banana sandwich or high energy muesli bars, fruit juice or milk based drink

Dinner (after training or exercise bout) – high protein, best sources in rank order:

Red meat
Pork
Poultry
Eggs
Leafy green veg/beans

High Carbohydrate: Easily digestible carbs

pasta
rice
lasagne
Spaghetti bolognaise is good and easy and quick to prepare.
Potatoes, corn

Fats and oils. There is generally enough in the fast foods we eat while in a tournament situation. If preparing own meals, leave some fat on chops etc, include a sausage or fried fish to supply oils and fats in this situation.

Minerals & Vitamins

Lots of leafy green vegetable are the key to getting vitamins and minerals.

Don’t forget the King of training and competition foods. It comes pre packed, is cheap, tasty, the packaging breaks down naturally and in Queensland they are plentiful.

That’s right...The Banana is KING!!!

For more information, or for detailed feeding plans for athletes, email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Athlete Nutrition and CHO

The term carbohydrate is synonymous with sports nutrition. The immediate impact of carbohydrate intake (or its absence) on daily training and competition performance has been widely researched and documented.. In addition, different approaches to fuelling sports performance has become an item of discussion among scientists ( and the locker room) from time to time. It is no wonder many recreational and elite athletes remain unsure of the amount of carbohydrate they need to support their training and to optimise performance while achieving a weight and body composition that is appropriate for their sport.

Why is carbohydrate important?

Carbohydrate is a key fuel source for exercise, especially during prolonged continuous or high-intensity exercise.

The body stores carbohydrate as glycogen in the muscles and liver, however its storage capacity is limited.

When these carbohydrate stores are inadequate to meet the fuel needs of an athlete’s training program, the results include fatigue -, reduced ability to train hard, impaired competition performance, and a reduction in immune system function.

For these reasons, athletes are encouraged to plan carbohydrate intake around key training sessions and over the whole day according to their carbohydrate requirements as an exercise fuel.

How much carbohydrate do I need?

Carbohydrate requirements are dependent on the fuel needs of the athlete’s training and competition program. Exactly how much is required is dependent on the frequency, duration and intensity of the activity.

Since activity levels change from day to day, carbohydrate intake should fluctuate to reflect this.

On high activity days, carbohydrate intake should be increased to match the increase in activity. This will help to maximise the outcomes from the training sessions and promote recovery between sessions.

Alternatively, on low or no training days, carbohydrate intake should be reduced to reflect the decreased training load.

A clever way to adjust carbohydrate intake from day to day is to schedule carbohydrate-rich food choices at meals or snacks around the important training sessions. As the sessions increase in their carbohydrate demands, so should the athlete increase their carbohydrate intake before, during or after exercise.

Not only does this strategy help the athlete to keep track of their total carbohydrate needs, but it ensures that the timing of the carbohydrate is best suited to fuel the session.

The table on this page provides some general targets for daily carbohydrate intake goals across a range of activity levels. Each athlete should fine-tune their carbohydrate intake with individual consideration of total energy (kilojoule) needs, specific training demands, and feedback from training performance. Additional guidelines outline the specific ways in which carbohydrate intake can be timed to enhance carbohydrate availability for key sessions.

Which foods are good sources of carbohydrate?

Many everyday foods and fluids contain carbohydrate, but have different features. For this reason, carbohydrate-containing foods and fluids are often divided into categories for comparison. Previously, carbohydrates were classified as either simple or complex, and more recently, the terms low and high glycemic index (GI) are being used. From a sports nutrition point of view, it is more helpful to classify carbohydrates as nutrient-dense, nutrient-poor or high-fat.