Fueling for performance

DON’T LEAVE THE TANK ON E

We’ve all been there, warmups are just finished and you’re legs are already ‘heavy’. One of the worst feelings as an athlete is trying to get through a practice with no gas in the tank. Most of the time this is just a result of simple under fueling, and can be addressed with a good approach to fueling.

The main considerations when looking to “fill the tank” or fuel up through nutrition are: nutrient timing, food selection, training intensity and last but not least athlete goals. When you consider how all of these ideas come together you can begin to understand how difficult it is to generalize the “right” dose. Instead taking a personalized approach is best, and there are some simple guidelines that can help you get in the right direction when it comes to this.

In general making the most out of your food is ideal especially for weight class athletes. That being said, athlete goals often is the first consideration to make. Main questions to ask here are what are my weight based goals, how do i plan to reach them. Based on the time of year or specific training block the next question to ponder is naturally the intensity of training. Leading into a large competition training might be more intense, so you must provide more fuel to support that intensity. Nutrient timing and food selection go hand in hand. This is where it gets down to the nitty gritty.

There are three main time periods that are most important. They are the ‘pre practice meal’ at 3-4 hours before the practice, the ‘pre practice snack’ at 30-90 minutes before the practice, and the ‘recovery meal’ following the practice. What each of those meals looks like is, like anything else, dependent on the individual and the training that they are fueling for.

The ‘pre practice meal’ in general, will look most like a “well balanced” meal. Meaning, that there will be a lean protein, carbohydrate source, and likely a good source of nutrients (vegetables/fruits). The main interest in this instance is to provide protein toward your daily goal intake, as well as supplying additional carbohydrate to top off glycogen stores. This meal might look like:

• 4oz lean protein

• 1 Cup brown rice

• 1 Cup asparagus tips

The ‘pre practice snack’ that takes place between 90-30 minutes before the start of that practice is smaller and more directed. The point here is to provide last second glucose to top off the glycogen stores to maintain fuel through the exercise. An example of this might be:

• 2 medium bananas and a cup of fruit juice

OR

• 2 granola bars

The “recovery meal” is the meal that’s taking place after the training session and serves a large role in being ready for the next session. The purpose of this meal is to start replenishing glycogen stores as well as facilitate recovery. This meal (just like any other) is different based on the individual and type of training, as well as when the next training session is. Ideally this meal will have lean protein source with plenty of leucine, a mix of complex and implement carbohydrates, and a solid dose nutrient dense foods. This might look like:

• 6oz salmon

• 1 Cup brown rice

• 1/2 Cup black beans

• 1 Cup roasted Brussels sprouts

• 10oz sports drink

Learning how to put all of these meals together and align them with your goals is a skill and often times requires an extra set of eyes, but can yield HUGE reward when done properly. The days of training with the gas tank empty need to end. Level up your performance and get the most out of the work you put in by fueling properly.