Nutrition for Training and Competition

Delivered by:

Elaine Bo APD, AccSD Victorian Institute of Sport

Acknowledgements to Greg Shaw, Chris Fonda & Louise Cato

• Providing high quality, varied protein sources

• Protein is important for:

– Muscle growth and repair

– Healthy immune system

– Building machinery to help you swim faster/stronger

• Food sources of protein…

Nutrient Vs Energy Dense

• Nutrient dense foods vs. Energy dense foods

• What do I mean by this?

Nutrient Vs Energy Dense

Periodised Nutrition

0

2000

4000

6000

8000

10000

12000

14000

Ene

rgy

(kJ)

Energy (kJ)

Carbohydrate (g)

• Everyday carbohydrate foods…

• Sometimes carbohydrate foods…

• Dehydration WILL impact your performance

• 2% loss of body mass

– ˜1.4kg in 70kg male swimmer

• Day to day hydration essential

• Drinking fluids with meals can help with better retention

What is Priming?

• Priming is about getting the body ready for training

• Priming foods are Carbohydrate-rich foods

What about morning training?

Priming is necessary when:

• You have a session that has a high intensity main set

• You have a gym session

• You suffer from hunger pains if you don’t eat before training

• You have a specific nutrition goal. You may have extremely high energy needs or trying to increase your muscle mass and therefore need to find more opportunities to eat

Priming snack examples

Toast with jam/honey/peanut butter

Bowl of fruit salad & yoghurt

Bowl of cereal with milk

English muffin with banana & honey

Muesli Bar

Sushi rolls

What else?

Priming during training

High intensity main set = need priming fluids

• Threshold/heart rate main sets that last >30mins

• Sprint sets of high intensity and short duration

Low intensity main set = don’t need priming fluids

• Drills / technique / kicking

Priming during training

Priming Water Bottle

• Only for specific priming sessions

• Contain priming fluid – sports drink or diluted cordial

• Beware dental erosion

Hydration Water Bottle

• Used at all sessions for hydration

• Should only contain water

• Rinse mouth with water after consuming priming fluid

What is Replace?

• Replace is about putting back in what you’ve used

• Certain foods can help the body to recover quicker

Replace

Only replace the carbohydrates you have used

Replace most

Replace some

Wait for your next meal

When you have a very hard evening session followed by a very hard morning session

When you have a hard session on Saturday morning and don’t have another session till Monday afternoon

When you have an easy aerobic session and don’t have another session for 24 hours

Some examples

Nutrition for Competition

The Night before

On the Day

Aim: To “top up” fuel stores before first event

Goal:

• High in nutritious carbohydrate foods

• Low in fat and include dairy

• Contain at least 300-600mL fluid

On the Day – Between Events

< 30 min

30-60min

1-2 hours

> 2 hours

At the Pool

On the Day - Fluids

• Must be well hydrated prior to the meet.

• Aim for at least 1.6 – 2L of water daily (not including training)

• Fluid guide:

– 300-600mL with pre-event meal (breakfast)

– 250-500mL after every race, sipping constantly

– Best fluid choice = water & sports drink

Replace – After competition

• Aim to consume 40-50g carbohydrate to help your muscles recover (Refuel)

• Aim to consume 15-25g protein to help your muscles repair (Repair)

• Aim to replace lost sweat by matching fluid intake with fluid losses (Rehydrate)

Energise

Build and Repair

Hydrate Prime and Replace

• For information on sports nutrition visit:

https://www.sportsdietitians.com.au/factsheets/

• For information specific for junior swimmers:

https://www.sportsdietitians.com.au/factsheets/children/junior-swimmers/

THANK YOU

Elaine Bo

elaine.bo@vis.org.au

0426 783 871