Nutrition is important for every person who wants to keep fit, feel good and provide their body with the vitamins and minerals necessary for proper development and functioning.
Much more, however, nutrition is important for athletes, to provide the energy needed to achieve the desired performance.
The food that an athlete, according to BritainReviews, consumes daily directly influences his sports performance. In the case of athletes, nutrition is the source of energy for the body and the key to success in sports life.
The benefits of proper nutrition in sports
The benefits of proper nutrition in the life of an athlete are represented by the following aspects:
• Rapid recovery of the body in the period between training and sports competitions.
• Reduced the risk of illness or injury at the training site.
• Increasing the body’s resistance to effort, during training and sports competitions. This means that the athlete ascends, achieving new performances and recording the desired results.
• Achieving and maintaining proper body weight (ideal, appropriate).
• The athlete’s confidence in his person and in his strengths (the certainty that the athlete is well prepared and will face the competition).
• Diet becomes a pleasant integral part of the athlete’s life.
Also, athletes who want to have a proper diet can consult diet meals delivered platforms. They offer tips and diets especially dedicated to athletes.
Carbohydrates, the main sources of energy
Glycogen (a polymer of glucose) is the main source of energy for muscles. Carbohydrates can be stored in muscle and liver as glycogen, but this storage is limited, which is why it is important to fill your stores before exercise. Optimal carbohydrate intake will allow optimized glycogen storage for the next training and recovery session. Glycogen storage lasts from 90 minutes to 3 hours for moderate to intense intensity. Increasing this stock helps increase endurance and performance. According to the ISSN and the position paper of Canadian dietitians, the glycemic index and load would not play on athletic endurance when energy and carbohydrate needs are covered.
Protein
The protein requirement is 0.8 g / kg body weight / day for a sedentary person (ie 56g / day for a 70 kg person). For a person with physical activity, the need is increased to 1 g / kg body weight/day. For athletes, the requirement recommended by the ACSM is 1.2 to 1.7 g / kg weight/day. The quality of protein must also be good in terms of essential amino acids. EFSA (European Food Safety Authority) has not set a maximum protein limit due to lack of data, but the Institute of Medicine has found that protein intake equivalent to 45% of energy is a problem.
Water and ions
Hydration is important, the human body is about 60% water. Water and ions are lost through perspiration and expired air. Fluids play an important role in biological reactions in energy production, transportation, thermal regulation, waste disposal, etc. Sweating also helps regulate body temperature: 1 g of vaporized sweat at 30 ° C (EFSA) is equivalent to 0.58 kcal of heat loss. Water loss can increase up to 8L in a day in very hot and arid climates. ISSN estimates that athletic performance is reduced when 2% or more of the weight is lost by water (1.4 kg of water for a 70 kg person).