SPECIAL
FOCUS
41
JAN 2017 FOOD FOCUSTHAILAND
General Nutritioncalls for:
• Consuminga certainnumber of calories in order to sustain vital
bodily functions, which isdeterminedby theperson’suniquephysical
makeupand his/her nutritional and fitness goals.
• Ensuring calories are composed of the right amount of
macronutrients:
- Protein
- Carbohydrates
- Fats
•Ensuringproper hydration.This iscrucial inorder for thebody to
functionproperly.Women shoulddrinkat least nine cupsof water per
day, whilemen should drink at least thirteen cups. Of course, when
exercising, youwill need to replenish theadditional fluids lost.Adding
electrolytes toyourdiet (sodium,potassium,magnesium,andcalcium)
helps replace these vital nutrients.
Athletes typicallyconsumeagreater number of calories thannon-
athletes to satisfy their physically active lifestyle. These great bursts
of power call for additional hydration aswell as energy replacement,
primarily in the form of carbohydrates and fats to replace the body’s
glycogen, and for protein to feed, grow andmaintainmusclemass.
Timing your Meals
The timing of meals is absolutely crucial
for athletes. It is not just what they eat, but when they eat that is
important. Their training regimen may require them to eat certain
typesofmacronutrientsseveralmore timesaday thansomeonewho
is not in training.
Follow this SimpleAdvice in order toGet themost
out of PhysicalActivity.
Pre-Workout
Carbohydrates are what fuel a workout. Think of
them as gas for your car. You should consume carbs within 30-45
minutesof an intenseworkout. Theyareeasilydigestibleandconvert
toglucosequickly foruseas fuel.Additionally,manyathletesalsoprefer
apre-workout supplementwith ingredientssuchascaffeine, creatineand
nitric oxide precursors.
DuringaWorkout
Duringa light tomoderateworkout,youshoulddrink
water, at the very least, andaddelectrolytes if youneed theextraboost.
Electrolytes can replace valuable nutrients such as sodium, potassium,
magnesiumand calcium, which are lost by sweat.
In a moderate to vigorous workout, you should consider adding
carbohydrates toyour electrolytes.Thiscombinationwill not only replace
those valuable nutrients, but will continuously supply your muscles with
the glucose required tomaintain your performance.
Post-Workout
It is important to feed your muscles after a workout.
Typically youwant to consumegoodquality calorieswithin30minutes –
one hour after aworkout to reap themaximum benefit. Having said that
even if you do not get calories in during that time it does not mean you
should skipapost workoutmeal or shake. Consumebetween20and40
grams of high quality protein. The protein can come from whole foods
such as chicken or fish; however, many people do not like eating right
after ahardworkout soaproteinshake isagoodsolution.Apostworkout
shake can come fromdairy (whey or casein) proteinor fromplant based
sources likesoy.Protein rebuildsmusclesandultimatelyhelps to increase
leanmusclemass.
Eat toLoseWeight
Somepeoplewhoare trying to loseweight think
that if theyskipamealafter theirworkout, theywilldrop theweightquicker.
Nothingcouldbe further from the truth.Asmentionedbefore, youhave to
rebuild your muscles with good quality protein after stressing themwith
exercise.Otherwise,all thehardworkyouput intoyourworkoutcouldhave
been for nothing.Rather than increaseyour leanmusclemass, depriving
your bodyofmuchneededprotein for yourmuscles couldactually result
in the loss of leanmuscle.
Rest
Lastly, make sure you build in a rest day. While you may be
consuming adequate nutrients every day, if you are constantly pushing
your body to the limit, itwill not have time to really recover andbuild lean
musclemass unless you give it rest. Have at least one rest day aweek
built into your schedule.
ExplainsHow
SportsNutrition
Differsfrom
GeneralNutrition
There seems tobeamisconception that sports nutrition
isonly for eliteathletes.Granted, eliteathletes trainhard
and their nutritional demands are very high, but sports
nutrition is based on a solid general nutrition foundation
which can be applied to anyone: young, old, athletic or
sedentary.
