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Nutrition Advent Calendar - Day 20

Caffeine - Is it really that good?

Tea and coffee are the most widely consumed drinks across the world after water. People typically drink 4-6 cups per day, and may consider it essential to get them through the day...thanks to caffeine!

Caffeine offers many health benefits and is regularly used in sport to enhance performance. However caffeine has always been perceived to cause a diuretic effect (dehydration). What's the score?

Nutrition Advent Calendar - Day 19

Informed Sport - Safeguarding Athletes from Inadvertent Doping

Have you got a fancy sports nutrition supplement on your Christmas list? Read this first...

The sports nutrition supplementation is a multi billion pound industry with thousands of products available to athletes and the general public, designed to enhance sports performance, body composition and health.

Nutrition Advent Calendar - Day 18⠀
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Vitamin D - The Sunshine Vitamin⠀
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If you're unaware of the important roles that vitamin D plays in the body, hopefully this will give you an insight into how and why you should avoid vitamin D deficiency. ⠀
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Nutrition Advent Calendar - Day 17

Protein intake - The 3 Ts
Part 3: Timing

Total & Type have been covered, now for the 3rd and final T for protein needs...Timing.

Firstly, the order I have done the 3 Ts are actually based on priority for MPS. More protein is best, of this the type of protein enhances those effects, and then distributing the protein will complete the set. Getting each of these right will optimise your protein intake.

Nutrition Advent Calendar - Day 16

Protein intake - the 3 Ts:
Part 2: Type

After outlining how much protein is required to maximise muscle protein synthesis (MPS) yesterday, the next most influential element of protein intake is the type of protein.

Nutrition Advent Calendar - Day 15

Protein intake - the 3 Ts:
Part 1: Total

Over the next 3 days I'll be looking at dietary protein and the 3 Ts you should focus on to maximise its effects on increasing muscle size, strength and function.

Nutrition Advent Calendar - Day 12

Healthy Snacking - What, When, Why?

Snacking can be a lot of people's downfall and the difference between a successful and unsuccessful diet. Snacking is a great opportunity between meals to fuel the body with protein rich and nutrient dense foods. Used correctly, they can fuel training, aid recovery and keep you on track with your goals. Abuse the privilege of a snack by over-eating calories and choosing poor options, can lead to excess weight gain.

Nutrition Advent Calendar - Day 9

Meal timings...When should you eat?

This is a very common question that I receive and the answers are different for each person, because it depends on certain factors...

1. Your goals
2. Your preferences
3. Your lifestyle

 Performance Nutrition

Nutrition Advent Calendar - Day 3

There are so many diets out there that claim to be better than all the rest for successful weight loss. However there's just one thing in common that's required to lose weight....a calorie deficit.

Nutrition Advent Calendar - Day 1

I thought I'd start the nutrition tips with an important message of lifestyle change as long-term health is the ultimate goal, not losing a few pounds for a special occasion.

Diets often fail as they target short-term goals and are not sustainable in the long-term. Instead, what you should aim to do is find a 'diet' or a 'nutrition lifestyle' that you can enjoy and can stick to for the rest of your life!

It’s a Saturday morning and my brother is getting ready for a 10km run in preparation for an upcoming race. My sister is going out for a light run as she wants to lose a few pounds before next month’s holiday. They both eat the same breakfast consisting of cereal and fruit juice because they want to have enough energy to get through their run.

This sets the tone for every training session they both do, but should they be eating the same thing based on their training? The simple answer is no.

There are 2 main factors that influence what to eat before you train. They are:

Now that you’re fully prepared for the marathon after maximising your body’s internal carbohydrate stores and hydration levels, this third and final blog of the series will outline the last minute touches to complete your race nutrition strategy.

Water is an essential constituent of the human body as it makes up approximately 60% of its whole composition. All cells, organs and tissues are primarily comprised of water making it vital for correct function of all physiological processes in the body. Water transports nutrients and oxygen into cells, regulates body temperature (thermoregulation), acts as a lubricant and shock absorber to protect joints, the brain and foetus during pregnancy, supports digestion & removal of waste products, and is also required to breakdown food so we can use it as energy.

It was in the 1960’s when dietary carbohydrates were discovered as the major energy source to fuel exercise by being stored in the muscles as glycogen. Muscle glycogen content is linked to endurance performance and starting with lower concentrations results in premature fatigue, therefore nutritional strategies to increase muscle and liver glycogen before competition are common to maximise performance. Here we look at effective carbohydrate loading strategies to get the most from your diet and fuel your next event.

How long to load?

Fuelling your body with the right energy and nutrients is fundamental for maximising performance. Eating a variety of foods, “a rainbow a day”, is the best way to ensuring your body receives an abundant supply of all nutrients allowing your body to perform, recover and develop after each training session.

To get better at doing something you just need to keep practicing it. A simple phrase that could be applied to improving sports performance, and to an extent, this will work. If you’re training for a marathon you just need to keep running further, right?

This is all well and good but what if you’re a footballer, should you just play football? Or if you’re a javelin thrower do you just keep throwing a javelin?

After months of training, race day is finally here. You’ve put so much time and effort into your training, the last thing you want is to be unhappy with your performance when it matters most. Nutrition is fundamental in maximising performance and should never be neglected, in fact it should be prioritised on par with your training. What you eat and drink before and during a race should be practiced extensively in training prior to the event so your body is comfortable with any nutritional strategies.

Caffeine is a naturally occurring chemical found in certain plants including cocoa beans, kola nuts, yerba maté, guarana, and the world’s most beloved tea leaves & coffee beans. Coffee & tea have become the major sources of caffeine intake, and many consider it as an essential dietary component to get them through the day. It is not uncommon for people to drink between 3-6 cups of tea or coffee per day, as they find it helps them to feel better, have more energy and be able to carry out daily tasks more effectively.

The most anticipated competition in World Rugby is here in England – the Rugby World Cup. It is the tournament that every professional rugby player trains incredibly hard for, in hope of participating in, and lifting the cup in the final. Rugby players come in a variety of different shapes and sizes, therefore training and nutritional requirements must be tailored to each player. Playing position, total body weight, lean mass, fat mass, as well as personal factors such as anxiety, sleep quality, appetite and psychological factors (e.g. superstitions) must all be considered.