Whatever sport or activity you take part in, and whether you are a keen amateur or elite athlete, it’s important to recognise that many sports will place significant demands on your body that the average diet is simply unable to cope with.
A lack of energy reserves and insufficient bodily nutrients can often make it difficult for you to perform at your very best. However, a good, well balanced diet supported by carefully selected, high quality nutritional supplements can provide the answer, playing a key role in boosting performance, minimising recovery times and maximising your sporting potential.
Every sport places subtly different demands on your body, each with their own unique mix of aerobic and anaerobic activity. This mix makes it essential that you develop the best nutritional plan that takes account of both you and your sport. Such an approach will help you achieve an optimum blend of speed, power, endurance, fitness and hydration; maximise your performance and achieve your goals.
Distance runners and road cyclists may be looking to increase their endurance, bodybuilders may want to to control, develop and sculpt their physical appearance; whilst weightlifters may want to maximise their strength and explosive power. What they all have in common though is the need for a carefully tailored, nutritionally balanced diet, with a particular focus on the individual nutritional needs of their chosen sport.
Your sport in more detail…
Skiing & Winter Sports Nutrition
The cumulative effects of extreme cold and altitude, lead to increased energy output; a greater reliance on blood glucose and muscle glycogen, and increased fluid losses, are the most important nutritional factors for skiers and other winter sports athletes to consider.
Fluid requirements are higher under such extreme environmental conditions because cold air has less water than warmer air.
Sprinting Nutrition
The 100 metres, 200 metres, 400 metres, 4 x 100 and 4 x 400 metres relays are generally regarded as the main competitive sprint events in track and field athletics. Additionally, you could also include in this grouping the 100 and 400 metres hurdles, as they all rely primarily on the generation of explosive speed and power from an athletes anaerobic energy reserves.
For a sprint specialist their power- to-weight ratio is of critical importance […]
Swimming Nutrition
As with many sports, swimming is not only great for general fitness but is also good for improving endurance, building up body mass as well as overall muscle tone and definition. However, many of us fail to realise that swimming is one of the most physically intense sports to take part in, especially at a competitive level.
At a club, county and international level swimming often involves long duration training sessions once or twice a day, an […]
Tennis Nutrition
Not only is tennis a very skilful sport, matches also involve incredible agility, lightening fast reflexes, repeated short bursts of high intensity action and can last for several hours. So, whilst tennis players are highly reliant on their anaerobic energy systems, a strong aerobic capacity is also required to sustain levels of match play. Although tennis matches are not continuous they can last a long time, which provides something of a challen […]
Throwing Nutrition
The four recognised Olympic throwing events of track and field are javelin, discus, shot and hammer and they all rely primarily on the development of strength, explosive power and speed, so, if you take part in any of these disciplines it is essential that you consume sufficient carbohydrates and lots of protein to fuel your body sufficiently.
Moderate servings of meat, skinless chicken, eggs, reduced-fat dairy products, tofu and lentils shoul […]
Triathlon Nutrition
Triathlon is a fast growing, multi-disciplinary endurance sport that, as its name suggests, comprises three distinct disciplines – swimming, cycling and running, in that order. Such a combination of sports means that a triathletes body has to be able to cope with the different physical demands of each of those disciplines separately, but also consecutively.
Generally, competitive triathlons are completed over varying times and distances as t […]
Volleyball Nutrition
If you want to be a successful, fit and well-toned volleyball player a healthy, nutritional eating programme is essential. Whether you are a setter, hitter, libero or defensive specialist, in order to optimise your on-court performances, maintain your physical strength and boost your agility it is essential that you have a well planned nutritional programme in place.
Individual nutritional requirements will generally depend on the frequency a […]
