In a recent survey created by the NSR High Performance department, and completed by over 200 NSR student-athletes, we identified that nutrition is the number one topic that developing athletes feel they require the most help with.
Across the many factors that can influence an athlete’s performance and general development, nutrition is one of the most misunderstood areas. The sporting world is flooded with companies selling performance enhancing supplements that promise ‘Messi-like’ performances. Unfortunately, there is no substitute for hard work and diligent preparation.
Start with basics!
Before you reach for the Power-aid or Protein Shake, make sure you have a basic understanding of the three components that make up all the food we eat. To simplify what can often be a confusing topic, I have created this infographic which summarises the three macronutrients (carbohydrates, protein and fat) and how they can influence your athletic performance. This nutritional snapshot will give you some simple guidelines that are super easy to implement.
Trial and Error
Everything we eat and drink can have a dramatic impact on how we think, feel and perform (physically and psychologically). As an athlete, you should be aware of how certain foods will impact your body. What works for ‘Athlete A’ may not work as well for ‘Athlete B’. The key to identifying what produces your best performances is to take control of it. If you don’t attempt to implement some of the strategies mentioned above, you’ll never actually realise your own athletic potential.
That being said, it will take you some time and effort to fine tune your own nutritional plan. The best time to trial a new system is during the practice sessions and pre-season games when fluctuations in performance won’t impact on the outcome of your season.
Why change your diet if you’re already performing well?
Every little adjustment you make will have an accumulative effect on your performance. For example, if you add some extra protein after games/competition, your recovery time will be shorter, allowing you to train harder in the following week and gradually putting you ahead of your competitors.
Over the weeks, months and years of implementing good nutritional habits you’ll be miles ahead of the athletes who don’t have a consistent approach to their nutritional preparation. Poor nutrition will not only slow your development as an athlete but it will also influence the quality of your school work, your general health and will increase the risk of injury by slowing down your physical recovery after training and competition.
Take it one meal at a time
Trying to overhaul your entire diet at once can have catastrophic effects on performance. Start by working on one meal at time. Make some changes to your pre-game snacks and assess how they influence your performance. Once you nail that component, start working on your post-game nutrition.
From there you could turn your attention to breakfast. Implement some different startegies until you’ve found the best method and move to lunch. Remember, as I said earlier, it will take time and patience. If you’re serious about reaching your athletic potential, I suggest creating a 7-day diet diary that you fill out on a regular basis. It will allow you to cross check your own performance to your diet. This will really help you identify what works and what doesn’t. Take it seriously but enjoy the process of working out your own system. The best part about this process is you get to eat a lot food!
Until next time, remember “The more you sweat in training, the less you bleed in battle.”
Michael Chiovitti
NSR High Performance Manager
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