Dietary Advice

The following advice is just a guideline to healthy eating and not the opinion of a professional dietician.

Footbal Foods

As Sports People, one thing overlooked that can influence players' performances dramatically is the quality of their diet. What you eat before, during and after training or performing, will influence how well you compete and recover, ready for your next exercise.

As well as foods, fluids are equally as important if not more so. Ensure that you drink plenty of non-fizzy fluids when doing exercise. There are three main forms of foods called Macronutrients, these are:

• fats
• protein
• carbohydrates

Advanced sports people need a slightly higher content of carbohydrate and protein in their diet in order to produce more energy, to recover and to repair muscle tissues for future performances.

Fats

Despite their bad press, fats are essential for energy in sports, its just the type of fats and the amount, that we need to limit. A fat intake of 15% - 30% of energy is recommended for elite athletes, this includes footballers.

Saturated fatty acids must be kept to a minimum as they are linked to heart disease and increased cholesterol. For example, lard, cheese, butter and meat fat.

Unsaturated fats have the greatest health benefits of all fats, as they help lower cholesterol. These are seen as liquid at room temperature such as olive oil, avocados, olives, nuts and seeds. These are therefore the sources of fat that should be eaten for tissue structure. Of all the fats, these should be consumed the most.

Protein

Protein is essential in the diet to assist the body with the growth, repair and formation of new tissue. It is recommended in a normal diet that protein makes up 15% - 20%. However as an elite athlete, you must be nearer 25% - 30%. When you are exercising, protein can also be used as a source of fuel to provide energy. This is especially seen when carbohydrate stores are low.

We know foods high in carbohydrate are fundamentals for a sportsperson, adding a high protein content to the meal, especially immediately after exercise, will benefit the athlete incredibly.

Carbohydrates

Carbohydrates are the key component of a top performance, foods high in carbohydrate should be eaten before, during and after exercise. They should be eaten up to 2 hours before exercise and at regular intervals during exercise; carbohydrate loading is recommended for up to 2 hours after exercise, and every 2 hours thereafter.

Please eat healthily!