2525: Sports Nutrition: Elite vs. Recreational Athletes by Nancy Clark on Personalized Nutrition for Peak Performance & Recovery

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[00:00:42] Sports Nutrition, Elite vs Recreational Athletes by Nancy Clark of NancyClarkRD.com

[00:00:49] and I'm Dr. Neal, your host and narrator. Hey there, happy Saturday! I hope your weekend

[00:00:54] is off to a great start and welcome back to Optimal Health Daily or OHD, where I act as your

[00:01:01] narrator of popular health and fitness blogs and always provide my commentary at the end.

[00:01:06] And don't forget we have a bunch of shows covering different topics. Just search for

[00:01:10] Optimal Living Daily in your podcast app to find them. And with that, let's get right to

[00:01:16] it and start optimizing your life. Sports Nutrition, Elite vs Recreational Athletes

[00:01:27] by Nancy Clark of NancyClarkRD.com

[00:01:32] Question Nancy, do you offer different nutrition recommendations for elite athletes as compared

[00:01:38] to recreational exercisers? I'm highly competitive, work out intensely and often wonder if I'm

[00:01:44] eating to be the best athlete that I can be. Answer? Sports nutrition recommendations are

[00:01:51] based on the assumption we all want to get the most benefits from our workouts so we can perform

[00:01:57] to the best of our abilities. Because each elite athlete and casual exerciser is unique,

[00:02:03] a one diet fits all approach doesn't work. Rather, all exercisers want to be curious

[00:02:10] and experiment with a variety of fueling practices to learn what works best for their bodies.

[00:02:15] The following compares recommendations I might make for competitive athletes versus

[00:02:20] recreational exercisers. Note, sports nutrition is a new science. In the near future,

[00:02:28] with the refinement of personalized nutrition based on genetics, sports dietitians will be able

[00:02:34] to offer individualized advice. Some athletes might perform better with more fat than carbs,

[00:02:39] or more beef than beans. Until then, here are today's science-based recommendations.

[00:02:46] Carbohydrate Requirements In this era that pushes fat and protein,

[00:02:51] carbohydrate deficiency is common. All exercisers can improve their performance

[00:02:57] and their health by consuming adequate high quality carbs like grains, fruits,

[00:03:02] and veggies to fuel muscles and prevent needless fatigue. While elite athletes might want to

[00:03:09] strategically withhold carbs before specific training sessions to trigger performance-enhancing

[00:03:14] cellular adaptations, recreational exercisers want to focus on fueling well each day in order

[00:03:21] to have enjoyable workouts. A sport dietitian can help both elite and recreational athletes

[00:03:28] reach these carbohydrate goals. For one hour of moderate exercise, this will demand 2.5 to 3 grams

[00:03:36] of carbohydrates per pound of body weight. For 1 to 3 hours of endurance exercise,

[00:03:43] this would demand 2.5 to 4.5 grams of carbohydrates per pound of body weight.

[00:03:49] And for over 4 to 5 hours of extreme exercise, this demands 3.5 to 5.5 grams of carbohydrates

[00:03:58] per pound of body weight. For example, a 140-pound fitness exerciser who trains moderately hard for

[00:04:06] an hour a day, their carb goals are 350 grams, about 1400 calories. For the competitive athlete

[00:04:14] who trains harder and longer, a good goal is 630 grams of carbohydrates or about 2500 calories a day.

[00:04:22] Divide that into 3 meals and you get 400 to 700 calories from carbohydrates

[00:04:28] per meal and 2 snacks, each ranging from 100 to 300 calories from carbs per snack.

[00:04:37] Start reading food labels to see how well you do. You'll discover a spinach and cheese omelet

[00:04:42] doesn't hit the goal. Protein Requirements

[00:04:46] A well-fueled competitive athlete with trained muscles requires a little less protein than a

[00:04:51] novice exerciser who's building new muscle. The range of protein needs 0.6 to 1 gram of protein

[00:04:59] per pound of body weight or 1.2 to 2 grams per kilogram body weight tends to be moot,

[00:05:07] given most hungry exercisers and athletes consume plenty of protein. Most competitive

[00:05:12] athletes can easily meet their protein needs by aiming for about 20 to 30 grams of protein per meal,

[00:05:19] which would be like a can of tuna and 10 to 20 grams of protein per snack, which would be like

[00:05:25] a serving of Greek yogurt. The protein in natural foods is preferable to protein supplements.

[00:05:32] Natural foods offer a complex matrix of nutrients that interact with a synergistic effect,

[00:05:38] plus they are unlikely to be spiked with illegal drugs and compounds that can lead to a failed drug

[00:05:43] test. Fluids Competitive athletes lose lots of sweat when exercising for hours on end,

[00:05:50] but so can recreational exercisers who are out of shape and working hard. That's why

[00:05:55] everyone who sweats heavily wants to learn their sweat rate. You can learn this by

[00:06:01] weighing yourself without clothing before and after an hour of exercise without drinking

[00:06:07] anything at a certain pace and at a certain degree of heat or cold. For each pound lost,

[00:06:14] you are in deficit of 16 ounces of fluid. Drink enough during exercise to minimize this deficit.

[00:06:22] Throughout the day, drink enough to urinate every 2 to 4 hours, peeing every half hour is

[00:06:27] excessive. Remember there's no need to over hydrate. Fueling During Exercise

[00:06:33] For competitive athletes, a sport drink or gel is a convenient and precise way to boost

[00:06:39] energy during extended exercise over 90 minutes. With a target intake of 60 to 90 grams of carbohydrate

[00:06:46] per hour of extended exercise, an elite athlete generally prefers drinking a beverage than eating

[00:06:52] solid food. A casual exerciser might want some tastier orange slices or a granola bar.

[00:07:00] Electrolytes Electrolytes, basically potassium, sodium, magnesium and calcium

[00:07:06] are readily available in standard pre- and post-exercise foods. Most recreational exercisers

[00:07:13] don't sweat enough to lose a significant amount of electrolytes. Highly competitive athletes,

[00:07:18] however, train and sweat for 2 to 3 or more hours in the heat. They should add

[00:07:24] extra salt to their pre-exercise food, which will help retain water and delay dehydration,

[00:07:30] and consume sodium-containing foods and fluids during extended exercise.

[00:07:35] For example, endurance sports drinks. Afterwards, chocolate milk beats

[00:07:40] Gatorade for an electrolyte-filled recovery drink. Most sweaty athletes intuitively

[00:07:45] seek salty chips, soup or salted foods in their recovery meal.

[00:07:51] Recovery Recreational exercisers who train 2 to 3 times a week

[00:07:56] can easily recover by backing their workout into a balanced meal that contains carbs to refuel

[00:08:02] and protein to build and repair muscles, such as oatmeal with eggs, yogurt topped with granola,

[00:08:09] a sandwich with milk, chicken and rice. Competitive athletes who train twice a day

[00:08:15] should more rapidly refuel. The key is to plan ahead to have the right recovery foods and fluids

[00:08:21] ready and waiting. While a commercial recovery drink can be handy, a fruit smoothie made with

[00:08:27] Greek yogurt or some chocolate milk does an excellent job. Real foods work well for everyone.

[00:08:34] After lifting weights, no need for anyone to immediately slam down a protein shake.

[00:08:40] Muscles stay in building mode for the next 24 to 48 hours. Regular meals with protein evenly

[00:08:46] spaced throughout the day do the job. The Bottom Line

[00:08:51] Every exerciser and athlete can win with good nutrition. The key is to be responsible

[00:08:58] and plan ahead to have the best foods and fluids available at the right times.

[00:09:03] Here's to satisfying results from your hard work.

[00:09:10] You just listened to the post titled Sports Nutrition, Elite vs Recreational Athletes by Nancy

[00:09:16] Clark of NancyClarkeRD.com and I'll be right back with my commentary. We're driven by the search

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[00:10:34] Dr. Neal here for my commentary. I really loved when Nancy said that real foods work well for

[00:10:41] everyone so there's no need for anyone to drink a protein shake after a workout.

[00:10:46] The problem with some protein supplements is that they may not contain all the ingredients

[00:10:52] they claim to have or they may contain different amounts of the ingredients than what's actually

[00:10:57] listed or they may contain extra ingredients that aren't listed, ingredients that may not always be

[00:11:04] good for us. In fact, one study found that about 30% of sports supplements sold in the US

[00:11:12] contain banned substances. That means if we were to imagine ourselves walking in an aisle of our

[00:11:19] local supplement store and we were to pick say 10 of these supplements at random, three of them

[00:11:25] would likely contain banned substances. It's just another reason why consuming real foods

[00:11:31] may be better than relying on a shake or supplement for our nutrition needs.

[00:11:36] All right that'll do it for today. I hope you're having a great weekend if you're

[00:11:40] listening in real time and I'll see you back here tomorrow as usual where your optimal life awaits.