Training Food

From a nutritional point of view, I suggest that in the 7–10 days prior to your period, so during the luteal phase of your menstrual cycle, you make small dietary changes. Aim to include small frequent snacks of both complex carbohydrate and protein every 2–3 hours to prevent blood-sugar fluctuations.

The menstrual cycle can have a real influence on a female athlete’s energy levels and energy intake. During the follicular phase, days 1–13, where day 1 is the first day of your period, oestrogen levels are rising and peak just before ovulation (days 14/15), while progesterone levels are low. During the luteal phase, days 16–28, oestrogen levels decrease, falling to the lowest level just before your period starts; progesterone is at its highest point midway through this luteal phase. These hormones control what type of fuel you oxidize/utilize.

Overtraining syndrome, or OTS, can best be defined as the state where an athlete has been repeatedly stressed by training to the point where rest is no longer adequate to allow for recovery. The ‘overtraining syndrome’ is the name given to the collection of emotional, behavioural, and physical symptoms due to overtraining that has persisted for weeks to months. This is different from the day-to-day variation in performance and post-exercise tiredness that is common in conditioned athletes. Overtraining is marked by cumulative exhaustion that persists even after recovery periods. Some common features to be aware of include:
>>> Lack of energy
>>> Mild leg soreness, general aches and pains
>>> Pain in muscles and joints
>>> Sudden drop in performance
>>> Insomnia
>>> Headaches
>>> Decrease in immunity, leading to more colds and sore throats
>>> Decrease in training capacity / intensity
>>> Moodiness and irritability
>>> Depression/low mood
>>> Loss of enthusiasm for the sport
>>> Decreased appetite
>>> Increased incidence of injuries
>>> A compulsive need to exercise

powerful antioxidants such as:
>>> Curcumin – found in cumin
>>> Isoflavanoids – found in soya beans
>>> Polyphenols – most of the data has come from studies using tart cherry juice, which did seem to show a significant reduction in inflammatory markers in endurance athletes after strenuous sessions
>>> Vitamin C

INJURY PREVENTION
There are many things you can do to help prevent injury – many athletes are now familiar with the four Rs:
1 > Rehydrate– sweating causes a loss of water and electrolytes, so make sure you drink water before, during and after exercise to avoid dehydration.
2 > Replenish– stored carbohydrate (glycogen) is the primary fuel for muscles during exercise. It is important to consume carbohydrate after exercise to replace depleted stores, but be guided by the intensity of your training session. See Chapters 2 and 3.
3 > Repair– muscle is broken down during exercise – eating high-quality protein after exercise will help to rebuild muscle tissue.
4 > Reinforce– during exercise your immune system becomes compromised due to cell damage and inflammation. To keep a strong immune system, you should refuel with nutritious, fresh foods.
Tip
Personally I also think there is a fifth R – Rest. We will look at this with overtraining later in this chapter.

INJURY PREVENTION
There are many things you can do to help prevent injury – many athletes are now familiar with the four Rs:
1 > Rehydrate– sweating causes a loss of water and electrolytes, so make sure you drink water before, during and after exercise to avoid dehydration.
2 > Replenish– stored carbohydrate (glycogen) is the primary fuel for muscles during exercise. It is important to consume carbohydrate after exercise to replace depleted stores, but be guided by the intensity of your training session. See Chapters 2 and 3.
3 > Repair– muscle is broken down during exercise – eating high-quality protein after exercise will help to rebuild muscle tissue.
4 > Reinforce– during exercise your immune system becomes compromised due to cell damage and inflammation. To keep a strong immune system, you should refuel with nutritious, fresh foods.

There are many things you can do to help prevent injury – many athletes are now familiar with the four Rs:
1 > Rehydrate– sweating causes a loss of water and electrolytes, so make sure you drink water before, during and after exercise to avoid dehydration.
2 > Replenish– stored carbohydrate (glycogen) is the primary fuel for muscles during exercise. It is important to consume carbohydrate after exercise to replace depleted stores, but be guided by the intensity of your training session. See Chapters 2 and 3.
3 > Repair– muscle is broken down during exercise – eating high-quality protein after exercise will help to rebuild muscle tissue.
4 > Reinforce– during exercise your immune system becomes compromised due to cell damage and inflammation. To keep a strong immune system, you should refuel with nutritious, fresh foods.

If you have a session within 12 hours, then ensure recovery is within 30 minutes of finishing this session and includes 1.2g/kg BW carbohydrate and 0.25g/kg BW protein in a liquid form with fast-acting carbohydrate

As these high-intensity sessions are working to develop the anaerobic energy system, the actual ‘effort’ of an all-out interval does not require carbohydrate if the interval is less than 10 seconds. Remember, a maximal effort for less than 10 seconds will be fuelled via the ATP-CP anaerobic pathway (see page 53). If, however, these efforts are longer than 10 seconds but less than 2 minutes, again at maximal effort, they will rely on glycolysis and so require an available source of carbohydrate.

This stored carbohydrate (glycogen) can fuel about 2 hours of moderate- to high-level exercise. After that, glycogen depletion occurs (stored carbohydrates are used up) and if that fuel isn’t replaced athletes may hit the wall or ‘bonk’. An athlete can continue moderate- to high-intensity exercise for longer by simply replenishing carbohydrate stores during exercise. This is why it is critical to eat easily digestible carbohydrates during moderate exercise that lasts more than a few hours. If you don’t take in enough carbohydrate, you will be forced to reduce your intensity and tap back into fat metabolism to fuel activity.