Nutrition for Athletes
The human body operates as a machine that requires fuel to operate. Energy is an essential requirement for the performance of the human body. Strenuous activities require a lot of energy and the body has to rely on external sources of energy. Nutrition is the main source of energy for the body and should, therefore, be given special attention. Athletes engage in strenuous activities and end up requiring huge amounts of energy. However, athletes tend to pay attention to factors such as age, gender, exercise and sleeping patterns as the major determiners of performance and injury risk. Nutrition tends to be overlooked yet it plays one of the most crucial roles in improving performance and keeping athletes fit and less susceptible to injuries. The importance of nutrition in athletes ranges from determining when to intake and outtake to avoid unnecessary weight loss or weight gain depending on the activities performed by the athlete.
Nutrition is one of the surest ways of replacing calories in the body as well as maintaining calories at manageable levels for the production of energy. Nutrition requirements change depending on the activities that individuals engage in as well as their health status (Spriet, 2019). Athletes engage in strenuous activities and could have different nutrition requirements compared to other people. Although the nutrition requirements change from athlete to athlete, healthy nutrition is essential in the improvement of individual performance. The replacement of calories is essential in that the body maintains a healthy intake and outtake of calories and hence uniform production of energy. The primary goal of every athlete is to perform well in the activities that they engage in, and their bodies require sufficient energy. However, nutrition should be checked to avoid negative impacts, such as unnecessary weight gain or loss.
Athletes are sensitive when it comes to weight loss and gain and depend on nutrition to maintain a balance between their weight loss and gain. Excess weight may inhibit athletes from performing well in their activities. For example, footballers and marathoners are heavily affected by weight gain as it lowers their overall performance. Also, some sports such as rugby and weightlifting require players to be heavy and strong to cope with the pressure that comes with the activities (Mahurkar, 2019). Weight loss may, therefore, affect the performance of the players on such games. Proper nutrition ensures that athletes react to get the required reaction towards weight gain or loss. Besides, other factors such as exercise and sleeping factor only add to the effect caused by nutrition on maintaining the fitness of the athlete. Moreover, athletes have to know when to eat and rehydrate their bodies, and that is done through nutrition.
Nutritional arrangements are essential in determining when an athlete is supposed to eat and rehydrate their body. Athletes engage in activities that require huge amounts of energy, but care should be taken to avoid discomforts caused by poor nutrition. The nutritional value of food taken by an athlete determines when it is supposed to be taken. For example, athletes always need to take pre-game meals that should be rich in carbohydrates but low in protein and sugar. The composition of the pre-game meal determines the athlete’s fitness when the event comes, and the meal is always taken at least two to four hours before the event. Generally, digestion requires energy, and that could affect the athlete when the meal is taken just before the start of the event. Such times are effected in response to nutrition hence its importance to athletes. Moreover, nutrition is a major source of fluids that are required by an athlete’s body while engaging in their activities.
The human body is mainly made up of water, and the composition should be maintained at all times. Strenuous activities push the body into losing a lot of water through sweat in a bid to cool down. Athletes always sweat whenever they engage in their activities and have to replace the lost water immediately. Direct water intake is not the only way an athlete can replace the lost water to their body. Some foods contain substantial amounts of fluids and can be used instead of direct water intake as they contain other necessary nutrients (Jeukendrup, 2017). For example, fluid chocolate contains milk that helps in repairing damaged muscles while adding water into the body. Also, regular drinks can be helpful as they ensure that the athlete does not have to take a lot of water at once, which may lead to discomfort and poor performance. Generally, nutrition ensures that the athlete keeps their body hydrated while maintaining their performance by avoiding discomforts. Moreover, the rehydration role of nutrition helps in reducing the injury risk of athletes.
Athletes face a higher risk of injuries during their activities. Injuries are majorly associated with muscular activities. Body fluids are responsible for keeping joint muscles hydrated and avoiding impaired muscular control. When the muscles are sufficiently lubricated, athletes have a lower risk of injuries. Injuries have led to the end of several athletes’ careers, and any method to lower their risk should be taken seriously. Also, the cost of treating injuries is high and leaves most athletes and their clubs recovering from huge losses. Therefore, athletes should invest in nutrition to enjoy the benefits of fewer injuries. Besides, the performance of a player goes down when they get injured. Also, successive injuries may significantly destroy the fitness of an athlete even after their recovery. Moreover, nutrition protects athletes from malnutrition.
Malnutrition is not necessary for people who do not get food to eat or eat foods with less nutrition value. People who have special nutrition requirements may suffer from malnutrition and related conditions if proper nutrition is not considered. Athletes use a lot of nutrients during their activities and require having the nutrients replaced the soonest possible (Roselli, 2017). Poor nutrition may lead to malnutrition, where the athletes do not adhere to the necessary diets. For example, athletes require a lot of carbohydrates to replace the energy spend in their events. Nutrition can be altered to introduce the special requirements for the athlete in a bid to save them from negative impacts of malnutrition. Also, proteins are required to repair the damaged muscles while vitamins are required to keep the athletes safe from infections that may lower their performance. The maintenance of such nutrient requirements remains the role of nutrition and athletes are only required to take the right diet. Moreover, nutrition is essential in providing a competitive advantage for athletes.
Athletes mainly engage in competitive activities and always look to outshine their competitors. Competition is determined by individual performance and conditions are made uniform for all the competitors (Campbell & Wisniewski, 2017). Drugs that boost competitors’ energy levels are always prohibited in most sports as they would give an unfair advantage to some players and may eventually cause a lack of competitiveness. However, nutrition is left for the player to take care of their body. Proper nutrition and better training determine the athlete’s performance as they are viewed as personal hard work. Therefore, athletes take advantage of nutrition to give them an advantage over their competitors. Athletes who manage to maintain their nutrition requirements end up performing better during events. Also, proper nutrition keeps athletes fit and saves them from injury-related disappointments and gives them an advantage over competitors who do not maintain proper nutrition. Also, nutrition determines the ability of an athlete to maintain their career for a long time. The time within which an athlete remains successful in their career depends on the ability to remain fit, and nutrition offers that possibility.
In sum, the importance of nutrition in athletes ranges from determining when to intake and outtake to avoid unnecessary weight loss or weight gain depending on the activities performed by the athlete. Athletes engage in strenuous activities and could have different nutrition requirements compared to other people. Also, athletes use a lot of nutrients during their activities and require having the nutrients replaced the soonest possible. The maintenance of the nutrient requirements remains the role of nutrition and athletes are only required to take the right diet. Generally, nutrition is important is it plays a significant role in either improving or lowering the performance of an athlete.
References
Campbell, S. C., & Wisniewski, P. J. (2017). Nutritional recommendations for athletes. In Nutrition in the Prevention and Treatment of Disease (pp. 255-271). Academic Press.
Jeukendrup, A. E. (2017). Periodized nutrition for athletes. Sports Medicine, 47(1), 51-63.
Mahurkar, A. (2019). IMPORTANCE OF BALANCE DIET & NUTRITION FOR ATHLETES PERFORMANCE. Indian Journal of Applied Research, 9(11).
Roselli, C. (2017). Preferred Pre-Performance Training Techniques for Athletes and Triathletes.
Spriet, L. L. (2019). Performance Nutrition for Athletes. Sports Medicine, 49(1), 1-2.