Nutrition and Sport: Energy Integration

Back to Part One: Nutrition and Sport 15 %

2-20% (1.7-1.8 g / kg weight) plus fish and vegetable proteins.

Carbohydrates 50-60 %

45-65% low glycemic index, plus vegetables and fruit.

Fat 30 % 28-35% as long as they are monounsaturated, with reduced amounts of saturated and polyunsaturated. and liver), without elevating blood insulin concentrations;

During the effort: prevent the exhaustion of muscle glycogen;

After exertion: rebuild muscle glycogen.

High Glycemic Index Carbohydrates

Carbohydrates that significantly raise blood sugar (= blood glucose rate) are "high glycemic index".

What is the Glycemic Index?

It is a "global" index of carbohydrate absorption.

Technically, it is the "area under the curve" in blood glucose following the administration of a dose of a food that contains a predefined amount of carbohydrates.

The faster a carbohydrate is digested and assimilated, the higher its glycemic index.

High or Low Glycemic Index: what happens in the organism?

If you eat high-glycemic carbohydrates before the competition:

Your blood sugar goes up more and faster;
The insulin response is more marked;
To produce energy, the body prefers to use sugars instead of fats;
Muscle glycogen is depleted earlier.

If you eat low-glycemic carbohydrates before the competition:

Your blood sugar rises less and more slowly;
The insulin response is less marked;
The body is able to use a good percentage of fat as a source of energy;
The glycogen stores are depleted more slowly.

Carbohydrates Before Performance

Up to 3-4 hours before, especially for prolonged performance, you can consume a certain (not high) amount of carbohydrates.

In the 3 hours before the performance, it is good to use carbohydrates with a low glycemic index to avoid reaching the race with high insulinemia values and to risk having a low use of FFA.

Snacks before training (CHO x serving)

Fruit 20 - 25 g Yogurt 7 - 16 g Crackers 20 g Sweet baked goods 20 - 50 g "Sport Bars" ***

Carbohydrates After Performance

If in the following days there is "another" competition or another demanding workout, it is good to try to recover muscle glycogen.

Immediately after the race, therefore, it is useful to take carbohydrates with a high glycemic index: thanks to this, the resynthesis of glycogen is favored. Better than proteins along with carbohydrates (Costill and Ivy, Texas University).