Fueling those energy stores before, during and after exercise

We've all been there. You hit the gym all geared up for a good work out whether it be an hours cardio, a bootcamp or to do some heavy lifting and 15/20 minutes in it all goes to shit. Your legs feel like lead on the treadmill, your first bootcamp circuit and you face plant a push up or you pin yourself on the bench in the middle of your second set. Or, maybe you actually get through your work out but instead of feeling invigorated you feel like you've been hit by a ten tonne truck!!

Why? Sometimes you have just had a shitty day at work, the kids kept you up all night or maybe you have overtrained, but, the majority of the time it's because you're running on an empty tank.

You can polish your car, pump up the tyres, replace the oil in the engine but unless you fill the the tank with fuel you're not going to get very far and the same applies to you.

You can do all the warm ups and stretching you like but when it comes to actually working out, unless you have fueled those energy stores you won't get very far. And let's face it for most of us just getting the time to commit to working out is hard enough so why set yourself up for failure before you've even begun?!

So, how do we prepare when it comes to nutrition and exercise?

First off, there is no one size fits all when it comes to nutrition and everyone's requirements will vary enormously depending on their body type, their lifestyle and of course their activity levels.

If I was to try and cover every eventuality I'd be writing a book and not a blog so I'll keep it simple and give you a few guidelines to get started.

I'm sure most of you reading this, especially the more physically active of you, will know what the three main sources of energy our bodies use are, but for those who don't we are talking about Carbs, Fats and Protein. Each has its own role to play, the specifics of which we will talk about another time but for now lets just concentrate on what we need before, during and after your workout.

Carbs

There has always been a lot of talk about carbs. Low carb diets, no carb diets like Atkins etc but carbohydrates are widely recognised as the body's main source of fuel and they are easily used for energy.

Essentially carbs provide the body with glucose which is converted to energy to support basic bodily functions and of course the energy needed for more strenuous activity like working out.

Some simple facts:

• 1 gram of carbs contains 4 kcals

• The most common forms are sugars, fibres and starches.

• Simple carbs are easily digested, can cause blood sugar to spike, can give sudden energy but it burns out fast and leaves you wanting more

• Complex carbs are broken down slower and provide a steady blood sugar level and make you feel less hungry

• Found in numerous foods - good and bad

• Good sources: vegetables, fruit, whole grains, brown rice, beans, legumes, lentils

• Bad sources: processed foods, white bread, white rice, pasta, pastries, biscuits, soft drinks

So where do carbs fit into our workouts?

Guidelines for carb intake based on activity levels:

Low intensity activities - 3-5g/kg (grams per kilogram of body weight

Moderate exercise 1 hour/day - 5-7g/kg

Moderate to high intensity 1-3 hours/day - 7-12g/kg

Very high >4 hours/day - 10-12g/kg

BEFORE

It is important to esnure that you fill up your energy stores before training or an event.

4-24 hours before - this would mainly apply to those preparing for an event.

Carbohydrates should make up between 60-70% of your meals during this period. This will help improve performance and delay muscle fatigue.

0-4 hours before

Try to consume food/drink that is easily digested

Aim for 1-4g/kg (grams per kilogram of body weight) of carbs

Do not go into a training session or event feeling hungry

DURING

The amount of carbs you will need to consume during your training or event will vary depending on the duration and level of physical activity and is mostly required for training durations of more than 60 minutes.

Refueling with carbs during training will provide an alternative source of energy when glycogen stores are depleted.

For those of you not familiar with glycogen - when you consume carbs they are broken down into glucose, fructose and galactose. Glucose that is not used right away is stored in the muscle and liver as glycogen. A point to note is that once these stores are filled, any excess is stored as fat.

Glycogen is the go to energy source for short high intensity exercise and it is the source used first for any exercise because it is readily available.

Taking on additional carbs during training will also reduce fatigue.

If you are training or competing in an event lasting more than 60 minutes you should try to consume 30-90g/kg per hour.

Again, any nutritional requirements are individualised and you should experiment to see what suits you and your activity level.

Sports drinks are a convenient source of carbs during exercise and are easily consumed.

AFTER

To assist with recovery/growth post exercise nutrition is important.

After your training or event glycogen stores will either be partially or completely depleted depending on the level of activity and it is important to replace them as soon as possible.

Try to consume 1-1.5g/kg and try and get it into you within 15-30 minutes of the end of your session.

If you have taken part in a long duration event you should try to eat every two hours for the next 6 hours.

Try to consume high GI carbs

Protein

So we've talked about the role of carbs in our workouts but what about protein?

Some simple facts:

• 1 gram of protein contains 4 kcals

• Proteins are the building blocks of the body

• Protein is made up of various amino acids that form together to create muscle, bone, hair, skin and other tissues.

• There are essential amino acids that we need to get from our food because they can't be made by ours bodies.

• There are non-essential amino acids that are made by our bodies

• There also branch chain amino acids, BCAA's, which most athletes or people involved in regular physical activity will be familiar with. These make up one third of muscle protein and can be used directly as fuel.

• Protein helps transport nutrients throughout the body and is involved in enzyme production

• Protein can be found in meat based and vegetarian diets

• Sources of protein include: meat (red meat, chicken, turkey), fish, eggs, cottage cheese, nuts and nut butters, lentils and supplements to name a few

BEFORE

Protein isn't an ideal source of fuel for exercise but it is essential to repair and rebuild muscle that is broken down during exercise.

Including protein as part of your pre-workout nutrition will help decrease muscle protein breakdown, assist in delivering nutrients throughout your body, increase muscle synthesis and consuming protein before exercise will also stop you feeling hungry.

4-24 hours before exercise:

Normal guidelines for protein consumption apply and these vary depending on your level of activity/sport.

• Sedentary - 0.75g/kg

• Recreational endurance - 0.8-1.0g/kg

• Moderate intensity endurance - 1.2g/kg

• Elite endurance - 1.2-2.0g/kg

• Team sports - 1.4-1.7g/kg

• Strength/Resistance training - 1.5-2.0g/kg

• Bulking - 1.8-2.0g/kg

• Cutting - 1.6-2.0g/kg

DURING

At the moment there is no conclusive research that indicates consuming protein during exercise has any benefits and there are no established guidelines.

AFTER

As I said above, protein is essential to repair and rebuild muscle that is broken down during exercise.

Just like your post workout carbs, you should aim to consume protein within 15-30 minutes post workout and the recommended amount being 0.2g/kg.

Protein shakes are a quick and effective way of getting your post workout protein requirements and they also contain a high amount of BCAA's.

Other sources include:

Chicken - 23g of protein per 100g

Almonds - 22g of protein per 100g

Eggs - 3 eggs will provide 22g of protein

Peanut butter - 4 tbsp will give you 16g of protein

FATS

For a long time fat has been the bad boy of nutrition and up until very recently everyone was told to avoid it like the plague. However, fat is an important part of our overall nutrition needs.

Some simple facts:

• 1 gram of fat contains 9 kcals

• Fat has the highest concentration of energy of all the three macros

• 1 pound of fat contains 3600 kcals

• Fat is easily stored

• There are good fats and bad fats

• Three main categories are trans fat, saturated fat and unsaturated fat

• Trans fats should be avoided as they may cause heart disease, raise LDL (bad cholesterol), lower HDL (good cholesterol). Found in processed foods.

• Saturated fats when consumed in moderation can be beneficial to our liver and lungs. However just like trans fat they can also cause heart disease and increase LDL. Found in animal products.

• Unsaturated fats should make the majority of the fat you consume. They provide a source of energy and are essential for growth, brain function, cell production and help absorb vitamins A,D, E and K. They can be found in vegetarian sources such are olive oil, nuts, seeds and some fruit like avocados as well as fish

• Essential for low intensity, slow, long endurance exercise.

As you can see from some of the points above we need fat, good fat, in our diet for some of the body's basic functions. But where does it fit within your training?

BEFORE

There is no benefit to consuming fats before exercise.

While fat intake may increase satiety (suppress hunger) it can also cause gastrointestinal discomfort and lead to cramping during exercise.

DURING

Not recommended.

AFTER

It is not essential to replace fat lost during exercise as training, apart from long slow endurance activities, training will not deplete fat stores.

For energy, the fat must be broken down and transported to the working muscles. Converting fat stores to energy takes a long time, up to six hours.

Converting stored fat into energy also requires a lot of oxygen so high intensity exercise will not use fat as energy.

So to sum it all up.......

As I said before, there is no one size fits all when it comes to nutrition and especially when it comes to sports and exercise nutrition. What I have given you here are just the basics to give you an idea where to start and how it all fits together.

In the coming weeks I will also upload some tables showing guideline requirements for your macros depending on levels of activity,

If you are interested in knowing how to work out your marco requirements I will be putting some guidelines together soon so keep an eye out for that.

Remember that everything I have put down here is a guideline. Your trainer, coach,, dietician or medical professional may have you on something different the relates specifically to your health or athletic requirements.

(c) 2016 RONAN TUTTY ALL RIGHTS RESERVED