I n summary, strenuous exercise of all intensities makes great demands on the body's carbohydrate stores and glycogen depletion will lead to fatigue. Because glycogen stores are limited, and because they provide a critical contribution to both anaerobic and aerobic energy production, one important objective of sports nutrition is to protect glycogen and enhance access to fat for long duration, moderate intensity activity.

In contrast to dietary fat, body fat stores are of tremendous importance during physical activity, as long as the intensity is not too high and there is adequate O2 delivery to use fat as a fuel source. Compared to the finite capacity of glycogen, fat stores can usually supply more than 70, kcal for activity 3.

Fat is stored mainly in the adipose tissues and some is stored in muscle cells. Endurance training increases the capacity for fat metabolism in the muscles, so that fat metabolism will cover a greater proportion of the energy production of athletes during exercise than for untrained people.

Additionally, if the intensity of activity is low enough to allow aerobic energy pathways to predominate, the athlete will have optimal access to fat as an energy source.

This will preserve glycogen and minimize the utilization of protein for fuel. While fat and carbohydrate represent the largest contribution of energy expenditure during exercise, the utilization of protein can also be significant.

It is preferable to reserve protein as a building material, for the synthesis of lean skeletal tissues and contribution to other body systems for which protein is essential i.

Therefore, one objective of sports nutrition is to minimize protein utilization during activity through consuming enough carbohydrate.

This will spare proteins from being broken down to create glucose, a process called gluconeogenisis.

While there is little debate that protein needs are greater for highly active individuals than those less active, this is often explained as a function of total energy intake 4. However, the specific percent contribution of protein to total daily intake for endurance athletes has been in question for some time.

The scientific literature to date provides some sound evidence to support an increase in protein requirements for highly-trained and elite endurance athletes 5.

Tarnopolsky found that acute endurance exercise results in the oxidation of several amino acids. Based on the available literature, sports nutritionists estimate protein requirements for an endurance athlete to be 1. An examination of each nutrient in isolation, while interesting, has limitations.

For example, an adequate protein intake with inadequate carbohydrate or calories will still result in suboptimal nutrition and performance. Regardless of how athletes divide up their macronutrients, if total energy intake is not adequate, performance will suffer 7.

A review study of the nutritional needs of endurance athletes concluded that endurance athletes often have negative energy balance, meaning that expenditure is higher than intake 8. This negative balance can compromise performance and will definitely influence the percent contribution of each macronutrient.

Perhaps of even greater consequence than macronutrient distribution is the total energy intake in relation to expenditure. If organized in priority order, fluid would sit at the top of the list.

While not energy-yielding, fluid plays a critical role in optimal performance and safe athletics. The combination of heat stress, dehydration, and exercise imposes perhaps the most-severe physiological challenge for the human body short of disease or serious bleeding Exercise requires the body to attempt to cope simultaneously with competing demands for cardiovascular homeostasis, thermoregulatory control, and maintenance of muscle energetics.

When dehydration is superimposed upon this scenario, the results can be catastrophic for both health and performance. Sweat evaporation provides the primary cooling mechanism for the body, and for this reason athletes are encouraged to drink fluids to ensure continued fluid availability for evaporation and circulatory flow to the tissues.

A water loss of even one to two percent of body weight can reduce an individual's capacity to do muscular work The major electrolyte in sweat is sodium with smaller amounts of potassium and magnesium. Loss of substantial amounts of sweat will inevitably reduce the body's reserve of these electrolytes, which can also impair performance.

Conversely, excessive drinking can lead to hyponatremia severe enough to cause fatalities. In addition to securing the right macronutrient distribution, athletes should be encouraged to make the most nutrient dense choices possible.

While a discussion of micronutrients is outside the scope of this article, if athletes are taking in adequate calories and making healthful food choices, they will be better protected against vitamin and mineral deficiencies as well. Timing also is critical and must be individualized to the sport and to each athlete.

Nutrients taken during endurance competition should be primarily carbohydrate sports rehydration beverages, carbohydrate gels and goos and other carbohydrates to deliver this valuable fuel when glycogen may be running low.

Likewise, eating carbohydrates after a training session will enhance glycogen storage and some research indicates that a combination of carbohydrate and protein will further promote glycogen replenishment There are numerous considerations in designing nutrition protocols for individual athletes.

As with other any sport, maximizing the nutritional needs during endurance competition begins in training. The competitive advantage will definitely shift in favor of those athletes whose coaches and trainers recognize the fundamental value of fitness, acclimation, hydration, and nutrition for keeping athletes cooled and fueled.

Training can use up as much as 40 percent of an athlete's total daily energy expenditure and energy demands in competition can also be very high. Successful implementation of sport nutrition guidance requires that coaches, athletes, and support personnel are made aware of the practical benefits of adequate fluid replacement and nutrient needs.

Since the National Academy of Sports Medicine NASM has been the global leader in delivering evidence-based certifications and advanced specializations to health and fitness professionals.

Our products and services are scientifically and clinically proven. They are revered and utilized by leading brands and programs around the world and have launched thousands of successful careers.

org Fitness CPT Nutrition CES Sports Performance Workout Plans Wellness. Fitness Sports Performance Nutrition Nutrition and the Endurance Athlete - Eating for Peak Performance. By Dominique Adair, MS, RD Nutritional needs of the endurance athlete are aggressively studied and the days of the pre-marathon pasta dinner have been enhanced by a sophisticated understanding of how nutrients can improve long-duration performance.

The following all influence which fuel is predominant during activity: intensity anaerobic or aerobic of activity duration of activity conditioning of the athlete recovery time diet composition Muscles always use a mixture of fuels, never just one.

Carbohydrates For Endurance Athletes Glucose, stored in the liver and muscles as glycogen, is vital to physical activity. FatS for Endurance In contrast to dietary fat, body fat stores are of tremendous importance during physical activity, as long as the intensity is not too high and there is adequate O2 delivery to use fat as a fuel source.

Protein And Endurance Training While fat and carbohydrate represent the largest contribution of energy expenditure during exercise, the utilization of protein can also be significant. Not just a sum of the parts Regardless of how athletes divide up their macronutrients, if total energy intake is not adequate, performance will suffer 7.

Fluid Needs If organized in priority order, fluid would sit at the top of the list. To Sum it All Up In addition to securing the right macronutrient distribution, athletes should be encouraged to make the most nutrient dense choices possible.

Key Points Training can use up as much as 40 percent of an athlete's total daily energy expenditure and energy demands in competition can also be very high In addition to securing the right macronutrient distribution, athletes should be encouraged to make the most nutrient dense choices possible.

References The History of Gatorade, www. Retrieved on May 11, Lambert EV, Goedecke JH. The role of dietary macronutrients in optimizing endurance performance.

Curr Sports Med Rep Aug ;2 4 Wilmore, JH, Costill, DL. Physical Energy: Fuel Metabolism, Nutrition Reviews ;SS Paul GL. Dietary protein requirements of physically active individuals.

Sports Med Sep;8 3 Tarnapolsky M. Protein requirements for endurance athletes. This content has been re-purposed and expanded in the huge Guide to Success, then simplified and condensed in the 5 Secrets to Success. When it comes to hydration, you can neither overload nor undersupply your body without compromising athletic performance and incurring detrimental results.

Depending on conditions and body weight, ounces — ml per hour may be quite acceptable. A larger athlete in hot temperatures might need up to 28 ounces ml hourly. Our position, however, is that the risk of dilutional hyponatremia increases substantially when an athlete repeatedly consumes more than 30 fluid ounces ml per hour.

Fructose, sucrose, glucose, and other simple sugars mono- and disaccharides are poor carbohydrate sources for fueling your body during exercise.

Simple sugar-based drinks or gels have to be mixed and consumed at very dilute and calorically weak concentrations in order to be digested with any efficiency. A simple sugar-based product used at an acceptably mixed concentration cannot provide adequate calories to sustain energy production, and the energy it supplies is very short-lived and fluctuates wildly.

Any way you look at it, fuels containing simple sugars are inefficient and therefore not recommended during prolonged exercise. To get the proper amount of easily digested calories, rely on fuels that use complex carbohydrates maltodextrin only, with no added simple sugar as their carbohydrate source.

Hammer Gel and HEED are ideal for workouts and races up to three hours, sometimes slightly longer under certain circumstances. For longer workouts and races, select Perpetuem or Sustained Energy as your primary fuel choice.

A good starting point is 1 calorie per pound of body weight, adjusting slightly if needed. Consistent electrolyte supplementation is just as important as calories and fluids during exercise.

Athletes who neglect this important component of fueling will impair their performance, and will usually incur painful and debilitating cramping and spasms, a sure way to ruin a workout or race. Endurolytes , Endurolytes Extreme , Endurolytes Extreme Powder , and Endurolytes Fizz are an inexpensive, easy-to-dose, and easy-to-consume way to get your necessary electrolytic mineral needs met with great balance and precision.

Use one of the Endurolytes products consistently during workouts and races to fulfill this crucial fueling need. When exercise extends beyond about two hours, your body begins to utilize some protein to fulfill its energy requirements, as you begin to derive glucose from amino acids. If you fail to include protein in your fuel, your body has only one other choice: your own muscle!

Using Perpetuem or Sustained Energy as your primary fuel during workouts and races longer than two to three hours will satisfy energy requirements from a precise ratio of complex carbohydrates and soy protein, the latter of which helps protect against excess muscle breakdown.

You stay healthier, reduce soreness, and decrease recovery time. Note: Whey protein is not recommended for use during exercise due to possible contribution to muscle fatigue during initial digestion.

Solid food, for the most part, cannot match the precision or nutrient density of the best liquid fuels. In addition, too much solid food consumption will divert blood from working muscles for the digestive process. These provide precise amounts of specific nutrients and are designed for easy digestion, rapid nutrient utilization, and less chance of stomach distress.

If solid food is desired during longer-duration workouts or races, use Perpetuem Solids or Hammer Bars. Mistake 7: Using Something New In A Race Without Having Tested It In Training. Are you guilty as well? These all must be tested and refined in training. Because all of the Hammer Nutrition fuels are complementary they all work well alone or in combination , you have all the flexibility you need to ensure that you can tailor a fueling program for any length of race, regardless of the conditions.

Endurance athletes tend to be strong-willed and uncompromising. However, what does fine in terms of fueling—your hourly intake of fluids, calories, and electrolytes—during training at a slower pace and lower overall energy output, might not be ideal during competition.

Evaluate and adjust accordingly as race pace and weather dictate. Performance improvement depends on a program of exercise that stimulates muscular and cardiovascular adaptation followed by a recovery period in which the body rebuilds itself slightly more fit than before.

Thus, the real gain of exercise occurs during recovery, but only in the presence of adequate rest and nutritional support. Athletes who fail to replenish carbohydrates and protein shortly after workouts will never obtain full value from their efforts.

Recommended supplements for providing cell-protecting antioxidant support and enhanced recovery are Premium Insurance Caps , Race Caps Supreme , Mito Caps , Super Antioxidant , AO Booster , and Xobaline. Increasing and maximizing muscle glycogen stores takes many weeks of consistent training and post-workout fuel replenishment.

Carbohydrates consumed in excess the night before will only be eliminated or stored as body fat dead weight. A sure way to deplete hard-earned glycogen stores far too rapidly is to eat a meal or an energy bar, gel, or sports drink sooner than three hours prior to the start of the race.

Adhere to these two simple rules:. Either of these strategies will help top off liver glycogen stores without negatively affecting how your body burns its muscle glycogen. All of the information I get from Hammer is real, important, safe, effective. I have been doing endurance activities since I now have it all at hand and up to date throughHammer.

We have to put in the time. Do our training and live the disciplined life of an athlete.

Gastrointestinal problems occur frequently, especially in long-distance races. Problems seem to be highly individual and perhaps genetically determined but may also be related to the intake of highly concentrated carbohydrate solutions, hyperosmotic drinks, as well as the intake of fibre, fat, and protein.

Hyponatraemia has occasionally been reported, especially among slower competitors with very high intakes of water or other low sodium drinks. There are a few factors that affect your endurance, and diet is one of them. Some nutrients support endurance while others may hinder it.

Iron is an especially important nutrient when it comes to improving endurance. According to the experts, the best foods for endurance are sources of iron and other nutrients your body needs to stay energized. Check them out below. Most of the carbs you eat should come from these foods. Steel-cut oats are a great example.

A quarter-cup of steel-cut oats provides 10 percent of the daily requirement for iron as well as 5 grams of protein, per the USDA. Beets and beetroot juice are full of nutrients that can boost endurance, which explains why some athletes supplement with beets or beet powder before a workout.

Before a workout, complex carbs provide energy, which is essential for endurance levels — but protein is important in a different way. Protein is needed to repair and renew these structures.

Chapman recommends taking in around 0. Six ounces of lean chicken breast gives you For a protein source with more iron, try skirt steak — 6 ounces provide 52 percent, according to the USDA.

If your recovery is strong, your sleep easy, your digestion good and your energy levels high then all is well. You're clearly refueling in line with your requirements. But if any of these metrics are consistently out you'll need to do some fine tuning.

As long as your core diet is built on whole foods, the areas to tweak in search of perfection are:. Ignore how good or bad it is, if it gives you pleasure and you enjoy it go for your life. Pizza cravings? The best diet for endurance training is one packed chock full of great whole foods that tastes delicious and makes you feel awesome.

It's as simple as that. No need to fret about alkaline diets, ketogenic diets, paleo diets, plant-based diets or anything else. These are just labels. All you need to do is keep your food real, be aware of how it makes you feel and adjust accordingly.

If you remember nothing else, this is the ultimate hack: you can never eat too many fruit and vegetables. Best protein for endurance athletes. Fat adaption: why it matters and how to do it. Dairy and athletic performance: good or bad?

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