Nutrition for WCPSC Swimmers
The main source of energy during training is derived from carbohydrate; therefore, it is not surprising that high carbohydrate meals and drinks are essential to provide energy and to facilitate recovery. The timing of meals and snacks however, is important.
30-Minute Rule:
The muscles are most susceptible to restoration of carbohydrate stores within the first
30 minutes after exercise. The swimmer should eat 50 to 100 grams of carbohydrate, whilst keeping fat
ingestion low, as soon as training finishes, and definitely within the first 30 minutes after training. The
following are examples of appropriate snack foods:
- Fruit, Nutrigrain bars, jam or honey sandwich, malt loaf, fig rolls, smoothie, muller rice, dried fruit, rice cakes.
Keep hydrated:
It is vitally important to drink plenty of fluids (water, juices, sports drink) prior to
training, during training and after training.
Morning training:
Have a snack item (examples above) with fruit juice 30 minutes before training with breakfast after training.
Guidelines for event meals:
Before a race:
High carbohydrate / low fat meal 2-4 hours before the race. Suitable types of food
include: breakfast cereals, porridge, bread, toast, fruit juice, fruit, rice cakes, boiled rice, potatoes, boiled pasta, oatmeal biscuits, muffins and carbohydrate drinks. These foods all help to release energy slowly. A small snack (see snacks above) may be eaten about 30 minutes prior to a race.
- If the interval between races is less than 30 minutes, the swimmer should drink fluids / juices or a sports drink.
- If the interval between races is up to 1 hour, the swimmer should have a snack from the above list, with plenty of fluid, up to 30 minutes before the next race.
- If the interval is 1 – 2 hours, the swimmer should have a small high carbohydrate / low fat meal.
Important: As water is stored with carbohydrate, it is essential that a substantial amount of fluid is drunk with meals and snacks.
30% Fat Rule
It is recommended that swimmers should eat high carbohydrate low fat meals. Low fat is defined as food
items with less than 30% fat by calories. This is not the value that is presented by the food manufacturers,
who display fat content by weight, which makes the foodstuff appear healthier than it usually is.
An easy way to calculate the true fat content:
- Look at the label on the food and see how many grams of fat it contains per serving.
- Multiply the number of grams by 10 to calculate the number of kcal from fat per serving.
- Look at the label for the total energy, the number of kcal per serving.
- Divide the kcal from fat by the total kcal and multiply by 100. You now have the TRUE fat content of the food stuff.