Sports Nutrition: Fuel up on Information
Athletes in any sport need to carefully consider their dietary choices. With team and endurance sports on the rise, the number of online resources detailing sports nutrition has also grown. In this guide you'll see what the Web has to offer on the topic, whether you're looking to improve your performance through nutrition, track your diet, find a nutritionist, or simply find healthy recipes to complement active lifestyle.
Expand All Guide SectionsSports Nutrition Basics
Successful athletic performance is a function of three primary factors: training, rest, and nutrition. Each of these factors relies upon the next, and without any one component your delicately constructed temple of fitness will erode. Nutrition is what fuels training, and what allows for muscular rebuilding during resting periods. Without it, no athlete is fully prepared.
Dulcinea's Insight
- Before you delve into the specifics of sports nutrition, consult the findingDulcinea Nutrition Web Guide for basic information and nutritional resources. That guide can help you improve your diet, learn about allergies, and find nutritionists online.
- The government sites below provide a good background to sports nutrition as they contain the most officially accredited information on the foods and supplements legally available on the market. Government sites also provide recommended and well-studied nutrition standards you can adhere to.
- Of course, nutritional requirements are always varied-not only between sports, but between age groups, weight ranges, and genders as well. Take a look at general online resources, like magazines or blogs, that cater to your sport to learn about the healthy habits of other athletes like you. These sites often have useful articles pertaining to nutrition for specific demographics, too.
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For government resources ...
The President's Council on Physical Fitness and Sports
has a "Frequently Asked Questions" page that tackles some key areas of sports nutrition. The answers here explain what electrolytes are, the function of carbohydrates and protein in exercise recovery, pre-competition eating suggestions, as well as facts about iron, calcium, and other nutrients instrumental in sports preparation and recovery. After reading this page, head over to "Fast Facts About Sports Nutrition" for a rundown of memorable nutrition tips for athletes of all ages.
The Australian Institute of Sport,
part of the Australian Sports Commission, has useful facts and resources on sports nutrition, both in general and for specific sports. Download PDF fact sheets on nutrition for about 30 sports. The "Recipes" section publishes easy meal ideas and the "Research" area discusses controversial or new discoveries in sports nutrition, such as the effects of alcohol, supplements, the glycemic index, and more.
For nutrition and nutritionist organizations ...
The American Dietetic Association
has useful information for athletes, including a series of fact sheets on diets, fats, nutrients, and more. Read the PDF article entitled "Clearing Up Calorie Confusion" to shed light on how the body uses calories and how to manage portions. Check out the site's sports nutrition reading list for some suggested books on the topic.
FindaNutritionist.com
is a slightly outdated directory of nutritionists practicing in the United States (most listings were added in 2005), but the calculators and charts on this site are useful. Calculate your Body Mass Index, and get a general range of how many calories you need per day based on your age, height, weight, and activity level. You'll also learn how much of your caloric intake should come from fats, carbohydrates, and proteins.
For online magazines and blogs ...
NutritionData
is a reference site under the Condé Nast umbrella, offering a thorough index of nutritional information and useful tools and calculators to aid in your athletic diet. A particularly valuable feature is the "Food Category Explorer" that lets you analyze foods based on specific goals. Select the "Better Choices for optimum health" option from the drop-down menu for a chart listing the highest-rated foods on the site (ratings are based on nutrient content).
GoldsNutrition.com
is a source for articles on sports nutrition and fitness written by nutritionists, dieticians, coaches, and athletes. There are tips on important foods for athletes, safe weight loss methods, advice for specific sports, and discussions of serious sports nutrition issues like eating disorders. They also have a "Resources" section with many helpful links to other sports nutrition sources.
Peak Performance
is a British company that publishes books, Web articles, and a subscription-only newsletter on fitness, sports, health, and nutrition. There are many articles under the "Nutrition" category discussing protein and carbohydrate use, the effects of supplements like creatine, metabolism, nutrients, diets, and more. The book, Nutritional Supplements for Athletes, has its own promotional page where you can learn about some of the topics, myths, and facts discussed in the text, or purchase the book.
FoodFit.com
is an online service providing customized nutrition plans. The site also has a lot of free information about sports nutrition, including basic tips on carbohydrate and protein use. You'll also find an article called "Snacking for Your Sport," which explains the function of glycogen in the body and emphasizes the importance of small, frequent meals and snacks to replace glycogen stores while exercising. Within the articles are links to free recipes on the site.
Nutrition for Serious Athletes
is a slim but valuable online resource created by Dan Benardot, an R.D. (Registered Dietician) and professor who studies elite athlete performance at Georgia State University. The site draws on Benardot's book, Nutrition for Serious Athletes, and has useful one-sheet downloads that are particularly convenient for coaches and athletes. These explain carbohydrates, protein, fat, pre-game fueling, fluids, supplements, and more.
Find a Sports Nutritionist
If as an athlete you have special dietary concerns, or would like the advice and consultation of an expert who can customize a nutritional plan for your sport and lifestyle, consider employing the services of a sports nutritionist. These resources will show you how to find one.
Dulcinea's Insight
- Sports nutritionists have a variety of certifications and educational backgrounds. They can be certified by any one of several large organizations, including the National Association of Sports Nutrition and the International Fitness Professionals Organization. Check out the U.S. Department of Labor's page on nutritionists and dieticians to learn what differentiates the various titles under the dietetics occupation. Use this information to gauge the expertise of any sports nutritionist you might want to visit.
- Large online directories of doctors and other medical practitioners like the ones below are often a good place to find nutritionists. These sites are usually maintained by large independent organizations, rather than by nutritionist associations. It is valuable to search nutritionist associations, like the ones mentioned in our first section, as long as the degrees and credentials of the nutritionists are listed.
- Check the findingDulcinea Nutrition Web Guide for more sources of nutritionists and dieticians online.
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The Health Professionals Directory
has listings for many types of health professionals, including their educational background, work experience, and contact information. Being able to view the nutritionist's "profile" on this site is valuable, as you can narrow your search to specialized nutritionists and dieticians that meet your athletic needs. Choose "Diet and Nutrition" from the drop-down menu, fill in your zip code, and choose "Nutritionists/Dieticians" from the "Show me" menu bar on the next page.
The Dietician Directory
has listings of nutritionists and dieticians around the country, and each R.D. is given her own profile page with information about her specialization and areas of work within dietetics. Some of the nutritionists have their own Web sites, which shed more light on the doctor's credibility. In general, these sites are a good source of nutrition-related information.
Sports Nutrition and Supplements
Dietary supplements are designed to add nutrients not otherwise consumed to your regular diet. They can be prescribed to those diagnosed with certain deficiencies, or used as a sort of insurance for those who want a boost in their diet. Used correctly, these tablets and powders full of vitamins, minerals, and amino acids can be a healthy way to start the day. However, the line between supplements and performance-enhancing drugs is not always clear, and credible information is vital in determining which, if any, you should be adding to your regimen.
Dulcinea's Insight
- Get advice from a certified nutritionist or dietician before you ingest any supplements, especially those that promise muscle gain and improved aerobic performance.
- Read an article from the Gatorade Sports Science Institute, "How to Evaluate Supplements", written by Ellen Coleman, an R.D. who serves as a nutritional consultant for the L.A. Lakers. This article gives pointers on how to distinguish legitimate supplements from others on the market. Coleman notes that dietary supplements do not have to be approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration as drugs do, so it's particularly important to evaluate them by other means.
- Supplements are widely discussed and written about online, but don't trust forums or personal Web sites that endorse supplements, especially those that claim to be performance enhancing. Consult sports magazines, which often have nutritionists as contributors, and talk to a nutritionist or dietician before you try anything. General medical sites like the Mayo Clinic and the Merck Manual discuss performance-enhancing drugs and supplements from a purely scientific perspective, and are a good way to get professional insight for free.
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The Office of Dietary Supplements,
part of the National Institutes of Health, provides sound information on the use and regulation of dietary supplements, both in and out of the athletic realm. Consult this site for information on where to buy supplements, associated controversies, and informative documents that discuss government policy on dietary supplements. The FAQ is a good place to start, with a thorough list of questions detailing various kinds of supplements and their uses, as well as information on which organizations oversee the use and sale of dietary supplements in the United States.
The Ohio High School Athletic Association
has a useful chart that explains popular sports supplements, referencing data from the American Medical Society for Sports Medicine and other reputable organizations. The chart lists known uses, risks, and side effects, and also lists some illicit drugs that have been used in athletics. The site also provides links to outside sources on the Web that discuss and explain the supplements and drugs mentioned.
Choices in Sports,
a Web site of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA), has a page that discusses common dietary supplements and performance-enhancing drugs used in athletics. Taking an FAQ format, this page lends considerable insight into the basics and controversies of supplement use and regulation.
Good Foods for Athletes
When you think of an athlete's diet, visions of golden arches, glazed crullers, and Twinkies aren't likely to come to mind. But eating foods that will hinder performance is one thing; which foods can one eat to enhance performance? In this section we'll answer that question by directing you to sites that have information on the best foods for boosting strength, energy, and athletic performance.
Dulcinea's Insight
- Carbohydrate intake is crucial for athletes, especially those participating in endurance sports, such as cycling or a triathlon or marathon. Recent dieting trends like the Atkins diet promote low-carbohydrate, high-protein diets, and can be dangerous for athletes. To learn why carbohydrates are so important, read "The Skinny on Carbohydrates" from the Partnership for Essential Nutrition.
- Consult the article "Carbohydrate loading: Can your diet boost your athletic performance?" from the Mayo Clinic's Web site for more information on using carbohydrates to benefit performance in your sport. Use the article on carbohydrates from DISEN (Dieticians in Sport & Exercise Nutrition) for a quick checklist of foods containing 50 g or more of carbohydrates, which is the standard pre- and post-workout amount for refueling.
- Vegetarianism and athletics can go hand in hand; this nutritional lifestyle is defended in a well-researched article drawing on science and nutrition publications adapted from the authors of Vegan Handbook. The article has pre-meal suggestions and helpful tips about meat substitutes balancing a vegetarian diet for optimal athletic performance.
- Sodium and other electrolytes, like potassium, are important for any athlete to keep track of. Drinks like Gatorade and Powerade replenish these electrolytes during and after physical activity, preventing hyponatremia, which is a sodium imbalance often caused by excess water consumption. Learn more about hyponatremia and dehydration and ways to prevent these conditions.
- Elite athlete dietician Dan Benardot also has a fact sheet called "Fluids", which is a good supplement to the information on hyponatremia and dehydration.
- Recipes catering specifically to athletes aren't easy to come by online, so you're best off searching magazines and blogs that address your individual sports. Keep in mind that the athlete needs a "clean" diet, so any recipes that emphasize greens, lean meat, good fats, and carbohydrates are suitable athlete's recipes.
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For recipes and diet tips ...
Pioneer Thinking
is a healthy lifestyle site with an article called "Ten Healthful Cooking Habits" that is important for everyone but especially valuable for athletes. The advice includes how to use salt and oils in cooking, healthier cooking methods for meats, and several other suggestions on how to cut unnecessary and unhealthy ingredients from your diet.
The Australian Institute of Sport
is one of the best free resources online for recipes catered specifically to athletes. Each recipe includes complete nutritional analysis so you can see the number of grams of carbohydrates, protein, and fat per serving.
OC Family
has an article aclled "Fueling the Young Athlete" that has information on sports nutrition for kids in high school and younger. The sports nutrition of children and adolescents is particularly important to learn about. It requires the same components as an adult athlete's diet but there's more emphasis on calorie intake for high metabolism, and vitamins and nutrients that help promote muscle and bone growth, like calcium and iron.
Sports Nutrition and Meal Planning
Just as it's important for athletes to monitor and record their workouts as part of their training, it can be equally useful to chart diet. By keeping a record of what food you're consuming, you can ensure that you're getting the variety and quantity your body needs for peak performance.
Dulcinea's Insight
- Online forums are a great way to discuss nutrition concerns and questions with fellow athletes. Listed in our picks below are two such sites. While the advice you receive on the forums should always be confirmed with a registered dietician, it is still valuable to share ideas with other athletes, coaches, and nutritionists in-the-know.
- With the rise in awareness about good nutrition in sports performance, there are now a slew of sophisticated online tools that can help you pinpoint what you might be missing in your diet, and track your progress alongside your athletic or recreational training. Most of these interactive sites are free or inexpensive.
Dulcinea's Picks
For meal planning and food logs ...
New York Road Runners Trainer
is a sophisticated online tool set up by the governing body of road races in New York City. The Trainer requires a monthly subscription (currently $14.99) but allows you to track your daily food and beverage intake very precisely (it also has a training log and networking sections). The food log stores hundreds of foods and drinks, and users are allowed to add foods to the list. The site then lists the mineral, nutrient, and vitamin profile, and carb, protein, and fat content of each food. You're given letter grades for all of your daily requirements, including Omega 3, 6, and 9 acids, saturated and unsaturated fat, protein, carbohydrates, and many more. If you want to add a food that is not currently in the system, simply fill in the "Nutritional Facts" of the new food exactly as they appear on the label.
The National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute
created an online "Interactive Menu Planner" that allows you to plan your eating habits by choosing foods and serving sizes, revealing the amount of calories in the foods you're eating. While the calculator does not include daily protein values-a crucial part of any athlete's diet-it does show carbohydrate, fat, and calorie totals.
For online forums ...
Feed For Speed
is a popular forum for sports nutrition and training. Like most forums, the site requires free registration to post but you can browse the discussions as a guest without signing up. There are thousands of posts on this site, covering race results, training strategies, recipes, tips, and more.
Sports Nutrition Talk
is an online forum for athletes, coaches, and others interested in trading advice and anecdotes about sports nutrition. While the "Recipes" section of the site is rather sparse, the "General Discussion" area is very popular and recipes are often traded here.
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