Pre- and post-match nutrition: What are you trying to achieve?
You want to make sure you eat food your body can handle. When you eat foods that are fried or fatty, your body focuses all its attention on trying to digest the food, which takes hours. That is why you feel so tired after a big meal. Your body is preparin
Nutrition plays a key role in any athlete’s performance and success. When you are pushing your body to the sporting extremes and demanding that it responds and ignites at will, the athlete should stop saying that their nutrition is fine, and start putting more emphasis on high performance nutrition.
Fair enough, great nutrition can be compared to the fuel we use on the roads. A small car will get away with using good old unleaded 93 Octane, but a more powerful car needs 95 octane. When fuel burns, it releases energy and the higher octane means more energy and a higher performance as it can withstand more compression before detonating according to AA.
Nutrition is no different. If you put low-quality food into your system, it is not going to give you the opportunity to perform at a higher level. Your food must contain quality proteins, complex carbohydrates, fats and nutrients to give you performing power.
The two questions I get asked a lot are what should I eat before a match and after? The answer lies in typically what your sport demands. Is it an endurance race over hours or is it a high intensity sport like Sevens rugby or basketball? It becomes quite complex because you would need to analyse how quickly the body burns fuel. Swimming legend Michael Phelps at his peak ate more food in one day than an average professional footballer would in half a week. Each sport demands something different of you and just in that sentence alone, can help you realise that no two people should be eating the same type and quantities of food. This is why every athlete should see a good sports nutritionist at least once a year – a specialist and preferably specialised in your sport.
It is important to remember that pre-match and postmatch recovery meals are essential for all athletes, but in particular high-performing athletes. Preparation for your event in terms of nutrition should start months in advance, not days before the event. Having said that, you can’t twist my words and say “coach said it makes no difference” if you have fried food a day before your match because it will make you lethargic and will ultimately affect your peak performance.