Whether you are preparing for a sprint, Olympic, half ironman (70.3 miles), or ironman distance triathlon, your nutrition plan should take as high a priority as your training plan. Meal timing and macronutrient type are important concepts to grasp when devising your nutrition plan. Proper foods eaten before, during and after swimming, biking or running can help improve performance. Your meal plan should consist mainly of complex carbohydrates, lean sources of protein and moderate amounts of fat. While nutrition plans can be highly individual based on race distance and food preferences, it's recommended to start with the guidelines and adjust as necessary. Always practice in training what will be done on race day.
Macronutrient Needs
Daily nutrition needs will vary depending upon training intensity and duration. However, in general a triathlete's overall calories should consist of 55-65 percent carbohydrates, 10-20 percent protein and 20-30 percent fat. To see where your current breakdown falls, log your calories for three to seven days in nutrition software. Many free Web-based analysis programs exist including Livestrong.com's MyPlate.
Another way to determine your macronutrient needs is based on body weight in kilograms. To figure out your weight in kilograms, divide your weight in pounds by 2.2. Depending on your training load, you will probably be consuming anywhere from 25 to 40 or more calories per kilogram. Protein needs fall anywhere from 1.2 to 2.0 grams of protein per kilogram. Carbohydrate needs will be 5 to 12 or more grams per kilogram. Fat intake should be .8 to 1.0 grams per kilogram. As training varies daily and seasonally, on light days or in the off season, aim to consume at the low end of the range, and during high volume training consume in the upper end of the range.
Eating Before Training
Generally speaking, it's best to eat an easily digestible meal 1 to 3 hours before training. What you eat and when will depend on the time, intensity and duration of your workout. You may be able to get through an early-morning workout on an empty stomach, especially if it's around 30 minutes. However, if you find yourself dragging during the workout or unable to complete it, you may need to eat an easily digestible form of carbohydrate 30 minutes to an hour before. A banana, piece of toast or sports drink are good options. This same concept applies to afternoon or evening training sessions. A substantial lunch eaten two to three hours before training will likely get you through the workout. For an evening workout you may need an afternoon snack. Foods high in fiber, fat or sugar are not usually well-tolerated just before exercise and can cause gastrointestinal distress.
Eating During Training
Workouts lasting 30 to 90 minutes may not require any fuel or fluids during the training session, especially if your pre-meal was timed well and you are hydrated going into the training session. However, longer sessions may require a simple carbohydrate source to get you through. Sports drinks, gels and bars are all good options to experiment with. For really long training sessions or brick workouts (back-to-back workouts consisting of two or more triathlon disciplines), you may need real food such as a banana, peanut butter sandwich or bagel. Your goal during training is to keep your blood sugar steady, to provide your muscles with glucose. Plan the timing of your supplements. You don't want to eat when you start to feel you need it; you want to anticipate and head off any potential low blood sugar situations. In general, 15 grams of carbohydrate or more every 45 minutes or so is a good starting point. The amount you ingest will depend on your body size, training intensity and duration, as well as what your stomach can handle.
Eating After Training
After exercise you want to eat a balanced, mixed meal within 30 minutes to promote optimal recovery. Just after a training session is when there is maximum blood flow to muscles, cells are more sensitive to insulin and when glycogen synthase (the enzyme responsible for making glycogen) is most active. Good post-workout meals include a glass of milk and a peanut butter and jelly sandwich, a turkey sandwich and an orange, or a bowl of cereal with a sliced banana. If it is impossible to eat a meal that soon after a workout, easily portable snacks can work just as well. A sports drink, sports bar, banana, yogurt and smoothie are all examples of good carbohydrate sources.
Fluid Requirements
Fluid amounts vary per person. The typical recommendation of eight glasses of water a day does not necessarily stand true. Urine color is probably the best indicator of fluid status. The lighter the urine, the more hydrated you are. Aim for straw-colored urine, and just before an event you want to aim for clear urine. A rough guideline is to consume 30 milliliters of water per kilogram of body weight. This is about 2 liters of water per day for the average person. You are also getting fluid from foods, especially if you eat a diet high in fruits and vegetables, so fluids from foods contribute to the arbitrary 2 liter goal. Two hours before exercise consume about 20 ounces of fluid, during the race or training session consume about 8 ounces every 15 to 20 minutes, and post exercise re-hydrate until your urine is pale.
How Many Calories Do I Need?
Calorie needs will vary per person depending on training goals and time of season. The most accurate way to determine your calorie needs is to have your resting metabolic rate (RMR) tested via indirect calorimetry. Many private practice dietitians have the equipment to perform this test and can give you a caloric range to aim for based on your activity level. An easier, cheaper way is to use a formula to estimate your energy expenditure. Once you calculate your RMR, you will multiply that number by activity factors. As a triathlete you will have rest days, so it's ideal to devise a caloric range based on low activity to high activity and stay within the range. The Mifflin-St Jeor equation has been shown to be relatively accurate in the healthy population and is as follows. Weight is in kilograms and height is in centimeters.
Males: 10---weight in kg + 6.25---height in cm - 5---age + 5 = RMR
Females: 10---weight in kg + 6.25---height in cm - 5---age - 161 = RMR
After you figure out your estimated RMR, multiply it by anywhere between 1.2 and 1.9 depending on how active you are to come up with your daily caloric range.
1.200 = sedentary (little or no exercise)
1.375 = lightly active (light exercise/sports 1-3 days/week)
1.550 = moderately active (moderate exercise/sports 3-5 days/week)
1.725 = very active (hard exercise/sports 6-7 days a week)
1.900 = extra active (very hard exercise/sports and physical job)
References
- "Nutrition for Sport & Exercise;" Jacqueline R. Berning, Suzanne Nelson Steen; 1998
- "Nutrition Periodization for Endurance Athletes;" Bob Seebohar; 2004
- "Journal of Parenteral and Enteral Nutrition;" Analysis of Estimation Methods for Resting Metabolic Rate in Critically Ill Adults. David C. Frankenfield, Abigail Coleman, Shoaib Alam, Robert N. Cooney; 2008
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