Fad Diets and Performance
What To Remember:
➊ As an athlete it is important to include all food groups to maximize performance. This means that not all diets are appropriate.
➋ Athletes have special needs based on the amount of hours they spend a day training. Athletes have higher carbohydrate, protein, and caloric needs due to rigorous physical activity.
➌ Athletes also need to fuel more frequently based on pre and post workout recovery nutrition.
➍ FAD Diets are difficult to sustain for long periods of time. This leads to more weight gain than initially lost!
➎ Keep in mind that when we restrict the foods we love, we can put ourselves at risk of binge eating after the diet is over.
What To Know:
➊ FAD Diets that promote low carbohydrate consumption:
- Reduce energy levels during training and/or game day
- Increase in fatigue and at higher risk for injuries
- Increase in cramping due to inadequate energy intake that causes inability to retain water
- Poor mood and staying focused due to lack of energy to the brain
➋ FAD Diets that promote low sodium intake:
- Sodium is an important electrolyte that helps retain water that reduces dehydration and cramping
- A decrease in sodium increases impaired muscle function. This is caused to the imbalance of sodium to potassium, two important electrolytes
➌ Fasting Periods:
- Training with low energy due to inadequate energy intake leads to poor performance and increases the risk of syncope (fainting and or drop in blood pressure)
- Difficult to obtain sufficient calories during critical absorption periods which leads to lean muscle tissue loss
- Overtime the body adapts to burning fewer calories and storing fat, this leads to easier weight regain, especially fat mass
- Poor mood and decrease in focus