Track and Field Nutrition

Track and Field Nutrition 101

“Good nutrition accounts for 50% of my performance, with 40% being mental and 10% being physical.” - Five-Time Canadian Olympian Hayley Wickenheiser

Proper nutrition and hydration have a major impact on young athletes’ health and sports performance across all levels of training and competition. When athletes want to improve their physical skills – whether it is strength, speed, endurance, or power – they need to train well and eat well. Athletes who invest time to plan for healthy eating and hydration get more out of their training, perform better during competition, refuel their bodies faster, and have less illness and injury.

As a young athlete, proper nutrition is more important than ever. You must eat well to support both healthy growth and optimal sports performance. Following a well-balanced approach to eating includes healthy amounts of fluid, protein, fat, carbohydrate, and other key nutrients. In this article I will highlight the importance of each of these nutrients.

*Grain Products

High in carbohydrate which is the best source of fuel for athletes who need to supply more blood sugar to the brain and muscles during activity. When an athlete doesn’t eat enough carbohydrate, they are at much greater risk of tiring quickly, having too little energy to train, or performing poorly during competition. Athletes should enjoy whole grains as often as they can because they contain more nutrients, such as B vitamins and fiber.

Milk and Milk Alternatives

Promotes bone growth and prevents bone damage. The teen years (ages 11–17) are a key time for building healthy bones.

Best sources of calcium and vitamin D, which help build strong bones, muscles and nerves.

Source of carbohydrate and protein. Protein helps build and maintain muscles and other body tissues.

Meat and Meat Alternatives

Best sources of protein and a good source of other nutrients such as iron. Iron helps the body to use and carry oxygen to active muscle.

Meat alternatives include kidney beans, brown beans, chickpeas, lentils, and split peas, to name a few, which are high in fiber, low in fat, and a source of carbohydrate, protein, and vitamins and minerals.

It is a good idea to include a source of vitamin C to increase the amount of iron absorbed from the meat alternatives mentioned above.

Vegetables and Fruits

Provide many vitamins and minerals. Orange vegetables such as carrots, yams, and spaghetti squash are high in beta carotene which can help protect the body’s cells from damage. Green vegetables such as broccoli, kale, and snap peas are high in folic acid which helps make red blood cells and repair tissue.

Most vegetables and fruits contain carbohydrates that provide the body with energy.

Many vegetables and fruits provide vitamin C which helps protect and repair body cells that are broken down by intense physical activity.

Vitamin C is found in oranges, grapefruit, strawberries, bell peppers, tomatoes, and broccoli.

Fluids

Transports nutrients to muscles and tissues, and helps controls body heat through sweat.

When an athlete has lost as little as two percent of body weight during activity, mental and physical performance are greatly impaired.

Athletes must consume enough fluids before they begin an activity and then continue to drink during and after activity.

The use of sports drinks is best reserved for training days when you are sweating a lot for over an hour.

As a young athlete, the foods consumed in your diet are used to provide the body with enough energy and specific nutrients to fuel an activity and maximize performance. Athletes have different nutritional needs than the general population in order to support their vigorous activity levels in both practice and competition. Athletes also have individual and unique needs of their own. I specialize in working with young athletes to find the performance diet that is right for them.

USE DISCOUNT CODE FTR25$ BEFORE 12/01/2022 TO RECEIVE $25 OFF

FTR SPORTS NUTRITIONIST, Shannon Moore is a nutrition consultant, certified health coach and former youth and collegiate rowing coach. Over the past 25 years , she has worked with high school and college athletes to both contribute to the success of their team and to level up in pursuit of college recruitment and National Team pursuits.

She was once an elite athlete (rower), that transitioned into being an NCAA rowing coach and has transitioned back to being a nutrition consultant and health coach.

Shannon holds a BSc in Nutrition from The Ohio State University where she was also an NCAA athlete (rowing) and a MSc in Applied Physiology and Nutrition from Columbia University where she was an Assistant Women’s Rowing Coach and Recruiting Coordinator.

Recover Faster From These 3 Common Running Injuries

THE 3 MOST COMMON RUNNING INJURIES

1. Shin splints are often the result of exercising too much — specifically an overload of force to the shin or lower leg. If you have shin splints, you’ll notice pain, tenderness, and soreness along the shin or tibial bone.

What causes shin splints?

Shin splints are caused by an overload of forces to your legs. In other words, you might get shin splints if your muscles, bones, and fascia (the connective tissue around your muscles) are having trouble absorbing the impacts that happen during your exercise. Running is a high-impact activity, so the wrong kind of impact can do damage pretty fast. This overload to your legs can be caused by many things. For example, it can be caused by muscle imbalances, having a high arch or flat foot, or a sudden increase in the intensity, frequency, or volume of your training. Bad shoes, a poor warm-up, and running on hard surfaces can also increase your risk.

2. The iliotibial band (IT band) is a bundle of fibers that stretches from your hip to the outside of your knee. When your IT band gets inflamed or tight, you might notice swelling or pain, usually around the attachment site in your knee. Often the pain gets so bad that you can’t run at all.

What causes IT band syndrome?

During activity, the IT band moves back and forth across the outside of the knee. If your muscles aren’t pliable, this movement can cause friction, create pain, and inflame the knee area. Runners and cyclists are most prone to IT band syndrome because of how often they flex and extend their knees.

Besides overuse, other factors can put you at a higher risk for IT band syndrome. For example, you might be more likely to develop IT band syndrome if you lack pliable tissue or have a muscular imbalance at the hips or glutes. Poor technique, bad form, or an asymmetric body can also increase the risk of ITBS.

3. At the bottom of your foot, fibrous tissue stretches from your heels to your toes to support the muscles and arch of the foot. When this tissue gets tense, tight, or inflamed, you start to feel pain in the bottom of your foot. This inflammation is called plantar fasciitis, and it can make walking or running difficult.

What causes plantar fasciitis?

Plantar fasciitis, like ITBS and shin splints, can be caused by a lack of muscle pliability. Other factors that can put you at risk for plantar fasciitis include the following:

• Low arches (flat feet) or high arches

• Increased or decreased mobility in the bones of the foot

• Dense fascia or tight muscles in your calves

• Poor form

• Worn out shoes with too many miles on them

• Improper gait

If you already have these problems, how can you recover?

To recover from any of these conditions, you need to take three important steps:

1. Roll your muscles.
2. Hydrate.
3. Eat well.

We’ll talk about all three below

1. Roll your muscles

As you’re rolling, spend extra time on the target muscles or in the area of pain or discomfort. Doing this will maximize tissue pliability and decrease tension in the symptomatic areas. While taking time to roll your entire leg is important, you should target these areas in particular:

• Shin splints: Roll the front of the shin, the back of the lower leg (calf), and underneath the foot.

• Iliotibial band: Roll the glutes, IT band, quad, hamstrings, groin, front of the shin, and calf.

• Plantar fascia: Roll underneath the foot, along the calf, and the front of the shin

2. Keep your muscles hydrated by drinking enough water

As a rule, drinks half of your body weight in fluid ounces of water every day. Water can help your joints, muscles, and improve your pliability, which in turn helps your muscles to work better together. Hydration also contributes in the battle against inflammation, aids tissue repair and growth, transports nutrients to your cells, and helps with the removal of waste. Hydration is essential for preventing running injuries.

3. Eat a nutrient-dense, anti-inflammatory diet

Most of the injuries we just talked about are caused by inflammation through the repetitive forces involved in running. Therefore, minimizing inflammation in your body may help to reduce symptoms as your body heals. You can do this by changing what you eat. Minimize pro-inflammatory foods (dairy, processed foods, and gluten). Maximize anti-inflammatory foods (vegetables, fruits, and nuts). Each meal should be half colorful vegetables, half lean protein and whole grains. Limit refined sugars and trans fats.

If you’re healthy right now, how can you avoid injury?

The best way to maintain pliable muscles and limit muscle tightness is to do pliability work before and after your run. To maintain muscular symmetry, balance, full range of motion, and core strength without overloading the joints, spend time training with resistance bands. To help you get started, listed are some exercises below.

5 Exercises for Fighting Common Running Injuries

You can improve your pliability, mobility, and stability by adding the right exercises to your routine. Incorporate these five exercises into your workout to protect your body against shin splints, IT band syndrome, and plantar fasciitis.

1. Glute Bridge

2. Glute Medius Side Plank with Straight Leg Hip Abduction

Here’s what you do: • Lie on your side with your lower knee bent. • Distribute your weight between your lower leg and and elbow. • Lift your upper leg and upper arm in the air and hold both steady while contracting your core and glutes. • In a quick repeated motion, lift your upper leg straight into the air and lower it back down. Keep the rest of your body still. • Continue for two minutes, and then repeat for the other side.

3. The 90/90 single-leg balance

Here’s what you do:

• Hold your arms like you’re a field goal post — 90 degrees in each elbow, hands straight up. • Raise one leg and bend your knee at a 90-degree angle. (You can see why we call this exercise 90/90.) Your quad should be parallel to the ground. • Hold your balance in this position. Do not lean to either side or tap your raised leg to the ground. If you need to regain balance, try hopping on your plant leg instead. • Keep your glute flexed by “pushing” your plant foot into the ground. • Switch to the other side and hold balance on your other leg.

4. Four-Directional Toe Touches

Here’s what you do:

• Stand upright and balance on one leg. • Tap your elevated foot straight out to your side. • Then, tap that same leg back and diagonal from your body. • Then, tap your foot straight behind your body. • Finally, cross your elevated leg behind your planted leg. • Repeat this motion continuously for 2 minutes, and then switch to the other leg. During this exercise, it’s important that you keep your plant leg stable and keep your knee still

5. Anterior Reach

Here’s what you do:

• Stand upright on one leg to start. • Hinge at your hips and lean forward with your upper body. • Extend your arms overhead and lean until your upper body is parallel with the ground. • At the time time, elevate and extend your non-plant leg. • Return to the starting position, repeat for two minutes, and then switch to the other leg. During this exercise, it’s important to keep a straight back. Keep your plant leg stable YOU MIGHT ALSO LIKE

Nutrition Guidelines for Track and Field Athletes

A healthy diet is a balanced diet. No matter your activity level, if you’re not fueling your body with healthy foods and adequate nutrition, you’ll never let your body function at its peak. That’s why you should emphasize eating a local, seasonal diet and prioritizing nutrient-rich, whole foods because you can’t train or recover well if you deprive your body of the right nutrients. Food is your body’s fuel, and you’ll only get as much out of your body as you’ll put into it. With the right amount of nutrients, fluids, and electrolytes, you can keep your mind and muscles working at their best all day long.

Here’s a few important aspects of nutrition and performance to consider.

EAT REAL FOOD, FIRST.

The nutrients we need should come from real food, first. Pills and powders have their place, but shouldn’t be relied on as a primary source of nourishment. Food is a key part of a healthy lifestyle and optimal athletic performance. I suggest that you shop the perimeter of your local grocery store and skip foods that contain ingredients you can’t pronounce. As a rule limit or avoid foods in packaging.

Below you will find seven key aspects of functional nutrition to start incorporating into your daily routine.

#1: EAT VEGETABLES

It will be a challenge but work everyday to eat as many vegetables as you can. Try to add them into other food sources such as smoothies, pizza, stir-friy and egg scrambles. Make an attempt to eat them each meal meal. Try to “eat the rainbow”. Different colored foods tend to have different nutrient profiles, so “eat the rainbow” means eat a variety of them. Pay attention to the color of fruits and vegetables you eat, since the color of food can often tell you a lot about the vitamins and minerals it provides. For example orange carrots are rich in Beta Carotene, while green spinach is packed with Vitamin K, and yellow peppers are loaded with Vitamin C.

#2: REDUCE THE SUGAR

Sugar is the biggest problem in our diets today because the food industry puts it in everything. I suggest greatly limiting pre-made or processed grocery store foods like cookies, cakes, sauces, dressings and such. By doing so you are limiting inflammatory food. A major part of the easting for optimal performance is learning to manage your inflammatory response. While we’re not saying to avoid the following foods altogether, research shows that added sugars, refined carbs, processed meats, and fried foods all drive inflammation. In general, try to eat them as infrequently as possible.

#3: FULL-FAT EVERYTHING

Include essential fatty acids (Omega-6 and Omega-3) in your diet. The Average American consumes roughly fifteen times more Omega-6s than Omega-3s. Aim for a healthy ratio closer to one-to-one to help regulate inflammation, improve cell function/structure, relieve muscle stiffness, and maintain a healthy heart. Try to include fish, seeds and nuts to your diet. Avoid low-fat versions of food. It’s not real food.

#4: NO REFINED CARBS

Eat unprocessed, natural grains because they contain more protein, vitamins, healthy oils, fats and fiber to keep you full for longer, plus you know how they were made. You don’t know, however, where the bleach for the all-purpose flour came from or what that does to your body.

#5: PROTEIN IS KING OR QUEEN

Protein should be such an important part of your diet because as an active person you will want to repair and build healthy, lean muscles. Protein also helps keep you more full throughout the day because it digests slower than most carbohydrates. Healthy protein sources include: lean animal meats and eggs, beans, quinoa, lentils, nuts, seeds and Greek yogurt.

#6 HYDRATION IS KEY

Hydration is a core tenet of optimal athletic performance. As a rule of thumb, try to drink 1/2 your body weight in ounces daily.

#7 SUPPLEMENT ACCORDINGLY

While I suggest 100% real food first, it can be a challenge to meet all your nutritional needs — even if you eat fresh, organically grown food at every meal. The right supplements won’t replace a proper nutritional regimen, but they can ensure you get what your body might be lacking. Supplements to consider include: Multivitamin, Vitamin D, Vitamin B Complex, Omega Complex

Easy To Incorporate Supplemental Exercises For Every Runner

Runners are really good at moving in one direction, but this overload often leads to poor hip stability and glute facilitation. Over the long term these deficits can lead to compensations in movement patterns and eventually an injury. The exercises below will help to facilitate the glute, core, and single leg dynamic stability that is crucial for any runner. As always do not forget to foam roll before and after.

Lateral Band Walks

• 2×15 steps each side

This exercise helps to facilitate your gluteus medius muscle which is the muscle that helps to keep your hips level as you run. By facilitating your gluteus medius you will improve your dynamic hip stability allowing you to run with better form.

Step-Ups

• 3×12 each side

This exercise works your all your glute muscles especially your gluteus maximus the biggest muscle in your body. By strengthening your gluteus maximus it will improve your running power and endurance.

Anterior Reach - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qPplqZEq7M4

• 3×6 each side

The anterior reach facilitates core, spine, and hip stabilizing muscles, while also working on your single leg balance. This exercise is a must have in any runner’s repertoire, and will help you feel more control and stability while running.

Front Plank - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GoflPzSrdKc

• 3×30 seconds

Having a strong core is what allows you to stay upright during runs especially long runs when you get tired. The front plank works the core abdominal muscles as well as your back extensor muscles that help you maintain good posture. Building up your endurance with the front plank is a great way to help maintain good running form for long distance runs.

Heiden Hops - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N0UVekBvpWA -

• 3×8 each side

Think about it, running is just a series of forward single leg hops. The heiden hop helps to train the hip and knee stabilizing muscles that are used during running but in a different way since heiden hops are done side-to-side. This will help you keep good knee position and level hips while running.

Passing Through Your “Valley of Disappointment” and Getting Back on Track!

All great athletes have gone through periods of time when they feel the effort and sacrifice being made are not worth the outcomes they are experiencing. The gap between what one thinks should happen and what is actually happening is often responsible for discouragement, non-persistence, and negative feelings. It is easy to be positive, train hard and dedicate yourself to the task at hand if the fantasy you play over and over in your mind coincides with your reality. However, when you find yourself in your own personal “Valley of Disappointment “ it is imperative that you stay the course.

Over my thirty-year college coaching career, I observed many unimagineable breakthroughs occur when the “Valley of Disappointment” was traveled through. Conversely, I wonder how many such breakthroughs awaited one’s arrival on the other side only to be disappointed to learn the individual’s journey had been discontinued.

A few suggestions on how to survive your journey follow.

Enjoy the Process

“The most we can hope for is to create the best possible conditions for success, then let go of the outcome. The ride is a lot more fun that way.” ― Phil Jackson, Eleven Rings: The Soul of Success

James Clear states, “We often expect progress to be linear…people feel discouraged after putting in weeks and months of hard work without experiencing any results”. Track and Field is a numbers driven sport. Its’ participants live and die by inches and hundredths of a second. Oftentimes, arbitrary numbers are dreamt up and a goal is set. When that arbitrary number isn’t actualized the journey is considered a disappointment. I would suggest (as do many, many others) to focus on the process and to enjoy the moment at hand. For instance, you are training and competing alongside your best friends. The moments shared in a pre-race huddle will accompany you for the rest of your life. As a coach, I would often encourage my athletes to stop and take it all in, to fully grasp how cool what you are experiencing really is.

Don’t Over Analyze

“When the mind is allowed to relax, inspiration often follows.” ― Phil Jackson, Eleven Rings: The Soul of Success

There is an old Indian Proverb that states, “If you live in the river you should make friends with the crocodile”. It is imperative to realize that the sport of track and field and cross country will be filled with ups and downs, each quickly passing and reappearing. One of the most challenging aspects of my personal coaching career was managing the emotions of such. A PR and Ivy League upset win by one of my hardest working athletes would be soon followed by a false start by my best athlete moments later. As an athlete – don’t over analyze the journey through your "Valley of Disappointment". Just keep putting in the work, remaining positive and allowing yourself the opportunity to succeeed.

Focus on Small Incremental Wins

“Before enlightenment, chop wood, carry water. After enlightenment, chop wood, carry water.” - ZEN PROVERB

As the season progresses without your goals becoming actualized, it becomes increasingly more common to become even more outcome-focused. Athletes become fixated on splits, PR’s or qualifying marks. Instead, focus on small, daily winnable goals – improve 1% each day. The difference small daily improvements can make over time is astounishing. Focus on relaxation techniques before the race or a small aspect of your race that you can fully control.

JAMES CLEAR - Atomic Habits

As Stoic philosophers so often stated, “We should always be asking ourselves: “Is this something that is, or is not, in my control?” Meet conditions, field sizes, trips and falls, wet rings and headwinds will always exist. Focus on what you can control and eagerly await for your moment. Your work, commitment and positive attitude will not be wasted. Your breakthrough has already happened somewhere in your future and it awaits your arrival. Do not disappoint it by not showing up!