Pre event meals
For long distance endurance events such as Marathons or Triathlons or other multisports pursuits, it is necessary to fuel you body correctly prior to the race to generate optimum performance during races. More often then not, races are held in the morning and most athletes wake up just early enough to rush to the race site before the event is flagged off. Here are some tips for a pre-event meal which might be helpful if you are intending to participate in an endurance activity or training session.
- Wake Wake up early (At least 2 hours before).
- Make sure that prior to race you get used to eating a hearty breakfast
- Select foods that you are going to take the night before an lay them out in an easily accessible fashion.
- Be extremely careful in selecting foods, some food types such as Legumes may cause stomach discomfort during the race if consumed in the morning. Other food such as fruits may contain fruit acids which may cause indigestion if one is not used to consuming them in the morning.
- It is most advisable to eat tree fruits such as apples, pears, grapes, etc. as they contain a higher amount of fructose. Fructose level drops at night because the brain only uses it as its main fuel source during sleep.
- It is best to hydrate well in the morning. Clear colored pee is the best sign that the body is well hydrated. Hydration is most important in the morning because the body loses up to 750ml of water during sleep. This figure can be more or less depending on the length of sleep and the humidity of the air.
- Warm soup or light pasta can serve as good pre event meals as they are more appetizing then the traditional bread and butter.
Post event meals
Very often athletes are carried away by the post race activities especially after endurance races. It is during this critical window which the body is craving for proteins and antioxidants to repair damaged tissues and cells. This not only happens during racing but also for training.
It is known that the window for eating to encourage optimum recovery is the first 30 mins after completing a training session or a race.
Hence, here are some tips for a post-event meal which might be helpful if you are intending to participate in an endurance activity or training session.
- Prior to the activity, prepare recovery some recovery drinks or food which can be easily accessible after the activity is completed. This is so that you will be more likely to consume the food even when you are exhausted from the activity.
- Foods that are high in G.I. are recommended at this juncture because they spike insulin therefore increasing absorption of various nutrients such as protein and carbohydrates.
- Fruits are also recommended as they contain a large amount of natural antioxidants to combat the free radicals in the blood which may kill or impair blood and tissue cells.
- Consuming a generous quantity of water is highly recommended, it can be supplemented with isotonic drinks. After exercise body hydration drops which leads to blood thickening because water is removed from blood plasma. Hence it is necessary to rehydrate not only during the race but the hours after the race. Hence, having plenty of fluids to go with you post event or training meal will be beneficial for the body.