Nutrition for Sports Performance

Understand the importance of nutrition for sport.

Learning Outcome 1: Indicative Content 

Importance of sports nutrition

What is a balanced diet? ‘Diet containing carbohydrates, proteins, fats, vitamins, minerals, water and fibre. Reference eat well plate.

role of nutrition in improving sports performance: (e.g. preventing dehydration, increasing fuel/energy in muscles and better performance).

Example of a sports performer: look at diets of different performers and compare an endurance athlete against a power athlete such as marathon runner against a 100m sprinter.

Endurance athlete such as marathon runner- look at their nutritional strategies before and during an event and the benefit on performance (e.g. use of carbo-loading, endurance gels and water to reduce dehydration and ensure enough fuel/energy for race and faster time in race).

Power athlete such as 100m sprinter- nutritional strategy during training and before an event and the benefit on performance. (e.g. use of creatine and more power/strength and therefore speed in race).

Case study: Comparison of times in a race/event/sport from today with twenty years ago. Comparison of the nutritional strategies and the impact on performance in the event now compared to before.

Assessment Criteria

• 1.1
  Explain the role that nutrition plays in supporting performance in sport.
  

Know the nutritional requirements for sports performers.

Learning Outcome 2: Indicative Content 

Nutritional requirements for a selected sport

Nutrients: examples of where can obtain carbohydrates, fats, vitamins, minerals, protein, fibre and water from, the function of each in a healthy diet and for a sports performer and also what could happen if don’t have enough of the above nutrients when training and competing in sport.

Healthy diet: reference to the eat-well plate for general health, methods of food preparation and advantages/disadvantages of each, importance of a healthy diet (e.g reduced risk of obesity, reduced onset of diabetes, rickets, osteoporosis, anaemia, high cholesterol, high blood pressure, tooth decay, cancer).

Sport specific requirements: (i.e. nutrition required for sport before, during and after training and competition, during rest periods, meal planning, supplements that could be used, energy intake and hydration methods).

Meal plan for sports performer: weekly meal plan for a sports performer detailing reasons for choice of food, snacks, fluids, methods of food preparation and timing of meals.

Assessment Criteria

• 2.1
  Outline the nutritional requirements for a performer in a selected sport.
  

Be able to assess suitability of own diet.

Learning Outcome 3: Indicative Content

Suitability of own diet

Collecting and recording information (e.g. food table/diary for a period of time including types of food, amount of food and drink taken, times of meals and any snacks during each day and period, methods of food preparation).

Assessment of diet: (e.g. compared to general nutritional guidelines/calories per day, eat well plate, total calories per day and see if below, at or above recommended levels).

Strengths/areas for improvement: i.e. compared to daily requirements, sport requirements for training and competition (e.g. consuming more of some compared to other nutrients for sport, eating at different times, using different food methods such as steaming as opposed to boiling and grilling instead of frying, drinking fluid and types of fluid and timing of fluid for specific sport).

Action plan to diet: any changes to a future dietary plan and how these changes will help to improve future performance in own sport (e.g. increase fluid before and during matches to reduce chances of dehydration and more protein after training and matches to help muscle growth and repair.

Assessment Criteria

• 3.1
  Use information gathered on own diet to determine how well it matches the nutritional requirements for a selected sport.
  
• 3.2
  Outline changes needed in own diet to support improved sporting performance.
  

Be able to develop, implement and review a personal nutritional strategy.

Learning Outcome 4: Indicative Content

Nutritional strategy: (e.g. well-balanced diet containing the main nutrients, preparation methods of food, rehydration, timing of meals, snacks and fluids, quantity of food and fluid, energy intake, which substances to avoid that could hinder performance, supplementation that could be used in diet such as energy gels, energy bars, protein shakes, vitamin and mineral supplements).

Meal plans (e.g. types of food and drink and preparation methods used).

Implementation of the strategy: i.e. evidence that the strategy has been followed such as witness statement combined with a daily food diary, benefits of strategy overall on sports performance and also different parts of the strategy.

Monitor and action plan: i.e. was the nutritional strategy successful? Reaction to strategy or parts of strategy, was it simple, was it cheap, did it fit into lifestyle and training/competition needs, what were the end results (more energy, maintenance of weight, weight loss or gain, better sports performance), what changes would you make in the future and how will these help future performance in chosen sport.

Assessment Criteria

• 4.1
  Create a nutritional strategy which is consistent with the requirements for a selected sport and takes into account own current eating habits.
  
• 4.2
  Follow a nutritional strategy of own devising to improve sports performance.
• 4.3
  Assess the extent to which they followed a nutritional strategy and the impact it has had on their sporting performance.
• 4.4
  Identify any further areas for improvement in own diet needed to support sporting performance.