Nutrition for the Serious Young Athletethe Practical Approachserious_athletes

8/13/2019 Nutrition for the Serious Young Athletethe Practical Approachserious_athletes

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UTRIT IONN U T R IT IO N FOR T H E S E R IO U SY O U N G A T H L E T E -

T H E P R A C TIC A L A P P R O A C H

by Jane G riffin BScRD RN utrChildren and adolescents have dietaryrequirements that are different fromadults and those involved in sport at acompetit ive levelare set apart even fromother youngsters when considering thepractical aspects of their diet. Underlyingprinciplesof the diet remainthe samebutl ifestyle and the demands of trainingtogether with the requirements of thesport itself will necessitate some dietarymodi f ica t ions. A variety of dif fe rentmethods of collecting dietary data can beused to evaluate existing dietsandeatingpatterns. Similarlythe waytha t practical,workable advice can be given based onthe data collected will vary depending ona numberof factors including frequencyofcontact t ime, how much contact time isface- to - face and particular l ivingsituations such as liv ing at home,boarding school, attending local collegeor awayat university. Lifestyle issuescanalso hinder the development of the rightdiet part icularly if time managementski l ls are poorly devetoped. Howeveryoung athletes may encounter problemswhich they have no control over, suchasinappropriate school meals, excessivetravel t ime to training sessions straightafter school and financial constraints onthe amount that can be spent on extrafood.

E N E R G Y R E Q U I R E M E N T SChildhood and adolescence are times ofrapid growth and development withparallel increases in nutri t ional require-ments. Because ofthe demandsofgrowth ,children require a higher energy intakethan adults at comparable weights.Absolute energy needs for growth arehigher during adolescence than inchildhood years (see Box 1).Added to the estimate averagerequirements (EAR) for energy will be theextra energy cost of exercise in seriousyoung athletes.A simple method ofcalcu-lating total daily energy requirements isbased on the Physical Ac tivity Level (PAL)(1) where an assumption of the energydemands at school/college andduringtherestof the day ismadeandusingthe basalmetabolic rate (BMR) estimated averageenergy requirements can be calculated.Ahigher PAL value indicates a higher physi-cal activity level(seeBoxes2 and 3).Poor energy intakes that do not match

requirements over a significant period oft ime can result in growth retardation,delayed puberty, poor bone health andincreased incidence of injuries - and ofcourse poor performance in training andcompetit ion ormatches.A D E Q U A T E F U E LCarbohydrate and fat areboth used as fuelsources but during prolonged exercisethereis apreferencefor fatmetabolisminchildren and a shift towards a preferencefor carbohydrate in adolescents. Tosustain training over a number of months,chi ldren sti l l depend on adequatecarbohydrate stores to be present. Thereis certainly no evidence that fat intakeshould be more than 30 of total energyintake in children or adolescents. Allserious young athletes need to beencour-aged to refuel with suitable carbohydraterich foods and fluids after all trainingsessions and competit ions or matches.Poor eating habits such as regularlymissing breakfast, frequent, inappropriatesnacking (as opposed to refuelling) and

BO X 1: E S T IM A T E D A V E R A GE R E Q U I R E M E N T S E A R S ) FOR E N E R GY K C A L / D ) 1)A gein y e a r ^ ^ ^ _ .

7-10 ^ ^ ^ ^ ^11-U ^ ^ B19-50

m a t e s ' 1970

1^ 2220m i f 2755

2550

females1740184521101940

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Y O U N G A T H L E T E S

high intakes of fast or take-away foods areall indicators that fuel intakes may not beideal in qualityorquantity.P R O T E I N R E Q U I R E M E N T SChildren and adolescents have s ligh tlyhigher protein requirements thansedentary adults. Astheprotein require-ments of adult athletes arehigher thanthose of sedentary adults, it is possiblethat those ofyoung athletes might alsobe higher than their less active peers.Protein intakes haveto meet the require-ments of growth, development and theneedsofthe sport. H owever there arenopublished studies of young a th le tesprotein requirements and specif icrecommendations cannot be made. Musclegrowth comes from consuming a d ie tcontaining sufficient energy, proteinandother essential nutrients, a well-plannedtraining programme and sufficient restand recovery time. It also comes fromphysica l matur i ty, the stage ofdevelopment when hormones are releasedin sufficient amountsto stimulate musclegrowth.I t can generally be assumed thatif energy requirements are being met andthe diet contains a reasonable selectionoffoods including good sourcesof protein,the intakeofprotein wil l be suff icienttomeet demands.

F L U I D R E P L A C E M E N TSerious young athletes are high riskcandidates for dehyd ration. This isbecause they are not as efficientat ther-moregulation and are more susceptibletoheat stress than adults. Children areespecially at risk as they are poor atcoping with extremes of environmentaltemperature, sweat less, get hotter duringexercise, haveaLower heart o utp ut andagreater surface area for their weight.Certain conditions can make things worse

eg. protective clothing required in somesports can reduce the abi l i ty to cooldown. Young swimmers, because they arealready wet often do not realisehowmuch f lu id they are losing throughsweating, compared to say a tennis ornetball p layer. The temperature andhumidity of many swimming pools doesnot help the situation.Coaches, teachers and parents can be agreat help bychecking to make sure allyoung athletes have their own drinks

bott le (containing an appropriate fluid)before thestart of alltra ini ng sessionsand competit ions. Children do notinstinctively or volun tarily replace flu idlosses during exercise and yet they areatgreater risk of dehydration than adults.Coaches and parents should remindchildrento drink frequently - ideallyto aschedule of every 15 to 20 minutes,perhaps more frequently in w a r m / h o tweather. Children should be allowed todrink until they feel their thirst has beenquenched and then encouraged to drink

BO X 2 : E S T IM A T E D A VE R A GE R E Q U I R E M E N T A C C O R D I N G TO BO D Y W E IG HT A N DP H YS I C A L A C n VI T Y L E VE L K C A L / D ) F O R F E M A L E S A GE D 1 0 -1 8 Y E A R S l)

Bodyweightkg303540455055 ^60 ^^H

BMRkcal10951162122912951362

1 1496

PALol.617521859196620722179

|| 862394

PAL-1.81971209222122331245225722693

PAL=22190232424582590272428582992

: E S T IM A T E D A VE R A GE R E Q U I R E M E N T A C C O R D I N G T Q B O D Y W E I GH T A N DP H YS I C A L A C T I VI T Y L E VE L K C A L / D ) F OR M A L E S A GE D 1 0 - 1 8 YE A R S 1)

Bodyweight

kg30 > ^35404550556065

BMR

1276136514531542163017181807

PAL=1.6kcal1901H ^ l2042218423252467260827492891

PAL=1.8IPl38

2297245726152776293430923253

PAL=223762552273029063084326034363614

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NUT RI T I O Nsome more. This is because their thirstmechanism is poorly developed. Youngathletes who are particularly irritable atthe end of a training session should havetheir fluid intake monitored to assesshow much they fluid they do generallydrink. Fluids intakes can be improved byflavouring the drink and by addingsodium chloride and carbohydrate inthe amounts that are typically foundin sports drinks.W O R K I N G W I T H S E R I O U SYOU N G ATHLETESDifferent methods of collectingdietary information can be useddepending on the time availableand the frequency that the athletesare seen. Two different approaches aredescribed here.R u g b y F o o t b a l l L e a g u eAn annual national training camp is heldin October for under 14, under 15 andunder 16 rugby League players {the best inthe country in their respective agegroups). Prior to the camp each player issent a general questionnaire, a 7-day fooddiary and a supplement questionnairewhich are then assessed prior to thecamp. The dietary questionnairehighlights problems or potential problemssuch as do they always eat when hungryor do they put off eating if they are busy.Players who are struggling to gain weightinvariably fall into the latter group. Fromthe supplement questionnaire i t ispossible to check what, if anything, theyare using (hopeful ly nothing), whorecommended they use the product andwhy they are using it. The food diary canprovide a lot of information if it has beenkept well ie. if it looks as if e verything hasbeen recorded over the week. Evidence ofdried food and spills on the diary isactually an encouraging s ign From thediar^ it should be possible to assess whathas been eaten and drunk on a dailybasis:- Number of meals and snacks or

refuellers Number of portions of fruit and

vegetables Number of portions of dairy foods Number of portions of meat, chicken,

fish, eggs Number of portions of pasta, bread,

cereals Number of portions of iron-ric h foods Amount of water, squash, cola and

other soft drinks Am ount of sports and energy

drinks Hours of steep and restThe major areas that usually need to beaddressed include frequency of putting offeating, lack of consistency across theweek, variation in eating pattern and foodtypes between weekdays and weekendsand variable intakes of dairy foods, fruitand vegetables. The vast majority ofplayers do now seem to eat plenty ofcarbohydrate-rich foods and enoughprotein-rich foods. However refuellingafter training is not always ideal nor isfluid intake in terms of both what is drunkand the amoun t. Surpris ingly, butreassuringly, supplement usage is not anissue. Most players get plenty of sleep butlittle rest time is recorded. The informa-tion is used in two ways at the camp. Apresentation of the diary findings is givento all the parents when they drop theirsons off at the start of the camp. Thiscovers the main findings and key changesthat need to be made. At the camp eachplayer gets a chart showing the number ofmeats and portions etc they had each daytogether wit h a report highligh ting goodpoints and then bad points and practicalways they can improve things. Time is ata premium at the camp and it is notpossibte to see every ptayer individuatlythere are 40 in each age group. Howeverwhen the diaries are assessed each ptayeris put into a green, amber or red group.Those in the 'red' group are seen individ-uatty during the camp, 'amber' ptayers

with simitar probtem areas are seen insmalt groups and 'green' ptayers are notseen at att untess they request it. Thissystem seems to work wett given the num-bers and the minimat individuat contacttime that is possibte. Each age group alsogets two educationat sessions at the campas wetl as a practical session on fluids.E ngla nd R ugby A c a de m y a t aP re m ie rs hip C lubThe England Rugby Academy structureoperates at three levels. Level 1 is aNational Academy for a select group of upto 60 players mainly in age groups U19-U24. However for the majority of timethey are based at their Premiership ctubs.Levet 2 inctudes the network of regionalacademies each of which serves a discreetgeographicat area of the country andsupporiis the devetopment of up to 300young athtetes in age groups t J l 6 -U21 .Levet 3 is concerned with estabtishing acomprehensive programme of tatentsearch and player devetopment. Theauthor works on a one-day a week basiswith tevel 1 and 2 ptayers based futl-timeat one premiership ctub. This involvesboth educationat and practical sessions. Itis the aim that each ptayer should be ableto put into practice the theory they havelearnt in the educational part of theprogramme. Practical sessions take placein supermarkets and in the players'kitchens (the majority live in Academy

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Y O U N G A T H L E T E Shouses owned/rented by the club). Somework can be done at the c lub such as abrainstorming sessions on how many dif-ferent meals they can think up using Leanmince or chicken breasts. At the end ofthe programme ptayers shoutd be able to: Plan and shop for a week on the ir

b u d g e t to me e t th e i r n u tr i t io n a lrequirements and their personal prefer-ences ie. enjoy wha t they are eating)

Prepare alt the m eats so they sa tisfytheir nutritionat requirements, takinginto account cooking methods as weltas the foods/ingredients used in themeats

Demonstrate safety and hygiene In thek i t c h e n , part icutarty how differenttypes of food shoutd be stored incupboards, fridge and freezer

Iden tify inappropriate ingredients in arecipe and make suitabte substitutes

Identify basic foods which shoutdbe stored in the kitchen so that appro-priate meats can atways be prepared.

Identi fy basic cooking equipmentwhich should be in the kitchen andhow to use it safely.

Individual monitoringAt the beginning of pre-season trainingeach academy player is seen individuallyfor a consultation using a nutritionatassessment form designed by the authorfor use wit h this particular grou p. I tinctudes the fottowing sections: G enerat inform ation name, date of

bi r th , position etc) Medicat inform ation problems,

medication, susceptibte to colds etc) A nthropometric information , inctuding

any personat goats gain m uscte, tosebody fat etc)

L i festyle information l iving situation,cooking skitls, atcohot intake, steeppattern)

Dietary inform ation Food likes, distikes and any foods

which they avoid and why) E ating patterns A ny history of diet-retated problems

eg. altergies) Typicat food intake on train ing days

and rest days and timing in relation totrain ing

Typicat food intake on the day before,day of and day after matches andtiming in retation to the match

Fluid info rma tion wha t andapproximate amount)

Ftuids at home

Ftuids during train ing Ftuids around matches T ypicat sweat tosses in tra inin g and

matches Peeing habits frequency, votume andCO to u r)

Problem areas eg. fatig ue, crampheavy tegs, stiff joints)

How they rate their diet Any specific questions on diet and

nutrition generatty and retating tosporting performance.

Food diariesFood diaries can be very useful tools,particutarty for monitoring changes andfor educationat purposes. Diaries only givean indication of the type of foods andftuids consumed and when they areconsumed particu tarly in retation totraining and matches). Any anatysis of thedata by computer programme must not beconsidered as an accurate assessment ofnutritionat intake. There are too manyinaccuracies and assumptions. However, itcan be a worthwhite exercise to keep aquali tat ive rather than a quantitat ivedairy for 3, 5 or 7 days) to gain insigh tinto what and when players eat and drinkon training days, rest days and onpre-match and match days. An in it ia ldiary, followed by diaries kept atappropriate times once the educationatand practicat programmes are underway,gives an insight into the changes that arebeing imptemented as a resutt of theteaming processes. Feedback to playerson a one to one basis must be carried outas soon as possibte after the diary hasbeen kept. This includes talking throughthe written report and its recommenda-tions and ensuring the player understandswhat changes need to be made and whythey must be imptemented. The playermust be comfortable with the suggestionsand know how he witl fottow them.

CONCLUSIONSerious young athtetes need sound,practicat advice if they are to fottow thetype of diet that witl support their trainingand competition programme white ensuringthat they grow and devetop healthity intoserious adult athtetes. Ideatty this adviceshoutd be backed up by educationatsessions so that the young athlete under-stands why their diet will be different fromtheir less sporty friends. Advice shoutd beprovided in a practical and workable formtaking into account their individual livingsituation, their growth and development aswelt as the nutritionat requirements oftheir sport. Different approaches witl beneeded in different situations. This articledescribes two such approaches.

THE AUTHORJane Griffin qualified from LondonUniversity with a degree in Nutrition and aPostgraduate Diploma in Dietetics and isan Accredited Sports Dietitian. She iscurrently the Sports Dietitian to LondonIrish R FC (having previously worked withNE C Harlequins for three seasons) and atthe R ugby F ootball League, She is also thesports dietitian to London Irish, LondonWasps and NE C Harlequins E ngland RugbyAcademies. She has written extensively fora wide range of sports magazines and herfirst book F ood for Sport ( E at Well. PerformBetter ) was published by The C rowoodPress in September 2001. Her second bookNutrition for Marathon R unning was pub-lished in August 2005 and she is currentlywriting her third book Food for Rugby .

References1 . De p a rtme n t o f He a l th DH ). Die ta ryReference Values for food E nergy and N utrientsfor the U nited Kingdom. Report of the Panel onDietary Reference Values of the Committee onMedical A spects of Food Policy. Report onPublic Health and Socia l Subjects 41 .London: HHSO, 1991

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Nutrition for the Serious Young Athletethe Practical Approachserious_athletes