Regulating power stability is a valuable goal for sportsmen. Strength stability occurs when total power intake from food is matched with daily activity and power expenditure. Power is provided by carbohydrates, protein, fat and alcohol found in food and fluids. Strength needs are influenced by factors such as an individual’s body size, body composition goals, and power expended in training.
Carbohydrates are a valuable nutritional source for sportsmen. It is the main fuel in training, especially during long-term training or hard work. The body has a limited capacity to store carbohydrates (muscle and liver glycogen), and its stores must be replenished systematically to support training. Low carbohydrate stores can cause fatigue, poor performance during training or competition, and a negative effect on the immune system.
Carbohydrate needs are greatly influenced by training load (frequency, duration and intensity) and competition types. Given this, daily carbohydrate intake should reflect daily exercise level. On high-activity days, the carbohydrate intake measure should be calculated to facilitate training performance and to smooth the recovery process in the middle of training sessions.
On the other hand, on low activity days, it may be necessary to reduce carbohydrate intake (particularly from nutrient-poor sources such as liquor, soft drinks, candy and cake, etc.) to reflect low training load. Carbohydrate needs should be taken care of when meeting other nutritional purposes. Fortunately, very few foods contain only one nutrient.
Protein is required to support the repair of damaged body tissues and the production of new proteins in response to the training stimulus. Endurance athletes under heavy training may need to take extra protein to replace the energy spent in training and to provide post-workout regeneration and repair. Strength athletes seek additional protein to increase strength in response to muscle size and resistance training. During heavy training, negative power stability and inadequate carbohydrate intake can increase protein needs.
There is evidence that the greatest increases in protein needs are suggested early in a new training program or in training tension emerging at a new level (for example, changing the type, unit, or intensity of training). However, once the body adjusts to this tension, levels of protein needs can often be reduced in close proximity to active people. Therefore, guidelines for the protein intake offered can be adopted to represent the maximal protein requirements for the finest sportsmen. Current sports nutrition guidelines do not support a high protein diet or special protein supplementation. Dietary surveys show that athletes target protein intake only after the extra power required to support high training loads.
