Here are some notes from a great Louise Bourke talk at the AIS last week. Louise is one of Australia’s leading sports nutritionists - she’s no dummy!… but these are key points for the athlete’s nutrition.

Strategies to Loose Weight and Body Fat

There is no single successful strategy - the plan must be tailored to the individuals’ needs and goals.

Biggest problems with loosing weight:

• Too much food/large serving sizes
• Too much fat
• Too much energy - dense, low ’satiety’ food
• Poor eating behaviors
• Overdoing sports needs [eg, assuming you need to eat a lot protein bars]

What can you do for weight loss?

• Have the right sized proportions for you
• Make meals more filling or slow to eat - salads, fiber, lower GI foods, very hot & spicy foods.
• Reduce fat intake
• Avoid easy to consume foods kike drinks and sugary foods
• Know your real food requirements for training, taper and competing

Sports Nutrition and Protein

• Gaining protein (and therefore muscle) in the body is all about accumulating situations of increasing protein synthesis vs breakdown over the day [ie, training, then eating the right stuff].
• It’s all in the timing - there’s a good response when you consume protein in the hour after resistance (and endurance) training.
• Maximal response occurs with about 20g high quality protein ingested just after training. 10g is ok for those looking to loose weight.
• Optimal weight gain requires high energy intake (incl. protein).

If you eat too much protein:

• Expensive!
• Kidneys will suffer
• Bones will suffer
• You will increase your ability to breakdown protein for fuel [and you don't want to breakdown your muscles].

Hydration for Athletes

• Things that help you drink - good taste, a little salt in the drink (which helps keep fluid in the body) and a good plan to replace what you’ve sweated out.
• Urine output is important too - the body needs to urinate during the day as a regular part of good health.
• Caffeine has been overrated as a substance that induces dehydration.

Why Drink a Sports Drink?

• They encourage you to drink more because they are a little salty and taste better than water.
• They fuel your muscles and brain.

When to Drink a Sports Drink?

• For quality workouts - high-intensity sessions, especially long sessions.
• When you need to increase your energy intake to gain weight - it also helps stop protein breakdown during long sessions.
• When you are in a high volume phase of training - it may protect your immune system.
• Look after your teeth by brushing well and rinsing your mouth with water.

Recovery Nutrition

• Refueling, rehydration and protein synthesis can’t occur without nutrition - fluid, carbos, protein.
• Effective recovery only occurs after eating the right things.
• Some athletes over-focus on expensive sports foods and supplements, but everyday foods are cheaper and often better.
• Schedule a meal just after a session where possible.
• Include a ‘rainbow’ of colors of fruits and vegetables every day.

Supplements for Athletes

• Advertising messages are often confusing.
• Adequate attention must be paid to all the ‘big ticket’ items that must can maximize performance - there are no short cuts. ‘Old fashioned’ things like a balanced diet, training and recovery strategies remain as important as ever.
• Supplements can be contaminated with substances that could produce a positive drug test - check them with your authority.
• Probably beneficial supplements include caffeine, iron supplements, carbohydrates, proteins - a study showed that relatively low levels of caffeine (700mls of coke) enhanced endurance cycling performance. Louise suggested starting an event without caffeine in the system, taking it toward the middle of the event when it might be needed most. Try caffeine strategies in training as it may affect recovery and sleep. People respond differently to this drug.
• Little benefit from carnitine, chromium picolinate, ginseng, co-enzyme Q10.

Here are some notes from a recent talk I went to at the Australian Institute of Sport (pictured) by Dr Jo Vaile who did her PhD thesis on recovery techniques for athletes.

Athletes need good recovery for top performance - the sooner you recover, the sooner you can train well again.

When an Athlete’s Recovery is Most Important:

• Long sessions
• Training twice a day
• Perform weight training
• Competing regularly
• Athletes with high injury rate
• High levels of fatigue/damage

Popular Recovery Techniques

• Sleep - probably the most significant and important thing
• Stretching
• Active recovery [light exercise]
• Hydrotherapy
• Periodized training program
• Compression [eg, compression socks and clothes]
• Psychological means - music, movies, etc.

Stretching

• Primary purpose is to relax the muscle
• Best achieved by short, static stretches of 6-10 sec
• May increase range of motion
• May decrease risk of injury

Active Recovery (warm-down)

• Active recovery enhances the removal of lactate as the result of increased blood flow
• Aids the recovery of force from eccentric damage and reduces subsequent muscle soreness
• Beneficial for post-exercise heat dissipation
• Beneficial effect on subsequent performance

Contrast Water Therapy

The application of alternating hot and cold water to the whole body can help recovery by increasing blood flow, stimulating the central nervous system, decreasing swelling, decreasing stiffness, increasing range of motion, decreasing muscle soreness and increasing the removal of metabolites.

Research suggests that an equal ratio of time in hot and cold water immersion in a bath/spa or shower is ideal. For example, 2 mins in cold, 2 mins in hot water, repeated 3 times.

Always finish with cold water to reduce body temperature and inflammation. This ‘ices’ the whole body which is great for recovery.

Cold Water Immersion and Ice Baths

Cold treatment is the most commonly used strategy for the treatment of soft tissue injuries.

Cold water immersion or an ice bath may be an effective treatment to decrease skin, muscle and core temperatures, decrease metabolism, reduce inflammation, enhance blood flow, decrease pain and reduce muscle spasm.

A very effective temperature is about 15 degrees, for 2-5 mins. But you can get good results using just cold tap water, staying in there a lot longer, eg 5-15 mins.

Recent Research Results

Performance on a static squat (strength test) was improved by hot spas, cold water immersion and contrast therapy.

Performance in a squat jump (power test) was improved by cold water immersion and contrast therapy but not by a hot spa. There was reduced swelling in the legs with the cold/contrast treatments compared with the hot treatment.

Performance in a time trial on successive days (over a 5 day study) was reduced with passive recovery and hot water immersion and maintained with cold/contrast therapy.

Compression Garments

Compression garments have been found to decrease muscle soreness, reduce swelling, decrease lactate levels, increase blood flow and increase venous return.

Since they are easy to use, they should be used often!

The most effective garment is the full-length tights and they work like a kind of pump, pushing blood up the legs and back to the heart.

Jo recommended the 2XU brand of compression garment because the fabric is slightly thicker, they have a higher-quality weave of fabric that retains compression better and they are involved in ongoing research.

For travel and flying, Jo recommended medical grade compression socks (eg, Venosan) from Pharmacies, but they are expensive. The socks can reduce or eliminate swelling in the legs and feet and allow the athlete to get back into full training quicker.

Jo recommended wearing compression garmnets the longer the better - eg, between two training sessions in a day, or even sleep in them (subject to comfort).

Preferably, wash them in a laundry bag, in a cold wash, to help retain the compression effects.

Timing of Recovery Interventions

Jo recommended that recovery strategies be carried out in the following order (where available):

1. Warm-down and stretching
2. Nutrition (eg, sports drink)
3. Hydrotherapy
4. Compression garments
5. Nutrition (meal)
6. Massage

When I was in high school I knew I wanted to go to University but didn’t know what I wanted to study. Then a teacher told me I could study sport and I thought you beauty! – I love sport!

I did a 3-year undergraduate degree in Sports Science/Coaching and learnt about anatomy, physiology, skill acquisition, biomechanics, psychology, physical conditioning and everything else to do with preparing athletes to compete.

At the time I played a bit of Aussie Rules Football and went Sailing and started to apply what I learnt at Uni to my sports.

I followed on with a 1-year Honours degree – a focus of which was a 6 month study on the physiology of Sailing. Again, I kept applying what I was learning, using myself as a guinea pig. In particular, I discovered I probably wasn’t big or talented enough to be a pro footballer so focused on Sailing.

With a change in Uni’s, I continued in academia, doing a 3-year PhD in Human Movement. My thesis was about the physiology and psychology of runners. I read even more about what it takes to become an elite athlete, their psychological characteristics and training programs.

It occurred to me that to do really well in sport ‘all’ I had to do was to apply what I learnt to my own training and preparation.

I qualified for the World titles in 1994 and finished 26th at my first go. After finishing University I turned to Sailing full-time in an attempt for selection for the 1996 Olympics.

With more time to train and more coaching input I jumped to 5th at the next Worlds. That breakthrough was massive – I had a new standard for myself and there was no way back. The next year I qualified for the Olympics. My studies had gotten me there.

My point is that being an athlete is a job and part of that is learning how to go about it professionally (not in the financial sense). Of course, many athletes follow their interests and do in fact study sport at University. You don’t have to follow that path, but you do need to take on the responsibility of knowing how to be a great athlete.

You should know how today’s training will help you achieve your goals for the year; you should know how each drill or exercise will help you make steps towards that goal; you should have an idea of how each mouthful of food will affect how you perform at your next training session. And you should know whether the butterflies you feel in your stomach before you compete mean you’re nervous or you’re ready.

You might be lucky and have a coach that knows everything and takes total charge of your training - You just turn up, do what he or she says, then go home.

That’s ok, but you won’t excel. You’ll just be part of the team, at best.

Being an elite athlete is a 24/7 job – one that can be very enjoyable… and tiring. You’ll get the best out of yourself and do your job more efficiently if you really know what you’re doing.

Here are just a few ideas and resources that can help you become the complete athlete:

• Study Sports Science at University – on campus or remotely.
• Read these books:

o Physiology: Exercise Physiology: Energy, Nutrition, and Human Performance

o Strength: Strength Training Anatomy , Starting Strength (2nd edition)

o Nutrition: Nancy Clark’s Sports Nutrition Guidebook, Third Edition , Sports Nutrition for Endurance Athletes

o Training plans: Periodization Training For Sports Periodization Training For Sports o Running: Lore of Running , The Non-Runner’s Marathon Trainer

o Sports Psychology: In Pursuit of Excellence , Flow: The Psychology of Optimal Experience , Applied Sport Psychology: Personal Growth to Peak Performance

• Do specific Google searches for your sport and the terms training, strength training, training programs, skills, drills, technique, tactics, strategy, workouts, exercises, tips, rules.
• Do a coaching course for your sport.
• Ask your coach something about the contents of each training session.

Of course, your practical experience will increase during every training session and competition - take the opportunity to make notes about your own statistics, results, strategies, tactics and techniques. Combine what you learn about yourself with what you learn about how other athletes have done it.

At various times in their careers, long term athletes might be prescribed a cortisone injection in a body part that has a niggling injury. Cortisone is a powerful anti-inflammatory medication. Also called Corticosteroid, it’s not a pain relieving medication, it only treats the inflammation.

When pain is decreased from cortisone it is because the inflammation has diminished. By injecting the cortisone into a particular area of inflammation, high concentrations of the medication can be given while keeping potential side-effects to a minimum.

They’re particularly useful in long-term injuries that are stubborn, even with extensive rest, physiotherapy and rehab exercises. I had an injection in my elbow after suffering tennis elbow for over a year. After the injection and a focused period of rehab, it steadily improved.

I first went for treatment for back pain in 1993. It hasn’t been around all the time, but just for periods here and there. It flared up enough in 2007 to keep me out of competition. At the time I got a MRI and the report said:

Moderate sized left paracentral disc protrusion at L4/L5 compressing the left L5 nerve root and probably the left L4 nerve root being irritated as well.

Symptoms weren’t there all the time, but were easy to bring on - I just had to sit in a chair for 10 minutes! Not a great lifestyle limitation! I type either standing up or lying down with the laptop on my tummy.

Today, after a period of unsuccessful physiotherapy, I had an epidural injection of Celestone (a brand of cortisone) between L4/L5 vertebrae to try move the injury forward faster. The procedure was relatively comfortable. That report said:

Under CT guidance, a 22 gauge needle was directed into the epidural space at L4/L5 towards to left side from a right approach. Two ampules of Celestone was administered, flushed in with a mixture of saline and contrast. Impression: Successful.

The early signs are good - practically no pain or discomfort. And most pleasingly, the serial tightness I had in my left hamstring and hip flexor muscles seems to have gone - both sides are now about equal in tightness. I believe the tightness was there because the disc was pushing on the nerve root just a little.

Of course, it’s not just about getting an injection and ’she’ll be right’. They’ll be a lot of core stability work, stretching, icing, walking and all that good stuff.

Anyway, today is just day 1 - for my benefit, and anyone who faces similar, I’ll come back to this post and insert updates below.

Day 1 - All fine, no pain in back, just iced it a few times.

Day 2 - A little trouble sleeping last night - they reckon insomnia is a possible side effect!

Day 3 - Back good - feels younger! Starting to do more core exercises. A little stiffer after sailing today, but still definitely better.

1 week - Still really happy with it. I’ve gradually worked it a bit harder and actually have some back soreness from some exercise yesterday, but it feels like regular muscle soreness rather than anything in the disc.

2 weeks - It’s still pretty good - I was worried for a few days but years of thinking about one spot on your body can do that! I can feel some stiffness develop after exercise, but it dissipates with icing and stretching.

3 weeks - Much the same.

1 month - Had some good days and not so good in terms of back discomfort, but I’ve been consistent with core and back exercises and have been able to increase the level of some of the back exercises. I feel less discomfort on a daily basis and consistently wake up less sore than before the injection. I should have had it sooner!

2 months - Improved some more. I don’t feel like it needs to be iced it as much - maybe just twice a day now. I’ve reduce anti-inflammatory drugs and have increased back and abdominal exercises without worry. So it feels like it’s on the up and up. I’m still just walking and a little bit of body-weight lifting for exercise, but hope to do a little jogging and even try cycling gently soon. By the way in the last few months I also read a book called Healing Back Pain and those with chronic back pain may also find it a very interesting read.

3 months - Still relatively good and have done a tiny bit of running plus a little more overall strength training for the back and rest of the body. I do like to keep icing it.

12 months - Went backwards a little a few months ago - got some pain in the back and my left hip when doing some exericse. I iced it, took anti-inflammatories and rested it and it settled down pretty well. It’s been ok since, but I’m still not running or cycling, just walking. I went to see a back surgeon recently and got a MRI. The MRI indicated the discs’ buldge had decreased but there was still a small tear. The Doc concluded he couldn’t make things significantly better by going under the knife. So, my daily exercises continue!

2 years - It’s been fantastic to read the comments from many readers (below). So many people suffer chronic lower back pain from buldging discs and it’s great to hear many have gotten some relief from cortisone injections. I wanted to list definite things that improve the condition (and if you’d like to comment about what’s worked for you, I’ll add it to the list):

Long-term non-invasive solutions:

• Avoiding any activity that brings on pain
• Wearing a back brace during activities. A brace will give little extra support when doing a lot of chores and driving, but avoid wearing it all the time. The Mueller Back Support is well liked by Amazon customers. However, I favor the strap arrangement and stiffer lumbar support in the Dr.MED Elastic Lumbo-Sacral Support.
• Back and core stability exercises
• Unweighting the spine with swimming, pool running, etc. (inversion tables are less likely to work)

Medium and short-term relief:

• Cortisone injections
• Ice - to help reduce inflammation after activity
• Heat - to relax muscle spasms after periods of inactivity

Key Principles of Strength Training

1. Overload : You must gradually work the muscles harder and harder to get stronger. Gradually add to your training – weight, number of repetitions, variety and/or number of sets.

2. Overhaul : Every 4 weeks or so you should revamp your program to give the muscles completely new exercises and loads.

3. Specificity : Your strength gains are specific to the movements and speed of movement you do in training. If you need high arm speed and moderate strength to pull up a kite, then your gym training should reflect this movement speed and muscle groups used.

4. Progression & periodisation : Sequence training such that you start with a period of building muscles, then move towards very sport-specific exercises, loads and movement speeds. As an example, given a period of, say, 6 months to develop your strength, begin with 1 build-up month of 3 x 12-15 reps, followed by 2 months of gradually heavier weights and fewer reps to get you really strong (eg 3-4 sets x 6-10 reps). Then turn towards endurance with a month of 3 x 15-25 followed with a month of circuit-style exercises (40s on, 20s off). Finish with a month of pure strength/endurance work – higher reps of very sailing-specific exercises (see below for examples).

5. Recovery : Allow 48 hours between strength sessions.

And, talking of sailing, these are the two key things are especially important when weight training for sailing:

1. Include exercises that improve posture, balance, joint stability, abdominal and back muscles.

2. Be prepared to modify and fine tune your training each day to allow for not feeling 100%, persistent windy weather (meaning harder on-water training) and a desire to add variety.

Key Strength Training Exercises for Sailing

I recommend these exercises as fundamental parts of sailors’ weight training. A few more will be needed to round out a session, especially abdominal/back/core exercises, but these are mainstays. My book, Sail Fitter: Sailing Fitness and Training , has information on how to put these exercises together into a weight training session for sailing.

Hiking Sailors

1. Bench pull – Lie on a high bench with a barbell underneath. Pull the bar up to touch under the bench and then back to the ground. Excellent and safe isolation of the muscles of the arms, shoulders and back that pull ropes.

2. Swiss Ball leg extensions – Sit on a Swiss Ball, roughly in a hiking position, with your toes under something heavy. Straighten your legs at the knees, lifting your trunk. Lean back for a little more resistance. The way to do 60 reps is to do 15-20 in a row, followed by a 5-10s rest, then 15-20 more, etc. A safer and more specific alternative to a leg press.

3. Chin-ups with towel – Sling a towel over a chin up bar, grip it firmly and do chin-ups. Slightly harder than a normal chin-up, the towel will also help develop your grip strength.

4. Swiss ball leg curls – Lying on the ground with a Swiss ball under the heels, straighten your body (shoulders and head remain on ground) and then draw the ball in towards your bottom by bending your knees. Leg curls work the opposite side of the body and provide balance in muscle group development.

5. Back extension – Bend over a Swiss ball (with feet anchored), face down. Slowly raise your trunk so that your body is flat, not above, and lower. A top choice of the many back exercises that sailors need to do to maintain back stability, strength and health.

Trapezing Sailors

1. Chin-ups with towel – As per hiking sailors.

2. Upright row – Standing, pull a barbell up to near your chin, aiming to keep your elbows level. Your legs should be comfortably bent. Avoid swinging your trunk. The upright row works the muscles you’d use when handling a sheet flat out on trapeze.

3. 3-way shoulder work – Lie flat and face down on a high bench with a couple of relatively light weights in each hand. Keeping the arms straight, swing them forward, like superman, then out to the side, like you’re trying to fly, then behind you, like you’re skiing. Your hands should reach bench height at the top of each rep. Great exercise for the large shoulder muscles that stabilize and move the arms.

4. Skipping – Good for developing the calves to help you extend fully on trapeze.

5. Side bend – Lay on the floor, on your side, leaning on an elbow, with your feet up on a Swiss Ball. You can use your left hand to balance while lifting your whole body off the floor. Raise and lower your hip area, so that your body does side bends up and down at the waist. A tough stability and abdominal exercise that’ll improve your core stability.

Sailboarders

1. Swiss ball squats – Put a Swiss Ball inside the cage of a Smith Machine. Carefully step onto the ball. Take your time to stand fully upright, holding onto the bars of the machine or a barbell which is racked in the machine. When ready, still with a light grip of the machine for balance, slowly and surely perform normal, unweighted, squats. It’s fairly gentle work for the quads and gluteus but heavy work for your lower legs and feet to maintain balance. Eventually you won’t need anything to help balance.

2. Body pulls – Lie under a bar or table and put your feet on the floor or a Swiss Ball. With hands about shoulder width on the bar, pull your chest up to touch the bar and lower until arms are straight. A simple, but specific exercise for the arms and back, also training balance through the use of the Ball.

3. Forearm plank – Lay face down on a mat. Support your body by your elbows and toes. Hold that position, body as flat as possible, for 30s, thinking ‘pull my belly button towards my spine’. Board sailors need lots of core stability and this one encourages a strong, stable position.

4. Scapular retraction – Set yourself up on a seated rowing machine. The action starts with you gripping the handles, arms straight, then squeeze the shoulder blades (scapular) together firmly while keeping the arms straight. Finish the repetition by letting the shoulders forward again. Excellent shoulder stability exercise that’ll help make your arms work better.

5. Split squat – With a dumbbell in each hand, step forward about 50cm with one foot and regain your balance there. Carefully lower your weight straight down by bending at both knees and drive back up. Change legs. This exercises your balance a little more and requires uneven force from each leg, as often happens sailboarding.

Yacht Sailors

1. Push up on Swiss Ball – Face down, arms straight, hands are spread wide as possible on the Swiss Ball, toes are on the ground and the body is straight. Ease your chest down towards the ball and then drive back up. Avoid bouncing your chest off the ball! A great chest, tricep and shoulder stability exercise.

2. Bench pull – as per ‘Hikers’.

3. Reverse back extension – Using a back extension machine or similar, mount it the other way around, so that our legs can be raised (to horizontal) and lowered. A handy exercise to develop your neglected back and hammies.

4. Bent leg raise – Lay on the floor on your back with knees bent. Tighten your abdominals (‘draw your belly button towards your spine’), then slowly lift one leg off the floor and hold 10sec. Breathe normally, maintain abdominal control and don’t allow your lower back to arch further. Rest, then change legs. A good, well controlled abdominal exercise.

5. 3-way shoulder work – as per Trapezers’.

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Every few Olympics comes one with hot and humid weather - Athens was hot and dry, Sydney mild, but Atlanta (1996) and Beijing (2008) had the double whammy of heat and humidity.

Physiology 102 taught us that the body secretes sweat when it’s too hot. Physics 101 told us that there is a cooling effect when water (sweat) evaporates.

However, when the air is also saturated with water vapor, sweat won’t evaporate so well and will probably fall to the ground before it has a chance to cool the skin. Since the body doesn’t get any cooler, the body continues sweating.

Obviously the hotter and more humid the weather, the more sweaty you get and hence the potential for dehydration.

These conditions motivate the sport science boffins to revisit the demands on athletes to stay cool and hydrated in conditions that make you really sweat.

Why is it so Important to Stay Hydrated When Playing Sport?

The loss of water and electrolytes from the body has a few negatives but most notable is the decrease in blood volume and resultant reduction in oxygen transport resources. Just 1-3% dehydration has been shown to have a negative impact on exercise performance.

This is a major challenge especially in sports where it’s hard to drink a lot because you’re working hard or you don’t have a free hand, such as in team sports, sailing, distance running, road cycling, etc. To overcome this the athletes need to have a strategy in place to stay hydrated during the event, especially if the competition extends over multiple days

How much/when: drink 125mls every 15 mins (500ml/hr)… or more if able.

What: A cool 6% Carbohydrate Solution with Sodium & Potassium.

The major sports drink brands have products that are ideal for athletes to drink during competition.

Also, sip some cool (16 deg C/ 60 deg F) sports drink during your warm-up. Cooler fluids are absorbed quicker and cool the body.

Athletes in multi-day events needs to be on the lookout for signs of dehydration:

• Changes in body weight – 1kg lost in a day equals a liter of fluid lost
• Changes in quantity and color of urine - reduced output and darker stream generally indicates fluid loss
• Increased lethargy or elevated resting heart rates
• Headaches
• Difficulty in concentrating
• Increased perception of exertion

Getting Ready for Exercise in Heat & Humidity

Louise Bell, Sports Dietitian at the New South Wales Institute of Sport and to the Australian Sailing Team, has the following tips for staying hydrated in humid conditions:

• Allow the body time to acclimatise to the humid conditions – either train in a hot, humid environment; and/or arrive 7-10+ days prior to competing in these condition.
• Understand your body’s own sweat response and practice drinking strategies in a training situation. Develop a plan for yourself.
• Begin competition well-hydrated and start drinking early – small amounts of fluid more often are likely to better maintain your hydration status than going long periods with little or no fluid.
• Water may not be enough – sports drinks are a better choice in hot, humid conditions as the electrolytes assist fluid uptake and retention by the body.
• Include some salty foods as part of your recovery meal or snack (eg, Vegemite sandwich, low fat cheese, small packet of savory crackers or chips). Salt is the primary electrolyte lost in sweat and adequate intake (plus fluid!) will enhance the rehydration process in hot conditions. But you don’t need to go overboard, as most of us consume enough salt naturally in our diet without having to add salt to a meal.

Further reading: Analysis of the Beijing Olympic marathon - how small athletes gain in the heat.

I’m not sure if I actually have heard people ask this possibly absurd question, but I get the sense that people do all the time. Let me explain.

Many diet advertisements focus on what you eat - and whether it is yummy and filling. They’re both important things, but education as to the content of foods, their nutritional value and the role they play in a healthy diet are more important criteria to help people eat well for a lifetime and for athletes to perform their best.

There’s the simple Chinese Proverb: “Give a man a fish and he will eat for a day. Teach him how to fish and he will eat for a lifetime.”

Athletes need high performance bodies and to have one it’s best that you learn and know how the fuel you’re eating will affect your performance. You need to have an idea of how every bite and every mouthful will affect your hydration, the glycogen stores in your muscles and liver, your electrolyte balance and your levels of vitamins and micro nutrients .

No, I don’t expect you’ll have access to blood and biopsy results to give you this information. But you should learn about effective nutrition for athletes and to notice the signs of health in your body. You can use these indicators:

• Changes in your body weight, measured daily, will indicate your hydration status and also your general volume of food intake.
• Poo : Changes in the size will indicate how much food the body has absorbed. Very large stools may indicate overeating. Very soft stools may indicate a low fiber diet.
• The color and volume of your urine will indicate your hydration status.
• Heart rate in the morning will indicate your recovery from the previous day’s training - 5 bpm above average resting HR indicates fatigue; 10 bpm above means the body is struggling and you should probably have the day off (or you’re very dehydrated).
• You may be able to sense your immune status by sinus discomfort, a craggy throat or just general tiredness.

Principles of the athlete’s weight loss:

• Energy out needs to be more than energy in - but not by a lot, or training will suffer.
• Give yourself plenty of time to reduce your fat levels. Set a goal - say 2kg/4.4lbs over two months - that works out at just 33g/1.2oz a day. Weigh yourself each day and keep a graph.
• Increase fiber intake a little eg, change from white bread to wholemeal. Check the nutrition labels on packaged foods – anything above 8g dietary fiber per 100g of food is pretty good. The fiber will pad out your meals but is not digested.
• Make sure the timing of your meals is good - help your recovery from training with some high GI foods.
• If exercising in the morning try some diet coke (<200mls) 10-45 mins before starting – it can help get your metabolism going to break down the fats and provide a bit more stimulation when you might otherwise be feeling flat. For exercise sessions later in the day, begin them just when you start to feel hungry as this will also help delay the meal and burn fat.
• Generally aim to reduce the fat content of your meals – trim visible fat from meat and again check the nutrition labels where possible to find foods with fat less than 5g/100g.

If you’re a small female (<62kg/136lbs) who wants to loose weight and still train well you've got a formidable, but doable challenge. To ingest all of your daily nutrient requirements you have be quite careful with what you eat because the total volume of food you can eat is relatively low, so each meal should be thought out.

Since you will be limiting your food intake, quality is important and keeping up a regular course of multi-vitamin supplements will help you avoid missing out on any nutrients. You are likely to feel more tired at times than normal. Too bad! Your performance will improve, making light of the short-term discomfort.

If you like, you can view it in terms of personal sacrifice, but if you’re goals are firm and motivation high, then it’s just part of the job.

To learn a lot more:

Sports Nutrition Guide Book

Sports and Exercise Nutrition

Sports Nutrition for Endurance Athletes

Survival for the Fittest