How to Properly Fuel During Training

 

Fueling during training as a young athlete can be difficult. Often, practices are short and intense, and don’t include much time for snack breaks. However, your athlete will play their best if they are properly fueled for the work required of them, and that often means being able to sip a sports drink or take a quick bite of a banana between drills in practice or on game day.

Here, TrueSport Expert Kristen Ziesmer, a registered dietitian and board-certified specialist in sports dietetics, explains the best intra-training practices for your athletes.

Before Practice and Competition Fueling is Key

It's hard to fuel adequately during a workout or competition if you're already depleted when you start—fueling works best when it's preventing a problem, not trying to solve one! "For pre-workout fueling, your athlete should aim for roughly half of a gram of carbohydrates per kilogram of body weight," says Ziesmer. That means a 50-kilogram athlete should have about 25 grams of carbohydrates, or 100 calories worth of carbohydrates, before practice. "Your athlete doesn't need a meal right before practice, they just need to top off their carbohydrate stores so they can perform at their best," she adds.

Make Snacks and Water Easy to Access

While many school sports won't have a specific snack break during practice, water breaks are common between drills and sets. Your athlete may not always need to snack during practice, especially on easier or shorter days, but having water and a simple snack on hand is a good way to ensure that they never end up with the feeling of 'bonking,' which happens when an athlete's muscles run out of fuel. A bonk can make an athlete feel suddenly fatigued, light-headed, or unable to perform at their best—so it's something that they want to avoid. "This is why it's very important to try to keep quick and easy things on hand for your athletes all the time," Ziesmer says. "I always want my athletes to have a simple sports drink or water and a banana with them in their bag."