Q ) What are the nutritional requirements for team sport athletes?

For the purpose of this question, team sport is defined at intermittent high intensity exercise lasting up to 90 minutes (examples: netball, rugby, softball, basketball etc).

Almost all athletes rely heavily on carbohydrate (CHO) as their main source of energy. Both the intensity and the duration of exercise affect the exact carbohydrate needs of an athlete. In general terms, the carbohydrate needs for exercise at moderate / high intensity are:

For example a 70 kg athlete exercising at high intensity for 2 ½ hrs should aim to have a daily carbohydrate intake around 8 grams per kg body weight = 560 grams.

As these values are estimated needs, it is recommended that athletes seek advice from a sports dietitian for individual advice about exact amounts. An athlete who wishes to lose some body fat should aim for an intake at the lower end of the range, while an athlete who wants to gain body weight should aim for an intake at the upper end of the range, but also ensure they have an adequate amount of protein in their training diet.

Team sports athletes may need a slightly higher intake of protein if they regularly perform strength/resistance training. Any athlete who is trying to increase their muscle mass requires a higher intake of protein than that needed for maintenance. The rate of muscle mass gain is not limited by the ability to consume protein but by the time it takes to recover from resistance training sessions.

Team athletes generally require less carbohydrate per kg body weight per day than endurance athletes, but due to the high intensity of some team sports carbohydrate stores can be depleted in a 90-minute game.

Athletes in team sports can use the estimated CHO needs in the table above to calculate their requirements. Many team athletes spend >2 hrs at training / practice sessions, however it is important to remember that this time often includes warm-up, stretches, skills training and cool down, so the total time for a training session may not be the best time to base carbohydrate requirements on. Needs should be based on the time spent on moderate/high intensity exercise, with a small addition for the lower intensity activity.

The majority of the carbohydrate in any athlete’s diet should come from food sources such as wholegrain bread and cereals, legumes (beans, lentils and peas), fruit and starchy vegetables, however athletes may also need to use some sports foods such as sports drinks, carbohydrate gels (squeezies) and sports bars to provide some of the carbohydrate during training and competition.

A trained athlete can store carbohydrate as muscle and liver glycogen to last for around 90 minutes of moderate/high intensity exercise. If exercising for longer than this at a high intensity, additional CHO should be consumed during exercise. In most situations it is a good idea to have some CHO if exercising for >60 minutes at high intensity.

Athletes who want to lose body fat can reduce their energy intake by not including CHO for moderate exercise lasting <2 hrs. In this situation it is important to assess whether performance declines if no CHO is consumed during exercise. Athletes with diabetes must be guided by their blood glucose levels (and their sports dietitian) to establish their carbohydrate requirements during exercise.

Of the total daily CHO requirements, an athlete should aim to consume between 30-70 grams per hour of moderate/high intensity exercise to ensure that sufficient energy is available to maintain optimum performance/exercise intensity.

For most team sports athletes sufficient CHO to meet this recommendation can be provided by sports drinks. These are also required to ensure hydration during exercise- see section on hydration. The amount of carbohydrate obtained from sports drinks will of course depend on the amount of fluid consumed.

Fluid needs depend mainly on the environmental conditions (temperature), but also on individual differences. As the recommended concentration of CHO in a sports drink is 4-8% for optimum absorption, the concentration of the drink can be altered to reflect the need for fluid. In very hot conditions fluid needs are high so the concentration of CHO in the drink can be reduced to the lower end of the range and still provide sufficient CHO for the exercise. It is important to remember that more sodium (salt) may need to be added if the concentration is altered. In cold conditions when the need for fluids is lower the drink can be altered to the higher end of the range in order to provide sufficient CHO for the exercise.

All athletes should have a competition nutrition strategy where fluid and energy needs are planned (and trialled prior to competition). Team sport athletes also need a game nutrition strategy and should ensure that the fluids and snacks they need are available. They should have a plan for what to consume during substitutions and scheduled and un-scheduled breaks in the game.