The person comes first. Always

A  few days ago, I picked up a copy of Sport magazine from April 25^th  - nothing like being up to date!  As the week in which the latest Manchester United manager received his marching orders, Moyes understandably receives considerable focus, and the cover story remembers Formula 1 legend Ayrton Senna, 20 years on from his tragic death, but it is two more minor stories that are of particular interest to Athlete Life Development, and the work that we do.

This first, an article entitled ‘Life After Sport’, looks at the difficulties faced by athletes when they retire from sport.  One of our recent blogs looked at this issue, and this article gives further real-life examples of the challenges that sportspeople such as boxer Ricky Hatton, middle distance runner Kelly Holmes and footballer Mick Quinn faced when retiring from their chosen sport, and how they coped with this major life event.

A lot of the current career transition research in sport is centred around encouraging sports men and women to view themselves as people, and to centre their self-image around his or herself as a person rather than his or herself as a an athlete, something which dual careers and interests outside of sport can help with.

Of course, we’re all about the person rather than the athlete at Athlete Life Development, and it is from this viewpoint that I can’t help but look at the commentary of David Moyes’s time at United, and feel a certain sense of regret.  Of course Moyes knew the pressures and media focus that he would face when he left Everton for the greatest job in football management, but still, wouldn’t it be nice if the media and those who comment on social media, took the time to think of Moyes as a person with feelings, just like me or you.  Nobody will be more disappointed with United’s results than Moyes himself – and in typical catastrophe theory fashion, bad results led to increased pressure, trying too hard, and an unbreakable downward spiral -  but maybe it wasn’t just a case of the wrong man for the job.  Perhaps it was the wrong job for the man.

Speaking of people with emotions brings us nicely (almost seamlessly) to the second piece of interest to us in Sport - an advertising feature on mental health.  The piece, publicising the work of Time to Change, England’s biggest programme to challenge mental health stigma and discrimination, looks at the mental health issues that British boxing legend Herol ‘Bomber’ Graham faced following his retirement from sport.  This is a common theme across sportspeople after they retire, but sportspeople can face depression at any stage in their careers.  Injury, disappointing results, and financial concerns can be trigger events, but even positive events like achieving lifelong goals can cause the most hardened of competitors to experience this most common of diseases. 

We discussed depression in sport in a previous post, but, with one in four people experiencing a mental health problem each year, it is an important issue to bring back into the spotlight.  Last week, Spanish long jumper and former European record holder Yago Lamela was found dead at his parents’ home.  Though the cause of death has not been formally announced, his family have revealed that he had been suffered from periods of severe depression and anxiety attacks since late in his athletic career, and that there had been at least one previous suicide attempt.

What can coaches and support personnel do to help?  

Firstly, always think of each of your athletes as a person, not just as an athlete, and focus on supporting the person as much as supporting the athlete. 

Encourage the athlete to follow other pursuits and to have interests outside of sport.  Recognise times of stress and anxiety in their lives – exams, job interviews, increasing media attention – and adapt training accordingly.  Not every athlete will become an Olympic Champion, but coaching provides the opportunity to make a positive impact on each and every person that you coach.  Athletes look up to their coach, and as coaches we have the opportunity to positively influence their lives in so many ways.

Remember that results should never come before the welfare of the person.

This, Mental Health Awareness Week in the UK, and the Green Ribbon awareness month in Ireland, is a good time to increase our awareness of the causes and symptoms of depression, anxiety and other mental illness.  If you know someone that has mental health issues, there is some good advice on starting the conversation here.

Educate yourself on eating disorders, overtraining, and other welfare issues which may affect athletes that you coach.  You don’t need to be able to solve issues, but you may need to signpost athletes to help.

Maintain an open and understanding approach to your coaching.  Athletes may find it difficult talking to a parent about welfare issues that they are experiencing, and coaches and other support personnel may often fill a crucial listening role.

This report of an event held in Dublin last January, sums up the role of the coach nicely.

How to increase the portions of fruits and vegetables in the athlete's diet

On the 1st of April 2014 the news headlines reported that eating seven or more portions of fruit and vegetables a day is healthier than the currently recommended five portions and would prolong lives by cutting the risk of dying from cancer and heart disease. 

An April Fool’s day joke to some, however, I have always encouraged athletes I have worked with to aim for a minimum of seven portions a day due to their increase in energy needs and the physiological demands of exercise. 

So what is a portion of fruit or vegetables?

Aim for a handful as a rule of thumb and other things to remember:

• Fresher the better- try to consume fruit and vegetable produce in their most natural state
• Wide Variety of fruits and vegetables 
• Try to consume as many different colors as possible

Tips to help athletes do this:

• Add fruits to breakfast cereals and desserts
• Choose fruits and vegetables  as snacks- such as dried fruits, vegetable stick
• Choose seasonal vegetables to help with freshness and cost
• Swap a sandwich for soup- homemade soups can be a good way of getting lots of different types in one go
• Fruit smoothies- again another way of including lots of different fruits in one go
• So how about a simple recipe and a twist on a regular dish to help increase the number of fruit and vegetable portions in one meal? Also cooked in a slow cooker so that its ready for when you return home from training.

Spaghetti Bolognaise (Serves 2)

Ingredients

500g Lean Steak Mince
Wholemeal Pasta

2 Garlic Cloves
1 Red Onion
1 Tin Chopped Tomatoes
500g Tomato Passata
1 Table spoon of Tomato Puree
Approx. 150gm Green Beans
100gms Baby Corn
100gms Button Mushrooms
(Or any 3 or 4 available vegetables of your choice, preferably of different colours.  Other options include carrots, parsnips, broccoli or peas)

Method

•  Peel and finely chop the red onion and start to fry with the olive oil
• Add the steak mince and fry with the onion until brown
• Add the mince and the onion to the slow cooker and add remaining ingredients to the contents.
• Leave to cook slowly throughout the day

When you return

•  Cook pasta
•   Season to taste
•  Add bolognaise to pasta when cooked

Injury prevention and treatment: lessons learned from 21 years of track and field

As part of my preparation for a workshop on injury prevention last week, I made a list of all the injuries that I’ve had over last 21 years – the length of time that I have been competing in athletics – and one thing stood out to me: I’ve been very, very lucky.  Well I like to think that I have made a bit of my own luck, as I will discuss later, but the list is notably short for a distance runner.

Injuries, take note: the page is already full!

The purpose of listing all my injuries is to highlight injury patterns, causes, and treatment, and to ask myself what I would have done differently.  While the sample size of one wouldn’t pass scientific significance levels, the duration of the sampling gives a useful snapshot into injury.  Before I go on to discuss injury prevention in general, I wanted to highlight a few of my ‘findings’.

I hope that I’m not tempting fate here, but I have never had a stress fracture.  I never trained on the road as a teenager, did so sparingly in my twenties, and now, further into my thirties than I’d like to admit, I still train off-road on a regular basis.  I feel that avoiding the roads until my body was mature enough to handle them, has had a large impact, if you pardon the pun, on my low injury rate.  Regular periods, eating a healthy diet, and having a slight addiction to cheese as a child and a teenager, has meant that my skeleton is in the best possible shape that it can be. 

However, I feel that the biggest factor in not getting injured in the early days was the four week end-of-season break that was enforced on us.  Four weeks of not running was like hell, but it meant that my body got an annual holiday, and I was always rearing to go at the start of the season.  There was some pride to be swallowed in the early season cross country races for which I would not have done as much training as my closest rivals, but these breaks (and occasions of pride swallowing) definitely never did me any harm.

Visual representation of some of the many causes of injury

Unfortunately, the biggest factor in diagnosing and treating injuries is often a lack of knowledge and I definitely didn’t do everything perfectly. These are some of the lessons I've learned along the way:

Lesson 1 - Different tissues respond differently.  Stress fractures and other bone injuries get sorer as a run goes on, while the pain associated with muscle or tendon injuries abates as the body warms up.  Some injuries clear up after a few days, but some need a very gradual return to training, sometimes starting with just a two or three minute run.  When I had shin pain in 2010, I rested for 4 or 5 days, as I had previously done for shin splints.  Bone, with a poorer blood supply than muscle, takes longer to heal and return from bone or tendon injury should be particularly gradual.  Then I'd come back training, feel good, and end up doing 40 or 50 minutes.  Then I'd wonder why I was in agony again the next day.  As I later found out, I had tendinitis  and needed to start with a 5 minute run, and increase very gradually.

Lesson 2 - Listen to the advice that you are given, and don’t be afraid to ask questions.  In 2012 I was bitten by a dog.  There was nothing that I could have done to prevent that injury.  But when the doctor prescribed antibiotics, I decided not to take them (I figured that if I wasn't on antibiotics I'd be back running in 2 or 3 days).  My leg ended up getting infected, and I missed two weeks of training.  As it turns out, the antibiotics weren't a precaution against possible infection, they were a necessity against inevitable infection.

Lesson 3 - Don't underestimate the value of rest.  Soft tissue breaks down during training, and needs time to rebuild and repair.  End of season breaks, easier weeks between meso cycles, and rest days every week or two, will help prevent injury, and allow you time to respond to training   There are no short cuts to success, and a rest day here and there can actually help prevent time out with injury.

Lesson 4 - Cross training isn't always the answer.  Non-weight bearing exercise can be a great way to maintain fitness when injured.  But it doesn't always work.  When I had the aforementioned tendonitis in my shin, I tried aquajogging to maintain some level of cardiovascular fitness, but it actually made the tendonitis worst.  Similarly, I tried cycling last year when I had a niggle in my foot, only to realise that it was my pedals that caused the niggle to begin with.  If an injury is caused by low body weight and over training (e.g. a stress fracture), think about what your body is telling you.  Cross training like mad may heal the injury, but it won't heal the underlying cause.

As time goes on, I'm better able to distinguish between discomfort and an injury, but it's taken me two decades of regular running to get to that stage.  Find a physiotherapist that you trust, and get niggles and pain sorted out before it becomes a major problem.  If in doubt, rest.

In future posts, we'll look into lifestyle factors relating to sports injuries, and deal with how to cope with injuries and other setbacks.

Building core strength and stability is one way of reducing the risk of injury.  To learn more about muscles, stability and injury prevention, get yourself a copy of this great book: 

It is said sport stars die twice, the first time at retirement

The announcement last week that Michael Phelps, the greatest swimmer of all time, was coming out of retirement and aiming to compete in the 2016 Olympics timed quite well with me finishing the autobiography This is Me,  Ian Thorpe’s journey out of retirement in his quest to qualify for the London Olympics, sadly unable to fulfil his dreams. 

I’ve heard the phrase that athletes come out of retirement an average of 1.6 times. I have probably contributed considerably to that statistic, retiring from swimming in 2006, retiring from pentathlon in 2010, retiring again from swimming in 2012 only to take up triathlon. Although I have never competed at the intense international level of Michael Phelps or Ian Thorpe, perhaps there are some similarities in the reasons why athletes come out of retirement whether they are amateur or professional. 

Other top names who have made a return to international sport after making the decision to end their career include Michael Schumacher, Ricky Hatton, Andrew Flintoff and James Cracknell.  So why do so many athletes struggle with retirement and make a return to sport?

Loss of identity - Athletes identify themselves by what they do - take that away and it’s like a major piece of them missing.

Sugar Ray Leonard said that his inability to separate the boxer from the man became all consuming, forcing him to the depths of depression and leading him to make repeated comebacks.

Biological Factors - Athletes who have retired fail to experience the endorphin highs since they no longer complete. They used to have regular doses of serotonin and suddenly that has stopped.  Athletes such as James Cracknell who don’t make a comeback in their former sport, chase adrenalin highs in other sports.

Tunnel Vision - An athlete’s regimented life leaves an athlete at loss with retirement bringing a void where the comfort of training routine once was.  

So how can athletes manage this transition?

There are two main differences between those who successfully manage their retirement and those who don’t. The reason why an athlete retires is important; if they are forced to retire through injury or de-selection the negativity can lead to a period of denial, isolation, anger and depression. The focus is a loss of way of life and not the beginning of a new one, a ‘grieving process’. The Professional Players Federation have found that 16% of the 1200 ex-footballers, rugby union and league players, jockeys and crickets interviewed experienced depression or feelings of despair.  

Those athletes who are better prepared and have plans in place of their retirement with a strong support group have a better acceptance for their decision and therefore manage the transition much more successfully. So how can athletes do this?

• Reduce the athlete’s exclusive identification with their sporting role and get involved in other areas of interest outside of their sporting career.
• Discover other interests or careers beyond their sporting career and begin to prepare for their retirement. Coaches should be encouraged to support their athletes skills outside of their sport
• Begin to take control of their daily routine
• Develop a strong support network of family and friends who can help support you through your retirement.

This is Me is a good example of some of the challenges athletes face in coming out of retirement. Ian Thorpe retired from swimming at the age of 24 after reaching his goals and achieving more than he could have dreamed of in the sport. The media was cited as being one of the main reasons why he quit the sport with the athlete fed up of the paparazzi that surrounded him. However, he loved the sport and ending his career created a void in his life. He missed the training, the competition and ‘swimming’ itself and  four years later, at the age of 28, he decided to return to the sport and attempt to make the London Olympics. 

The book goes on to describe the motivation for his return, how he managed his comeback and the setbacks and challenges he had to face along the way; the media, doping conspiracies and speculations against his sexuality and even though feedback from performances in training indicated he was on track, his performances in the Australian Olympic Trials were unable to secure him a placed at the 2012 Olympic Games. 

If he had made the decision earlier, given himself more than 18 months to prepare, would he have made the team?

Post Marathon Recovery

As the dust settles on the Virgin London Marathon which took place on Sunday, thousands of runners will be taking a well-earned rest after the months of long and hard training needed to met their goal and complete the challenging 26.2 mile distance.

During their training period, many runners will have experienced at least one occasion where they were unable to train due to a cold or flu like symptoms. Like many other endurance athletes, some will have suffered from repeated bouts of infections which caused a real disruption to their training routine and ultimately their performance. Suppressed immunity is common during and following periods of hard training, and athletes often pick up an illness shortly after a marathon or major race. In addition to allowing the mind and muscloskeletal systems to recuperate, the recovery period should aim to boost the immune system.

There are many theories as to why immune defence is weakened following strenuous endurance activity. Athletes with a high training load (more than 11h moderate intensity training per week), experience more than twice as many upper respiratory tract infections compared with those on low-moderate training volumes. So how can athletes help maintain their immune system and prevent the training disturbances caused by bouts of illnesses?

Here are a few starting points:

• Stay hydrated and try to rehydrate effectively as soon as possible post training or competition. This will help maintain saliva production and sustain the release of saliva proteins know to have important antimicrobial properties.
• Ensure sufficient rest - don’t return back to exercise too quickly and maintain light exercise until fully recovered.
• Ensure that you get adequate sleep (at least 7 hours per night) in order to help your body to recover and repair any damage that has occurred.
• Keep away from people suffering with cold or flu where possible, or reduce physical contact.
• Maintain good hygiene e.g. washing hands regularly.
• Promote recovery as much as you can - try to consume a good quality carbohydrate snack within 30mins post exercise. This may mean athletes need to be prepared by packing light snacks to have after training. Sometimes waiting until you get home is too late and can often lead to poor food choices.
• Forward plan to ensure that you have access to foods appropriate to meeting nutrition goals for training. Plan and prepare meals so that when you go grocery shopping you can ensure that your cupboard is full of things you need for healthy meals.
• Choose a wide variety of foods within your diet - each food has a different range of nutrients; the wider the choice and range of your foods, the more different nutrients you will consume.
• Include cereal rich foods such as wholemeal, multi-grain or seeded breads, brown rice or pasta. Athletes who are training for endurance activities need to maintain a high carbohydrate diet to support their energy needs and help their body to recover efficiently.
• Eat a wide variety of fruits and vegetables throughout the day - the more colour the better.

Dear Asafa, ...

Last week it was announced that Jamaican sprinter and former world record holder Asafa Powell, was banned from competition for 18 months after testing positive for Oxiforan, a banned substance.  Powell claimed that the source of the substance was a nutritional supplement, which was given to him by his trainer, and which did not list Oxiforan as an ingredient.

Powel, his lawyer, and his agent, claim that he is innocent.  In this public letter to Asafa, I point out how he isn’t innocent, irrespective of whether or not he intended to cheat.

Dear Mr Powell,

While I may have been the first to cheer you on at a major championship, and hope that you might finally fulfil the potential that your fast times indicated, I have now lost all admiration for you as both an athlete and a person.  You have clearly broken the rules, so, in the words of Kim Collins, ‘man up’ and accept your punishment. 

As a lesson to you for the future (no doubt you’ll be like all the other cheats and won’t go away), and for other athletes who want to take the ‘I didn’t mean to cheat’ route, I just wanted to point out a few things that you should already have known.

1. Strict Liability – An athlete, and only an athlete is responsible for what is found in his or her body.  If you’re going through airport security and a gun is found in your bag, blaming someone else isn’t going to do you much good.  Similarly, you should be vigilant about what is going into your body, and don’t go blaming coaches, trainers, parents, agents, doctors, dogs or baby sitters when a banned substance is found in your body.
2. Nutrition supplements aren’t regulated, and the ingredient list should be taken with a pinch of salt.  The nandrolone scandal, now almost 20 years old, should have been a lesson to athletes that they can’t trust nutrition supplement producers.  We get that you don’t work in a supplement factory (I’m don’t know of any top level athlete that does), but surely you’ve heard other athletes blame positive tests on supplements they were taking?
3. If a supplement claims to be ‘mind-bending’, as Epiphany D1 does, it’s probably not something you should be taking.  Having said that, if the supplement is called Epiphany D1, it’s probably not something you take to make up for not eating your greens.  Other things which the supplement claims to do include enhancing focus, attentiveness, short term and long term memory and vision, speeding up auditory and spatial thought processing, and optimising motor coordination.  On reading these benefits, would the word ‘stimulant’ not immediately pop into your head?  Think again about what the supplement claims to do – surely this is performance enhancement that if not illegal, is immoral.
4. You benefited from a banned substance – there’s no denying that.  You should have to serve some punishment one those grounds alone.
5. Nutritional supplements are generally a waste of money, and if not, they probably contain banned substances that they don’t list.  Try eating a balanced diet, and stop trying to get an unfair advantage.
6. Next time you’re tested, try listing all the supplements and medications you’re taking on the doping form.  If there’s too many to remember, consider point 5 again.
7. Jamaican charm may get you a long way with the ladies, but it won’t get you out of sticky doping situations, nor will pretending to be stupid.

For me, only one question remains: was 18 months long enough?

That is all.

Elizabeth Egan

(for drug free sport)

p.s. This advice is free.  No need to thank me.  Similar advice is available on the WADA website.

Branched Chain Amino Acids

When you type Branch Chain Amino Acids (BCAA) into a search engine, immediately a number of different brands of supplements pop up suggesting their benefits, mainly to the weight training athletes with their immediate claims being that they:

·         Maintain lean tissue
·         Preserve stores of glycogen
·         Prevent tissue breakdown during training

What are BCAA?

Amino Acids are known as the building blocks for skeletal muscles, enzymes, hormones and other proteins which are necessary for the optimum functioning of the body. Of these amino acids there are both essential and non-essential, with essential amino acids being those which must be ingested by the body through the diet. There are eight known amino acids which can be found in dairy, poultry, eggs, beef and pork, and soy protein for a vegetarian source. The essential amino acids valine, leucine and isoleucine are known as BCAA’s and are thought to be metabolized differently to other amino acids by being taken up by the skeletal muscle rather than the liver to contribute to the energy production, this means they can be quickly depleted.

There are many thoughts as to how BCAA’s within the diet or supplementation can help towards athletic performance the main theory is through Central Fatigue.

Central Fatigue Theory- Prolonged exercise lowers BCAA plasma concentration through oxidation of the amino acids with an increase in plasma free fatty acid concentration from fat oxidation. This creates a cascade effect which ultimately leads to an increase in free tryptophan levels in the brain which can be converted into serotonin. Serotonin can have a negative effect on mood and therefore compromise athletic performance through the feeling of fatigue.

There are two theories in which this can happen:

• During the latter stages of prolonged exercise when there is low blood sugar- this stimulates the body to find glucose from non-carbohydrate sources and BCAA are broken down and used as a fuel source. This creates a reduction BCAA/Tryptophan ratio leaving a higher level of tryptophan to enter the brain and convert to serotonin.

• FFA’s are broken down in higher amounts as glycogen depletion and fat oxidation increases. This creates more competition between Tryptophan and FFA’s to free albumin site and can therefore increase the amount of free tryptophan to cross the blood-brain barrier which can be converted to serotonin.

Other benefits include:

Immune Response- May improve serum glutamine levels leading to a lesser incidence of illness following exercise.

Overtraining- During a period of overtraining glutamine stores can be depleted faster than the body can replenish them and therefore over trained athletes typically suffer from low glutamine levels and BCAA could as above help to improve serum glutamine levels. 

It is thought that by supplementing BCAA in the diet, there will be a higher level of BCAA in the blood during prolonged exercise and decrease the amount of serotonin being produced and resulting in less central fatigue.

But does it really work?

The research is still conflicting on the issue of BCAA and the increase aerobic performances however BCAA’s are as mentioned earlier are essential amino acids and should be consumed within the diet. Although there will be a number of supplements claiming to increase BCAA and athletic performance as with all nutrients, the best sources are those that are natural and choosing a wide variety of food types will ensure a good intake of BCAA's as well as  a wide variety of other nutrients as well. 

The best sources will be protein rich foods, and are normally consumed in sufficient quantities in the regular diet and include, lean red meat, poultry, eggs, dairy including milk, cottage cheese and yoghurts. Non-meat sources include soy protein, brown rice, beans, nuts and lentils.

Nutrition: Essential Amino Acids

Protein, made up of amino acids, is essential for growth and repair of all human tissues.  Not all amino acids are equal, however!  Well that's not completely true, but in the first of a series of posts about proteins and amino acids, I explain why some amino acids are more essential in the diet than others. Tomorrow Rachael will look at Branched Chain Amino Acids, a subgroup of essential amino acids.

What are proteins, peptides and amino acids?

Proteins are organic compounds that form a vital component of every living cell.  Proteins protect and provide structure to the body in the form of skin, cartilage, tendons, muscles, callus and hair; regulate catalyze and protect body chemistry in the form of enzymes, antibodies, hormones and globulins, and enable the transport of oxygen and other chemicals in the form of haemoglobin, myoglobin and lipoproteins. Consuming protein regularly is necessary for growth and repair of body cells and tissues, general health, and regulation of homeostasis.  Excess protein is used as a source of energy, or is converted to urea and excreted from the body.

Amino acids are the compounds from which peptides, and proteins are constructed.  Each amino acid consists of amine and carboxylic acid groups, along with a specific side-chain which determines which defines the amino acid.  Amino acids contain nitrogen, oxygen, carbon and hydrogen, though some amino acids contain other elements in their side-chains.  A proteins properties is determined by the amino acids that it contains, and the sequence of amino acids within its structure.  Amino acids are crucial in both their role as protein building blocks, and as intermediates in metabolism.  

What are essential amino acids?

Of the 22 biologically available amino acids, nine must be consumed in the diet.  This does not mean that they are more important human tissues than the other 11, but unlike the non-essential amino acids, they cannot be made from other amino acids, or produced from other substances within the body.  Argining, for example, is crucial in the formation of bone, among other things, but is not essential as it can be produced from citrulline Leucine, important in muscle synthesis, and isoleucine, important in both muscle and haemoglobin synthesis and blood sugar regulation, on the other hand are essential amino acids and must be consumed in the diet.

Where can I find essential amino acids?

As a rule, animal proteins are better sources of essential amino acids than vegetable proteins, though soy is a notably useful plant source of essential amino acids. Eggs and milk are the particularly good, and both contain all nine essential amino acids, along with a number of non-essential and semi-essential ones. Vegetarians and those who can't consume diary products or eggs should ensure that they obtain protein from a variety of sources, including soy.

Eggs are an excellent source of essential amino acids

Combining certain vegetable proteins can ensure that essential amino acids needs are met.  Indigenous staples in a number of developing countries cleverly achieve this in the absence of animal foods.  Examples include Mexican corn and beans, Cajun red beans and rice, and Japanese soybeans and rice. 

The following are the essential amino acids and some of their top food sources*:

Histidine - eggs, soy protein, sesame, peanuts, parmesan

Isoleucine - eggs, soy protein, parmesan, pork, whitefish

Leucine - eggs, soy protein, sesame seeds, parmesan, whitefish

Lysine - eggs, soy protein, parmesan, whitefish

Methionine - eggs, soy protein, sesame seeds, whitefish

Cysteine - eggs, soy protein, sesame seeds, peanuts, mustard seeds 

Phenylalanine - eggs, soy protein, sesame seeds, peanuts, whitefish

Tyrosine - eggs, soy protein, sesame seeds, parmesan

Threonine - eggs, soy protein, sesame seeds, whitefish

Tryptophan - eggs, soy protein, sesame seeds, chia seeds

Valine - eggs, soy protein, sesame seeds, parmesan, beef

*Note the these are the top food based on available protein per 100 grammes, but eating 100 g of sesame seeds or parmesan cheese is a lot more difficult than drinking 100 ml of milk.

How often should protein be consumed?

The body is constantly growing and repairing it tissues, and has a constant demand for amino acids.  Small amounts of protein should be consumed with each meal (this doesn't need to be a steak or chicken breast). The best way to ensure that your essential amino acid needs are always being meet, is to ensure that you eat an egg or drink a glass of milk daily, or that you consume protein from a variety of sources.  Different foods will have different minerals and vitamins, so eating foods from a variety of sources has additional benefits.

Key points

• Eggs or milk should form part of your diet
• Protein should be consumed from a variety of sources

Useful references and resources

• Young VR, Pellett PL (1994). Plant proteins in relation to human protein and amino acid nutrition. The American Journal of clinical Nutrition 59: 1203S-1212S.
• incredibleegg.org

The Basics of Sports Nutrition

Nutrition isn't rocket science; nor should it be.  Food is one of the few things in life that are relevant to everyone.  We start being nourished in the womb, long before we were born, and continue fuelling our bodies (or having our bodies fuelled for us), until we die.  Something as essential and far-reaching as nutrition shouldn't be complicated.  It should be as simple as pulling up at the pumps, putting in the right fuel, and speeding off with ourselves.

Unfortunately, sports nutrition is often portrayed as a series of complicated equations consisting of big words, expensive foods, and all conquering nutritional supplements.  And there's a whole array of misinformation, misinterpretation of information and seemingly contradictory advice out there.  Where did it all go so wrong?

I've been eating for 34 years, and running for almost as long.  I've never had a protein shake in my life, nor have I ever been on a diet.  Food for me is simple, and these are my simple guidelines to good nutrition for athletes:

Variety is the spice of life

The best way to ensure that you are getting all the nutrients that you need is to eat a good variety of foods.  Some foods are high in fibre, while others are high in calcium and zinc.  Plant foods will be higher in water soluble vitamins, than will iron-rich meat produce.  Eating foods from all categories of the food pyramid (fruit and vegetables, cereals and carbohydrate-rich foods, calcium-rich foods, protein-rich foods and healthy fats) is a good start, but foods will even vary in nutritional content within food groups.  Some fruit will be high in vitamin C, while others will be high in vitamin A.  Choosing different coloured fruit and vegetables will help cover all bases, and eating a variety of protein foods will ensure that all essential amino acids are being consumed.

Individuals with food allergies (lactose or wheat intolerance), or who restrict their diet (e.g. vegetarians), need to be extra careful to ensure that their diet otherwise varied.

Fresh is best

The less processed a food is, and the more it looks like itself, the better it is for you. Smoothies are preferable to fruit juices because they retain the fibre-rich skin and pith of the fruit; and a poached fillet of cod is better than a deep fried piece of battered cod. Processed food tends to be low in vitamins and fibre, high in salt, sugar and fat, and may also contain harmful additives such as artificial colours, sweeteners, and trans fats.

Foods with three or less ingredients are likely to be less processed (and less harmful) than those with a long list of ingredients.  Take a look at the ingredient list for Wheetabix compared with that for Coco Pops.  Use by date is also a good indicator.  Natural yoghurt will go off much quicker than the nasty highly sweetened versions that have little probiotic versions, which would quite happily sit in the corner of your fridge for weeks on end.

A good start is half the battle

Breakfast, they say, is the most important meal of the day.  I would argue that all meals are important, and none should be skipped, but getting your day off to the right start is definitely a good thing.  An ideal breakfast for many people would consist of a slow release breakfast cereal – eg Wheetabix , Shredded Wheat or porridge, rather than the high sugar options of Coco Pops or Frosties; toast and some fruit or a smoothie. 

Those who have high protein needs may add some eggs, but there’s no need for a high-fat fry up, which apart from the egg and beans, contains low quality proteins.

Slow release carbohydrates should sustain you through to lunch time, and reduce the desire for a junk food pick-me-up mid morning.  Of course, if you’re training hard, you will probably need a snack before lunch, so plan for this and have healthy options at hand.

Carbohydrates are fuel; proteins are the building blocks

Despite what you might hear in the media, all food groups (even fats) are important.  Carbohydrates have been getting a bashing recently, but carbohydrates are THE single most important fuel source for athletes.  Even simple sugars have their place in the balance diet of the athlete.  We’ll deal with each food group in more detail over coming weeks, but suffice to say, athletes should not be restricting their carbohydrate intake.

Similarly, proteins are needed by all athletes, even those who are not looking to increase their muscle mass.  Body tissues are constantly being broken down and rebuilt, and this process is exacerbated when we train.  Modern diets tend to be high in protein, and most individuals consume more protein that they need.  Many foods which are high in protein are also high in fat (e.g. hard cheese), and despite what you might hear, extra protein can be stored as fat.

The 10 minute window of opportunity

If there is a meal more important than breakfast it’s definitely the post exercise snack.  Food of some description should be consumed within 10 minutes of completing exercise.  A chocolate bar is better than nothing, but as always there are better options.  You are aiming to replenish glycogen stores and blood sugar levels by consuming carbohydrates; enhance muscle repair through the consumption of protein; and prevent illness by consuming vitamins.  A chocolate bar will achieve some, but not all of that.  Post training nutrition will be covered at a later date.

Water is life

Don’t forget the water.  Our bodies cannot survive without water, and dehydration can cause a range of issues including irritability, headaches, poor concentration and injury.  We should be consuming at least 2 litres of fluids every day.  Carry a bottle of water with you at all times, and if you find that you have trouble consuming enough, add a small amount of squash. 

We’re athletes, not dieters

True, athletes tend to be lean, and muscle mass is preferable to fat when trying to float around the track, but no athlete should be restricting their intake of food.  As such, information in the ‘diet’ industry often doesn’t apply to athletes (and I would argue, shouldn't apply to those who are not active either, but that’s a debate for another day).

As I mentioned previously, carbohydrates are the best source of fuel for an athlete.  Sportspeople should not restrict their carbohydrate intake.  Any short-term weight loss that occurs as a result of reduced carbohydrate intake is purely fluid loss (not a good thing), and will leave the muscles less capable of storing glycogen (definitely not good news for an athlete).  Additionally, starving the body will result in reduced metabolism, and may actually result in weight gain. 

Over the years, people have often asked me if I’m on a special diet for my sport.  They almost seem disappointed when I say I’m not.  True, I eat well, but just like my training, I see that as a choice, not a sacrifice.  I like good food, and feel much better after a big plate of pasta and vegetables than I do after a greasy bag of chips.

Enjoy your food!

The Benefits of Sports Massage on General Health and Sports Performance

All sportsmen and sportswomen should consider building a regular Sports Massage into their training routine whether they are injured or not. Sports Massage has a number of physical, physiological and psychological benefits and can help keep the body in better condition, reduce the number of injuries, improve mobility and flexibility and help reduce the likelihood of fatigue.

Sports massage can achieve a number of different benefits depending on the client’s needs; for example someone with tight muscles may be able to improve flexibility after treatment, someone who is stressed may feel more relaxed and someone suffering signs of fatigue may see improved  recovery.

The Physiological Effects of Sports Massage
Utilising natural blood flow, massage can have a significant effect on the micro-circulation through the pressure and movement of the strokes, helping to flush out any muscle waste and stimulate osmosis.  This improves recovery, aids metabolic processes and improves tissue health. Massage also improves the flow of the lymphatic system and therefore helps drainage removing waste from the system, and can strengthen the immune system due to the increase in white blood cells. 

Sports massage can also have a significant effect on the nervous system through stimulating the sensory receptors and either stimulate or soothe nerves depending on the techniques used. Sports Massage can also stimulate the parasympathetic nervous system, helping promote relaxation and reduce stress, and can help reduce pain by the release of endorphins.

Due to the effect on the circulation, Sports Massage can improve skin condition due to cell regeneration from the increase in nutrition to the cells. It can help with the removal of waste products through the increased production of sweat and through increased sebum production. Sports Massage can also help improve the skins suppleness and elasticity. 

The Physical Effects on the Body
During the body’s healing process there is the formation of scar tissue. This is normally broken down but sometimes (more common with soft tissue injuries), some can remain. Adhesions can form from this scar tissue and this prevents the fibres ability to glide alongside one another which is needed for them to function.

Massage can help restore the range of motion by helping to release the restrictions by breaking down this scar tissue and helping to free the adhesions. It can also reduce inflammation, and reduce muscle tightness, stiffness and spasms.

Massage can help increase joint mobility by reducing the thickening of the connective tissue and help to release the restrictions. It can also help to free adhesions, break down this scar tissue and reduce inflammation, thereby restoring the range of motion.

By increasing blood circulation and oxygen and nutrient supply to the muscle as well as promoting removal of toxins and waste products, Sports Massage can also reduce muscle fatigue and soreness. 

The Psychological Effects of Sports Massage
Sports Massage can help to reduce stress and anxiety through relaxing both mind and body, promote positive body awareness, improved body image through relaxation and ease emotional trauma through relaxation.

Lifestyle management at altitude

Altitude training is forming an important part of the training programmes of many endurance athletes.  Living at altitude can pose a range of challenges, however, and particular aspects of lifestyle may need additional attention, particularly in relation to preventing overtraining and boredom.

Athletes may become lethargic because of the boredom, and those who fail to embrace the local culture may regret missing out on potentially inspiring and enjoyable experiences.  It would be a shame to fly all the way to South Africa, and never to see and animal in the wild!

Conversely, those to try to fit too much in, fail to recover adequately from training.  Attempting to fill the time between training with some more training will lead to burnout.  You could get addicted to computer games (or sudoko, strib scrabble, or poker for training kit) and delay or skip training as a result.  Spending all day visiting sites and attractions, may result in sore feet, tight muscles and increased risk of injury.

If you fill all your spare time with sleep, and may generally lethargic, or become unable to sleep at night.  You will need more sleep than normal at altitude, and afternoon naps are not only acceptable, but generally recommended.  But oversleeping, or sleeping to kill time may be detrimental to your training.

Spending all your time sunbathing isn’t the answer either.  The sun’s UV rays are stronger at altitude, and you will be more susceptible to sunburn than at sea level. 

You could also dragged into other people’s routine.  Having other people around you is a good thing, but remember that everyone responds to altitude different, and you may need more recovery time than others.  Finally, spending too much time with your friends or training partners can lead you to getting on each other’s nerves.

Of course, these factors may be similar to the challenges that full-time athletes face in their everyday lives.  We will revisit the pros and cons of being a full-time athlete in a future post, but in essence, athletes become full-time athletes when they go away on training camp, and that can have positive and negative aspects. It isn’t all bad of course, but care must be taken to not slip into the many pit falls.

Don't miss out on the opportunities that training abroad can offer

The training camp mentality

Training camps can be a great way of injecting a new impetus into training.  A new environment can be energising and brief, intense spells of training can help athletes reach a new level.  Athletes tend to be more motivated when they are training in a group and have no other distractions.  Training camps are not without their pitfalls, however, and being over motivated can be particularly detrimental when it comes to training stints at altitude.

Taking time to acclimatise to altitude can be the key to a successful training camp.  Too often I hear people saying that they’ve done their hardest ever week of training or hit new ‘personal best’ mileage figures while training at altitude, or tweeted about how much running at altitude has ‘kicked their asses’.  

At sea level, training in a group can help stretch most athletes to achieve their best.  Occasionally trying to keep up with better athletes can sometimes reap results.  Training in a group at altitude, however, is generally a bad thing.  Every athlete respond to altitude differently, and in addition to risking your physical health by working too hard, competing and measuring yourself against others can have detrimental effects on your mental performance. 

Key advice

• Work out your own programme with your coach and follow it
• Monitor your HR, RPE and general wellbeing, and adapt your programme if required
• Remember that less is more.  Just because you’re away on training camp, doesn’t mean that you have to train all the time.  Recovery is part of training too.
• Don’t get dragged into the group mentality
• Avoid going away with training partners that are overly competitive in training

Rest and recovery

We’ve all heard that resting is training too, but nowhere is the sentiment more true than when training at altitude.  Most of the physiological adaptations that occur at altitude, actually happen at rest.  Living at altitude is far more important than training at altitude (unless of course your training to compete at altitude). 

Basic acclimitisation to altitude takes approximately 14 days, though this varies depending on the individual.  During this time resting and training heart rates will be elevated, recovery times between intervals will be significantly increased, and more sleep will be required.  Your body will be working hard to increase EPO secretion, build new red blood cells, and to respond to the acute effects of the lower air pressure and oxygen availability.  Sometimes it’s best to just let the body get on with that.

Key advice

• Reduce overall training volume by 10-20 percent during the first week, and increased gradually over the next three to four weeks.
• Reduce the intensity of interval sessions by 5-10 percent initially, and increased gradually.  Intervals should be shorter than normal, and recovery time between them doubled. 
• Take an additional recovery day between hard workout days.  Use resting HR as an indicator of recovery, and skip any planned workout if the HR is elevated more than normal.
• Remember that there are huge individual variations in response to altitude.  Listen to your own body and don’t measure yourself against others.
• Remember, with altitude training, less is more, particularly during the first two weeks. 

The Grand Canyon makes a great day out when training at altitude in Flagstaff

The boredom factor

Boredom can be an issue when training at altitude, and striking a balance between killing time, relaxing, and embracing the sites and culture of your training environment, can be difficult.  Boredom can lead to depression, so susceptible athletes should take particular care.

If you’re in charge of your own travel plans, choose somewhere that will cater for your entertainment needs.  If you don’t like sitting around all day talking and drinking tea, then Kenya may not be for you.  Choose a big city if you like to have lots to do; and smaller towns if you prefer to be close to nature.

Key advice

• Decide on one or two things that you would really like to do while you’re away, and then decide where those activities will best fit into your training programme.  A safari might be a good way to recover from a long haul flight and adjust to altitude, while a trip to the grand canyon might be a suitable activity for a rest day. 
• Have one worthwhile task to do while you’re away. Catching up with university work, doing an online course, writing blogs or magazine articles, or updating your website are just some of the projects that you could complete.
• Enjoy your mealtimes; it’s not every day that you can take your time eating food.  Dining halls are also a good way to meet new people, and to soak in the culture of your surroundings. 
• Not everyone loves to eat, sleep and breathe their sport.  Find what works for you and plan accordingly.

Chess or draughts can be a great way to pass the time and keep the brain active

Nutrition and staying healthy

Diet is very important when training at altitude, and adjustments may have to be made to ensure that you are getting all the nutrients that you need.  

Since more oxygen is required to break down fat than carbohydrates, 80 percent of calories should be derived from low glycaemic carbohydrates.  Meals should be taken every 4 hr.  Increased carbohydrate utilization may result in glycogen store depletion, so make a conscious effort to replace carbohydrates during and after training.

Reduced nutrient absorption in the gut at altitude results in greater faecal losses.  Maintaining a high proportion of carbohydrate, and ensuring that overall calorie intake is adequate may reduce or offset this faecal loss.  Basal metabolic rate increases for the first 4 days of altitude exposure, particularly in females.  After 4 days metabolic rate begins to return to normal, but remains above sea level values. 

Some individuals may experience reduced appetite.  Small but regular meals, and eating a variety of fresh products, may help.  Apples and grapes in particular have natural chemicals which increase appetite.

 Iron is also very important and depleted iron stores is one of the reasons why some people do not respond to altitude.  Iron is a mineral that is essential in the production of haemoglobin.  Haemoglobin is the part of the red blood cell which attaches to oxygen and transports it around the body.  As the body turns iron stores into additional red blood cells in response to the hypoxic conditions and subsequent increased erythropoietin syntheses, the demand of iron rises, and with it the risk of developing anaemia, even in health runners.

There is risk of immunosuppression, and a subsequent increased risk of upper respiratory tract infections and gastrointestinal infections, at altitude.  It is important that you listen to your body, have adequate vitamins (A, folic acid, B₆, B₁₂, C and E) and minerals (copper, selenium and zinc) in your diet, and replace carbohydrates quickly after exercise.

Because of increased ventilation, increased urinary water loss, and low humidity at altitude, the potential for dehydration is increased.  Caffeine-free fluid intake should be increased by as much as 4 litres per day.  Monitor morning urine colour to ensure that fluid needs are being met, and reduce caffeine consumption.

Dealing with Injury

If you are training at altitude, and get an injury that prevents you from carrying out your normal training, it is best not to panic.  Depending on the severity of your injury, how far you are into your trip, and on the duration of your planned trip, you have a number of options.

The most important thing is that you get treatment for your injury.  If you do not have support personnel with you, cannot find access to a suitable physiotherapist, and do not know what your injury is and how to treat it, you may be best taking complete rest.  If you have a long trip planned, you could look at shortening your trip.

Even if your ability to train is severely hindered by your injury, you will still benefit from sleeping at altitude.  If you would have to rest even if you were at home, you may still be able get some benefit from your trip, and the solitude of altitude may help with adherence to rehab exercises.

Cross-training may be particularly beneficial at altitude and cycling, aquajogging, or even just walking, may be sufficient to raise the heart rate to sea level easy exercise levels in some individuals.

If you are susceptible to injury, or have a recurring injury, ensure that you have access to physiotherapy, and/or medical backup, have access to cross-training facilities if required, and have investigated if the trails are suitable for you.

If all else fails, and if it’s not practical for you to go home early, consider that your injury may be your body telling you to take a break.  Consider if you actually need a holiday.  Make a conscious effort to make the most of the trip, and add in some extra sightseeing, make some new friends, and relax.  Make the most of the hypoxic air!

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My recently published book, Notes from higher grounds, is available through Amazon (click on image below).  It is essentially a travel guide for those looking to arrange a trip to altitude, and covers 15 different venues in detail, but also includes practical advice on how to deal with travel and training at altitude.