What are the effects of physical effort on the body?
“Practice regular physical activity”
“Do sports, exercise! »
“Burn the calories!” »
You no longer count the number of times these sentences have been read or heard... And yet did you know that a adapted diet is essential to appreciate all the benefits of sport ?
Beyond a slimmer silhouette and shedding pounds, exercising a sporting activity also has an undeniable effect on improving your health. general , of well-being and immune defenses . However, practicing physical activity or sport requires repeated and regular efforts to obtain significant effects , both on the performance that on the health . And if there is one parameter that should not be neglected, it is undoubtedly the diet. !
Regardless of your level and type of sport, adopting a diet that meets your goals will also help you stay motivated . Indeed, it is important to have a balanced diet and diverse which respects the main principles of nutrition and which takes into account the health characteristics of each person. Whether it is the distribution, the content of the meals, or even the intake of macro and micro-nutrients , nothing should be left to chance to provide the energy necessary for your body .
What happens during exercise?
The practice of any sport, whatever it may be, involves muscle contractions with each effort and each movement generating the transformation of biochemical energy in mechanical energy . These contractions need a molecule called ATP (Adenosine Tri Phosphate) which provides the energy necessary for chemical reactions in cells.
However, only a small amount of ATP is present in muscle fibers. If an exercise lasts more than a few seconds, ATP production systems start to continue the effort correctly.
Your body will therefore depend on 3 energy sectors :
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The anaerobic alactic sector
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The anaerobic lactic sector :
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The aerobic sector
Thus, at the time of exercise, the organism draws on its reserves and these three systems together contribute to energy production. Furthermore, during muscular contraction, a large quantity of energy is transformed into heat which the body seeks to eliminate in order to cool itself: this is the sweat . Hydration is therefore primordial before, during and after exercise.
What are the body's needs during physical exercise?
The athlete's diet must make it possible to compensate for certain losses linked to the effort of physical exercise and at metabolism . In fact, your body simply needs macronutrients And micronutrients necessary for exercise but also for growth, maintenance and repair of tissues. These different nutrients such as proteins, carbohydrates, lipids, vitamins or trace elements are provided by food to make you more efficient.
However, there is no ideal distribution of nutrients because it depends on your goals . If you want maintain your weight, lose kilos or gain in mass muscle , the needs will then be different.
What is the right diet for an athlete?
Generally speaking, it is nevertheless admitted that the carbohydrates constitute the most important macronutrients in the athlete's diet, glucose being the essential energy substrate . Indeed, when the intake of dietary glucose is insufficient, the body draws on glycogen reserves by degrading muscle and liver cells. This is why it is essential before exercise, and also in order to avoid hypoglycemia , to provide amount of carbohydrates necessary for metabolism to replenish the muscle glycogen And hepatic degraded.
About the proteins , a degradation or a loss are observed during and after long-term exercise. It is therefore advisable to increase your intake in protein good quality like lean meats or fish.
THE lipid foods provide triglycerides to the body, stored largely in adipose tissue. These reserves are sufficient, so there is no need to over-consume them. It will nevertheless be necessary to ensure that good quality fatty acids are provided in the diet, in particular polyunsaturated fatty acids (rapeseed oil, soya, olives and fatty fish) rich in omega-3, omega-6 and linoleic acid.
In addition, a diet high in sodium and in potassium is essential for physical exercise because these molecules actively participate in the muscle building as well as hydro-electrolyte balance . An adequate intake of iron , an oxygen transporter, should not be neglected either, just like the intake of vitamins (B9, B12, D and K). But don't panic in the face of all this information, detailed list of the preferred foods waiting for you !
Just as essential as nutrition, hydration to one essential place during sports practice. Drinking enough water helps you limit dehydration and of regulate the temperature of your body during exercise to improve physical performance . If your body is hydrated, your efforts will be rewarded!
Also consider slimming food supplements for athletes .
When to eat when exercising?
- 3 hours before exercise : breakfast or snack must be finished three hours before sports practice so that digestion is finished and does not impact the smooth running of the training. For a meal during the day, it is advisable to favor slow sugars such as potatoes or rice, accompanied for example by ground meat so that it is digested during physical activity.
- 2 hours to 15 minutes before practice (waiting ration) : this snack must be consistent with the meal and be light. You can opt for cereal products, biscuits, gingerbread, fruit jellies, dairy products or a cereal bar.
- 10 to 15 minutes before exercise: an exercise drink or diluted fruit juice will allow you to stock up on glucose and fructose.
- Immediately after exercise: It is important to stretch and take a lukewarm shower to rehydrate the skin. Then, every quarter of an hour and for an hour, it is possible to drink fruit juice cut with bicarbonated mineral water (half juice/half water).
- One hour after the end of the exercise: you can start to include solid carbohydrates such as a cereal bar, biscuits, biscuits, semolina cakes, cottage cheese or proteins (ham).
- Four hours later : it's time to treat yourself to a well-deserved meal, reinforced with carbohydrates and proteins while remaining light in fat.
When to eat a snack before sport?
Snack before exercise:
- Sugar : white cheese rich in proteins with muesli, grape juice cut with mineral water rich in sodium and magnesium
- Dirty : nut bread, gouda, ham, banana juice cut with mineral water rich in sodium and magnesium
Snack after exercise:
- Sugar : semolina cake and Chia seeds, smoothie (banana, mango, orange juice, soy milk).
- Dirty : toast with chickpea/beet hummus (see recipe below), white ham, skyr yogurt
- Drink : mineral water rich in magnesium and sodium
What foods to eat when you exercise?
- Dairy products : yogurt, cottage cheese, feta, cottage cheese
- Vegetables : spinach, asparagus, broccoli, lettuce, beets, chard
- Fruits : apples, grapes, cherries, banana, mango, pineapple, orange, kiwi
- Proteins : tuna, salmon, eggs, sardines, mackerel, chicken, turkey, beef, veal, white ham, tofu, trout, shrimp
- Starches and pulses : sweet potatoes, quinoa, red beans, oatmeal, chickpeas, lentils, rice, pasta, corn
- Fats : flaxseed oil, canola oil, walnut oil, grapeseed oil, olive oil
- Others : Chia seeds, walnuts, hazelnuts, almonds, dried fruits (apricot, date, grape), fruit jellies, dry cake, gingerbread
- Mineral water rich in sodium and magnesium.
What lunch for an athlete?
Example: Chickpea hummus and beets
Ingredients :
- 1 can of 400 g chickpeas, drained and rinsed (keep a few to decorate)
- 400 g roasted beets, peeled and cut into pieces
- 2 tablespoons of sesame oil
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon of cumin
- The juice of a lemon
- 2 tablespoons of olive oil
- Salt and pepper
- Toasted sesame seeds to decorate
Preparation :
- Place the beets, chickpeas, sesame oil, garlic, cumin and lemon juice in the blender bowl.
- Mix, incorporating the olive oil little by little. Continue blending until smooth.
- Check the seasoning and add more lemon juice or oil if needed. Add salt and pepper.
- Decorate with the preserved chickpeas and toasted sesame seeds and enjoy!
