Scientific Support for Gaining Winning Edge in Olympics: Nutrition Perspective

Authors: Dr. Kommi Kalpana1 & Shilpa Arya2 , Prof. Gulshan Lal Khanna3*

Affiliation: 1ICMR – National Institute of Nutrition, Hyderabad;

2.Sports Nutritionist Pt B D University of Health Sciences Rohtak (Haryana)

2 SGT University Gurugram, NCR – Delhi

 

 

Olympic sports cover a wide variety of sports than any other major international competitions. India has the scope of winning medals in Hockey, Archery, Shooting, Gymnastics, Weightlifting, Wrestling, Boxing, Tennis, Table Tennis, Badminton, and Athletics in the forthcoming Tokyo Olympics, 2020. In major international competitions, many of our athletes are losing the winning edge by a narrow margin. If concerted efforts are made by proper training and coaching, and continuous support of sports science and medicine, gaining the winning edge probably becomes easy in these sports.

“Appropriate strategies having body compositional periodization, personalized diet plan for adequate macro and micronutrients, hydration and thermoregulation, effective use of supplements, maximizing the training adaptations, gut training, manipulation of circadian rhythm while travelling and avoidance of jetlag, prevention of fatigue and injury, illnesses related to food and water should be adopted by the athletes for targeted peak performance. A single strategy cannot be applied to all the sports events and individualized strategies should be followed through trial and error method during the non-competition period, creating a competitive atmosphere or matches between the players. Scientific support should be provided in the mentioned areas to support the athletes for optimized performance. In this direction research studies should be initiated in these areas to solve the problems and also to provide evidence-based strategies to achieve peak performance for Indian athletes”.

Body Compositional Periodization

Body composition, particularly, the muscle mass has the potential to impact exercise performance. Attaining high muscle mass and low-fat mass is the key to better performance. In a few sports events, body composition has a minor role, whereas in a few sports weight must be certified before the competition. In sports, such as Gymnastics low body composition is required where judging of performance is subjective and influenced by appearance. Some athlete’s (Boxing, Judo etc) shows the desire to participate in the lower weight category and follows dangerous weight cutting practices that include dehydration, crash diets, low or no-calorie intake and usage of diuretics. Athletes should establish ideal body weight and composition for proper physiological functioning and improve performance and health through strength and training protocols. Increasing muscle mass while decreasing body fat is difficult as anabolism and catabolism cannot be achieved simultaneously and should target one at a time. The anabolic state can be stimulated through positive energy, nitrogen and muscle protein balance (Gropper et al., 2018).

Personalized Nutrition

Athletes will be training in a wide range of events which require varying inputs of technique, strength, power, speed and endurance. Each athlete requirement is different, and there is no single diet that meets the needs of all athletes at all times. The athlete should have a customized diet plan to achieve optimum nutrition and performance. The Olympic athlete should approach sports dietitian with their quadrennial or yearly training plan for comprehensive nutrition plan to achieve goals and to support training, performance and recovery. The athlete should consider a diversified menu plan to achieve performance and health benefits. Planning and preparation of varied meals are always a challenge and sports dietitians can help them in identifying appropriate goals and modification of their diets. Creating a diet that meets the athlete’s needs requires greater attention and skills. Food intake should be distributed appropriately as per the sports nutrition guidelines such as event and phase-specific, training load, and pre, during and post-exercise. The goals are the same for pre-competition and pre-training, whereas pre-competition meal must consider gastrointestinal distress. Athletes should concentrate on their fuel and fluid requirements before, during and after exercise. Event-specific performance-enhancing supplements also can be considered to gain the winning edge.

Energy

Optimal energy intake is fundamental to successful athletic performance and good health. Increased or decreased intake may have deleterious effects on sports performance. The present recommended allowances for various Indian sports events are followed throughout the year in the training camps, irrespective of the training phases and cycles. This, in turn leading to body compositional changes, decreased physical fitness and performance. Many Indian coaches, sports nutritionists have observed that the recommended allowances are required only in high training loads and not in all the phases of training as the majority of athletes are prone to positive energy balance. There is a need to revise the currently recommended allowances for better sports performance. Recent research evidence says that not only energy balance, energy availability (EA) is also an important issue for athletes. Monitoring energy availability is crucial for body composition especially, weight category sports. EA may not allow the athlete into the disordered eating zone. Low energy availability (LEA) leads to the female athletic triad (FAT; low energy, amenorrhea, osteoporosis) and relative energy deficiency in sport (RED-S) which puts low energy availability at the core model, and outlines the negative effects on many physiological systems that include endocrine, cardiovascular, gastrointestinal, haematological, skeletal and immune systems and address both male and female athletes. The severity of LEA is very less in International athletes, however, athletes should focus on EA.

Carbohydrates

Optimal dietary carbohydrate intake is crucial for good recovery and optimized glycogen stores. The requirement differs according to intensity and type of training. Athletes requirement may range from 3 - 12 g/ kg/ BW/day of carbohydrates during training phases, depending on the training intensity and differs in competition. Athletes should consume a pre-event meal that consists of 1-4 g of CHO/kg/ BW, 1-4 hours prior is important for events that last longer than 60-90 minutes. The athlete can have a bigger meal, containing more carbohydrates (3-4 g/kg BW) if he has sufficient time (3-4 hours) before an event. This allows for enough time to ensure gastrointestinal comfort before the event. However, if there is not enough time before the event, the athlete can consume 1-2 g/kg BW carbohydrates, 1-2 hours before the event. There is no substantial evidence on positive or negative effects or low-moderate glycaemic index foods before exercise. During and after exercise, the guidelines given in hydration may be followed for muscle glycogen resynthesis. Endurance athletes may adopt the carbo-loading technique for enhanced exercise time. Research should be conducted to know the amount and type of carbohydrate on exercise and impact of low, moderate, high glycemic index and glycemic load foods during competition phase and in different pre-competition phases.

Protein

It is an important nutrient for growth and development of skeletal muscle, anabolic hormonal environment and decreases muscle damage. Greater attention has been given by athletes, coaches and sports professionals. Because of overemphasis on protein, athletes are losing a broader dietary picture which includes adequate energy, carbohydrate and fat intakes. Athletes need to assess their dietary intakes, considering their training protocols to determine the protein requirements, timing and distribution. The recommended daily protein intake ranges from 1.2 to 2g/ kg/BW and excess consumption of proteins is not recommended (ACSM, 2013). However, protein intake can be increased up to 2.7 g/kg/BW to achieve optimized body composition. Moderate amounts of proteins can be included in the diet ingesting 3-4 hrs before the exercise and no guidelines are for specific dosages before exercise and during exercise. During recovery, CHO: protein ration should be 3-4:1 or 0.25 – 0.3 g/kg/BW. Ingestion of amino acids, especially essential amino acids (EAA) 6-20 g along with 30-40 g high glycaemic carbohydrates, immediately or within three hours post-exercise, stimulate muscle protein synthesis (Kerksick et al.,2008). Sports specific and position-specific protein requirements across different training phases should be studied to suggest appropriate intake.

Fat

The daily fat intake should be within the range of 20-35% of total energy intake for effective absorption of fat-soluble vitamins and essential fatty acids and high-fat diets (>35%) or low-fat diets are (<20%) not recommended. However, in high training volumes, it may be increased up to 50% of total energy intake. In body compositional periodization, a fat intake of 0.5-1.0 g/kg BW/day is suggested (ACSM, 2013). Athletes should focus on the consumption of omega 6 and omega 3 fatty acids in the ration of 5:1 for better performance and cognitive function.

Vitamins

Vitamins are essential nutrients for many metabolic processes involved with physical activity, growth of tissue, skeletal muscle function, and general health. Vitamins are involved in RBC production, antioxidant activities, and cellular and energy metabolism. Athletes should consume adequate amounts of vitamins and excess intake may have adverse effects. An increase in exercise duration increases the requirements of vitamins along with energy requirements. However, many athletes do not consume adequate amounts of vitamins through dietary sources which in turn leads to micronutrient deficiencies and reply upon dietary supplements. Majority of the supplements would not have required dosages for athletes and land up consuming higher or lower intake of supplements.

Minerals

Minerals are essential nutrients and are important for most bodily functions. Several minerals such as sodium, potassium, calcium, phosphorous, magnesium and chloride have a role in the maintenance of electrolyte and fluid homeostasis. Many minerals constituent of enzymes and iron is central for RBC formation and calcium for bone health. Moderate to vigorous exercise increases the loss of some nutrients through sweat and urine. Some studies have shown mineral deficiencies in athletes due to poor food choices. Female athletes, especially vegetarian athletes are at a higher risk for manifesting iron deficiency anaemia due to losses in menstruation and high training loads.

The athlete should consume a wide variety of nutrient-dense, whole foods to attain adequate nutritional status. Regardless of the estimated prevalence of micronutrient deficiencies, each athlete should assess their key biochemical micronutrients at least twice in a year to avoid declines in micronutrient status. Greater attention is required by the researchers or professionals in this area as there are no proper guidelines or recommended allowances for vitamins and minerals intake.

Hydration Strategies

Each athlete should have an individualized plan for the maintenance of fluid and electrolyte balance. Hydration status is influenced by under various environmental conditions such as temperature, humidity, wind and radiation and also depends on training intensity, volume, time, work and rest cycles. It is very important for an athlete to determine usual fluid losses and successful rehydration strategies. Adequate amounts of fluids, carbohydrates and electrolytes should be consumed before, during and after exercise. A basic plan with adjustments for changing environmental conditions and the stress of competition, helps the athlete to be proactive in preventing and delaying dehydration and other nutrient-related problems. In India, Majority of our athletes are hypo hydrated due to various reasons such as availability and accessibility of water during the practice sessions, ignorance, lack of awareness and knowledge and intentional restriction. The situation is worsening on the first day of the week as much importance is not given for hydration at the weekends.

Tokyo is known to have a very humid subtropical climate with hot Summer (Jun-Sep) and thereby is not very favourable for optimum sports performance. Apart from that, amid the effects of global warming, Tokyo has become an increasingly hot and moderately polluted city. According to a recent study by Kakamu et al., (2017), Tokyo is having a higher WBGT than any of the previous host cities (Rio de Janeiro, London, and Beijing) and is poorly suited for outdoor sporting events. Combination of heat and humidity might lead to impaired thermoregulation, thereby decreased sports performance Proper hydration strategies should be followed by all the Olympic probables. Athletes may be acclimatized to weather conditions two weeks prior to the competitions. To formulate guidelines for maintenance of thermoregulation to prevent exertional heat illnesses such as heat cramps, heat exhaustion, heatstroke and better hydration and fuel strategies, research studies may be conducted.

Pre Exercise: An athlete should consume an adequate amount of fluid before exercise and it should begin at least four hours before the event and the amount depends on the individual 5- 10 ml/kg/BW of fluid in a 2- 4-hour time frame before the exercise. This strategy again differs, if the athlete is not a hydrated and aggressive approach to pre-exercise fluid intake is required. In addition to 5- 10 ml/kg/BW of fluid in a 2-4 hour time frame before the exercise, 3-5 ml/kg/BW of fluid 2 hours prior to the exercise is recommended. To increase thirst responses, pre-exercise source of sodium-containing 20-50mmol/L may be helpful. Gut training is very important if excess volumes are ingested and it should be done prior to the targeted competition.

During Exercise: Intake of fluids during exercise is very important to replace the fluid losses to prevent excessive dehydration (>2% water losses) (Nuccio et al., 2017). Ingestion of Carbohydrate and electrolytes may be beneficial during prolonged exercise under hot and humid conditions to prevent dehydration, fluid and electrolyte losses, and supply of exogenous carbohydrates. Athletes should consider the pre hydration status, clothing, sweat losses, sweat rate, duration of exercise and environmental conditions(Maugham

and Shirreffs, 2008). According to the American College of Sports Medicine (ACSM), 0.4 to 0.8L/hr of cold fluid (<150C) at frequent intervals should be consumed to avoid hyponatremia. Up to one hour of exercise, water alone can suffice the fluid requirements and If the exercise duration is more than one hour, 30g of single or multiple carbohydrate transporters, and greater than two hours 60 g of single or multiple carbohydrate transporters and if the more than 2.5 hours 90g of multiple carbohydrate transporters are preferred (Jeukendrup, 2014). An athlete who exercises more than one hour requires sodium (20- 50 mmol/L) to avoid hyponatremia.

Post Exercise: Rehydration is crucial to achieving euhydration, restoration muscle glycogen, proteins, sodium and electrolytes. The Athlete should not only focuses on hydration but also on carbohydrate and protein content to replenish the fluid losses, to build and repair muscle tissue and restoration of muscle glycogen. Athletes can consider consuming 1.25 – 1.5 L of fluids/kg body weight lost and beverages containing 1-1.25g of CHO/Kg/BW and 0.25 to 0.3g of protein/Kg/BW (Jeukendrup, 2014). The amount of sodium to be added in the rehydration drink depends on losses during training and daily consumption of sodium.

However, no single strategy is best for all athletes and each athlete should find his or her own personalized plan. An athlete can assess their hydration status regularly using WUT method; water loss, thirst, the colour of urine and thirst (Maugham and Shirreffs, 2008). The athlete should consult a physician in the case of extreme heat illnesses (EHI) such as heat exhaustion, heat stroke and exertional hyponatremia. Research studies on hydration strategies to be followed at different climatic conditions and training protocols and fluid, fuel sources and electrolytes requirements in pre-competition, during competition and post-competition may be conducted on Indian athletes.

Dietary Supplements

There is no proper definition for dietary supplements. According to IOC, 2018, food, food component, nutrient, the non-food compound that is purposefully ingested in addition to the habitually-consumed diet with the aim of achieving specific health and/or performance benefit. According to the consensus statement, supplements are categorized as functional foods: foods enriched with additional nutrients or components outside their typical nutrient composition (e.g., mineral- and vitamin-fortified, as well as nutrient-enriched foods) (b) formulated foods and sports foods: products providing energy and nutrients in a more convenient form than normal foods for general nutrition support (e.g., liquid meal replacements) or for targeted use around exercise (e.g., sports drinks, gels, bars) (c) Single nutrients and other components of foods or herbal products provided in isolated or concentrated forms(d) multi-ingredient products containing various combinations of those products that target similar outcomes. Empirical evidence suggests that 80% of elite athletes use one or more than one supplements (Knapik et al., 2016) and the usage increased 69% (Atlanta Olympics, 1996) to 74 % (Sydney Olympics), 2006 in men as well as women.

A majority of athletes use supplements to correct or prevent the nutrient convenient provision of energy and nutrients around an exercise session, to gain a performance improvement in competitions (Garthe & Maughan, 2018). Following appropriate strategies, a few supplements such as multivitamin and minerals, protein, creatine, carnitine, beta-alanine, nitrate and caffeine may help athletes to meet sports nutrition goals and enhance competition performance. However, athletes should be cautious about adverse effects with their use, lack of standardization of active ingredients, inadvertent doping and contamination Athletes, coaches, and sports managers should check the labels for dope free certification. Research studies with appropriate protocols which are specific to age, gender, training level, nutritional status and validity of the procedure, reproducibility of techniques, cost, availability of equipment, subjective vs objective measures, acute vs chronic, field vs lab, double-blinding of subjects, cross over versus parallel-group should be planned to explore the benefits. Research also should be conducted on the safe use of event-specific supplements such as dosage, timings, duration, true performance, benefits, legality, safety and side effects.

Food Service at Olympic Village

Scientific data on the nutritional habits of athletes participating in the Olympic Games are limited and the existing data reveal that a large proportion of athletes consumed diet having below the recommended sport nutrition guidelines. Changes in training phases and high training loads can suppress appetite and maintain a regular meal schedule, thereby decreasing the intake of adequate calories and nutrient intake on a regular basis. (Wardenaar et al., 2017; Burkhart & Pelly, 2016; Burke et al., 2003). Training for several hours a day leaves little time for preparing and ingesting meals (Wolinsky, 1997). In addition to long training hours, travel is another disruption for athletes for suboptimal food and fluid intake who compete in an international level event. Food intake often depends on local restaurant facilities and their access to familiar foods may be limited. Additionally, eating a typical unfamiliar food for long periods of time may have negative emotional and psychological effects.

The greatest fears of Olympic athletes are foodborne illnesses and gastrointestinal distresses just prior to or during the Olympic Games (Schwellnus et al., 2012). These distresses can prohibit them from participating in the competitions and diminishes performance, thus a safe food supply at the games is a major concern. Maintaining personal hygiene, hygienic food handling, drinking safe water, consumption of hot cooked food is strictly followed to avoid water-borne illnesses and GI distress. Most of the countries, take their own cooks along with contingents to provide safe meals and to achieve optimum nutrition. Establishment of kitchen or food service unit in the Olympic village may serve a dual purpose; the first one is to avoid foodborne illnesses and the second one is to make better food choices. The kitchen which can cater to the needs of or Indian Sportspersons participating in the Olympics 2020should be established in the Olympic village. In-depth interviews of coaches, athletes and sports managers may be conducted through validated questionnaires, identify and solve the problems of athletes participating in International events.

Travelling Athlete

Athletes may encounter various issues associated with national and international travel. Athletes often fly to various countries/continents for international competitions which have a misalignment between the circadian pacemaker and the sleep-wake cycle (jet lag). Athletes can adopt destination sleep time to maximize sleep time and to avoid sleep and emotional disturbances. In case of difficulty in sleeping, athletes are encouraged to take sports medicine expert for medication and sleeping in dim light might be of some help. Exposure to sunlight upon arrival and consumption of melatonin (5mg) six hours before sleep time (Burke et al., 2013). Athletes should avoid alcohol and caffeinated drinks during travel time and increase the intake of fluids and small amounts of carbohydrate-rich foods to avoid hypohydration and constipation. Athletes should familiarize themselves to similar foods/cuisines that are available overseas. Maintaining personal hygiene, hygienic food handling, drinking safe water, consumption of hot cooked food is strictly followed to avoid water-borne illnesses and GI distress. Indian athletes should be encouraged to consume a continental diet once in a week to familiarize themselves and nutritionists/ dietitians should include these foods in prescribing the diet for athletes.

Sleep

Sleep is a crucial factor for performance in competition. Sleep affects all the vital physiological and Psychological factors linked to performance i.e motor function, motivation, focus, memory and learning, stress regulation, recovery, glucose metabolism and injury risk. Many athletes loss sleep prior to competition due to various reasons such as noise, light, anxiety, and nervousness. Evidence shows that sleep deprivation can have significant negative effects on athletic performance (Charest et al., 2020). Coaches and athletes have started realizing the effect of sleep on performance and proper monitoring and regulation of sleep can give the winning edge during competitions. Electronic gadgets which can track the quality and amount of sleep of Olympic probables should be used. A research project can be taken to study the issues with jetlag and sleep for athletes participating in the major competitions.

There are so many unanswered questions pertaining to sleep and performance? Are the high training volumes and loads affecting the sleep cycles? Time zones with adequate and or inadequate nutrient intakes affect sleep? Stress factors and blue light impact sleep? Supplements (Ayurvedic, nutritional)that can enhance sleep especially during travelling, understanding and optimizing the personal sleep needs, effect of body composition, dehydration and improper recovery on sleep, the impact of poor sleep on neuromuscular and physiological functions, improvement of sleep cycles through various techniques such as Yoga Nidra, Pranayama and biofeedback technique etc. Research should be conducted in these directions.

 

Gut Training

Gastrointestinal emptying can be delayed because of peristalsis in the mid oesophagus and upper part of the small intestine in case large amounts of food or fluids are ingested. Residual food in the stomach causes uncomfortable or irritating side effects during exercise. The gut should be trained and adapted to accommodate increased volumes of food and fluid to avoid adverse effects. It can be trained gradually increasing the tolerable levels of food and fluid during exercise in routine hard training sessions. Athletes can opt for liquids/ semi-liquids before and during exercise which empties faster than solid foods to minimize the adverse effects.

Sports Injury Management

A majority of athletes 5-8% are prone to sports injuries and illnesses during major competitions. Professional and elite sports persons should have physiotherapists to have a full range of motion, prevent and treat injuries and recover in a minimal time duration through a set program for warming up, muscle conditioning, muscle activation and rehabilitation. Research has shown that proper training will lessen the sport-related injuries (Soligard et al., 2017). Therefore to enhance the performance of the sportsperson more focus should be given on providing proper training and rehabilitation program set by a skilled therapist and medical team. Research studies should focus on suitable programs for various training protocols for better recovery and rehabilitation. Personalized nutrition plans also decrease sports injury risk.

Development of Software Applications (App)

An app can be developed that includes the following information for the benefit of an athlete as we all as sports fraternity to use during the Tokyo Olympics, 2020. Location of training place; transport details; athlete details - body composition, nutrient requirements based on training protocol, hydration strategies based on climatic conditions, training, sweat losses etc; event-specific supplements; nutrition information about various cuisines as well as recipes; details of anti-doping-do and don’ts; availability of Indian food at nearby places; rehabilitation centre/training centres in Tokyo; sports counselling; sleep-wake cycle; contact details and Information of other; live telecast of the various sports event -links; live chat and translator etc.

 

 

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