........ using their fitness to challenge their bodies, and what a challenge it was, the agonising hell of the west providing the usual terrifying finish. One of the most common questions I was asked while down there was about what people should be eating before, during and after the race. It is an area that can seem so confusing, I thought I would give you simple tips to help you ensure that you are prepared for the next race. 

If you are already quite active and want to improve your performance, one of the easiest ways to do this is by ensuring that you are eating properly.By not eating properly you are starving your body of the essential fuel that it needs.  Over the years I have learned the hard way just how important food can be, often ending up in A&E due to a lack of the right type of food and hydration. I have learned the hard was so let’s hope that you don’t have to. There are 3 important timeframes to analyse when you are training for sports: 

The pre activity fuel: Ideally taken the night before as well as the morning of, this meal should be high in carbohydrates. This will help to top up your glycogen stores, ensuring that you have plenty of energy. Foods such as brown pasta, brown rice and sweet potatoes for dinner are fantastic, the morning meal should consist of a carbohydrate based cereal such as wheetabix,porridge or bran flakes and even some brown bread toast with some jam. The jam will give you a nice bit of energy in the form of sugar .Another great food the day before is some dark chocolate which will help add to your fat storage, as well as being a nice treat too. If the race is going to be in a hot climate, you need to add some salt onto your food the day before , not too much just a little to add to your electrolyte intake.

During activity fuel: 

Depending on the sport, but in general you should be looking to eat and drink during the activity.For longer endurance based events that are over 2 or 3 hours I would recommend eating every 30 mins and sipping a drink every 15 mins.Runs that are shorter than an hour often don’t require any food or water at all to get through, though some people prefer to have some water with them at all times.  This can vary from person to person, but all to often people don’t get enough food into their bodies. Foods that are ideal are jaffa cakes, granola bars, chocolate bars and jellies. These are all high in sugar, giving your body plenty of energy that is readily available. In terms of fluid, I would recommend either water or a sports drink that has some simple sugars in it,such as lucozade sport.For the very long endurance events, people will use high sugar drinks such as coke and 7up. be careful using these as the energy from these will last a short time, generally around 20 minutes or so, leading to a very fast drop in energy afterwards. Also make sure that they are flat , to make them easier to digest.

Post activity:

 This is the crucial part that many people forget about. Post workout your body needs to get nutrients within 30 minutes for the best recovery. If you fail to get the nutrients in then you will be slower to recover, be stiffer, have worse muscular stiffness and less energy. The easiest way to get all your nutrients in is in a drink form. You should aim to get a ration of 4:1 in terms of carbohydrate to protein for optimum recovery. Drinks such as yazoo will do this perfectly, we even use a product called Ensure , which is a meal replacement drink for older people. By getting this meal in you will be fresh and ready to go for your next session, yet it is the meal that most people forget about. Fruit will also help you here, citrus fruits being very effective but the drinks are so handy that you can just keep them in the back of the car and chances are you will use them more often.The better your routine post workout , the quicker you will improve and the harder you will be able to train in the future. 

These simple yet effective tips will maximise your sessions and your races, helping you to get the best results possible. Try different foods and drinks out to see which one works best for you, as the consistancy and texture can vary as well as the flavours. But once you find your preference, stick with it and watch your times improve