Are Carbs Good for Athletes?
Who hasn’t heard the myth, “Carbs are bad for you.” You should avoid carbs”. Really, is that myth true? Briefly, NO – you shouldn’t avoid carbs. There are “bad carbs” such as white sugar
and white flour but there are many good carbs such as whole grains, fruits and
vegetables. Avoiding carbs can mean
avoiding the many nutrients carbs provide that our bodies need and that
athletes need.
Should athletes focus
on carbs? Absolutely. For good athletic performance, an athlete
needs carbs. During exercise, carbs
provide the greatest source of energy in the form of glucose. Our bodies convert the carbs we eat to
glucose. Glucose is the sugar in our
blood that feeds our cells and glycogen is how we store carb energy in our
muscles and liver. Eating carbs before a
workout, before soccer, baseball or other sports game provides one with the
energy needed for that event.
Weight lifters –
should those who are strength training eat carbs or protein before they work
out? To have energy for the weight
lifting, focus on carbs before you lift weights. After weight lifting you can have carbs and
protein. Having some protein after you
work out can promote muscle synthesis. A
glass of milk or a cup of yogurt is a great way to get high quality protein
after a workout.
Should an athlete
avoid eating one hour before they exercise?
This is an old myth. You can eat
before you exercise and again focus on carbs before you exercise as carbs
improves performance. A low fat, light
snack before exercising would be what to choose within an hour of the event.
Should you re-fuel
during exercise? Prolonged exercise,
such as distance running, soccer, basketball, and cycling require one to refuel
during prolonged exercise lasting a few hours.
During a cycling class, I have seen new members come in without
breakfast, no water bottle and then attempt to cycle for an hour. Not surprising many end up fatigued, weak and
often dizzy. Most have to quit well
before the hour is up. They would have
done much better with a breakfast focused on carbs (banana, cereal, milk) and
then coming to the cycling class with a water bottle for hydration.
Do you need to refuel
if you exercise for less than an hour?
If you are exercising moderately, you probably don’t need extra
fuel. But keeping hydrated is important. The American College of Sports Medicine
recommends not only drinking plenty of fluids during exercise but also before and after exercising. For endurance athletes, they recommend
beverages with low or moderate sugar content, and some electrolytes such as
sodium and potassium. For endurance
athletes sports drinks are appropriate.
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