PREPARING FOR PRE-SEASON AND WANT TO IMPROVE YOUR NUTRITION?
HERE’S WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW HEADING INTO THIS TOUGH PERIOD
Soccer is a very demanding sport and relies heavily on overall fitness. Over the course of a 90-minute game, players average around six miles and can be much more [1]. So being able to keep a high intensity through the intermittent nature of the sport can be physiologically taxing for the body, particularly in the final few minutes of a game. Therefore, it’s important to prepare appropriately during pre-season. You don’t want to train so much that you become overfatigued during the season, but still need to train hard to meet the demands.
There’s an immediate increase in muscle fatigue and creatine kinase after a highly competitive game, which in turn reduces muscle force output, and can prolong up to 72 hours. Repeated exercise without recovery has been shown to decrease sprint time and range of motion, impairing performance and putting the athlete at a greater risk of injury [2].
Not something you want when going into the season!
SO, WHAT ARE SOME NUTRITIONAL PRACTICES TO CONSIDER FOR PRE-SEASON?
Dietary intakes of most professional soccer players are adequate in energy, but inadequate in macro and micronutrients [3]. Thus, knowing the importance of all components such as protein, carbohydrates and fluid, will help you get to the top of your game.