Sports Nutrition

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Information for Endurance Athletes

Thank you to our dietetic intern Nate Lore for submitting this weeks blog article.

My name is Nate Lore and I’m a dietetic Intern at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. I am a big fan of summer outdoor activities and often enjoy running, biking, and sand volleyball. Whether you are out there to compete or just participating for fun, here are a few simple things to remember.

With long endurance activities, like marathon running or long distance biking:

It preparing for the activity:

  • Within 24 to 4 hours of the activity try to make your meals 60 to 70% carbohydrates and consume lean protein foods
  • Within 0 to 4 hours of the activity only consume low or no fiber carbohydrates to avoid gastrointestinal issues. Also, avoid protein within 3 hours prior to activity due to longer digestion times.

During the activity

  • Attempt to get 60 to 70g carbohydrates per hour and consume these at a steady rate throughout the duration of the activity. These could be in the forms of gels, bars, or drinks.

Post Exercise

  • In order to maximize recovery time, you should consume 6 to 20 g of high quality protein and 80 to 120 g of carbohydrates within 3 hours of event (the sooner the better).

w sand volleyballWith all outdoor activities, remember to:

  • Protect yourself from the sun with a high SPF sunblock
  • Stay hydrated, especially with activities like sand-volleyball where alcohol consumption is common.
  • And, if possible, conduct the activity during the cooler times of the day to avoid any heat related injuries.

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