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    You are at:Home»Forums»Sports Science Discussion»Nutrition & Supplements»Diet of Sprinters

    Diet of Sprinters

    Posted In: Nutrition & Supplements

        • Member
          Zack Trapp on January 23, 2012 at 3:30 pm #18145

          I always find myself wondering about my diet. I usaully am very strict about what I eat, and maybe have something good(Unhealthy) every two or three weeks. I have read, however, that some sprinters eat whatever they want whenever. Can they because of how intense they train? Is the diet of a sprinter constricted to just a few foods? If so, what? Supplemets?

        • Participant
          Craig Pickering on January 24, 2012 at 6:01 am #114261

          Im not convinced – I doubt you could get a proper ratio of nutrients from McDonalds due to the high levels of omega-6 that would be found there. There is unlikely to be decent levels of quality protein either.

          From my experience – most sprinters watch what they eat, to some extent. If you are super talented, and will win regardless of what you do (i.e. Usain Bolt), then great, eat what you like. If you want to get better recovery and performance, get a little bit more into your diet. It doesn’t have to be restricted to just a few foods. The lower your body fat, the more you can get away with unhealthy foods if you so wish. But you should learn to enjoy healthy food.

          Heres an example of my diet, just to show you that you aren’t limited in what you eat:

          Breakfast- 6 egg omlette
          Post-Training – Protein-carb shake ( For your carbs you could eat berries, or if you really wanted a small pack of sweets – Haribo are good for this).
          Lunch – Fish and Salad and nuts
          Snack – Nuts and protein shake
          Dinner – Can be a mix of things, chicken curry, chicken fajita mix, steak etc. with salad or veg.

          If you wanted to get more serious you could go into even more detail.

        • Participant
          Craig Pickering on January 24, 2012 at 6:17 am #114263

          Double post, sorry

        • Member
          richard-703 on January 24, 2012 at 6:47 am #114265

          Craig,
          Do you get many carbs before training? (your first mention of carbs is post workout).
          What % carbs would you say you take overall?

          Thanks,

          Richard

        • Participant
          Craig Pickering on January 24, 2012 at 7:00 am #114266

          Ive experimenting with the Anabolic Diet recently, which is very low carb/high fat. For carbs, I often use rice for breakfast (so 3 eggs and 50g rice). I would guess my overall carb % is less than 15%. This might sound weird, but I have actually been feeling more energetic as a result of this. I have been consuming over 3500kcal per day and have dropped my skin folds by 40mm and added 5kgs of weight.

        • Participant
          Josh Hurlebaus on January 24, 2012 at 7:19 am #114267

          I’m the total opposite. If I’m hungry, I eat. I eat big. I’ll eat right before bed, I’ll eat whenever.

          Breakfast is usually a light bowl of oatmeal and coffee. Between breakfast and lunch I’ll have 2 PB&J’s. Lunch is a bunch of salad, veggies, and something with meat and carbs. Snack between lunch and workout is a PB&J or something similar. Dinner is quite honestly anything that I am up for. 2 steaks, 3/4 of a pizza, whatever. It’s usually massive. Pre bed snack is usually something like nachos (heavy on the cheese) and a glass of milk.

          The only things I actively stay away from are preservatives, fake sugar, and MSG. Everything else though is fair game. Diet is one thing I’ve never really cared about simply because I work full time and I’m busting my butt for hours on the track every day. I figure, if I’m hungry, I should eat. So I do.

        • Participant
          Mccabe on January 24, 2012 at 8:19 am #114270

          Was the 6 egg omlette a typo Craig? I am in Josh’s camp in regards to eat when ever hungry, especially during winter.

        • Participant
          comando-joe on January 24, 2012 at 8:34 am #114279

          HA! Don’t listen to TypeIIpersona.

        • Participant
          Josh Hurlebaus on January 24, 2012 at 8:35 am #114280

          Yup, clearly Craig doesn’t know what he’s doing.

          Quit being a pro athlete, Craig! You don’t know crap!

          Seriously though, would changing my diet help me? Probably. But I don’t have enough time to fuss about my diet. Craig does have the time to make sure his diet is perfect, so he does. I would too if I could.

        • Participant
          comando-joe on January 24, 2012 at 8:47 am #114282

          [quote author="Josh Hurlebaus" date="1327374351"]Yup, clearly Craig doesn’t know what he’s doing.

          Quit being a pro athlete, Craig! You don’t know crap!

          Seriously though, would changing my diet help me? Probably. But I don’t have enough time to fuss about my diet. Craig does have the time to make sure his diet is perfect, so he does. I would too if I could.

          Many pro athletes do dumb shit and Craig doesn’t know nutrition. I wish there was way for me to prove to you my crenditials, but for all you know, I could be some smuck making up stuff on the net pretending to be someone else, but I won’t go there.[/quote]

          Come on then, give us some background info. I’d rather get my protein from whey than mcdonalds.

        • Participant
          Mccabe on January 24, 2012 at 8:49 am #114283

          Why don’t you go ahead and try and prove your credentials…

          *edit me and Joe wrote the same thing at the same time, think that means you have to give us something!

        • Participant
          Derrick Brito on January 24, 2012 at 9:17 am #114285

          [quote author="Josh Hurlebaus" date="1327374351"]Yup, clearly Craig doesn’t know what he’s doing.

          Quit being a pro athlete, Craig! You don’t know crap!

          Seriously though, would changing my diet help me? Probably. But I don’t have enough time to fuss about my diet. Craig does have the time to make sure his diet is perfect, so he does. I would too if I could.

          Many pro athletes do dumb shit and Craig doesn’t know nutrition. I wish there was way for me to prove to you my crenditials, but for all you know, I could be some smuck making up stuff on the net pretending to be someone else, but I won’t go there.[/quote]

          You don’t need to prove anything. Simply stating background info would be fine. It’s not hard to find just about everyone on this forum, but you don’t use your real name. And let’s be honest. Someone that doesn’t yet know what rest periods to use for flying 20s and thinks speed endurance is useless doesn’t strike me as someone I would take advice about training from.

        • Participant
          Irish100m on January 24, 2012 at 9:24 am #114286

          josh, i wouldn’t eat that much before you go to bed cos then you don’t burn that off it just sits on you

          i used to think, ‘i’m thin, i train 6 tiems a day, i can eat whatever’ but since i’ve started cutting out the likes of chocolate and crisps, unneccessary cheese (on spag bol, a subway sandwich etc), changing to skimmed milk, eating more veg etc I’ve felt a whole lot better. I’ve put a stone on since september but i don’t feel any heavier as I’ve lost body fat and recruited RAW LEAN MUSCLE MASS (COMEATMEBRO)

          Don’t drink alcohol, don’t eat chocolate – they are possibly the two worst substances you can consume. Switch from regular tea or coffee to rooibos or green tea as they have more antioxidants and in the case of rooibos is caffiene free

        • Participant
          oshikake@ymail.com on January 24, 2012 at 9:59 am #114290

          .

        • Participant
          Mccabe on January 24, 2012 at 10:22 am #114292

          That was taken well out of context.

        • Participant
          comando-joe on January 24, 2012 at 10:31 am #114294

          This new guy might just be JC being more of a troll.

        • Participant
          COV-GOD on January 24, 2012 at 10:46 am #114295

          Haha that’s just funny shit lol

          Craig has been an international level athlete for years, and if you looked at his posts, nutrition is something he has focused on learning throughout that time!

          In the uk, we have some of the WORLDS leading nutritionalists advising us lol

          There is a great PDF for uk athletes that pretty much matches the example exactly lol I will try attach it sometime lol

          Funny, love keyboard warriors

          Irish, you made some good changes. I recently went to lactose free milk! Feeling freaking great lol best change I made for sure 🙂

        • Participant
          oshikake@ymail.com on January 24, 2012 at 12:40 pm #114301

          .

        • Participant
          Josh Hurlebaus on January 24, 2012 at 12:48 pm #114302

          I’m not really convinced that eating late at night contributes to an increase of body fat. I destroy myself every day working out and gH levels are highest at night, followed by testosterone being highest in mid morning. I’d rather have a fully fueled body for the times of peak protein synthesis than not. Check out the lean gains guys, they eat only in a small window during the day,but eat massively during it and its right before bed.

          Also I drink two to three cups of coffee per day. Its positive effect on blood sugar, antioxidants, etc, far outstrip the negatives from caffeine

        • Participant
          Josh Hurlebaus on January 24, 2012 at 12:55 pm #114304

          Also, although not really scientific and not necessarily correlative , I’ve noticed that if I eat a protein rich meal within 45 min of bed I get more deep sleep according to the zeo than if I don’t.

        • Member
          Zack Trapp on January 24, 2012 at 2:15 pm #114308

          Since I have to go to school, I can’t eat 5-6 meals a day. I’ve been reading up on diet, and how does this look?
          Breakfast:Cereal W/Blueberres
          Lunch:Pasta w/Fruit W/Cereal
          Snack:Dry Raisin Brand
          Post Workout:Whey Protien Shake
          Dinner:It depends, usaully chicken w/vegitables and milk

        • Participant
          Josh Hurlebaus on January 24, 2012 at 2:59 pm #114310

          I would get more protein early on

        • Participant
          Derrick Brito on January 24, 2012 at 3:07 pm #114312

          [quote author="Derrick Brito" date="1327376897"][quote author="TypeIIpersona" date="1327374755"][quote author="Josh Hurlebaus" date="1327374351"]Yup, clearly Craig doesn’t know what he’s doing.

          Quit being a pro athlete, Craig! You don’t know crap!

          Seriously though, would changing my diet help me? Probably. But I don’t have enough time to fuss about my diet. Craig does have the time to make sure his diet is perfect, so he does. I would too if I could.

          Many pro athletes do dumb shit and Craig doesn’t know nutrition. I wish there was way for me to prove to you my crenditials, but for all you know, I could be some smuck making up stuff on the net pretending to be someone else, but I won’t go there.[/quote]

          You don’t need to prove anything. Simply stating background info would be fine. It’s not hard to find just about everyone on this forum, but you don’t use your real name. And let’s be honest. Someone that doesn’t yet know what rest periods to use for flying 20s and thinks speed endurance is useless doesn’t strike me as someone I would take advice about training from.[/quote]

          Asking a question doesn’t mean I’m less qualified to give advice, I only wanted to know how others felt on this subject and I don’t have to use my name and I don’t care what you think. You strike me as another dime a dozen track coach that still believes in dated methods and fails to evolve. I don’t care if ever body and their mommas disagree with me. I’m here to discuss my beliefs on training and I’m willing to challenge every last one of you on this site.[/quote]

          Then what are your qualifications? Like I said, you don’t need to prove anything, we aren’t trying to make you out to be a liar. It’s clear that you have some knowledge, but your posts also reflect a lack of knowledge/experience training track athletes. There are situations where I agree with your opinions, but others where I don’t. Context is everything, in both training and giving advice on the internet.

        • Participant
          burkhalter on January 24, 2012 at 5:23 pm #114313

          As Craig noted, many feel better on low carb, largely veg protein a little diets. I seem to tolerate carbs well, however I can tell an energy increase when they are low.

          It’s all in moderation my friends, alcohol, most everything.

        • Participant
          Craig Pickering on January 24, 2012 at 10:05 pm #114315

          Was the 6 egg omlette a typo Craig? I am in Josh’s camp in regards to eat when ever hungry, especially during winter.

          No typo!

        • Member
          Anthony Wallace on January 25, 2012 at 12:57 am #114318

          im with Brooke on this one, I have several friends who are training for 2012 in London and moderation is the key for them. One has hit the standard for the TJ and he is big on diet, but he also is not a super strick also on drinking. I think if you dont have moderation you let it consume you and you are not able to compete to the best of your ability. Thats me, but I say a relaxed focused athlete will fair better than a stressedout OCD one.

        • Participant
          Irish100m on January 25, 2012 at 1:14 am #114320

          [quote author="Irish100m" date="1327377304"]Don’t drink alcohol, don’t eat [color=red][b]chocolate[/b][/color] – they are possibly the two worst substances you can consume.

          Antioxidant Strength: More Potent than Blueberries.

          https://www.allchocolate.com/health/nutrition/antioxidants.aspx

          [/quote]

          yes but then factor in all the other shit in chocolate

        • Participant
          Irish100m on January 25, 2012 at 1:16 am #114321

          Just remember who McD’s best known customers were at the Beijing Olympics.

          he ate a few nuggets there because he didnt trust the chinese food

          it’s not as if he ate nuggets all year round

          also this is Bolt we’re talking about, a complete freak who would probably win races wearing converse

        • Participant
          Owen on January 25, 2012 at 1:33 am #114322

          I am more inclined to agree with Craig on this one.

          I am naturally lean and could quite easily eat what I want, when I want. However, I think there is a lot more going on that just what the scales are saying when it comes to nutrition.

          I work a full time job and train in the evening, the principles I follow:

          CHO% is dependent on the intensity of that days training. For example a General strength day I will consume less % of CHO and slightly up the fat %.

          Consume the majority / if not all of my CHO after training. (google Carb backloading) Also consume the majority of my calories around training times.

          Regardless of what day it is try to consume 3+ portions of leafy greens ( spinach, kale and brocolli are my favourties)

          A sample GS day for me would be:

          8am 3 Egg Omlette
          11am – Protein + nuts
          1pm – Chicken / Tuna Salad
          3pm – Protein + Nuts
          Post WO/ Recovery smoothie
          Dinner – Pro + Grain / Root veg + fibrous veg

          The difference on a speed / speed endurance day is that I would probably have Porridge w/protein for breakfast and I would also consume simple CHO before and during training. I also tend to eat basically whatever I want post training if it was a big session. Sometimes I do beleive its just about calories and heck a Pizza is a good way of delivering calories!

          Every 1-2 weeks I will have a cheat day, with my idea behind that to make sure my metabolism does not crawl to a stop.

        • Participant
          comando-joe on January 25, 2012 at 2:27 am #114324

          It looks like i eat more than you guys, and this seems like me on a restricted diet because im always hungry –

          8am – porridge, 50g whey + vitamins
          12pm – cheese and ham sandwhich
          2pm – yoghurt + 50g whey
          4pm – snack like 2 piece fruit
          training
          7pm – 50g whey
          8pm – Dinner, anything goes really and normally quite a large meal + vitamins
          11pm – 50g whey + some cottage cheese.

        • Participant
          Nick Newman on January 25, 2012 at 9:14 am #114332

          What i eat will probably make you laugh. Scared to say really lol

        • Member
          Zack Trapp on January 25, 2012 at 10:02 am #114333

          What i eat will probably make you laugh. Scared to say really lol

          col
          chuckle out loud

        • Participant
          Josh Hurlebaus on January 25, 2012 at 1:21 pm #114342

          What i eat will probably make you laugh. Scared to say really lol

          Part of me thinks your and my diet aren’t too dissimilar

        • Participant
          Nick Newman on January 26, 2012 at 4:34 am #114361

          Lol. Lets just say ive never been like Craig when it comes to diet.

        • Member
          richard-703 on January 26, 2012 at 5:54 am #114363

          Nick,
          Have you ever tried a carefully designed diet?
          At your level, even if it only helped by 1% that’s 8cm…

        • Participant
          Nick Newman on January 26, 2012 at 10:30 am #114369

          Well, i’ve not no.

          For this week I have had the same breakfast as Craig kind of. 4 egg omelette with sliced ham, peppers, onions and spinach. I must say i’ve felt great during each practice. Before this I would have 2 bowls of cereal for breakfast and that’s it! hmmm :/

        • Member
          Zack Trapp on January 27, 2012 at 11:45 am #114385

          Ok, also, what do you guys think on supplemets?Creatine?

        • Participant
          Mccabe on January 27, 2012 at 9:49 pm #114394

          supplements are good, creatine is good. Ignore anything JC Cooper has to say on this matter.

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