Eating for Success

I do not profess to be a nutritionist. My background is in physiotherapy. I have studied part of a Human Movements degree (including some nutritional subjects), completed a fitness leadership certificate and been an athlete most of my life. My nutritional knowledge is by no means comprehensive and is not necessarily right for others. It works for me.

Nutrition in sport is paramount. When approaching major competitions, I am quite particular about my food intake. Back in 2000 I was a little misguided in my food consumption. I was told for every additional kilogram you weigh, you lose 10cm in jumping distance. I definitely believe that everybody has an ideal competition weight but lighter is not necessarily better. In 2000, I lost about 5kg in the Olympic village and dropped to 64kg for my competition. I felt a little lethargic at training and looking at pictures, I was definitely skinny but I wasn’t as lean as I am now. I cut out too much protein and as a result, I wasn’t as strong and it may have negatively influenced my performance. Incidentally I put on 9kg within 2 weeks following the Olympics.

Over the next few years I discussed nutrition with experts and I experimented with my food to achieve a good competition weight whilst remaining strong. I don’t think I really defined what works for me until 2003. In 2003, even though I hurt my knee a month before the World Championships, I was able to maintain good weight and reduce my skinfolds. To achieve this, it is vital to keep up protein intake, particularly lean cuts of meat. I always cut out foods that are fried and those that are high in simple sugars (except I keep eating fruit). This means no lollies, take-away like McDonalds, cakes, soft drinks and other high sugar drinks or sweets (except low-fat yogurt). Many people would know that I didn’t eat chocolate for 10 years prior to the Commonwealth Games. I exercised the same discipline with ice-cream too. These sorts of foods may be ok to eat periodically in small quantities but daily consumption is not something I would recommend. I won’t eat either again until I finish competing.

Recently I was in Germany and out at dinner. The menu didn’t have many options that I liked and I commented that I am a little particular with my food. Another girl at the table agreed that she was quite particular. I settled on a salad with protein in it. The other girl decided to get a meal somewhere else. I was shocked to hear that she went to Burger King. Not what I classify as being particular! I later discussed her eating habits and she told me that she eats take-away every day at home for lunch and dinner. Whilst rooming with her, she was hungry and felt like a snack so she went and got herself a chocolate bar, again not the most nutritious snack. This girl was not running well in her event and it appeared the longer she was away, the worse her performances became. Although I can’t say that her diet was solely to blame, I’m sure it wasn’t assisting her performance. She also complained of being tired and lethargic. I’m fairly certain the lack of nutritional value in her fast food diet was contributing to her state.

Foods high in simple sugars will often cause sugar highs but these are followed by troughs (or lows). Fast food often isn’t made from fresh ingredients and the production methods often reduce their vitamins and minerals. It is important to keep some fat in your diet. Avoid saturated fats (like animal fats) because they increase your bad cholesterol. Good fats, like those in fish, avocados, nuts and legumes are important and help to reduce bad cholesterol. Also, fat actually stimulates your satiety centre in your brain to tell you that you’re full. Therefore, if you eat meals without fat in them, or if they are high in simple sugars you’re likely to always be hungry or become hungry shortly after meals.

Eating is also an important part of recovery for training - vital for success. It is suggested that for speedy recovery you should consume a small amount of protein and carbohydrates within 30 minutes of completing exercise.

(Men may wish to skip this paragraph) As a female, your menstruation can also be a good indicator if you are healthy or not. Often females who aren’t eating enough or are too lean have problems with menstruating. I become very lean when I compete in major competitions (and I am probably one of the leanest females in Australian Track and Field) but never to the extent that I skip a cycle. If you are having this problem then it can result in other problems like with bone mineral density and associated injuries. This is definitely something to discuss with a nutritionist or physician if you have problems in this area.

In a typical day during competition phase, breakfast will consist of yogurt and fruit, a tuna salad for lunch, dinner is fish/chicken (and less frequently, red meat) with salad or vegetables (including stir-fry). Additional snacks during the day would include fruit, dried fruit, nuts and sometimes I’ll eat a tin of tuna. It is important to have large portions, particularly of the protein to ensure adequate recovery and to keep energy levels up.

Out of competition, I am heavier and I think it is important for a number of reasons - you don’t want to reduce your metabolism, being too light can negatively impact on your immune system and to be completely honest - I love food! I think it is good to treat yourself. I think during competition, you need some discipline. I like the discipline and I like to stand on the runway and know that I have done everything I can to win, including eating right, not consuming alcohol and training smart. I aim to be around 67-68kg when I compete and then at a major competition I might drop another kilogram due to nervous energy.

Be all you can be and minimise your intake of unhealthy foods or discuss your nutrition with a dietician / nutritionist.