NUTRITION & FITNESS

HYDRATION GUIDELINES FOR SOCCER PLAYERS DURING HOT WORKOUTS

Gary Nelson, President Acceleration Indiana

Sources- Frappier Acceleration Sports Nutrition

-Guidelines for Hot Workouts - Nanna L. Meyer, PH.D., Acceleration Sports Nutritionist

 

August, in Indiana, is typically hot, sometimes very hot and humid.  Intense exercise at temperatures greater than 80°F, particularly in combination with humidity greater than 40%, can lead to a rapid rise in the body’s core temperature and therefore a risk of exertional heat illnesses.  This typically occurs during pre-season training and is caused by multiple factors: hot/humid environment, poor fitness level, excessive body fat/weight, dehydration, inadequate clothing, and abuse of dietary supplements.

             

Fluid the Transporter           

Water makes up approximately 60% of the human body.  Thus, to    complete critical functions during exercise, your body requires water.

·  Water delivers nutrients to cells and removes waste products

·  Water hydrates cells and replenishes nutrients

·  Water cools the body through sweating

             

Dehydration results in decreased performance and can lead to serious health issues. Therefore, it is important to recognize the signs and symptoms of dehydration to be able to maintain optimal performance.  Signs and symptoms include:

·  Fatigue, decreased mental concentration

·  Muscle cramps, headaches

·  Decreased appetite, weight fluctuation

·  Thirst, dry skin, brittle hair

             

The best way to maintain fluid balance throughout the day is to monitor the color of your urine, which should resemble diluted lemonade.

 

Training Camp Strategies (Late Summer)

Become heat acclimated:  In a hot climate train at lower intensities for 1-2 weeks.  Start each training session with low intensity and build slowly.  Increase training load slowly each day of the week.

Maintain daily fluid balance.  Measure your weight each morning after the first workout.  Fluctuations of 2-3% body weight or greater may indicate that fluid loss is greater than fluid replacement.  Increased fluid intake is required to regain fluid balance.

Drink sensibly and avoid under- and overhydration:  Optimize rather than maximize fluid intake.  Avoid starting your workouts thirsty.  Watch your urine color, it should resemble diluted lemonade.

Choose a variety of fluids with your meals and snacks:  Water, low-fat and skim milk, juice or diluted juices are good options.  Avoid drinking large amounts of soda and other carbonated and caffeine-containing fluids.  Limit your intake to one 8-12 oz. serving per day.  Fluids contained in fruit, vegetables, soups, pasta, rice, oatmeal, potatoes, and dairy products also count towards your daily fluid intake.

 

Use these guidelines for exercise:

Before: Drink 12-20 oz. of water 1-2 hours before exercise, including 8oz. during warmup.

During: Drink 7-10oz. every 15-20 minutes during exercise.

After: Drink 24oz. after exercise for each pound lost.

More individual guidelines need to be based on 1) your hourly sweat loss during exercise and 2) your total fluid loss after your workout.  See example at the end of the article.

Typical sweat loss rate for high school soccer players doing pre-season workouts with a temperature of 75-78°F and moderate humidity are:

Female soccer player: 16-24 oz. /hour

Male soccer player: 32-40 oz. /hour

Fluid replacement during exercise equals 100% replacement.

Fluid replacement after exercise equals 150% replacement.

 

Ideal Composition of Hydrating Fluids:

Water or carbohydrate-containing drink

-Carbohydrate:

-Compositions: 5-8%

-Amount: 14-15g/8 oz.

-Type: Glucose, glucose polymers, mixture of sugars (glucose, sucrose, maltodextrine)

-Sodium: 110mg/8 oz.

-Potassium: 30mg/8 oz.

             

             

Summary-Good hydration is composed of:

·  Non-exercise days-  Drinking a minimum of 40-48 oz. of water throughout the day.

·  Exercise days- Drinking adequate water and sports drinks, before, during, and after exercise as described as above.

·  Hot and humid days-  Adjust fluid intake for weather conditions monitor your weight and urine color.

·  Drinking nutritious fluids such as milk and juice.

·  Drinking minimal fluids with a dehydration potential such as soda and coffee.

·  Remember that thirst is unreliable to determine fluid needs. Therefore, athletes must drink before feeling thirsty.

·  The best way to maintain fluid balance throughout the day is to monitor the color of your urine, which should resemble diluted lemonade.

Make sure you got adequate sleep and rest each night.  For more information on Acceleration Indiana visit our website www.accelindy.com or call (317) 842-2702.

 

 

Welcome to Acceleration Indiana. We have formed a relationship with Fishers Soccer Club that we expect to be mutually beneficial to both organizations. We will be providing useful articles on nutrition for soccer players and how to improve your athletic performance as a soccer player. We will also provide training tips to help you become a better player and reduce your risk of injury. We will also provide a financial rebate to Fishers Soccer Club for each player who signs up for an Acceleration introduction session.  Also watch for special announcements through out the year regarding training options for Fishers Soccer players.  In this article we will introduce ourselves and give you some background on Acceleration Indiana. The second part of this article deals with basic nutrition guidelines for soccer players with a focus on fueling the body for performance.

 

Acceleration Indiana Sports Training Centers

Acceleration Indiana was founded in 1993 by David Nelson and Gary Nelson when we acquired the rights to the Frappier Acceleration Sports Training System. John Frappier is a noted Exercise Physiologist who spent many years researching and working in a Sports Medicine Clinic on how to improve athletic performance more effectively and efficiently. He achieved outstanding success with youth, professional, and elite athletes and used this base of knowledge to develop the Frappier Acceleration Sports Training System or FAST.

Based on over 20 years of research in Exercise Physiology and the Biomechanics of human movement the FAST program has grown to over 150 sites in the U.S., Canada, Europe and Asia, and has trained over 250,000 athletes, including over 2,000 professional athletes with great success. For more background go to: www.frappieracceleration.com.

Here in Indianapolis, Acceleration Indiana has trained thousands of athletes from youth to professional, in over 24 different sports, with consistent and excellent results since 1994.  We are proud to have helped many players achieve recognition and championships since 1994 including:  Miss Soccer Indiana, National Girls Player of the Year, High School All Americans, Indiana State High School Championships, 1st Team All State, etc.  Many of our soccer athletes start training with us in grade school and return each year to continue improving their performance.  We are proud to have helped many players achieve Division I and other collegiate soccer programs and scholarships.

 

Soccer Programs

We offer programs for boys and girls at all levels, beginner to elite  Training with our program will improve your acceleration and speed to beat your opponent to the ball, to accelerate past the defender, to get in position for the pass, to move the ball faster down the field.  You’ll improve your agility for changing direction quickly on the field.  You’ll improve your body coordination and balance for executing soccer moves like passing, dribbling, and kicking more accurately.  To maintain your quickness, acceleration, speed, and agility for the entire game, you’ll see significant improvement in your soccer stamina.  We accomplish this by focusing on enhancing your anaerobic energy systems.

Injury Resistance(especially non-contact lower extremity injuries such as knees, hips, legs, ankles) is enhanced with your improved strength, power, balance, flexibility, and core strength.

Pre/Post Testing

We pretest each athlete and tailor our program specifically for that athlete. Training sessions are one on one to ensure proper attention to that athlete’s needs. At the completion of the program each athlete is post tested and a report is provided so that you can see, by measurements, how much improvement has taken place.

 

Acceleration Indiana Staff

Our staff is highly educated with most trainers having degrees in the fields of Exercise Physiology, Biomechanics, and Exercise Science. They must also go through our Acceleration Certification process and pass tests in Exercise Science, Physics, Biomechanics, Sprinting and Running Mechanics, Strength, Power Training and sport specific skills such as soccer kicking. Most of our staff have played sports at the collegiate level, including soccer, and therefore know first hand the kind of effort it takes to succeed at that level.

 

Soccer Kicking and Goalkeeping

We offer our unique soccer kicking program that utilizes our patented soccer kicking cords to develop greater power in your kick for higher ball velocities, greater consistency in your kick and improved accuracy. More balls in the goal equals more wins for the team. In addition we offer soccer goalie specific training so your goalie can move quicker multi-directionally, jump higher, move the arms quicker for those key saves, and punt, kick, or throw the ball farther to clear the goal. See the attached chart for results from our soccer kicking program.

 

For more information on Acceleration Indiana click on our web site

www.accelindy.com or email us at info@accelerationindiana.com

Or call our North Site at 317-842-2702, located behind the Galaxy 14 movie theatre on 96th St. near I-69. Or call our Southside site at 317-786-6000, located 1 block south of Epler Ave on SR 135

 

Fueling for Soccer Performance

Courtesy of Acceleration Indiana

The following article has been written for Acceleration by Nanna Meyer, PhD., R.D, assisted by Emily Hoagland, B.A. and Shawn Dolan, PhD., R.D.  Nanna Meyer is head consultant to Frappier Acceleration Corp. and Facilities regarding Nutrition for athletes.  She is currently working for the Orthopedic Specialty Hospital (TOSH) in Salt Lake City, which also operates 6 Acceleration Facilities in Salt Lake City and Utah.

 

Carbohydrate

The largest nutritional concern in soccer players of any age is depleted energy stores late in the game and at practice.  Studies have shown that players often have low muscle glycogen, which is carbohydrate stored in the muscle and used for energy, after games.  Low glycogen stores have even occurred by halftime in games, causing slower running speeds, and thought to be responsible for a slower game pace in the second half.  Players with adequate muscle glycogen stores do not experience this drop in performance; thus, replacing carbohydrates during the game and practice seems extremely important in order to sustain optimal effort and avoid injury.  Drinking sport drinks is an easy way to replace carbohydrates, while hydrating at the same time.  Athletes should also be sure to eat a carbohydrate-rich meal several hours before and within the first hour after a game or practice when the rate of replacing muscle glycogen stores ishighest.

 

Because depleted glycogen stores in muscle are the leading cause of fatigue in soccer players, carbohydrate intake is the major nutritional focus for these athletes.  Carbohydrate is also the main energy source for the brain, so a diet with adequate carbohydrates allows athletes to concentrate and make important tactical decisions both on and off the field. The typical athlete’s diet usually provides only moderate amounts of carbohydrate (about 55% of total calories or 250 g for an athlete weighing 110 lbs), which is not ideal.  Athletes participating in soccer and practicing for 2-3 hours per day should eat at least 6 g of carbohydrate per kilogram of body weight (2-3 g per pound), or 300 g for a 110-pound athlete, to sustain activity level and to adequately recover from day to day.  For athletes who train twice a day or perform in tournaments with multiple games per day, carbohydrate requirements are higher (between 8-10 g of carbohydrate per kilogram of body weight per day [3.5-4.5 g per pound] or 350-500 g per day). Optimal carbohydrate sources include whole grain cereals, breads, pasta, rice, potatoes, fruits and vegetables, and sport drinks (see Table 1 A and B to put numbers into practice!).

 

A soccer player’s diet should provide adequate energy from food to balance energy expended through daily living and growth, as well as training and competition and should include a variety of foods with carbohydrates, protein, and fat.  As a general rule, athletes should strive to fill two thirds of their plates with carbohydrate-rich foods at every meal.  The rest of the plate should be filled with a lean source of protein as well as colorful fruits and vegetables, with moderate amounts of fat used for cooking and flavor.

 

Protein

Protein is also an important nutrient for soccer players.  Protein is necessary for building and repairing of muscle, proper immune function, and hormone production.  Protein also provides a small amount of energy during very long or intense exercise bouts, such as long soccer games interspersed with sprints.  The typical athlete’s diet provides adequate amounts of protein, but athletes who restrict their diets, picky eaters, and/or vegetarians may not get enough protein, and therefore, should pay special attention to their protein intake.  Young athletes should consume 75-90 g of protein per day (estimation for an athlete weighing 50 kg or 110 lbs).  Optimal protein sources include poultry, lean red meat, fish, eggs, soy products, low-fat dairy products, and nuts and legumes (see Table 2).

 

Fat

Fat is another important nutrient for young athletes.  Fat is the also a key fuel for soccer performance, besides carbohydrate, particularly when exercise intensity is lower (between sprints). Excessive restriction of fat can limit this energy source and can also result in nutrient deficiencies that may affect the health of the athlete. When choosing the best sources, fat from vegetable oils (olive and canola), nuts, seeds, soy products, and fish should be preferred over fats from butter, cheese, bacon, and fast food (see Table 3 for examples and serving sizes).

 

Fluid Replacement

Fluid loss and dehydration are also of concerns for soccer players.  Many games are played during warm, sunny weather, which increases fluid losses.  Most players usually only replace half of the fluids they lose through sweat during a game or practice, but performance can suffer with losses of as little as 2% of body weight (2 lbs for a 110-lb athlete).  To prevent dehydration, players should begin each practice session or game fully hydrated by drinking water or a sport drink every 15-20 minutes during warm-up.  Sport drinks are helpful because the flavor often motivates athletes to drink more, while supplying energy.  When play stops (when a goal is scored or the ball goes out of bounds), players may take the opportunity to sip on fluid.  Placing water bottles along the sidelines and near each goal will make this much easier.  Lastly, soccer players should always practice their fluid replacement and fueling strategies in training so that it will become automatic for games. Fluid replacement strategies are most effective when based on body weight changes from pre- to post-game or practice. Players should avoid losing more than 1-2% of their body weight during games or practices, especially in the heat. 

 

Check back in about two weeks for a follow up article on “Eating on Tournament Days.”