Nutrition in Combat Sports

1 Nutrition in Combat Sports 11
response [21] . However, these findings have been refuted in other studies, especially
when the energy content of protein or amino acids included in recovery feedings was
matched (for review, see [15]). Nevertheless, the combination of protein and carbohydrate
in recovery meals or snacks may allow the combat athlete to meet other
nutritional goals, including the enhancement of net protein balance after exercise.
This may be important for the optimization of the goals of a hypertrophy-based training
program (see above), but may also be useful for recovery from a strenuous session
of training or competition leading to muscle damage and soreness [22] . Examples of
food combinations that provide a combination of protein and carbohydrate for a postexercise
recovery snack are shown in Table 1.4
Athletes have been advised to enhance recovery by consuming carbohydrate as
soon as possible after the completion of a workout or competition bout. The highest
rates of muscle glycogen storage occur during the first hour after exercise, and the
immediate intake of carbohydrate takes advantage of this effect [23] . Conversely,
the failure to consume carbohydrate during postexercise recovery leads to very low
rates of glycogen restoration until feeding occurs. Although early refueling may be
important when there are only 4–8 h between exercise sessions [23] , it may have
less impact over a longer recovery period [24] . Therefore, when the interval
between workouts or competition bouts is short or total energy intake is restricted,
the combat athlete should maximize the effective recovery time by beginning carbohydrate
intake as soon as possible. To achieve this, the athlete will need to have
suitable snacks and drinks on hand at the training or competition venue.
Alternatively, the daily timetable might be structured to allow combat athletes to eat
a meal straight after an exercise session. In situations of a long recovery period,
combat athletes can choose their preferred meal schedule as long as total carbohydrate
intake goals are achieved. In either scenario, when total energy intake is
restricted, the athlete should choose carbohydrate-rich foods that provide a valuable
source of other nutrients.
During training periods, most combat athletes can expect to be at least mildly
dehydrated at the end of workout, and should aim to restore fluid losses before the
next workout or competition bout. Anecdotally, many combat athletes do not hydrate
well during and after training sessions – this may be a legacy of their reliance on
dehydration to manipulate body weight for competition. It is possible that these
athletes have never developed good drinking behaviors during training sessions, or
that they are subconsciously happy to see “weight loss” occurring over the session,
even when they do not need to make weight. In some combat sports there are practical
limits on fluids consumption during competition bouts and sparing sessions
because of the discomfort of having fluid in the gut during high-intensity exercise or
gut contact. In competition, however, the major challenges of dehydration are likely
to be seen as a result of weight-making activities prior to competition.
It is unlikely that a combat athlete will find it easy to rehydrate where moderate
to high levels of hypohydration have been incurred (e.g., a fluid deficit equivalent to
2–5% body mass or greater) and the interval for rehydration is less than 6–8 h.
Voluntary intake is enhanced when fluids are flavored and kept at a cool temperature
[25] , and when sodium is consumed to preserve thirst [26] . Therefore, in situations