Nutrition for training around the school day
Your daily living and training nutrition practices hold the greatest potential to influence your softball performance
Preparation for training is much more than what you do once you arrive at the field. Everything you do during the day and across the whole week, is assisting you in your training sessions. Your coaching team put a great deal of thought to design your training programs to work on the many fundamental things that will make you into the best softball athlete you can be. Programs are designed to improve fitness, endurance, strength, tactical and technical skills.
Nutrition plays a vital role in each, and every one of these training elements. Most athletes are particularly aware of their nutrition and hydration practices in the 24hrs that surround a game, however, if we compare the number of hours you spend training versus playing
AND consider that it is in the training environment and practice sessions that the majority of your skill acquisition occurs, it makes a lot of sense to be just as focused (if not more) around your general daily nutrition and training day practices.
Adequate fuelling and hydration preparation before training can also be part of your recovery plan. If you prepare well, not only will you get more from your session, but you will finish sessions less depleted, making the job of recovery easier.
The goal of a nutritious, daily training diet is to;
- Provide your body with all its nutrient needs, remembering that requirements for some nutrients will be increased because of the training program and because you are still growing.
- Promote recovery between training sessions with practices that will rapidly replenish fluid and fuel stores, and allow the body to recover and adapt to the training and competition load (more on recovery to come). This is especially important if you train more than once per day or, on consecutive days (whether this be softball or other sport and exercise you might do during the week)
- Create opportunities in training to try out your game day eating practices, such as the type and timing of your pre-game meal, and nutrition and hydration strategies during the game. Training sessions, especially those that are similar to match play, are a great time to work out things like;
- How close to training can I eat to feel energised, but also comfortable in my gut
- What are the specific foods and fluids that feel best before training?
- What do I like to eat or drink during sessions? Is this different during the day, at night, on hot days, on cool days?