Nutrition for Sporting Performance

Fuel, recovery and consistency - without overcomplicating it.

Sporting performance is built on training, skill and mindset. Food sits underneath all of that as the quiet infrastructure that decides whether your body can execute what your brain is asking of it.

Whether you compete, train most days, or play sport at weekends, the foundations are the same: you need enough energy to train well, enough carbohydrate to sustain intensity, enough protein to recover and adapt, and a hydration strategy that keeps your system stable.

If you’re reading Balancing Act, you’ll recognise this as the Mental-Physical Paradigm in action: performance relies on integration. Nutrition is one of the levers that makes your energy, clarity and recovery more predictable over time.

When nutrition is inconsistent, the signs tend to show before anything dramatic happens:

• sessions feel harder than they should
• mood and concentration dip
• recovery slows
• illness risk rises
• motivation becomes more fragile

A well-planned diet supports training quality and the adaptations you’re aiming for: fitness gains, strength development, endurance, speed, or body composition.

The daily training diet and what it needs to do:

A solid training diet should cover a few core jobs:

• provide enough energy for the demands of training and daily life
• support recovery between sessions and protect sleep quality
• build long-term habits that are realistic, not perfect
• support a body composition that suits your sport and your goals
• maintain hydration before, during and after exercise

This is the 'boring' part of performance that elite athletes do exceptionally well: they reduce avoidable friction by keeping the basics consistent.

Most athletes do well when their intake roughly balances:

• carbohydrates as the main training fuel
• protein for repair and adaptation
• fats for health, hormone function and sustained energy

You don’t need to track macros to apply this. You do need to notice whether you’re consistently under-fuelling (common in busy professionals who train) or relying too heavily on low-nutrient foods when stressed or time-poor.

A good baseline: wholegrains, fruit, vegetables, lean proteins, dairy (or alternatives), nuts/seeds, and fats from foods like olive oil and avocado. Highly processed high-fat foods have a habit of creeping in when you’re tired and rushed, so having 'default' meals you can repeat is useful.

Carbohydrates and exercise -  the main fuel system:

Carbohydrates break down into glucose, which can be stored as glycogen in your muscles and liver. That glycogen is a key energy source during exercise, particularly as intensity rises.

When carbohydrate intake is too low for your training load, common outcomes include:

• lower training quality
• early fatigue
• slower recovery
• higher perceived effort for the same session

Carbohydrate needs vary depending on training volume and intensity. A light training day isn’t the same as a long endurance day, and the best approach is to scale carbohydrate intake with the demands of the week.

Carbs for fuel and recovery

Carbohydrates aren’t only about getting through the session. They also support recovery by replenishing glycogen afterwards. This matters even more when you’re training again the next day, or doing multiple sessions in close proximity.

Training with low carbohydrate availability

Some athletes experiment with 'train low' approaches (training with lower carbohydrate availability) to encourage certain training adaptations. This is a specialist strategy. It can add value in some programmes, but it also carries risks: reduced training quality, higher fatigue, and poorer recovery when it’s not planned carefully.

For most people, performance improves faster with a consistent fuelling strategy and a simple recovery routine.

Glycaemic index and performance

The glycaemic index (GI) describes how quickly carbohydrate foods influence blood glucose. In practice, total carbohydrate intake and timing usually matter more than GI alone.

Many athletes find that:

• lower GI choices can feel steadier before exercise
• moderate to higher GI options can feel easier to tolerate during exercise and in early recovery
• Your own gut comfort and preferences matter here. The 'best' plan is the one you can execute reliably.

Pre-event meals: what to aim for

A pre-event meal is about topping up fuel without upsetting your gut.

A common approach:

• a carbohydrate-rich meal 3–4 hours before the event
• a lighter snack 1–2 hours before, if it suits you
• hydration planned ahead of time rather than rushed at the last minute

Many people find high-fat, high-fibre, or very protein-heavy meals too close to exercise increase digestive discomfort. A carb-led meal with familiar foods usually lands better.

Practical options include cereal with milk (or alternative), toast with spreads, yoghurt with fruit, pasta with a tomato-based sauce, or a simple muesli bar. If nerves are high and solid food feels difficult, liquid options can be easier to tolerate.

Eating during exercise: when it becomes relevant

For sessions lasting more than about an hour, carbohydrate intake during exercise can delay fatigue by supporting blood glucose and sparing glycogen.

Key principle: start early and take small, regular amounts rather than leaving it until you feel depleted.

During long sessions, fluids also matter. Water may be sufficient for many situations, while sports drinks can be useful when duration, intensity or heat increases, because they provide carbohydrate and electrolytes together.

For very long endurance efforts, carbohydrate needs can be higher and are best personalised.

Eating after exercise: recovery that actually works

Recovery is where training becomes adaptation.

After training, priorities are:

• carbohydrate to replenish glycogen
• protein to support repair and muscle protein synthesis
• fluids to replace sweat losses

If you have another session within the next 8 hours, early recovery becomes more important. This is where more rapidly absorbed carbohydrate options can be useful alongside a normal meal pattern.

Convenient recovery choices include flavoured milk, yoghurt, cereal with milk, sandwiches, fruit, pasta dishes, smoothies, or a meal that includes both carbs and protein.

Hydration after exercise matters as well. Many athletes finish sessions with a fluid deficit. A practical approach is to monitor how much weight you lose during long sessions and replace fluids deliberately afterwards.

Protein and performance: repair, adaptation, resilience

Protein supports recovery and adaptation and is often already sufficient in athletes who eat enough energy overall. For those training hard, protein needs are slightly higher than general population guidelines.

What tends to work best in practice:

• include protein at each meal
• spread intake across the day
• include a high-quality protein source in the window after exercise if building or preserving lean mass is a priority

Protein supplements don’t automatically improve performance. They’re convenience tools, not magic. Whole foods remain the best base because they bring micronutrients and broader nutritional quality.

Very high-protein diets can also introduce issues: cost, displacement of other nutritious foods, and unwanted increases in energy intake if protein sources are also high in fat.

Supplements: a cautionary note

Most vitamin and mineral needs can be met through food. Supplements tend to add value when there is a diagnosed deficiency or a specific, evidence-based need.

Sports supplements are also complicated by quality control and anti-doping risk. If you compete in tested sport, this is a serious consideration. If you’re not tested, quality and safety still matter.

If you’re considering supplements, it’s usually worth tightening the basics first: food quality, meal rhythm, hydration, sleep, and training structure. Those levers consistently outperform expensive powders.

Hydration, alcohol and performance

Hydration affects performance and safety. Dehydration can impair output and increase risk, especially in hot conditions or sessions longer than an hour.

A useful approach is to drink regularly through longer sessions and avoid relying on thirst alone.

There is also a lesser-known risk: excessive fluid intake can dilute blood sodium, leading to hyponatraemia. It’s rare, but it is serious. Drinking “as much as possible” is not a performance strategy.

Alcohol is also relevant. It’s energy dense, nutrient poor, and can interfere with recovery and sleep quality. If you’re in a high training block, alcohol tends to tax the very systems you’re trying to build.

If you’re using Balancing Act as your performance lens, nutrition fits naturally into:

• Energy Mapping: noticing when you crash, when appetite changes, and what fuelling patterns sit behind it
• Daily Calibration: building consistent defaults on training days and recovery days
• Mental-Physical Paradigm: treating nutrition as leadership and performance infrastructure, not a side project

If you want deeper insight, case context and the broader integration system (sleep, recovery, decision-making under load and sustainable rhythms), Balancing Act: Mastering Work, Wealth and Wellbeing expands this within the Mental-Physical chapters and the Calibration Toolkit.

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Sarah Brennand – Author of Balancing Act – Mastering Work, Wealth and Wellbeing.

Executive Coach, Speaker and Trainer.