Carbohydrate is an essential fuel for exercise. The body makes its own carbohydrate store, known as glycogen. Glycogen can be broken down to provide energy more quickly than fat, the body's other major energy store. However, only limited amounts of glycogen can be stored. This means that regular training carries the risk of glycogen depletion. Low glycogen stores will mean a more sluggish performance and an increased risk of injury. It is therefore important to consume sufficient carbohydrates to avoid burnout.

Although what a rower eats on the day of a race is important, it is even more important that they are able to maintain glycogen in the muscle at an optimum level to support their training regime for the days leading up to the competition. To support the high energy requirements requires a diet which is high in carbohydrate; adequate in protein, vitamins, minerals and fluids, and minimal in fat.

Without attention to diet composition the rower runs the risk of gradually depleting glycogen stores during each training session and never allowing the muscle to fully regain its potential supply. This situation not only makes it difficult to obtain the greatest benefits from a training programme, it also means the athlete could enter the competition with glycogen stores that are unable to sustain an all-out competitive effort.

Recommended Levels

Studies on rowers suffering from low energy and the inability to train at the level they are used to, showed that only 36 percent of their daily calories came from carbohydrate - well below the recommended 60 percent level. In reality they were not eating enough carbohydrate foods to provide the necessary glycogen levels to support their training. Their goal was to change their diets to maximise their training and competitive efforts.

During a period of regular training, eating lots of carbohydrate-rich foods will encourage your body to store glycogen. A guideline to aim for is 8-lOg of carbohydrate per kg of body weight per day.

For an average man (70kg), this would mean aiming for a daily intake of 560-700g. Tips for boosting your ‘carbo’ intake are to cut back on fat and to increase carbohydrates:

• • Base meals around carbohydrate foods such as potatoes, pasta, rice, bread etc.
  
• • Eat smaller portions of fat-rich foods (eg meat, pies, cheese) and fill up with extra potatoes or bread.
  
• • Porridge makes a good high-carbohydrate start to the day.
  
• • Drink fruit juice with meals, and a milky drink at bedtime.
  
• • Try carbohydrate-rich snacks that are also low in fat: eg fresh or dried fruit, water biscuits spread with jam.
  
• • Choose pasta sauces based on tomatoes or vegetables rather than meat or cheese.
  
  

For a list of Carbohyrdrates and Protein click Food for Rowers which you can also download as a pdf.

After Training

After training you need to replenish your glycogen stores quickly. It's best to take advantage of the fact that the body is more likely to make glycogen immediately AFTER exercising - the sooner, the better. Some foods are better than others for this - the best are those with a high 'glycaemic index' (GI) (a term which means they will bring about a large surge in blood sugar). Examples of such foods are: bread (white or wholemeal), rice, potatoes, raisins, bananas, glucose, sucrose and honey. If you can't face eating straight after exercising, try a ‘carbo-rich’ drink instead.

Fat can be stored by the body in larger amounts, and can also be used to fuel energy demands, however, carrying excess body fat is usually detrimental to performance. Fat is also less efficient than carbohydrate at producing calories from the limited amount of oxygen available during flat-out exercise.

Fluids

For many athletes, dehydration is something to watch out for. Even moderate fluid losses can mean operating at less than 80 percent of your potential, and more significant losses could be dangerous to your health.

The answer is to drink. Water is perfectly adequate for most purposes. However, if you're exercising under particularly hot conditions, you may want to consider one of the commercially formulated sports drinks. Isotonic and hypotonic sports drinks are designed to zap water into your bloodstream as fast as possible, and a number of studies have found that they have a slight edge over plain water.

A good indication that you are properly hydrated is the colour of your urine. Try to make sure it is always clear – if it is yellow or dark yellow then you have not been drinking enough water.

Iron

Many athletes run the risk of low iron, partly because the stresses of their sport lead to increased losses of iron from the body. A number of studies have found that people in regular training have low levels of ferritin, a body store of iron. People with low iron stores complain of tiredness and poor recovery from training. If the situation becomes worse, and haemoglobin (the form in which iron is transported around in the blood) levels fall, anaemia could result, with symptoms of severe fatigue, cramps, headaches and shortness of breath.

So what can you do if you suspect you're iron deficient? Iron supplements are available, and taking some for a few days to see if you notice any improvement could help identify if you really are deficient. However, supplements are commonly associated with side-effects such as nausea and heartburn, so your best bet is to try and boost your iron intake by dietary means. Even if you don't suffer immediate side-effects, you should seek medical advice before taking an iron supplement regularly, because it's also possible to suffer health problems from too much iron!

• Haem iron foods: liver, liver pate, lean steak, chicken (dark meat), fish, oysters, salmon

• Non-haem iron foods: eggs, breakfast cereal (fortified), wholemeal bread, spinach (cooked), lentils/kidney beans (cooked), tofu, sultanas, dried apricots, almonds, cocoa.

Haem iron is better absorbed by the body than non-haem. However, absorption of non-haem iron is enhanced by vitamin C, so include some raw or lightly cooked vegetables with a meal, or drink fruit juice. Conversely, drinking tea or coffee will make the iron more difficult to absorb.

Supplements

Many studies of strength athletes have reported heavy use of dietary supplements. Favourites like amino acids arginine and ornithine, for example, are marketed as boosting growth hormone release, mimicking the effect of steroids. There is no proof that the small amounts of amino acids provided by these supplements have any effect at all on growth hormone levels or body condition.

High protein diets have been falsely associated with exercise training, due to the mistaken belief that this will lead to greater muscle mass and strength, simply because muscle itself is protein. But despite the influential power of advertising, a protein supplement will primarily just burn a large hole in your pocket. Nor is there any benefit in taking expensive individual amino acid supplements. It doesn't matter if excess protein is obtained from food or a supplement it still won't be turned into muscle.

In a recent test of over-the-counter supplements it was found that many of them contained banned substances which were NOT listed on the label. The ARA has very strong views on this as outlined below:

In addition to the ARA guidance, UK Guidelines on Sporting Supplements prepared jointly by the UK’s sports associations is helpful.
Basically the advice on supplements is DON’T – they are a waste of money and can be harmful

Useful Sources of Information

English Institute of Sport

Australian Institute of Sport

Food for Rowers

UK guidelines on supplements