You've probably heard of athletes supplementing their training routine with a healthy sports diet. Of course, this is important in order to stand out from the competition in terms of power density today. But why do nuts play such an important role in the nutrition of conscious athletes?
We will address this question in this post. In doing so, we not only clarify why nuts are such an important part of everyday sports, but also what you can take with you – no matter how often you exercise.
In order to make the whole thing as clear as possible, we will first discuss the reasons for a sufficient nut intake before we go into practice and show you how you can incorporate this knowledge into your everyday sporting life.
Do athletes have an increased need for nutrients?
If you want to be successful in your respective sport, you have to train a lot. So far so good – but how does this affect dietary habits? Do you, as an athlete, need more nutrients through training? Or is it enough to follow the general nutrient recommendations?
To answer this question, there are two factors to consider. Firstly, energy is burned during sporting activity. Secondly, the body needs enough nutrients to regenerate. Thus, athletes do have an increased need for energy and nutrients.
How much additional energy is needed depends very much on the sporting activity itself. While jogging is more likely to burn fat, high-intensity exercise such as HIIT (High-Intensity Interval Training) primarily breaks down carbohydrate stores.
Basically, you can keep the following in mind: strenuous exercise – one speaks of a "high intensity" – consumes more carbohydrates . With less strenuous but longer-lasting loads, more fat tends to be metabolized.
How many carbohydrates, fats & proteins do athletes need?
In principle, the recommendations for athletes are similar to those for the general population. Consequently, carbohydrates should cover 50-55% of energy needs, protein intake should be 12-15%, and fat consumption should be the remaining 30-35%.
Only for high-performance athletes does the distribution change a little. However, competitive sports are usually only referred to from a training period of 12 hours per week or more.
As a result, most sports enthusiasts are more likely to be amateur or fitness athletes . Even if your workout duration does not exceed 30-60 minutes 3-4 times a week , you can rely on the percentages mentioned above. However, what you should pay particular attention to is the need for micronutrients.
As an athlete, you need so many minerals, vitamins, and the like
When you sweat during sports, the body not only loses water but also minerals. In this way, not only magnesium but also calcium and, above all, sodium are lost. In addition, the load also requires more iron and potassium. In order to avoid an undersupply, you should therefore pay attention to a sufficient supply of minerals .
Whether you also have an increased vitamin requirement as an athlete has not yet been fully clarified. However, what can be said with certainty is this: as an athlete, you should definitely avoid a lack of vitamins . This is because many vitamins play an important role in sports activities and regeneration.
Vitamin C promotes the storage of iron, thiamine (vitamin B1) ensures a functioning carbohydrate metabolism, and vitamin E is important for oxygen supply. Thus, all these vitamins influence athletic performance and thus also the desired training adaptations.
What role do nuts play in the diet in sports?
As we have now learned, as an athlete, you should avoid an undersupply of nutrients. Since nuts are excellent suppliers of nutrients, they are an ideal source of them.
Nuts not only provide you with plenty of healthy fats , but also provide a large amount of protein . They also supply the body with important minerals and vitamins . For example, you can cover a considerable part of your vitamin B and E needs with one serving of nuts. In addition, many types of nuts contain plenty of magnesium, calcium, potassium, and iron . Thus, they cover exactly the nutrients that athletes in particular urgently need.
Should I eat nuts before or after exercise?
Now the question arises as to when it is best to eat the daily portion of nuts. Should you eat nuts before exercising or after? The answer is neither. Because when it comes to exercising , you should pay more attention to a low-fat diet . This is because fat stays in the stomach for a longer time and thus literally "lies in the stomach" during exercise.
However, smaller amounts of fat do not play such a big role – especially if they are consumed at a considerable distance from exercise. You can find our personal tip for the ideal breakfast before exercising here. It is best if you consume the nuts with a little distance from the sport. How exactly you incorporate them into your diet is of course up to you – but we would like to give you a few inspirations along the way.
How can I incorporate nuts into my diet?
Nuts are ideal as a companion for breakfast, but also as a snack in between. Nuts are particularly useful as a topping for your smoothie bowl or porridge , to give the meal a bit of a bite and also to spice it up a bit nutritionally. Or you can try these delicious nut energy balls:
Nut Energy Balls
Accessories
-
Food processor
Ingredients
- 6 dates
- 1 tsp chia seeds
- 1 tbsp oatmeal
- 1 tbsp cocoa powder
- 1.5 tbsp peanut butter or other nut butter
Toppings (at will)
- grated nuts
- coconut flakes
- poppy
Preparation
-
If you have dates that have not been de-stoned, de-stone the dates first and then put the dates in your food processor.
-
Next, add the remaining ingredients and mix everything together well until a sticky mass is formed.
-
Then form small balls from the mass.
-
If you like, you can also roll the balls in grated nuts, grated coconut, or poppy seeds.
-
You can enjoy the balls right away or store them in the fridge.
Nutritional values
Conclusion
Nuts not only help cover energy needs but also provide plenty of micronutrients. Thus, they are an important part of the daily diet, especially for athletes , as they support the body from both a health and performance perspective. In addition, they can be easily integrated into everyday life and give your dishes a special flavor.
Calculate your BMI now with the BMI calculator
With VERIVAL, you can easily and quickly calculate your BMI value with the BMI calculator. It does not matter whether you want to lose weight, just want to do something for your health, or are currently engaged in muscle-building training. The body mass index is often the first measurement that shows you whether you have your body weight under control.
