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April 22, 2013 |
By Jill Castle, MS,
RDN
It’s
not uncommon to see teams of young swimmers filing into the local
Italian restaurant to load up on pasta the night before a big meet.
Or hear of parents planning to cook up a big meal with pasta, rice
or potatoes at home. The common conception is that loading up on a
high carbohydrate meal will prepare the muscles with a ready source
of glycogen (stored carbohydrate in the muscle) the following day,
usually a race day. As a result, the swimmer will avoid early
muscle fatigue, low energy, and the big bonus: swim fast.
So the thinking goes.
The problem with the idea of carbohydrate loading in young
athletes is that it is an approach based on what we know about the
adult metabolism of carbohydrate. The reality is there is little
scientific evidence supporting the benefit of this practice in
children.
Kids are not like adults when it comes to breaking down,
utilizing, and storing carbohydrate. Young swimmers (and all child
athletes) use fat more readily as an energy source, which is not
the case for adults. Young swimmers have a limited ability to store
large amounts of carbohydrate in their muscles. And females have
less overall muscle mass compared to males, and therefore, less
capacity for glycogen storage.
Also, swimming on race day generally occurs in short, fast bursts.
This limits the need for accessing glycogen and breaking it down, a
need associated with prolonged exercise. And the truth is, we
don’t have a lot of evidence that high carbohydrate intake
during prolonged training is beneficial in young athletes,
either.
While this may go against what you have long believed about
carbohydrate loading and general carbohydrate consumption for
swimmers, rest assured, researchers still advise a daily high
carbohydrate diet for young athletes.
They just don’t support the idea that there is a benefit to
carbohydrate loading for swimmers who are still growing. We do know
that as children age, their ability to metabolize (process)
carbohydrate becomes more adult-like.
The healthiest and best approach to getting the carbohydrate
needed for optimal swimming performance is to follow a training
diet that is loaded with fruits, vegetables, whole grains and low
fat dairy products. Just as important is getting the timing of
eating regulated. Eat every 3 to 4 hours, so there is a steady
supply of carbohydrate and nutrients to the muscles and brain.
Nailing these two nutrition strategies will keep the young swimmer
ready for competition without a need to “load” with
carbohydrate-rich foods the night before a meet, or go above and
beyond your normal healthy meal.
