News For
SWIM PARENTS
Published by The American Swimming Coaches Association
5101 NW 21 Ave., Suite 200
Fort Lauderdale FL 33309
___________________________________________________________________
What Should My Child Be Eating
Before And During His Competition
Answered by: Keith B. Wheeler, Ph.D.
The pre-competition meal is really a “mini nutrition period” that occurs in the
4 or 5 hours before the start of the meet. Unfortunately, many swimmers don’t
understand the exact role of the pre-competition meal. It has little effect on
increasing muscle glycogen levels. It is foods eaten 3 to 4 days before a meet
that help establish glycogen levels in the muscles. By Meet days, glycogen
levels are mostly “set” and there is little that one can do to increase them in
the hours before competition.
The pre-event meal is important for maintaining the blood glucose and liver
glycogen stores, key energy sources used in the early stages of competition. By
maintaining blood glucose levels at the start of the meet, the dependency on
muscle glycogen will be delayed, and that helps prolong endurance. To avoid
stomach upset, nausea or that “stuffed” feeling, consume the meal 3 to 4 hours
before the start of the meet. Avoid spicy, fatty, and high fiber foods, too.
These are difficult to digest and may cause intestinal distress or nausea later
during the meet. You’re child will swim more comfortably when he’s eaten
easy-to-digest foods, and his stomach is relatively empty. Nutrition
conscious athletes now avoid traditional food such as the steak dinner, as well
as other high fat, high protein foods like hamburgers, French fries, chips and
mayonnaise. These foods remain in the stomach too long and slow down the
digestion process. Foods that are rich in complex carbohydrates are generally
easier to digest and empty from the stomach faster than high-fat, high protein
foods. That’s important, because not only do you want to swim on a relatively
empty stomach, you also want the foods you eat to be efficiently converted to
energy. Cereals, pasta, baked potatoes and muffins are good carbohydrate sources
that are easily digested and converted into glucose.
Vegetables and fruit juices are also good pre-vent meal items, as well as some
dairy items like low fat yogurt, ice milk and low fat milk.
Swimmers, who prefer a light, non-filling pre-competition meal often, substitute
a sport nutrition beverage. EXCEED nutritional beverage is an ideal choice for
your pre-competition meal: it’s nutritionally complete and well balanced, so you
won’t sacrifice essential nutrients if you use it in place of solid food.
Once your child’s competition is under way, his body still needs fluids and
nutrients to sustain physical effort and fight fatigue. Although many coaches
and swimmers don’t realize it, dehydration can be a problem in swimming,
especially if the air and water temperatures are warm. Remember, sweating is the
body’s main mechanism for cooling itself; even though his practice and
competition takes place in the water, he can still lose a great deal of body
water in the form of sweat.
Additionally, water is also needed to aid digestion and energy production.
Dehydration robs his body of the primary means to cool itself and generate
energy. Your swimmer should observe good nutritional and hydration habits in the
time before he competes. If there are several hours before your child’s event,
then he can enjoy a light snack or refreshment if he wishes. But if he’s going
to swim right away or his event is an hour or less away, he should be very
cautious about what he eats and drinks. In the hour preceding competition, he
should drink, fruit juices, and beverages or snacks that contain sugar in any
form aren’t appropriate this close to competition. They can trigger a sudden
drop in blood glucose (hypoglycemia) with the onset of intense activity.
Additionally; drinks that contain high concentrations of sucrose (table sugar)
tend to empty from the stomach more slowly than water. You don’t want to start
swimming with a stomach full of anything, including liquids.
Once his event is underway, his fluid requirements change. His body loses water
in the form of sweat, particularly in the distance events, and it should be
replaced. Good nutrition is something that you apply everyday throughout the
season…not just the day before the meet.