This is sponsored content. See bottom of article for details.
With the 2018 Commonwealth nations coming together to compete in our own backyard on the Gold Coast, there’s an added motivation for our track cyclists to impress on home soil. With thanks to SiS Nutrition, we were given an insight in the nutrition that fuels our athletes in their search for gold and the importance of ensuring that its safe to consume.
Preparation
With the racing taking place in front of a home crowd for our Australian Track Cycling Team, it should come as little surprise that there’s added motivation to go the extra mile in ensuring the team is prepared as possible for success.
Almost equally as important as the efforts the athletes put in on the boards, is the fuel they put into their bodies. In the lead up to an event like the World Championships, or the battle of the Commonwealth nations, the athletes will pay particular attention ensuring they fuel their efforts on the bike with energy gels and powder.
These products provide the athletes with all important carbohydrates and electrolytes during sustained exercise. These products are designed to replenish salts and carbohydrates lost during vigorous exercise to ensure an athlete remains adequately hydrated.
Why Carbohydrates?
The term “carbohydrate” is synonymous with the world of sport and sports nutrition, and for good reason! Carbohydrates are a key fuel source for exercise, especially over a prolonged period, or if an athlete is performing high-intensity exercise.
Carbohydrates are stored in the body as glycogen and regardless of your fitness level, the average person has enough reserves to sustain exercise for around an hour to an hour and a half. Without the replenishment of carbohydrates, athletes risk depleting their glycogen stores, commonly referred to as “bonking”, or hitting the wall.
The carbohydrate requirements of individual athletes will differ between the individual, their training schedule, and competition program. For instance, a track sprinter would focus more on protein and electrolytes for recovery and short intense efforts, whereas an endurance athlete would require carbohydrates to ensure they’re adequately fuelled to complete a longer sustained effort. For more information on carbohydrates and why they are important for endurance athletes, check out this handy guide courtesy of the Australian Institue of Sport.
Recovery
Recovery is perhaps even more important as the effort an athlete puts in during training and competition. Recovery products are best consumed directly after exercise and often contain a mix of carbohydrates, protein, vitamins, and minerals.
These ingredients are key to an athlete being able to continue to get the best out of themselves between training sessions, or events, as they aid in replenishing depleted glycogen stores, rebuilding damaged muscle tissue and keep an athletes body functioning at its efficient best.
The Importance of Banned Substance Testing
With anti-doping agencies such as ASADA claiming that they see “approximately one athlete per month test positive due to supplements use”, there’s little denying the importance of ensuring the fuel that athletes use is free from contaminants.
So with such an emphasis put on performance and not wanting to jeopardise the athletes in their preparation, nutrition companies such as SiS go to the trouble of having all of their products triple batch tested. This process not only ensures that the supplements are safe for athletes to use, it also ensures that users are accessing only the highest quality supplements available. Head on over to SiS for more information on the importance of substance testing.
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This article is sponsored by SiS, the nutrition sponsor of the Australian Track Cycling Team. Imagery courtesy of Cor Vos
Ensure you're in the right nutritional space by securing your own FREE essential energy pack during the games courtesy of Science in Sport!
