Sport Nutrition and Dairy

"Good nutrition and physical activity go hand in hand!"

An understanding of nutrition and how it affects sports performance is vital in order to get the most from your sport, at every level. If you want to improve your performance in sport, be it rugby, swimming, netball, weight lifting, sprinting, cycling, long distance running, motorcycling sport, etc. it is important to know how to give your body the right energy for engaging in the activity and maintaining performance.

Endurance athletes have to replenish their body’s glycogen stores during and after exercise, since exercise (lasting more than one hour) decreases liver and muscle glycogen stores, leading to reduced performance and eventual exhaustion after complete depletion.

Carbohydrates, stored in the human body, are the most important source of energy fuel, readily available for muscles during strenuous exercise. Intense sports activities also trigger the undesired breakdown of muscle protein during and after exercise, which contributes to reduced performance.  Including protein in post-exercise meals provides essential amino acids needed for muscle repair and growth which speeds up recovery and decreases injury risk.

Dairy products, especially fat-free milk, flavoured milk and drinking yoghurt, have become popular beverages amongst sports people as they help with rehydration, muscle building and recovery. An added benefit is that dairy products contain carbohydrates and good quality protein in a natural food matrix, making them an ideal pre- and post-sports drink.

You can READ an electronic copy of the book online:

'Sports Nutrition and The Role of Dairy'

OR

You can PRINT or READ by downloading our guide as a PDF