17th February 2016 One of the most frequent questions I get asked by runners after a talk is how to prevent or cope with gastro-intestinal (GI) problems and transit troubles during training and races. It’s not an issue many like to talk about openly but it’s one that’s surprisingly common among endurance athletes. It…
Winter is a time when we’re more susceptible to bugs and illnesses. And there’s nothing more frustrating for athletes than missing training due to a cold or flu. Here’s how to fend off this season’s colds by getting your defenses into top gear. The irony is that, while regular exercise boosts your immune system, intense…
– How to adjust your diet to keep up with your age Are you finding it harder to hit your PBs, exercise as hard or as long as you once did, or make substantial gains in the gym? Well, that’s perfectly normal! As we go through our 30s, 40s, 50s, 60s and beyond, our bodies…
One of the most common questions I get asked by runners is how to fuel during long runs when you don’t feel like eating anything. Many find that drinking a sports drink or eating food makes them feel like throwing it straight back up. Do you also struggle fuelling during races? Well, you’re not…
More than ever, young high performance athletes I advise are keen to give protein supplements a try. After all protein products are everywhere – in local shops, sports centres and cafes – and so widely promoted that it’s hard to believe that anyone isn’t taking them. Will they make me stronger, help me…
Many people worry that you can’t build muscle on a plant-based diet. This comes as vegetarian and vegan diets have become more popular than ever among athletes and regular exercisers. This may be for health reasons or concerns about animal welfare, cost, sustainability or the environment. The question is whether plant proteins are as…
Periodised carbohydrate training has become the latest buzzword among endurance athletes. Essentially it means matching your diet to your workload and new research suggests it may improve endurance performance and make you a more efficient fat burner. The idea behind training with low glycogen stores (‘training low’) is that it forces the muscles to burn more…
Think a vegetarian diet can’t give you the right nutrition for your training? Well think again – there are plenty of examples of world-class athletes who have shunned meat. David Haye, Lizzie Armistead, and Serena and Venus Williams, Brendan Brazier and Martina Navratilova to name a few. Whether you’re a veggie sceptic, a committed vegetarian, a part-time veggie…
Despite the rising popularity and well-documented health benefits of vegetarian diets, relatively little research has been done on the impact on athletic performance. In the first study of its kind, researchers at Arizona State University have shown that a vegetarian diet can support strength and cardiorespiratory fitness development, and that some vegetarian athletes may even…
