Eating and drinking

Discussion in 'Techniques / Training' started by ucantseeme, Feb 22, 2013.

  1. ucantseeme

    ucantseeme Regular Member

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    What do you eat before a training session and when?
    What do you drink during the session or a tournament?

    Usually I have my last meal 3 hours before I train. Mostly a banana and oatflakes with milk or yogurt. I think it's the best combination of carbs and proteins. Does anybody has a better hint?
    If I eat earlier, I have no power, if I eat later I'm too slow on the court and want to sleep. :D
    Sometimes if I'm en route it's difficult to eat at the perfect time and something good. I see everywhere only fastfood. What are you doing in this situation? What is a good combination to get easy?

    The whole day I drink mostly water with much natural magnesium and calcium. At the training session the same. If I have a hard training session or a tournament I usually drink 40% direct apple juice and 60% water.

    What are your experiences? What do you eat and drink to prepare for a training session or tournament?
     
  2. j4ckie

    j4ckie Regular Member

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    I usually have my last meal 2-4 hrs before I train - I'm young enough to make do with 2hrs ;) But I generally try to get in a bigger meal 4 hrs before and sth smaller later, e.g. a banana and some water 1-2hrs before.
    During training, I drink mostly water, try to have one or two bananas ready if I have a sudden drop in blood sugar and/or potassium. Sometimes I mix juice and water (50-50), usually multivitamin, sometimes apple or orange (always 100% juice, mostly direct).
    If it's a hard/long session, I sometimes take a protein shake with me to drink it directly afterwards.

    For tournaments, I try to eat a large amount of carbohydrates the day before to have as much energy as possible stored for the day (mostly pasta, sometimes rice). On the tournament day, it often depends on when we have to get going as I can't eat large quantities in the first ~2 hours I'm awake, but usually I try to have breakfast with a solid amount of carbohydrates (whole wheat toast, cereal...) and a good amount of fluids (juice, water, not too much milk).
    As I normally have to drive 40-60 minutes it's okay if I'm still feeling somewhat full when I get in the car as I usually arrive 45-60 minutes before the tournament starts (and even then it's unlikely I have to play one of the first matches).
    During the tournament, I pretty much try to take in as many calories as possible without eating heavy foods that would take long to digest and divert too much blood to the stomach. That means I drink mostly 60-40 juice&water mix and eat a lot of bananas and rolls (mostly with cheese).
    For a normal ranking tournament (where I usually play 5 matches), that's normally 2-3 rolls, 4-5 bananas, ~1 liter of juice and 4-6 liters of water. Often with some candy mixed in that someone else brought :D


    Oh, and on a training day (which is usually Monday-Saturday), I have a rather small, slightly late breakfast, a small lunch and then the bigger meal 2-4hrs before training. I drink about 1.5-2 liters before training, 1.5 during and ~1 after. Meals mostly consist of 1 part rich in carbohydrates (pasta/rice), 1 part vegetables and 70% of the time 1 part chicken or turkey.
     
  3. Mark A

    Mark A Regular Member

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    Today I crushed an entire tube of Pringles halfway through a four-hour session.

    It will not happen again.
     
  4. visor

    visor Regular Member

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    http://www.mendosa.com/gilists.htm

    You have to understand not only GI (glycemic index) but also GL (glycemic load). On that site, both are explained and an extensive list of carbs is provided.

    For me, days in between playing, lots of rice, pasta.
    Few hrs before, bagel, sweet yam, muffin, banana. No milk or meats.
    After, lots of everything.
    Lots of gatorade electrolyte drink
    during
     
  5. greblu

    greblu Regular Member

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    LOL, I once ate a bar (100g) of chocolate before a match.... I have never been so powerless like in this match before.

    Learned my lesson :D

    I do it exactly like you ucantseeme, drink and eat the same as you.

    "banana and oatflakes with milk or yogurt "(here I add 2 raw eggs and sometimes sweet cream, apples, oranges and put it in the kitchen mixer.)
     
  6. 98745

    98745 Regular Member

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    gatorade.. do you think that if i add some salt to ribeana.. would it work?
     
  7. jacoblewis2008

    jacoblewis2008 Regular Member

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    No use of adding salt in ribeana.
     
  8. ucantseeme

    ucantseeme Regular Member

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    I didn't lost weight, but noticed a tiny better performance of myself on court. I ate 5 portions of vegetables and fruits over the day, quit smoking:eek:, less sugar, less milk, drink 1L of Tee made of ginger, chamomile and Lemon. It works for me to prepare.
     
  9. LD rules!

    LD rules! Regular Member

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    Why is milk bad for you though?
     
  10. visor

    visor Regular Member

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    Milk protein is hard to digest, especially in most Asians. So it'll sit in the GI tract longer and use up precious blood flow that can be better used for muscles, especially if consumed before games.
     
  11. j4ckie

    j4ckie Regular Member

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    Generally speaking, it isn't - but as visor pointed out, milk protein takes up time and energy to digest (which is why it's a medium-slow, not as effective protein). I believe to recall that about 80-85% of Asians are lactose intolerant (to varying degrees, of course) - that's because we started keeping farm animals rather late in our evolutionary process and didn't actually adapt to digesting milk properly (so people who aren't lactose intolerant are actually "mutants", just like those with blue or green eyes).

    Also, the fat and milk sugar are rather ineffective energy sources.

    FYI - more effective proteins are contained in eggs and white meat (for those after-training meals).
     
  12. ucantseeme

    ucantseeme Regular Member

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    @ visor, the nutritionist of BC or someone who knows ;)

    As vegetarian, I don't eat meat and fish. What is your opinion about Soja and Legumes as source of proteins? Does it take up time as milk, too?
    What's the best way to get energy? A meal with carbs, 3 hours before a session, or the combination of a smaller meals with carbs and some sugar 30 minutes before a session?
     
  13. j4ckie

    j4ckie Regular Member

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    I believe for training it's best to eat a not-too-heavy meal (not a lot of fat, more carbs than protein) 3-4 hours before training, and maybe a banana or sth an hour before, not more. I believe it's best to get used to playing on your reserves rather than preparing optimally for every training session - and stop training when you're exhausted, not trying to keep going on fumes and sugar. What's important is recovery! Cooling down properly (I posted my optimal cool-down here) and getting in some protein and carbs (no carbs if you wanna lose weight) after every training session.
     
  14. visor

    visor Regular Member

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    Yep, agree with j4ckie.

    Also check out the carb glucose index and load list in that link in my post above.
     
  15. ucantseeme

    ucantseeme Regular Member

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    Thanks for your advice. :)

    Actually I'm struggleing with the proteins. I eat no fish and meat, so the sources of proteins are limited. Especially to get proteins with low fat is difficult as vegetarian, maybe next vegan. ;)
    I must take care of meals. I have not a regular day. It's impossible for me to have a breakfast, lunch and supper due work, medicals and training, so I must have a good timing to adjust my lunchtime.
    I know, that it's bad to have such a convulsive plan.
    I noticed if I eat more conscious and timed, I perform better on court, don't be tired, feel more healthy and can sleep better.
     
  16. lordrogue

    lordrogue Regular Member

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    Egg and cottage cheese if you're vegetarian (since it's very very cheap).
    If you're a vegan... Quinoa or other similar rice replacers, almond, various nuts, beans, seeds. I'm not a vegetarian but I like taking with me roasted sunflower seeds to eat after practice. Tasty, easily digested and very high protein amount. Also a couple of fruits like bananas and some milk.

    I only plan high carb before important tourneys, since they can be very long (8 hour passes are no joke...)
    But for a normal two or three hour training session I don't think it's very beneficial to load up with extra carbs.
     
  17. ucantseeme

    ucantseeme Regular Member

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    Eggs, almond, nuts and seeds have a lot of fat. I usually eat 2 times per week 4 egg whites with only one whole egg.
    A good advice, but I decided to loose weight, so I need more proteins than carbs.
    Actually I eat cottage cheese and tofu, but can't eat this every day. Beans are good, but since I farted on the court while I performed a backhand clear and a lot at my club laught, I would try to avoid them. :)
    I'm doubtfully when it comes to supplements. I want to avoid them. Can anybody share his experience? Do some of you use supplements?
     
  18. j4ckie

    j4ckie Regular Member

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    I use protein shakes after gym sessions (depending on the badminton hall situation, 2-4 times a week). Helps recover more quickly and if used only after really taxing exercise (weight training, tournament play) it's not too costly. Currently using ESN designer whey I got from Amazon (Hazelnut flavor actually tastes pretty good).
     
  19. Sgt_Strider

    Sgt_Strider Regular Member

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    Got a short list of decent carbs to consume prior to badminton? I'm a pretty busy person so I would prefer to buy them than to make a meal at home.
     
  20. j4ckie

    j4ckie Regular Member

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    Not a complete list, but what I like to eat 3-4 hours before is
    -pasta (if you buy take-out, it shouldn't drown in oil/other fats)
    -rice or pretty much any other kind of
    -grain/cereal.

    Fat will make it harder/slower to digest, so you shouldn't eat anything too fatty in the 2 hours before, while sugar will raise your insulin level (which causes glucose in your muscles/blood to be converted into fat and basically makes the meal useless by 'stealing' your reserves).

    If I'm very busy, I like to eat Asian take-out 2-3 hours before training. The side of rice is a good source of energy, and the vegetables and meat make it a rather well-rounded meal. No sweet-and-sour sauce though, that stuff is basically liquid sugar :D Peanut sauce is also not a good option (very fatty).
    Ideally, you should take the vegetables and meat out of the container and let some of the sauce drip off - around here, they like to drown the stuff in it.

    How long you need to wait after eating depends on the individual. Some people have the uncanny ability to play just a few minutes after eating, while some need more time than me to digest. 2 hours should generally be enough to avoid stitches if you didn't stuff yourself ;)


    Please note that I'm no nutritionist and that this is just based on my own experience and the knowledge accumulated from a short stint into fitness training and a general interest in anything sport-related. :)
     
    #20 j4ckie, Apr 5, 2013
    Last edited: Apr 5, 2013

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