This is the Swim Poll of the Week for Thursday, February 10, 2022. Sponsored by Strechcordz Swim Training Products. In our last swim poll, we wanted to know: What is your favorite pre-meet fuel?
Maintaining a balanced diet is critical to performing well at meets. Carbohydrates should make up one-half of a swimmer’s diet as it is the fuel swimmers need to get through that tough practice or meet. Carbs are stored as glycogen in the muscles and liver and is the fuel that our body uses throughout our day – especially during a workout. After the workout, that energy source will be running low and will need to be replaced. Some good sources of carbs are rice, cereal, pasta, potatoes, beans, peas, and lentils.
The Mayo Clinic also recommends that carbo-loading should be done a week prior to competition rather than the pre-conceived “day before” notion. Seven days is just the right amount of time to increase your carbohydrate intake to about 8-12 grams of carbohydrate per kilogram of body weight. Also, cutting back on foods higher in fat is recommended in order to compensate for the extra carbohydrate-rich foods. See the Mayo Clinic’s chart below that suggests an ideal dinner option for someone looking to properly carbo-load. The recommendation is suggested for an athlete who weighs 170 pounds, based on 4.5 grams of carbohydrates for each pound of body weight.
What is your favorite pre-meet fuel?
Oatmeal — 46%
Whole Grain Cereal — 18%
Fresh Fruit — 35%