Plus500 Brumbies Dietitian Kate Pumpa gives us some insights into how she helps our boys stay fuelled properly during the season.
Food for thought
Did you know that when the Plus500 Brumbies are in the last quarter of the games their carbohydrate stores become low which impacts how fast they run, how high they jump, and their decision making skills? The Plus500 Brumbies and Tabcorp Brumbies Super W use nutritional strategies such as sports drinks, sports gels and sometimes caffeine to help them keep focus, maintain their energy and keep that winning edge.
Food at home
Working remotely, and away from our normal routine can play havoc with our normal food intake. This is no different for the Plus500 Brumbies whose usual training and playing routine is far from normal at the moment.
A key consideration for the players, and our members, is to match your energy (food) intake with your energy expenditure (exercise) so that we don’t come out of lockdown a lot heavier, and unhealthier than we went in.
A great way to track your energy intake and expenditure is through the app EasyDietDiary: https://bit.ly/2KlYgi3
If you are trying to lose weight your energy intake should be slightly less than your energy expenditure, and if you are trying to gain weight, your energy intake needs to exceed the energy you are consuming through food.
Increasing muscle mass
If you have the time, and some weights on hand, perhaps gaining some extra muscle mass is an achievable goal during lockdown.
During pre-season the Plus500 Brumbies focus on increase their muscle mass through hitting the gym and eating a lot of good quality food post gym sessions (think milk based smoothies, fruit and yoghurt, or BSc Whey shakes).
We start the season as strong and with as much muscle as we can, then try to keep muscle loss to a minimum through nutrition and gym strategies throughout the season.
If increasing muscle mass is one of your goals, here is an excellent fact sheet from Sports Dietitians Australia https://bit.ly/3cAUPQQ
Body composition assessment
Assessing the Plus500 Brumbies body composition (fat mass and muscle mass) is part of routine practice throughout the season. There is huge variety in the ideal body composition in the team depending on the position they play (Prop v Halfback).
Each athletes body composition changes throughout the season, just as a lot of non-athletes body composition changes across the seasons (winter v summer) . We assess body composition through DEXA scans and skinfolds, and use this information to monitor training progress, and we are also investigating links between body composition and injuries.
This way we can help the Plus500 Brumbies be as strong, powerful yet agile fatigue resistant throughout the competitive season.
