Surf training and the right nutrition for surfers & athletes

Training and nutrition go together like a pot and its lid: nutrition science and training science complement each other and are best always considered together. Optimal sporting success can only be achieved if your diet is adapted accordingly.

Training science shows you how to reach your physical goals, while nutrition science shows how the right food can support you along the way. That’s why below we explain the basics of nutrition and everything you need to know about how nutrients from food provide energy.

Basics of nutrition science

Nutrition refers to all processes in which substances are supplied to our body from outside to maintain life processes. A distinction is made between foods and stimulants : foods serve to maintain bodily functions and produce energy (carbohydrates, proteins and fats), while stimulants are not necessarily needed for our metabolism or are sometimes even harmful (e.g. caffeine, alcohol, etc.).

Macronutrients

1. Carbohydrates

Carbohydrates are the most important source of energy for the human body. While the brain and nervous system depend on a supply of carbohydrates, in muscle tissue they can be replaced as an energy source by fats and/or proteins. One gram of carbohydrates has about 4.1 kcal.

Carbohydrates are chains of individual glucose units (= dextrose). If only two glucose units are linked, they are called double sugars (disaccharides); with 3 or more units (max. 30) they are called multiple sugars (polysaccharides). In the gastrointestinal tract, the sugar units are broken down into their individual parts again, as this is the only way they can be used to produce energy.

Recommended intake: carbohydrates are non-essential nutrients, i.e. the body does not depend on an external supply of them. Nevertheless, carbohydrate-rich foods should make up the main part of your diet (approx. 50 %, at least 100–150 g), especially if you are physically active. The reason is that carbohydrates are the most economical source of energy for your body. You should also take in about 30 g of indigestible multiple sugars, so-called dietary fibre, as these play an important role in our gastrointestinal tract. Fibre is often lost when food is processed and is therefore found mainly in unprocessed foods (e.g. grains, fruit, vegetables or pulses).

2. Fats

With about 9.3 kcal per gram, fats are the macronutrient with the most energy. Fats can be stored practically without limit in our subcutaneous fatty tissue. In addition to the fat under the skin, there is also organ fat (e.g. around the kidneys, eyeballs, nerve sheaths), which mainly serves for protection and insulation.

Saturated fats, which we consume in larger amounts, are not vital. Only polyunsaturated fatty acids are essential for our body, as it cannot synthesise them itself. These fats therefore have to be supplied from outside.

Saturated fatty acids are found mainly in animal foods such as butter, dairy products, meat and sausages, but also in sweets or fast food. They slow down the metabolism and can therefore lead to raised cholesterol levels. This can result in cardiovascular disease, which in turn greatly increases the risk of a heart attack. Rheumatic diseases can also be encouraged by this. That’s why saturated fatty acids should make up at most a third of your total fat requirement.

Unsaturated fatty acids can be divided into monounsaturated and polyunsaturated. Monounsaturated fatty acids are found, for example, in olive or rapeseed oil, but also in plant foods such as avocado, olives and nuts. Polyunsaturated fatty acids, on the other hand, are found in oily fish (salmon, herring, tuna), but also in soybean, safflower or sunflower oil. As already mentioned, polyunsaturated fatty acids cannot be produced by the body itself, but they are very important, as they are responsible, among other things, for reducing inflammation and protecting against rheumatic diseases.

Recommended intake: about 30 % of our daily calorie intake should come from (ideally healthy) fats. The myth that “fat makes you fat” has long been debunked; on the contrary, the right fats (enjoyed in moderation!) can even make you healthy.

3. Protein

While carbohydrates and fats mainly serve as fuel and energy suppliers in our body, proteins are primarily responsible for building and maintaining body substances. Only in states of deficiency or during long periods of exertion does the body also use proteins as an energy source (about 4.1 kcal per gram).

Proteins are the building blocks of enzymes and hormones and are therefore involved in all biochemical processes. They form the structural elements of our muscle fibres, bones, cartilage, tendons and skin. As antibodies of the immune system, they also protect our body against infections.

Recommended intake: since our body has no way of storing protein (unlike carbohydrates and fats), it’s important to eat enough protein every day. Especially for physically active people, sufficient protein intake is important for optimal performance and recovery. For people who are not very active, an intake of about 1 g per kg of body weight is recommended; for very active people, about 2 g per kg of body weight. Protein shakes are often very popular with athletes, as they are a particularly easy way to get enough protein. However, our body is best able to absorb proteins that come from “natural” food, e.g. from quark, lean meat, eggs, pulses, etc.

Micronutrients

1. Minerals

Minerals are essential for our organism, as they are responsible for maintaining many bodily functions, and must therefore be supplied in sufficient quantities with food. Minerals are divided into

• Macro elements (concentration higher than 50 mg per kg of body weight): sodium, magnesium, calcium, phosphate
• Trace elements (concentration lower than 50 mg per kg of body weight): iron, zinc, iodine, fluorine, chromium, selenium

2. Vitamins

Vitamins are also essential for our body, or more precisely for our metabolism, and must therefore be supplied. A distinction is made between fat-soluble (vitamins E, D, K, A) and water-soluble vitamins (vitamins B1, B2, B6, B12, C, niacin, biotin, folic acid, pantothenic acid). Water-soluble vitamins can only be stored by the body for a few days and must therefore be taken regularly. Fat-soluble vitamins, on the other hand, can be stored in small amounts over a long period, so a constant supply is not strictly necessary.

Here, too, the rule applies: vitamins from natural foods are absorbed much better by the body than vitamin concentrates. With a balanced diet with enough fruit and vegetables, additional vitamin intake is therefore usually not necessary.

Fluid balance

After oxygen, water is the most important element for our body. Depending on body fat percentage, our body consists of about 60–70 % water. Our body can survive just three days without water before it reaches a life-threatening state.

For our body, water serves above all as…

• Solvent: water liquefies the food pulp in our digestive tract and dissolves solid components such as salts and sugar
• Means of transport: with the help of blood and lymph, dissolved nutrients and immune system cells, among other things, are carried to where they act, and metabolic products are removed from the body with the help of water
• Building block: water is an important component when it comes to the elasticity of cartilage, menisci or intervertebral discs.
• Means of regulating heat balance: the evaporation of water through our skin (sweat) draws heat from the body and thus protects us from overheating

Recommended intake: the exact water requirement is influenced by numerous factors, such as climate, physical activity, salt or fibre intake, medication, diets, etc. As a rough guide, you can take about 2–2.5 l per day. If you do sport and/or it’s very hot, you should of course increase the amount.