Which Foods provide the Best Energy for Exercise?

The energy you need to exercise can be gleaned from all of the major food groups; fats, carbohydrates and proteins, however, the order these are accessed by the body depends on the type of exercise being undertaken, the intensity and length of a session, the fitness of the athlete and the quality of their diet.

The following information breaks down what kind of energy the different food sources can provide you with:

• Carbohydrates are our primary and most readily available energy source, supplying about 3.75Kcal per gram. Carbohydrate rich foods can be divided into simple and complex varieties, dependent on the speed they break down to glucose, which is then stored as glycogen in the liver or muscle tissue. This can be accessed rapidly and converted back to glucose to fuel intensive bursts of exercise.

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• Fat is more nutrient dense, supplying about 9Kcal per gram, but is more complicated for our metabolism to process, so is more useful for low intensity exercise.

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• Protein breaks down to amino acids when digested, and one of these, alanine, can be stored in the liver and converted to glucose. This process is actually more of an emergency measure since protein is a valuable muscle rebuild and repair resource. Protein tends to be accessed via the breakdown of muscle and lean tissue during long endurance events when the other energy stores provided by carbs and fats have been depleted.
  

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• Anaerobic exercise (without oxygen), such as intensive bursts of sprinting, or weightlifting, tends to use carbs as their preferred energy.

• Aerobic exercise (using oxygen), is associated with endurance and will use fat and carbs. The fitter the athlete, the more efficiently they will use fat supplies to help preserve carbohydrate stores.

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STORING ENERGY IN OUR BODIES

We can only store finite supplies of glycogen and a 70kg person will typically store about 450g (1,700Kcal). Endurance events or training lasting for more than 2 hours are likely to exhaust these supplies and athletes have to rely on top ups via snacks on the go.

Athletes in training often rely on snacks to maintain enough energy to train and compete. Snacking can be a good thing to provide nourishment and vital nutrients, but sugar-rich choices can add lead to excess fat storage and empty calories.

Keen to learn more about fuelling for performance and adventures? Then check out our Nutrition category for more handy tips, advice and recipes.