Fueling the Athlete: How to Approach Nutrition to Support Peak Performance
Whether you’re a competitive athlete, a dedicated weekend warrior, or someone just starting to train with intention, one truth remains constant: what you eat matters. Nutrition is more than just calories in and out—it’s the foundation of endurance, recovery, mental sharpness, and overall resilience. Unfortunately, it's also an area flooded with conflicting advice, fad diets, and performance myths that can leave even the most motivated athletes confused or misinformed.
Athletes often focus on training hard and pushing their limits—but without proper fueling, those efforts can fall short, or worse, lead to fatigue, injury, or long-term health consequences. From the food you eat before a workout to how you recover after, nutrition can either support or sabotage your goals. The good news? You don’t need to chase extremes or obsess over every bite. Instead, learning the fundamental principles of sports nutrition can empower you to train smarter, recover faster, and perform at your best—without compromising your physical or mental wellbeing.
It’s important to approach sports nutrition with both science and self-awareness. In this post, we’ll break down the essentials of athlete-focused nutrition, review science-backed strategies, and offer tips to help you find a balanced, sustainable approach. We’ll also highlight key warnings to help you avoid some of the common pitfalls athletes face, such as underfueling or over-relying on supplements. Let’s dive in.
Why Nutrition Matters for Athletes
Nutrition isn’t just about energy. It impacts:
🧠 Cognitive function (focus, reaction time)
💪 Muscle repair and growth
❤️ Immune function
🕓 Recovery time
🏃 Endurance and strength capacity
According to the International Society of Sports Nutrition (ISSN), appropriate intake of carbohydrates, proteins, and fats—along with adequate hydration—is critical for athletic performance and adaptation to training.
The Building Blocks: Macronutrients for Athletes
1. Carbohydrates: Your Primary Fuel
Carbs are stored in the muscles and liver as glycogen, which provides energy during high-intensity or prolonged exercise.
Without enough carbs, athletes may experience fatigue, poor endurance, or impaired concentration.
Performance Tip: Eat a carb-rich snack 1–3 hours before training and include carbs in your post-workout meal to replenish glycogen stores.
2. Protein: Repair and Recovery
Protein supports muscle synthesis, repair, and immune function.
Not just for bodybuilders—endurance athletes need it too.
Performance Tip: Include 15–25g of protein within 1 hour after training to enhance recovery.
3. Fats: The Unsung Hero
Essential for hormone production, brain health, and energy—especially in long-duration, lower-intensity exercise.
Performance Tip: 20–35% of total calories from fat, including omega-3s
Avoid overly restrictive low-fat diets.
Hydration: The Overlooked Edge
Even mild dehydration (as little as 2% of body weight) can impair performance, cognition, and mood. Monitor fluid loss through sweat and rehydrate accordingly.
Hydration Tips:
Drink 16–24 oz per pound lost during exercise.
Include electrolytes (sodium, potassium) if training for >1 hour or in the heat.
Watch out for overhydration—hyponatremia (where sodium concentration in the blood is abnormally low) can occur if water intake is excessive without electrolytes.
Timing Matters: When You Eat Is Just as Important
Before Training:
1–3 hours prior: carbs + moderate protein + fat/fiber (e.g., banana with peanut butter)
During Training (>60 min):
30–60g carbs/hour (e.g., sports drink, gels, banana)
After Training:
A great post-exercise snack should include a mix of carbohydrates (to replenish glycogen stores) and protein (to support muscle repair). Ideally, it’s something quick, easy to digest, and hydrating. Within 30–60 minutes: 3:1 ratio of carbs to protein (chicken and veggies wrap or greek yogurt, fruit, and granola)
Common Pitfalls and Important Warnings
⚠️ Underfueling (RED-S and LEA)
Relative Energy Deficiency in Sport (RED-S) occurs when there’s not enough energy (calories) available to support both exercise demands and basic bodily functions like hormone production, metabolism, and immune health. This can happen with or without disordered eating and is often unintentional—especially in high-volume training or sports that emphasize leanness or endurance. Previously called the Female Athlete Triad, RED-S expands this concept to include all genders and highlights how low energy availability affects multiple body systems.
Systemic Effects of RED-S:
Hormonal disruption: menstrual dysfunction, low testosterone
Bone loss: reduced bone mineral density, increasing risk of stress fractures and osteoporosis
GI issues: bloating, constipation, slowed motility
Mental health impacts: anxiety, depression, irritability
Poor immune function: frequent illness or slow healing
Decreased performance: reduced endurance, strength, and recovery
Cardiovascular risks: altered cholesterol and blood pressure
The primary solution is ensuring you’re eating enough calories to meet both exercise and body needs.
Add snacks around workouts or before bed.
Avoid training fasted, especially in the morning
Don’t skip meals, even on rest days
Track energy intake (temporarily) with a professional to ensure adequacy
⚠️ Over-Supplementing
Oversupplementing is a common yet under-recognized risk in sports nutrition. While supplements can have legitimate performance-enhancing or health-supportive roles, more is not always better, and in many cases, excess use can backfire—harming performance, health, and even eligibility in competitive sports.While some supplements are evidence-based (e.g., creatine, caffeine, beta-alanine), many are not regulated or necessary.
Some vitamins and minerals (especially fat-soluble vitamins like A, D, E, and K, and minerals like iron or zinc) can be harmful in high doses.
Certain supplements, when overused, may actually impair performance.
Excess caffeine (>400 mg/day) can lead to anxiety, disrupted sleep, dehydration, and heart palpitations—hurting recovery and performance.
Overuse of antioxidants (like high-dose vitamin C or E) may blunt training adaptations by interfering with the body's natural oxidative stress response. [2]
Protein overload doesn’t build more muscle—it can stress the kidneys and displace other important nutrients if it crowds out balanced meals.
Tip:
Food First. Prioritize whole foods for macro and micronutrients.
Check for NSF Certified for Sport or Informed Sport labels.
Consult a Pro. Work with a sports dietitian or physician before adding anything new.
⚠️ Following Fad Diets
Fad diets—those trendy, restrictive eating plans that promise fast results—can be particularly harmful in the context of sports nutrition. While they may appeal to athletes for promises of weight loss, leanness, or “clean eating,” they often undermine performance, recovery, and overall health. Most fad diets—whether it's keto, intermittent fasting, Whole30, low-carb, low-fat, raw vegan, or carnivore—limit calorie intake, either by restricting food groups or tightly controlling when you eat. For athletes, that often means energy availability drops below what the body needs for both exercise and normal function (leading to RED-S, as discussed earlier).
Always personalize nutrition to your needs and avoid one-size-fits-all approaches. Fad diets are not built for performance—they’re built for marketing.
Athletes need reliable energy, nutrient density, and consistency, not restriction and extremes. When you fuel your body with intention and balance, you perform better, recover faster, and reduce the risk of burnout or injury.
Choose nourishment over novelty. Your sport—and your body—will thank you.
Striking the Right Balance
🧘♀️ Your performance matters—but so does your wellbeing.
Nutrition should fuel your goals, not create anxiety, obsession, or rigidity.
Remember:
Listen to your body’s hunger cues
Seek variety and flexibility
Balance performance with sustainability
Key Takeaways
✅ Prioritize carbs, protein, and fats
✅ Hydrate before, during, and after activity
✅ Time your nutrition around training
✅ Watch for underfueling or over-reliance on supplements
✅ Avoid extremes—opt for consistency and personalization
Ready to Fine-Tune Your Fuel?
Whether you're an elite athlete or a weekend warrior, your body deserves strategic, nourishing, and personalized fuel.
📞 Book a discovery call with a sports dietitian or performance therapist to build your plan.
Cypress Wellness Collective is located in the San Francisco Bay Area where they specialize in nutrition counseling for athletes, health, and longevity. They offer in person and virtual appointments throughout all of California. Call today for your free consultation to see if Cypress Wellness Collective is right for you!
References
[1] Thomas, D. T., et al. (2016). Position of the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics: Nutrition and Athletic Performance. Journal of the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics.
[2] Burke, L. M., & Hawley, J. A. (2018). Carbohydrate and exercise performance. Sports Medicine.
[3] Phillips, S. M., & Van Loon, L. J. (2011). Dietary protein for athletes: from requirements to metabolic advantage. Applied Physiology, Nutrition, and Metabolism.
[4] Rodriguez, N. R., et al. (2009). Position of the American Dietetic Association: Nutrition and Athletic Performance.
[5] Mountjoy, M., et al. (2014). The IOC consensus statement: beyond the Female Athlete Triad—Relative Energy Deficiency in Sport (RED-S). British Journal of Sports Medicine.