When to consume carbohydrates?

Carbohydrates and fats are the main sources of energy for our body; of these, carbohydrates are the main fuel for maintaining adequate muscle contraction during intense physical activities, hence they are considered by many specialists as "the backbone of nutrition for athletes".

The amounts of carbohydrates required to meet the energy needs of athletes throughout the day are closely related to the utilization of energy by the muscles during training, therefore the amount of carbohydrates ingested daily cannot be static as they depend on the type, frequency, intensity and level of training that the athlete has.

To ensure that carbohydrate intakes contribute to the maximum with the improvement of training, each athlete must be attentive to the intensity of the exercises planned for each day, in order to make sufficient carbohydrate intakes that allow him/her to have good energy reserves (glycogen) in the muscles to perform the most intense exercises proposed for each day.

How to estimate the amount of carbohydrates needed for a day's training?

Carbohydrates should account for approximately half of the athlete's total energy intake, a parameter that must be met by any healthy eating regimen.

To estimate the amounts, the athlete's body weight should be taken into account, as well as the intensity of the training. As we will see below, for different training intensities, different amounts of carbohydrates are recommended:

• For low training intensity it is recommended to consume between 3 and 5 grams of carbohydrates per kilogram of body weight daily.

• For a moderate training intensity of about one hour per day, 6 to 7 grams of carbohydrates per kilogram of body weight are recommended.

• For a medium to high training intensity of two to three hours per day, 8 to 10 grams of carbohydrates per kilogram of body weight are recommended.

• For a very high training intensity of four to five hours per day, 8 to 12 grams of carbohydrates per kilogram of body weight are recommended.

At what time of the day should carbohydrates be ingested for a training session?

• When we wake up: Breakfast provides the athlete and the population in general with the necessary energy to start after 8 hours without ingestion of nutrients. It also activates the metabolism and helps replenish glycogen stores that supply energy to the muscles. Athletes at breakfast should think about ingesting the carbohydrates and other nutrients necessary to meet the energy needs of the muscles during the morning training session. It is no use if you consume excess carbohydrates at lunch and dinner beforehand, if you go into the morning training sessions without eating breakfast or without including the amounts of carbohydrates and other nutrients required by the muscles and brain to support the intense training.
• Before training sessions: It is advisable to recondition the glycogen reserves in the muscles two hours or an hour and a half before starting the training sessions, this will provide them with the necessary energy to perform the exercises with maximum performance. To achieve this, the athlete should ingest about 1.5 grams of carbohydrates per kilogram of weight. It is recommended to select foods rich in carbohydrates and other nutrients that do not contain high levels of fat or fiber. For example: skim milk with chocolate, or cereals; yogurt with fruit salad; two slices of bread with meat and mixed vegetable salad, and so on.
• During very intense or prolonged training sessions: The ingestion of carbohydrates during very intense exercises or those that last for more than one hour contributes to the saving of stored energy and reduces drops in blood glucose concentration, contributing favorably to sustaining the intensity of the exercise, delaying the onset of fatigue and improving performance. It is recommended that the amounts ingested be moderate, to avoid gastrointestinal discomfort. In addition, the carbohydrates selected should not be rich in fats or proteins, since these nutrients delay the supply of energy and liquids to the organism.
• After training sessions: After the rigors of a workout session, muscles need to replenish the energy reserves depleted by physical activity. In some cases this recharge must be done urgently because athletes train more than once a day in sessions close to each other. To achieve accelerated recovery, it is recommended to ingest about 1 gram of carbohydrates per kilogram of body mass per hour during the first four hours; preferably distributed in two or three portions taken at regular time intervals.

When training once a day and recovery periods are longer, glycogen stores can be replenished with a meal, a snack, or a snack according to the eating plan followed by the athlete.

Should carbohydrates be consumed at dinner?

Yes, carbohydrates can and should be consumed at dinner because during the night the human body also consumes energy, of course it does not require the same amounts as during the day, but the body always needs some energy to maintain vital functions (blood circulation, respiration, digestion, etc.).

In the case of athletes, the carbohydrates in the evening meal should also replenish those energies that were used at the end of the afternoon, so that the body can recover from the fatigue accumulated during the day.

It is recommended that the last meal of the day is not too copious, so you should have an intermediate snack that allows us to get to dinner without too much appetite. It is also advisable to have dinner at least two hours before going to bed, so that the quality of sleep is better.