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Monday, March 9, 2015

Paleo Diet for Athletes Article Summary

Not long ago I heard this great presentation from a fellow RD (Steve Hertzler PhD, RD) about the Paleo diet (caveman diet) for athletes. Since the Paleo diet has been such a popular topic in the past several years, I decided why not share the wealth of information with you. Here is a summary of his talk and article from SCANs Pulse. He reviews and references The Paleo Diet for Athletes by Loren Cordain and Joe Freel as they paved the way for this diet in the past decade.

First lets try and define the paleo diet: Its typically defined as the diet that was available in the paleolithic era which was in the pre-agricultural period between 2.5 million to 10,000 years ago. However, different regions had different diets during those times which means there was no one paleolithic diet. Books on Paleo state that humans should not have dairy products nor grains/legumes, since they did not exist in that era, but have a diet rich with meat/fish, vegetables and fruits, low in starches and only natural sources of sugar. The theory is that our "human genome was developed based on this diet" and by sticking to it we decrease risk of multiple chronic diseases and improve human performance. However, some of the science shows otherwise; anthropologists have evidence that during that era there was more reliance on starches and tubers. Moreover, research shows that our guts have evolved and continue to evolve since 10,000 years ago allowing us to digest many foods not present during that era. Lastly, to replicate that exact diet is quite impossible since most of the foods we currently have (meats, produce, fats) are very different than what they had back then.

Pros about the diet and book:

The diet promotes eating less refined carbohydrates and more fruits and vegetables
Lean meats (including game) are recommended
Adequate fish (containing omega 3) is highly encouraged
Healthy fats are important
Timing is important when it comes to performance
For recovery, combination of carbs and protein is important post exercise

Cons about the diet and book:

Elimination of several food groups (e.g. grain, dairy) leads to limited variety which in turn could cause defeciencies
Interestingly, alcohol in moderation is permitted (I wonder what caveman drank alcohol?!)
The book itself only addresses endurance athletes, not power nor strength athletes
To date, there are not many studies on the Paleo diet in athletes. The studies that have been done were done on mainly obese and sick individuals (heart disease, diabetes) which have seen improvements in body composition and health markers (blood lipids, blood sugar). Athletes are very different than obese individuals
In the book there are multiple exceptions to meet the high carbohydrate demands of the endurance athlete. If there are so many exceptions are they really eating Paleo?!
"The diet is nutritionally inadequate, expensive and impractical". Studies show that the diet would lack calcium, Iron and fiber recommendations as well as cost 9.3% more annualy
"Acid ash theory states that by eating a diet high in grains and dairy we produce a high acid load on the body and the body must remove calcium from the bone to buffer the load." The more the food is acidic the more we are supposed to see calcium in the urine. However, urine pH does not represent blood pH as it stays more or less the same. Moreover, there is no evidence indicating that high calcium levels in the urine mean that there is less calcium in the bone or a decrease in calcium balance
Some of the research quoted by the authors for "avoiding certain foods such as potatoes, peanuts and canola oil are misinterpreted and taken out of context"
The authors mention that the Paleo diet is the best. However, currently, the people that live the longest (to about 100 years of age) eat meat infrequently and their diet is based on grains or starch

In summary, the Paleo diet promotes certain healthy habits that are worth keeping such as limiting processed foods, eating fruits and vegetables, healthy fats and lean meats. However, by adding dairy, legumes and grains in your diet you can have a more complete varied and healthy nutrition plan to promote your activity.

How to Build The Perfect Athletes Plate

One of the most basic questions we get asked as dietitians all the time is "what should I eat?". Its a fairly simple question with a complex answer. However, there are ways to simplify this question, especially when it comes to athletes. The best way to simplify it is by showing you how an athletes plate should look like based on their training regimen.

On easy training days, rest days or if I am trying to focus on weight management (probably during off season) my plate should look like the one noted above. Working less, requires less carbohydrates for energy but more produce to assist with recovery and sustaining health. It should contain:

1/4 grains, ideally whole grains such as whole wheat pasta, brown rice, quinoa, sweet potato, whole wheat bread, etc.
1/4 protein. Focus on lean protein such as chicken, turkey, fish, lean parts of the beef or pork, tofu, eggs, etc. Prefer grilled, roasted, broiled or baked over fried or pan fried.
1/2 vegetables and fruits. Example: green beans, roasted beets, salad, sauteed cauliflower, broccoli and carrots, etc.
Make sure you always have healthy fats in there such as: olive oil, olives, nuts, seeds, avocado.
Hydration is always important. Continue hydrating adequately with mainly water.
Example of a whole plate: chicken breast, brown rice with almonds and broccoli or large salad with egg, cheese, pumpkin seeds, lettuce, tomato, onion, cucumber, carrots and cabbage.

As training increases our plate changes to accommodate more carbohydrates to assist with energy demands of the sport. Moderate training is typically when you have 1-2 training sessions a day that may include one easy workout and a second hard/moderate workout or just one hard workout.

This plate should contain:

1/3 grains. As noted before, prefer whole grains. A day before a game or a competition, you might want to consider limiting whole grains so they do not cause a stomach upset.
1/4 protein. As intensity increases we still need enough protein to help rebuild and recover.
1/3+ vegetables and fruits. Variety is important to help fight inflammation, assist with recovery and support a healthy immune system.
Continue to incorporate healthy fats.
Hydration - keep hydrating appropriately. Weigh before and after practice. For every pound lost, drink 16-20 oz liquid. Sports drinks could be incorporated. See previous post for more specific info on hydration.

Last but not least, when training intensity and duration have increased even more, we focus more on carbohydrates as that is our major source of energy. Hard training or competition day (depending on the sport) is when we have at least 2 workouts a day that are fairly high intensity or if duration is long

This plate should contain:

1/2 grains. The higher the intensity the more we rely on carbohydrates. This plate may need to contain more easily digestible carbohydrates such as regular rice and white pasta vs whole grain to prevent stomach issues.
1/4 protein. As intensity increases we still need enough protein to help rebuild and recover.
1/4 vegetables and fruits. Variety is important to help fight inflammation, assist with recovery and support a healthy immune system.
Healthy fats are increased slightly to accommodate inflammation as well as being able to meet calorie goals.
Hydration continues to be very important. See above for recommendations

As you can see, its quite simple. Whether you cook at home, eat at the dinning hall/training table or eat out, you should be able to build a healthy plate. Hopefully, these visuals have helped. You can also print out this cool education sheet the NCAA Sports Science Institute has created to building a performance plate.

** Thanks to USOC and UCCS for the great athletes plate ed material