Do you want to train as a martial artist and perform well? Then it is important that you also eat well. That does not mean just eating a lot, but taking in the right nutrients at the right times.
This is important so that you have enough energy available during your boxing, kickboxing, MMA, Muay Thai Taekwondo or karate lessons etc. But it is also certainly important for the recovery of your body, the building of your muscles and for making the right weight for a competition (and that in relation to an optimal fat percentage). But how do you know that you are taking the right nutrients at the right times?
First of all, it costs a lot of money to have this done (so the athlete's performance must be very profitable). Secondly, it is not possible for most athletes to stick to such a diet plan when you also have a job etc. in addition to your sport. It takes a lot of discipline and time. But fortunately there are also a number of nutritional guidelines that work for every martial artist. These guidelines are easy to follow, provided you have discipline.
Nutritional Guidelines for Combat Athletes
Martial artists need to be fast and strong , which is why they generally have more muscle tissue than other people. People with more muscle tissue use more energy than average (even at rest). If you train intensively for more than 5 to 6 hours a week, it is good to follow the diet plan below.
1: Eat wholesome meals
Useful 4 full meals a day with about 3 hours between each meal. For example, the first at 8:00 in the morning, then at 11:00, then again at 14:00 and the last at 17:00. Keep in mind that you do not eat an extensive meal less than 2 to 3 hours before the boxing, kickboxing, Muay Thai, MMA, taekwondo or karate training/match. Exercising on a full stomach causes complications.
But what should such a complete meal contain?
- Slow carbohydrates. So choose products such as wholemeal bread, grains, potatoes, (brown) rice, (wholemeal) pasta and legumes and not sugars. These carbohydrates can be stored in the body as glycogen (which you use as an energy source during exercise without your performance suffering, which is the case when you burn fat or body proteins during exercise). In addition, they contain B vitamins and important minerals, such as iron, magnesium, chromium and zinc.
- Complete proteins. These are proteins that contain sufficient (essential) amino acids. Amino acids are the building blocks for body cells, including muscle tissue, bones and blood. But also for antibodies and hormones, etc. You must absorb essential amino acids directly from food. The body cannot produce these amino acids itself from other building blocks, but the body does need them. You can get these complete proteins including sufficient essential amino acids by eating the following products: meat, fish, poultry (such as chicken), milk (products), cheese and eggs. There are also vegetable products that contain complete proteins, such as: bread, nuts, beans, lentils and soy. This last product is the only vegetable product that also contains essential amino acids.
- Polyunsaturated fats. Instead of fats, it is best to use carbohydrates as fuel, because too much fat is stored as body fat. Note: Too much carbohydrates/sugars can also be stored as body fat, but first the glycogen supply will be replenished and this is the supply you need to get energy during exercise. But why do we still eat fats? There is a difference between saturated fats (which mainly have bad properties for the body) and you have unsaturated fats. These fats have properties that promote the metabolic process in the body. Fats are also often carriers of minerals and trace elements (vitamins) that are important for the body. In particular, the essential fatty acids such as linoleic acid and linolenic acid from vegetable oils such as linseed, soy, sunflower and corn oil, but also from margarine, low-fat margarine and fatty fish are important for your body. Eat fat in moderation and choose nutrients with polyunsaturated fats and essential fatty acids. For example, you can: spread margarine or half-fat margarine on your bread, dress your salad with a dressing containing one of the above vegetable oils, eat nuts and seeds or eat oily fish (salmon, herring, eel, mackerel, trout, etc.).
- Vegetables and fruit. Eat 1 piece of fruit or a serving spoon of vegetables at every meal.
- Variation and sufficient nutritional value. Make sure you get all the above nutrients with every meal. But do vary the products you use. Each product contains different minerals and trace elements that you need. By varying a lot you get all the necessary nutrients and not always the same vitamins, minerals and trace elements. There are many different types and your body needs them all. A deficiency will lead to health problems, but too much can also cause problems. So take a piece of fruit with one meal and a spoonful of vegetables with the other and also vary the type of fruit or vegetable you choose. The color of the vegetables and fruit also says something about the nutrients they contain. So eat green vegetables one time, red the next and then white again, etc. That way you know that you are varying well. Also always choose a different product that will provide you with the slow carbohydrates, full-fledged proteins and unsaturated fats.
- Be careful not to eat too much, but eat as much as you need. Do not eat snacks in addition to these meals unless you notice from your body that you need it. Then consciously choose healthy snacks.
2: Drink enough
Drink 2 dl (= one glass) of water every hour. Water is very important for your body (which consists of 60% water), it is a means of transport for nutrients and waste products and also ensures the temperature regulation of the body. For good sports performance, the fluid balance must be maintained before, during and after sports. Even a fluid loss of 1% of body weight has a negative effect on the metabolism and reduces performance. If you only start drinking when you are thirsty, you are too late. A feeling of thirst occurs with a fluid loss of 2% of your body weight.
To ensure that your fluid percentage remains at the right level during exercise, it is good to drink a little more water before training or the match. Not too much, because that is unhealthy and you can even die from it (water poisoning; the osmotic value in your blood is too low).
Do not drink a lot of water just before your boxing, kickboxing, Muay Thai, MMA, taekwondo or karate training/match, because then your stomach will start to slosh unpleasantly. Try to keep drinking during the training. Normally you need 1 liter of water during one hour of practicing martial arts. This is not always possible and it is also good for your body to get used to running matches with a reduced fluid percentage. For martial artists who also do boxing, kickboxing, Muay Thai or MMA matches etc. the advice is therefore; 0.5 liters of water for 1 to 1.5 hours of training. But before the training bring your fluid percentage to a higher level!
3: Replenish your amino acids
After training, it is often necessary to replenish the amino acids in your body. This is mainly for the recovery of your muscle tissue and other body tissue that has been damaged during the collection. But also for the construction of new muscle tissue. Before you take these amino acids , you must first consume a carbohydrate-rich diet. This can be fruit or other fast carbohydrates (fast carbohydrates can be quickly absorbed into the blood, after which they can immediately serve as energy). If you do not do this, your body will burn the amino acids as fuel to restore the energy level in your body. As a result, these valuable amino acids can no longer be used as building blocks.
Is the intention to reduce the fat percentage in your body? Then you should not take in any nutrients for at least an hour after the training. You may only drink water for the first hour. This is because after the interval workout (which is what boxing, kickboxing, Muay Thai, MMA, taekwondo or karate training or competitions are) your body continues to burn body fat to restore your energy level. If you were to eat or drink a drink with nutrients now, your body would burn these new nutrients (because the body has them more easily available at that moment and is therefore easier to convert into energy than your body fat) and therefore stops burning body fat.
Guidelines for a healthy lifestyle
To perform well as a boxer, kickboxer, taekwondo, karateka, Muay Thai and MMA fighter, not only your diet is important but also your lifestyle. Below are some tips for a healthy lifestyle for athletes:
- Do not smoke and do not use drugs or doping.
- Sleep at least 8 hours a night and don't go to bed too late. Top athletes also need to get their rest during the day.
- Don't drink too much alcohol. If you consume more than two glasses in one day, this is already harmful to your body. If you don't drink more than 2 glasses of beer or wine in one day, then it is not harmful to do this once a week. Don't drink alcohol when you are preparing for a competition.
- Be frugal with sugars and saturated fats. And limit yourself to healthy snacks when you get hungry/'hunger' outside of your meals. You can have an unhealthy snack a few times a week (unless you are right before your competition). This contributes, just like a small amount of alcohol, to a positive state of mind.
Sports nutrition and supplements
To continue to follow the above nutritional guidelines and guidelines for a healthy lifestyle, you need a lot of discipline. If you do not have this and only manage to follow the guidelines for a short period of time, then there is actually no point in using sports nutrition or supplements. Your basic diet and your lifestyle determine 80% of the success you can achieve based on nutrition. The remaining 20% could be optimized by using appropriate sports nutrition and supplements. What you should use is another story and also very personal. But first it is important that you continue to follow the above guidelines constantly, so that the first 80% is optimal. If you can keep that 80% optimal constantly, then it is only useful to use sports nutrition and supplements. So first make sure that you follow the guidelines to become a healthy and physically strong martial artist and only then delve into sports nutrition.
For more information about healthy nutrition, visit: http://www.voedingscentrum.nl / Some information about nutrients has also been verified on this site to prevent errors.
