Ever wondered what it takes to fuel an Olympic silver medallist? Meet Jo-Ané du Plessis( formerly Van Dyk) – the javelin powerhouse who also happens to be a registered dietician.
LIVE WELL: NUTRITION
DAMENTAL L AND POST- RKOUT PINTS
Ever wondered what it takes to fuel an Olympic silver medallist? Meet Jo-Ané du Plessis( formerly Van Dyk) – the javelin powerhouse who also happens to be a registered dietician.
What simple nutrition habit would you recommend for amateur athletes looking to improve performance?
A simple nutrition hack I ' d say is to always keep snacks, high carbohydrates, easy digestible snacks close by – bananas or bars. Also, it ' s important to plan training and then plan your eating around it also. That ' s ideal.
What’ s one meal or snack you think every athlete should know about?
I think one meal, or snack that all athletes should know about is definitely a post-workout, post-competition meal or snack, or recovery, because I think a lot of athletes don ' t necessarily refuel after a training session and then they don ' t prepare themselves for the next session. So they should all know about the proper post-workout, post-competition meal that is usually within the first 30 to 60 minutes after a competition or after a training session. If it ' s also not in that time, it ' s fine, the ideal time is just that window, but usually it consists of 75 per cent carbs and 25 per cent protein.
What’ s the biggest nutrition myth you hear in sport that really frustrates you?
I think the biggest nutrition myth that sometimes frustrates me, is when people say carbs are bad and that they are cutting out carbs. Especially for athletes, it’ s our primary source of fuel and primary source of energy. So if athletes say they are cutting out carbs, I ' m just like, what are you thinking?
From the " golden window " of recovery to the local legend that is a Steri Stumpie, she’ s breaking down how she balances elite performance with real-life cravings( yes, including an ice-cold beer). Get ready for some myth-busting and high-performance hacks from the woman who knows exactly what should be on your plate to get you to the podium.
How does your nutrition change during training versus competition periods?
So my competition nutrition and my training nutrition is very similar, it ' s actually exactly the same, because I always say in your training, you also train your nutrition for competition, to make sure you know which foods work best for you and what fuelling works best for you. So it doesn ' t really differ, except for a few days before competition I usually start eating a little bit more carbohydrates, and loading my glycogen stores.
Are there foods or supplements you rely on to boost recovery after intense sessions?
I always say I don ' t really drink supplements or protein shakes or things like that, but my number one go-to if I had a good hard training session is chocolate milk, so Steri Stumpie is go-to.
What’ s your go-to pre-training or pre-competition meal?
Pre-training, pre-competition meal usually depends on the time of the day, but say I train in the morning, I ' m a creature of habit so I eat yoghurt and muesli every morning, usually paired with a fruit like a banana or something like that. My competitions are usually in the evenings, so my go-to is quite plain and simple like a pasta and then a little bit of protein and a little bit of low-fat, low-fibre foods.
How important is hydration for performance, and what are your top tips for staying hydrated during long sessions?
Hydration is really important. We athletes, I think we tend to under-hydrate a lot, myself included. So hydration is really important, it controls our body temperature, helps us to not overheat and it controls your blood volume and good for concentration and nutrient transport and things like that. I’ d say advice to people to hydrate during training sessions at a recommended rate of 150 to 250ml every 15 to 20 minutes. It depends on the weather, but mostly water or electrolytes. Electrolytes especially if you’ re sweating a lot or if you’ re doing a training session that’ s more than 90 minutes. Otherwise you can also say the recommended range is 400 to 800ml an hour.
What’ s your favourite guilty treat – the one thing you’ d never give up?
I think my favourite guilty treat, not necessarily a food, it ' s a nice ice-cold beer. That’ s definitely something that I would never give up, unless I ' m pregnant of course, but yes, it ' s something I think I would never give up.
What was the first thing you ate or drank after winning your Olympic silver medal in Paris?
I can ' t really remember. There were probably some snacks in the medal ceremony area. Or I think I ate a bar that I had in my bag that came from the Olympic Village. And then the drink... some French sparkling wine that my father-in-law bought beforehand, regardless of the outcome.
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