Sports Nutrition Toolkit, Lian Brown, Caroline Tarnowski

SPORTS
NUTRITION
TOOLKIT
PRACTICAL TOOLS FOR QUALIFIED PROFESSIONALS

WORKING WITH ATHLETES
2022
THE LIAM BROWN, MSc KEVIN LUHRS, MS
GATORADE CAROLINE TARNOWSKI, MSc ERIC FREESE, PhD

SPORTS REBECCA RANDELL, PhD JAMES CARTER, PhD
SCIENCE
INSTITUTE KHALIL LEE, PhD IAN ROLLO, PhD
LB, CT, RR, KL, KL, EF, JC & IR are employees of the Gatorade Sports Science Institute, a division of PepsiCo, Incorporated. The views
expressed in this book are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the position or policy of PepsiCo, Incorporated.
© 2022
TABLE OF CONTENTS 1
TABLE OF CONTENTS
INTRODUCTION 2
BUILDING A TEAM 3
PREPARATION 4
CONSULTATIONS AND DIETARY ANALYSIS 7

Consultations 7
Dietary Analysis 17
NUTRITION MONITORING 25
Body Composition 25
Hydration 32
NUTRITION INTERVENTIONS 42
Energy 42
Carbohydrates 45
Protein 50
Dietary Supplements 53
Gastrointestinal Complaints 56
MEAL PLANNING 60
REFERENCES 64
MEET THE TEAM 66
APPENDIX 68
Measurement Conversion Tables 68
2 INTRODUCTION
SPORTS NUTRITION TOOLKIT

The Gatorade Sports Science Institute (GSSI) is committed to helping athletes optimize their health and performance through
research and education in hydration and nutrition science. The GSSI has experience working with some of the best practitioners,
teams and athletes in the United States and across the globe. The provision of this service would not be possible without the
translation of sports nutrition research into sports nutrition practice.
Over the last 40 years GSSI have provided free Sports Science Exchange articles to review the latest scientific evidence on core
and hot topics in sports nutrition. Thus, the GSSI leads with science to inform sports nutrition recommendations.
To complement the information gained via research, the GSSI provide translational online “tools” for athletes, dietitians and
sports nutritionists to utilise in practice. Examples include the fluid loss calculator, diet analysis tool for athletes and fuel habit
surveys. Furthermore, GSSI partner closely with the Gatorade Performance Partner team to provide a suite of educational and
practical materials for individuals working with athletes.
The aim of this Sports Nutrition Toolkit is to provide a guide and resource for qualified sports professionals such as nutritionists
and dietitians (referred to as ‘nutritionist’ throughout) working with athletes. The toolkit is not designed to cover all topics in
sports nutrition. Nor should the toolkit be considered as a consensus for practice in sports nutrition. Instead, the toolkit aims to
provide introductory materials on the fundamental topics in sports nutrition to support best practice.
It is our ambition that these resources are taken, modified and adapted to the needs of the individual athlete, team or sport. We
hope this book will provide a good starting point for people new to the profession, as well as be of interest to more established
sports nutrition practitioners.
DR IAN ROLLO DR ERIC FREESE

GSSI Principal Scientist: Head of GSSI GSSI Principal Scientist: Lead of U.S.
International Service, UK Satellite Laboratory in Frisco, Texas
GSSI Sports Science Exchange articles: Gatorade Performance Partner Sport Nutrition resources:
gssiweb.org/en performancepartner.gatorade.com/resources
BUILDING A TEAM 3
BUILDING A TEAM
“Building a team” typically refers to the recruitment of athletes and performance and development). However, we recognise that
support staff and the experimentation with training and/or tactics nutrition in sport can be low on the list of priorities as coaches
in pursuit of winning performances. However, in literal terms, it is and team physicians prepare athletes for competition. To this
the sports nutritionist who may in fact have the biggest impact end, it is important for the nutritionist to integrate within the
on “building” a successful team. This is because the foods in sports performance team to maximise the impact of sports
the athlete’s diet fundamentally provide the building blocks for nutrition advice on the athlete. Thus integrating nutrition into
all movement, for example muscle, bone and energy production. an interdisciplinary team may result in improved outcomes that
Thus, without food the athlete would not be able to complete would not be achieved by a single discipline alone.
sport-specific skills, nor would they be able to cope with the Figure 1 provides examples of where the nutritionist can integrate
repeated demands of training and competition over the duration with the Sports Performance team. It is important to recognise
of a season. that members of the performance team are often best placed to
The nutritionist is an integral part of the sports performance reinforce nutrition messages to the athlete.
team (a network of individuals who support the athlete’s health,
HEAD COACH AND COACHING STAFF

Educate Head Coach and Coaching Staff on sports nutrition principles and messaging.
Share body coamposition results and educate on body composition goals.
TEAM DOCTOR
Understand medical priorities.
Understand return to play strategies.
T R I T IONI S T
Develop food / hygiene education.
NU Communicate on pre-existing and/or developing medical conditions with nutritional

interventions where appropriate.
Collaborate on assessment of blood profiles and appropriate nutrition interventions.
Provide resources on recent sports nutrition science.
PHYSIOTHERAPIST
Integrate sports nutrition protocols to support specific rehabilitation programs.
STRENGTH AND CONDITIONING COACH

ATHLETE Understand individual training goals and build sports nutrition to support.
Collaborate on sports nutrition and strength and conditioning periodization.
SPORT SCIENTIST
Collaborate in quantifying individual athlete and/or team training and competition
demands and plan sports nutrition protocols accordingly.
Build sports nutrition into recovery strategies.
SPORT PSYCHOLOGIST
Partner in understanding and setting short and long term nutrition / performance
related objectives.
Collaborate in fostering healthy athlete-food relationships.
Partner in framing body composition goals appropriately.
Partner in return to play process.
PERFORMANCE CHEF
Educate Performance Chef and Food Service Staff on sports nutrition principles and
messaging.
Partner in menu development. Offer recipe and menu analysis.
Figure 1
Examples of how the nutritionist
can integrate with the Sports
Performance Team.
4 PREPARATION
PREPARATION
The nutritionist should prioritise the foundations of nutrition i.e. protect the individual as well as the integrity of the team/sport.
a healthy, balanced diet, before moving to the more advanced This chapter provides key resources and tools to help build these
details of personalization. foundations, including suggested resources for the nutritionist
Before the nutritionist begins to communicate with an athlete, to utilise periodically to ensure they are adhering to current
they are encouraged to complete the pre-requisites of practical best practice (Table 1). For the translation of sports nutrition into
nutritional support (highlighted in this chapter). Focusing on these practice, a list of some helpful nutrition tools to utilise around
foundations sets the nutritionist up for future success and ensures training and competition is provided (Table 2).
that both the nutritionist and athlete have safeguards in place to
RESOURCE FUNCTION
To help the nutritionist understand the World Anti-Doping Code, prohibited
World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) Resources substance list and other relevant documentation, to protect athlete, nutritionist and
the integrity of the sport.
To help the nutritionist understand local/sport specific anti-doping requirements to

Local and Sport Specific Anti-Doping Resources protect athlete, nutritionist and the integrity of the sport.
Becoming accredited in region specific sport nutrition associations (e.g. the Sport
Sport Nutrition Accreditation and Exercise Nutrition Register, UK) can help protect and promote both the role as a
nutritionist, and the wider sport nutrition profession.
Recommended if working with food. The knowledge gained by completing the

Food Hygiene Certificate certificate will help to protect the health and safety of the athlete.
Education and professional development resource; supports nutritionists by

providing information on a multitude of sport science and nutrition topics via Sport
Gatorade Sport Science Institute Website Science Exchange articles, webinars, research articles and more. Provides scientific
rationale for sports nutrition recommendations.
Education and professional development resource; supports nutritionists

development, athlete performance and collaboration through professional
Gatorade Performance Partner Website development opportunities, athlete education tools, and events with sports
performance industry leaders.
Education and professional development resource; The Association’s mission is

Collegiate and Professional Sports Dietitians to create leaders who elevate the profession of Sports Nutrition through ethical,
Association Website science-based, cutting-edge care. The website offers career development
opportunities, education resources and more.
Education and professional development resource; The group leverages the

Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics Sports and integration of nutrition, exercise science, and technology to set industry standards.
Human Performance Nutrition Website The website provides continuing education, and helps prepare the next generation
of cutting-edge professionals.
Australian Institute of Sport Position Statement Provides a classification system ranking sports foods and supplements into groups
on Supplements and Sports Foods in High according to scientific evidence and safety. Can be used to educate and inform
Performance Sport practice.
Table 1
A selection of recommended
resources for nutritionists.
Table 2
Nutrition tools to support the nutritionist around
the exercise occasion.
PREPARATION 5
*Availability may vary depending on the region.
EQUIPMENT NAME OF EQUIPMENT USE / IMPORTANCE
Squeeze Bottle To support fuelling and hydration
To support personalized fuelling

Gx Bottle and hydration
To transport bottles during training

Bottle Carrier and competition
To keep drinks cool in heat and

Drinks Cooler ensure availability of fluids
To support refuelling and

Shaker Bottle muscle repair
To wipe away sweat and dry

Towel off post-exercise
To understand athlete’s fluid and

sodium losses during exercise
Gx Patch and App* to help personalize hydration
recommendations
Table 3
6 PREPARATION Checklist of tasks for the
nutritionist prior to starting a
new role.
PREPARATION CHECKLISTS
Checklists provide a useful guide to evaluate which key tasks have been completed, as well as identifying opportunities to improve
practice. Lists of suggested tasks that the qualified professional could complete before starting their role in sports nutrition, and tasks
that could be completed once their role has began have been provided (Tables 3 and 4). These lists are not in any particular order, nor
are they extensive. However, the lists can be used as a starting point to evaluate the importance of each task, and to help identify any
additional tasks relevant to specific roles.
TASK COMPLETED?
Read and understand WADA and local and sport specific anti-doping resources.
Read and understand relevant data security policies.
Read and understand relevant safeguarding policies.
Apply for, or renew, sports nutrition, and other relevant accreditations i.e. ISAK for taking anthropometric measurements.
Complete a food hygiene certificate.
Refresh knowledge with educational resources.
Research the team / individual to support relationship building.
TASK COMPLETED?
Meet the athlete(s), members of the sports performance team and remaining staff to understand roles and
responsibilities.
Begin to build relationships with athlete(s), members of the sports performance team and remaining staff through non-
nutrition related conversations.
Begin to understand the knowledge and attitudes towards sports nutrition of the athlete(s), members of the sports
performance team and remaining staff.
Ensure the athlete(s) / team has the required physical tools (bottles, body mass scales, etc) listed throughout this
document. Understand where these tools are stored, or purchase and store tools in a safe location.
Where appropriate, observe the process in restaurants / canteens at meal times.
Where appropriate, ask for menus from chefs for breakfast, lunch and dinner; including training, competition, travel and
overnight stay menus. This could include meals at hotels and during charter flights/travel on buses, for example, as well
as any foods provided in the locker room, and post-exercise.
Observe and monitor current training and competition routines and nutrition strategies; including those pre-, during and
post-exercise, during breaks in play (i.e. half time), and during travel and overnight stays.
Discuss current supplementation strategies with members of the sports performance team ensuring all supplements
meet WADA regulations and their use is based on science (see pages 53 - 55).
Observe different kinds of training sessions pre-, during and post-exercise. E.g. technical sessions, recovery sessions,
and gym sessions.
Review current educational resources available to the athlete(s) / team.
Table 4
Checklist of tasks for the
nutritionist once they have
started a new role.
CONSULTATIONS AND
DIETARY ANALYSIS
Consultations and dietary analyses are significant tools that can be used independently, or in tandem, by the nutritionist to learn
more about an athlete with the aim to inform personalized nutrition advice. This chapter provides practical tools to support the
nutritionist in running both consultations and dietary analyses with athletes (Figure 2).
Dietary analyses can be used to provided Support for the nutritionist

a deeper understanding of an athlete’s diet to identify goals and areas of
following a consultation improvement
CONSULTATIONS
+ DIETARY ANALYSIS
=
Consultations can be used to investigate Support for the nutritionist to
the underlying reasons behind an athlete’s lay out the process required for
dietary intake the athlete to meet goals
Figure 2
The relationship between consultations and dietary analysis.
CONSULTATIONS
A consultation is a one to one conversation between the nutritionist Each template can be used to guide conversations and may be
and athlete. The aim of the consultation is to establish the athlete’s adapted by the nutritionist to suit their needs. These templates
history and current situation, to review barriers to good practice, act as data collection sheets for conversations with athletes to be
and to identify targets, goals, and areas of improvement. monitored over time. These records are confidential and should
be stored accordingly.
Consultations are a significant tool for the nutritionist to build an
understanding of the athlete and should be utilised throughout any
partnership to inform personalized nutrition recommendations.
This section provides practical tools to support nutrition
consultations.
CONSULTATION FORMS
Pages 11 - 16 contain consultation templates and feedback forms
to support the nutritionist in facilitating consultations with athletes
(Table 5). These consultation templates are based on the COM-B
behaviour change wheel (Michie, et al., 2011) and can be used
by the nutritionist to guide conversations with an athlete to
understand their capabilities, opportunities and motivation around
food and nutrition. Decision trees can be utilised as a guide for the
consultation process (Figures 3 and 4).
Table 5
8 CONSULTATIONS AND DIETARY ANALYSIS An overview of consultation
forms displayed on pages
11 - 16.
NAME OF SHEET FUNCTION SHARE WITH ATHLETE?

To be used for the initial consultation with an athlete. The sheet
can be used to direct the conversation during the consultation,
Initial Nutrition Assessment with the aim of understanding the athlete and identifying some
YES
areas to work on.
To be used each time you have a consultation with an athlete

following the initial assessment. It can either be filled out at
Nutrition Consultation the time of the consultation, or afterwards to document the
YES
conversation.
To be used to set a goal with an athlete. Designed to direct the

Goal Setting conversation during the goal setting process and to be filled YES
out at the time of the consultation.
To be used to follow-up on the progress of the goal. Can be

Goal Setting Follow-up used multiple times throughout the goal setting process.
YES
CONSULTATION DECISION TREE
Athlete identified to receive a nutrition consultation by any of the following:
Athlete identified through dietary,

Athlete identified via communications Athlete presents themselves to the
Consultations with whole team body composition or hydration
with sports performance team nutritionist
analysis
Is it the first time running a consultation with the specific athlete?
YES NO
Work to understand physiological requirements of the athlete by: Work with sports performance
team to understand if physiological
Discussing key performance demands / indicators and athlete specific targets with the sports performance team. requirements or athlete specific
Where relevant, this could include: position, role in team (starter / reserve), distance covered, intensities, current and goals have changed since last
expected level of performance, fatigue, injury history etc. consultation
Ensure relevant documentation is printed; including any consent forms, and consultation templates as required in the
steps below
Has written and/or verbal consent been gained from the athlete upon request to record consultations moving forward?
YES NO
Begin consultation with athlete in a private area, working through ‘Initial
Nutrition Assessment’ template to guide discussions Do not proceed – inform relevant Begin consultation with the athlete,
member of sports performance team using the ‘Nutrition Consultation’
Performance goals can be a combination of goals set by sports performance where applicable template to record discussions
team, nutritionist and athlete
Is analysis of body composition required to support the consultation / Is this the first consultation?
YES
Complete body composition analysis, following the body composition section on pages 25 - 31, and continue consultation NO
Provide a copy of relevant, completed, consultation sheets to the athlete, and keep a copy for nutritionist’s records
Has a nutrition related goal / target been identified as a result of the consultation?
YES NO
Complete the ‘Goal Setting’ template with the athlete and set a follow up date.
Are further consultations required to monitor progress?
Provide a copy to athlete, and keep a copy for nutritionist’s records
NO YES
Complete the ‘Goal Setting Follow Up’ template with the athlete on the follow No further immediate action
up date that has previously been set. Provide a copy to athlete, and keep a required, continue usual monitoring Set date for follow up
copy for nutritionist’s records of athlete
Have goals been met?
NO YES
Work to understand why goals have not Are further consultations NO

been met, and adapt goals if relevant required to monitor progress?
YES
Figure 3
Decision tree to be used as a guide
for nutritionist when completing
consultations.
Figure 4
10 CONSULTATIONS AND DIETARY ANALYSIS Decision tree to be used
during any conversations with
an athlete.
DURING ANY ATHLETE DISCUSSIONS
Has the nutritionist identified the need to carry out a detailed Have any serious risks been identified e.g. health issues, potential eating
dietary analysis? disorders or anti-doping risks?
YES YES NO
Move to ‘Dietary Analysis’ section Notify relevant member of sports

on pages 17 - 24 for additional NO performance team, or a health No further action required, continue
support professional immediately to act usual monitoring of athlete
on issue
Does the nutritionist / athlete require more information about energy,

carbohydrates or protein requirements and recommendations?
YES
Move to ‘Energy’, ‘Carbohydrate’ or

‘Protein’ sections on pages 42 - 52 NO
for additional support
Is the nutritionist to provide the athlete with a meal plan?
YES
Move to ‘Meal Planning’ section

on pages 60 - 63 for additional NO
support
Have questions about supplements been raised?
YES NO
No further immediate action

Move to ‘Supplements’ section
required, continue usual
on pages 53 - 55
monitoring of athlete
INITIAL NUTRITION ASSESSMENT

NAME: DATE:
AGE: SPORT:
PREFERRED CONTACT METHOD: POSITION:
PERFORMANCE GOALS
1.
2.
3.
GENERAL INFORMATION
Food preferences Food allergies /
Type of diet? Supplements?
(e.g. dislikes)? intolerances?
Frequency of Menstrual cycle

Injury history Medication?
illness / URTIs? information
BODY COMPOSITION RESULTS AND TARGETS

Current Target
Height (ft, in or cm) N/A
Body mass (lb or kg)
Sum of 8 skinfolds (mm)
Predicted body fat %
BODY COMPOSITION METHOD USED:

DATE FOR TARGET TO BE REACHED BY:
12 CONSULTATIONS AND DIETARY ANALYSIS

NAME: DATE:
WHAT ARE THE ATHLETE’S CAPABILITIES?

Knowledge of nutrients in Food type / timing
Cooking ability? Meal planning skills?
foods? knowledge?
ARE THERE ANY OBSTACLES / OPPORTUNITIES?

Home environment, who
Travel / commuting habits? Training habits? Competition habits?
cooks / shops?
WHAT IS GOING TO KEEP THE ATHLETE MOTIVATED?

Motivations in terms of both Physical development Prefer information to be Frequent nutrition
sport and nutrition? goals? scientific or basic? reminders needed?
NOTES

NAME: DATE:
KEY STRENGTHS
KEY AREAS TO DEVELOP
INITIAL NUTRITION SPECIFIC WORK-ONS
FOLLOW UPS
NEXT REVIEW / CHECK IN DATES

NUTRITION CONSULTATION
NAME: DATE:
AGE: HEIGHT:
BODY MASS: SKINFOLDS: mm
PERFORMANCE GOALS
1.
2.
3.
AREAS DISCUSSED
OUTCOMES / FOLLOW UPS

GOAL SETTING
NAME: DATE:
AGE: HEIGHT:
PERFORMANCE GOALS
1.
2.
3.
NUTRITION RELATED GOAL
CAPABILITY OPPORTUNITY MOTIVATION

Do you have the knowledge / skills Will your environment allow the Is this a habit or do we need to
to be able to achieve it? behaviour to occur? make a more structured plan?
WHAT IS GOING TO HOLD YOU ACCOUNTABLE?
HOW CAN WE MEASURE IF KEY REVIEW /

YOU HAVE ACHIEVED IT? CHECK IN DATES
GOAL SETTING FOLLOW-UP

NAME: DATE:
AGE: HEIGHT:
PERFORMANCE GOALS
1.
2.
3.
NUTRITION RELATED GOAL
HAVE YOU ACHIEVED THE GOAL?
WHAT WHAT DID YOU FIND WHAT NEEDS TO

WENT WELL? DIFFICULT? HAPPEN NEXT?

DIETARY ANALYSIS
Dietary analysis is a tool that can be used to understand results provide a snapshot of behaviours, with a loss of points
an athlete’s food choices and how they align with daily indicating areas of improvement, acting as a starting point for
goals. Results from dietary analyses can be used to provide nutritionists conversations with the athlete.
personalized nutrition feedback to an athlete to support their
health, development and performance. *www.gssiweb.org/toolbox/survey/fuelhabits
There are several different dietary analysis techniques. This

section will provide tools to identify which technique to utilise and
how to provide feedback to the athlete. The nutritionist should
understand that no single form of dietary analysis is 100% valid
or reliable. In addition, many other factors should be considered
alongside diet when evaluating health and performance, thus
results of dietary analyses should be interpreted in regard to
these limitations.
OVERVIEW OF DIETARY ANALYSIS METHODS

There are several commonly used dietary analysis methods
(Table 6), each of which come with potential errors, be that
of validity, or reliability. The nutritionist is encouraged to weigh
up the pros and cons to select the most appropriate dietary
analysis method for their needs; the use of a checklist can help
guide their choice of dietary analysis method (Table 7).
It may be the case that the nutritionist decides to use a
combination of dietary analysis methods, rather than one
single method. In fact, many nutrition applications (apps) for
mobile devices are taking this approach, and are becoming
increasingly popular with sport clubs and athletic departments.
These apps may increase convenience for both athlete and
nutritionist, with some including conventional search and select
methods for food and beverage items, and others allowing the
athlete to send images of their choices directly to the nutritionist.
In some cases, these apps act as a real time feedback method,
allowing real time analysis of diets and combining athlete-
nutritionist communications, or by connecting to ordering
systems in canteens, for example. However, it should be noted
that whilst there are an abundance of nutrition apps coming
to the market, their accuracy, reliability and validity cannot be
guaranteed, thus if the nutritionist decides to use a nutrition
app, they should critically evaluate the app before choosing
the one appropriate for their needs, taking into consideration
the factors highlighted in Table 6.
Should the athlete not require a full dietary analysis, but
instead a less detailed analysis of fuel habits around an
exercise session, the nutritionist can utilise the online GSSI
Fuel Habits Survey* This survey can be used to capture basic
information about the athlete’s habits which are scored based
on the importance of the nutritional behaviour based on
level of athlete, time of day, goal, duration, and intensity. The
METHOD OVERVIEW OF PERIOD OF PROS CONS

METHODS INTEREST
RETROSPECTIVE
• Speedy to implement • Relies on athlete’s honesty, memo-

ry and food knowledge
• Low burden for the athlete
Athlete describes • Requires trained interviewer
foods consumed • Interview can be structured around
24 h Recall 24 h • Day for recall may be “atypical”
over the last 24 h or a daily activities
“typical day” • Suitable for group surveys but
• Does not alter intake
not representative of individual’s
• Suited to epidemiological research normal intake
• Can be self-administered to lower

burden on the nutritionist
Athletes asked how
• Can be used to cross-check data • Relies on athlete’s honesty, memo-
often they eat foods
obtained from other methods ry, literacy and food knowledge
from a standardised
Food Frequency From 24 h period to
list and to estimate • Validated for ranking individuals • Validity dependent on the food list
Questionnaire (FFQ) open-ended
portion sizes often and the quantification method
using photos or food • Can be modified to target certain
models as a prompt nutrients
• Can be automated to allow quick
processing by nutritionist
• Accounts for daily variation in food

Open-ended intake by investigating a “typical” • Relies on athlete’s honesty, memo-
interview concerning day ry, food knowledge
food use, food • Labour intensive & time consuming
Open-ended or over • Can target contrasts between peri-
Diet History preparation, portion
a specified period ods of interest as a sub-theme • Requires trained interviewer
sizes, food like/
dislikes and a food • Collects information on timing of • Mostly appropriate for qualitative
checklist intake and factors that influence assessment rather than quantitative
food patterns
PROSPECTIVE
• Relies on athlete’s honesty and

May be undertaken • Provides a more accurate quanti- food knowledge
for 1-7 d, with fication of foods than household
Athlete’s dietary • Time consuming for athletes to
increasing ability to measures
intake is quantified by keep and nutritionists to process
track usual intake as
weighing foods and • Considered the “gold standard” for
duration increases, • Distorts food choice and quantity.
beverages consumed dietary assessment
but reduced Athlete may alter their diet to im-
compliance prove their intake or to reduce the
workload of recording
Written Food Diary
(diet record)
Athlete’s dietary • See comments for weighed record

May be undertaken
intake is quantified • Improved compliance with athletes • Requires checking by a trained
for 1-7 d, with
using household compared with weighted record person
increasing ability to
measures
track usual intake as • Less alteration of normal eating • Needs standardised set of house-
(descriptions of
duration increases, pattern compared to weighed or hold measures
cups, teaspoons,
but reduced semi-weighed records
dimensions of food • Subjective/inaccurate assessment
compliance
portions, etc.) of portion sizes
• Relies on athlete’s honesty

• May distort food choice and quan-
tity. Athletes may alter their diet to
improve their intake
Athlete takes and • Self-administered
Remote Food • Subjective/inaccurate assessment
sends photographs • Speedy to implement
Photography of portion sizes
of their plate pre- and Real time and open-
Method (RFPM) post- consumption ended • Low burden for the athlete • Subjective/inaccurate assessment
“Snap-N-Send” via mobile phones in • Can be used to cross-check data of ingredients in multi-ingredient
real time obtained from other methods dishes e.g. casseroles, if additional
details are not provided
• When used alone, validity and
inter-practitioner reliability reported
as poor (Stables, et al., 2021)
Table 6
Overview of dietary analysis
methods, adapted from Burke,
2015.
DIETARY ANALYSIS METHODS

This section provides an overview of the standard operating When filling out the food diary, the athlete should be advised to
procedures for the different dietary analysis methods. Pages record all food and drink consumed on these days, and to be as
23 - 24 provide an athlete feedback form that can be used to specific as possible; e.g. including cooking methods (e.g. boiled,
document results of dietary analyses. This form can be used to fried etc), product brands (e.g. Gatorade), important details (e.g. zero
provide feedback and practical recommendations to the athlete sugar) and quantities of foods and drinks before, and after eating
(information on calculating predicted nutrition requirements can (to account for waste). Quantities can be in ounces / grams or fluid
be found in the Nutrition Interventions chapter on pages 42 - 59). ounces / millilitres, to be weighed by the athlete using weighing
This form can also be used for record keeping and should be scales, or using the ‘household measures’ method as described
stored accordingly. A decision tree is used to pull these resources in Table 6. The method chosen for documenting quantities of
together, acting as a guide to walk the nutritionist through the foods is at the discretion of the nutritionist after weighing up the
process of selecting, and running a dietary analysis (Figure 5). pros and cons of each method. Athletes should also be remined
to breakdown all meals into their component parts, e.g. scrambled
eggs on toast would be bread, butter, eggs and oil and to include all
condiments, such as ketchup. The more detailed the diary, the more
24 HOUR RECALL
accurate the results of the analysis will be. Finally, there is a section
The GSSI website contains an online 24 hour recall tool which at the bottom of the diary where the athlete can input factors that
the nutritionist can use with an athlete*. This online tool uses they feel may have impacted dietary intake, such as mood or quality
the ‘multiple pass’ method, and produces a report that includes of sleep. Detailed nutritional intake data such as energy intake and
an estimate of total daily nutrient intake, pre-, during and post- macro- and micronutrient intake can be evaluated if the nutritionist
exercise intakes, and an estimate of energy expenditure based inputs the data into dietary analysis software.
on activities. Findings of a validation study reported that these
outputs are in good agreement with traditional 24-hour recall, and
observations made by nutritionists. Instructions can be found at
the link above, and it is advised that the nutritionist runs through REMOTE FOOD PHOTOGRAPHY METHOD (RFPM)
the recall with the athlete, adding athlete information, exercise The RFPM is a relatively new method of dietary analysis compared to
data and data on food and beverage intake over the last 24 the aforementioned methods. The RFPM uses real time images of an
hour period. The nutritionist should then encourage the athlete athlete’s diet to capture dietary intake in free-living situations (Martin,
to review the data and add anything that was missed first time et al., 2009). A later study, using an adaptation to the RFPM, ‘Snap-
round (multiple pass) before the report is created; it is important N-Send’, describes the methods used to collect dietary analysis
to advise the athlete to be honest when completing the recall so data (Costello, et al., 2017). To help reduce inaccuracies in subjective
that results reflect actual food and beverage intake. The process portion size assessments, the athlete can place their plate, or food
will take approximately 15-20 minutes. item on a A3 1 x 1cm grid placemat in each photo, as per Costello, et
al., 2017. However if this is not practical, the athlete is encouraged to
*www.gssiweb.org/toolbox/dietaryanalysis/profile
place their hand, or a utensil next to the plate or food item. The same
placemat, hand, or utensil should be used in each photo.
The RFPM can provide insight into types and quantities of food
FOOD DIARY consumed, alongside specific timings of consumption. Detailed
A template food diary to be completed by the athlete can be nutritional intake data such as energy intake and macro- and
found on page 22, with one page completed per day during micronutrient intake can be evaluated if the nutritionist inputs
the analysis period (usually 3 to 7 days). An athlete, where the data into dietary analysis software. It is important to regularly
possible, is recommended to complete analysis on at least one remind the athlete that they should not deviate from their current
rest, training and competition day to evaluate dietary intake nutrition habits/behaviours when using the RFPM so that results
over days with different physiological demands. Food diaries reflect actual dietary intake, and do not hide any potential dietary
can provide insight into types and quantities of food consumed, deficiencies. The RFPM can be used in addition to other methods
alongside specific timings of consumption; it is important to of dietary analysis.
regularly remind the athlete that they should not deviate from
their current nutrition habits/behaviours whilst filling out the diary
so that results reflect actual dietary intake, and do not hide any
potential deficiencies in intake.
QUESTION NUTRITIONIST ANSWER DO THE FOLLOWING METHODS FIT WITH THE NUTRITIONISTS
REQUIREMENTS? (YES/NO)
Food Food
24 h Diet diary diary
recall FFQ RFPM
history (Weighed) (Household
measures)
What kind of data is the

nutritionist looking for? E.g.
general overview, timings
of consumption, or specific
amounts of micro and
macronutrients consumed?
Is the nutritionist looking for

long or short term dietary intake
data?
How knowledgeable is the

athlete about food? How simple
should the method be to avoid
confusion?
How much time and motivation

does the athlete have? Will the
method be a burden on the
athlete?
How much time does the

nutritionist have? Does the
nutritionist have the time to
evaluate the data?
Are additional tools required to

support dietary analysis, e.g.
dietary analysis software? Is the
appropriate software available
where applicable?
Does the nutritionist require

training to run the analysis?
Is the nutritionist adequately
trained where applicable?
Table 7
Checklist to support nutritionists
choice of dietary analysis method.
Adapted from Burke, 2015.
Figure 5
Decision tree to be used as a guide for
nutritionist when completing dietary
analysis.
DIETARY ANALYSIS DECISION TREE
Athlete identified to receive dietary analysis by any of the following:
Athlete identified via communications Athlete identified through consultation Athlete presents themselves to the
Analysis with whole team
with sports performance team process or body composition analysis nutritionist
Has initial consultation already been complete with athlete?
NO
YES Follow consultation decision tree on page 9
Choose relevant dietary analysis method; Nutritionist can evaluate pros and cons of each method (Table 6), and complete the checklist in Table 7 to help
guide their choice
Nutritionist should run the chosen dietary analysis method with the athlete, following standard operating procedures as highlighted on page 19
Is analysis of body composition required to support the dietary analysis?
YES
Complete body composition analysis, following the body composition section on pages 25 - 31, and continue analysis NO
Has the ‘Food Diary’ method been chosen?
YES
Print the ‘Food Diary Template’ and explain the process of recording data to the athlete.
Follow methods as highlighted on page 19
NO
Record results of the analysis; Fill in applicable sections, and add additional comments and practical recommendations on the ‘Dietary Analysis Feedback’
template for the nutritionist’s records. Provide a copy to the athlete, alongside verbal feedback to ensure athlete understanding
Would the nutritionist like to provide estimated energy, carbohydrate and protein requirements alongside dietary analysis results?
YES NO
See ‘Energy’, ‘Carbohydrate’ and ‘Protein’ sections on pages 42 - 52 to calculate

Leave these sections of the template empty, and share the feedback form
estimated requirements before completing the templates and sharing the
with the athlete
feedback with the athlete
Is a further intervention required as a result of the dietary analysis results?
YES NO
Has a specific goal been set? Is a meal plan appropriate for the athlete?
Does the nutritionist want to understand what is affecting or influencing the Are further consultations required to monitor progress?
athlete’s dietary intake?
Consumption
YES NO
Goal Meal Plan Influences
Set date for follow up No further immediate action
required, continue usual
Follow the ‘Consultation Move to ‘Meal Planning’ monitoring of athlete
Follow the
Decision Tree’ (page 9) section on pages
‘Consultation Decision
from the ‘Goal Setting’ 60 - 63 for additional Follow Consultation Decision Tree
Tree’ on page 9
step support on page 9
FOOD DIARY TEMPLATE

NAME: DATE:
DAY OF WEEK: TYPE OF DAY (E.G. REST):
TYPE AND DURATION OF EXERCISE:
Time Name of meal Detailed list of ingredients Quantity at start Quantity at end
Example Example Example Example Example

8am Breakfast; Porridge with 1.5 oz Quaker Oats; 8.5 ﬂ oz 2% reduced fat milk; 3.5 oz 13.5 oz OR 1 oz OR
toppings banana OR 1 large bowl 1 spoon porridge
1 pot Quaker Oats; 1/2 glass 2% reduced fat milk; 1
medium banana
GENERAL COMMENTS FOR THE DAY

Factors that may contribute to food consumption (e.g. quality of sleep, mood etc.)
DIETARY ANALYSIS FEEDBACK

NAME: DATE:
BODY COMPOSITION RESULTS AND TARGETS
Current Target
BODY COMPOSITION METHOD USED: DATE FOR TARGET TO BE REACHED BY:
TOTAL ENERGY INTAKE

Rest day Training day Competition day
Estimated requriements (kcal / day)

Estimated intake (kcal / day)
FEEDBACK PRACTICAL RECOMMENDATIONS
CARBOHYDRATE INTAKE
g / day
g / day (Light)
g / hour pre-exercise
Estimated
Total: g / day g / day (Moderate)
requriements g during exercise
g / day (High)
g / hour post-exercise
g / day
g / day (Light)
Estimated g / hour pre-exercise
Total: g / day g / day (Moderate)
intake g during exercise
g / day (High)
g / hour post-exercise

DIETARY ANALYSIS FEEDBACK

NAME: DATE:
PROTEIN INTAKE
Estimated requriements (g / day)

Estimated intake (g / day)
FAT INTAKE
Estimated requriements (g / day)

Estimated intake (g / day)
COMMENTS ON TYPE OF FATS CONSUMED
QUALITY OF DIET
OVERALL COMMENTS
(e.g. regarding micronutrient and phytonutrient consumption)

NUTRITION MONITORING
Monitoring an athlete’s body composition, sweat rates and hydration status, allows nutrition and hydration recommendations to be tailored
to meet an athlete’s individual requirements. This chapter provides practical tools to support the collection and analysis of this data.
BODY COMPOSITION
Body composition plays a role in both health and performance It is recommended that the same qualified professional takes
and is impacted by diet and physical activity. As such, body measurements each time an athlete is assessed and the exact
composition varies from athlete to athlete. Monitoring body same piece of equipment should be used for each measurement,
composition over time can provide insights into an athlete’s and should meet all technical requirements (Table 9). In addition,
energy availability, physical development, and can be used before body composition analysis, it is recommended that the
to assess the impact of training and nutrition practices. In athlete has not carried out any strenuous physical activity, is
combination with performance metrics, this analysis can be used euhydrated, and is fasted, thus the morning before training is an
to provide personalized nutrition targets. ideal occasion for analysis.
Data collection and feedback forms have been provided on
BODY COMPOSITION METHODS pages 29 - 31 (Table 10). A decision tree is used to pull all of these
This section provides an overview of the standard operating resources together, acting as a guide to walk the nutritionist
procedures for measuring body composition. For a review of through the process of selecting, and running body composition
common body composition methods in applied sports practice, analysis (Figure 6).
see the review by Kasper, et al., 2021.
EQUIPMENT USE REQUIREMENTS

Minimum range of measurement from 60 to 220cm (2 to 7ft).
Stadiometer Measuring stature Accurate to 0.1cm / 0.1in.
Sliding head board with minimum width of 6cm (2.4in).
Body Mass Weighing Electronic scale accurate to 50g (0.1lb).

Measuring body mass
Scales Scales should be calibrated regularly using calibration weights.
See International Standards for Anthropometric Assessment booklet

Skinfold Caliper Measuring skinfolds
(Stewart, et al., 2011) for information on calliper requirements.
Non-extensible and flexible.

Supporting skinfold No wider than 7 mm (0.3in).
Anthropometric Tape measurements Stub (blank area) must be at least 4cm (1.5in) in length before the zero line.
Recommended to be a flexible steel tape, at least 1.5m (5ft) in length.
One small and one large.

Anthropometer x 2 Measuring bone diameters
(Specific requirements are not provided by ISAK).
Supporting skinfold A sturdy box for the nutritionist to sit or stand on to facilitate skinfold measurements.
Anthropometric Box measurements A box of 40cm (tall) x 50cm (wide) x 30cm (deep) is recommended (16 x 20 x 12in).
Table 9
Overview of equipment required to run body
composition analysis. Skinfold requirements
adapted from Stewart, et al., 2011.
Table 10
26 NUTRITION MONITORING Overview of body composition
data collection and feedback
sheet templates.

To be used to record stature, body mass and skinfold (ISAK)
measurements. Feedback can be provided with the ‘Initial
Body Composition Analysis Nutrition Assessment’ sheet, or the ‘Body Composition
NO
Feedback’ sheet.
A feedback sheet for the athlete. To be filled in by the

Body Composition Feedback nutritionist to document current measurements, targets, YES
comments and feedback and review/check in dates.
STATURE
The stadiometer should be placed on a flat surface, against a wall should be together. The wall should be at the corner of the room
where possible. The athlete should remove their shoes and stand and the athlete’s arms should be outstretched and horizontal, with
under the stadiometer with their back touching the wall plate, and the arms and back of their hands touching the back wall. The tip of
heels together against the heel plate. They should stand straight, one middle finger should be touching the adjacent wall at all times.
with their head level, facing forward. To ensure the head is level, The athlete should be asked to take a deep breath in, and ensure
the lower edge of the eye socket should be level with the top of their arms are stretched maximally. Using the anthropometric
the tragus on the ear. The athlete should be instructed to take a tape, the nutritionist should then measure the distance from the
deep breath in, before the nutritionist pulls down the head board to tip of one middle finger, to the other, and record the value.
gently rest on the athlete’s head. Any hair should be compressed
as completely as possible. The nutritionist should record the value
on the stadiometer whilst the athlete is still taking a deep breath SKINFOLDS
in and the athlete can then leave the stadiometer. Results should Skinfold measurements are a technique used to obtain a
be documented on the ‘Body Composition Data Collection’ form. comprehensive anthropometric profile of an individual and are
A conversion table between centimetres and feet and inches can reported as a reliable ‘in field’ measurement (Ackland, et al.,
be found in the Appendix (Table 26). 2012). Before analysing skinfolds, the nutritionist should gain the
appropriate qualifications through the International Society for
the Advancement of Kinanthropometry (ISAK). Once qualified, the
BODY MASS nutritionist should follow ISAK guidelines (Stewart, et al., 2011). As
Before body mass is recorded, athletes should empty their bladder, a guide, eight skinfolds should be taken in the following order;
and ensure they are wearing minimal clothing (i.e. undergarments tricep, subscapular, bicep, iliac crest, supraspinale, abdominal,
with no shoes). Any pockets should be emptied. Once a value front thigh and medial calf. As skinfolds are taken, results can
of zero is shown on the scales, the athlete should step onto the be recorded on the ‘Body Composition Analysis’ form found on
centre of the scales, and remain there whilst breathing normally. page 29, which follows the ISAK full proforma. Any additional
The athlete should not be using support, and weight should be measurements, such as bone diameters and girths should follow
distributed onto both feet which should be fully on the scales. ISAK guidelines.
The nutritionist can inform the athlete of their body mass and
record the value on the ‘Body Composition Data Collection’ form.
The athlete can then step off the scales. For repeat analysis, BIOELECTRICAL IMPEDANCE ANALYSIS (BIA)
the same process should be followed at the same time of day BIA is a non-invasive method that can assess fluid distribution
as previous measurements; ideally in the morning before any and body composition by passing an electrical current through
training sessions and before consuming food. A conversion table an athlete’s body via the feet and hands. Given that many clubs
between kilograms and stones and pounds can be found in the will not use the same technological devices for BIA assessment,
Appendix (Table 27). the nutritionist should follow equipment and organisation specific
standard operating procedures.
ARM SPAN
To measure arm span, the athlete should be instructed to stand
with the back and heels flat against a wall, the athlete’s feet
AIR DISPLACEMENT PLETHYSMOGRAPHY (ADP) DUAL X-RAY ABSORPTIOMETRY (DXA)

ADP is based on a two-compartment model of body composition DXA is a minimally invasive method that can measure fat-free
(fat mass and fat-free mass), and uses the inverse relationships mass, fat mass and bone mineral content for the whole body,
between pressure and volume (Boyle’s law), to derive body the trunk and appendicular (arms and legs) with high accuracy
volume (L). The principles of densitometry are then used to and precision. Before using DXA, the nutritionist should gain
determine body composition from body density. ADP is most the appropriate credentials to operate the device. Only those
commonly assessed with a BOD PODTM, and measurement qualified to do so should analyse body composition using DXA.
devices are typically required to be validated at the start of each If the nutritionist is able to run an analysis with DXA, equipment
day using a known volume (50L), and again prior to each athlete and organisation specific standard operating procedures should
assessment. When entering the chamber, athletes should wear be followed. It should also be considered that time of day,
minimal tight-fitting clothing and a swim cap. They should then supplementation use, fluid and food intake, level of physical
minimise their movement and breathe normally as measurements activity, and muscle glycogen content can affect the outputs of
are being taken. Whilst following the principles above, the DXA (Kasper, et al., 2021), thus these factors should be controlled
nutritionist should also follow equipment and organisation specific when testing, ensuring measurements are standardised.
standard operating procedures.
28 NUTRITION MONITORING
BODY COMPOSITION ANALYSIS DECISION TREE
Athlete identified to receive body composition analysis by any of the following:
Athlete identified via Athlete to be tested during

Analysis required prior to Athlete presents themselves
Analysis with whole team communications with sports initial consultation for baseline
follow up consultation to the nutritionist
performance team measurements
NO
Ensure relevant documentation is printed including any consent forms, and the ‘Body Composition Analysis’ and ‘Body Composition Feedback’ forms
Has written and/or verbal consent been gained from the athlete upon request to analyse body composition moving forward?
YES NO
Consider the appropriate method of analysis (note, body mass and stature measurements can Do not proceed – inform relevant member of
be taken as and when required, following protocols on pages 26 - 27) sports performance team where applicable
How often will the nutritionist be taking measurements?
≤ Once per year > Once per year
Does nutritionist have the access, budget, time and required credentials to use DXA? Does nutritionist have the access, budget and time and required credentials to use DXA?
YES NO YES NO
Consider if body composition is worth Use DXA (Page 27). Leave a few months
Is there an ISAK trained personnel
Use DXA (Page 27) measuring. BIA and skinfolds will have between measurements, with no more
available to carry out measurements?
limited value if not repeated regularly than 3 – 4 measurements per year
YES NO
Use skinfolds (Page 26). Ideally track

values in mm (body fat % is a prediction,
Use BIA (Page 26) or ADP (Page 27)
thus less accurate and may not account
for visceral fat).
Collect results on ‘Body Composition Analysis’ form
If skinfolds are used, does the nutritionist want to estimate body fat %, fat mass and fat free mass?
YES
Research a validated predictive equation and calculate on the ‘Body Composition Analysis’ form NO
Keep the ‘Body Composition Analysis’ form for nutritionist records, and add results to ‘Dietary Analysis’ and ‘Consultation’ templates where appropriate. Record
results and comments on ‘Body Composition Feedback’ form and share with athlete alongside verbal feedback to ensure athlete understanding
Is a further intervention required as a result of the body composition results?
YES NO
Has a specific goal been set? Is further dietary analysis required? Are further consultations required to monitor progress?
Goal Dietary Analysis YES NO
Set date for follow up
Follow the ‘Consultation Decision Tree’ Move to ‘Dietary Analysis’ section on No further immediate action required,
(page 9) from the ‘Goal Setting’ step pages 17 - 24 for additional support continue usual monitoring of athlete
Follow Consultation Decision Tree

on page 9
Figure 6
body composition analysis.
BODY COMPOSITION ANALYSIS - ISAK RESTRICTED PROFILE ANTHROPOMETRIC PROFORMA

NAME: SPORT & POSITION:
COUNTRY: DATE OF BIRTH:
ETHNICITY: DATE OF MEASUREMENT:
SEX:
Mean or
Measure 1 2 3
Median
Stretch stature (ft, in or cm)
Sitting height (ft, in or cm)
Arm span (ft, in or cm)
Triceps sf (mm)
Subscapular sf (mm)
Biceps sf (mm)
Iliac crest sf (mm)
Supraspinale sf (mm)
Abdominal sf (mm)
Front thigh sf (mm)
Medial calf sf (mm)
Arm girth relaxed (cm)
Arm girth flexed and tensed (cm)
Waist girth (min.) (cm)
Gluteal girth (max.) (cm)
Thigh middle girth (cm)
Calf girth (max.) (cm)
Humerus breadth (biepicondylar) (cm)
Femur breadth (biepicondylar) (cm)
Bi-styloid breadth (cm)
‘sf’ = Skinfold
MEASURED BY:
BODY COMPOSITION ANALYSIS - ISAK RESTRICTED PROFILE ANTHROPOMETRIC PROFORMA CONT’D

NAME:
SOMATOTYPE
ENDOMORPHY:
MESOMORPHY:
EXTOMORPHY:
BODY MASS INDEX (BMI):

WAIST / HIP RATIO (WHR):
SUM OF 6 SKINFOLDS: (excl. biceps & Iliac crest)
SUM OF 8 SKINFOLDS:
Method Used
Result
(e.g. ISAK, DXA etc.)
Body fat percentage (%)
Fat mass (lb or kg)
Fat free mass (lb or kg)
Muscle mass (lb or kg)
NOTES
(e.g. additional measurements, targets, timeframes etc.)
BODY COMPOSITION FEEDBACK

NAME: DATE: AGE:
RESULTS AND TARGETS
Current Target
Predicted body mass (lb or kg)
Predicted fat free mass (lb or kg)
COMMENTS AND FEEDBACK

Table 11
32 NUTRITION MONITORING Overview of equipment required
to run hydration analysis, adapted
from Baker, 2016.
HYDRATION
The athlete’s body is approximately 60-70% water. Large volumes HYDRATION ANALYSIS METHODS
of body water can be lost as the athlete sweats during exercise. This section provides an overview of the standard operating
Body water losses equivalent to, or more than 2% of the athlete’s procedures for different methods to monitor hydration status
pre-exercise body mass can have detrimental effects on both and sweat rates. To run analyses, specific equipment is required
health and performance. This is known as hypohydration, more (Table 11). In addition, ‘Sweat Rate Data Collection’ and ‘Hydration
commonly spoken about as dehydration. Dehydration has been Feedback’ forms can be found on 38 - 39 and 40 - 41 respectively
shown to affect both mental, and physical performance, whilst (Table 12). A decision tree is used to pull these resources
contributing to fatigue. This chapter provides practical tools to together, acting as a guide to walk the nutritionist through the
support the monitoring of hydration status which can help the process of selecting and running a hydration analysis (Figure 11).
nutritionist provide personalized hydration recommendations to
prevent or limit the risk of significant dehydration.
EQUIPMENT REQUIREMENTS
Electronic scale accurate to 50g (0.1lb).
Body Mass Weighing Scales
Scales should be calibrated regularly using calibration weights.
One to measure weight of drink bottles and food (g/lb).

Worktop Scales x 2
One to measure weight of urine sample (g/lb).
Drinking Bottles One bottle for each type of fluid (e.g., water, sports drinks, etc).
Plastic Container 1L / 32 fl oz, pre-weighed for urine collection.
Towels For athletes to dry off prior to body mass assessment.
Stopwatch To measure exercise duration.
A form for the nutritionist to fill out an athlete’s sweat test results.
Sweat Rate Data Collection
Two forms have been provided, one for imperial measurements, NO
and Calculation Forms and one for metric measurements.
A feedback form for which the nutritionist can add available sweat
test results, alongside the translation of these results to practical
Hydration Feedback Form hydration recommendations. Forms are provided in both imperial
YES
and metric measurements.
Table 12
Overview of hydration data
collection and feedback forms
SIMPLE MARKERS OF HYDRATION

In many athletic settings, the use of body mass measurements
in combination with some measure of urine concentration
at the first urination of the morning are simple, inexpensive
methods to distinguish between the likelihood of euhydration
and dehydration. However, neither of these markers alone
provide suﬃcient evidence of dehydration. Instead, alongside
W LIKELY
U
reporting thirst, these methods can be combined to allow the
VERY
athlete to self-monitor day-to-day changes in hydration status. LIKELY
The presence of any two of these markers can indicate that
dehydration is likely, and the presence of all three indicate that LIKELY LIKELY
dehydration is very likely (Figure 7). Details on how to monitor
each marker are listed below.
Figure 7
The ‘WUT’ method for self-monitoring daily hydration status (Cheuvront & Sawka, 2005).
T
W = Weight | U = Urine | T = Thirst
W: CHANGES IN BODY MASS (WEIGHT)

Body mass is often used to assess rapid changes of athlete hydration in both laboratory and field environments. Acute changes in
hydration are calculated as the difference in body mass pre- and post-exercise, or between consecutive days (following the methods
outlined on Page 26), with the level of dehydration expressed as a percentage of starting body mass. Day-to-day body mass losses in
excess of 1%, alongside urine and thirst markers can be used to indicate the likelihood of dehydration. If monitoring between days, body
mass should be measured in the morning, prior to training and consuming food or beverages, and at the same time each day.
U: URINE ANALYSIS – VOLUME AND COLOUR

Analysis of urine volume and color are inexpensive, easy to use indicators of hydration status that can support daily hydration monitoring.
Both low urine production and/or a darker urine colour (more concentrated urine) can be used alongside thirst and body mass to indicate
the likelihood of an athlete being dehydrated, with colors labelled 1-3 indicating euhydration (Cheuvront & Sawka, 2005) (Figures 8 and 9).
HYDRATED DEHYDRATED
HYDRATED DEHYDRATED
Figure 8 Figure 9
Urine Colour Chart Example of quantities and colours of urine
indicating hydration and dehydration
T: THIRST
The presence of thirst is a possible indication of dehydration and the need to drink. Although often the first symptom of dehydration, the
absence of thirst does not indicate the absence of dehydration. As such, reporting thirst, in combination with urine and/or body mass can
be used to indicate the likelihood that an athlete is dehydrated.
Table 13
34 NUTRITION MONITORING USG and urine osmolality values
and corresponding hydration
status (Thomas, et al., 2016).
URINE ANALYSIS – URINE SPECIFIC GRAVITY AND OSMOLALITY

More precise analysis of urine can also be used as a marker of hydration status, such as a urine specific gravity (USG) and/or urine
osmolality (UOsm ). Specific methods to measure USG and UOsm should follow those as described for the specific equipment used.
Specific values and thresholds are used to classify the likelihood of athlete being euhydrated, minimally dehydrated, or dehydrated
(Table 13).
CLASSIFICATION URINE USG VALUE URINE OSMOLALITY VALUE

ATHLETE LIKELY: (MOSMOL/KG)
Euhydrated < 1.020 <700
Minimally Dehydrated 1.020 – 1.024 700 - 900
Dehydrated >1.024 >900
SWEAT RATE – FLUID LOSS

The rate of fluid loss during exercise can differ depending on such as half time, and re-started as exercise restarts. If an athlete
heat, humidity, exercise duration and exercise intensity. Whilst needs to urinate during exercise, or breaks, they should do so in
the trend of fluid loss will be similar between individuals in these the pre-weighed container in a private cubicle. If the athlete uses
conditions, losses will vary from athlete to athlete. As such, water as an aid to cool down during exercise (i.e. pouring over
monitoring fluid loss, and calculating sweat rate can help to the head), an additional bottle should be provided specifically
provide personalized hydration recommendations. for this use; this bottle does not need to be weighed.
Given the effect of different environmental conditions, it is
advised that sweat testing should be carried out under four
POST-EXERCISE:
different conditions: at both high and low exercise intensities,
and in cold and hot temperatures, especially for outdoor Once exercise is complete, the stopwatch should be stopped
sport athletes (Rollo, et al., 2021). The sweat test process is and time recorded in the duration box on the data collection
documented below, and results for each analysis can be added form. As the athlete re-enters the changing room, they should
to the relevant ‘Hydration Feedback’ template. dry down with a towel, before repeating the body mass protocol.
After the athlete has been weighed, all pre-weighed bottles,
food, and packaging should be re-weighed and recorded
PRE-EXERCISE: on the data collection form. Next, using a separate scale, the
urine container should be re-weighed, and the initial weight of
Foods and beverages planned to be consumed should be
container subtracted from the final weight. This weight should
weighed in bottles or packaging prior to consuming and recorded
also be added to the data collection form.
on the ‘Sweat Rate Data Collection Form’. Each athlete should
have their own labelled bottles and food provisions, and should
not share with others during the analysis period. In addition, the
CALCULATIONS:
weight of the empty urine container should be recorded. Pre-
exercise, the athlete’s body mass should be recorded, following Once all data has been recorded, the nutritionist can complete
the methods outlined on page 26. Once the athlete has been calculations on the provided sweat rate data collection and calculation
weighed, food and drinks can be consumed as required. Bottles forms, or use the online GSSI Fluid Loss Calculator.* This will provide
should be re-weighed, or content in millilitres / fluid ounces the athlete’s sweat rate in fluid ounces and/or litres per hour.
documented if re-filled during exercise. Any finished bottles or *https://www.gssiweb.org/toolbox/fluidLoss/calculator.
food packaging should be retained.
DURING EXERCISE:
As exercise begins, the nutritionist should start the stopwatch,
which should be paused during extended breaks in exercise
SWEAT TESTING – FLUID AND ELECTROLYTE LOSS

Sweat testing is a set of measurements to determine both the hydration strategies. This development allows for rapid results
amount of sweat lost and the composition of sweat lost during and feedback to the athlete. The Gx Patch removes the need
exercise. It provides more detailed analysis compared to for any specialised equipment for sweat analysis and is easily
evaluating sweat rate alone because it also provides data on the transported. The Gx process results in little interruption to the
loss of electrolytes, which athletes lose alongside water as they athlete’s routine before or after exercise.
sweat. Each athlete will have a different sweat rate and sweat
composition. As such, this information can help the nutritionist to
personalize each athlete’s hydration plan. Figure 10
Gx Patch, developed
A detailed analysis of the sweat testing procedure can be found and validated by GSSI in
partnership with Epicore
on the GSSI Sport Science Exchange article ‘Sweat Testing Biosystems, Inc.
(Baker, et al., 2020)
Methodology in the Field: Challenges and Best Practices’ (Baker,
2016). Please note that additional equipment is required to that
in Table 11.
More recently, the sweat testing process has been advanced
with the introduction of the Gx Patch (Figure 10). The Gx Patch
is a single use wearable technology that measures an athlete’s
sweat rate and composition. At the end of the exercise session,
the patch is scanned to reveal the results and subsequent
hydration recommendations. Nutritionists can use the Gx Teams
app to keep track of each individual athlete’s sweat profile and
FLUID CONVERSION TABLES

In the 2 to 4 hours pre-exercise, it is recommended that an athlete accumulating body mass through fluid intake during exercise,
consumes 5 to 7 millilitres of fluid per kilogram body mass (2 to which is strongly discouraged. The nutritionist can work with the
3 ml per pound) (Sawka, et al., 2007; Thomas, et al., 2016). Table athlete to adjust their fluid intake accordingly.
14 provides a guide as to the total volume of fluid recommended
Post-exercise, around 150% of the amount of fluid lost during
in millilitres and fluid ounces based on an athlete’s body mass
exercise should be consumed (Shirreffs & Sawka, 2011). A
in kilograms and pounds. A conversion table between millilitres
change in body mass of 1kg is the equivalent of 1 litre of fluid loss
and fluid ounces can be found in the Appendix (Table 29).
(a change of 1lb is equivalent to 16 fl oz of fluid loss).
During exercise, it is recommended that an athlete should limit
Once pre-, during and post-exercise hydration requirements
their fluid losses to no more than 2% of their pre-exercise body
have been calculated, the nutritionist can fill in the relevant
mass (Thomas, et al., 2016). After weighing an athlete post-
information on the ‘Hydration Feedback Form’ on pages 40 - 41.
exercise, Table 15 can be used to evaluate if the loss of body
mass exceeds 2%. This process also helps identify if athletes are
Table 14
Recommended fluid intake in the 2-4
36 NUTRITION MONITORING hours pre-exercise based on pre-exercise
body mass (Sawka, et al., 2007; Thomas,
et al., 2016). BM = Body Mass.
PRE-EXERCISE RECOMMENDED FLUID CONSUMPTION PRE-EXERCISE BASED ON BODY MASS

BODY MASS
Millilitres Equivalence in fluid ounces
kg lb 5ml/kg BM 7ml/kg BM 5ml/kg BM 7ml/kg BM

60 132 300 420 10 14
65 143 325 455 11 15
70 154 350 490 12 17
75 165 375 525 13 18
80 176 400 560 14 19
85 187 425 595 14 20
90 198 450 630 15 21
95 209 475 665 16 22
100 221 500 700 17 24
105 232 525 735 18 25
110 243 550 770 19 26
PRE-EXERCISE BODY MASS BODY MASS AT 2% DEHYDRATION THRESHOLD
kg lb kg lb
60 132 58.80 129.4

65 143 63.70 140.1
70 154 68.60 150.9
75 165 73.50 161.7
80 176 78.40 172.5
85 187 83.30 183.3
90 198 88.20 194.0
95 209 93.10 204.8
100 221 98.00 216.6
105 232 102.90 227.4
110 243 107.80 238.1
Table 15
Body mass at the 2% dehydration
threshold (Thomas, et al., 2016) based
on pre-exercise body mass.
HYDRATION ANALYSIS DECISION TREE
Athlete identified to receive hydration analysis by any of the following:
Athlete identified via Athlete to be tested during

Analysis required prior to Athlete presents themselves
Analysis with whole team communications with sports initial consultation for baseline
follow up consultation to the nutritionist
performance team measurements
NO
Ensure relevant documentation is printed including any consent forms, and the relevant ‘Sweat Rate Data Collection’ and the ‘Hydration Feedback’ forms
Has written and/or verbal consent been gained from the athlete to analyse hydration status moving forward?
YES NO
Do not proceed – inform relevant member of
Consider the appropriate method of analysis
sports performance team where applicable
How often is nutritionist taking measurements?
Daily / Weekly < Once per week
It is advised to carry out testing 4 times per year/season; at both at high and low
Does nutritionist have the equipment to measure Urine Specific Gravity exercise intensities, and in hot and cold temperatures.
and/or Osmolality?
The available equipment will determine method of analysis
YES NO
Measure Urine Specific Gravity Use the ‘WUT’ method for analysing Does nutritionist have sweat testing equipment required to
and/or Osmolality (Page 34) hydration status (Page 33) YES
analyse fluid and electrolyte loss as per Baker, 2016 (Page 35)?
YES NO
Does nutritionist require additional details on fluid and electrolyte losses?
Follow protocol set
out by Baker, 2016 Is nutritionist able to purchase
NO the Gx Patch?
(Page 35)
Are further consultations required to monitor progress?
YES NO
YES NO
Follow fluid
No further immediate action required, Use Gx Patch loss protocol as
Set date for follow up (Page 35) documented on
continue usual monitoring of athlete
page 34
NO Follow Consultation Decision Tree Record results on ‘Sweat Rate Data Collection Form’ and
on page 9 complete required calculations
Add results to ‘Hydration Feedback Form’. Share the feedback

forms with the athlete alongside verbal feedback to ensure
athlete understanding
Has a goal been set as a result of the hydration results?
YES
Follow the ‘Consultation Decision Tree’ (page 9) from the ‘Goal Setting’ step
Figure 11
hydration analysis.
SWEAT RATE DATA COLLECTION FORM

(For Imperial Measurements)
NAME: DATE:
- =
Pre-Exercise Body Mass Post-Exercise Body Mass Body Mass Loss
lb lb lb
- =
Fluid / Bottle Weight Before Fluid / Bottle Weight After Fluids Consumed
(fl oz or oz) (fl oz or oz) (fl oz or oz)
- =
Food Weight Before Food Weight After Food Consumed
oz oz oz
Urine Loss During Exercise Exercise Duration
(fl oz or oz) mins
To calculate sweat rate, input the values above into the Sweat Rate
GSSI Fluid Loss Calculator
https://www.gssiweb.org/toolbox/fluidLoss/calculator
fl oz/h
SWEAT RATE DATA COLLECTION AND CALCULATION FORM

(For Metric Measurements)
NAME: DATE:
- =
Pre-Exercise Body Mass Post-Exercise Body Mass Body Mass Loss
kg kg kg
- =
Fluid / Bottle Weight Before Fluid / Bottle Weight After Fluids Consumed
(ml or g) (ml or g) (ml or g)
- =
Food Weight Before Food Weight After Food Consumed
g g g
Urine Loss During Exercise Exercise Duration
(ml or g) mins
SWEAT RATE*
+ + -
Body Mass Loss Fluids Consumed Food Consumed Urine Loss
During Exercise
kg (L or kg) kg (L or kg)
÷
Exercise Duration
hours
=
Sweat Rate
L/h
*Please convert grams to kilograms, millilitres to litres and minutes to hours before calculating sweat rate.
To automate this calculation, you can input the values into the GSSI Fluid Loss Calculator: https://www.gssiweb.org/toolbox/fluidLoss/calculator
HYDRATION FEEDBACK FORM

(For Imperial Measurements)
NAME: DATE:
LOW INTENSITY - COLD LOW INTENSITY - HOT

DATE: DATE:
EXERCISE TYPE: EXERCISE TYPE:
TEMPERATURE: °F TEMPERATURE: °F
RESULTS RESULTS
Sweat Rate Sweat Sodium Sweat Rate Sweat Sodium
fl oz/h mg/h fl oz/h mg/h
RECOMMENDED CONSUMPTION FOR EXERCISE RECOMMENDED CONSUMPTION FOR EXERCISE
Before During After Before During After
fl oz fl oz fl oz fl oz fl oz fl oz
HIGH INTENSITY - COLD HIGH INTENSITY - HOT

DATE: DATE:
TEMPERATURE: °F TEMPERATURE: °F
RESULTS RESULTS
fl oz/h mg/h fl oz/h mg/h
fl oz fl oz fl oz fl oz fl oz fl oz
ADDITIONAL COMMENTS AND FEEDBACK

HYDRATION FEEDBACK FORM

(For Metric Measurements)
NAME: DATE:
LOW INTENSITY - COLD LOW INTENSITY - HOT

DATE: DATE:
TEMPERATURE: °C TEMPERATURE: °C
RESULTS RESULTS
L/h mg/h L/h mg/h
ml ml ml ml ml ml
HIGH INTENSITY - COLD HIGH INTENSITY - HOT

DATE: DATE:
TEMPERATURE: °C TEMPERATURE: °C
RESULTS RESULTS
L/h mg/h L/h mg/h
ml ml ml ml ml ml
ADDITIONAL COMMENTS AND FEEDBACK

42 NUTRITION INTERVENTIONS
NUTRITION INTERVENTIONS
When providing sports nutrition advice, the nutritionist will often go through a ‘decision making’ process. The ‘decisions’ include determining
which nutrients an athlete should consume, in which quantities, and at what time in relation to physical activity, to support the athlete’s
performance and recovery. The solutions come in the form of personalized nutrition recommendations, and the process of sharing these
with the athlete. This is achieved through education, and the translation of recommendations to practical food-based advice.
This chapter will provide practical tools to support the nutritionist in making nutrition based decisions; specifically in regards to energy,
carbohydrates, protein, dietary supplements and gastrointestinal complaints.
ENERGY
Athlete’s energy expenditure can differ day to day, and between costly and time consuming, thus is not a commonly used method
athletes within the same team depending on body composition, to assess TEE in sport. As such, this method is not discussed in
metabolism, and the varying life demands outside of sport. detail here, however methods for the use of DLW in elite sport
Correspondingly, an athlete’s energy intake should aim to match have been described elsewhere (Anderson, et al., 2017).
those demands. Thus, recommended energy intake varies
depending on the demands of training or competition, and the
specific goals of the athlete. If an athlete consumes too little, or PREDICTION EQUATIONS
too much energy over time, this can be detrimental to health and TEE can be predicted using equations (Figure 12), taking into
performance. This section provides tools to support the evaluation account RMR, AEE, and TEF (Table 16). Although not as accurate
of energy expenditure and to help monitor energy availability. as the gold standard DLW assessment, they are a cheaper, more
convenient method that can be used where technical equipment
is not available.
ENERGY EXPENDITURE ANALYSIS METHODS
There are several methods to analyse the energy expenditure
of an athlete, including direct and indirect calorimetry. Direct
calorimetry methods are expensive and rarely used within sport,
thus alternative methods are more commonly used, with examples Resting Metabolic Rate (RMR)
shared in this section. If energy expenditure is estimated, results
can be included within the dietary analysis feedback sheets on
pages 23 - 24. +
Activity Energy Expenditure (AEE)
INDIRECT CALORIMETRY
+
Indirect calorimetry measures oxygen consumption and carbon
dioxide production; this can be used to measure Activity Energy
Expenditure (AEE) and Resting Metabolic Rate (RMR), which are
components of Total Energy Expenditure (TEE). Use of indirect
calorimetry is limited in sport due to cost of equipment and Thermic Effect of Food (TEF)
required technical expertise, thus methods are not described in
detail here. However, indirect calorimetry is the preferred method
(compared to the use of predictive equations), and if this method
is available to the nutritionist, equipment and organisation specific
=
standard operating procedures should be followed. Total Energy Expenditure (TEE)
DOUBLY LABELLED WATER (DLW)

The DLW assessment of TEE is considered a gold standard
method, providing a non-invasive evaluation under “free living”
conditions (Westerterp, et al., 1986). However, the method is
Figure 12
Prediction equation for Total Energy
Expenditure (Thomas, et al., 2016).
Table 16
Details of the components of Total Energy NUTRITION INTERVENTIONS 43
Expenditure predictive equations.
NAME OF COMPONENT EXPLANATION

Can be measured via indirect calorimetry, or predicted using prediction equations which take into account
body mass and stature. Several different predictive equations exist to calculate RMR, thus the nutritionist is
RMR encouraged to research and use an equation that has been validated in the specific population of interest, for
example, RMR in adolescent athletes been researched and validated at GSSI’s IMG Lab (Reale, et al., 2020).
AEE takes into account planned and spontaneous physical activity, as well as energy expenditure of daily
AEE tasks. AEE can be estimated from exercise duration and intensities using metabolic equivalents (METs)
(Thomas, et al., 2016), which have been linked to specific sports (Ainsworth, et al., 2011).
TEF Equivalent to ~10% of TEE (Westerterp, 2004).
ENERGY AVAILABILITY throughout the toolkit which can be used to make measurements.
Energy availability refers to the amount of dietary energy available It is important to note that it is challenging to accurately assess
to maintain normal physiological functions, after subtracting the the components of energy availability, in particular energy intake
cost of exercise. These physiological functions, for example and exercise energy expenditure, which in turn makes it difficult to
immune, hormonal and reproductive functions, are important for measure energy availability, particularly in the field. As such, if this
an athlete’s health and wellbeing, therefore it is essential that the calculation is used, it should only be used as a guide.
body has enough energy to carry out these processes. Energy availability ‘guideline values’ have been proposed for males
and females (Table 17). Whilst these thresholds are often used in
research and practice, they are currently widely debated for a variety
ENERGY AVAILABILITY ANALYSIS
of reasons, and therefore they should be interpreted with caution.
This section provides an overview of methods that can be used
to monitor energy availability. Figure 13 shows the calculation
for measuring energy availability, highlighting supporting tools
See ‘Dietary Analysis’ section See ‘Energy’ section

(pages 17 - 24) (pages 42 - 44)
Energy Intake
(kcal/day) - Exercise Energy Expenditure
(kcal/day)
Energy availability
(kcal/kg FFM/day) = ÷
Fat Free Mass (FFM)
(kg)
See ‘Body Composition’ section

(pages 25 - 31)
Figure 13
Energy availability calculation.
Table 17
44 NUTRITION INTERVENTIONS Energy availability guideline
values, adapted from Melin,
et al,. 2019
GUIDELINE VALUES EXPLANATION

Optimal Energy Availability
For weight maintenance, providing adequate energy for all physiological
Males: ≥ 40 kcal/kg FFM/day
functions.
Females: ≥ 45 kcal/kg FFM/day
Subclinical Low Energy Availability

May be tolerated for short periods during a well-constructed weight
Males: 30 – 40 kcal/kg FFM/day
loss program.
Females: 30 – 45 kcal/kg FFM/day
Clinical Low Energy Availability

Could lead to health implications, with impairment of physiological
Males: < 30 kcal/kg FFM/day
functioning, training adaptation and performance.
Females: < 30 kcal/kg FFM/day
LOW ENERGY AVAILABILITY (LEA)

Many athletes expend large amounts of energy on a daily basis Table 18 displays some potential signs and risk factors which may
through the undertaking of heavy training loads. Resultingly, indicate that an athlete is experiencing LEA; an athlete does not
energy requirements are increased to ensure sufficient energy need to show all of these symptoms to be in LEA.
is available for the body to carry out physiological processes
In female athletes, the Low Energy Availability in Females
that are important for the athletes health. However, athletes may
Questionnaire (LEAF-Q) has been used as a screening tool,
fail to match their energy intake to their energy demands. If this
whereby a score of ≥8 indicates that an individual is at risk for
occurs on a daily basis, for a prolonged period of time, the body
LEA (Melin, et al., 2014). In addition, the Relative Energy Deficiency
can enter into a state of LEA, where the body may begin to save
in Sport Clinical Assessment Tool (RED-S CAT) can be used by
energy by shutting off those important physiological processes
medical professionals to clinically evaluate and manage athletes
that are important for health (Logue, et al., 2020).
that are experiencing RED-S (Mountjoy, et al., 2015; Mountjoy, et al.,
LEA is the underlying cause of the conditions known as Relative 2018). A Low Energy Availability in Males Questionnaire (LEAM-Q) is
Energy Deficiency in Sport (RED-S) and the Female Athlete Triad. currently being developed (Lundy, et al. 2022).
It is important to note that LEA can affect both females and males.
POTENTIAL SIGNS AND RISK FACTORS

Chronic dietary restriction and/or extreme Menstrual irregularities or complete loss of
Perfectionist tendencies
dieting menstrual cycle
Continual and constant drive for thinness For weight maintenance, providing adequate Frequent injuries
For weight maintenance, providing adequate Low bone mineral density Over training
Training inconsistencies and/or constant Regular illnesses/signs of compromised

Poor recovery between training sessions
fatigue immunity
Issues with concentrating Reduced libido Low iron levels
Reduced resting metabolic rate Decreased cardiovascular function Osteoporosis
Table 18
Potential signs and risk factors of
low energy availability in athletes.
Table 19
A guide to daily carbohydrate consumption based on body mass (BM), NUTRITION INTERVENTIONS 45
and activity levels, adapted from Burke, et al., 2011.
CARBOHYDRATES
Consuming adequate quantities of carbohydrate, tailored to daily CARBOHYDRATE CONVERSION TABLES
activities, ensures that an athlete can fuel for, and recover from Daily carbohydrate intake (Table 19) and target quantities to ingest
exercise. The aim of this approach is to help the athlete to perform pre- and post-exercise (Table 20) can be modified based on an
at their best both mentally and physically. This section provides athlete’s body mass (BM) and physical activity levels. A conversion
tools to support the athlete in meeting the energy demands of table between kilograms and stones and pounds can be found in
training, competition, and recovery. the Appendix (Table 27).
Light Intensity Exercise

Moderate Intensity Exercise
High Intensity Exercise
Body Mass Recommended Carbohydrate Intake (g) Per Day Based on Body Mass
3 g/kg 4 g/kg 5 g/kg 6 g/kg 7 g/kg 8 g/kg 9 g/kg 10 g/kg
kg lb
BM/d BM/d BM/d BM/d BM/d BM/d BM/d BM/d
60 132 180 240 300 360 420 480 540 600
65 143 195 260 325 390 455 520 585 650
70 154 210 280 350 420 490 560 630 700
75 165 225 300 375 450 525 600 675 750
80 176 240 320 400 480 560 640 720 800
85 187 255 340 425 510 595 680 765 850
90 198 270 360 450 540 630 720 810 900
95 209 285 380 475 570 665 760 855 950
100 221 300 400 500 600 700 800 900 1000
105 232 315 420 525 630 735 840 945 1050
110 243 330 440 550 660 770 880 990 1100
Pre-exercise Fuelling
Re-Fuelling
Body Mass Recommended Carbohydrate Intake (g) in the Pre- and Post-Exercise Periods Based On Body Mass
kg lb 1 g/kg BM 1.2 g/kg BM 2 g/kg BM 3 g/kg BM 4 g/kg BM
60 132 60 72 120 180 240
65 143 65 78 130 195 260
70 154 70 84 140 210 280
75 165 75 90 150 225 300
80 176 80 96 160 240 320
85 187 85 102 170 255 340
90 198 90 108 180 270 360
95 209 95 114 190 285 380
100 221 100 120 200 300 400
105 232 105 126 210 315 420
110 243 110 132 220 330 440
Table 20
A guide to the pre- and post-exercise carbohydrate consumption based on body mass (BM), adapted from Burke, et al., 2011. Athletes should consume 1 – 4 g/kg
BM 3 – 4 hours before kick-off. Re-fuelling recommendations are 1 – 1.2 g/kg BM per hour for 4 hours. No values are provided for carbohydrate during exercise as
a set 30 – 60 g/h is recommended (increasing to 90 g/h for ultra-endurance exercise).
Table 21
46 NUTRITION INTERVENTIONS Common sources of carbohydrate providing ~30g and 100g respectively.
Please note these values are estimates and food/beverage packaging can
be reviewed to evaluate actual nutritional content.
CARBOHYDRATE QUANTITIES
Table 21 presents a selection of commonly consumed
~30g
foods and beverages that will provide approximately
30 or 100g of carbohydrate. These examples, whilst not
practically feasible in all cases, can be used as a guide
for adapting quantities to meet an athlete’s requirements.
There is space within this column for the nutritionist to add
foods that are more relevant to the athlete / club / country.
A conversion table between grams and ounces can be
found in the Appendix (Table 28).
1.5 SERVINGS OF GATORADE 1 GLASS OF FRUIT JUICE

Serving size: 12 fl oz / 540 ml Serving size: 10 fl oz / 300 ml
Carbohydrate: 33 g Carbohydrate: 30 g
Calories: 120 kcal Calories: 140 kcal
1 PACK OF GATORADE CHEWS 1.5 BAG OF BAKED CHIPS

Serving size: 1 oz / 28 g Serving size: 1.5 oz / 42g
~100g
LARGE PLATE PASTA LARGE PLATE RICE
Serving size: 10.6 oz / 300 g Serving size: 10.6 oz / 300 g
LARGE PLATE COUSCOUS 2 LARGE PLATES QUINOA

Serving size: 10.6 oz / 300 g Serving size: 21.2 oz / 600 g
5 RICE CAKES HANDFUL OF DRIED MANGO 2 SLICES WHOLEGRAIN BREAD 1.5 MEDIUM BANANAS 1 TORTILLA
Serving size: 1.6 oz / 45 g Serving size: 1.4 oz / 40 g Serving size: 2.7 oz / 75 g Serving size: 7.9 oz / 225 g Serving size: 1.8 oz / 50 g
Carbohydrate: 32 g Carbohydrate: 28 g Carbohydrate: 28 g Carbohydrate: 30 g Carbohydrate: 25 g
Calories: 160 kcal Calories: 155 kcal Calories: 170 kcal Calories: 90 kcal Calories: 150 kcal
1 HANDFUL RAISINS 1 MEDIUM BOWL OF OATMEAL & MILK HALF A BAGEL 1.5 LARGE ORANGES 2 PANCAKES
2 PLATES OF NOODLES 2 BAKED POTATOES 7 SLICES WHOLEGRAIN BREAD 5 MEDIUM BANANAS 4 TORTILLAS
1 LARGE SWEET POTATO 4 MEDIUM BOWLS OF OATMEAL & MILK 2 BAGELS 5 LARGE ORANGES 7 PANCAKES
Key
48 NUTRITION INTERVENTIONS source of antioxidants low in carbohydrate
source of protein source of carbohydrate
CARBOHYDRATE PERIODIZATION
Daily carbohydrate consumption should be modified on a day-by-day, and meal-by-meal basis, as different days and exercise sessions
over the course of a season will have different physiological demands; for example, performance will not be the goal in every exercise
session. Modification of carbohydrate consumption is known as carbohydrate periodization. The next two pages provide examples of
how to personalize and periodize 3 different meals.
PERSONALIZATION
–
VEGETABLES | SALMON
VEGETABLES | CHICKEN | SWEET POTATO
RICE | VEGETABLES | EGGS
+
Example of how a Poke bowl can be personalized (non-vegan and vegan) as well as
periodized by three activity intensities: low (-), medium, and high (+).
PERSONALIZATION
–
VEGETABLES | TOFU
VEGETABLES | HUMMUS | RICE
QUINOA | VEGETABLES | SEITAN
+
Table 22
50 NUTRITION INTERVENTIONS A guide to daily protein consumption based on body
mass (BM), and activity levels. Recommendations
adapted from (Thomas, et al., 2016).
PROTEIN
Protein supports an athlete’s growth, the repair of damaged based on an athlete’s body mass and physical activity levels.
muscle, prevention of and recovery from injury, and ultimately, Injured athletes and those aiming to build lean mass should
performance. This section provides tools to support the athlete in aim for the higher end of recommendations. A conversion table
meeting daily protein requirements. between kilograms and stones and pounds can be found in the
Appendix (Table 27).
PROTEIN CONVERSION TABLES
Daily protein requirements (Table 22) and the recommended
quantities of protein per serving (Table 23) can be modified
Increasing Exercise Intensities
Body Mass Recommended Protein Intake (g) Per Day Based on Body Mass
1.2 g/kg 1.3 g/kg 1.4 g/kg 1.5 g/kg 1.6 g/kg 1.7 g/kg 1.8 g/kg 1.9 g/kg 2.0 g/kg
kg lb
BM BM BM BM BM BM BM BM BM
60 132 72 78 84 90 96 102 108 114 120
65 143 78 85 91 98 104 111 117 124 130
70 154 84 91 98 105 112 119 126 133 140
75 165 90 98 105 113 120 128 135 143 150
80 176 96 104 112 120 128 136 144 152 160
85 187 102 111 119 128 136 145 153 162 170
90 198 108 117 126 135 144 153 162 171 180
95 209 114 124 133 143 152 162 171 181 190
100 221 120 130 140 150 160 170 180 190 200
105 232 126 137 147 158 168 179 189 200 210
110 243 132 143 154 165 176 187 198 209 220
Body Mass Recommended Protein Intake (g) Per Serve, Depending on Body Mass
kg lb 0.25 g/kg BM 0.3 g/kg BM
60 132 15 18
65 143 16 20
70 154 18 21
75 165 19 23
80 176 20 24
85 187 21 26
90 198 23 27
95 209 24 29
100 221 25 30
105 232 26 32
110 243 28 33
Table 23
A guide to protein consumption per serve (meal
occasion) based on body mass (BM). Recommendations
adapted from (Thomas, et al., 2016).
PROTEIN QUANTITIES
Table 24 presents a selection of commonly consumed foods that will provide around, or greater than 20g of protein per serving.
These examples can be used as a guide for the nutritionist, with the nutritionist adapting quantities to meet an athlete’s requirements.
There is space above the images for the nutritionist to add foods that are more relevant to the athlete / club / country. A conversion
table between grams and ounces can be found in the Appendix (Table 28).
~20g
1 MEDIUM CHICKEN BREAST 1 SMALL SIRLOIN STEAK SMALL PORTION LEAN GROUND BEEF HALF A CAN OF TUNA 1 FILLET OF SALMON
Protein: 38 g Protein: 37 g Protein: 22 g Protein: 21 g Protein: 23 g
1 MEDIUM FILLET OF COD 1 PLATE PRAWNS 3 MEDIUM EGGS 1 CONTAINER COTTAGE CHEESE FAT-FREE YOGURT
1 LARGE GLASS MILK GLASS CHOCOLATE MILK SKIMMED MILK POWDER 1 SCOOP MILK PROTEIN CONCENTRATE 1 SCOOP WHEY PROTEIN ISOLATE
Serving size: 20.1 fl oz / 568 ml Serving size: 17.7 fl oz / 500 ml Serving size: 2.1 oz / 60 g Serving size: 1.1 oz / 30 g Serving size: 1.1 oz / 30 g
TEMPEH SEITAN SOY FLAKES TEXTURED SOY LARGE PLATE QUINOA

PEANUT POWDER ALMOND PROTEIN POWDER 3 SERVINGS OF MIXED NUTS TOFU 4 TABLESPOONS PEANUT BUTTER
MYCOPROTEIN 1 PLATE LENTILS 1 CAN CHICKPEAS 2.5 SERVINGS EDAMAME BEANS 1 CAN BAKED BEANS
Table 24
Common sources of protein providing approximately 20g. Please
note these values are estimates and food/beverage packaging can
be reviewed to evaluate actual nutritional content.
PROTEIN TIMELINE
NAME: DATE:
TYPE OF DAY (E.G. TRAINING DAY):
Three T’s should be taken into account when evaluating protein intake: ‘Total’ amount, ‘Timing’ of intake, and ‘Type’ of protein
consumed. To evaluate intake, the athlete can record a daily training or competition schedule on the ‘Exercise Schedule’
timeline and their daily protein consumption on the ‘Current Protein Consumption’ timeline. The nutritionist can then evaluate
intake against the athlete’s requirements, and present an optimized protein consumption plan on the ‘Recommended Protein
Intake’ timeline. For information, to optimize protein synthesis for repair and adaptation, protein consumption is recommended
at 15 – 20g every 3 – 5 hours (Thomas, et al., 2016).
CURRENT EXERCISE SCHEDULE
WAKE UP SLEEP
CURRENT PROTEIN INTAKE
WAKE UP SLEEP
RECOMMENDED PROTEIN INTAKE
WAKE UP SLEEP
DIETARY SUPPLEMENTS
Dietary supplements can be split into two main categories; Throughout the decision trees, where appropriate, the nutritionist
nutritional and ergogenic. In some cases, supplements may have is guided to different sections of this toolkit, highlighting tools that
both nutritional and ergogenic benefits for the athlete. can be used to support the decision making process; these tools
are provided as guides, and the nutritionist may want to consider
Nutritional supplements may be used to support an athlete
additional aspects, in addition to those listed.
where their dietary intake is not providing the adequate amount
of nutrients to support health, performance and/or recovery. This Once the needs analysis is complete, results can be documented
may be due to reasons, such as dietary practices (for example on the ‘Nutrition Consultation’ template on page 14. A copy
veganism or certain religious practices), or practical limitations should be kept for the nutritionist’s records and feedback should
(for example training and travel schedules and or/locations). On be provided to the athlete on any decisions that have been
the other hand, an inadequate dietary intake may be due to poor made in order to educate the athlete around supplement use.
nutritional choices made by the athlete as a result of insufficient It is also important that the nutritionist keeps a record of any
capability, opportunity or motivation. additional conversations around supplement use, decisions that
have been made, and supplements that are being used by the
Ergogenic supplements may be used to support an athlete’s
athlete as a result.
physical or mental performance. These could be useful in cases
where it is challenging to consume adequate amounts of the
functional ingredient of interest through the diet.
Despite the potential benefits of supplement use, supplements
are not always required, and their use can come with potential
risks. For example, consuming a supplement which contains a
banned substance, as classified by WADA, could result in the
athlete and nutritionist facing a maximum of a lifetime ban from
competing or working in sport.
As such, it is important that the nutritionist/sports performance
team support the athlete in carrying out a ‘needs analysis’, to
identify if a supplement is required, and if the supplement can be
consumed safely, and within the rules of the sport. To support this
needs analysis, this section provides two decision trees (Figures
14 and 15), adapted from the International Olympic Committee’s
statement on dietary supplements and the high-performing
athlete (Maughan, et al., 2018). These decision trees can be used
by the nutritionist to:
Guide informed decision making and

1 reduced risk of antidoping rule violation
during nutritional supplement use.
Guide informed decision making and

2 reduced risk of antidoping rule violation
during ergogenic supplement use.
NUTRITIONAL SUPPLEMENT USE DECISION TREE
Athlete with potential nutrient deficiency or insufficiency identified by any of the following:
Athlete may be identified as a result of dietary analysis highlighting insufficient

Athlete may show symptoms of a specific deficiency / insufficiency
intake of one or more nutrients
Nutritionist to confirm if there is a deficiency or insufficiency using the appropriate method:
Clinical diagnosis or assessment by a qualified or Assess dietary intake through the appropriate
Confirm deficiency or insufficiency with a lab test
licenced sport-trained dietitian / nutritionist method (Pages 17 - 24)
Has a deficiency or insufficiency been confirmed? NO / UNKNOWN

YES
Is it practical to obtain nutrient of interest from dietary sources and possible to correct deficiency / YES Consider modifying the diet
insufficiency through changes to the diet? Consider the following:
Understand if appropriate
NO Understand if the athlete Understand athlete’s Understand quantities of nutrients
consumption can fit around
Understand if athlete is willing
has any tolerance / allergy capabilities and opportunities required to correct deficiency / to consume foods that provide
training schedule. (E.g. for
concerns (Pages 11 - 13) (Pages 11 - 13) insufficiency (Pages 17 - 24) nutrients in question (Page 61)
protein see page 52)
Begin to consider if athlete should use a dietary supplement
Is the supplement effective for the specific deficiency / insufficiency? Consider the following: NO / UNKNOWN
YES
Level and quality of evidence from scientific studies and/or meta-analyses or established scientific ‘track record’
Is the supplement safe for the athlete to consume? Consider the following: NO / UNKNOWN
YES
Previous adverse reactions (Pages 11 - 13) Interactions with medication(s) (Pages 11 - 13) Doses required
Is there a reliable source of the supplement? Consider the following: NO / UNKNOWN
YES Are manufacturers known, with good history Is the supplement tested by an established quality
No WADA prohibited substances identified on label
and practice? assurance program?*
Trial use of dietary supplement, and monitor athlete’s symptoms and performance
After a period of time, confirm if deficiency or insufficiency has been corrected using the appropriate method:
Clinical assessment by a qualified or licenced Assess dietary intake through the appropriate
Assessment with a lab test
sport-trained dietitian / nutritionist method (Pages 17 - 24)
Has a deficiency or insufficiency been corrected?
NO YES
Continue (vigilant) use of supplement. If symptoms
have not improved after a prolonged period Consult appropriate members of sports performance
It is not appropriate to use dietary supplement
of time, consult appropriate member of sports team to determine if use can be discontinued
performance team to discuss next steps
Figure 14
Decision tree to guide decision making and reduce risk of antidoping rule violation during nutritional supplement use. Adapted from Maughan, et
al. 2018. *Quality assurance programs cannot 100% guarantee that a supplement will be free of banned substances. The nutritionist and athlete
should make informed decisions when deciding if a supplement should be used considering strict athlete liability.
Figure 15
Decision tree to guide decision making and reduce risk of antidoping rule violation during ergogenic supplement use. Adapted from
Maughan, et al. 2018. *Quality assurance programs cannot 100% guarantee that a supplement will be free of banned substances. The
nutritionist and athlete should make informed decisions when deciding if a supplement should be used considering strict athlete liability.
ERGOGENIC SUPPLEMENT USE DECISION TREE
Athlete who may benefit from ergogenic supplement use identified by any of the following:
Athlete identified via communications with sports performance team Athlete presents themselves to the nutritionist
Nutritionist to consider if benefit of ergogenic supplement can be obtained through the diet
Assess dietary intake through the appropriate method (Pages 17 - 24)
Are appropriate quantities of the functional ingredient(s) present in the supplement already consumed via the diet? YES
NO / UNKNOWN
Is it practical to obtain functional ingredient(s) present in the supplement from dietary sources and possible
YES Consider modifying the diet
to consume sufficient amounts through changes to the diet? Consider the following
Understand if appropriate Understand if athlete is willing

NO Understand if the athlete Understand athlete’s Understand quantities of
consumption can fit around to consume foods that provide
has any tolerance / allergy capabilities and opportunities functional ingredient(s)
training schedule. (E.g. for functional ingredient(s) in
concerns (Pages 11 - 13) (Pages 11 - 13) required for ergogenic benefit
protein see page 52) question (Page 61)
Begin to consider if athlete should use a dietary supplement
Is the athlete ready for supplement use? Communicate with athlete and sports performance team to consider the following: NO / UNKNOWN
YES Understand if supplement is appropriate given age Understand if supplement is appropriate given the Understand if all other relevant training variables
/ maturation / experience (Pages 9 - 13) athlete’s performance goals (Pages 9 - 13) have been considered
Is the supplement effective in the sport of interest? Consider the following: NO / UNKNOWN
YES Level and quality of evidence from scientific studies and/or meta-analyses or established scientific ‘track record’
Is the supplement safe for the athlete to consume? Consider the following: NO / UNKNOWN
YES Previous adverse reactions (Pages 11 - 13) Interactions with medication(s) (Pages 11 - 13) Doses required
Is there a reliable source of the supplement? Consider the following: NO / UNKNOWN
YES Are manufacturers known, with good history Is the supplement tested by an established quality
No WADA prohibited substances identified on label
and practice? assurance program?*
Trial use of dietary supplement, and monitor athlete’s symptoms and performance
After a period of time, have consistent positive performance results been observed?
YES NO / ADVERSE EVENT REPORTED
Continue (vigilant) use of supplement End use of the particular ergogenic supplement It is not appropriate to use dietary supplement
GASTROINTESTINAL COMPLAINTS
A common concern for athletes is gastrointestinal (GI) complaints; symptoms may include bloating, stomach pain, vomiting and the urge
to defecate, amongst others. If severe, these issues are likely to affect performance, thus solutions are required. GI issues during exercise
may sometimes be a result of nutritional intake, be that the types of food or beverages that have been consumed, or the timing of intake
around an exercise session.
GASTROINTESTINAL COMPLAINTS QUESTIONNAIRE

This section provides a questionnaire on pages 57 - 59, which Section three reviews GI complaints outside of training and
aims to determine the potential cause of any GI complaints competition, and also considers the potential role of the menstrual
(Pfeiffer, et al., 2012; Gaskell, et al., 2019). This questionnaire cycle in women. This section aims to identify if GI complaints may
can be used as a standalone tool, or as a follow on during be an issue independent of physical activity. If this is the case, and
a consultation session. The nutritionist can move through no solution can be found through modifying the diet, the team
the questionnaire stage by stage with the athlete, circling/ doctor, and/or other relevant members of the sports performance
documenting the athlete’s responses. team should be consulted to support the athlete.
Section one aims to capture any symptoms and their severity Feedback can be provided to the athlete verbally, however
during training and competition. If symptoms are only reported in the ‘Nutrition Consultation’ form on page 14 should be used
one of either training or competition, the questionnaire can be run to document any conversations, with a copy provided to the
once for the particular event where issues occur. If both training athlete, and a copy kept by the nutritionist for their records.
and competition cause different symptoms and/or severity, the
questionnaire can be run twice, once in regards to training, and
once in regards to competition. The nutritionist can cross out the
term ‘training’ or ‘competition’ where it is not relevant.
Section two of the questionnaire aims to evaluate the athlete’s
dietary habits around training and/or competition, and the
nutritionist can use the results to try to establish the potential
causes of the GI distress, be that the type, or timing of food or
beverage consumption.
GASTROINTESTINAL COMPLAINTS QUESTIONNAIRE

NAME: DATE:
Section One - Gastrointestinal Complaints During Exercise
During training and competition
Which GI symptom(s) do you suffer from during training? If you suffer from a symptom, please rank their severity next to the symptom(s).
1 = very mild, 10 = extremely severe
Belching Heartburn Bloating Stomach Pain Nausea Vomiting
Urge to Defecation Defecation Defecation

Flatulence (normal stool) (loose stool) (diarrhoea) None
defecate
Which GI symptom(s) do you suffer from during training? If you suffer from a symptom, please rank their severity next to the symptom(s).
1 = very mild, 10 = extremely severe
Belching Heartburn Bloating Stomach Pain Nausea Vomiting
Urge to Defecation Defecation Defecation

Flatulence (normal stool) (loose stool) (diarrhoea) None
defecate
Section Two - Dietary Habits

Before [training] or [competition] (select as appropriate)
How often do you normally eat before [training] or [competition]?
Never Sometimes Regularly Always
If you do not eat before, why?
If you eat before, how long before do you eat your last meal/snack?
< 30 mins ≥ 30 mins and < 1 hour ≥ 1 and < 2 hours ≥ 2 and < 3 hours ≥ 3 and < 4 hours ≥ 4 hours
How often do you drink in the 2-3 hours before?
How often do you consume caffeine before?
If you consume caffeine, what form? E.g. coffee, tablet, energy drink, gel etc
How often do you avoid eating or drinking certain foods or drinks before to prevent GI symptoms?
If you avoid foods or drinks before, what do you avoid?
Foods containing
Fruit Vegetables Soya High fat foods High fibre foods
wheat/gluten
Sport nutrition
Carbohydrates Coffee products Dairy / Lactose Other None
(e.g. drinks / gels)
If you chose ‘Other’, what foods do you avoid?
How does avoiding the foods affect the severity your symptoms?
No effect Some improvement Large improvement Prevents symptoms
During [training] or [competition] (select as appropriate)

How often do you drink during training or competition?
What do you drink during?
Water Sports drinks Fruit juice Other
If you chose ‘Other’, what do you drink?
When drinking during, do you:
Drink ad-libitum (to thirst) Drink to a plan (known amount) Do not drink during
How often do you eat during?
What do you eat during?
Gels Gummy Sweets Fruit Sports Bars Other
If you chose ‘Other’, what do you eat?
How often do you avoid eating or drinking certain foods or drinks during to prevent GI symptoms?
If you avoid foods and drinks during, what do you avoid?
Gels Gummy Sweets Fruit Sports Bars Water
Sports Drinks Fruit Juice Other None
If you chose ‘Other’, what do you avoid?
How does avoiding the foods or drinks affect the severity of your symptoms?
No effect Some improvement Large improvement Prevents symptoms
Extended breaks in competition e.g. half time (if relevant)

How often do you drink during extended breaks in competition?

How often do you eat during extended breaks in competition?
If you consume foods and drinks during extended breaks in competition, what do you consume?
Gels Gummy Sweets Fruit Sports Bars Water
Sports Drinks Fruit Juice Other None
If you chose ‘Other’, what do you consume?
Section Three - Gastrointestinal Complaints Outside of Exercise

Outside of training and competition
How often do you feel gassy or bloated on occasions when you are not exercising?
Once a day Several times a day Twice a week Several time a week Never
Do you get cramps or stomach aches (unrelated to your menstrual cycle)?
Yes, several times a day Yes, several times a week Rarely No
How often, on average, do you have a bowel movement?
Several time a day Once a day Every other day Twice a week Once a week
How would you describe your normal stool?
Normal Diarrhoea like (watery) Hard and dry
Outside of training and competition – Women specific

Do you experience any of the following symptoms during menstruation?
Lower
Belching Heartburn Bloating Stomach Pain Nausea Vomiting abdominal
bloating
Increased Increased Increased

Increased I do not
defecation – defecation – defecation – None Other
flatulence menstruation
normal stool loose stool diarrhoea
If you selected ‘Other’, please specify symptoms
Do any of the symptoms you experience during menstruation prevent you from training?
Yes No Sometimes I do not experience symptoms
Do any of the symptoms you experience during menstruation prevent you from playing matches?
Yes No Sometimes I do not experience symptoms

60 MEAL PLANNING
MEAL PLANNING
To facilitate the translation of sports nutrition science and recommendations into practical advice, this chapter provides several tools: a dietary
preference checklist (Page 61), a dietary intake timeline (Page 62), and a meal plan template (Page 63). The aim of the chapter is to allow the
personalization of dietary recommendations based on individual requirements and dietary preferences, taking into account the three T’s; ‘Total’
amounts, ‘Timing’ of intake, and ‘Type’ of nutrient. The aim is to increase the athlete’s understanding by translating the ‘numbers’ into real-life
food-based recommendations. Table 25 provides an overview of how the nutritionist can utilise these tools to support the athlete.
NAME OF TOOL FUNCTION SHARE WITH ATHLETE?
Can be used to support the personalization of dietary advice

based on an athlete’s dietary preferences. The athlete can add
a cross next to any food they do not like, thus ensuring the
Dietary Preference Checklist nutritionist can avoid recommending foods / developing recipes
YES
that the athlete would not consume. The athlete can list any other
foods or beverages they dislike at the bottom of the checklist.
This page can be used to document an athlete’s exercise

schedule for a particular day on the ‘Exercise Schedule’
timeline, alongside the timings of habitual food and beverage
intake on the ‘Current Meal Timings’ timeline.
Dietary Intake Timeline In turn, the nutritionist can use the use this information to fill YES
in the ‘Recommended Meal Timings’ timeline, outlining ideal
timings for food and beverage intake in relation to the exercise
schedule. Multiple timelines can be used for different exercise
schedules, e.g. training and competition days.
The meal plan template can be completed by the nutritionist,

translating athlete’s nutrition and hydration recommendations
(see Pages 42 - 52 and 32 - 41 respectively) into practical food-
based advice, related to their specific goals.
Meal plans should take into account the different aspects
highlighted throughout the toolkit, for example, meal plans
should only be provided if the athlete has the capability,
Meal Plan Template opportunity, and motivation to follow the plan (see Page 12). YES
In addition, recommendations should take into account the
athlete’s dietary preferences (see Page 61), and should be
personalized around the athlete’s daily exercise schedules
(see Page 62).
As such, each sheet provides room for the nutritionist to provide
a meal plan for three different days. This plan can be used by
the athlete to guide their food and beverage consumption.
Table 25
Overview of meal
planning tools.
MEAL PLANNING 61
DIETARY PREFERENCE CHECKLIST

NAME: DATE:
Fruit and Vegetables Protein Carbohydrate
Apple Beef Bagels
Avocado Butter Baked Chips
Banana Chicken Brown Rice
Beetroot Cod (or other white fish) Cereal
Bell Peppers Cottage Cheese Chocolate Milk
Berries Eggs Couscous
Broccoli Ham Noodles
Cabbage Hard Cheese Oats
Carrots Lamb Pancakes
Cauliflower Milk Pasta
Celery Ground Beef Potatoes
Coconut Peanut Butter Quinoa
Corn Pork Rice Cakes
Dates Prawns (or other seafood) Seeded Bread
Dried Mango Protein Shakes Sports Drinks
Eggplant Salmon (or other oily fish) Sports Gels
Fruit Juice Soft Cheese Sweet Potatoes
Grapes Soy Milk Tortilla (flour/corn)
Kale Tofu White Bread
Lettuce Tuna White Rice
Melon Turkey Wholegrain Bread
Mushrooms Yogurt
Onions Beans and Pulses Other

Orange Baked Beans Garlic
Peaches Butter Beans Herbs
Pears Chickpeas Hummus
Raisins Edamame Beans Nuts
Spinach Garden Peas Seeds
Squash Kidney Beans Soups
Tomatoes Lentils Spices
Watermelon
Enter Own Foods

62 MEAL PLANNING
DIETARY INTAKE TIMELINE

NAME: DATE:
TYPE OF DAY (E.G. TRAINING DAY):
CURRENT EXERCISE SCHEDULE
WAKE UP SLEEP
CURRENT MEAL TIMINGS
WAKE UP SLEEP
RECOMMENDED MEAL TIMINGS
WAKE UP SLEEP
MEAL PLANNING 63
MEAL PLAN
NAME: DATE:
Nutritionist to enter title of each day in the row below (e.g. Rest Day / Light Training / Moderate Training /
Competition etc). There is room for three different days.
Breakfast
Snack
Lunch
Snack
Dinner
Snack
Pre-Bed
Other
64 REFERENCES
REFERENCES
Ackland, T. R. et al., 2012. Current status of body composition determining incidence and severity of gastrointestinal symptoms in
assessment in sport: review and position statement on behalf of the response to exercise stress. International Journal of Sport Nutrition
ad hoc research working group on body composition, health and and Exercise Metabolism, 29(4), pp. 411-419.
performance, under the auspices of the I.O.C. Medical Commission.
Sports Medicine, 42(3), pp. 227-249.
Kasper, A. M. et al., 2021. Come back skinfolds, all is forgiven: A
narrative review of the efficacy or common body composition
Ainsworth, B. E. et al., 2011. 2011 Compendium of Physical Activi¬ties: methods in applied sports prac¬tice. Nutrients, 13(4), p. 1075.
A second update of codes and MET values. Medicine and Science
in Sports and Exercise, 43(8), pp. 1575-1581.
Logue, D. M. et al., 2020. Low Energy Availability in athletes 2020:
An updated narrative review of prevalence, risk, within-day energy
Anderson, L. et al., 2017. Energy intake and expenditure of balance, knowledge, and impact on sports performance. Nutrients,
professional soccer players of the English Premier League: 12(3), 835.
Evidence of carbohydrate periodization. International Journal of
Sport Nutrition and Exercise Metabolism, Volume 27, pp. 228-238.
Lundy, B. et al., 2022. Screening for Low Energy Availability in Male
Athletes: Attempted Validation of LEAM-Q. Nutrients, 14(1873).
Baker, L. B., 2016. Sweat testing methodology in the field: challenges
and best practices. Sports Science Exchange, 28(161), pp. 1-6.
Martin, C. K. et al., 2009. A novel method to remotely measure
food intake of free-living indi¬viduals in real time: the remote food
Baker, L. B. et al., 2020. Skin-in¬terfaced microfluidic system with photography method. Bri¬tish Journal of Nutrition, 101(3), pp. 446-56.
personalized sweating rate and sweat chloride analytics for sports
science applications. Science Advances, 6(50).
Maughan, R. J. et al., 2018. IOC consensus statement: dietary
supplements and the high-performance athlete. British Journal of
Burke, L. M., 2015. Dietary assessment methods for the athlete: Sports Medicine, Volume 52, pp. 439-455.
pros and cons of diffe¬rent methods. Sport Science Exchange,
28(150), pp. 1-6.
Melin, A. et al., 2014. The LEAF questionnaire: a screening tool for
the identification of female athletes at risk for the female athlete
Burke, L. M., Hawley, J. A., Wong, S. H. S. & Jeukendrup, A. E., triad. British Journal of Sports Medicine, Volume 48, pp. 540-545.
2011. Carbohydrates for training and competition. Journal of Sports
Sciences, 29(Supp 1), pp. S17-S27.
Melin, A. K., Heikura, I. A., & Mountjoy, M., 2019. Energy availability in
athletics: health, performance, and physique. International Journal
Cheuvront, S. N. & Sawka, M. N., 2005. Hydration Assessmnet of of Sport Nutrition and Exercise Metabolism, 29(2), pp. 152-164.
Athletes. Sports Science Exchange, 18(2), pp. 1-12.
Michie, S., van Stralen, M. M. & West, R., 2011. The behaviour change
Costello, N. et al., 2017. Snap-n- Send: A valid and reliable me¬thod wheel: A new me-thod for characterising and designing behaviour
for assessing the energy intake of elite adolescent athle¬tes. change interventions. Implementation Science, 6(42).
European Journal of Sport Science, 17(8), pp. 1044-1055.
Mountjoy, M. et al., 2015. Rela¬tive Energy Deficiency in Sport

Gaskell, S. K., Snipe, R. M. J. & Costa, R. J. S., 2019. Test-retest (RED-S) Clinical Assessment Tool (CAT). British Journal of Sports
reliability of a modified visual analogue scale assessment tool for Medicine, Volume 49, pp. 421-423.
REFERENCES 65
Mountjoy, M. et al., 2018. IOC consensus statement on rela¬tive Performance. Medi¬cine and Science in Sports and Exercise, 48(3),
energy deficiency in sport (RED-S): 2018 update. Interna¬tional pp. 543-568.
Journal of Sport Nutrition and Exercise Metabolism, Volume 52, pp.
687-697.
Westerterp, K. R., 2004. Diet in¬duced thermogenesis. Nutrition
and Metabolism, 1(5).
Reale, R. J. et al., 2020. Metabolic rate in adolescent athletes: The
development and validation of new equations, and comparison
to previous models. International Journal of Sport Nutrition and Westerterp, K. R., Saris, W. H., van Es, M. & ten Hoor, F., 1986. Use
Exercise Metabolism, 30(4), pp. 249-257. of the doubly labelled water technique in humans during heavy
sustained exercise. Jour¬nal of Applied Physiology, 61(6), pp. 2162-7.
Pfeiffer, B. et al., 2012. Nutritio¬nal intake and gastrointestinal

problems during competitive endurance events. Medicine and
Science in Sports and Exercise, 44(2), pp. 344-51.
Rollo, I. et al., 2021. Fluid Balance, Sweat Na+ Losses, and

Carbohydrate Intake of Elite Male Soccer Players in Response to
Low and High Training Intensities in Cool and Hot Environments.
Nutrients, 13(2), p. 401.
Sawka, M. N., Burke, L. M., Elchner, E. R., Maughan, R. J., Montain, S.

J. & Stachenfeld, N. S., 2007. American College of Sports Medicine
Joint Position Statement. Exercise and Fluid Replacement. Medicine
and Science in Sports and Exercise, 39(2), pp. 377-390.
Shirreffs, S. M. & Sawka, M. N., 2011. Fluid and electrolyte needs

for training, competition, and recovery. Journal of Sport Scien¬ce,
29(Suppl 1), pp. S39-46.
Stables, R. G. et al., 2021. An assessment of the validity of the remote

food photography me¬thod (termed snap-n-send) in experienced
and inexperienced sport nutritionists. International Journal of Sport
Nutrition and Exercise Metabolism, 31(2), pp. 125-134.
Stewart, A., Marfell-Jones, M., Olds, T. & Ridder, H. D., 2011.

International Standards for Anthropometric Assessment.
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Thomas, D. T., Erdman, K. A. & Burke, L. M., 2016. American College

of Sports Medicine Joint Position Statement. Nutrition and Athletic
66 MEET THE TEAM
MEET THE TEAM

LIAM BROWN, MSC
GSSI SCIENTIST
Liam Brown is a Scientist for the GSSI international team, based in the UK. Liam earned his Bachelor’s Degree
in Nutrition and Food Science from the University of Reading, UK, before completing a Master’s Degree in Sport
Nutrition at Liverpool John Moores University, UK, in 2018. Liam has experience working as a Sport Nutritionist
for a Professional English Soccer Club, as well as working as a Nutritionist in the Food Industry. His current role
with GSSI involves sport nutrition support for Gatorade partners, including professional soccer clubs such as FC
Barcelona and Manchester City Football Club, as well as managing and supporting GSSI service and education
engagements internationally.
CAROLINE TARNOWSKI, MSc

GSSI SCIENTIST
Caroline Tarnowski is a Scientist for the GSSI international team, based in the UK. Caroline completed her
Bachelor’s degree in Sport and Exercise Science and Master’s Degree in Sports Nutrition at Loughborough
University, UK. Upon completion of her MSc, Caroline was employed as the Lead Nutritionist at the University
of Birmingham where she worked with elite scholarship athletes. Caroline’s current role with GSSI involves
sport nutrition support for Gatorade partners, as well as managing and supporting GSSI service and education
engagements internationally.
REBECCA RANDELL, PhD

GSSI ASSOCIATE PRINCIPLE SCIENTIST
Dr Rebecca Randell is an Associate Principal Scientist at GSSI and a visiting fellow at Loughborough University,
UK. Rebecca earned her Bachelor’s Degree and her PhD from the University of Birmingham, UK under the
supervision of Professor Asker Jeukendrup. In her current role Rebecca works for the Sports Science Application
team and is working on a project on the topic of physical performance for women. Rebecca has extensive
experience working with elite athletes and football clubs in the UK and abroad.
KHALIL LEE, PhD

GSSI SENIOR SCIENTIST
Dr Khalil Lee is a Senior Scientist at the GSSI Satellite Lab at IMG Academy in Bradenton, FL. Khalil earned
his BS and MS degrees in Sport and Fitness Management from Troy University. In 2014, he received his PhD
from Auburn University in Kinesiology with a concentration in Exercise Physiology, where he later served as an
adjunct professor in the School of Kinesiology. In his current role, Khalil’s responsibilities include research and
oversight of sports science education programs for IMG athletes and sports staff.
MEET THE TEAM 67
KEVIN LUHRS, MS
GSSI ASSOCIATE PRINCIPLE SCIENTIST
Kevin Luhrs is an Associate Principle Scientist at the GSSI satellite lab at IMG Academy in Bradenton, FL. Kevin
earned his BS at the University of Nebraska in Nutrition Science and Dietetics, before becoming a Registered
Dietitian in 2009. Kevin later became the Team Sports Dietitian and Assistant Strength Coach for the Tampa
Bay Buccaneers in 2010, working closely with the players, coaches and support staff whilst pioneering the
Buccaneer’s first Sport Nutrition Program over 9 seasons. Kevin also has a MS in Applied Exercise Science from
Concordia University, Chicago. In his current role, Kevin’s primary responsibly includes leading the GSSI Athlete
Service Team.
ERIC FREESE, PhD

GSSI PRINCIPLE SCIENTIST
Dr Eric Freese is a Principle Scientist and lead of the GSSI satellite lab at the Baylor, Scott, and White Sports
Performance Centre in Frisco, Texas. Eric earned his Bachelor degree in Kinesiology from the University of
Illinois, and his Master’s and Doctorate degrees in Exercise Physiology at the University of Georgia. In his current
role leading the satellite facility, his team supports the Sports Performance and Nutrition team with the Dallas
Cowboys, aiding in player recovery monitoring and personalised hydration strategies.
JAMES CARTER, PhD

GSSI SENIOR DIRECTOR
Dr James Carter is the Senior Director of GSSI. James earned his Bachelor’s degree in Sport and Exercise Nutrition,
and his PhD, focused on endurance exercise and the relationship between carbohydrate supplementation,
environmental heat stress and performance, at the University of Birmingham, UK. In his current role, James
oversees the strategic direction of the Institute. James is a Fellow of the American College of Sports Medicine,
and throughout his career has published numerous peer-reviewed journal articles and presented internationally
at a range of sport science and occupational physiology conference.
IAN ROLLO, PhD

GSSI PRINCIPLE SCIENTIST
Dr Ian Rollo is a principal scientist at GSSI and head of GSSI International service. He is a visiting research
fellow at Loughborough University, UK. Ian earned his Bachelor’s degree from Birmingham University in sport
and exercise science and Master’s degree from Loughborough University in Exercise Physiology. In 2009 he
received a PhD from Loughborough University under the supervision of Professor Clyde Williams, OBE. Ian
currently leads the partnerships between GSSI and partner clubs, including Manchester City Football Club and
FC Barcelona, completing pre-season testing as well as staff and player education initiatives.
LB, CT, RR, KL, KL, EF, JC & IR are employees of the Gatorade Sports Science Institute, a division of PepsiCo, Incorporated.
The views expressed in this book are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the position or policy of PepsiCo, Incorporated.
© 2022
Table 26
68 APPENDIX A conversion table from inches to centimetres.
MEASUREMENT CONVERSION TABLES

Inches Feet Centimetres
in (“) ft (‘) in (“) cm
1 0 1 2.5
5 0 5 12.7
10 0 10 25.4
39.4 (1 meter) 3 3 100.0
50 4 2 127.0
55 4 7 139.7
60 5 0 152.4
65 5 5 165.1
70 5 10 177.8
75 6 3 190.5
78.7 (2 meters) 6 7 200.0
80 6 8 203.2
85 7 1 215.9
Length Conversion Rates
Inches to Centimetres 1 inch is equivalent to 2.54 centimetres
Centimetres to Inches 1 centimetre is equivalent to 0.3937 inches
Feet to Inches 1 foot is equivalent to 12 inches
Feet to Centimetres 1 foot is equivalent to 30.48 centimetres
Pounds Stones Kilograms

lb st lb kg
130 9 4 59.97
140 10 0 63.50
150 10 10 68.04
160 11 6 72.58
170 12 2 77.11
180 12 12 81.65
190 13 8 86.18
200 14 4 90.72
220 15 10 99.79
230 16 6 104.33
240 17 2 108.86
Mass Conversion Rates
Pounds to Kilograms 1 pound is equivalent to 0.4536 kilograms
Kilogram to Pounds 1 kilogram is equivalent to 2.205 pounds
Stones to Pounds 1 stone is equivalent to 14 pounds
Stones to Kilograms 1 stone is equivalent to 6.35 kilograms
Table 27
A conversion table from pounds to kilograms.
Table 28
A conversion table from grams to ounces
APPENDIX 69

Grams Ounces
g oz
5 0.18
10 0.35
15 0.53
20 0.71
25 0.88
28 (1 ounce) 1.00
30 1.06
35 1.23
40 1.41
45 1.59
50 1.76
55 1.94
60 2.12
65 2.29
70 2.47
75 2.65
80 2.82
85 3.00
90 3.17
95 3.35
100 3.53
227 (½ pound) 8.00
454 (1 pound) 16.00
1000 (1 kilogram) 35.30
Mass Conversion Rates
Grams to Ounces 1 gram is equivalent to 0.03527 ounces
Ounces to Grams 1 ounce is equivalent to 28.35 grams
Pounds to ounces 1 pound is equivalent to 16 ounces
Pounds to grams 1 pound is equivalent to 453.6 grams

Table 29
70 APPENDIX A conversion table from fluid ounces to millilitres.

US Fluid Ounces Millilitres UK Fluid Ounces
fl oz ml fl oz
3 100 4
5 150 5
7 200 7
9 250 9
10 300 11
12 350 12
14 400 14
15 450 16
17 500 18
19 550 19
20 600 21
22 650 23
24 700 25
25 750 26
27 800 28
29 850 30
30 900 32
32 950 33
34 1000 35
Fluid Conversion Rates
US Fluid Ounce to Millilitres 1 US fluid ounce is equivalent to 29.6 millilitres
Millilitres to US Fluid Ounce 1 millilitre is equivalent to 0.03381 US fluid ounces
UK Fluid Ounce to Millilitres 1 UK fluid ounce is equivalent to 28.4 millilitres
Millilitres to US Fluid Ounce 1 millilitre is equivalent to 0.0352 UK fluid ounces
Table 27
A conversion table from pounds to kilograms.

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SPORTS

PRACTICAL TOOLS FOR QUALIFIED PROFESSIONALS

GATORADE CAROLINE TARNOWSKI, MSc ERIC FREESE, PhD

CONSULTATIONS AND DIETARY ANALYSIS 7

MEET THE TEAM 66

SPORTS NUTRITION TOOLKIT

DR IAN ROLLO DR ERIC FREESE

HEAD COACH AND COACHING STAFF

NU Communicate on pre-existing and/or developing medical conditions with nutritional

STRENGTH AND CONDITIONING COACH

To help the nutritionist understand local/sport specific anti-doping requirements to

Recommended if working with food. The knowledge gained by completing the

Education and professional development resource; supports nutritionists by

Education and professional development resource; supports nutritionists

Education and professional development resource; The Association’s mission is

Education and professional development resource; The group leverages the

EQUIPMENT NAME OF EQUIPMENT USE / IMPORTANCE

Squeeze Bottle To support fuelling and hydration

To support personalized fuelling

To transport bottles during training

To keep drinks cool in heat and

To support refuelling and

To wipe away sweat and dry

To understand athlete’s fluid and

Read and understand relevant data security policies.

Read and understand relevant safeguarding policies.

Complete a food hygiene certificate.

Refresh knowledge with educational resources.

Research the team / individual to support relationship building.

Where appropriate, observe the process in restaurants / canteens at meal times.

Review current educational resources available to the athlete(s) / team.

Dietary analyses can be used to provided Support for the nutritionist

NAME OF SHEET FUNCTION SHARE WITH ATHLETE?

To be used each time you have a consultation with an athlete

To be used to set a goal with an athlete. Designed to direct the

To be used to follow-up on the progress of the goal. Can be

CONSULTATION DECISION TREE

Athlete identified to receive a nutrition consultation by any of the following:

Athlete identified through dietary,

Is it the first time running a consultation with the specific athlete?

Have goals been met?

Work to understand why goals have not Are further consultations NO

DURING ANY ATHLETE DISCUSSIONS

Move to ‘Dietary Analysis’ section Notify relevant member of sports

Does the nutritionist / athlete require more information about energy,

Move to ‘Energy’, ‘Carbohydrate’ or

Is the nutritionist to provide the athlete with a meal plan?

Move to ‘Meal Planning’ section

Have questions about supplements been raised?

No further immediate action

INITIAL NUTRITION ASSESSMENT

Frequency of Menstrual cycle

BODY COMPOSITION RESULTS AND TARGETS

Height (ft, in or cm) N/A

Body mass (lb or kg)

Sum of 8 skinfolds (mm)

Predicted body fat %

BODY COMPOSITION METHOD USED:

INITIAL NUTRITION ASSESSMENT

WHAT ARE THE ATHLETE’S CAPABILITIES?