Pedro Carvalho

Nutritional Guidelines for Football Players

Football is one of the most popular team sports in the world in terms of participation. It is an intermittent multiple-sprint sport characterized by repeated bouts of short duration high-intensity sprints in an endurance context that also requires the maintenance of skills throughout the match. Football induces accumulated fatigue during matches and training, mostly due to depletion of muscle glycogen stores, muscle damage, dehydration, and central fatigue. Hence, careful planning of training and nutritional strategies are required in preparation for training and matches. An adequate daily intake of carbohydrate, maintaining a good hydration status, and improving body composition are some crucial strategies to enhance physical and skill performance. Nutrition can also aid in recovery from fatigue by providing carbohydrate, fluid, or protein. Some of these strategies are discussed in this chapter.