Nutrition is key to meeting any health or fitness goals, which is why it typically sits at the base of any training hierarchy or pyramid.
The Infinite Capacity Pyramid is a blend of an injury prevention pyramid proposed by Coles (Coles, P.A., An injury prevention pyramid for elite sports teams. Br J Sports Med, 2017; 0(0): 1-3.) and the CrossFit Theoretical Hierarchy of Development. Nutrition and Purposeful Recovery being at the base, signifying these areas should be prioritized in training and injury prevention programs or routines.
At Infinite Capacity, we believe that nutrition, exercise, and purposeful recovery are what optimize health and function, so we utilize these domains to increase functional capacity, decrease pain, and reduce risk of injury to help people become more fit and resilient.
We feel that baseline nutrition should include:
Eat whole, minimally processed foods from a diverse and varied diet of lean protein sources, colorful fruits and vegetables, slow-digesting high-fiber carbohydrates, and healthy fats.
It is best if the majority of nutritional intake is obtained from whole foods, there are situations when supplementation is required and/or beneficial depending on an individual’s needs and/or goals.
While discussing the role of macronutrients and calculating caloric requirements for various goals is beyond the scope of this article, below are some guidelines for nutrition and supplement recommendations.
** Evidence-based values below are based on total daily intake including that obtained from real food… NOT necessarily specific recommendations for supplementation values. If you feel you need to complement your diet with supplementation, please check with your primary care provider or registered dietary nutritionist. **
Check out our recommended nutritional supplements from our partner
evidence-based recommendations for nutrition and supplementation in training and recovery from exercise
Rehydration
It has been recommended, in order to properly rehydrate after exercise and training that individuals drink 1-1.5 liters of water for each kilogram of body mass lost during training (1).
Carbohydrates
Less than 8 hours between training or competition sessions? Eat 1-1.2 grams of carbohydrate per kilogram of body mass immediately after training, then again every hour for 4 hours. If there is 8-24 hours between training sessions, the timing of this carbohydrate intake is not as important, as long as the required amounts are eaten to recover depleted energy stores. These requirements are about 5-7 grams per kilogram of body mass per day for moderate training of 1 hour per day, or 6-10 grams per kilogram per day for moderate-to-high-intensity training of 1-3 hours per day (1).
Protein
After exercise, muscles have an increased sensitivity for protein intake for around 24 hours. It has been recommended that about 0.4-0.5 grams of protein per kilogram of lean body mass be ingested both before and after exercise within 4-6 hours of each other (2). Building and maintaining muscle mass can be achieved with daily protein intakes of 1.4-2.0 grams per kilogram body mass per day, but higher amounts of 2.3-3.1 grams per kilogram of body mass may be needed for resistance-trained individuals such as bodybuilders in caloric deficit phases (3).
MUSCLE BUILDING Supplementation (4)
β -hydroxy β -methylbutyrate (HMB)
HMB is a byproduct when the body breaks down the amino acid leucine
1.5-3 g of calcium HMB per day
Aids in reducing fat mass and increasing lean mass
Recommended to split the 3g dose into three 1g doses throughout day
Effective in 3-4 weeks in untrained populations and longer (12 weeks) in trained populations in various exercise types
Foods high in leucine: salmon, chick peas, brown rice, soy beans (tofu), eggs, nuts, beef
Creatine monohydrate
The most effective nutritional supplement to increase high intensity exercise capacity and muscle mass during training
Safe for use with children and adolescents when:
- Involved in serious/competitive supervised training
- Are consuming a well-balance and performance enhancing diet
- Are knowledgeable about appropriate use of creatine
- Do not exceed recommended dosages
Addition of carbohydrate or carbohydrate and protein to creatine appears to increase muscular uptake, but no benefit on performance
Quickest method to increase muscle creatine stores:
- 0.3 g/kg/day for 5-7 days, then:
- 3-5 g/day thereafter
Foods high in creatine: beef, pork, tuna, salmon, cod
Essential Amino Acids (EAA)
Ingesting 6-12g of EAA in the absence of feeding prior to and/or following resistance exercise stimulates protein synthesis
Foods high in essential amino acids: beef, poultry, fish, dairy, soy, quinoa, buckwheat
Performance Enhancement Supplementation (4,5)
β -alanine
A non-essential amino acid
Research suggests improvements in exercise performance with more pronounced effects in activities lasting 1-4 minutes
Other studies have shown:
- Increase in repetitions
- Increase in lean body mass
- Increase in training volume
- Adding to creatine improves performance compared to creatine alone
6-12 g per day in three divided doses
Foods high in beta alanine: turkey, chicken, beef, pork, fish
Caffeine
3-9 mg/kg taken 30-90 minutes before exercise can spare carbohydrate use during exercise, thereby improving endurance capacity
Doses above 9 mg/kg can result in urinary caffeine levels beyond doping thresholds (CrossFit specific doping rules state “Caffeine if concentrations in urine exceed 15 micrograms/mL”)
Foods high in caffeine: coffee, tea, chocolate
Carbohydrate
5-8 g/kg/day to maintain muscle and liver glycogen stores
Creatine monohydrate
- Same dosage as above
Sodium Bicarbonate (baking soda)
During high intensity exercise, acid (H+) and CO2 accumulate in the muscles and blood
The bicarbonate system is the primary means by which the body rids H+ and CO2
Bicarbonate loading has been shown to be an effective way to buffer acidity during high intensity exercise lasting 1-3 minutes:
- 0.3 g/kg 60-90 minutes before exercise, or
- 5 g taken 2x per day for 5 days
Magnesium
Magnesium plays a role in over 300 chemical reactions in the body including energy metabolism and protein synthesis
Magnesium supplementation has been shown to reduce muscle soreness, decrease perceived exertion, and perceived recovery:
- 350mg per day
References
(1) Kovacs, M.S. and Baker, L.B., Recovery interventions and strategies for improved tennis performance. Br J Sports Med, 2014; 48: i18-21. doi:10.1136/bjsports-2013-093223
(2) Schoenfeld, B.J. and Aragon, A.A., Is There a Postworkout Anabolic Window of Opportunity for Nutrient Consumption? Clearing up Controversies. J Orthop Sports Phys Ther, 2018; 48(12): 911-914. doi:10.2519/jospt.2018.0615
(3) Jäger, R., et al., International Society of Sports Nutrition Position Stand: protein and exercise. Journal of the International Society of Sports Nutrition, 2017; 14(20). doi 10.1186/s12970-017-0177-8
(4) Kerksick CM, Wilborn CD, Roberts MD, Smith-Ryan A, Kleiner SM, Jäger R, Collins R, Cooke M, Davis JN, Galvan E, Greenwood M, Lowery LM, Wildman R, Antonio J, Kreider RB. ISSN exercise & sports nutrition review update: research & recommendations. J Int Soc Sports Nutr. 2018 Aug 1;15(1):38. doi: 10.1186/s12970-018-0242-y. PMID: 30068354; PMCID: PMC6090881.
(5) Reno AM, Green M, Killen LG, O'Neal EK, Pritchett K, Hanson Z. Effects of Magnesium Supplementation on Muscle Soreness and Performance. J Strength Cond Res. 2022 Aug 1;36(8):2198-2203. doi: 10.1519/JSC.0000000000003827. Epub 2020 Oct 1. PMID: 33009349.