combat sports nutrition ebook

Combat sports nutrition 1


Preface

Welcome to combat sports nutrition, the comprehensive book which will provide you with an in depth

understanding of all the relevant nutritional information to help you succeed both in and out of the

arena.

I have been studying nutrition formally for 10 years and my interest extends far beyond this.

Throughout my university life I have trained, coached and competed often, whilst completing a degree

in health science (nutrition, exercise science and biochemistry), an honours research year (in molecular

nutrition), a master’s degree (in dietetics) and am now in the process of completing my PhD focusing

on ‘Making weight for combat sports’. During this time I have had to balance study and work

commitments as well as training 6-7 days a week and competing, thus have gained unique experience

and perspective as a real life athlete, scientist and coach. Currently I have found myself in a position

in which I get to work with the many of the best judo, boxing, taekwondo and wrestling athletes in

Australia. I also routinely work with Brazilian Jiu jitsu athletes, MMA fighters and a world championship

kickboxer.

As fighters we all know that nutrition is important for optimal performance, and compared with many

other athletes I believe that fighters possess a good understanding of this. However I do believe that

many fighters are misguided, follow the wrong advice and struggle to differentiate between credible,

useful information based on science and experience, and that which is part of a passing fad or a product

sales pitch. I’ve heard many combat sport athletes over the years dismiss mainstream science and

offer comments such as “what would a scientist know? They don’t fight!”, or “well that information

might be correct for the general population, but I’m different”.

Rest assured, that the information presented in this book is based on credible research, tried and tested

principles and is in line with the strategies I use with the athletes I work with. This means that not only

has it undergone extensive peer review in academic journals, it has also been tested by me personally

in training/competition and used with success with fighters I work with.

Nutrition is a funny thing, as on the one hand it is incredibly complex and intricate, yet quite intuitive

and good nutrition can be achieved by following common sense. However the term common sense is

not a very clear one as what seems obvious and ‘common sense’ to me (someone who has studied the

physiology of digestion and absorption and the biochemistry of nutrition) is going to be different to

someone whose primary source of nutrition information is the guy at the supplement shop and

advertising. Therefore, in order to gain the most from this book and set yourself up for success, I

strongly suggest beginning by reading it from start to finish. By this stage you should have a good

understanding of the interplay between nutrition, health and performance. You can then use it as a

reference, referring to the relevant sections as you implement changes to your diet. It is difficult to

say what the most important aspects of nutrition are; however I’ve tried to present the information in

a sequential manner which lays down foundations and builds upon these.

Each chapter details a key them (i.e. protein, carbohydrates, fluid etc.) and I wanted to make all the

information applicable and relevant, however I know many people like to know the how and why in

addition to the what. Keeping this in mind I have included many reference tables, some basic

biochemistry and physiology which I think is interesting, helps provide a greater understanding for the

reader and to help provide context to the recommendations (and also to provide better value for those


who purchase the book, so that it can be a one stop resource). Last but not least, I hope you acquire a

love and fascination for nutrition and the interplay between diet and performance. Enjoy!

Reid Reale – Combat sports dietitian – www.CombatSportsNutrition.com

Table of contents

Chapter 1 - The perfect diet................................................................................................

Chapter 2 - Energy, kilojoules and calories......................................................................... Page 8

Chapter 3 - Vitamins and minerals...................................................................................... Page 14

Chapter 4 - Protein............................................................................................................. Page 26

Chapter 5 - Carbohydrates.................................................................................................. Page 38

Chapter 6 - Fats................................................................................................................... Page 62

Chapter 7 - Dietary fibre..................................................................................................... Page 76

Chapter 8 - Fluid.................................................................................................................. Page 81

Chapter 9 - Antioxidants..................................................................................................... Page 86

Chapter 10 - Putting it all together..................................................................................... Page 91

Chapter 11 - Supplements................................................................................................... Page 101

Chapter 12 - Cutting weight............................................................................................... Page 110

Chapter 13 - Post weigh-in/ competition day nutrition..................................................... Page 121

Chapter 14 - Periodization.................................................................................................. Page 125

Wrap up............................................................................................................................... Page 129

References, resources & further reading............................................................................ Page 130

The ‘perfect diet’


Many people ask me, “What diet do you follow?”, “what diet should I go on?”, “what do you think about

a modified paleo diet?”, “should I follow an intermittent fasting diet?” and many more ‘diet’ related

questions. Everyone wants to know; what’s the secret formula to never ending energy, huge increases

in muscle mass and how to blow torch away body fat. The secret is; there is no secret. You will realise

after reading this book that there are some simple principles we need to follow in order to achieve our

goals. There are many different ‘diets’ that can deliver us the results we want, but for any ‘diet’ to

work it must obey the simple key principles we will go through. Sure, there are individual variations

and if you feed two people the exact same diet there is likely going to be noticeably different outcomes,

however we are more similar than we are different.

Using training as an analogy; there are several different workouts which will promote strength gains,

upper/lower splits, push/pull splits, full body work outs, power lifting, Olympic weight lifting, Westside

style, a 5x5 protocol, wave loading, pyramid sets etc. Chances are if you bust your ass in the gym, eat

some food, get some rest and repeat, you will get stronger. Therefore, one might say that “These so

called experts in the strength and conditioning field don’t know what they are on about and everybody

is different, so why listen to anybody?”. Conversely if you were to lift nothing but rubber 1kg weights,

or train 8 hours every day and get only 2 hours sleep per night, or only train once per month, or only

do static stretching, chances are you won’t get stronger. So then why does strength improve when

following any of the previous training protocols but not the latter ones? The reason is because the first

examples I shared all follow the principles of strength training, progressive overload, specificity, rest,

frequency etc. Just as you HAVE to lift heavier weights over time in order to get stronger, you HAVE to

eat more in order to get bigger; training whilst dehydrated WILL impair heat tolerance etc. Certain

things are just physics, biochemistry, thermodynamics etc. In other words, certain things are just FACT.

So, like I said, there is not a one size fits all diet that is perfect for everyone. However there are general

principles which do apply to everyone. So when we say “This person needs 1.7g of protein per kg of

body weight in order to gain muscle mass”, the person may actually only need 1.4g or may need 1.8g

(and this is why we always talk in ranges). However you WILL NOT build muscle if you are eating 0.5g

of protein per kg, and your body WILL NOT build extra muscle just because you consume 10g of protein

per kg. See where I’m going with this?

There are many different ways to design a diet that will suit your needs. Many athletes are quite

analytical, obsessive and love numbers (myself included) – in which case talking about food in terms of

energy, protein, carbohydrate and fat grams may be suitable. For others, talking about food in terms

of food groups and serves is easier to understand. In this book I will attempt to present the info in

both forms, so that those who want the detail have it and those who want the straight forward “what

do I eat?” will have that as well.

Following on from the nutrient versus food group discussion I will now discuss the different ‘food groups’, using

the food pyramid or healthy plate models as a guide.

Pyramids, plates, food groups and guidelines

Most people will be familiar with ‘The good food pyramid’, ‘The healthy plate model’ or some other

similar set of guidelines or government health campaigns. If you are somewhat forgetful, allow me to

jog your memory.


Now these images and guidelines have received much criticism over the years, particularly from

athletes, ‘natural’ food advocates and especially from those pushing the latest fad diets or weight loss

methods. However whilst these guidelines may not be perfect (I wonder just how possible it is to come

up with a simple set of guidelines, alongside an appealing image that will solve the worlds nutrition

problems?) they do have many good points. First, these guidelines are put together by experts with

many years of experience and education (like myself), and are based on decades of scientific

investigation and tens of thousands of research articles. Second, they do all recommend people eat

more vegetables and fruits and less fatty and sugary snacks and junk food. Lastly, they break food

down into ‘food groups’ which make it easy for people to know which collection of foods share similar

properties and contain similar nutrients. For example, if someone is told to “Eat less energy and more

fibre, antioxidants, vitamins and minerals” this may seem more complicated than “I want you to eat

more vegetables”. I will talk more about food groups shortly.

So all in all, most of what these guidelines state are appropriate for the vast majority of the population.

If you were to follow these basic healthy eating guidelines you would maintain your health and perform

adequately. However as fighters, we are a special breed with special needs and in order to not only

perform adequately but OPTIMALLY, there are some tweaks to the general healthy eating guidelines

we can make. For example, the main points relevant to fighters which are either not addressed or not

conveyed particularly well in existing guidelines are; an athlete’s protein intake (the quality, the daily


spread and the varying amounts) and an athlete’s optimal carbohydrate intake (as this can vary

dramatically depending on your training schedule and your goals).

So in order to communicate efficiently and effectively, I will talk about food in terms of its component

parts (protein, carbohydrates, fats, calories etc.) as well as in terms of food group serves. The food

groups I refer to will be:

• Vegetables: all vegetables and legumes other than starchy vegetables (potato, sweet potato, taro,

cassava, corn). Also including tomato.

One serve = ½ cup of vegetables, ½ cup of legumes or 1 cup of salad leaves (lettuce, spinach, rocket

etc.).

• Fruit: all fruits other than tomato and avocado.

One serve = 1 medium piece of fruit, 2 small pieces of fruit, 30g of dried fruit or 1 cup of diced fruit.

• Grain/cereal foods: all breads, pasta, rice, quinoa, cereals, muffins etc. Also including starchy

vegetables (potato, sweet potato, taro, cassava, corn).

One serve = 1 slice of bread (40g), ½ bread roll or flat bread (40g), ½ cup cooked rice pasta,

noodles, barley, polenta etc., ½ cup cooked oats, 2/3 cup cereal flakes, ¼ cup muesli or ¼ cup

uncooked oats

• Lean meats and meat alternatives: all meats, fish, eggs, tofu.

One serve = 65g cooked meat or poultry (90-100g raw), 100g cooked fish (115g raw) or 2 large eggs

or 1 cup of tofu

• Dairy/dairy alternatives: all dairy milks, soy milks, cheeses and yoghurt.

One serve = 1 cup of dairy or soy milk, 1 tub yoghurt (around 175g), ½ cup of ricotta or cottage

cheese or 40g of other cheeses (cheeses other than low fat ricotta or low fat cottage cheese

should be eaten rarely as they are much higher in fat and lower in protein than other dairy

sources).

• Fats and oils: all fats and oils, nuts and avocado.

One serve = 1 tablespoon of oil/butter/margarine, 30g of nuts or ½ medium avocado.

• Extras: Chocolates, candy, cakes, deep fried snacks, potato chips, takeaway ‘junk’ foods etc. One serve

= 2 scoops of ice cream (75g), 1 thick or 2 thin high fat sausages, 2-3 sweet biscuits, 1 doughnut (40g),

40g sugar candy, 25g of chocolate, 1 can soft drink, 1 bottle of beer, 1 glass of wine, 60g pastry product

or any other snack food around 150kcal or 600 j.

I have made a few alterations to the typical food groupings used by many of the ‘healthy eating’ or

‘pyramid’ guidelines. I have placed starchy vegetables (potato, sweet potato, cassava, taro, corn) with

grains/cereals group rather than the vegetable group as these are carbohydrate dense foods. I have

removed nuts from the meat/meat alternatives group as nuts do not contain significant levels of

protein in a regular serve. I have placed nuts and avocado into the fats and oils group as these are

both rich sources of fats. The following table displays a summary of the food groups I have just talked

about.

Summary of food groups

Food group Example serve Intake Key nutrients / Comment


Fruit

2+

Serves

per day

Key nutrients include vitamins,

minerals, fibre & carbohydrates.

Can be used as a source of

carbohydrates and may replace

some cereal/grain serves in the

diet.

Vegetables

6+

Serves

per day

Key nutrients include vitamins,

minerals & fibre.

Should be consumed regularly

throughout the day at most

feedings.

Grains/cereals

4-12+

Serves

per day

Key nutrients include

carbohydrates, fibre, vitamins &

minerals.

Greatest intake variability of any

food group. Intake should

match activity level/body weight

goals. Ensure to consume grain/

cereal (or other carbohydrate)

serves before and after training.

Meat/meat

alternatives

2-4

Serves

per day

Key nutrients include protein,

iron, & zinc.

Small feedings, consumed

regularly throughout the day to

provide ‘protein spread’. Intake

depends on athlete size and

requirements. Ensure to

consume a meat/meat

alternative serve as soon as

possible following training.

Dairy/dairy

alternatives

3-5

Serves

per day

Key nutrients include protein,

carbohydrates & calcium.

Low fat dairy are good sources

of protein and may be used to

help support protein

requirements/ replace meat

serves.

Fats/oils

1-4

Serves

per day

Key nutrients include essential

fatty acids and energy.

Intake will vary depending on

energy needs/training

volume/body weight goals.


You will have noticed that the ‘extras’ food group was not included in the previous table. These foods

should not make up part of a fighters day to day diet and should only be consumed in rare

circumstances. Fighters who are aiming to increase weight or who struggle to meet high energy

requirements may consume limited serves of extras to help increase energy intake (usually no more

than 1 per day), but in general there is not room in a fighters diet for these foods (no more than 1-2

serves per week if at all).

As you can see from the previous table, different foods are categorized into the different food groups

based on the nutrients they provide. So although we can talk about foods in terms of “Vegetables are

important in keeping you free from illness and preventing deficiencies” or “Grains/cereals are important

for fuelling your training”, its actually the compounds in the foods that provide the benefit (i.e. the

vitamins, minerals, protein, carbohydrates, fats etc.). The following chapters will discuss food from the

perspective of the various nutrients contained within foods, the energy they contain, and why these

things are important. In this way you will gain an understanding of what makes a food suitable for a

certain purpose, and it will teach you to be flexible in your diet approach.

Once again, I suggest reading these chapters in their entirety the first time through. This will provide

you with a step by step explanation of the relevant physiology and biochemistry and instructions on

how to optimize intake for a particular nutrient or food group. Relevant tables will be introduced

throughout the chapter to illustrate key points, and at the end of each chapter, detailed tables of food

sources of nutrients will be presented for reference. If you have never educated yourself in the areas

of nutritional science, exercise physiology or biochemistry, you are in for quite a ride…


Energy, kilojoules and calories

In order to live, grow, breath, talk, think, sleep and move we require energy. We get energy from the food

and beverages we consume and this energy can be quantified and is measured.

A kilojoule (kJ) is a unit of measurement used for energy, just as a kilometre is unit of measurement

used for distance. Kilojoules are what’s known as an SI unit of measurement, (SI being the modern

form of the metric system and the official and preferred system of measurement used in science). Also

used as a unit of measurement in nutrition is calorie, although what most people refer to as a calorie

is actually a kilocalorie (kcal). Many people prefer to use kcal when expressing energy in foods as there

is a long standing history of its use (particularly in the USA) and they are smaller numbers compared to

kJ. If you want to become nutritionally literate it is a good idea to be able to talk in terms of kJs and

kcals, and convert between the two.

**1 Kcal = 4.18 kJ, 1000 Kcal = 4180 kJ (just remember that 100 kcal is roughly 400 kJ)

Energy requirements, weight gain and weight loss

Put simply, our daily energy requirements are made up of two factors: 1-our resting metabolic rate

(which is determined predominantly by our height and muscle mass), and 2-energy expended through

any and all types of movement (training at higher intensities and for longer durations therefore

requires more energy than training at lower intensities for shorter durations). Therefore the equation

looks like this:

RMR = Resting metabolic rate, PA = Physical activity, EE = Energy expenditure

Logically, a bigger athlete who trains 6 days a week requires more energy than a smaller athlete who

trains 3 days a week. Also, for a given training load, a 75kg fighter who has 10% body fat will require

more energy than 75kg fighter with 20% body fat, as the leaner athlete will have more muscle mass.

1 kcal 4.18 kJ

RMR

PA

EE


The following table displays the varying energy requirements of different age/activity groups. The

tables below display average daily energy requirements for males and females.

Females average daily energy expenditure

Sedentary Active

4-8 years 1200 Kcal / 5016 KJ to 1800 Kcal / 7524 KJ

9-13years 1600 Kcal / 6688 KJ to 2200 Kcal / 9196 KJ




51+ 1600 Kcal / 6688 KJ to 2200 Kcal / 9196 KJ

Males average daily energy expenditure

Sedentary Active

4-8 years 1400 Kcal / 5852 KJ to 2000 Kcal / 8360 KJ





51+ 2000 Kcal / 8360 KJ to 2800 Kcal / 11704 KJ

Energy consumed above what is required for our daily expenditure will be stored as body fat (our

body’s long term fuel storage site) or possibly can be used to help build muscle mass if an appropriate

strength training program is used. If you do not consume enough energy to meet daily energy

expenditure, than your body will burn some body fat in order to meet energy needs.

**Weight management is energy in vs energy out, it is that simple! (almost… I will talk more later)


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EI = Energy intake, EE = Energy expenditure

Breaking it down further

The food we eat can be broken down into ‘macronutrients’. Macronutrients describe the classes of

chemical compounds which humans consume in the largest quantities and provide the bulk of our

energy. The 3 main macronutrients are carbohydrates, fats and protein. Alcohol is also a

macronutrient which provides energy however isn’t considered a large part of the diet (or at least it

shouldn’t be). Due to the varying chemical properties of the macronutrients, they contain different

amounts of energy.

Macronutrient KJ content Kcal content

Carbohydrate (1 gram) 16.7 4

Protein (1 gram) 16.7 4

Fat (1 gram) 37.7 9

Alcohol (1 gram) 29.3 7

Most foods contain a mixture of macronutrients, and so the total energy in a particular food can be

calculated from the sum of the protein, fat & carbohydrates found in that food. Take a look at the

following example of one cup of regular full fat and one cup of low fat milk:

250mL Full fat milk KJ content Kcal content

Carbohydrate (12.5 gram) 209 50

EI EE

Weight

gain

EI EE

Weight

loss


1

Protein (8.8 gram) 147 35

Fat (10 gram) 376 90

Total energy 732 175

250mL Low fat milk KJ content Kcal content

Carbohydrate (15 gram) 251 60

Protein (10 gram) 167 40

Fat (2.5 gram) 92 22

Total energy 510 122

We can see that due to the different macronutrient make up (in particular the amount of fat present),

the full fat milk contains more energy than the low fat milk although both beverages are 250ml –

making the full fat milk more ‘Energy Dense’ (remember the term energy).

Foods which contain more fibre and water are generally less energy dense than foods with minimal fibre

and water. Let’s look at more examples.

Food 1 kg Broccoli 1kg Butter 1 kg skinless chicken

breast

Protein 28g 10g 310g

Carbohydrate 22g 5g 0g

Fat 6g 810g 36g

Energy 1062 kJ / 254 kcal 30723 kJ / 7350 kcal 6521 kJ / 1561 kcal

Energy density 1 kJ / 0.25 kcal per gram 31 kJ / 7 kcal per gram 7 kJ / 2 kcal per gram

It’s easy to see how fat can have such an impact on the amount of energy in a food. Thus as a general

rule, foods which contain more fat are more energy dense. The following example compares two

foods, both which are primarily carbohydrate foods.

Food 150 g cooked rice 150 g jelly lollies

Protein 4 g 8 g

Carbohydrate 33.9 g 117 g

Fat 1 g 1 g

Energy 660 kJ / 158 kcal 2115 kJ / 506 kcal


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Get more out of your Combat training! This book explains how you can get the most out of your Brazilian Jiujitsu,

Wrestling, Boxing and MMA Training.

With the eBook you will:

Discover how proteins carbs and fats affect your body

Increase Your Training Performance and Recovery

Which foods to eat to perform at maximum capacity.

Start cutting weight properly and effectively

Receive meal plans for you to perform well and recover even better.

Learn the optimal amount of Protein, Carbs and fat you need on a daily basis

Discover how important vitamins and minerals are to combat athletes

and lots more!

http://1.bjjguy.pay.clickbank.net/


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Here is a sneak peek inside:

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Download your copy for only $19

Reid Reale

About the Author

BJJ Brown Belt and all around nice guy

I pride myself in helping others understand their own bodies and on being able to communicate

nutritional science in an understandable way. I am fascinated with nutrition, martial arts, strength and

conditioning, and interplay between all of these areas.

My formal nutrition and exercise science studies span 10 years but my interest extends far beyond this.

Throughout my university life I have trained, coached and competed (very often) whilst completing a

degree in health science (majoring in nutrition & exercise science); achieving 1st class honours for my

research thesis in molecular nutrition, as well as a master’s degree in dietetics.

I hold both Accredited Sports Dietitian and Accredited Practising Dietitian status with Sports Dietitians

Australia and the Dietitians Association of Australia respectively. To further fuel my personal and

professional attributes, I am currently pursuing my PhD, focusing on weight cutting techniques and

body composition of combat sport athletes.

I also routinely work with Olympians, BJJ athletes, MMA fighters, Boxers, Judo players and even a

world championship kickboxer. Furthermore I am able to exchange ideas with leading sports scientists

from around the world and I act as reviewer for combat sports, nutrition and exercise science articles

for multiple peer reviewed scientific journals



http://bit.ly/1hclzKF


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NOTE: Combat sports Nutrition eBook is a downloadable product. No physical products will be shipped.

After you order, you will get INSTANT ACCESS to download the e-book onto your computer. The e-book

format is adobe acrobat PDF, which can be viewed on Mac or PC. If you have any questions regarding

this product please contact me at reid(at)gmail.com

Copyright © 2015. Contact me at reid.reale(at)gmail.com Order NOW

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