Nutrition in professional football has moved on from the days of drinking water and eating an orange at half-time. Elite players are able to cover distance at speed, which is fuelled by carbohydrate. Taking on up to 60g of carbohydrate pre-game and at half-time has been shown to help maintain skill performance and improve high-intensity running capacity. Energy stores have been shown to be well over 50% depleted at half-time, highlighting the importance of having a solid half-time nutrition plan. Sweat rates have also shown to be high in football players, even in cold weather. When you sweat, you lose key electrolytes like sodium. It’s important to replace sodium along with fluid for optimal physical and mental performance. Finding a half-time solution that covers all of these points and sits well in your stomach is tough, which is why we offer an array of options to hit your energy and hydration goals. We spoke to the team at Manchester United to find out how their players refuel at half-time. Watch the video for more… Written By Professor James Morton A professor of Exercise Metabolism at Liverpool John Moores University (LJMU) and a Registered Sports and Exercise Nutrition Practitioner with the British Dietetic Association’s UK Sport and Exercise Nutrition Register (SENr), James is responsible for research and innovation at Science in Sport, overseeing the Performance Solutions Team.
