EC Nutrition

On the scientific bases around the world, about the information’s that say how much carbohydrate to consume for matches and how much carbohydrate to consume for training into the soccer players is still not clear. This way, this can be one of reasons why soccer athletes have a low energy intake [1], consuming wrong calorie amounts during pre-season situations [2]. Knowing that elite soccer players have 42% increase in total energy expenditure during matches compared to training [3], becomes interesting to understand match load is different to training load, and the calorie intake also should be different into this events. What can to prove this difference appears be related to matches intensity, but not only due the applied speed also due the power that athlete needs to impose on field. Because during matches, elite soccer players have a twenty six percent increase in total distance covered at high power compared to training corresponding to forty two percent increase in total energy expenditure [4].

1. Magee MK., et al. “Prevalence of Low Energy Availability in Collegiate Women Soccer Athletes”. Journal of Functional Morphology and Kinesiology 25 (2020): 96.
2. Raizel R., et al. “Pre-Season Dietary Intake of Professional Soccer Players”. Nutrition and Health 23 (2017): 215-222.
3. C Osgnach., et al. “Energy Cost and Metabolic Power in Elite Soccer”. Medicine and Science in Sports and Exercise 42 (2010): 170-178.
4. Piras A., et al. “The Energy Cost of Running with the Ball in Soccer”. International Journal of Sports Medicine 38 (2017): 877-882.
5. Brinkmans NYJ., et al. “Energy Expenditure and Dietary Intake in Professional Football Players in the Dutch Premier League: Implications for Nutritional Counselling Energy Expenditure and Dietary Intake in Professional Football Players in the Dutch Premier League: Implications”. Journal of Sports Sciences (2019): 1-9.
6. Condessa LA., et al. “Analysis and Comparison of Intensity in Specific Soccer Training Sessions”. Revista de Educacao Fisica 21 (2015): 54-60.
7. Fernandes HS. “Carbohydrate Consumption and Periodization Strategies Applied to Elite Soccer Players”. Current Nutrition Reports 9 (2020): 414-419.
8. Fernandes H. “The Carbohydrates Periodization Strategies Should Target Training and Matches Load of Elite Soccer Players”. Science Sports 37 (2022): 153-154.
9. Fernandes H. “For Elite Soccer Players the Carbohydrates Periodization Strategies Should Obey Different Training Load”. Mathews Journal of Sports Medicine 3 (2023): 1-5.
10. Mata F., et al. “Carbohydrate Availability and Physical Performance: Physiological Overview and Practical Recommendations”. Nutrients (2019): 11.