In June the CFB Kingston Health Promotion team were honoured to support the Canadian Invictus Games Team with a Top Fuel for Top Performance Workshop.
“The Invictus Games use the power of sport to inspire recovery, support rehabilitation and generate a wider understanding and respect for wounded, injured and sick Servicemen and women.”
CAF Members and Veterans of the Invictus Athletes gathered from across the country by the power of zoom for 90 minutes to learn about nutrition foundations, meal planning, the Canadian Food Guide plate, the athletes plate, and hydration. These strategies will help them achieve their top performance as they compete in three sports each, at the 2023 Games located in Dusseldorf, Germany. Be sure to follow their success and cheer them on this September!
The full TFTP program incorporates additional details and strategies for individual implementation of strategies. Register for an up-comping training or request a briefing for your team and/or unit. This program fulfills the Performance Nutrition and secondarily, the Injury Prevention pillar, as highlighted in the Balance Strategy, supporting a culture of Total Health and Wellness in the CAF Community.
What Participants Said
- “You need to know this – the updates are incredible.”
- “The food guide has changed over the years and it is more comprehensive now. It’s definitely worth listening to the newest tips on fuel for performance!”
4 Key Concepts in a TFTP Workshop
- Nutrition 101 Foundations
- Canadian Food Guide Plate is an incredible visual that helps to build a balanced meal with ease.
- Half of the plate is vegetable and fruit, a quarter is protein including plant-based protein, and the other quarter is whole-grains. Try it at your next meal!
- Hydration
- Just because it’s not on our plates doesn’t mean it’s not key to nutrition and performance. Dehydration negatively impacts performance by 15-30%!
- Sip water throughout the day and ensure you don’t forget about this important component of nutrition!
- Modify your plate based on training output
- Using the CFG Plate and shifting the ratios depending on effort level of training that day helps to balance your energy needs and prevent burnout or exhaustion.
- Learn more about the athlete’s plate in a TFTP Program!
- Fuel before, during and after training
- Fine-tuning food around training helps you to maximize your efforts in the gym and recover quicker to get back to your next session with the same vigor as the first.
- High-quality carbohydrates are key before exercise, liquid carbohydrates can help during exercise over an hour, and complex carbohydrates with protein are key to recover.
The ‘Eh’ Team Sports Drink Recipe
A sports drink can be helpful for exercise longer than three hours or in extreme temperatures to replace fluids and electrolytes. A homemade option is not only just as effective, but also contains simpler ingredients and is much cheaper than the grocery store variety.
Per 1 cup serving = 56 calories 14g carbohydrates (5.7%), 150 mg of sodium
- 3 1/4 cup water
- ¼ fruit apple juice (or other juice)
- 4 tbsp maple syrup
- ¼ tsp. of salt
“We came. We saw. We’re unconquered.”
Good luck team! It was an honour to support your journey to the Invictus Games 2023!