Eating to fight – Herstory.

Training for MuayThai, whether as a fighter or an athlete generally requires a lot of fuel ! Eating the right food is vital, it can make the difference between a successful training session and a worn-out disaster. Clearly this is vital for both sexes but there are certain issues which women should be more aware of.

Most successful female athletes will carefully examine their diet to ensure a balance of nutrients – but what exactly will they be looking for ?

For women who are fighting, keeping their weight stable is very important so that they can compete (and can minimise the dangers of making the weight before fights). Unfortunately this sometimes means that vital calories, minerals and vitamins can be lost.

Let's look first at 2 vital minerals which are often lacking from the female athlete's diet.

Calcium and Iron in the MuayThai diet.
Both these minerals are vital for a healthy body, but are too often lacking in the athlete's diet due to fear of weight-gain.

Calcium:
We all know calcium is good for our bones but it also aids muscle contraction, transmits nerve impulses and helps with blood clotting.

The RDA for calcium is 800 mg . This would equate to 4- 5 servings daily, each serving being equivalent to a glass of milk, a carton of yoghurt or a slice of cheese. The best calcium sources are dairy products – go for low-fat or reduced-fat brands in preference to avoiding them completely. If you are vegetarian, you can take calcium-enriched soy milk. Fish (and bones) e.g. tinned salmon or sardines are also a good source.

Iron :
The body needs extra iron when undertaking heavy training – and this is especially true for women. We need iron for efficient oxygen-carrying- capacity in our blood and muscles – a deficiency may cause fatigue and loss of performance.

There are actually 2 types of deficiency:

• Iron-deficiency anaemia, which occurs among the normal populace
• Sports anaemia, which is the body's adaptation to heavy training and does not benefit from iron supplementation.

Do NOT decide that you are deficient just because you feel tired after training ! Excess iron in your system can have adverse effects; see your GP or a Sports Nutritionist first.

Iron deficiency or inadequate iron stores can occur without anaemia and this is common in young female athletes. However, a test indicating anaemia (measuring haemoglobin and ferritin) has to take in to account that training causes an increase in blood plasma volume – diluting the red blood cells. Further specific testing would be needed.

The RDA for iron is 10mg for men and 14.8mg for women. Only a small amount of what we ingest gets absorbed and caffeine blocks absorption while vitamin C enhances it, so have an orange-juice rather than a coffee at lunch and definitely avoid black coffee.

If necessary, a multi-mineral may be taken in conjunction with a healthy diet. Try to include red meat or other iron-rich foods (shellfish, liver) at least three times per week. Plant sources of iron are low in comparison so when eating these (whole grains - breads, dried fruits, breakfast cereals, beans –even the humble baked bean, leafy green vegetables nuts - especially cashew, etc) make sure you have that juice !

Women should never be discouraged from training or fighting because of the potential health damage. However, you should be on the look-out for problems and prepared to rest and treat these accordingly by changing your diet and/or your training practices.

Finding Time to eat !
A hectic training schedule often gets in the way of healthy eating – rushing straight from work to the gym may not seem to leave time for eating ! But it can be done. There are plenty of healthy snacks which you can take with you to top up with:

Sandwiches don't have to be boring – multi grain, rye, with olives or sun-dried tomatoes or sunflower seeds, herb bread – the list goes on; just avoid white processed sliced bread – lots of dough and very little nutrition. Fill up with low-fat cheeses ( mozzarella is surprisingly lower in fat than cheddar ! ), tuna or salmon, chicken , lean ham, dried apricots, raisins and cashew nuts….. your imagination is the limit ( and your budget so remember that stocking up on ingredients at the weekend and making your own is cheaper as well as easier to monitor the contents)

Dried fruit mixtures are a great addition to a healthy diet – apricots, dates etc. Low-fat yoghurt with a banana will keep you going though the gap between lunch and dinner. Beware of certain cereal bars – the sugar content far outweighs the convenience. Snacking like this though the day will keep your blood sugar levels stable and keep your energy levels up for an evening training session.

Monday to Friday is usually pretty hectic for women with work, training and social commitments ! Make sure your diet doesn't suffer with some weekend preparation – cook a large pot of “staples”; brown rice, brown pasta ( wholegrain versions are better because they have not been stripped and polished of nutrition ), bulgar wheat, millet etc. Keep this in the fridge to fill up on daily. Couscous can be bought semi-cooked so only needs a few minutes in hot water before eating. Branch out into new carb.s so you are not bored – health food stores are only too happy to tell you how to prepare unfamiliar foods.

Many healthy meals can be made in minutes – the old standby of beans/eggs/cheese on toast ( use kidney beans or chickpeas for increased nutrition) is a pretty good emergency meal and easy to digest after a late-hour training session.

Of course if you are really rushing or don't get home from training until 9 or 10 pm, the solution is to eat your main meal for lunch and use the snacks above as evening options. There is no law that says you can't eat a large meal before training – just leave plenty of time for digestion. Remember to eat slowly to that you don't get indigestion, this will not be fun when someone kicks you in the stomach later !

Short of imagination ? Take a trip to your local bookshop ( or Internet ! ) and load up on veggie and low-fat recipe books.

If you are eating a balanced diet, there shouldn't be any need for supplements but if you feel you are short, then a multi-vitamin is the best answer as most minerals and vitamins are best absorbed in conjunction with others. Training and a healthy body will only go hand in hand when we look after ourselves properly and listen to any warning signs from our bodies.

MuayThai training combined with a proper diet and rest schedule will make you fitter and healthier than you have ever been before – as long as you are aware !