Assets of cooking

Refueling after exercise is linked to performance, so eating after volleyball practice is vital. Your body will replenish your glycogen stores most effectively within two hours of exercising, so it is important to know what you are going to eat and when you will fit it in. Plan to carry a snack in your kit bag to help you with this.

For maximum glycogen replenishment, aim to eat foods with a medium to high glycemic index rating after your practice session. These types of foods will help you to get glucose into your bloodstream and muscle cells faster than if you were to choose low-GI foods. If you are training intensely every day, eat high-GI foods during the first two hours after exercise.

Sports nutritionist Anita Bean recommends eating 1 g of carbohydrate for every 2.20 lb. of body weight after exercise. If you weigh 165 lb. you will need to eat about 75 g of carbohydrate to replenish your body after practice. This equates to four slices of bread or a large bowl of cereal with about 10 ounces of milk.

To refuel your body after volleyball practice, have high-GI foods such as a bowl of cornflakes or puffed rice cereal with milk, rice cakes spread with honey or jam, a honey or jam sandwich, slices of bread or toast, bagels, English muffins, baguettes, large slices of pineapple or melon, raisins, tortillas or cereal bars. If you choose medium-GI foods such as pita bread, spaghetti, pasta, rice, noodles, dried apricots or muffins, they will take slightly longer to enter your bloodstream. You could also try sports nutrition products suitable for post-exercise.

It is vital to replace lost fluids after volleyball practice. Aim to drink one and a half times the fluid you lost during your workout. This can be calculated by weighing yourself before and after a practice session and working on the basis that for every 2 lb of weight loss, you lose about 33 oz of fluid. The American College of Sports Medicine recommends drinking 16 oz of this fluid immediately after exercise and the remainder in smaller doses as and when you need it. You can replace lost fluids with water or sports drinks.