Nutrition for Sports Performance

Catalog description

Nutrition plays an integral part of our daily lives. It becomes even more important for athletes, who push the physical limits of their body. Providing adequate fuel is essential and can make a difference between success and failure. Yet most athletes and coaches lack basic nutrition knowledge important for enhancing strength, speed and endurance. This class will focus on the nutritional needs and requirement of athletes. First, the student will recognize and establish sound nutrition principles and the nutrients that play a role in determining these principles. Nutrients and other food constituents are integrated into the human body. These affect the athlete's metabolism, health, and performance. The student will trace the metabolic fate of dietary components and recognize how each nutrient and/or food constituent affects metabolism, health and performance. Using this knowledge, the student will design several healthy diets that optimize performance. (Prerequisite: SPHS502) Spanish language learners may complete this course in Spanish.