Chapter Introduction

16

NUTRITION AND FITNESS

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Eating to Win RESEARCH SUGGESTS THAT WHEN ATHLETES EAT MAY BE JUST AS IMPORTANT AS WHAT THEY EAT

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LEARNING OBJECTIVES

  • Identify five health-related benefits of regular physical activity (Infographic 16.1)

  • Describe the four components of physical fitness (Infographic 16.2)

  • Identify the components of the anaerobic and aerobic energy systems and rank these four components according to the rate at which they produce adenosine triphosphate (ATP) (Infographic 16.3)

  • Describe how exercise intensity and duration affects the use of carbohydrates and fat as fuel (Infographics 16.5 and 16.6)

  • Define carbohydrate loading and describe when the practice may be beneficial (Infographics 16.8 and 16.9)

  • Explain why adequate dietary carbohydrates are necessary for endurance training to be effective (Infographics 16.8 and 16.10)

  • Identify factors that affect fluid needs of athletes and discuss strategies to optimize hydration during and after exercise (Infographic 16.11)

Madison Hubbell is not a typical 22-year-old woman. Every day, she ice skates for four or more hours and then sweats through 90 minutes of intense cardiovascular exercise or specialized lessons in ballroom dancing. Hubbell is one of the world’s top ice dancers—she and her partner Zachary Donohue finished fourth at the 2014 U.S. Figure Skating Championships and first at the Four Continents Figure Skating Championship in 2014.

Ice dancing differs from traditional pairs skating in that, rather than skating in unison and having to perform lifts, spins, and throws, ice dancers focus on rhythm, musical interpretation, and precise steps.

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Madison Hubbell and her partner, Zachary Donohue, of the United States skate their free dance program at Skate America 2013 in Detroit, Michigan.
Rebecca Cook/Reuters/Corbis

And even though ice dancing is considered a winter sport, Hubbell doesn’t get a summer vacation. “In our off-season, we train more,” she says.

PHYSICAL FITNESS the ability to perform moderate to vigorous activity without undue fatigue

As a result of such constant intense training, competitive athletes like Hubbell have achieved extremely high levels of physical fitness, the ability to perform moderate to vigorous activity without undue fatigue. That’s not to say that Hubbell doesn’t get tired—running through an ice dancing routine leaves her exhausted every time, but that’s in part because she strives to improve her performance with each run-through, which requires her to exert herself physically at very high levels each time. She aims for peak physical performance.