HSN709 Sports Nutrition Assignment

Topic 1: Protein in Male Weightlifters

You have been asked to work with the elite male Victorian weight lifting team and have noticed the new coach telling his athletes to consume up to 4 g/kg/day of protein to build lean muscle mass and strength. As a committed group of athletes aiming to make the Australian team to compete at the Olympics, each of the athletes has been following the coach’s advice. You have raised the issue with the coach about the need for such a high amount of protein, but he wants you to present him with a review of the scientific literature as evidence to why he should change his recommendations. In your literature review, you decide to look at the following information that is relevant to your group of athletes:

• An introduction to the review topic that includes the proposed mechanism(s) and justification for protein intake to gain mass and strength in athletes (rubric criteria 1).
• A review and critique of the evidence on protein intake for building lean muscle mass and strength, including the current protein recommendations for strength based athletes (rubric criteria 2 and 3).
• A review and critique of the evidence on known or potential negative side effects associated with excess protein intakes (rubric criteria 2 and 3).
• Recommendations regarding protein intake for your athlete group, including practical suggestions for how they can do this (rubric criteria 4).
• A conclusion that summarises the key aspects of the review (rubric criteria 5).

Topic 2: Carbohydrate intake and “Train low, compete high” in Endurance Athletes

You have been asked to work with a group of state-level female cyclists aged 20-27 years who will be travelling overseas to compete in the European cycling season. Each of the cyclists is riding 500-750 km per week, with their most intensive training sessions occurring on Tuesdays and Thursdays. These intense sessions are 3-4 hours in duration and consist of repetitive high intensity intervals of distances between 500 m to 5 km. The coach has heard about the “train low, compete high” approach used by some athletes and their coaches, and is interested in applying it to this group of athletes in order to further enhance their performance. He has therefore asked you to review the scientific literature on the efficacy of “train low, compete high” and how best to apply it to the training of the athletes. In the literature review you decide to look at the following information that is relevant to your group of athletes:

• An introduction to the review topic that includes the proposed mechanism(s) and rationale for the “train low, compete high” paradigm to carbohydrate intake in endurance athletes (rubric criteria 1).
• A review and critique of the evidence on the “train low, compete high” strategy for endurance athletes (rubric criteria 2 and 3).
• A review and critique of the evidence on known or potential negative side effects associated with inadequate carbohydrate intakes (rubric criteria 2 and 3).
• Recommendations regarding the “train low, compete high” strategy (or a more suitable alternate strategy) for your athlete group, including practical suggestions for how they can do this (rubric criteria 4).
• A conclusion that summarises the key aspects of the review (rubric criteria 5).

Topic 3: Weight loss and “making weight” in lightweight rowers

You have been working with an elite group of male lightweight rowers who are a few months out from their primary competition season. Numerous athletes are above competition weight by 6-10 kg and their coach has sought your expertise to help get them to an optimal weight and body composition for the competition season. The coach mentions to you in the past that many athletes have used extreme weight loss approaches such as dehydration, starvation and excessive aerobic exercise in the week prior to big competitions in order to make competition weight. The coach is uncertain if such practices will impair his athletes’ performances. He informs you that competition weigh-in is usually 1-2 hours prior to the event.

The coach asks if you could review the current scientific literature in regards to weight loss and “making weight” in sport, and provide him with best evidence practices that he can adopt in the preparation of his athletes for the forthcoming season. In the literature review you decide to look at the following information that is relevant to your group of athletes:

• An introduction to the review topic that includes an explanation on the influence of body composition on performance of weight category athletes (rubric criteria 1).
• A review and critique of the evidence on long and short term weight loss strategies for weight category sports, including the current recommendations for weight category athletes (rubric criteria 2 and 3).
• A review and critique of the evidence on negative side effects associated with “extreme” weight loss practices (rubric criteria 2 and 3).
• Recommendations regarding weight loss for your athlete group, including practical suggestions for how they can do this (rubric criteria 4).
• A conclusion that summarises the key aspects of the review (rubric criteria 5)

How the work will be assessed and expected standard:

This work will be assessed against the marking rubric that is contained at the end of this document.

Purpose:

The aim of this assessment task is to develop skills in researching the evidence for a specific sports nutrition topic, synthesizing data, providing a critical analysis of research and developing evidence-based sports nutrition recommendations and practical advice for a coach.

These skills are important in sports nutrition, and more broadly the field of nutrition, where advice on nutrition from an unqualified person(s) may contradict or not be supported by the current evidence and/or without a full understanding of the quality of evidence. Researching the current evidence base and developing and communicating practical recommendations that align with these are fundamental skills for all nutrition, sports nutrition, and dietetic practitioners.