![Sample our Sports and Leisure journals, sign in here to start your FREE access for 14 days]({"type":"image" , "src" : "/sda/5949/TOC-Subject-Sample-2021-Sports-Leisure.jpg"})
Abstract
Background
Explanations for the phenomenal success of East African distance runners include unique dietary practices. The aim of the present study was to assess the food and macronutrient intake of elite Ethiopian distance runners during a period of high intensity exercise training at altitude and prior to major competition.
Methods
The dietary intake of 10 highly-trained Ethiopian long distance runners, living and training at high altitude (approximately 2400 m above sea level) was assessed during a 7 day period of intense training prior to competition using the standard weighed intake method. Training was also assessed using an activity/training diary.
Results
Body mass was stable (i.e., was well maintained) over the assessment period (pre: 56.7 ± 4.3 kg vs. post: 56.6 ± 4.2 kg, P = 0.54; mean ± SD). The diet comprised of 13375 ± 1378 kJ and was high in carbohydrate (64.3 ± 2.6%, 545 ± 49 g, 9.7 ± 0.9 g/kg). Fat and protein intake was 23.3 ± 2.1% (83 ± 14 g) and 12.4 ± 0.6% (99 ± 13 g, 1.8 ± 0.2 g/kg), respectively. Fluid intake comprised mainly of water (1751 ± 583 mL), while no fluids were consumed before or during training with only modest amounts being consumed following training.
Conclusions
Similar to previous studies in elite Kenyan distance runners, the diet of these elite Ethiopian distance runners met most recommendations of endurance athletes for macronutrient intake but not for fluid intake.
Electronic supplementary material
The online version of this article (doi:10.1186/1550-2783-8-7) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.
Copyright comment
This article is published under license to BioMed Central Ltd. This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.
Electronic supplementary material
The online version of this article (doi:10.1186/1550-2783-8-7) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.
Copyright comment
This article is published under license to BioMed Central Ltd. This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.
Acknowledgements
The cooperation of the subjects is greatly appreciated. We also thank Global Sports Communication http://www.globalsportscommunication.nl/ for their support and for allowing us to stay so close to these great athletes. Finally, we thank Thelma Polyviou for her help.
Competing interests
The authors declare that they have no competing interests.
Authors' contributions
LYB was the primary author of the manuscript. LW was involved in subject recruitment, data collection and helped to draft the manuscript. RR was involved in subject recruitment, data collection and helped to draft the manuscript. ZB was involved in subject recruitment, data collection and editing the manuscript. BW was involved in subject recruitment, data collection and editing the manuscript. BWF helped to draft the manuscript. YPP conceived of the study, participated in its design and coordination and helped to draft the manuscript. All authors read and approved the final manuscript.
