Among the combat sports modalities, we find many individuals with different aims: professional athletes, amateurs and practitioners. It is a consensus among professionals and practitioners that the aims of the sport determinate the intensity and training frequency, but would also be a consensus the diet specification according to the different aims? Science presents well established evidences for this question, where it reveals that the diet should guarantee each individuals nutritional needs which is directly connected to the training demand and intensity.
The principles of a healthy diet are presented over four pillars:
Quality: composed of food that provide necessary nutrients in order to supply the organism needs.
Quantity: according to each individuals energetic need, taking in consideration the weight, height, age, gender, training frequency and intensity.
Harmony: balance between food groups (carbohydrates, proteins, lipids, vitamins, minerals and water)
Adequacy: the diet should be personal to each individual, as well as the training. The adequacy should also meet the physiological and financial needs.

Basics tips for a healthy diet:
Keep regularity between meals, distributing well the quantity of food to be consumed;
Consume generous portions of fruits and vegetables, where it is recommended five daily portions;
Be careful with alcoholic beverages consumption, it interferes directly in the recovery and training adaptation;
Avoid sweets and fried food, try to resist.

Basic tips for a pre-training diet:
Keep yourself hydrated throughout the day;
When choosing your food to be consumed before training, think about gastric emptying. Each food has a different time to be digested and as it is not interesting to train fasting, the same applies to train with a full stomach;
Be careful when consuming high glycemic index carbohydrates (such as sweets, sugars, white flour) near the training time. It could cause a reactive hypoglycemia, causing a general discomfort or other consequences;
It is important to consume sources of carbohydrates and proteins before training.

Basic tips for during training diet:
Keep yourself hydrated by consuming water, hydroelectrolytic replenishers and carbohydrates;
Hydroelectrolytic replenishers and carbohydrates, are not necessary in light or moderate training that would last up to one hour;
Suplements during training are very peculiar.

Basic tips of post training diet:
The post exercise diet should take in consideration the aims of the practitioner, weight loss, performance and/or maintenance;
For recovering and adaptation, it is indicated to consumed carbohydrates and proteins. This consumption can be done by food or supplements ingestion.

Food Suplements
The supplements were created to supply physiological needs, when this target is not achieved by consuming food only. However I would like to alert that they are a concentration of specific nutrients and when consumed in a wrong way, would be simply thrown away by the organism, or overcharging it. The right procedure is to search for a nutritionist to find out the real needs, for the supplement to be secondary in the results improvements.
As a practitioner I can guarantee that with a proper diet, the training performance and achieving the goals will be more efective. Training with energy, with your body properly nourished, everything get easier synchronized: the pre training, during training, and the recover after training become a successful cycle.
There is much to talk about nutrition and sport, to things that walk together and complete each other. The first idea is launched, but the biggest and best orientation given is: search for a nutritionist, he/she is the only able professional to organize your diet according to your real needs.

Camila Marini
Nutritionist – CRN2 13716
Specialist in Exercise Physiology (UFRGS)
Specialist in Food Behavior (IPGS)
Jiu-Jitsu Black Belt