Perfecting a personalized training and nutrition regimen for peak performance is an extremely complex process. As a dietitian, sports nutritionist and national-level triathlete for many years, I guinea pigged countless nutritional and supplementation techniques on myself, as well as on friends and clients. As a result, I have developed an endurance nutrition program that can be personalized to your specific needs, and that has stood the test of time, helping dozens of top-level runners, cyclists, triathletes, etc., compete at peak performance levels.

Along with the goal of optimizing endurance performance, this program also focuses on strength, muscularity and definition. While we all want to go farther faster, there’s no need to adopt the Cambodian refugee physique (like many pro cyclists) in order to do so. Therefore, many of the nutrition and supplementation tactics in this program will also be geared toward muscle maintenance, immune support and body fat utilization.

The foundation

It’s imperative that we calculate your personal nutrient needs. This calculation will initially be based upon your lean body mass (LBM) plus your specific endurance activities. The reason for this is that your LBM (basically everything excluding fat mass) is the best indicator of your basal metabolic needs. Then, by assessing and adding your physical activity output, we get a pretty good picture of your overall nutrient needs. This calculation will give us a good jumping off point. We’ll need to tweak your personal program over the first week or two by tracking changes in your overall body mass.

Let’s get to it! Calculate your LBM as follows:

Get your body fat measured at your gym or by popping by a Sharper Image store and stepping on one of their body fat scales.

Calculate your body fat in pounds by multiplying your weight in pounds by the percentage of body fat.
(e.g., Say you weight 180 pounds with body fat at 10 percent: 180 x 0.10 = 18 pounds of fat).

Subtract your fat pounds from your overall weight to get your LBM. (e.g., 180 pounds – 18 = 162 pounds LBM.)

Assess your daily basal caloric needs as follows:

Multiply your LBM by 12.
(e.g., your basal caloric needs are 162 x 12 = 1,944 calories per day.)

Now you have to figure out your daily caloric expenditure due to your endurance training activities.

The handiest way to do this is via the Internet. There is a great site at www.primusweb.com/fitnesspartner/jumpsite/calculat.htm that lists virtually every activity known. Pop in the minutes you engage in your endurance activities each day, and it will list the calories each activity burns. If your activities differ throughout the week (which I’m sure they do), enter each activity for the entire week and divide by seven to get a daily average. (e.g., you ride for 60 minutes three times per week, run 40 minutes three times per week and lift weights for 45 minutes two times per week. Your weekly caloric activity output is 6,394 calories. Divided by seven, your daily output is 913 calories.)Add your basal caloric needs to your activity needs to get your overall daily calorie requirement. (1,944 + 913 = 2,857 calories per day.)

• Protein
  You should consume 1 gram per pound of your LBM per day to make sure you provide sufficient protein for the more rapid turnover produced by extreme endurance training. (You need 162 grams per day {1 x 162 LBM})


• Fat
  Try to hit a level of 0.3 grams per pound of LBM per day. Attempt to get most of this as unsaturated, essential fats (especially from fish, flax, hemp, etc.). This amount will assure that your body has the fatty acid building blocks to optimize testosterone and growth hormone production, as well as potentiating proper and rapid muscular repair. (You need 49 grams per day {0.3 x 162})


• Carbs
  Carbs will be the mainstay of your performance nutrition plan. They will provide you with the high-octane fuel to keep you cranking day in and day out. I will discuss more about the types of carbs to use later. For now know that your overall carb intake should equal the remainder of your calorie needs after protein and fat are accounted for.

Calculate this as follows:

(Protein grams x 4) + (fat grams x 9) = protein and fat calories
(Total daily calorie needs) – (protein and fat calories) = carb calories needed
(Carb calories needed) / 4 = grams of carbs needed daily.

Your calculation is as follows:

•(162 x 4 = 664) + (49 x 9 = 441) = 1,105 protein and fat calories
•2,857 – 1,105 = 1,752 carb calories needed
•1,752 / 4 = 438 grams of carbs per day.

To summarize our example, if you weighed 180 pounds, you would have the following daily nutrient requirements

• Calories = 2,857


• Protein = 162 grams


• Fat = 49 grams


• Carbs = 438 grams

Note: Use this calculation to set up your nutrition plan for the first week. This will be an assessment period. Be sure to weigh yourself and note your body fat percentage at the beginning of the week and again at the end of the week. If your goal is to maintain weight, but you end up losing weight, add 300 calories per day to your plan. If you want to lose weight but are not, subtract 300 calories per day. Then reassess the following week.

The plan
Now that you have your nutrient foundation worked out, it’s time to put in the particulars. This will include how much of what to eat, when and why.

I have developed the following schedule assuming that you train in the afternoon after work. If your training schedule differs, simply do the best you can to apply the rationale provided for each "feeding" to best customize the plan to your schedule.

Breakfast

When:7:00 a.m.

What:

• Calories: 25 percent of daily total (.25 x 2,857 = 714 calories)


• Protein: 20 percent of daily total (.20 x 162 = 32 grams)


• Fat: 30 percent of daily total (.30 x 49 = 15 grams)


• Carbs: 25 percent of daily total (.25 x 438 = 109 grams)


• Sample meal:
  Nutrition shake
  1 slice of whole-wheat toast with one tablespoon all-natural peanut butter and one tablespoon all-fruit jam
  2 cups of long-cooking oatmeal
  ½ large grapefruit

Why: Tips and rationale

• Calories: While you’ll actually be eating six small meals throughout the day, breakfast should include 25 percent of your daily calories because your body is coming off an eight- to 10-hour sleep. Due to this, and the subsequent early-morning hormonal milieu, your body is in a very catabolic state upon waking. This solid dose of calories will go a long way toward reversing that process.


• Protein: Protein helps to feed amino-starved muscles, potentiate glycogen synthesis and storage, as well as providing enzymatic and hormonal support. Twenty percent of your daily total here will perform these functions well without overloading the system and wasting precious protein to be burned as fuel.


• Fat: It’s a necessary structural component of muscle repair and hormone production. As you break your fast and bounce back into an anabolic state, these functions become necessary. Because this dose of fat will help create a slower release of the carbs and protein into the body, blunting the insulin response and avoiding setting up an energy roller coaster that could last all day. Plus, it will be easily burned and not stored during this time.


• Carbs: The 25 percent prescribed will both help to refill depleted glycogen stores and kick-start your sluggish morning metabolism. But, a word of caution here: Make sure to stick with a combination of low (less than 40) and moderate (41 to 60) glycemic index carbs here. Even with the fat in the meal, too many high-GI carbs could bounce your blood sugar too high.

Midmorning snack

When:10:00 a.m.

What:

• Calories: 10 percent (.10 x 2,857 = 286 calories)


• Protein: 10 percent (.10 x 162 = 16 grams)


• Fat: 10 percent (.10 x 49 = 5 grams)


• Carbs: 10 percent (.10 x 438 = 44 grams)


• Sample meal:
  ½ tuna sandwich with non-fat mayo and a medium apple

Why: Tips and rationale

• The main goal being to top off your glycogen stores, maintain consistent blood-sugar levels, and continue to feed your muscles the building blocks they need as the anabolic phase of your day begins. It’s best to focus on low-GI carbs here, as the fat intake is fairly low and carbs are pretty high.

Lunch

When:1:00 p.m.

What:

• Calories: 20 percent (.20 x 2,857 = 572 calories)


• Protein: 20 percent (.20 x 162 = 32 grams)


• Fat: 20 percent (.20 x 49 = 10 grams)


• Carbs: 20 percent (.20 x 438 = 88 grams)


• Sample meal:
  1 (3-ounce) grilled chicken breast
  1 medium sweet potato
  2 cups steamed veggies
  2 teaspoon butter 1
  Large pear
  16 ounces water

Why: Tips and rationale

• This is a crucial meal, as it can make or break your afternoon workout. If you go too heavy on the carbs (especially high-GI), you can be wallowing in the depths of blood-sugar depression come 5 p.m. If you go too heavy on the fats or protein, your system may still be working hard on digesting the food as you start exercising, robbing your muscles of vital blood supply and energy. Make sure to keep this baby balanced. Focus on water-rich veggies and fruits, and clean protein. And make sure to keep the carbs in the low- to moderate- GI range. Note: This is a good time to load up on water. It will help your food digest quickly and keep you well-hydrated for your upcoming workout.

Pre-workout snack (optional)

When:3:30 p.m.

What:

• Calories: 5 percent (.5 x 2,857 = 143 calories)


• Protein: 5 percent (.5 x 162 = 8 grams)


• Fat: 5 percent (.5 x 49 = 2.5 grams)


• Carbs: 5 percent (.5 x 438 = 22 grams)


• Sample meal:½ of a protein bar (save the other half for during your workout)

Why: Tips and rationale

• This snack is up to you. It mostly depends on two things. How is your energy level? And do you like to begin your workouts on an empty stomach or with a little something there? If your energy is good and you prefer to start empty, then skip it. But if you’re energy is dropping and you like a little something in your belly, then go for it. But, once again, make sure to drink at least 16 ounces of water with it, and try to avoid anything sugary. That’s a sure way to crash in the middle of your workout.

Post-workout snack (NOT optional)

When:Within 45 minutes after workout

What:

• Calories: 20 percent (.20 x 2,857 = 572 calories)


• Protein: 20 percent (.20 x 162 = 32 grams)


• Fat: 10 percent (.10 x 49 = 5 grams)


• Carbs: 30 percent (.30 x 438 = 132 grams)


• Sample meal:
  Nutrition shake mixed with two cups of fresh-squeezed (orange, apple, grapefruit, peach, pear or pineapple) juice
  16 ounces of water

Why: Tips and rationale

• This is possibly the most important meal of your day as far as your endurance training goes. Within the 60 minutes following your endurance exercise, your muscles are like sponges, waiting to soak up carbs to replace spent glycogen stores. And your muscles are metabolically active. Excellent research shows that if you pump in carbs and protein in about a four to one ratio directly after exercise, you cannot only significantly enhane glycogen replacement, but stimulate immediate muscle recuperation, as well. This snack can literally flip you from catabolic to anabolic in a matter of minutes. And to facilitate this process, lots of water is necessary. To make sure you’re rehydrating properly, weigh yourself before you start your workout, then after. For each pound you lost, drink two cups of water with this snack.

Dinner

When:
Between 30 minutes after your post-workout snack and one hour prior to bed.

What:

• Calories: 20 percent (.20 x 2,857 = 572 calories)


• Protein: 30 percent (.30 x 162 = 49 grams)


• Fat: 20 percent (.20 x 49 = 10 grams)


• Carbs: 10 percent (.10 x 438 = 44 grams)


• Sample meal:
  6-ounce grilled salmon steak
  ½ cup Basmati rice
  10 steamed asparagus spears
  16 ounces of water

Why: Tips and rationale

• Now this last meal of the day is going to fly in the face of some of the more conventional wisdom written about endurance nutrition. Many folks would have you hit the carbs hard here. But my experience and background in both endurance and physique sports has taught me that this isn’t necessary, and may be counter-productive, especially to your physique. The reality of it is, you have already hit your glycogen replacement hard enough in the post-workout snack, and you’ll be priming it again in the morning and through lunch the next day. You don’t need to hit it while you sleep. By keeping the carbs low here and cranking up the protein and good fats, we set up a hormonal milieu in the body that allows optimal recuperation to take place while not potentiating fat storage. In other words, you get your speed and muscle but minus the fat. This is also another key water time. Pounding 30 ounces or so in the evening will help digest and utilize the proteins and keep you hydrated overnight.

Final thoughtsI realize it’s a lot to swallow (so to speak), and that it’s a bit complex. But nobody ever said taking your body to the limit was gonna be easy.

If you decide to try out this plan, dedicate to giving it a solid go for at least two weeks during one of your peak training periods. Do this and I guarantee the results you see will keep you on track and coming back for more.

Work hard, have fun, kick booty and tune in next month to get the scoop on peak performance endurance supplementation.