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 By Nancy Clark,
MS, RD, CSSD
Where do you find quality nutrition resources?
We live in an age of information overload. Between emails, blogs, tweets, and newsletters, I feel bombarded by the latest nutrition news.
But that’s not the case for everyone. Many runners ask me where they can find reliable sports nutrition information.
Photo courtesy of Pink Sherbert The following list offers several resources to help you find answers to your questions about eating for health and performance.
Websites
Five excellent web nutrition resources include:
www.gssiweb.com The Gatorade Sports Science Institute offers extensive sports nutrition information on all topics in their Sports Science Library.
www.PowerBar.com Helpful nutrition and training information.
NestleNutrition Nestle is the parent company for PowerBar. The Nestle Nutrition Institute offers a vast library of sports nutrition information, including video presentations by researchers on their latest findings that can enhance performance.
www.webMD.com Search the topic of your choice, sports related or not, and you’ll find answers by experts.
www.findingbalance.com This website, for people who struggle with eating and body image issues, offers extensive resources, including video interviews.
Newsletters
For monthly mailed newsletters that offer detailed yet easy to read coverage of current nutrition, wellness and fitness concerns, check out:
Tufts Health & Nutrition Newsletter (www.tuftshealthletter.com; $24)
Berkeley Wellness Letter (www.wellnessletter.com; $24.
Nutrition Action Healthletter by the Center for Science in the Public Interest. CSPI challenges the food industry to clean up their act! (www.CSPInet.org; $10)
Textbooks
Maybe you don't want to go back to school, but you would like some scholarly resources on sport nutrition and exercise physiology. Here are two options:
Sport Nutrition for Health and Performance by Manore, Meyer & Thompson offers a comprehensive look at the topic.
Sport Nutrition; An Introduction to Energy Production and Performance by Asker Jeukendrup gives a strong research approach to the topic.
Professional Journals
Most professional journals offer quite “heavy” reading that is not particularly enjoyable. One exception is the International Journal of Sport Nutrition & Exercise Metabolism. While it is far from “light” reading, the majority of the articles are very interesting (to me, at least!). You’ll learn the latest research on carbohydrates, protein, sports supplements, fueling practices, plus more. (http://journals.humankinetics.com/ijsnem; $92/year).
Another option for professional journal reading is www.pubmed.gov. This site takes you to the National Library of Medicine where you can search any topic and get links to the research.
For example, if you are curious about sodium and sweat, you can search “sodium sweat athletes” and find 51 abstracts that summarize the research on that topic. Want to find the latest about vitamin D and athletes? Search “vitamin D athletes” and you’ll get 53 abstracts to read (and learn you likely could benefit from taking 1,000 IU D between Thanksgiving and Easter!)
Nutrition Books
Here are some titles I recommend:
General nutrition books:
The American Dietetic Association's Complete Food & Nutrition Guide by Roberta DuyffSecrets of Feeding a Healthy Family: Orchestrating and Enjoying the Family Meal by Ellyn Satter.
Sports nutrition books
Vegetarian athletes or those with diabetes will appreciate:
Diabetic Athlete's Handbook by Sherri Colberg
Vegetarian Sports Nutrition by Larson-Meyer D. E.
My turn to do some shameless self-promotion here:
Nancy Clark's Sports Nutrition Guidebook is considered by many athletes to be their “nutrition bible.” It’s a comprehensive yet enjoyable and easy-to-read resource.
For sport-specific “quick reads,” enjoy my other books that are available at www.nancyclarkrd.com. These make wonderful gifts for friends, family and teammates:
Food Guide for Marathoners: Tips for Everyday Champions
Food Guide for New Runners: Getting It Right From the Start
Food Guide for Soccer: Tips and Recipes from the Pros
The Cyclist’s Food Guide: Fueling for the Distance.
Books on Weight issues, Dieting, Eating Disorders
The Don't Diet, Live-It! Workbook: Healing Food, Weight and Body Issues by A. LoBue and M. Marcus.
Intuitive Eating: A Revolutionary Program That Works by E. Tribole and E. Resch.
Your Overweight Child: Helping Without Harming by E. Satter
The Exercise Balance: What's Too Much, Too Little, Just Right by P. Powers. and R. Thompson.
Making Weight: Healing Men’s Conflicts with Food, Weight, Shape & Appearance by A. Anderson, L. Cohn & T. Holbrook
Body image: Body Image Workbook: An 8-Step Program for Learning to Like Your Looks by T. Cash.
Food and Feelings Workbook: A Full Course Meal on Emotional Health by K. Koenig.
The Anorexia Workbook: How to Accept Yourself, Heal Your Suffering & Reclaim Your Life by M. Heffner.
Overcoming Bulimia Workbook: Your Comprehensive Step-by-Step Guide to Recovery by McCabe, McFarlane and Olmsted.
Surviving an Eating Disorder: Perspectives and Strategies for Family & Friends by M. Siegel et al.
For additional nutrition resources and exercise books, surf these online catalogs:
www.ncescatalog.com - Nutrition resources of all types
www.Gurze.com - Gurze Eating Disorders Bookshelf
www.hkusa.com - Exercise and sports nutrition resources
Don’t want to read?
If you prefer one-on-one, personalized approach to learning what, when, and how to eat for top performance, your best bet is to find a local sports dietitian. Enter your zip code into the referral networks at www.SCANdpg.org or www.eatright.org. You may be surprised to learn how much you don’t know!
Copyright: Nancy Clark, MS, RD, CSSD
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