What You Should Be Eating Pre-Practice for Wrestling and Why

Eating strategically is super important for performance both in competition and in training, from lifting to conditioning and even recovery. But when it comes to wrestling practice, the game is changed completely. It’s estimated that you can burn upwards to 1000 Calories in a single wrestling practice, and depending on the pace and intensity this number can be even higher. As you are using every major muscle group and constantly moving out of different energy systems from power to strength to endurance with large heart rate fluctuations, its crucial to prepare and properly supply each of your energy systems with the right types of food in order to perform your best. But what kinds of food should you be eating, and at what times should you be eating them?

To supply each energy system we will be using during practice, we need short term energy, long term energy, energy that will be used at medium heart rates, and energy that will be used at high heart rates.

Short Term Energy

For short term energy, the best option is simple carbohydrates around 15-30 minutes before practice. Simple carbs include fruits like apples and bananas and supply your body with quick energy as soon as 15 minutes after eating but must be used within 30 minutes or the energy will be turned into fat. Aim for around 25g, like half an apple or a banana, and be sure to stay under 50g as reaching this number will spike your insulin levels and put you in a rest and digest state rather than an active state.

Long Term Energy

For long term energy, our body will need complex carbohydrates like whole wheat foods or oats several hours before practice, around 3-6 hours. Complex carbohydrates take around 3-6 hours to fully digest but supply your body and muscles with long term energy to be used.

Energy for Medium and Higher Heart Rates

For energy at low and medium heart rates under 140 BPM, our bodies will use both the simple carbohydrates and complex carbohydrates given that we ate them at the proper times and they are both available to be used for energy.

Finally, for energy at higher heart rates above 140 BPM, our bodies will burn mostly fat or both fat and carbohydrates at heart rates above 155 BPM. Fats include nuts, olives, or peanut butter and produce a slow energy output after 15 minutes of eating and continues to do so for a 3 hour period.

Bringing it Together

Taking all of this information, the best option to fuel your practice is to have a source of complex carbohydrates 3-6 hours before your practice then both a simple carbohydrate and fat source around 15-30 minutes before starting practice. There are many options to fill these requirements, one of which I mainly used in training was oatmeal in the morning then half an apple and peanut butter right before an afternoon practice. Or whole wheat toast then a banana with peanut butter. The options are huge but the important thing is eating the right types of food at the right times.

If you want to maximize your training performance and really give yourself the best opportunity at success, try these eating strategies and, as always, if you have any questions about eating for performance or would like help developing a plan, send me a message or leave a comment down below!