Dietitian Robyn Moore Shares Benefits of a Healthy Eating Plan

Springbok Women’s team dietitian Robyn Moore shares the benefits of a healthy eating plan for athletes, as we all know, good nutrition can enhance an athlete’s sporting performance.

Moore, who is also involved in the grooming of the men and women’s National Sevens team, says she is passionate about her job as it impacts the lives of athletes on the field.

In this brief chat with gsport Writer Rudene Hare, Moore delves into what athletes should be eating after practice and competitions.

Robyn, thank you for chatting to us here at gsport. Please introduce yourself to our readers.

Thanks so much for having me! I’m a National Teams’ Dietitian with SA Rugby, which means I oversee all the nutrition services for a few of the national rugby teams. Some of the teams I work with include the Springbok Women’s Team & the Men and Women’s Sevens teams. I absolutely love my job and I’m so passionate about what I do.

What are the benefits of a healthy eating plan for athletes?

While a healthy eating plan may benefit many athletes it’s important to note that not all athletes need to be on an eating plan. There are many strategies a dietitian may use to  improve your nutrition practices and an eating plan is just one of them! Nutrition can affect performance, so improving your nutrition practices could benefit your athletic performance and overall health and well-being. You can discuss an approach that works for you with a registered dietitian.

How often must an athlete see a nutritionist or dietitian?

There’s no prescription as to how often an athlete should see a dietitian but it’s something I would highly recommend! At every level, from amateur to elite athletes, every athlete has something nutrition related they could work on improving or new goals they could be setting.

There are so many expensive products and nutrition supplements making unsubstantiated claims, which could be causing harm or even jeopardising your career if they contain banned substances. I believe that money could be better spent on accessing the services of a dietitian, who could develop a tailor-made plan for you, and even help you choose supplements if necessary.

What should athletes eat after practice or competitions?

This would depend on the athlete, and the event. It could differ depending on the type of sport or activity and the intensity and duration of the practice or competition.

Generally when we speak about recovery nutrition we speak about the following elements:

Rehydrating with fluids, because you’ve lost fluid in your sweat – you want to replace the fluid you’ve lost. Remember sweat contains water and sugar and salts, so your rehydration fluids should contain all of these components too.

Replenishing your carbohydrate stores. This is your main source of energy during exercise so you want to replace what you’ve used and build up your stores for your next session.

Repair with protein, this is to help repair your muscles. There are many different foods and drinks you could have or combine to get all these nutrients. A simple example includes having a sports drink and a sandwich with chicken / egg / tuna. This you should have within 15-30 minutes after a session.

Photo 1 Caption: Springbok Women’s team dietitian Robyn Moore shares the benefits of a healthy eating plan for athletes, as we all know, good nutrition can enhance an athlete’s sporting performance. Photo: Supplied