SAILING
EATING FOR YOUR SPORT
Your sport:
Unlike most sports, sailing incorporates a wide spectrum of
participation, ranging from individual small dinghy racing to global
circumnavigations with large teams of people. However, regardless
of the type of sailing, in most cases, the ultimate goal is to cross the
finishing line of the race course first. The winner will gain one point;
second place will get two points and so on. The overall winner is the person
or crew with the fewest points. Regattas vary in length from hours, days and
months at a time depending on the type of sailing and nature of the competition.
When competitions involved sailing on consecutive days, recovery nutrition and
hydration strategies are extremely important.
Each class of sailing comes with its own unique set of physiological demands and
nutritional requirements. Weekly training schedules can vary based on the level of the sailor.
For those who sail recreationally, this may typically include on-the-water-sailing once or twice a
week. For the more serious sailor, training may include daily (or even twice daily) combinations of onthe-water-sailing, strength work at the gym, and aerobic fitness including running, cycling or swimming.
The ideal body composition for most sailors is a lean, muscular physique to assist with strength and
stamina on the water. It is therefore crucial to all classes of sailors to aim for a good, healthy balanced
diet.
This nutrition advice sheet is aimed in those who compete and train at a recreational level, as elite
athletes have different nutritional requirements and will require individualised advice.
TRAINING DIET:
Aim to include:
- Fruits and vegetables – aim for a
variety of colours
- Breads and cereals pasta, rice, low
fat noodles, starchy vegetables
(kumara, potato), bread, oats,
breakfast cereals
- Dairy products – choose low fat
varieties including milk, yoghurt and
cheese
- Protein rich foods – including lean
meat, poultry (e.g chicken), fish
seafood, eggs, tofu and pulses
- Healthy fats including vegetable oils,
nuts, seeds and avocado
CARBOHYDRATE
Carbohydrate is the main fuel for
muscles during exercise. Therefore, sailors
need to base their diet on carbohydrate
rich foods including wholegrain breads,
cereals, pasta, rice, fruit and vegetables.
These foods also provide a range of
nutrients including fibre, vitamins and
minerals, all of which are vital for general
health as well as peak performance.
PROTEIN
Having an adequate amount of total
energy (calories/kJ) each day, along
with protein rich foods, facilitates the
growth and recovery of muscles as well
as helping to build lean muscle, should
this be required.* Protein rich foods
such as red meat, chicken, fish/seafood,
eggs, pulses and low fat dairy products
should be consumed along with
carbohydrate with each meal. Slightly
more protein is needed by adolescent
sailors and those trying to build lean
muscle.
The exact quantity of carbohydrate
and protein required by each sailor
varies depending on age, body weight,
and the type, length and intensity
of training undertaken. For more
information see nutrition advice sheets
on ‘Carbohydrate’ and ‘Protein’.
FAT
Unhealthy fats should be avoided as
much as possible. This includes the skin
on chicken, white fat on meat, butter
and fat often used in cakes, biscuits and
many takeaways.
Including small amounts of healthy fats
each day is important for good health.
This includes avocado, nuts, seeds, oily
fish and vegetable oils such as canola
and olive oil. The amount of these fats
that are needed will depend on your
weight goals and energy requirements
(how many calories/kJ you need each
day).
HYDRATION
Having an adequate fluid intake is
crucial. As you will often spend many
hours out on the water and be exposed
to the elements of wind and sun,
dehydration can become a major issue.
The amount of fluid that you need to
be consumed on heavy training days
can often be immense. Guidelines
suggest consuming at least 2 litres of
fluid throughout the day, with additional
fluid for each hour of exercise. See the
nutrition advice sheet on ‘Hydration” for
more details.
EATING ON THE BOAT
Aim to eat regularly to maintain your
energy levels. The types of food you
need to take out on the water should
reflect your normal daily eating plan,
plus additional snacks/fluid as required
(see daily meal plan example below/
overpage). What you need to eat is likely
to be highly individual and depend very
much upon what you can be tolerated
while out of the water.
During training, carbohydrate rich foods
are the most important, however protein
is often included during long sessions,
to help with satiety (feeling of fullness).
Some sailors prefer not to take a
formal lunch (i.e. have sandwiches or
filled rolls), but rather a range of small
snacks instead to eat every 1-2 hours.
Such snacks need to be portable
and easy to eat, yet remain nutritious.
Examples include dried fruit (fresh fruit
can easily get bumped and bruised),
muesli bars, cereal bars, scroggin (dried
fruit and nut mix), pretzels, jelly lollies,
carbohydrate/protein bars, raisin/fruit
buns, and easy-to-open tins of creamed
rice or pottles of fruit.
The recovery meal is an important
part of the nutrition strategy for sailing.
It is important to replace nutrients
(carbohydrate, protein and fluid) as soon
as possible after completing exercise
A SAMPLE ONE DAY MEAL
PLAN FOR SAILING
BREAKFAST:
• Wholegrain toast with peanut butter
and a low fat yoghurt OR
• Grain/oat-based cereal with low fat
milk or yoghurt
MORNING TEA:
• Fruit OR
• Low fat yoghurt OR
• Muesli/cereal Bar OR
• Can of creamed rice
LUNCH:
• Wholegrain filled roll (e.g. chicken
and salad), low fat yoghurt and a
piece of fruit
DURING/AFTER TRAINING
1-2 sports drinks, 1-2 cereal bars
RECOVERY MEAL:
• Can of creamed rice, fruit, sports
drink
DINNER:
• Lean steak, potato/kumara, salad
or vegetables, water or juice
SUPPER:
• Fruit OR
• MILO with low fat milk
NUTRITIONIST’S NOTE
This meal is a general example only.
It should be altered to suit individual
energy requirements depending on
age, gender and training load. For
those who train at an elite level and/
or twice or more a day additional
pre training snacks and post training
recovery food/drinks will be required.
Contact a Sports Dietitian for
guidance.
NUTRITION PROFILE:
JO ALEH
What are some of the biggest
nutritional challenges you face
as a sailor?
The biggest problem with sailing is that
we tend to be out on the water for
long periods, up to 8 hours on a long
day, so it’s pretty hard to find enough
suitable food to take on the water,
as most things end up going off or just
mushy. It is also very hard to stay well
hydrated, as with the races being about
an hour long and quite intense, there is no
time to drink while racing, so you end up with
long delays between drinks.
What are some of the foods and fluids
you take out on the water during a day’s
regatta?
Muesli bars, dried fruit or a few jelly lollies are great to
keep in your life jacket pocket, for quick access after a
race. Having a bottle tied into the boat with sports drink
in it is also a must. For between races, a goodie is pasta with
tuna and pesto, in a sealable box. In addition, creamed rice or
a liquid breakfast is perfect for the sail in.
KEY FOODS FOR A SAILORS
PANTRY
KEY ‘QUICK RECOVERY
COMBOS’
✓ Wholegrain breakfast cereal
✓ Sports drink, filled roll and fruit
✓ Flavoured milk, handful of jelly
✓ UNCLE TOBYS Rolled Oats
✓ Wholegrain bread
✓ Low fat/wholegrain crackers
✓ Rice, pasta, couscous
✓ Fruit (tinned, fresh and dried)
✓ MILO Energy Food Drink
✓ Creamed rice
KEY FOODS FOR A
SAILORS FRIDGE/FREEZER
✓ CARNATION Light & Creamy
✓ Low fat milk and yoghurt
✓ Baked beans
✓ Lean meat (skinless chicken, steak, fish)
Evaporated Milk
✓ Canned tuna/salmon
✓ Scroggin
✓ Rolls/raisin bread/buns
✓ Eggs
✓ Pretzels
✓ Fresh and frozen vegetables
✓ Muesli/cereal/breakfast bars
✓ Fresh and frozen fruits
✓ Low fat milk
✓ Low fat spread
✓ Hummus
✓ Cottage cheese, Edam
cheese
lollies and fruit
✓ Sports drink, can of creamed
rice
✓ Water/sports drink, handful of
nuts and raisins
✓ Liquid breakfast and banana
sandwich
✓ Large fruit and low fat yoghurt
smoothie and a muesli bar
✓ Milk-based drink and raisin buns
COMPETITION DAY
EATING
The types of food and fluid you have
on regatta days should be no different
to what you normally have during the
training period. All new foods should
be trialled during training, and regattas
should be simulated, in order to
determine which combinations of food
and fluid suit best.
On each day of the regatta, a hearty
breakfast is essential in preparation
for the long day ahead. Example
breakfasts include baked beans/eggs
on toast or grainy cereal with milk/
yoghurt and fruit. Low fat milk, juice and
water should accompany the meal to
assist with hydration.
Racing schedules can vary due to
wind conditions on the day and race
delays may be encountered. Therefore
sailors need to be prepared with all their
food for the day, along with plenty of
extra snacks. A snack prior to the first
race is recommended (e.g. fruit/liquid
breakfast/cereal bar).
All food and fluid should be packed
appropriately and stored on the coach
boat. Snack meals and drink should be
consumed regularly throughout the day,
in-between races. The time between
races will often dictate the size of meal
and snacks.
SPECIAL ISSUES AND
REQUIREMENTS FOR SAILING:
DEHYDRATION:
Many sailors do not drink as
much fluid as they should while on the
water. Try to have as much as is
comfortably possible while out on the
boat, as well as having plenty of fluids
both before and after training/racing.
This will help to avoid accumulated
dehydration and is particularly
important during a competition which
goes on for several days.
Sports drinks can be helpful while out on
the water during a race/competition as
they satisfy both fluid and carbohydrate
requirements. Outside race times,
suitable fluids include water for shorter
training sessions and sports drinks, fruit
juice, cordial, and milk-based drinks
for more intensive or longer sessions.
It is also useful to keep a water bottle
tied inside the boat during the race,
containing water or sports drink.
ACCOMPANYING FOODS:
If you have a coach boat, almost any
foods can be stored on that, but do
remember foods that can spoil in the
sun and things like meat/chicken/
fish and dairy products (yoghurt/milk),
should be either kept in a small chilly bin
or not taken out.
It is a good idea to keep a few extra
cereal bars on the race boat (tucked
into a life jacket or wetsuit) just in case
there is no time to get food from the
coach boat in-between races.
MOROCCAN VEGETABLES AND CHICKPEAS
Serves 4
400g can chopped tomatoes
300g can chickpeas, drained
1 tbsp Moroccan Spice Mix
400g pumpkin, cut into 1cm pieces
1/2 cup cauliflower florets
2 courgettes, thickly sliced
1 tsp MAGGI Green Herb Stock Powder
• Combine all ingredients in a large
saucepan.
• Cover and simmer for 20 minutes,
stirring occasionally.
MOROCCAN SPICE MIX
1 tbsp cumin seeds, toasted
1 tbsp coriander seeds, toasted
10 black peppercorns
1/2 tsp cardamon seeds
1 tsp sumac or lemon pepper
1 cinnamon quill
RECOVERY MEAL:
The recovery meal is often delayed
due to the commitments of the sailor
once they have returned to land (i.e.
derigging their boat and packing
away). To optimise recovery, it is ideal to
have a recovery snack/drink as soon as
possible after the race is over.**
It is important to remember to either eat
and drink first and then derig their boat,
or consume your recovery meal/snack
and derig simultaneously. Organisation
is the key to successful recovery. If
appropriate foods are not on hand,
valuable recovery time can be lost
trying to purchase food from a nearby
store.
ORGANISATION:
Due to the unpredictable length of
regattas, organisation of nutrition is a
key success strategy. Due to the length
of day plus unexpected delays, it is
crucial to take along all the food and
fluid needed for several hours.
This requires considerable planning to
cover all the nutritional requirements
for the day, plus the recovery meal. A
sports dietitian/nutritionist can help with
this planning.
*Stuart M Phillips et al. (2011). Dietary protein for athletes:
From requirements to optimum adaptation. Journal of
Sport Sciences.
**Nutrition for Athletes 2012. A practical guide for health
and performance. Carbohydrates for training and
recovery. Pg 15. International Olympic Committee
ANALYSIS
per serve
Energy (kJ)
501
Carbohydrate (g)
21
Protein (g)
7
Fat (g)
2
Either pound the spices to a coarse
powder using a pestle and mortar
or put spices between 2 pieces
of baking paper and crush with
a rolling pin. Store in an airtight
container until needed.
• Serve garnished with fresh parsley or
coriander if desired.
This recipe is from the Fit Food Fast cookbook. For more recipes visit www.tastyrecipes.co.nz.
By Nutritionist Claire Turnbull - www.claireturnbull.co.nz
For more information and to obtain further copies
of any of the Eating for Your Sport Nutrition Advice
sheets, visit www.nutrition.nestle.co.nz
or www.autmillennium.org.nz/nutrition
© Nestlé New Zealand Limited &
AUT Millennium. Issued September 2014