EXPERT ADVICE ASK THE EXPERTS
Sometimes you just have to ask for some help… Questions to our experts can be submitted by email to
experts@h2openmagazine.com. Please include your name and address.
WHAT SHOULD I BE EATING? Please could you recommend what a swimmer can or should eat after a training swim? Over the past few years I’ve worked hard to shed 18kg (40lb), as I was dangerously overweight, and I don’t want to pile it back on again. On the other hand, I am ravenous after a few hours in the water and I come out craving carbohydrates and volume. I usually drink a 200kcal latte before I swim, and consume about 100 calories per hour of a 4:1 (carb:protein) sports drink while training. I recently ate three eggs, some bacon and half a bagel after swimming, and was desperate to eat again just two hours later. Ranie Pearce
Nutrition expert Joel Enoch says... Specific advice is hard as I don’t know the duration, frequency or intensity of your training schedule, but the following should help you to make sure that you recover effectively, without putting any weight back on. Looking at the list of foods you mention, I assume you have been told that protein aids recovery. This is certainly true and everyone who is looking to recover effectively should ensure that they consume 15-20g of protein as soon as possible after training. There is about 6g of protein in an egg, so two with some bacon will do. However, egg/meat protein doesn’t absorb as fast as some proteins (like whey protein – used in some sport supplements), and also I assume that you have had to travel home and cook this, so you may be eating a little later than is optimal. Research has shown that there is a 30-minute ‘window of opportunity’ after training, where the body utilises nutrients much more effectively than at rest. It is key that we maximise this opportunity.
JOEL ENOCH Our sports scientist and nutrition expert Over the last two years Joel Enoch has worked for the Lucozade Sport Science Team offering nutrition and sport science related support to athletes and teams from grass roots to
Olympians. He has a BSc in Sport Science and Coaching from Brunel University and an MSc in Nutrition from Bristol University. As a triathlete, Joel has represented Great Britain at World and European Age-Group Championships and is a qualified triathlon coach.
Also, as you say that you spend ‘a few hours in the water’, I assume that you will have used up almost all your carbohydrate stores, so you need to replace this, too. Don’t worry – your body will use this energy to refuel, not store it as fat. I would suggest that you should take on protein and carbohydrate
straight after training. Ideally 15-20g of protein, plus 1g carbohydrate for every kilo of body-weight – fast-absorbing sports supplements like recovery bars might be practical. Repeat a couple of hours later. Lastly, ensure that you drink little and often, preferably with a drink containing electrolytes.
AM I TOO OLD FOR THE CHANNEL? I’ve always wanted to swim the channel, but I’m now in my 50s. I do swim regularly, but not long distances. Have I left it too late in life to start training for a Channel swim? Mary Weaver
Long-distance expert Colin Hill says... More and more people are setting themselves the specific goal of swimming the Channel, which is a great aim to have, but it’s a huge undertaking, both physically and mentally, so you should first work on becoming a long-distance swimmer, and build up to the Channel. Two years is said to be the minimum time taken to build up to a major crossing for someone new to the sport. If you’re thinking of any long-distance swim you must be:
∆ Physically capable of endurance swimming for anything over 10 hours
∆ Mentally ready for swimming for long periods in relatively cold water
∆ Physically acclimatised to cold water
COLIN HILL Our long-distance swimming expert
A passionate and committed pillar of the open water swimming community, Colin Hill is the head of British Gas Great Swim (
greatswim.org), the UK’s largest mass-participation swim events. He has competed in
some of the great distance swims, completing his first Channel crossing in 2009 (10hrs 30mins), and last year swimming from Italy to Sicily, and leading the pack from Europe to Asia, winning the Byron Hellespont Swim.
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