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Frequently Asked Questions
Beth Mansfield - Nutritionist
healthy weights
| nutrition
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HEALTHY WEIGHTS
Does excessive weight
loss impair physical performance?
E xcess body weight makes your body work
harder, especially when you have to carry that weight around
during physical activities such as walking and running.
In some sports, excess weight puts you at a disadvantage
- especially endurance sports like race walking and middle/long
distance running where excess weight slows you down. In
sports such as gymnastics and figure skating, where acrobatic
moves are a key component of performance, excess weight
is also detrimental, as it would affect the ability to do
many of these manoeuvres. In equestrian sports, excess weight
makes it difficult to sit properly on the horse and it affects
the balance of both the horse and rider. In sports such
as cycling and skiing, carrying excess weight means that
you have to work much harder to climb up hills...and thus
a lighter athlete with similar strength will always perform
better. Excess weight, if it is from body fat, increases
your risk of diabetes, heart disease and even some types
of cancers.
Excessive weight loss will also
impair performance. But let me qualify that statement. If
someone loses alot of weight quickly (a rate of more than
2 lbs/week) then they are likely to be losing muscle mass
as well as body fat. A loss of muscle mass does not bode
well for athletic performance! The body is likely to be
in a nutritionally depleted state which could affect the
immune system, increasing the chances of catching a cold,
the flu or some other illness. This state would also limit
one's ability to perform - the amount of stored energy available
for physical activity is likely to be small.
So what is the best approach
for peak health and performance while attaining a healthy
body composition? LOTS OF TIME. It takes TIME to change
habits - time to break old habits and time to make new ones.
Learning about food and nutrition and how to nourish your
body for health and performance means that you need to take
the time to read, digest the information, absorb it and
put it into action. A well nourished body is your body for
life! Treat it well and feed it with nutrient rich foods
- it will thank you, over and over again!
Please note that this information is intended
to provide general information on common nutrition/physical activity/medical
topics. It is not a comprehensive medical review and does not include
all the potential medical conditions, issues, or considerations.
Therefore it cannot and should not be relied upon as a substitute
for seeing an appropriate health care professional (who can provide
individualized and comprehensive assessment and advice).
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Association for the Advancement of Women and Sport and Physical
Activity
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