Hockey has been in the spotlight recently – especially after Great Britain’s women’s hockey team won a historic gold medal at the Olympic Games after a nail-biting final.
Hockey is such a high paced sport and the players who compete are some of the fittest in the world. In hockey there are rolling substitutions, enabling players to work in rotations. The average time spent on the pitch before a substitution break would be between 5-8 minutes. When on the pitch, players are required to work above 90% of their maximum heart rate. This is a huge ask and is only possible through intense training and strong nutrition.
Below is an example of how I would fuel myself pre and post match.
Pre-match – 2 hours before match
3 Bio-Synergy BCAA 2.1.1 capsules with water
Full-fat Greek yoghurt with 6 almonds and a handful raisins or 1 apple with 5 teaspoons or peanut butter
The BCAA capsules help me maintain/repair muscle mass without a using a protein shake or heavy meal. My yoghurt, raisins or apple and peanut butter provide me with a good balance of protein, fats and carbohydrates.
Pre-match – 1 hour
Strong coffee or Super Charge – pre workout formula (Blackcurrant Flavour)
I have found that consuming caffeine before a match aids my concentration and reaction speed.
During match – orange squash with sea salt added, jelly babies
By adding sea salt to squash it helps maintain hydration. I eat approximately 7-10 jelly babies during an international match as the simple sugars give me instant energy.
Post match - within 20 minutes
Whey Better protein banoffee flavour with 200 ml of full-fat milk
It takes delicious and immediately helps my body rebuild and recover
Post match meal – approximately 40 minutes to 1 hour after match
Chicken breast, vegetables (broccoli, sweet potato, ratatouille) and sour cream
After a match, I enjoy a simple balanced meal. This meal gives me a good balance of protein from the chicken, carbohydrates from the vegetables and essential fats (without high amounts of sugar) from the sour cream.
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