Athlete Requirements

CHARECTERISTICS

There are many characteristics of AFL. It is a fast flowing game where much strength and fitness is needed to carry the ball all around the field. Stamina and lactic acid play a major role in the sport, as you are constantly stopping and starting to get a better positioning in the field.

TRAINING

To train for AFL you must have determination to keep going to gain from what you are doing. In AFL training there are two main aspects, fitness and ball skills, so that in the game you are constantly kicking and hand passing on target. You should not train without stretching, because you could injure yourself and not be able to play.

COMPETITION

The AFL season has 22 rounds of games which are followed by four weeks of finals. Players depending on the position can run up to 20 kilometers on one match. There is a pre-season cup called the NAB cup.

PHYSICAL CHARACTERISTICS

Most AFL players are about 175 cm tall and weigh roughly 80 – 110 kg. Most players in the modern game are able to play more than one position, and do so quite often. This game is very physical and can effect your bodily state, through strains and broken bones.

MEETING CARBOHYDRATE REQUIREMENTS

Carbohydrates provide an athlete with forty to fifty percent of their dietary requirements. What carbohydrates do is convert into glucose where it is stored in the stomach as glycogen. When exercising the glycogen turns back into glucose and is used as energy. Carbohydrates are at their best use when the event is a non-oxygen event such as the one hundred metre sprint.

Liquid Meals

The two liquid meals that I have chosen to do are Sustagen shakes and Milo shakes.

Sustagen

Sustagen is a drink which is used for performance. It is a powder mixed with either water or milk and is mainly used with athletes.

Good nutrition can help maintain that good health and allow us to continue to live independently. In conjunction with exercises of the body and brain, it can also help us enjoy a good quality of life and lifestyle. Because we expend less energy, our intake of energy foods usually decreases too.

A combination of active lifestyle and good nutrients can help your health in so many ways.

There’s a tendency for the performance of our immune system to decline the older we get, which is why we get sick more often than when we were younger. Or the illness lasts a bit longer. Vitamins B6, E and zinc help maintain immune function. This is what sustagen contains.

Milo shakes

Milo contains 6 essential vitamins and minerals:

• Calcium and Magnesium for strong bones and teeth
• Iron to carry oxygen around the body
• B vitamins (B1 & B2) to release energy
• Vitamin C for iron absorption

While they each have a specific function, collectively they are required for the release of energy. Milo with milk provides a  high quality protein.

Protein is a vital part of every cell in the body – muscles, the heart, liver and kidneys, blood cells, skin, hair and nails, teeth and bones.

Levels of Physical Activity

4 factors that contribute to the build up of a physical activity and planning a healthy diet are:

• Social factors such as religion contribute as they need to “fit in” with your dietary requirements according to what you do.
• Behavioural factors such as convenience can effect you because it may have to fit in with your job pay and lifestyle.
• Economic factors such as the size of the family that you are feeding can effect the price and quantity of how much food you have to buy.
• Environmental factors such as the access of information to find out what is in the food that you are consuming.

An individual can change their eating habits by:

• Making a conscious effort to choose healthier foods .
• Encouraging family to have healthy food for meals of the day.
• Reading labels to determine food content.
• Taking on a healthy diet with a friend so that you can support each other.

Planning for an outdoor expedition involves six main factors:

• Your average energy level will have to increase by 50% or more.
• Try and choose light and dry foods so that it is easy to pack light.
• Take foods that are easy to prepare so that you can make the best of your time.
• Try to mix up flavours so that a repetitive meal does not become bland and tasteless.
• Use food that is inexpensive so that your not busting a budget.
• Make sure that your foods are balanced so your not wasting food.