Sports Nutrition and Physiology
Full course description
“Sports Nutrition and Physiology” is a cross-disciplinary course during which you will learn how the human body reacts to exercise, which adaptations develop with resistance and endurance training, and how nutrition can be used to accommodate sports performance. During the tutorials, responses of the cardiovascular, respiratory and musculoskeletal systems to a single exercise bout will be discussed. Also, the principles of exercise training and training-related adaptations in various organs and systems will be addressed. Students will acquire knowledge on the process of energy transfer which facilitates muscle work during exercise. They will also build an understanding of the dietary strategies and nutritional supplementation which can be used to support energy supply during exercise and, thus, enhance performance in various sports. The knowledge obtained during this course will increase one’s understanding of why a right balance between nutrition and physical activity is needed to ensure optimal health in recreational athletes.
Course objectives
- To characterize the response to exercise in various organs and systems of a human body
- To understand how training facilitate exercise performance in resistance and endurance athletes;
- To understand how macronutrients maintain energy supply during physical activity;
- To understand the influence of the particular nutrients and dietary strategies on energy metabolism and to elaborate how diet can be used in practice to enhance exercise performance.
Prerequisites
VSC2102 Homeostatic Principles
Recommendations: Prior to starting this course, it is recommended to complete one of the following courses: VSC2202 Food and Disease, VSC2205 Nutrition and Metabolism, VSC3201 Clinical Nutrition
Recommended reading
A combination of basic books and E-reader will be used
- K. Semen