How Much Does A Professional Soccer Player Eat?

During the course of conducting some soccer-specific research for a project I’ve got in the works, I happened to encounter a very intriguing study from 2017 which followed the dietary patterns of a handful of professional soccer players from the English Premier League.

This particular study, published in International Journal of Sport Nutrition and Exercise Metabolism, followed these professional soccer player’s diets over a 7-day period which included two match days and five training days.

While the study is limited by a small sample size and limited observation period, the results are still intriguing for those of us who are fascinated by the dietary habits of professional athletes.

Soccer is, of course, my favourite sport and generally a massive passion of mine so putting today’s post was a no-brainer for me.

Let’s get right to it.

Soccer Player Sample Macros

Values below are extrapolated averages and rounded for simplicity for the sake of this blog post

Training Day

Total Calories: 3,000

Calories from Fat:   900 (100 grams)

Calories from Protein: 800 ( 200 grams)

Calories from Carbohydrate: 1,300 ( 325 grams)  ( ~ 4 g/kg)

Game Day

Total Calories: 3,800

Calories from Fat:   900 (100 grams)

Calories from Protein: 800 ( 200 grams)

Calories from Carbohydrate: 2,100 ( 525 grams)  (~6 g/kg)

My Thoughts

There are obviously a number of limitations that prevent reading too deeply into this data, but it’s still pretty cool to look at.

It’s also true that there’s quite a bit more to good sports nutrition than just the macronutrient distribution, although that is the focus of today’s piece.

There’s a clear trend towards what is known as periodization of carbohydrate intake whereby dietary carbohydrate, the primary fuel source for soccer, is greatly increased on match days where presumably much more energy will be expended.

Interestingly, the average intake values in this small sample of players demonstrate that protein and fat intake are within or above recommended guidelines but that carbohydrate intake may be less than what is recommended to optimize optimal performance/glycogen storage in high level athletes which could be as high as 7-10 g/kg of carbohydrate on days with very high energy expenditure (match days).

Certainly intriguing, but again we can’t read too much into this limited data and really this post is for fascination above all else.

Play Soccer? Need Help With Your Nutrition?

Whether you play competitive soccer or are a parent/caregiver to a professional soccer player, today’s article at minimum offers forward some insight into the nuance associated with nutrition for this beautiful sport.

If you need help doing a better job with yours, I can help – reach out today to learn more about how working with me can help elevate your game.

Until next time,

Andy De Santis RD MPH

 

What Is The Perfect Pre-Game Meal?

Read my the post linked below to find out!