Ask a Sports Nutrition Question

Got a burning question to do with training and/or nutrition?

Submit your question to Jacquie and she will choose one question a week to answer and feature here, or visit  'Everything Sport' to view our questions. Got a question? Email us here.

What is the best way to gain 10kg in a couple of months for Rugby? I'm around 80kg at the moment but want to bulk up to 90kg to go up a grade.
- Sam

Putting on muscle, how long does it take? I’ll be honest with you, putting on muscle is way harder than losing fat. It’s not that difficult to pack on ten kilos of fat in two months, but as an athlete that’s the last thing you want to do. You’d have to put yourself in a huge calorie surplus of over 80,000 calories! Over two months that equates to over 1300 calories a day of overeating, which is definitely not recommended for cardiovascular health. Could you imagine running around the field with ten extra kilos of fat? You’d lose speed, strength and endurance.
Now this doesn’t mean that being 90 kilos is an unrealistic goal, however you need to sit down and plan it out. It’s going to take you roughly 10 months to gain 10 kilos of lean mass based on sound nutrition and vigorous weight training. The off-season is a good time to bulk up. Sit down with a qualified sports nutritionist who can give you a structured plan. It can be tempting to start with supplements and mass gainers but the truth is that they will only help in conjunction with a solid diet.

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I was wondering how the contraceptive pill can effect performance? I just always seem to feel more lethargic and fatigue a lot faster when I am on the pill, is this just a coincidence?
- Anna

Long-term use of contraceptive pills can increase the body’s requirements of certain nutrients. Vitamin B6 is required by your body for the utilisation of energy in the foods you eat, production of red blood cells, and proper functioning of nerves. Other vitamins and minerals that could become depleted are Folic Acid, Vitamin C, Zinc, Selenium and B12. Your body requires a large range of vitamins, minerals and essential fats to function well, if you are active it makes complete sense that you will need higher amounts of these nutrients. Someone who is already low in iron, B12 or other nutrients, could further deplete their levels being on the pill and this can cause the side effects you describe. If you are an athlete, the best thing you can do to increase performance is to make sure you are providing your body with all the nutrients needed for energy, repair and recovery. Visit your GP to check your iron and B12 levels.

Visit a nutritionist to find out how much food you should be eating and take a good quality Multivitamin, Vitamin C and Omega 3.
- Jacquie