Sugar is in the news a lot lately, but the news about sugar does not usually take into account the activity level or goals of an individual. A person who is highly active uses sugar a bit differently, and if an athlete has a performance goal, a small amount of sugar can help him to achieve that goal.

The recommendation is to eat 30-60 grams of quickly digested carbohydrate per hour, which includes maltodextrin or the sugars glucose and sucrose, when the athlete is training or competing for an hour or longer, and their goal is to maintain performance. This means that if your athletes are having a lighter day (less than an hour of activity) or if it's the offseason and their goals may not be focused on performance, then this recommendation does not apply.

Overall nutrition approaches, as well as sports nutrition strategies, must be considered in the context of the activities and goals of the individual. The video below will help you to understand when and how sugar can play a role in a sports nutrition plan for your athletes:

Sugar for athletes

Thomas DT, Erdman KA, Burke LM. American College of Sports Medicine Joint Position Statement. Nutrition and Athletic Performance. Med Sci Sports Exerc. 48(3):543-568, 2016.