Gavin Rackard: What does the role of a performance nutritionist entail?

Gavin is as a Performance Nutritionist and PhD student researching the impact of nutrition interventions on the sleep of elite athletes and support staff.

My background: I completed an MSc. in Sport and Exercise Nutrition at Leeds Beckett University following a B.A. in Exercise and Health Studies at Waterford Institute of Technology. I  am a Practitioner Registrant on the Sport & Exercise Nutrition (SENr) of the British Dietetic Association. The SENR is a voluntary register designed to accredit suitably qualified and experienced registrants. Practitioner registration is awarded to individuals who can demonstrate appropriate qualifications and proficiency gained after relevant professional experience. I am also ISAK (International Society for the Advancement of Kinanthropometry) Level 1 accredited. 

My current role is as a Performance Nutritionist and PhD student researching the impact of nutrition interventions on the sleep of elite athletes and support staff. The effect of nutrition on sleep quality is an ever-evolving area with kiwi fruit, tart cherry juice, trytophan-rich foods, and high glycemic carbohydrates all potentially playing a beneficial role. My current research interests are primarily in the area of nutrition and sleep with a scoping review currently being undertaken as part of Year 1 in the PhD. Further research with subjective assessment questionnaires, objective assessment sleep wearables and how specific nutrition interventions aid sleep will all be researched over the coming years. 

The role My current role as a performance nutritionist is broken into several facets from a practical perspective. Educating, athletes predominantly, about the role of nutrition in their health and performance is the primary function. This falls into multiple categories, one of which is, one-to-one consultations. The focus on using behaviour change techniques like the COMs-B model (Capability, Opportunity, and Motivation) can help the practitioner abide by a structure when aiming to facilitate change in a client's nutrition habits. This behaviour change process is combined with a clarity of focus on education around the most fundamentally important aspects of performance nutrition i.e. maintaining a robust immune system, fuelling adequately for performance, recovering from any given session, applying the correct nutrition practices around competition and supplementation education.

These outcomes, from a performance nutrition perspective, can also be met through the following; formal presentations to groups, cooking classes delivered by a chef or (sometimes!) the nutritionist, resources in the form of infographics, recipe circulation, social media engagement, and peer competition. Each has its merits and pitfalls from an engagement and knowledge perspective so it is critical for the practitioner to understand the knowledge of the group. The athlete nutrition knowledge questionnaire (ANKQ) can be distributed to means test a group of athletes and target specific interventions to given individuals or the group, as a whole entity. 

Another effective method of assessing an athlete's nutrition status is using a 24-hour dietary recall and a 3 or 7-day food diary recall. This can be a quick, minimally invasive, confidential method utilised between the client and practitioner. Feedback to the client can be distributed via any agreed messenger portal like WhatsApp, Siilo, SENPro, Libro, Hexis, or MyFitnessPAL, to name but a few. Snap and send methods, whereby an athlete sends their meals and snacks to the practitioner, is currently a popular trend in performance nutrition. It offers quick feedback to the athlete and allows the practitioner to offer immediate value in their role by sending evidence-informed feedback to the athlete. 

Interpreting and utilising body composition status as a method for improving performance can generally be quite useful but must be used with a degree of caution and understanding, not just from the nutrition practitioner's end, but the wider transdisciplinary team too. When, anthropometric assessments such as skinfold and girth measurements, DXA scans or simply weighing body mass on a calibrated machine are implemented at the correct time of a season and reported with validity, they can help athletes reach their performance goals. Why? Well quite clearly because lean mass increases, fat mass decreases, and general changes in body composition can be tracked over time and as an outcome, an athlete can reach a body composition goal, they deem beneficial for their sport. The reason to approach this strand of performance nutrition with a degree of trepidation is the risk of potential disordered eating patterns arising from an athlete attempting to reach unattainable targets, receiving undue pressure from the wider transdisciplinary team to reach these targets, and finally associating food with objective numbers rather than just enjoying food for what it is, a time to relax and be present. The validity, practitioner reliability, correct interpretation of the results, and wider multi-disciplinary team buy-in to a goal are all essential. 

Environment is a staple dictator of nutrition habits so a practitioner's ability to shape the nutrition environment athletes eat in is a skill that can prove very beneficial. Ensuring the food quality served at training sessions and competitions is appropriate to meet their nutritional requirements, is of high quality, and is enjoyed by the athletes, is a skill in itself. Similarly educating athletes on how to shape their nutrition environment at work, on the road, or in school is critical to maintaining positive behaviours. 

Finally, building relationships with both the athletes you're working with and the transdisciplinary team you operate within, is important in disseminating your message. Knowledge, resource distribution, and presentation creation are all important strands of the role, however, the relationships built within any team or sporting environment will generally prove the most important facet in achieving desired nutrition outcomes.  

Any advice for anyone interested in a similar role:

Once qualifications are attained and appropriate competencies are met within the relevant governing bodies, then understanding how to build relationships with athletes and staff alike is critical is maintain a positive effect on an athlete or team.

Author Bio

Gavin has an MSc. in Sport and Exercise Nutrition in Leeds Beckett University and BA in Exercise and Health Studies from Waterford Institute of Technology. He is a Practitioner Registrant on the Sport & Exercise Nutrition (SENr) of the British Dietetic Association and an ISAK Level 1 accreditation. 

Gavin's current role is as a Performance Nutritionist and PhD student researching nutrition interventions in sleep elite athletes and support staff. His current research interests are primarily in the area of nutrition and sleep with a scoping review currently being undertaken as part of Year 1 in the PhD. Further research with subjective assessment questionnaires, objective assessment of sleep using wearables and a how specific nutrition interventions aid sleep will all be researched over the coming years. 

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