It can be frustrating, but nutrition does not fit a generic formula or a quick fix. It is full of “it depends” answers too long for a headline or cereal box. If you want a simple rule such as “always recover from running with egg protein”, this post may disappoint. A useful plan needs to fit you.
Nutrition applies science to the complexity of the human body, with many interacting variables and uncertainties. It works best when evidence is adapted to individual needs and sustainable habits, rather than treated as a one-month diet.
Posting a generic high-protein, paleo, vegan, running, muscle-gain or weight-loss diet, or a list of 10 essential marathon foods, would not give us grounds to promise that it suits you.
We do not yet know what is happening inside your body.
We do not know your body composition, iron status, relevant medical conditions, or whether your threshold is at 171 or 190 beats per minute. We do not know whether today involved 1 hour in zone 2 or 30 minutes in zone 5, how well you tolerate food during exercise, or whether a finding such as urinary protein or elevated creatine kinase needs medical assessment. These are examples of individual context, not tests every client automatically needs.
Without that context, we cannot predict exactly how a particular breakfast or dinner will affect you, identify every deficiency or excess, or prescribe recovery and fuelling precisely. General advice can help, but its usefulness varies with the person and over time. Honest assessment matters more than certainty we cannot justify.
We do not yet know your everyday life either.
What is your sporting goal? Can you cook, do you tolerate seafood, and does breakfast before lifting feel comfortable? Do you love chocolate, eat out often, sleep little or live under stress? What about alcohol, allergies, food preferences and available time? Does your Monday allow a baked fish recipe, or do you need something quicker? Are you vegetarian or vegan? Do you get up at 08:00 for an office job, a day standing in a shop, time with children or a run? This matters because a personalised diet needs to fit your life if you are to follow it.
Perhaps you expected a list of immediate rules: remove egg yolks, drain tuna, eat oats, avoid carbohydrates at dinner, replace cheesecake with fruit, choose certain fats, avoid lactose, eat blueberries, drink more water or cut fried foods. Some choices may be useful in context, but none should become a blanket instruction just because it sounds decisive.
Headlines such as “Beetroot: the runner’s secret” are tempting. Reality is more complex, and the honest answer is often “it depends”. Let us be honest with you, even if that means starting with assessment rather than a generic tip.
To take these recommendations further and adapt them to your goals, training and actual needs, INDYA offers a sports nutritionist to design and adjust a personalised nutrition plan.
If you would also like face-to-face support, INDYA offers a sports nutritionist in Valencia, with planning tailored to your sport, goals and daily life.
