Nutrition guides

These guides explain the basics of nutrition for people who train and for the coaches and trainers who work with them. They are background reading: not a meal plan, and not a substitute for a registered dietitian or a physician.

Nothing here replaces a registered dietitian or a physician. If a client has a medical condition, an eating disorder, or a question about supplements and lab work, refer them on.

• Separating nutrition science from marketing claims — how to read a headline before you repeat it.
• Calories and the energy nutrients — what a calorie is, and how carbohydrate, protein, fat, and alcohol differ.
• Carbohydrates, glycogen, and training — digestion, storage, blood glucose, fiber, and sweeteners.
• Protein quality and daily protein — amino acids, nitrogen, and why “more” is not always the useful answer.
• Dietary fats — triglycerides, essential fatty acids, and how fats travel in the blood.
• Water and micronutrients — fluid needs, vitamins, and minerals, without a supplement pitch.

Read them in order if you are new to the subject. The first guide is about how to judge a claim. The next four follow the energy nutrients: calories, carbohydrates, protein and fats. The last guide covers water, vitamins and minerals.