Nutritional planning for an XCO mountain bike event: Case study

Abstract

Cross Country is a modality of mountain bike cycling (MTB), whose competitions are characterized by giving a certain number of laps to a circuit with a distance from 6-9km to 40-200km. In these events, it is important to plan a dietetic-nutritional strategy to mitigate the appearance of nutrition-related adverse outcomes. The purpose of the study was to plan the dietetic-nutritional planning of a MTB cyclist who competes in a Cross Country competition. The cyclist is a 27-year-old male (VO_2max=74.46 ml•kg^-1•min^-1; MAP=420W; height=1.81m; weight=78.6kg; % fat mass=9.47; sum of 8 skinfolds=61.9mm) with 3 years of experience in training and competing in MTB events at a regional level. The intervention took place in the Alinua cabinet of the University of Alicante, whose purpose was to improve the body composition and to elaborate a dietetic-nutritional program to dispute a MTB race on 23-2-2020 in the province of Alicante. The intervention included the recommendations for endurance athletes and was divided into a preparation period, a period of 3 weeks before the race and a competitive period. Finally, the participant successfully completed the race according to the planning and did not manifest any problems. For a cyclist, facing an event of these characteristics successfully requires theoretical-practical advice and dietary-nutritional programming in an individualized way that tries to contribute at a nutritional level before, during and after physical exercise, as well as to reduce the possible appearance of setbacks that may jeopardize performance and health.