Interview – Bob Seebohar, MS, RD, CSSD, CSCS

SNI: What is the single most important piece of nutrition advice you can give to athletes?

Bob: Hands down: daily control of blood sugar by combining the proper nutrients together throughout the day to maximize the body’s ability to use the almost unlimited stores of fat in their bodies as energy. This doubles for the weight loss/ better looking goals that athletes have also. Triathlon is an aesthetic sport just without weight classes…for now!

SNI: What is the biggest obstacle or hurdle you deal with in giving sports nutrition advice to athlete?

Bob: The hurdle that every feeding must be an all you can eat buffet! For some reason, triathletes in particular have been conditioned to overeat quite often. I address this by making them more metabolically efficient within their nutrition periodization plan and attempting to help them with their carbohydrate addiction.

SNI: What sports supplements do you recommend for competitive triathletes?

Bob: A triathlete is not a triathlete without using caffeine in their daily routine. However, I find that I must educate them about dosing and timing so they get the maximum benefit for training and competition. I also recommend omega-3’s (fish oil) based on health and the physical periodization cycle and iron for some athletes who are deficient. I play with creatine use with endurance athletes at certain times of the year, especially if there is a more anaerobic component in their training.

SNI: What are commons myths with training and nutrition that you deal with vis-à-vis your clients?

Bob: Athletes believe that they need to superload their bodies with carbohydrates before, during and after workouts. I help them understand that the body has enough energy to fuel up to 2-3 hours worth of moderate intense exercise thus they don’t have to shovel unnecessary calories in their body for every training session.

My favorite as of late…endurance athletes think they need to eat 250-500 calories per hour while training or racing. They hear this from self proclaimed nutrition experts or read it off the back if sports nutrition products. The truth is that if you feed that many calories, they will not be digested well during exercise so the body will either stop or it will usually try to get rid of the food out of one end or the other. Not a pretty site! Teaching the body to be metabolically efficient is the “secret”.

SNI: Give your top 5 super foods that all athletes should consume?

Bob: Chia seeds-great omega-3s, protein and fiber, versatile enough to make a bunch of concoctions including gel.

Protein powder-many triathletes under consume protein so a good protein powder is a staple in their house

Fruits and vegetables but mostly veggies-not enough athletes eat them and they are an important component of weight loss plans

Water-obvious reasons but no flavored or tainted…just good ole tap water (depending on the part of the world they live in!)

Nuts-get some fat in their diets, mostly walnuts and almonds

Runner up:

Gum-an ultrarunners best friend to help the mouth stay moist since not much water can be consumed (or found) on mountain trails

Bob Seebohar, MS, RD, CSSD, CSCS, is one of the first Board Certified Specialists in Sports Dietetics and is a Sport Dietitian for the United States Olympic Committee where he provides nutrition expertise for Olympic athletes. He is one of the foremost experts on nutrition for endurance athletes and is a regular speaker at many national level conferences as well as triathlon and cycling coaching education clinics. Bob is also an exercise physiologist, a USA Triathlon Certified Elite Coach, a NSCA Certified Strength and Conditioning Specialist and a competitive triathlete and runner.