Anthony Emmet - GB Adventure Racer

I come from a sport science background so I should know better, but it is so easy to get caught up in all the information on nutrition that is out there. In a world where populist self-proclaimed “experts” are given a social media platform to drown out the true qualified experts, I was very guilty of absorbing ill-informed nutritional myths. The athletes promoting juiceplus and herbal-life is a scary trend, backed by huge marketing hype and no clear independent scientific proof, making it very hard to avoid the trap.

Scientifically researched and knowledgeable nutritional information is a rare commodity these days, but, as I have now experienced, well worth the effort to seek out.  Working with Rebecca delivered more results from minimal effort than I was hoping or expecting.

Rebecca joined my quest to work on a specific challenge to enhance success in the tough world of expedition adventure racing during the world championship series. A sport where exercise is rarely less than 22 hours in a day and can last up to 7 days, and your nutrition is carried and consumed on the move. The majority of published scientific research focuses on performances under 2 hours where all the big money is. So in a sign of committing to the cause and specific research, Rebecca rolled up her sleeves and came along to a training session to sample our nutrition challenges in a race context.

Feeling a little tired and with a far greater understanding of the problem, Rebecca focused on finding a solution.  This solution had to balance the needs for calorie dense palatable foods with the priority of protecting the health of the athlete, while not losing the psychological boost from enjoying your food; it was and still is a complex case. Rebecca developed a meal plan that would prioritise the nutritional needs of the athlete while still being able to eat on the move in a remote mountainside anywhere in the world. We now have an excellent template to work with when shopping in and preparing for our races.

Rebecca breaks down myths and really makes the effort to understand unique problems and offer a successful and viable long-term solution.