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About Beth Mansfield and Peak Performance
Have you ever wondered if your athletic performance could benefit from nutrition counseling or better nutrition knowledge? We caught up with Beth Mansfield, an expert in the area, to share her thoughts on nutrition counseling for athletes. Beth educates Canadian athletes of all levels, including Olympians, national and provincial team athletes, as well as University, masters and recreational athletes on sport nutrition for health and performance.
Beth is a Registered Dietitian, Sport Nutrition & Exercise Specialist with Peak Performance, a sport nutrition and corporate wellness consulting company in Ottawa. She also develops sport nutrition and conditioning programs for the sport horse - equine athlete. Beth is a popular corporate wellness speaker throughout Canada and also maintains a therapeutic lifestyle change (TLC) clinic for people with elevated cholesterol at the University of Ottawa Heart Institute. Check out Beth’s regular show on CJOH/CTV the 1st Wednesday of every month on the News at Noon.
What is your sport background?
My sport background, like my education, is quite diverse. I was brought up in a very physically active family. My parents taught us us to alpine and XC ski as young kids and my mother’s use of chocolate as a motivational tool kept me (and my brothers) trudging up many mountain paths all over Canada and Great Britain. I think that was the beginning of my interest in sport nutrition! I developed an early interest in horses and have ridden since I was six, but I was always a basketball player at heart. I fell in love with the game at 17 years of age. Basketball taught me a lot about sport and life and gave me the opportunity to play with and against the top International players throughout Canada and the USA. In my early twenties I road raced (cycling) in the off season as a way to hang out a bit with my brothers and cousin, who were all competitive cyclists, racing together throughout Canada and the USA on the road and track. I suffered a serious knee injury in a rugby match when I was 25 and within ten years (and three knee surgeries later) all I could do was ride and glide… leading me to learn speed skating (inline and ice) and to get back into riding my horse, cross country skiing and cycling as a way to keep my knee joint strong with minimal discomfort. Although my lack of a healthy joint means I can’t hammer like I used to, I can still enjoy some speed on wheels!
How did you study to become a sport nutritionist?
Unfortunately there is no formal degree in sport nutrition and thus there are few sport dietitians in Canada – although there are many unqualified people who counsel athletes as well as the general public on nutrition. To be able to work as a sport dietitian you should have as a minimum:
- A University education in both exercise physiology AND clinical nutrition/dietetics;
- A year of volunteer work with athletes of all ages (child, adolescent, University, masters) to get up to speed on health and performance concerns of athletes and see firsthand what athletes are actually eating and how they are coping nutritionally with training demands;
- A sport background – having competed at the provincial level in one or more sports (the more the better) and preferably have experienced national/international level competition in one – this ensures that you clearly understand the level of training involved;
- Training in the Body Sense (or Go Girls) program, which promotes positive body image and prevents disordered eating in sport; and
- Finally, you need to be passionate about sport and the physiology of the body in the exercising state!
I studied an eclectic mix at University; earning undergraduate degrees in exercise physiology, animal nutrition and dietetics/human nutrition. At that point I wanted to do more research so I completed a Masters of Science in the combined fields of nutrition, exercise physiology and lipid biochemistry with the Lipid Clinic of the University of Ottawa Heart Institute. Currently I am back at McGill University working on a PhD in Energy Metabolism and completing some work in equine physiology and nutrition at Guelph University.
Part of my “volunteer” work is to train up and coming nutrition professionals in the science and application of clinical sports nutrition. Each year a University Dietetic intern (or two) is placed with me to get up to speed on the practice of sport nutrition. These interns also get me involved in their interests – a few years ago an intern and I worked with high altitude mountain climbers to determine optimal nutrient needs to help reduce risks of injury and cerebral/pulmonary edema. The experience involved some fascinating research of putting science into food-based practice for successful summits of the highest peaks in the world. Another intern just happened to be related to Lance Armstrong’s mechanic - so I got the inside scoop on the most famous of cycling machines!
What is the mission of Peak Performance?
I started Peak Performance when I moved to Ottawa in 1995. My goal has always been to bridge the gap between the sciences of nutrition and exercise and the practices of healthy eating and active living for both health and performance. Over the last few years of working with athletes, people wanting to lose weight, and patients with elevated blood pressure, elevated cholesterol, metabolic syndrome or diabetes I have been privy to a number of interesting nutritional habits! It has also become pretty clear to me that many of us fall prey to one or more nutrition-related health & performance pitfalls, more often a result of nutrition misinformation by unsuspecting friends, colleagues, health professionals, the media and anyone out to make a quick buck. When it comes to nutrition, it is almost unbelievable what people actually believe and the ways in which they go about trying to improve their health &/or performance with nutrition. Part of my mission (as the sole sport dietitian with Peak Performance) is to educate athletes on how important nutrition is to not only their performance but ultimately their health as well.
Articles by Beth
- Take a good hard look at your eating habits
- Rate your plate
- How much do I need to eat
- Straight Talk on Carbohydrates
- Eat well - Prevent Injury
- The right snacks are good
- Your Energy Budget
- Sport Nutrition food guide
- Your Sport Nutrition Meal Plan in Practice
- Download your Sport Nutrition Log
- Prepare for Unplanned Situations
- Pre-Workout Food Guidelines
- Carbohydrate Content of Common Pre-Workout Foods
- During Workout Nutrition Guidelines
- Post-Workout Nutrition Guidelines
- FAQ #1 - Should I take a vitamin mineral supplement?
- FAQ #2 - If I was to chose the perfect meal or one food to NOT be without as an athlete, what should it be?
- FAQ #3 - Beer; can it be used for post workout rehydration and refueling?
- FAQ #4 - Caffeine - is it worth using?
- FAQ #5 Will going on a low-carb diet help me to lose weight
- FAQ #6 - Should women be concerned about their iron status and take iron supplements?
- FAQ #7 How can I put on some muscle to become a more powerful and stronger skater?
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