Rugby is a high impact collision sport with emphasis placed on players possessing high lean body mass and low body fat. Rugby is characterized by frequent bouts of high-intensity exercises and is aerobic in nature (Bradley et. al., 2015a). The team consists of forwards and backs. A typical forward would be heavier and stronger compared with the back players. For example, a 27 year old male forward-lock player would be 6’5’’ and 250 pounds. A pre-season in rugby lasts about 8-12 weeks. The goal for the lock player would be to gain lean body mass or reduce body fat. A study done by Bradley et al. (2015a), found the energy requirements for a forward player would be about 14.8MJ. The TDEE would be about 4170.7 calories/day (BMI Calculator). In the equation the activity level was set to very active. This …show more content…
The goal for the lock player would be to reduce body fat (Bradley et. al., 2015a). His training would consist of light to moderate strength and agility. Due to this, the energy intake and expenditure would be lower. Using the Harris-Benedict Equation the TDEE is 3747.6 calories/day and BMR is 2417.8 calories/day (BMI Calculator). In the equation the activity level was set to moderate because they are recovering from the season and training 3-5x/wk. There are no studies done on rugby payers in the postseason, so it was difficult to determine the amount of macronutrients required. The macronutrients breakdowns are based from the athletes diet during preseason and in-season. One study I read found that the forwards gained fat mass during the off-season (Harley, Hind, & OʼHara, 2011) therefore, by having a low CHO diet then the recommended amount, they would avoid the excess calorie intake and maintain their lean body mass. The athlete will continue to consume large amounts of protein because they are high in key nutrients and highly satiating (MacKenzie et. al, 2015). The reminder of the total energy is consumed from