Alpine Skiing
How i fuel: Alice Robinson
Going down a mountain as fast as you can doesn’t require a special diet, says alpine ski racer Alice Robinson, just one that’s well-balanced with a decent shot of sugar.
Alice Robinson opts for a energy boosting smoothie on race day
© Scott Sinton
What does a downhill skier eat?
We probably have one of the more standard diets in comparison to some athletes. I don't know any ski racers that are on crazy strict diets. And we travel a lot, we're always staying in hotels, so we just get what we can.
I do try to have a certain amount of carbs and a certain amount of protein, things like that.
Some mornings, when there’s a big training day ahead, I also have a coffee and a Red Bull to help get me up the hill.
But overall, I eat a standard athletic diet. You know, you need your mixture of carbs, proteins, your healthy fats and all that. It’s not very interesting unfortunately.
But how important is nutrition on race day?
Oh, it is really important, just like everything else. But again, I think it’s probably not as specific as other sports where athletes require certain levels of energy to sustain long periods of activity.
Our runs are only a minute and a half, it’s not like we are trying to maintain a consistent pace for hours on end, or for a one-hour performance. So it's a little bit different in that sense.
Alice's race day starts with a good breakfast
© Scott Sinton
What are the key meals and food you eat on race day?
Race day starts with a good breakfast. It would just be eggs, bread, maybe some bacon, and maybe oats and yogurt.
I'll do my first run and then in between runs I'll try to have a smaller meal, just to pull me through.
But I don't like to eat too much in between runs. I'd rather have energisers like a Red Bull to give me a good caffeine sugar hit. Because our runs aren't as long it means I can do the sugar rush kind of thing.
Then when the race is over, I just have whatever for dinner.
What’s your go-to for dinner?
I'm based in Italy quite a lot throughout the year, so I eat quite a bit of pasta and proteins, that’s a big one for me.