Nutrition Advice for Special Forces
Introduction
Embarking on the journey to become a US Army Green Beret is no easy feet. It requires peak physical performance, mental acuity, and relentless determination. While many candidates can make it far without a nutrition plan, too many leave gains on the table with their poor fueling habits. This article is specifically designed to provide nutrition advice for aspiring Green Berets.
The Role of Nutrition in Training
Everyone understands the importance of physical fitness in training for Special Forces, yet many completely ignore nutrition. Why is that?
It is true that physical fitness is paramount. An inability to meet the standards will mean a candidate cannot enlist or will be dropped on day one of training. But the benefits of a sound nutrition plan are not as clear.
Nutrition is upstream of physical fitness, meaning nutrition will directly impact an athlete’s physical fitness. But you may be thinking of a friend or teammate who eats like garbage and is still physically fit. How is that possible?
Well, there are two ways nutrition impacts performance. One is by optimizing nutrition to peak for an event, and the other is optimizing nutrition to manipulate body composition. They are both similar but operate on different time scales.
Case Study 1 – Fueling for an Event
Imagine an athlete who has a Special Forces Readiness Evaluation (SFRE) in the next few days. SFRE is a mock special forces assessment put on by National Guard units to evaluate and select candidates for a chance to attend Special Forces Assessment and Selection (SFAS).
The day of and the days leading up to SFRE, the athlete should be eating food to fuel his performance. Eating a diet rich in carbohydrates and gut friendly foods that his body reacts well to will allow him to perform his best. In this scenario, the athlete uses nutrition to fuel his body and mitigates risk by only eating foods he knows he will perform well on. While this is intuitive to most athletes, it is shocking how many guys will try a new immediately prior to an APFT or ACFT and find themselves puking or rushing to the bathroom between events. If the stomach does not like the food, don’t even leading up to the event!
Case Study 2 – Optimizing Nutrition for Body Composition
The second scenario is similar but operates on a longer time horizon. An athlete looking to improve performance should always eat a solid diet and foods that sit well in his stomach, otherwise his training will suffer. That is a given. But imagine an athlete who is 5’10, 140lbs, and looking to build strength and muscle mass. To optimize his performance, he should develop a nutrition plan aligned to his goal to build muscle. This means eating in a caloric surplus and a diet high in protein.
Likewise, a candidate who is 5’10 250lbs and looking to lean down and maintain muscle mass will eat a high protein diet with a slight caloric deficit. This will allow him to slowly lose fat mass and mitigate losses in strength and muscle mass.
What if I Ignore my Nutrition?
We all have different biological setpoints in weight. This is why some candidates have the appetite of a rabbit and are rail thin, others are much bigger with the appetite of a lion, and some are right in the middle and have an athletic build. If a candidate is performing well and at an ideal bodyweight for physical performance, he may not see significant improvements in performance with changes to nutrition.
On the other hand, if a candidate is significantly overweight or underweight, a physical fitness routine alone will not yield the desired results. A caloric surplus or deficit and appropriate food choices are required to see weight movement on the scale.
Even if a 130lb athlete were to train like Ronnie Coleman, the only way his weight will go up is if he is eating in a caloric surplus.
Suggested Meal Plans for Special Forces
All too often I receive questions about the optimal meal plan for Special Forces. The reality is there is no magic nutrition plan for selection. Some candidates eat a ketogenic diet, others are vegan, and others eat a standard American diet high in processed sugar and fat.
That said, any athlete seeking to attend Special Forces Assessment and Selection or any other course, ought to identify three things to create a nutrition plan:
- Ideal Bodyweight
- Foods which work well
- Foods which don’t work well
Identifying a goal bodyweight is important because it tells an athlete how much food in calories he should eat. To gain weight, eat 400 calories more per day than the number of calories it takes to maintain your current bodyweight. To lose weight, eat 400 calories fewer per day than maintenance, and to maintain eat at maintenance. A good starting point to identify the number of calories to maintain weight is bodyweight*17. Keep in mind, this calculator assumes the athlete is training for selection and has high daily activity.
Here is an example for a 170lb athlete:
Muscle Gain Diet – 3,290 calories
Maintenaining Diet – 2,890 calories (170lbs * 17)
Fat Loss Diet – 2,490 calories
After setting a bodyweight goal and calorie target, think about what foods digest well in the stomach and fuel performance. Add those to the grocery list.
Oatmeal is a great carb source, but it may be a great preworkout food source since its volume can expand in the stomach. For many athletes, a few hundred grams of white rice is great for a preworkout snack.
Lastly, consider what foods do not sit well in the stomach or fuel performance. Classic examples will be highly processed foods, or even liquid food sources like soup. Having large volumes of liquid food sources or even protein powders prior to an endurance session may leave an athlete running to the restroom midworkout.
Importance of Hydration
Staying well-hydrated is fundamental to all aspects of health, including digestion, nutrient absorption, brain function, and maintaining peak performance. Dehydration will significantly impair strength and endurance which are crucial for special forces training.
Aiming to drink at least 4 liters of water per day is a good starting point. But during intense periods of training, especially during the summer months, those requirements will likely increase. Remember, if an athlete is thirsty, that means he is already dehydrated. Remember to sip water throughout the day.
Conclusion
Aspiring Green Berets must realize the vital role nutrition plays in fueling current and future performance. Strive to eat a balanced diet rich in whole foods, adequate nutrition, and at the calorie target which meets the desired body composition goals.
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