Nutrition Guide for Netball Players

What you eat directly impacts how you perform on the netball court. The right nutrition gives you the energy to maintain intensity throughout a match, supports quick decision-making, and helps your body recover between games. Yet nutrition is often overlooked by recreational players who focus only on training and equipment.

This guide will help you understand the nutritional demands of netball and provide practical advice for fuelling your performance. Whether you're playing social netball once a week or training multiple times for competitive seasons, these principles will help you get more from your game.

Understanding Netball's Energy Demands

Netball is a high-intensity intermittent sport—you alternate between explosive efforts (sprinting, jumping, direction changes) and brief recovery periods. This pattern creates unique nutritional demands:

• Carbohydrates are your primary fuel for high-intensity activity
• The intermittent nature means you draw on both immediate energy stores and sustained energy systems
• Mental demands require steady blood glucose for concentration and decision-making
• Recovery needs include muscle repair and replenishment of energy stores

Day-to-Day Nutrition for Training

Your everyday diet creates the foundation for performance. Focus on these principles:

Carbohydrates: Your Primary Fuel

Carbohydrates are stored as glycogen in your muscles and liver, providing the energy for intense activity. Players in regular training should aim for 4-6 grams of carbohydrates per kilogram of body weight daily (for a 65kg player, that's 260-390 grams).

Quality carbohydrate sources include:

• Whole grains (brown rice, oats, whole wheat bread and pasta)
• Starchy vegetables (sweet potatoes, potatoes, corn)
• Fruits (bananas, berries, apples)
• Legumes (beans, lentils, chickpeas)

Protein: Building and Repair

Protein supports muscle repair and adaptation to training. Athletes should aim for 1.4-2.0 grams per kilogram of body weight daily, spread across meals throughout the day.

Good protein sources include:

• Lean meats (chicken, turkey, lean beef)
• Fish and seafood
• Eggs
• Dairy products (Greek yoghurt, cottage cheese, milk)
• Plant sources (tofu, tempeh, legumes, nuts)

Fats: Essential but Timing Matters

Healthy fats support hormone production and overall health. Include sources like avocado, nuts, olive oil, and oily fish. However, fats digest slowly, so minimise them in meals close to training or games.

Pre-Game Nutrition

What and when you eat before a game significantly affects your energy levels and performance.

3-4 Hours Before: The Main Meal

Eat a substantial meal that's high in carbohydrates, moderate in protein, and low in fat and fibre (which can cause digestive discomfort).

Examples:

• Pasta with tomato-based sauce and lean chicken
• Rice with grilled fish and vegetables
• Sandwich on white bread with lean meat and banana
• Porridge with honey and a small serve of eggs

1-2 Hours Before: Light Top-Up

If you need something closer to game time, choose easily digestible carbohydrates:

• Banana or other fruit
• Sports drink
• Small muesli bar
• White bread with honey or jam

Hydration Strategies

Dehydration impairs both physical and mental performance. Even mild dehydration (2% body weight loss) can reduce performance and increase injury risk.

Before Playing

• Drink 400-600ml of water 2-3 hours before the game
• Have another 200-300ml about 20 minutes before warm-up
• Check urine colour—pale yellow indicates good hydration

During the Game

• Use quarter breaks and stoppages to take small drinks
• Aim for 150-200ml per quarter if possible
• Water is sufficient for most recreational players
• Sports drinks can be beneficial for high-intensity games lasting over an hour

After Playing

• Replace 150% of fluid lost (weigh yourself before and after to estimate)
• Include sodium (from food or sports drinks) to aid fluid retention
• Continue drinking regularly for several hours post-game

During-Game Nutrition

For a standard netball game (around 60 minutes), you generally don't need to eat during play if you've fuelled properly beforehand. However, during tournaments with multiple games or particularly long events, quick-digesting carbohydrates can help maintain energy:

• Sports drinks (provide both fluid and carbohydrates)
• Sports gels or lollies
• Orange segments (traditional for good reason)
• Small pieces of banana

Keep portions small—you want energy without digestive distress.

Post-Game Recovery Nutrition

What you eat after playing determines how quickly you recover and how ready you'll be for your next session.

The Recovery Window

The 30-60 minutes after exercise is when your body is primed to replenish glycogen stores and begin muscle repair. While this window isn't as critical as once believed (recovery happens regardless), eating soon after exercise does optimise the process.

What to Eat

Your recovery meal or snack should include both carbohydrates (to replenish energy stores) and protein (to support muscle repair). Aim for roughly a 3:1 ratio of carbs to protein.

Quick recovery snacks:

• Chocolate milk (genuinely one of the best recovery drinks)
• Greek yoghurt with fruit and honey
• Banana with peanut butter
• Smoothie with fruit, milk, and protein powder

Recovery meals (if eating within 1-2 hours):

• Grilled chicken with rice and vegetables
• Eggs on toast with avocado
• Fish tacos with rice
• Stir-fry with tofu or meat and noodles

Tournament and Multi-Game Day Nutrition

Tournaments present unique challenges—multiple games with limited time between them require careful planning.

• Pack food from home – Don't rely on venue options, which are often limited and unhealthy
• Focus on easily digestible options – Sandwiches, wraps, fruit, muesli bars, crackers with cheese
• Eat small amounts frequently – Rather than large meals between games
• Stay hydrated throughout – Bring more water than you think you need
• Have a proper meal after the final game – This is when you can eat more substantially

Good nutrition doesn't have to be complicated. Focus on eating a balanced diet most of the time, timing your meals appropriately around training and games, staying well-hydrated, and recovering properly after exercise. These fundamentals will support your performance far more than any expensive supplement or fad diet. Fuel well, play well.