Taste of success
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Life on the road presents many challenges for professional tennis players, chief among them how to fulfil specific dietary requirements.Former world No. 39 Casey Dellacqua, on an extended break from tennis following shoulder surgery, says it is hard to establish a regular eating pattern when competing. "You might get ready to play, but at Grand Slams the match before yours could be a men's match that extends to five sets," she says.
"You have to try and determine when you should eat so that you have enough energy when you play, but unless your match is the first on for the day you never know exactly when that will be, so it's tough in that respect."
Having played professionally for seven years, Dellacqua has learned how to structure her diet around the unpredictable schedule that comes with tournament play. The night before a match she will eat a carbohydrate-loaded meal such as pasta, before beginning match days with breakfast and a light snack following her morning practice session. She remains hydrated with electrolyte sports drinks and eats immediately following matches to replenish her energy reserves and aid recovery.
When away from Australia, Dellacqua says she consumes large amounts of fruit and vegetables because she can be sure this is a healthy option. "When overseas, you are not often cooking food yourself, so you don't know exactly what the nutritional value of your food is," she says.
"Usually I stick with the healthiest food option I can. I'm always conscious when I'm eating out at restaurants to try and order sauces on the side with foods like steak, and to make sure that salads are not covered in too much dressing."
Despite having to remain cautious when approaching food, Dellacqua says there are many perks to eating overseas. "We are lucky to travel and eat at very nice restaurants around the world, so I'm often eating quite high-quality food," she says.
"Tournaments generally have a good understanding of what players' dietary requirements are, especially at the Grand Slam events. We get offered pasta with various sauces, vegetables, salads and sandwiches. Tournaments in some countries may provide their national cuisine. Japan is probably my favourite place to eat in the world - I love sushi and teppanyaki."
Dellacqua's current dietary habits were formed following her time at the Australian Institute of Sport (AIS) in 2007, where she worked with a nutritionist. "We looked at pretty much every area of nutrition we could during that time. If I was in Canberra for several weeks, I had a day-to-day schedule of what I would be eating, and how much training I would be doing, so I could keep a track of everything," she says.
"It was good to know how much energy I was in-putting and out-putting to make sure I made the right dietary choices before I practised or played."
Dellacqua's approach to nutrition is extremely structured. At the AIS she has practised while wearing a heart-rate monitor to measure the amount of calories she was burning. She has experimented with patches that recorded her perspiration levels, which told her how much fluid she was losing and how much she needed to drink to replace it. She also keeps a calorie-counter book with her. "I don't refer to it every time I eat, but a lot of the time I like to know how many calories a certain food or drink has so I can keep track of what I'm consuming," she says.
Her work at the AIS extended to on-court nutrition, and Dellacqua has discovered that caffeine supplementation bolsters her performance during matches. "Red Bull drinks and No-Doz tablets work well, however I just have small amounts. In reaction sports like tennis, studies have shown this caffeine boost can benefit a player," she says.
"I've found if I'm playing a big match and I take the caffeine then I get too nervous and shaky, so I don't often take it. If I'm playing in a lower-level tournament where I need a little bit more to get up, then I would probably use it, but if I went out on Rod Laver Arena I'd probably stay away from it!" - Matthew Trollope
Dellacqua's typical daily eating regime if training in Australia
Breakfast
A serve of oats, including fruits such as berries or apple.
Snack - following morning training session
Usually a piece of fruit.
Lunch
Sushi, rice paper rolls, or a salad sandwich (Dellacqua aims for a protein-rich lunch while keeping carbohydrate consumption to the morning).
Dinner
Protein-rich meal such as chicken accompanied by a large serving of vegetables