Matteo Campagna
ITEN
Menu
Menu

In competition, archers match energy and carbohydrate intake to the day's load

2 studies · 14 archers measured

ForContextAgainst202420262025, for, n = 82025, context, n = 82024, for, n = 62024, context, n = 6
Each circle is a study: its position gives the year, its row whether it is for, against or context, its size how many participants it measured. Light circles are studies on other populations or without archers.

The measurements come from two studies by the same group on the Turkish national team, with meals set by a nutritionist. In the first, six archers over four days of a European Grand Prix take in 3,985 kilocalories and 7.1 grams of carbohydrate per kilo on the longest day and 2,564 kilocalories and 4.0 grams on the lightest, with intake in line with estimated expenditure. In the second, four men and four women at a World Cup stage: energy intake correlates with the day's estimated expenditure at r=0.77 and carbohydrate at r=0.76, expenditure falls from 3,131 to 2,262 kilocalories between the first and fourth days, and during shooting carbohydrate goes from about 20 to about 43 grams an hour between the short and long days. That intake follows load can therefore be seen. What cannot be seen is whether an archer without a nutritionist would do the same, or whether matching intake helps the score: these are two small descriptions of the same team, a month apart, with the men probably partly the same people. And the adjustment concerns energy and carbohydrate, not the rest of the diet: at the first tournament protein stayed between 2.2 and 3.6 grams per kilo a day, above the range recommended for athletes.

Also phrased as: "eating at competitions"; "how much to eat at an archery tournament"; "carbohydrate on competition day"; "diet during a competition"; "calories on a competition day"

In practice

Archers are told not to eat the same way every day of a tournament: more carbohydrate on days with qualification and matches, less on the light ones, and something to eat between ends when the day runs long.

Evidence

Status history

  1. 2024 Reported The first observation covers six Turkish national team archers followed by a nutritionist over four days of a European Grand Prix: on the longest day 3,985 kilocalories and 7.1 grams of carbohydrate per kilo, on the lightest 2,564 kilocalories and 4.0 grams, with intake in line with estimated expenditure. Protein, by contrast, stays high every day, between 2.2 and 3.6 grams per kilo. Six athletes, a descriptive study and a professional deciding the meals: reported.
  2. 2025 Reported The same group measures the relationship at a World Cup stage, with four men and four women: energy intake goes with the day's estimated expenditure (r=0.77) and so does carbohydrate (r=0.76), while expenditure falls from 3,131 to 2,262 kilocalories between the first and fourth days. The men take in more energy and carbohydrate than the women. That makes two supporting studies, but from the same team a month apart, with the men probably partly the same people and meals guided by a nutritionist both times: it is not an independent replication, and the status stays reported.

Related

Related articles

Research lines

Cite
APA

Campagna, M. (2026). In competition, archers match energy and carbohydrate intake to the day's load (Version 1). In Evidence Registry. Retrieved 16 October 2026, from https://matteocampagna.com/en/registry/health/energy-carbohydrate-competition-load

BibTeX
@misc{campagna2026_apportoenergiacaricogara,
  author = {Campagna, Matteo},
  title = {In competition, archers match energy and carbohydrate intake to the day's load},
  year = {2026},
  howpublished = {Evidence Registry, matteocampagna.com},
  url = {https://matteocampagna.com/en/registry/health/energy-carbohydrate-competition-load},
  note = {Version 1; accessed 2026-10-16}
}

Other claims in this domain

See all claims on health and recovery