PRE-SLEEP FEEDING IN NCAA DIVISION I FEMALE ATHLETES

Abstract

Casey Greenwalt1, Lilliana Rentería1, Katherine Schiltz1, Elisa Angeles1, Abbie Smith-Ryan, FACSM2, Chris Bach3, Matthew Vukovich, FACSM4, Stacy Sims5, Tucker Zeleny3, Kristen Holmes6, David Presby7, Michael Ormsbee, FACSM1. 1Florida State University, Tallahassee, FL. 2University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, NC. 3University of Nebraska, Lincoln, NE. 4South Dakota State University, Brookings, SD. 5Auckland University of Technology, Auckland. 6WHOOP, Inc., Boston, MA. 7WHOOP, Inc, Boston, MA. BACKGROUND: Due to the high metabolic demand of sport, it is essential that athletes meet their caloric need to support training, recovery, and muscle growth. Consuming protein (30-40g) before sleep may have positive effects on muscle protein synthesis, overnight recovery, and performance. Currently no data exists to assess pre-sleep nutrition habits in elite female athletes. PURPOSE: To examine the frequency and content of pre-sleep nutrition in elite female athletes. METHODS: 483 Division I female athletes (mean ± SD: age: 21.4 ± 2.5 yrs, weight 67.1 ± 10.2 kg, height 171.2 ± 8.9 cm) from four universities wore a WHOOP, Inc. band 24h a day for the entire 2020-2021 competitive season to measure activity, sleep, and recovery. Surveys were administered through the WHOOP app every 3 days over the season to collect data on pre-sleep feeding habits. Descriptive results were completed using R studio. RESULTS: 3741 pre-sleep feeding survey responses were recorded. Of that, 23.9% (n = 895) of the data was unusable as caloric content could not be determined due to insufficient data reported. The remaining 76.1% (n = 2846) of the survey responses were made up of 276 athletes, of which, 21% (n = 58) ate before bed more than once. The average pre-sleep food intake for n=58 consisted of total kcals (mean ± SD: 283.4 ± 68.8 kcals), protein (8.3 ± 3.2g; 11.5% of total kcals), carbohydrate (35.8 ± 13.0 g; 50.4% of total kcals), and fat (12.1 ± 3.8 g; 38.1% of total kcals). Percentage of each sport that ate before sleep was 24.1% soccer, 13.8% swimming, 12.2% cross country, 8.6% volleyball, 6.9% softball, 5.3% beach volleyball, 3.4% golf, lacrosse, and tennis, 1.7% basketball, and 17.2% the sport was not specified. CONCLUSIONS: This is the first study to investigate the self-reported frequency of pre-sleep feeding in a wide range of female sports at the NCAA Division I level. Of 483 female athletes in the study, only 58 users recorded that they ate before bed on more than one occurrence. Meals prior to bed primarily consisted of carbohydrate (50.4%) and fat (38.1%), with only 11.5% of pre-sleep kcals coming from protein. The impact of pre-sleep feeding on next-day performance and recovery is warranted. This study was supported by WHOOP, Inc