Diet, Nutrition and Ergogenic Aids | OCR A-Level Physical Education (H555)
Diet, Nutrition and Ergogenic Aids
- 78 questions
- 5 subtopics
- Component 01: Physiological factors affecting performance
- Component 01
Diet, Nutrition and Ergogenic Aids is examined in Component 01, Physiological factors affecting performance.
It covers components of a balanced diet, energy balance, meals and hydration, anabolic steroids, EPO and HGH, blood doping, intermittent hypoxic training and cooling aids and carbohydrate loading and supplements.
Sample questions from Diet, Nutrition and Ergogenic Aids
Answer each one closed book first, then open the answer.
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Components of a balanced diet
Why might a weightlifter need more protein than an inactive person?
Show the answer
Heavy resistance training damages muscle fibres, which must be repaired and rebuilt. Extra protein supports the repair and the increase in muscle mass. -
Components of a balanced diet
Why must sodium lost in sweat be replaced during long events?
Show the answer
Sodium helps control fluid balance and the transmission of nerve impulses. Heavy sweating loses sodium, which can lead to cramp and poor performance. -
Energy balance, meals and hydration
Why might a jockey or a boxer deliberately keep a negative energy balance?
Show the answer
A negative balance reduces body mass so the performer can make a weight limit. Too great a deficit can cause fatigue, weakness and poor recovery. -
Energy balance, meals and hydration
Explain how dehydration affects performance.
Show the answer
Dehydration reduces blood plasma volume and increases blood viscosity. Heart rate rises, sweating falls and body temperature climbs, so performance declines. -
Anabolic steroids, EPO and HGH
What psychological risks do anabolic steroids carry?
Show the answer
Anabolic steroids can cause aggression, mood swings and depression. Users can also become dependent on the drug. -
Anabolic steroids, EPO and HGH
Why is EPO misuse more dangerous during exercise in the heat?
Show the answer
Sweat loss reduces plasma volume, so already thickened blood becomes even more viscous. The heart must work harder and the risk of a clot rises. -
Blood doping, intermittent hypoxic training and cooling aids
What is intermittent hypoxic training (IHT)?
Show the answer
Intermittent hypoxic training involves short, repeated exposures to air low in oxygen. A performer lives at normal altitude but trains or rests in hypoxic conditions. -
Blood doping, intermittent hypoxic training and cooling aids
What are cooling aids?
Show the answer
Cooling aids are used to lower body or skin temperature before, during or after exercise. Examples include ice vests, cold towels, ice slushies and ice baths.
The 5 subtopics
One subtopic is one session. Work down the list.
| Subtopic | What it covers | Questions |
|---|---|---|
| Components of a balanced diet | Carbohydrate and glycogen stores, simple and complex carbohydrates, protein for a weightlifter, fat and its energy per gram, saturated fat, iron, calcium and sodium, B vitamins and vitamin D, fibre and water. | 16 |
| Energy balance, meals and hydration | Energy balance, total daily energy expenditure and basal metabolic rate, positive and negative balance for jockeys and boxers, meal timing and composition, eating after training, dehydration, and hypotonic, isotonic and hypertonic drinks. | 16 |
| Anabolic steroids, EPO and HGH | Anabolic steroids and who is tempted by them, their physical and psychological risks, erythropoietin for road cyclists and its dangers in the heat, human growth hormone and its risks, and pharmacological aids evaluated. | 15 |
| Blood doping, intermittent hypoxic training and cooling aids | Autologous and homologous blood doping and its risks, intermittent hypoxic training and why it is legal, and cooling aids including pre-cooling, ice vests and ice baths between matches. | 15 |
| Carbohydrate loading and supplements | Glycogen loading by the traditional and modified methods, who benefits and its drawbacks, creatine, caffeine, bicarbonate loading in an 800 m race and dietary nitrate, with the side effects of each. | 16 |
How the guide is worked
Answering a question from memory stores it far better than reading the answer again. The guide runs that as a fixed procedure on one subtopic at a time, about twenty minutes a session.
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Step 1 · Closed book
Cover the answers. Work through one subtopic and write down what you can. Leave blanks where you have nothing.
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Step 2 · Open book
Go back to the top. Read each printed answer and write it out in full, including the ones you had right.
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Step 3 · Closed book again
Same questions, same order, from memory. The gap between pass one and pass three is the session result.
Read the full method, the return schedule and the research behind it.
Nearby topics
OCR A-Level Physical Education Active Recall Guide
Every topic, not just this one. 2,133 questions with their answers.