Sports Nutrition Course (Level 3 Diploma)

A distance learning course is the ideal way to gain a Level 3 Diploma in Sports Nutrition.

Whether you're looking to go on to further education, improve your job prospects or expand your knowledge, distance learning Diploma in Sports Nutrition is a flexible and convenient course, which allows you to comprehensively prepare for an exam or career through home study.

What's more, because the distance learning Level 3 Diploma in Sports Nutrition course is a fully comprehensive course, no prior knowledge is required.

This Quality Assured Level 3 Diploma is suitable for all those who wish to achieve an understanding of the principles of good nutrition and would like to be able to relate this to sport.

It will be of interest to you if, you exercise to keep fit, are interested in training others, whether as coaches or as parents/guardians of young athletes, participate regularly in sporting activities, from marathons to tennis tournaments, or are training to reach peak levels in their chosen activity.

The course will cover a broad variety of topic areas including types of performance enhancers and meal planning to coaching young athletes.

COURSE KEY TOPICS 
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Module 1 - Dietary Nutrients
Module 2 - Performance Enhancers
Module 3 - Fluid Management
Module 4 - Weight Management
Module 5 - Managing Body Composition
Module 6 - Women Athletes
Module 7 - Young Athletes
Module 8 - Before, During and After Exercise
Module 9 - Meal Planning
Module 10 - Sports Nutrition for different Sports

HOME STUDY SUPPORT 
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You will be provided with comprehensive materials designed to provide you with everything required to complete your course of study. You will have your own personal tutor helping you with your course work and with any questions you may have. Plus you can contact our Student Advisors by email or phone for all the practical advice you may need – so we really are with you 100%.

What's more, you'll have access to the online student portal, where you can interact with other students, browse our resource library and manage your account.

COURSE ASSESSMENT 
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When you have completed the programme, your tutor needs to verify that you have worked through all parts of any Workbooks, Activities and Exercises successfully.

100% of the final mark is made up of an online multiple choice exam.

Upon verification of the activities, exercises and assignments, you will be awarded your diploma by OLQA as confirmation that your written work has met all of the learning outcomes and assessment criteria for the programme.

COURSE DURATION 
We recommended you spend approximately 200 hours of your time studying for the Sports Nutrition course. The pace of study is completely up to you. To give an example, if you dedicate 4 hours a week to the course it would take you a year to complete but if you could spare 8 hours a week you could complete it in six months.

HOME STUDY COURSE ENTRY REQUIREMENTS
All Students must be 16 years of age or above.

The good news is that no prior learning knowledge or experience is essential to take this course. This course is openly available to anyone wishing to learn more about Sports Nutrition and would like to take part in a highly rewarding home study course. We believe that everyone should have the opportunity to expand their knowledge and study further, so we try to keep our entry requirements to a minimum.

You have the freedom to start the course at any time and continue your studies at your own pace for a period of up to 12 months from initial registration with full tutor support.

The Level 3 Sports Nutrition course is divided into ten comprehensive modules:

Module 1 - Dietary Nutrients
This module introduces the basics of good nutrition. It helps us understand how to introduce good nutrition into our daily lives and teaches us concepts such as "Energy Balance", "Body Mass Index" and "The Harris Benedict Equation".

The important dietary nutrients of carbohydrate, protein and fats and oils are explained in more detail.

As fat is the nutrient needed least by our body, we also look at ways of achieving a healthy intake of fat in this module, as well as variety in our diet.

Module 2 - Performance Enhancers
Is good nutrition enough for us to perform at our best? Should we try to enhance our performance by taking supplements? Are products, which claim to give us the edge over our competitors worth the money? These are some of the key questions we look at throughout this module.

We explore the role of vitamins and minerals, highlighting the key ones for our purpose of enhancing health and performance.

We discover what antioxidants actually are, where we can find them and what the benefits of them in our diets are.

There is a vast market of products including, sports foods, gels, bars, meal replacement products, all claiming to enhance our sporting performance. Do they do as they say? This is something we discuss further in this module. There are also supplements, which are illegal in the sporting arena. We look at what these are, what they claim to do and whether these claims are justified.

Module 3 - Fluid Management
Ensuring we consume enough fluid is vital to our health and to our performance as athletes. This module looks at all the issues surrounding fluid intake, from how much we need to drink to remain well hydrated, to the problems associated with dehydration and heat stress.

Module 4 - Weight Management
Weight management is not solely the concern of athletes, although many athletes do have to "make weight" for their particular sport. If we look specifically at jockeys, then we can understand why weight management may be an issue. You will not find many athletes who are, what we may consider as being "overweight". However, to perform at their best, a lot of athletes like to shed a few pounds of body fat.

Module 5 - Managing Body Composition
This module follows on from the previous one, in that it looks at ways of managing your body composition once you reach the weight you want. You will gain an understanding of the link between body fat and performance and how to measure your own body fat distribution. In this module, you will find out how to gain weight successfully, by following a weight-gain eating plan and weight-gain tips. Once you have the extra muscle you need, you will also be able to make sure that, after exercise, you can repair and regenerate muscle.

Module 6 - Women Athletes
This module deals specifically with some of the issues that might impact on a woman athlete.

We look more closely at eating disorders and disordered eating and identify the difference. We study terms like "Amenorrhoea" and "Osteoporosis", finding out their meanings and how they relate to a women's sporting life.

One of the main risks for women is not consuming enough iron to support their training and/or competition. It is important to consume sufficient iron and included in this module are suggestions of how to do this and what to include in your diet.

Also specific to women are the issues of pregnancy, premenstrual tension and the menopause. We consider all these in general terms and in relation to athletic performance.

Module 7 - Young Athletes
This module will be of particular importance to the parents and coaches of young athletes, as it deals with all the issues that may affect a young athletes health and performance.

Some of the questions we pose are, "Why are young athletes more susceptible to dehydration than adult athletes?" And " How can we encourage young athletes to consume enough fluid?"

We learn, not only about their fluid needs, but also about their energy, protein and carbohydrate needs and how these differ to the needs of adult athletes. Meal timing is also an important issue for young athletes, as quite often, when "on the go" all the time, eating is not a priority for young athletes.

Module 8 - Before, During and After Exercise
This module brings together a lot of the information we have studied so far in this Diploma and relates it specifically to training for a specific event. It looks in detail at your nutritional needs before, during and after exercise, highlighting the best food and drink choices at specific times of the day. As well as this, details about what and when to eat and drink at competition time are included.

We look at what "carbohydrate loading" is and how it might benefit certain athletic performance.

Ways of avoiding injury are also included in this module.

Module 9 - Meal Planning
This is a very practical module, in that it asks you to design a personal nutrition programme, taking into account all the personal details of the athlete and the sport they are striving to achieve in. It may be for yourself or for someone you are coaching.

Included in your plan will be lots of suggestions and ideas for meals, as essentially it is what your athlete eats and drinks at certain times of the day that will be the key to their success.

Also included in this module are ideas for meals for vegetarian athletes.

Your nutrition plan will also be concerned with how to boost immune function by consuming certain foods and drinks so that, at certain times of the year, you do not become prone to the coughs and colds that inevitably go round.

Module 10 - Sports Nutrition for different Sports
In the final module of this course, you will learn about 4 differing sports and how nutritional needs may alter both within the sport and between the different sports.

Minimum 16 years of age.