Training and competing at elite as well as sub-elite level requires an optimal functioning of the body. This review looks at the case of the Kenyan runners, who consume a relatively high-quality diet based on vegetable sources with maize and kidney beans as the staple foods. The diet is high in carbohydrate and total protein, but low to borderline in a few essential amino acids. The timing of diet intake – immediately after training sessions – is optimal for skeletal muscle glycogen resynthesis that is enhanced without the help of insulin up to 60 min after cessation of exercise. Whether the total energy intake of the Kenyan runners is adequate is debatable. However, chronic undernutrition is not possible for athletes who engage in daily high-quality and -quantity physical exercise throughout most of the year. It is suggested that Kenyan runners participate in well-controlled, laboratory studies to investigate the quality of local foods and performance, as well as possible physiological adaptation mechanisms among athletes with a high habitual energy turnover.

A nutritional survey based on twelve adolescent male Kalenjin runners in Kenya during a 2-week field study was carried out in order to determine the composition of their diet and make a comparison with macronutrient recommendations for athletes. Food samples were collected for analysis of macronutrient distribution and energy content from main meals and the macronutrient distribution and energy content of additional food intake were based on the information of a 24 h recall interview and estimated from food tables. The diet of the Kalenjin runners was very high in carbohydrate (71 % 8·7 g/kg body weight per d) and very low in fat (15 %). Intake of total protein (13 %; 1·6 g/kg body weight per d) was above the daily intake recommended by the Food and Agriculture Organization/World Health Organization/United Nations University (FAO/WHO/UNU), while essential amino acid intake was estimated to be in the borderline-to-low range based on FAO/WHO/UNU recommendations for children <12 years and adults. The energy intake was mainly derived from vegetable sources (90 %) with maize and kidney beans as the staple food (81 %). The diet of the Kalenjin runners met recommendations for endurance athletes for total protein and most essential amino acid intake as well as carbohydrate intake even though it was based on a small range of food items.