Why Rojo needed that banana mid-match!

It was no laughing matter according to Jose Mourinho, but many people were surprised and slightly amused to see Manchester Utd defender Marcos Rojo asking for a banana mid-second half during last week's 1-0 win against Russian side Rostov.

The naturally healthy choice? 

But I agree with Mourinho that fuelling the body efficiently during a physically and mentally intense 90 minutes is not a laughing matter - in fact, it's essential. Not only for staving off muscular cramps, but also for keeping energy, focus and concentration high, as well as ensuring recovery is optimum in time for the next big match (less than 72 hours later in this case).



Banana vs energy drink  

Perhaps it would've been less strange to see Rojo swigging on a bottle of Lucozade sport 75 minutes in - but is a banana the healthier and more effective fuel? Let's take a look...

	Banana	500ml Lucozade Sport
Calories (energy)	100 approx	140
Sugars	14.4 (3.5 tsp)	18g (4.5 tsp)
Fibre	3.1g	0g
Protein	1.3g	0g
Sodium	1mg	250mg
Potassium	358mg	0g

So the main differences are the fibre content (a banana has three times the fibre of Lucozade) and the potassium and sodium content. 

Potassium and sodium are both needed for keeping electrolytes balance in the body - and when we sweat, we lose both potassium and sodium. Imbalances in electrolytes can lead to muscular cramps, fatigue, light headedness, poor concentration and in more severe cases vomiting and diarrhoea. 

When exercising, particularly for any length of time it's not enough simply to replace fluid - salts are needed too to keep the electrolytes in the body in balance. 

Timing is key

Cramps

As we can see in the table, bananas are a good source of potassium - which may help to prevent muscular cramps, and also a source of carbohydrate. So far so good. But how long does it take for the potassium in the banana to get into the bloodstream? 

Unfortunately, the science says that it takes 30-60 minutes for the potassium from a banana to raise blood levels, and even with two bananas, this increase is marginal - so the chances are, if you have a banana 75 minutes into a match it would be too late in the game (literally) for benefits to be seen. 

As a half-time snack however, it may just be early enough to prevent cramps towards the end of a match, although as the rise in potassium is slight, these effects will still be minimal. 

Energy

We know that muscles only store enough energy to fuel around 60 minutes of intense exercise, so any time after 60minutes, footballers need to top up with something containing sugar. 

However, different types of sugars are absorbed and used at different speeds - fruit sugar (fructose) is used more slowly than glucose or sucrose, meaning it'll take longer to notice effects on energy. 

As a banana only has around 14g of sugar and almost half of this sugar is fructose, this won't have a huge effect on energy levels. In addition to this, the fibre in the banana also slows the release of the sugar into the blood and may also cause gastric discomfort. 

Uh-oh, so Rojo's 'healthy' choice of the banana is now looking less and less like the optimum choice for this athlete at this stage in the game. 

All in the mind

But there is hope! The psychological effect of having an energy 'booster' can also be significant. We know from studies using placebos that this can have a big impact on performance. And as a bonus - Rojo may also benefit from better tooth health by choosing the fruit over the sports drink (perhaps not top of his priorities but given that 4/10 premier league footballers have ongoing tooth decay, and a huge 8/10 have gum disease it's a concern). 

Recovery

Although the banana may not lead to huge benefits in energy, may not reduce muscle cramps at this late stage, and may even cause gastric upset due to the fibre content, the saving grace may come by way of the effect on recovery. We know that the less depleted the body is of carbohydrate during exercise, the quicker the muscle recovery, the higher the stores of carbohydrate for the next exercise session, and the smaller the effects on the immune system that intense exercise will have - all of which are crucial during packed premier league schedules. 

The verdict

The banana is better than nothing but probably is too little too late at 75 minutes. A better choice would be a sports drink at half time, topped up throughout the second half. And a high carb plus protein drink or snack immediately post-match.