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- A sports nutritionist focuses most of his workouts on running and resistance training.
- He times his carb intake when he works out, opting for fresh sourdough and pasta.
- He shared how he gets other nutrients, like protein and fiber, in addition to carbs.
Dr. Samuel Impey eats a lot of carbs. In fact, they're the backbone of his diet.
"I'm weirdly passionate about bread," Impey, a sports nutritionist who focuses on endurance performance and the former lead nutritionist for the British cycling team, told Business Insider. "But it has to be a really good, preferably pretty fresh sourdough."
Freshly baked bread is minimally processed, while some types, like whole wheat sourdough, offer additional nutrients like protein and fiber.
As a marathon runner and dad, Impey, 38, makes sure to balance his love of carbs with the nutritional demands of workouts, recovery, and keeping up with his family.
Here's how he seamlessly fits bread — and other carbohydrates, — into his diet without skimping on protein, fiber, and essential vitamins.
Timing carbs around workouts
Impey usually exercises in the early evenings on weekdays, after he picks his son up from nursery, or on weekend mornings.
"Most of the carbohydrates tend to be around my workout, so before or afterward or kind of an even split in between," he said. Potatoes, rice, and pasta help him feel energized before a run or recover after one.
Breakfast might be a "really nice slice of toast" from a local bakery with some local honey or homemade jam. After evening workouts, he and his wife — also a runner — often make pasta together, topping it with homemade sauce. "We are huge pasta fans," he said. "At any one time, we'll have three or four kinds of pasta shapes in the house."
On long runs, he uses sports gels that contain simple carbohydrates and electrolytes to replenish his energy.
A little protein in every meal
Instead of packing in protein-heavy breakfasts or dinners, Impey likes to sprinkle it throughout his meals.
"I try to distribute it relatively evenly across the day," he said. That helps him hit the daily minimum needed for muscle growth: 0.36 grams of protein per pound of body weight.
He'll have a berry smoothie with yogurt and milk for breakfast, and a 20-gram milk-based protein drink from the supermarket as a snack.
For lunch, he usually has leftovers or a sandwich, such as chicken-pesto with vegetables or a BLT. "Again, that really good bread comes into play," he said.
Dinner might be a high-protein meal like honey-glazed salmon with some noodles.
He has a daily fruit and vegetable goal — leaving room for treats
Bread and pasta may anchor his meals, but Impey still hits his vitamin goals.
Impey said his 18-month-old son "absolutely loves fruit, so there's always loads of fruit in the house, which is good." It helps him eat enough fiber, which is overall important for heart health, fat loss, and even colon cancer prevention.
He and his family aim to eat at least three — and preferably up to five — different colors of fresh fruits and vegetables in a day, which helps diversify gut microbiomes and is great for gut health.
"Most meals have a vegetable or a fruit with them, which helps," he said, such as sweet potato wedges as a side. As a snack, he'll "try and be good and have an apple or a little orange in the middle of the afternoon."
Sometimes, that fruit comes with a little extra treat with his tea or coffee. "A couple of little biscuits will sneak in there," he said. "They always seem to appear, somehow."
