Of all the things that humans interact with on a daily basis, food might be the thing based most on pure instinct. You can’t trick your body into feeling a different way about food, just like you can’t trick your body into processing foods in a different way. It’s an integral part of our lives (we need it to not die) and every person’s relationship with it is completely unique.

That’s why, unlike the myriad of external factors that affect an athlete’s performance, nutrition is the easiest to understand — on the surface, anyway. Healthy and sustainable eating is something that everyone should strive for, and it only stands to reason that competitors are always refining their nutrition plans in order to be in top form. But when it comes to esports athletes in particular, what part does nutrition really play? And how can we better understand the exact causes and effects of an esports diet such that the average person can replicate it for themselves?

In our last Alienware Pro Lab article, we looked at cognitive profiles and how cognitive function manifests differently depending on what in-game role someone is playing. This time, we’re spotlighting the role of nutrition in an esports athlete’s performance, how food affects a competitor’s physical state, and which factors are most important when it comes to esports. And hopefully, once you learn more about the best foods for pro performance, you’ll be able to implement them into your daily life too. (And maybe get out of wherever you’re hardstuck — no promises though. A good diet only does so much.)

Food for thought

This is probably obvious, but let’s state it anyway: esports athletes have much different dietary needs than traditional athletes.

“A lot of wisdom around nutrition in esports comes from traditional sports,” said Jesse Hart, Team Liquid’s Senior Director of Sports Science and Analytics. (And record-breaking speedrunner.) “Traditional sports have very different physiological needs than esports. Yes, brain function and motor skills are important, but they also have to worry about muscle recovery, energy levels… [in esports] we’re really hyper-optimizing for hand-eye coordination and stuff like that. So, instead, we draw more inspiration from sports and activities that require focus and precision, like archery or chess.”

When delving into research around nutrition, the Alienware Pro Lab identified three main “pillars” that are most important for esports athletes to hit: 

1. brain oxygenation, 
2. blood sugar management, 
3. and sustaining energy levels. 

Each of these three pillars aims to help athletes perform at a consistently high level without experiencing fatigue, especially for long periods of time. Think of a grueling marathon event like the Race to World First, which often unfolds over the course of several weeks. If our guild members’ brains weren’t functioning at optimal levels, it’d likely be a pretty miserable experience — something that we can avoid as best we can via nutrition.

The key to understanding how nutrition factors into a competitor’s performance is a simple formula: “Ability – Interference = Performance.” There are many things that can “interfere” with someone’s ability, with nutrition and diet being only one part of the puzzle. But if we can optimize that, then we’ve at least cut out one interloper. And at the absolute highest level of the game, the competition can be decided by one inch, one interference.

The three pillars

Okay, so we have three pillars to build around when we’re creating a good esports diet. But what does each “pillar” really do, and how do you even optimize something like “brain oxygenation”?

Well, let’s start there — with that first pillar. The brain is the most energy-hungry organ in the body, consuming an estimated 50% of our energy. You probably know that oxygen is necessary for humans to survive, but you might not know about the exact role in our brain function. The neurons in our brain communicate with each other via synapses, and nitric oxide — AKA nitrogen plus oxygen — is the thing that facilitates these synapses. So, basically, stimulating either oxygen or nitrogen is a way of increasing your brain’s efficiency.

Luckily, we already get quite a bit of oxygen. You’re getting it right now, in fact. It’s a cool new technique called “breathing.” The other half of the equation, nitrogen, is also fairly easy to stimulate through consuming vegetables (Jesse recommends beetroot in particular) — and if you’re short on time or bad with veggies, Thorne’s Daily Greens supplement is a good quick fix. (Yes, I know it’s salesy, but it really is a favorite among our talent and athletes for a reason.) 

But oxygen and nitrogen don’t just synthesize to create nitric oxide on their own. They require something called arginine, an amino acid that lives in your bloodstream. Unfortunately, you can’t just “get” arginine via natural means; it’s usually filtered out of your body via the liver before it reaches your brain. So, we instead want to stimulate citrulline, another amino acid that turns into arginine in the kidneys, which is then released into the bloodstream and then goes to the brain. Simple stuff, really!

A natural way of stimulating citrulline is watermelon, which is extremely dense in citrulline. If you do want a shortcut to arginine, though, Thorne’s L-Arginine supplement is a more effective and direct way of getting it through a “sustained release,” helping you maintain optimal levels of arginine over a period of time.* With the help of arginine, that nitric oxide will be pumping through your brain, which allows it to function better and more efficiently.* Jesse said that he intends to test out the L-Arginine supplement soon, to see what role it could fulfill in Team Liquid’s nutrition plan. (He’s also pushing for more watermelon in the facilities.)

So, now we know about the importance of keeping the brain well-oxygenated. The second pillar is blood sugar management, a somewhat volatile metric that’s pretty important to keep well-balanced. High blood sugar can make you jittery and unfocused; low blood sugar can make you lethargic and understimulated. You’ve most likely experienced a sugar crash at least once in your life — so you know the highs and the lows. That’s the kind of energy fluctuation esports athletes should be trying to avoid, for the sake of their consistency. 

The final pillar is sustaining energy levels, which is tied to blood sugar management. This is the most nebulous pillar, since there are many different ways energy can be kept consistent. For example, foods like oats help to regulate blood sugar and keep levels constant so that players aren’t experiencing an energy crash.

“If you think of fighting game tournaments, those things are full on for three days,” Jesse said. “You need to be giving your all for most of that. You’ve got to keep your energy high through the whole thing. Plus, you’re doing meet and greets, and things like that… players’ lives are busy. It’s not just about the game for them. Energy is an important thing to be concerned about.”

So, there you have it: the three pillars of esports nutrition. I’ve tried to break them down as succinctly as possible here, but it’s still impossible to fully understand without being cognizant of your eating habits and their effects. That’s the thing about food — we can talk about amino acids and blood sugar all day, but ultimately, the way we understand it is through how it feels.

“When you talk to these guys, they’re not gonna understand that language,” said Heidi Miranda-Marsh, Executive Chef at the Alienware Training Facility in Los Angeles. Heidi caters for Team Liquid staff and players every day, and her skill and expertise is invaluable especially when it comes to a juggernaut like the Race to World First.

“They’re gonna understand things like ‘you’re gonna think faster, you’re gonna have a better memory,’” said Heidi. “I’m not gonna talk science-y to them. My keywords are ‘think’ and ‘feel.’”

An individualized approach

Even among esports athletes, who all need to prioritize similar things when it comes to nutrition, a diet is never a one-size-fits-all deal.

“Nutrition is an individualized thing,” Heidi said. “The key for us is to understand who the people are that we’re cooking for. I’m not just cooking for the LoL team — I’m cooking for APA, and cooking for UmTi, and cooking for [Spawn]... and understanding, on an individual level, their likes, dislikes, and wellness goals. We have to work closely with the performance managers, who fill out a dietary analysis form that may include things like allergies or dietary preferences, but it also includes wellness goals. Do they want to be fit? Do they just want to feel good? If we can get people what they want, specifically in food, they’re going to be happier, and I think mood has a lot to do with it. If they’re happier, they’re going to be healthier, for sure.”

Heidi stressed the importance of not denying yourself foods that you enjoy in the name of healthy eating. She takes a different approach when it comes to our esports athletes: the age-old tactic of sneaking vegetables into the food that they already like. Much like dogs who need to take their heartworm medication, sometimes, players need to be tricked into eating healthy. However, unlike dogs who need to take their heartworm medication, the players’ bodies become so accustomed to these iron and vitamin-rich offerings that they begin to crave them. 

So healthy eating isn’t a matter of constantly forcing yourself to eat salad when you’d rather be eating literally anything else. Instead, it’s kind of like a cycle: once you find a way to eat healthy that works for you, you begin to feel better, and that will make you want to keep eating healthy. Our bodies don’t lie to us, after all. And it’s okay to have a burger or pizza every so often, if you’re craving it. It’s not about punishing yourself — it’s about understanding yourself.

The future of esports nutrition

Esports nutrition is a relatively new field, and one that we’re going to have to keep working at. Jesse told me that the Alienware Pro Lab intends to keep delving into it to make sure our players’ performances can be fully optimized at all times.

“We're still establishing baselines and understandings, but we're trying to understand what the optimal physiological condition for a player is to perform at their best,” he said. “Part of it is exercise and sleep and all the other good things, but part of it is diet — making sure that they're in the physiological shape to do what they need to do.”

That’s the other thing about nutrition — it’s not the only thing, but it does help quite a bit. Thorne supplements play a similar role; they shouldn’t be the thing you solely rely on to get your greens or vitamin intake, but they can help bolster your brainpower and general performance.*

“Each supplement has a place,” said Heidi. “I have one player that's just not hungry in the morning, so when I see him, I'll put a smoothie in his hand. For him, I'm putting in protein powder along with berries, probiotics… I'm making a formula for him that's going to sustain him as a meal replacement. And with our guys at Race to World First, we make a punch every day where we add Catalyte to keep their brain function going. That's helping them process information and stay focused. Then, near the evening, I'll offer them the sleep aids, to promote the kind of rest and relaxation that they need. I'm sure their brain is just buzzing when they leave here after going for 14 hours — I know mine is — so there's definitely a time and place for each supplement. Thorne has been a big complement to what we do here and how we operate with different teams and individuals.”

Ultimately, understanding nutrition is a way for us to better understand ourselves. While there are no true shortcuts to a full sense of understanding, there are ways to make the path faster. And even though we’ve focused on performance in gaming, everything here applies to jobs, hobbies, projects, and all kinds of things that require a high level of focus. So regardless of if you’re trying to hit a new rank or just move a little more efficiently for life — take what we’ve learned and see if it works for you.

* These statements have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration. This product is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease.