The Centre for Integrative Sports Nutrition
The home of integrative thinkers, where 'health feeds performance'
Courses & Dates
Short Course in Integrative Sport and Exercise Nutrition
Discover the transformative power of integrative sport and exercise nutrition
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The Certificate of Integrative Sport and Exercise Nutrition
Now accepting applications for the 27th of May 2025 start date!
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Level 7 Diploma in Integrative Sport and Exercise Nutrition
Prepare for a powerful career in integrative sport and exercise nutrition.
Now accepting applications for the 27th of May 2025 start date!
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The world’s first course to bring integrative thinking into sport and exercise nutrition

What is integrative sports nutrition?

In the context of health and human performance, the word ‘integrative’ takes on pivotal meanings. Rather than simply viewing food as ‘fuel’, we must honour the incredible sophistication of nature, and recognise that our day-to-day dietary choices have the power to nourish all of our mind-body systems. Gastrointestinal, immune, detoxification, musculoskeletal, neuroendocrine, bioenergetic, and mental-emotional health all integrate with one another to such a degree that their function is completely inter-dependant.

Another use of the word ‘integrative’ pertains to the interaction of ‘professional perspectives’, meaning that different practitioners can add value to an athletic client’s experience by supporting them in different ways. With this in mind, the Centre for Integrative Sports Nutrition (CISN) teachings draw from a diverse set of clinically experienced lecturers; this team approach is designed to help you to build your own clinical experience and unique perspectives.

Why is integrative health important for physical performance?

The main paradigm that has existed within the academic enquiry of sports nutrition for the past half century has centred around the conviction that macronutrients are required as ‘fuel’ for exercise endeavours. This notion provides an important basis of quantitative nutritional support, but what happens, for example, when your active client lacks adequate digestive health to assimilate these foods, and in the process creates an inflammatory tone in his or her body?

The central thesis of integrative sports nutrition (within all CISN courses and modules) is ‘health feeds performance’.

By consuming highly nourishing foods in a personalised way, your athletic client should experience increased health resilience. By also helping them to manage their life loads, reduce toxic exposure, balance training demands, and carefully choose bespoke supplementation, they can better tolerate demanding performance-focused strategies, and optimise training adaptations.

History of integrative sports nutrition

Integrative and functional thinking in health is not a new notion. It has been visibly incorporated in medicine since the 1980s, and long before this time within traditional practices. How this evolving discipline of integrative sports nutrition came about was that CISN founder, Ian Craig, was asked to deliver a postgraduate sports nutrition module by a nutritional therapy institute in 2007. At the time, he could not find a suitable textbook for the course, so he set about bridging the principles from integrative and functional medicine into conventional sports nutrition teachings. Since that time Ian has developed and delivered an array of integrative courses and conferences, edited the Functional Sports Nutrition magazine, and built up extensive clinical practice. These experiences eventually culminated in the launching of the CISN Certificate of Integrative Sports Nutrition course in 2018, which has since diversified towards our current portfolio of courses and modules.

Learn integrative sport and exercise nutrition

CISN is the first (and currently only) organisation to apply integrative thinking into the context of sport and exercise nutrition.

Our key objective is to train and mentor sport, exercise and nutrition professionals, plus students of these subjects, to embrace the complexity and individuality of an exercising person: to nourish an athlete’s health and performance through an expansive way of integrative thinking.

Within the context of heavy training loads, often alongside significant life stresses, practitioners trained in this way can support the robust health and performance of active individuals in a personalised way. Not only should this approach maximise an athletes’ potential sporting success, but it can extend the length of their athletic careers, plus provide them with tools to maintain active health throughout their lives.

Read more about integrative sport and exercise nutrition, read the article by Ian Craig

Portfolio of Courses

Certificate Course

Join our innovative founding course for a 9 month immersion

Certificate Course

Develop your integrative sports nutrition knowledge and expertise within a highly progressive learning environment.
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Level 7 Diploma

Prepare for a powerful career in integrative sport and exercise nutrition

Level 7 Diploma

Industry accredited path to profound personal growth and expansive understanding of sport and exercise nutrition.
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Natural Sports Cookery

Energise your athletes through food selection and preparation

Sports Cookery

Excite your taste buds, expand your culinary repertoire, and improve your athletes’ health-based performance.
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CPD/CEU Modules

What we offer

The Centre for Integrative Sports Nutrition hosts an array of sports nutrition educational opportunities, all taught from a base of integrative thinking and applied practice in mind. You can choose a short immersion, such as our 4-week short course and specialty modules that are intended for professional development (CPD/CEU). Or you can attend our well respected practitioner-focussed certificate course or our flagship Level 7 (postgraduate equivalent) 1 to 2 year diploma course.  

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CISN (the Centre for Integrative Sports Nutrition) trains and mentors exercise and nutrition professionals to manage an athlete’s health and performance through an expansive way of integrative thinking.

We bridge the gap between what has historically been two very separate disciplines: conventional sports and performance nutrition, and the integrative/functional medicine and nutritional therapy approach.

At CISN we believe that if an athlete is to achieve their performance goals, they must firstly build a solid foundation of optimal health. This doesn’t just enable them to perform well in one race, one competition, or one season – but to perform well for life.

What makes us different

Why our approach matters

Centre For Integrative Sports Nutrition

Reviews

Ian Craig

MSc DipCNE INLPTA FBANT

Is the founder of the Centre for Integrative Sports Nutrition. With his joint academic backgrounds in exercise physiology and nutritional therapy, and an extensive sports grounding as a middle-distance athlete and coach, he has been developing the concept of integrative sport and exercise nutrition for the past twenty years. This is a fast-evolving discipline that considers both the health and performance of an athlete from an integrative health perspective.

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