The World of Sports Nutrition

By Eddy Sutio

Advancements in medicine and an increase in capitalism in the world as well as other factors all contributed to the development of the field of sports nutrition.

As scientists learned more and more about our bodies and the optimum level of strength and physical fitness they can harbor, businessmen jumped the gun and manufactured products and services that actually help athletes meet these optimum levels. The media joined in the ruckus and published materials leading to the promotion of both the scientific and the commercial side of the field.

Sports nutrition has been changing through the years around the world. It’s not just that the topics are different – the emphasis and approach have also changed.

Peak Performance, a sports magazine carried an article on dehydration in runners on October 1990, its maiden issue. This article compared the benefits of plain water with those of dilute glucose solutions, which are more isotonic and therefore absorbed more rapidly.

Today, go into almost any supermarket, convenience stores and even school cafeterias and you’ll find a ready supply of sports drinks aimed at maintaining hydration just like glucose solutions. 

The difference is that by using soluble long-chain glucose polymers instead of simple glucose, it’s now possible to create an isotonic hydrating drink which also supplies significant amounts of carbohydrate to working muscles. And, the good thing is, sports drinks also taste better.

More than 10 years ago, it was made public that muscle damage brought about by free-radicals may be reduced by having supplements of antioxidant vitamins A, C and E. Years after, antioxidant supplementation became a norm in the world of sports nutrition.

Now, researchers are also beginning to understand that muscle damage is a more complex subject.  It is difficult to assess free radical damage in athletes and it has been found out that large amounts of antioxidant nutrients may actually cause cellular damage and impair performance.

The “Carbo loading” technique has been widely used over the years by athletes all over the world. A carbohydrate-rich diet is important in maintaining muscle glycogen stores thus ensuring high endurance levels.

However, in the 1990’s it became clear that the ‘glycaemic index’ and release rate of different carbohydrates had important influence on when they should best be consumed in relation to physical activity.

The relationship of carbohydrates and proteins were also discovered namely that carbohydrates promote protein-sparing in the body. It was also discovered recently that consuming carbohydrates before and during prolonged bouts of strenuous exercise can help protect the immune system.

One of the most exciting recent developments in sports nutrition has been the rise of creatine supplementation. The use of creatine is now very common. Creatine renews the muscles essential energy source, ATP or adenosine triphosphate. Increased levels in muscles optimizes energy turnover meaning you’ll more energy for high power exercise and faster recovery during and after workouts. Creatine also increases the athlete’s maximum effort, delays fatigue and therefore prolongs endurance.

New wisdom and therefore new products have definitely enabled athletes to fuel themselves better, work harder, train longer and recover more rapidly. However, as in any kind of innovation there will always be downsides.

Nutritional supplements available to most athletes in the 80’s were very straightforward. Some athletes took drugs but the boundaries between nutritional supplements and drugs clear. Today, the race to find new formulas to boost performance has resulted to the availability of sports nutrition supplements which do not really occur naturally. The result is that the distinction between a nutrient and a performance-enhancing substance has become increasingly blurred.

Some of these supplements contain ingredients that can cause athletes to violate the rules and regulations governing their sport because of unintentional contamination by other, ‘exotic’, substances present in the supplement manufacturing environment.

More developments will be created in the world of sports nutrition and these will definitely spawn ethical questions. “Nutrigenomics”—the relationship between genetics and nutrition—will be more researched upon.

As scientists become more skilled at discovering the processes of our genes, it will be possible that rather than adopting a general approach for sports nutrition, athletes around the world will be genetically tested to help them determine precise individual requirements for optimum health.

The next years will predictably be more exciting for the world of sports nutrition.

Worldwide Sports Nutrition

Pure Protein Drink Fruit Punch

By EdySutio

Pure protein drink fruit punch is one of the most popular sports nutrition worldwide next to pure protein drink in vanilla and chocolate. This protein drink fruit punch helps athletes improve their physical endurance, game performance, increate energy and mental alertness.

This sports nutrition known worldwide contains a large dose of protein, which an athlete needs to build more muscles. It is also packed with vitamins, minerals and other necessary elements to boost energy and strength for your body. 

These great tasting, pure protein drink fruit punch are convenient meal replacements for those who are in a high protein, less fat diet or as a meal addition for those who are in high protein and carbohydrates diet. For busy people this sports nutrition is a great alternative meal whenever you are on the go. You can buy a canister of pure protein drink fruit punch in any health stores, worldwide.

Pure protein drink fruit punch is available in a variety of fruity flavors such as strawberry, orange, grape and apple. Athletes and bodybuilders love this sports nutrition because they lactose free, therefore well-suited for their adult digestive systems. This pure protein drink fruit punch is low in sugar, calories and carbohydrates. 

The protein in pure protein drink fruit punch may come from whey, egg protein, soy protein, milk protein, or calcium caseinate protein, or a combination of all. Choose which protein will be good for your digestive system. If you are lactose intolerant, avoid pure protein drink fruit punch made from milk protein. It may cause you irritable bowel or even diarrhea. 

To get the necessary or sufficient daily intake of protein in your body, you can add pure protein drink fruit punch to your baking dishes. You can add it to your low-fat, low-sugar cake, oatmeal cookie or carrot cake.

You will get all of the essential vitamins, minerals, and amino acids that your body needs while drinking or eating (through your pastries) your pure protein drink fruit punch. It is a delicious way to help keep your immune system at its best.

- Worldwide Sports Nutrition: Adding Up Pure Protein Drink Fruit Punch To Your Daily Diet

Contrary to the belief of many, including a glassful of pure protein drink fruit punch in your daily diet will make an athlete fat. It is wrong. Protein helps in adding more muscles to physically active people. Foods that turn into fat when not consumed are those that are rich in carbohydrates.

So if you have an active lifestyle (even if you are not an athlete) your body will greatly benefit with a glassful of pure protein drink fruit punch in the morning or during lunch. This is a practice in worldwide sports nutrition which you can integrate into your own personal diet and nutrition.

In the morning, your pure protein drink fruit punch may be added to two freshly squeezed orange juices and half a glass of water. To mix the powdered protein drink fruit punch with these ingredients, it is best to use a blender for that perfect fruit shake effect. You can add some crushed eyes while blending for a more refreshing morning drink. 

Others mix it with other fresh fruits as a smoothie drink. Bananas, blueberries, peaches or mangoes are mixed with three tablespoons of pure protein, water or milk.

Worldwide, this sports nutrition is gaining popularity because of its simple preparation for athletes and people on the go. In less than five minutes, with the help of a blender, they can produce a nutritious fruit punch or smoothies that are rich in vitamins, minerals and enzymes that are good for the body

This pure protein drink fruit punch is available in liquid or powder form. Worldwide, however, the most popular form is in powder because a sports nutrition drink in powder is fast and easy to prepare and do not turn sour fast unlike the liquid form. Powdered pure protein drink fruit punch is pack in gallon-like containers.

What is Sports Nutrition?

By Eddy Sutio

Almost all of the people, occupying this world, dream of being a sports superstar. You long for that feeling when thousands of fans scream your name when you are about to win a game. But unfortunately, only those with extreme discipline, hardwork and talent get to experience that.

Talent is not the only secret of being a sports icon, it is also the way they get their nutrition. You see, sports nutrition is different from normal nutrition because with sports nutrition, the athletes require more nutrients to keep their energy up during their various activities. Athletes perform strenuous activities, that is why more nutrients are needed to keep them running.

Athletes lose a lot of fluids during their game. And like everyone knows, dehydration is one of the biggest problems in the athletic world. Getting tired and thirsty will affect an athlete’s performance, just as it affects anyone else’s, except that it makes the life of an athlete a lot more difficult to live.

Everyone knows that an athlete’s performance is the reason why they get paid, seriously. So basically, if you are an athlete and you want to have that winning edge, then you better get that right nutrition. When you drink enough water and eat a balanced diet and also get the right sports nutrition, your body can utilize energy efficiently and also fuel top performance.

You can make the most of your athletic talents and have more strength, power and endurance when you get the right sports nutrition. These are not just for boasting purposes, however, athletes do have their own way of boasting the above mentioned attributes.

Your diet should be based on different factors and this should involve your age, size, physical condition and the type of sports you are engaging yourself in.

You should first consult your doctor about your diet and not just decide one for yourself. They have the license and they are extremely professional at it, which is why they can give you the right advice on your proper diet and nutrition that you should have.

You lose a lot of fluids everytime you exercise. Just imagine the gallons of sweat you lose when you are pumping that body of yours. That is why water is the most important factor in sports nutrition. It is not the only factor, but in truth, it is the most important.

It makes up about sixty percent of your body weight and is involved in almost all of your bodily processes.

As you probably already know, your body cannot produce and store water, this serves as the main reason why you should replace all fluids that you eliminate while doing your exercise, or else you will have to suffer being dehydrated. With athletes, they require more water than the normal eight glasses a day.

Drink plenty of fluids before, during, and after any kind of sports activity to prevent over-heating and dehydration. At least try to drink the same amount of water you lose due to sweat. There are also various sports drinks that are good for longer events. Getting hydrated will definitely help boost your energy.

Eating a balanced diet is another key to sports nutrition. The right combination of calories from carbohydrates, proteins and fats gives you more energy for top performance. These nutrients perform certain actions that will help your body as you perform strenuous kinds of sports.

Carbohydrates are the most important fuel source. It provides a minimum of sixty to a maximum of seventy percent of our calories. Carbohydrates are found on almost all of the food you consume. Food rich in carbohydrates are fruits, vegetables, pastas, breads, cereals, rice and many more that are too many to mention.

Your body converts sugar and starches from carbohydrates to glucose, which is the main source of energy of the body. Your body also stores the glucose into your liver and muscles giving your body a reservoir of energy. The more carbohydrates you have, the more energy you can give out. If you run out of carbohydrates, you can also get energy form proteins and fats.

You can get your proteins from meat, fish, poultry, eggs, beans, nuts, dairy products and other foods. Proteins provide a minimun of fifteen to a maximum of twenty percent of your daily calories. They are used in tissue and muscle build up.

Want that great physique?

Read a sports nutrition article

By EdySutio

Lots of people dream of becoming world-class athletes. They know that becoming one takes lots of patience and training that can test one's physical and emotional limits to the outmost. Since the business of sports has become more and more lucrative, the concept of sports nutrition has grown into Herculean proportions.

It is a good thing then that those resources such as sports nutrition articles have proliferated in cyberspace. It gives people endless amount of information on how to make their bodies fit for competition.

Here are the summaries of some several of the sports nutrition articles that can give Internet researchers gems of information on athletic fitness.

From one of the most authoritative web sites on anything under the sun, About.com, columnist Elizabeth Quinn talks about the importance of when people should take their meals.

Citing a press release from the IDEA Health & Fitness Association, the article states that the timing and duration of one's eating is as important as the content of the food itself. This holds true especially for athletes. A recent research indicates that the kind of food athletes consume prior, after and during the course of the training matters a lot when it comes to recovery and general athletic performance.

The experts from IDEA shared some key information regarding the subject, such as:

-To enhance performance, nutrients should be ingested in ideal combinations in the most optimal frequencies. This also aids in improving the integrity of one's muscles.

-The right timing in mixing protein and carbohydrates will result in the improvement of workouts and training.

-Obesity can be fought off by taking increased amounts of dietary calcium everyday.

-One should know the difference between good and bad carbohydrates on order to survive the latest low-carbohydrate diet trends.

Another sports nutrition article coming from the web site Rob's Home of Sports, Diet and Nutrition, puts emphasis on the kind of foods necessary in order for the body to bulk up. According to dietician Clare Wood, there are three essential requirements for gaining muscles.

-Potential of one's genes, which can be usually seen from the body structure of one's parents.

-An exercise program that focuses mainly on building strength.

-A diet that provides the body a high amount of energy.

Bulking up can be achieved by adding the amount of one's total energy intake. This will help in providing the body extra carbs needed to energize training.

Increasing the amount of food that one eats can be a difficult task, but here are some tips to go about it:

-Come up with an organized eating plan and make sure to stick with it. The plan should include the kind of foods that should be eaten and the time they should be consumed.

-The frequency of meals per day should be increased, as opposed to increasing the size of the meals. Ideally, one should take 5-6 meals daily, which includes snacks.

Athletes should be immensely responsible regarding the amount of food that they eat and how to properly maintain their physique. For those striving to achieve a fit body and emulate their strict fitness regimen, sports nutrition articles, such as these, can be easily found on the web.