In my previous post, I reviewed the basic ideas that should be considered when developing a performance oriented nutrition strategy. Things like nutrient timing, caloric intake, and balance of macronutrients are keys to developing the right plan that correlates with your specific fitness goal. In this post, I want to go beyond basic strategy and discuss some additional topics that are common practice among athletes ranging from high school to pro.
Topics for this Post
Natural Supplements
- Flax Seed or Flax Seed Oil
- Chocolate Milk
- Cherry Juice
Sports Drinks & Gels
- Gatorade
- Race Goo
Flax Oil
While the NLM and NIH seem to disregard the effectiveness of flaxseed oil for many of it’s proclaimed uses, it’s popularity as a natural health supplement cannot be denied. Flaxseed and similar Omega-3 rich oils are used to improve overall cellular function and prevent or improve various health conditions.
When you train for a specific event, sport, distance, or race, you challenge your not only your mental focus and capacity to push to higher levels, you also challenge your bodies ability to perform on multiple levels ranging from gross motor function to cell physiology. Therefore, athletic performance at it’s most basic level, is reliant upon effective and efficient cellular function. The use of flax seed oil in athletes is meant to enhance basic cellular function by improving nutrient transfer and waste removal across the cell membrane. The improved efficiency of the cell allows the body to sustain a higher level of performance.
Chocolate Milk
Over the past 5 years (maybe more?), chocolate milk has grown in popularity as a workout recovery drink. According to both formal studies and articles written in popular fitness magazines, drinking chocolate milk as opposed to only water not only allows for re-hydration, but also provides additional nutrients that are important for optimum recovery.
Chocolate milk is easily accessible and has a desirable combination of both carbohydrates and protein that replenishes muscles with necessary glycogen and proteins. It’s high water content makes it an excellent method for hydrating the body and it also contains both calcium and sodium. These nutrients are important for optimum cellular function and can often be depleted from heavy or intense exercise.
Cherry Juice
There are a number of studies indicating the efficacy of cherry juice in reducing muscle damage incurred from exercise including reducing inflammation and oxidative stress (oxidative stress is a state of imbalance in the cell which causes damage to almost all components of the cell and impedes recovery and performance). Cherry juice has also been indicated as a means to reduce symptoms of muscle damage incurred from physical activity.
Consuming cherry juice following bouts of intense exercise such as demanding training sessions and performance oriented competitions will ideally improve workout recovery time and assist in readiness for the next training session and/or competition.
To Learn More about Cherry Juice:
http://www.cherrypharm.com/science.html
http://www.choosecherries.com/Uploads/Content/Red%20Recovery%20Routine%20FINAL.pdf
Sports Drinks
While chocolate milk has similar carbohydrate content to many carbohydrate replacement drinks such as Gatorade and Powerade, the idea of downing chocolate milk during a race or in the middle of a game is not appealing (gross!).
It’s commonly understood that hydration is imperative for optimum muscular function & cellular performance. Since both muscular function and cell function are key to optimal performance, hydration is a huge focus for athletes. As you probably know, it’s common for athletes to lose extreme amounts of fluids during either training or performance events. Not only that, intense periods of exertion can also severely deplete blood & muscle glycogen. While water is a good method for re-hydration, research shows that sports drinks can be more ideal under certain conditions.
Sports drinks such as Gatorade and Powerade not only hydrate the body, but also supply both carbohydrates and electrolytes to speed fluid and carbohydrate into the bloodstream. The hydrating ability of sports drinks can also help with other heat-related problems such as cramps, light headedness and heat exhaustion.
Race Goo/Gel
Race gel is generally used during long distance training events and races. Gels such as PowerGel allow you to replenish glycogen stores conveniently with minimal impact on the stomach. Since the body can store, at most, about 22 miles’ worth of carbohydrate, gels can help you avoid the dreaded Wall during an endurance race such as a marathon or distance triathlon.
Learn more about race goo/gel: http://www.active.com/running/Articles/Making_sense_of_performance_gels.htm
Aside from race goo & gel, I have personally used each of these supplements at various times during my life as a fitness and sports enthusiast. The main limitation I experienced is consistency of use. When I did get into a pattern of using these supplements, I did feel healthier but found it difficult to consciously recognize an improvement in my performance. I think I neglected to recognize the general feeling of improved health as a means for improved motivation and the ability to perform at even a slightly higher rate. Now that I’ve written this, I think I’ll get started using both flax seed oil and cherry juice again asap! In my next post, I’ll discuss manufactured supplements and pre and post workout meals.
Jes Becomes Your Fitness Coach 