Nutrients for Optimal Fitness
Exercise can relieve mental tension, promote emotional balance, and can be extremely beneficial to the immune system. However, If you overtrain, are under chronic stress, and are not supported nutritionally, this can have a deleterious effect on the body.
Numerous studies have concluded that intensive exercise of a long duration (greater than 90 minutes) can have a depressive effect on the immune system. People that train for marathons are 50 percent more likely to have an upper respiratory infection or cold than the general population. Many marathon runners aren't supplementing with essential nutrients that help with the burden they are placing on their bodies. Long duration exercise increases the hormone cortisol, increases pro-inflammatory cytokines, promotes lactic and pyruvic acid builds up, ammonia buildup, hypoxia, and a change in the circulating immune cells.
Here are some tips to counteract these side-effects for all fitness lovers and endurance athletes. Supporting your body before, during, and after working out is the key to maintaining immune system health and to optimize your performance.
PRE-WORKOUT
1. Consuming Branched Chain Amino Acids (BCAAs- consisting of leucine, isoleucine, and valine): These are crucial for muscle building and optimal performance. They are essential in that they can not be produced by the body, but have to be consumed through food and supplements. They assist with protein synthesis and inhibit the breakdown of muscle cells, help with muscle and energy production, support hormone balance during exercise, and promotes glucose utilization and insulin sensitivity.
2. Consuming Supplements/Foods that Increase Nitric Oxide: Nitric oxide thins the blood and allows for enhanced circulation (so the blood flows more easily to and from the muscles), improves immune function, and improves mitochondrial health (energy centers of the cell). Hawthorne, L- citrulline, zinc, b6, vitamin c, manganese, magnesium all help with nitric oxide production. There are many nutritional supplement nitric oxide formulas that have some or all of these ingredients. Muscle testing can determine which is best for you.
3. Eat Raw Beets or Drink Beet Root Juice Before Exercise: Beets encourage the liver to dump glucose into the body so the muscles can utilize it. They also help with nitric oxide production. They can cause you to have looser stools, so make sure you experiment to see how they affect your digestive tract. I wouldn’t consume more than half a beetroot per day, which is about the size of a golf ball.
4. Vitamin E Intake: Many studies indicate that consuming vitamin E before a workout helps with muscle recovery, soreness, and endurance. The antioxidant activity of vitamin E plays a significant role in reducing free radicals that are produced during exercise.
DURING YOUR WORKOUT
1. Take B Vitamins: Certain B vitamins act as a vasodilator to increase blood flow to muscles and many B vitamins promote energy production.
2. Magnesium: This lowers the level of lactic acid, which helps prevent muscle fatigue. It also plays a significant role in ATP production (the energy currency of the body).
POST WORKOUT
1. Take Calcium Lactate: Exercise depletes calcium stores and is necessary for the proliferation of our white blood cells and immune system.
2. Take an Omega 3 Supplement; DHA, EPA, and ALA: Omegas are anti-inflammatory and help the body recover from the micro tears that are produced during exercise. They also help increase protein synthesis. Studies have indicated that omegas reduce delayed onset muscle soreness. They boost blood and oxygen flow to muscles and improve neuromuscular function.
Bodywork is also key to maintaining mobility and function when we are training hard. Chiropractic care keeps the joints mobile and makes sure the spine has the shock absorption ability that is required to avoid injury. If your joints are not moving properly, we lose shock absorption, and then our tendons, ligaments, and muscles take on more impact. This leads to the greater possibility of injury.
About the Author
Dr. Louis Granirer is a leading NY Chiropractor who specializes in traditional chiropractic care and holistic healing through nutrition response testing. Learn more by visiting his website at www.HolisticChiropracticCenter.com.
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