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1 Athletic Performance and Iron
 
Controlled studies have shown that athletes with serum ferritin less than 20mg/L can significantly improve their levels of endurance by taking iron supplements. (1-2)
Some studies support the idea that lower iron status compromises aerobic capacity (VO2 max) endurance. (3)

Iron is important for an athlete because it is a component of hemoglobin, which transports oxygen from the lungs to muscle cells via the blood. Some athletes, especially women or vegetarians, do not get enough iron in their diet. Endurance athletes are also known to have low iron levels. What most people don’t know is that iron affects nearly every system in your body.

 
Checking Your Levels
Checking your iron levels is important in maintaining your performance levels. Iron deficiency can lead to fatigue, lack of energy, high exercise heart rate, frequent injury and can reduce recovery time, all-important things for someone trying to improve their fitness levels.

The best way to measure your iron levels in the body is through an iron storage protein called ferritin.  Your ferritin should be at least 20mg/L.  If it’s not you will have symptoms of iron deficiency, which affects your energy, endurance, and mood.
There is increased evidence to suggest that athletes with low serum ferritin, should take iron supplements. Decreased levels in serum ferritin serves as an early warning sign of declining stores of body iron.
 

2 Athletic Performance and Antioxidants

Antioxidants can protect against free radical damage, can help prevent the decrease of serum iron (4) and improves the efficiency in which aerobic energy is obtained. (5)

Athletes might require more antioxidants as strenuous exercise can cause oxidative stress and form free radicals in our body (6). Free radicals can damage cells and this can lead to tissue damage, slower recovery time, and lower energy production.

A new study suggests that an antioxidant diet including vitamin E, beta-carotene and vitamin C may help athletic performance. (7) Some important antioxidants are coenzyme Q10 (Co Q10), vitamin A and E, zinc, and beta Carotene, which can protect muscle cells from oxidative damage.

For example Co Q10 is a nutrient that enables the body to use oxygen to generate large amounts of energy. Co Q10 is important for athletes to maintain intense muscular activity and is a potent antioxidant, which can protect against heart disease, cancer and hypertension. High performance athletes are candidates for testing CoQ10, as strenuous physical activity lowers blood levels of CoQ10 (8)

Zinc is a component of more than one hundred fundamentally important enzymes, so zinc deficiency has many negative effects on almost every body function. Exercise increases zinc losses from the body. Both male and female athletes are shown to have lower serum zinc levels compared to sedentary individuals. Moreover deficiency can compromise muscle function. (9-10)

Aerobic athletes may have an increased need for vitamin E because their cells undergo more oxidative stress. Research has shown that athletes have less cellular damage when they ingest more vitamin E (11)

Checking Your Levels
Low levels of plasma antioxidants are associated with increased oxidative stress and a variety of degenerative diseases. Using specialized metabolic testing, you may assess your levels of antioxidants that protect against the negative effects of free radicals.
 


3 Athletic Performance and Amino Acids

Protein is very important to the athlete as it is used to repair tissue, build muscles, make enzymes and hormones and is used as a source of energy. Hemoglobin, which carries oxygen to the cells, is an iron containing protein.

 Often we think the more the better but in the case of protein you want to use optimum amount of high quality protein. If you consume more protein than your body needs, the excess is stored as fat.  Protein also requires larger amounts of water to metabolism, which increases the athletes’ chance of dehydration. In some cases, where poor assimilation of protein is a concern, an individualized free form amino acid formula can be created at a compounding pharmacy.

Checking Your Levels
Laboratory test can asses whether you are obtaining proper amounts of essential and non-essential amino acids.

4 Athletic Performance and Essential Fatty Acids (EFAs)

Research shows that EFAs can improve various biochemical and physiological reactions in the body and enhance athletic performance (12)

EFAs are used for energy production, oxygen transfer, cell membrane function, nutrient absorption, hormone synthesis and hemoglobin production. They help in the healing of injuries by decreasing recovery time and inflammation after exercise. They are also known to improve stamina and endurance by increasing blood flow and oxygenation of muscles and tissues in your body.

Checking Your Levels
It is important to achieve the correct balance of these EFAs for optimal performance. Measuring blood levels of EFA with laboratory testing gives you a good indication of the metabolic effect of fatty acids in the body as well as long-term fatty acid status, making it useful for identifying deficiencies and imbalances and for monitoring supplementation.

5 Athletic Performance and Water

Loss of body water can lead to dehydration, one of the greatest limitations to training and performance. Even a minimal drop in hydration levels can have a big impact on performance, so tracking hydration levels is important for athletes. It can provoke changes in you mental ability, cardiovascular system, metabolism, central nervous system, theromoregulatory and muscular strength. (13)

Water is one of the most important but often overlooked nutrient by athletes. As a general guideline decrease in performance become apparent when hypohydration exceeds 2% of body weight; performance decrements become substantial when fluid losses exceed 5% of body weight; and when fluid losses approach 6-10% of body weight, heat stroke and heat exhaustion occur. (14).

General recommendations are 64 ounces of water a day to stay fully hydrated but every athlete has a different hydration requirement. These requirements are dependant upon the intensity of physical exercise performed, the size of the athlete, environmental conditions and the clothing worn. So how do we know if we are getting enough water to maintain proper hydration levels?

Checking Your Levels
Testing your hydration levels through a Bioimpedance machine can give you an indication of whether you are obtaining (replenishing) optimal amount of fluids. When the body is in proper fluid balance, about 65% of the water is found in the cells (intercellular) and 35% is found outside the cells (extracellular).

 

It is important to remember that all nutrients work together. Adequate balance of these key factors can mean quicker recovery time, lower infection rates, more energy, and ultimately, help athletes reach their maximum performance levels.

Testing for nutritional deficiencies can give you a targeted nutritional plan to optimize your performance.  Because each athlete has a unique biochemistry, NutriChem can design a personalized supplement based on your biochemical and metabolic test results from our Athletic Performance Packages.

To find out about your individual nutritional and metabolic needs check out innovative Athletic Performance Packages. Click here to find out the best option for you or call (613) 721-3669.

1 Friedmann B, et al.  (2001)   Effects of iron repletion on blood volume and performance capacity in young athletes.  Med Sci Sports Exerc. 33(5):741-6.

2 Hinton PS, et al. (2000) Iron supplementation improves endurance after training in iron-depleted, nonanemic women.  J Appl Physiol.  88(3):1103-11.

3 Zhu,YI & Haass, JD (1997). Iron depletion without anemia and physical performance in young women. American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, 66 (2) 334-341.

4 Aguilo A et al. -Antioxidant diet supplementation influences blood iron status in endurance athletes. Int J Sport Nutr Exerc Metab. 2004 Apr;14(2):147

5, 6 Aguilo A et al. Antioxidant diet supplementation enhances aerobic performance in amateur sportsmen, J. Sports Sci 2007 Sep 25(11): 1203-

7 Margonis K et al. Oxidative stress biomarkers responses to physical overtraining: implications for diagnosis. Free Radic Biol Med. 2007 Sep 15;43(6):901-10

8 Kaikkonen J, Nyyssonen K, Tuomainen TP, et al. Determinants of plasma coenzyme Q10 in humans. FEBS Lett 1999;443:163–6

9 Lukaski HC. Magnesium, zinc, and chromium nutriture and physical activity. Am J Clin Nutr 2000;72:585S–93S [review].

10 -Van Loan MD, Sutherland B, Lowe NM, et al. The effects of zinc depletion on peak force and total work of knee and shoulder extensor and flexor muscles. Int J Sport Nutr 1999;9:125–35.

11Rokitzki L, et al. Alpha-tocopherol supplementation in racing cyclists during extreme endurance training. Int J Sport Nutr 1994 Sep;4(3):253-64.

12 Udo Erasmus. Fats that Heal Fats that Kill. Burnaby BC Canada. Alive Books 1986

13 Hydration and physical performance,Gatorade Sports Science Institute, 617 West Main Street, Barrington, IL 60021, USA. PMID: 17921463

14 Naghii MR. The significance of water in sport and weight control. Nutr Health.
2000;14(2):1
 

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