Key Constituents of Nutritional Supplements
Nutritional supplements are also known as dietary supplements. These can be defined as products that comprise dietary ingredients and are consumed in order to gain additional nutrients that are otherwise lacking in the regular diet. The list of dietary ingredients may include minerals, amino acids, botanicals and other herbs, various enzymes, vitamins, metabolites, organ tissues and glandular.
Dietary or nutritional supplements play a crucial role in the field of sports nutrition. It is a complicated field and an expert sports nutritionist needs to possess core competencies in the field of exercise physiology, metabolism comprising metabolism and biochemistry and psychology. It is necessary to seek the advice of a sports nutritionist before the consumption of any of the dietary supplements. Only they can prescribe one depending upon your body type and the requirements of your body.
Creatine
Creatine has certainly made its presence felt in the domain of sports nutrition. There have more been more than 500 studies that have conducted in case of this ergogenic aid in the recent times. The strategies that have worked so far in increasing strength and muscle size include the intake of protein-carbohydrate calorie prior to a resistance exercise session. In case, you happen to miss out on it, you can also consume it after the exercise session.
The intake of creatine supplementation for a short term helps to shoot up the creatine content by almost 10%-30%. The phosphocreatine stores are also enhanced by 10%-40%. None of the studies conducted so far have found creatine to produce an ergolytic effect. As creatine is an amino acid, the usage of creatine monohydrate may have an effect on liver or kidney function. Thus it is necessary that these are used after consulting a specialist. Some of the Creatine products that are popular in the world of sports today are:
- BSN: BSN is one of the major players in the nutrition industry when it comes to weight loss and muscle building products. The consumption of the products reduces fat and at the same time substantially increases the lean muscle tissue.
- USN: USN diet plan or nutritional supplements are designed for both men and women and helps them to lose weight in minimum time. You can choose from Creatine X4, Creatine Monohydrate or Creatine Anabolic depending on your body type.
Protein Shakes/Meal Replacements/Protein Bars:
One of the reviews carried out in the recent times revealed that the recommended intake of protein for athletes, for developing their endurance and strength levels is 1.2 to 1.4 g/kg and 1.6 to 1.7 g/kg respectively. A majority of the athletes take in the requisite amount of proteins as part of their diet. The nutritional content as well as the timing of the meal consumed after an exercise session is known to have synergistic effects on glycogen repletion or protein accretion.
Minerals/Multivitamins:
Minerals and multivitamins are an absolute must for athletes. It is quite evident that as many as 45% – 47% of collegiate, commercial gym and secondary school candidates who actively participate in athletics consume multivitamins to ensure the regular supply of minerals to the body. There are a whole range of nutritional products available in the market and Sun Warrior is one of them. It is high on minerals and vitamin content and also contains nutrients such as riboflavin, phosphorous, potassium, iron, thiamine and niacin.
Dietary supplements can also include concentrates or extracts and are available in the form of gelcaps, powders, tablets, softgels, liquids, bars and capsules. When these are available in the form of a bar, then it is necessary that the specifications are clearly mentioned on the product label. It must not be represented as a conventional food item and thus must be clearly labelled as a dietary supplement.
The specific use for which a product is developed determines the regulatory category into which it might be placed, for example whether it is a drug, a cosmetic or a food product. These dietary supplements thus cannot be categorised as food products and their use should be mentioned in clear times.
Author Bio
Daniel Smith is a nutrition expert. He has published a number of articles on the effectiveness of dietary supplements for athletes and bodybuilders. He recommends that one should go for well known brands such as maxi muscle and muscletech.
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