Nutrition
Chocolate milk is an effective drink to consume after exercise to promote recovery, rehydration and muscle hypertrophy. Cocoa contains chemicals called flavonols that reduce inflammation and oxidative damage. Unfortunately, many athletes suffer from lactose intolerance and therefore cannot drink dairy products.
Nicole McBrier and colleagues from the University of Pennsylvania found that cocoa-based protein- and carbohydrate drinks reduced muscle soreness after exhaustive aerobic exercise. The drink had no effect on markers of muscle inflammation, but had a significant effect on muscle soreness 24 to 48 hours after exercise.
(Journal Strength and Conditioning Research, 24: 2203-2210, 2010)
It's the time of year when the winter weather starts to set in. Due to this
weather change, many people are catching a cold. In addition, many people catch the cold from other "sick" people at
.
As athletes can very often be affected by this problem (colds), it is advisable to supplement the amino acid L-glutamine at
this time of year, as this can strengthen the immune system, among other things
. It is important to understand that the immune system can be affected by high-intensity training
. Therefore, an additional supply of glutamine is of great benefit to a compromised
immune system.
Many people are now convinced of the immune benefits of glutamine. For them, this
amino acid is a must-have supplement.
But what exactly is L-glutamine?
L-glutamine is a non-essential amino acid (i.e. the body can produce it itself from essential
amino acids) that is mainly found in the skeletal muscles. However, Lglutamine
is also present in the lungs and plays an important role in
protein synthesis (= the body's own protein is formed from supplied protein ).
Although the body can produce this amino acid itself, it
is not able to produce sufficient quantities of this amino acid under high levels of stress. For this reason,
there is a glutamine deficiency which manifests itself, for example, in poorer regeneration or poorer
immune defense.
But how exactly does L-glutamine help to strengthen the immune system?
1) L-glutamine supplements have a positive effect after a stressful situation: In the
USA, L-glutamine has long been used in hospitals to "pep up" weak patients
. Studies have also shown that this supplement can strengthen the immune system
after an operation.
2) Hardcore training depletes the body's glutamine stores: It is no
secret that regular long-term overload (e.g. due to too many and too long
training sessions) weakens the immune system. The first signs of a weakened
immune system are mainly sluggishness and tiredness or general listlessness. If
you have these symptoms, it may also be because your "glutamine stores"
are depleted or your body cannot produce enough glutamine for regeneration.
With such symptoms, targeted glutamine supplementation can often work wonders
.
3) Dieting can weaken the immune system: If you are currently interested
in noticeably improving your figure and are therefore following a calorie-reduced diet,
this can weaken your immune system. This is because many athletes
do not consume enough vitamins, minerals or glutamine in their diet. For this reason,
a calorie-reduced diet should ensure an adequate intake of glutamine and vitamins or
minerals, otherwise your body will be in top condition - but
not your immune system.
Further tips to prevent colds:
- Wash your hands regularly! Especially before touching your eyes, nose and mouth.
- Don't sneeze or cough into your hands, but into your elbow!
- If your colleagues are very ill, hand sanitizer can be an advantage!
- If you are ill, stay at home. It makes no sense to go to work sick and infect your colleagues! In addition, your condition may deteriorate even further.
How much glutamine should I take per day?
We recommend 0.1 - 0.3gr / kg body weight. For an 80kg man this would be 8 - 24gr /
day!
Conclusion:
Glutamine can not only help build new muscle tissue. It can also help
to maintain a good immune system during acute stress.
And a good immune system is always an advantage!
Many insiders swear by protein powder made from pure egg white. They say that this type of protein provides for the
growth of rock-hard, defined muscles and does not lead to any annoying water retention
.
Is there any truth to this?
Well, eggs and egg whites are included in the diet of many bodybuilders. In addition to the
usual types of protein such as chicken, turkey and tuna, egg white is probably one of the best types of protein
with a very high biological value.
You may now be thinking: "Ok, this applies to normal egg white, but does it also apply to egg white powder?"
To answer this question, let's first take a look at how egg white protein powder
is actually produced. The typical production process consists of:
- Protein isolation (in this case from egg white)
- Drying the isolated protein
- Pulverizing the dried protein
To improve the biological value, a little egg yolk powder is sometimes added to the
egg white powder. This is because whole eggs or egg yolks complete the protein chain of the egg white
. In this way, all the important amino acids are contained and provide a biological
value of 100 (note: a biological value of 100 means that 100 g of protein
are also 100 g of protein available to the body for muscle building).
However, if egg yolk is added, the fat from the yolk is filtered out first.
Finally, the whole thing is pasteurized. During this process (also known as ultra-high heating
), all germs are killed. As this pasteurization or ultra-high heating only takes place for
a very short period of time, all proteins remain intact. The egg white powder therefore provides all the
benefits that normal egg white also provides....
But not only bodybuilders use egg white powder. It is also used in baking and
confectionery. The advantage of egg white powder is that it is low in fat and carbohydrates
but high in protein.
But back to sport...
Egg protein stimulates muscle growth, which is mainly due to the protein synthesis triggered by the amino acid Lleucine
. The proportion of L-leucine
contained in egg protein is around 9%.
Although whey or whey protein has a higher L-leucine content, whey protein
contains lactose, which is not the case in egg protein.
And it is precisely this absence of lactose in egg protein that makes your muscles
look rock hard and defined. For many people, lactose has the unpleasant
property that it stores water under the skin. The fact that muscle definition suffers as a result
need not be mentioned separately....
There are also a lot of people who suffer from lactose intolerance. For these
people, an egg protein powder is more recommendable than a whey or whey protein.
As egg protein is very easy to digest (especially the egg white powder mentioned here),
it is ideal for before and after training. The protein synthesis triggered by it ensures
rapid muscle building and good regeneration. We recommend taking 30-50gr
egg white protein powder directly after training or 1 hour before training.
All in all, egg protein powder is an excellent source of protein that is superior to whey protein in some respects
(better muscle definition & lactose tolerance).
Let's take a look at the amino acid L-arginine today.
This amino acid has many advantages: for example, L-arginine ensures better
blood circulation and therefore a better pump during training. In addition,
it is assumed that L-arginine stimulates the release of growth hormone, which ultimately leads to
improved muscle growth and simultaneous fat loss.
Arguments in favor of arginine
In the late 1990s it was discovered that nitric oxide (NO) plays a very important role
in various physical processes. Scientists also discovered that the
body produces nitric oxide (NO) from arginine. Today's NO or training boosters
are quite often based on the effect of arginine, which is also the reason why these
training boosters are very popular today;- they provide a better pump during
training, which ensures greater motivation and more fun during training. It is also
assumed that the muscles are better supplied with oxygen, nutrients,
water and anabolic hormones due to the dilated blood vessels. Thanks to the improved
oxygen transport, you also have considerably more energy during training and can therefore train much
more intensively.
Timing
In order to fully exploit the effect of L-arginine, it is first of all very important to choose the
correct time to take it. This should be done 30-60 minutes before training, preferably
on an empty stomach. On an empty stomach because amino acids generally only develop their
full effect when they are taken individually. You do not have to take L-arginine on
an empty stomach, only the effect is much weaker. The second portion should be taken after
training to ensure a longer-lasting blood flow after training
. The main advantage of this is that the nutrients after training (e.g. protein shake)
can reach the muscle cells better. In this way, you regenerate much
faster and can therefore tackle the muscle group you have just trained more quickly.
To stimulate growth hormone levels overnight, it makes sense to take arginine on an empty stomach (if possible)
30 minutes before going to bed. Avoid carbohydrates before
going to sleep, as this leads to a rise in insulin. With a high insulin rise, the
growth hormone level drops.
Imagine (simplified) a seesaw:
- For a high growth hormone level, the insulin level must be low!
- If the insulin level is high, the growth hormone level drops!
Form
The most common forms of L-arginine are "L-arginine" (usually in HCL form), "arginine alpha
ketogluterate" and "arginine ethyl ester". It has been reported that the simplest form of LArginine
is less easily absorbed by the body. For this reason, new forms
have been developed. Arginine alpha ketogluterate consists of two arginine molecules attached to a keto-
gluterate molecule. In this form, the amino acid arginine can be absorbed much better
via the intestine. The "alpha-ketogluterate molecule" is a precursor
of L-glutamine. (Note: L-glutamine has many positive effects on the intestine). Arginine
ethyl ester is a relatively new form of arginine. Through esterification, the amino acid is much
better absorbed by the body and transferred to the appropriate tissue. The advantage of
ethyl ester is that the dosage does not have to be so high to achieve the desired effect
.
Dosage
To increase the NO level before training, you should take 4-6 grams of L-arginine or arginine keto-
gluterate. For the ethyl ester form, 2-3 grams is sufficient.
If you intend to increase your growth hormone (GH) level, you should take approx. 9 g of L-arginine or arginine ethyl ester in
form. For the ethyl ester form, 6 grams is sufficient.
This is necessary because too little L-arginine "only" leads to improved blood circulation
, but not to an increased release of growth hormone.
Possible combinations
If you read the list of ingredients of most NO boosters, you will probably notice
that several ingredients are included in addition to arginine. These are added to improve the
effect of arginine. One very effective combination is the addition
of citrulline. Citrulline is a precursor of L-arginine which improves
and prolongs the effect of L-arginine.
In addition, you can benefit from the addition of 100-200mg of standardized American ginseng
. This ensures even better blood circulation. You can also choose to combine 500-1,000
mg of vitamin C together with the arginine supplements, as vitamin C acts as an anti
oxidant and thus leads to a slower decrease in NO levels. This
prolongs the improved circulatory effect of L-arginine.
*Author's note: The combination of vitamin C and arginine (unfortunately) also leads to a reduction in tryptophan levels.
increases the tryptophan level. This can lead to tiredness. This can be remedied by the
amino acid thyrosine can help here, as thyrosine competes with tryptophan. Tryptophan makes you tired;
Tyrosine wakes you up!
Tips & tricks for supplement time management
Supplements or food supplements are an absolute
must in a performance-oriented diet. But when should I take which supplements? And above all, why?
Read the following article to find out which supplements should be taken at what time.
You will also learn which supplements are mandatory and which can ideally be added
1) Compulsory program immediately after getting up:
15 - 20gr Whey Protein / Gold Beef Protein
Can be combined with:
5gr BCAA
5gr L-Glutamine
100 - 200mg caffeine
When you get up, the body has a "fasting period" of 7-8 hours behind it. This means that no nutrients have been absorbed during this
time. For this reason, the body is in a
catabolic phase and runs the risk of breaking down muscle protein. 15- 20gr easily digestible whey
protein provides the body with muscle-protecting amino acids very quickly. If the
whey protein is too slow and you want to "go one better", take an additional 5gr of BCAA
and 5gr of L-glutamine. This allows the body to enter an anabolic/anti-catabolic
window even faster.
To stimulate fat burning in the morning and get your metabolism going,
you should consume 100-200mg of caffeine in the morning immediately after getting up. This will really get you
going!
2) Breakfast (30 minutes after getting up) is a must:
1x Multi-vitamin preparation
Can be combined with:
25-50mg Zinc
500mg- 1000mg Vitamin C
2gr Omega 3 oil
You should take a multivitamin supplement with your morning breakfast. This will provide you
(in most cases) with the most important vitamins.
If you want to make the whole thing even better, you can stack a zinc supplement on top. Zinc ensures
that you maintain a strong immune system and can prevent skin blemishes.
Like zinc, vitamin C can also strengthen the immune system.
Omega 3 fatty acids help to absorb fat-soluble vitamins (e.g. vitamin E). They also
improve blood flow and lower blood cholesterol.
3) 1h before training mandatory program:
4gr L-arginine
3gr Creatine
200 - 400mg caffeine
(Or simply a completely ready-made NO pump booster)
Can be combined with:
50gr Vitargo
1h Before training, you should provide your body with L-arginine (ensures better blood flow to the
muscles), creatine (has a performance-enhancing effect and increases muscle volume) and
caffeine (promotes fat burning and increases performance).
If you don't want to take individual supplements, simply buy a ready-made NOPump
booster.
If you want to increase your performance even more and are more interested in pure muscle building instead of
fat burning, you can add 50gr Vitargo. This ensures that you
have considerably more energy available during training. In addition, the
blood sugar level does not drop as quickly with Vitargo, so that a long and intensive training session is guaranteed
.
4) 30min before training mandatory program:
30gr Whey Protein / Gold Beef Protein
Can be combined with
5gr BCAA
30 minutes before training you should go and provide your body with a quickly digestible protein
. This ensures that you remain "anabolic" during training. To refine the whole
, you can add 5 grams of BCAA. These provide improved
anti-catabolic protection and can lift your mood.
5) Mandatory program immediately after training:
30gr Whey Protein / Gold Beef Protein
3gr Creatine
50gr Vitargo
Can be combined with:
5gr BCAA
5gr L-glutamine
20gr Casein Protein
When you have finished the last set and your training is over, it is time to lead the body
into an anabolic metabolic state. This is best achieved with whey protein (is quickly
absorbed by the body), creatine (is absorbed even better after training) and
Vitargo (ensures a high insulin response and thus quickly provides new energy).
If you want to go into even more detail, you can add BCAA and L -glutamine
. This will get you into an anabolic phase even faster.
The casein protein after training ensures that the body has a slow-digesting protein available in addition to the fast
digesting protein. This is especially
advantageous for people who go to bed relatively quickly after training.
6) Mandatory program before going to bed:
30gr casein protein
Can be combined with:
5gr L-Glutamine
3gr Omega 3 fatty acids
3gr GABA
To spare your body a catabolic phase at night, you should go and consume a casein protein shortly before going to bed
. Casein protein is very slow to digest and can
supply the body with amino acids for up to 7 hours. It is therefore ideal for the night.
To refine the whole thing, you can add 5gr L-glutamine (improves recovery) and 3gr
omega 3 fatty acids (have an anti-inflammatory effect, which can mean less muscle soreness the next day
).
A high growth hormone release overnight can be achieved with GABA immediately before
going to sleep. Please note, however, that you must take GABA individually. It is best
to take GABA first and the rest 30 minutes later.
We hope that with the following tips and tricks you can achieve visibly better results
!
Good luck and have fun achieving your individual sporting goals
