Thursday, May 1, 2014

Athletic Health and Nutrition

Supplements and protein are a huge part of both health and nutrition for athletes. They play a key part in the overall performance for an athlete. Being a collegiate athlete, I know firsthand how important these things are and that they need to be a part of an athlete's daily diet.
The supplements that athletes should be taking are fish oil, a multivitamin, and vitamin D3. Women who are taking a multivitamin should be taking a vitamin that includes iron. The main reason women need to take a multivitamin with iron is because women experience monthly menstruation. Iron is what makes up the red blood cells in blood. Because women lose a significant amount of blood each month, they need to replenish the iron in their systems. When looking for a multivitamin, there are many different brands you can choose from. These include NatureMade, GNC brand, Vitamin World brand, Spring Valley, and Vitafusion. If you are someone who does not like taking pills, a gummy multivitamin would be a great option for you. Vitafusion offers a gummy multivitamin. They offer a typical multivitamin, a men's multivitamin, and a women's multivitamin. These gummies are nice because they taste like just like a gummy bear. You don't even know you are taking your vitamins.
Protein is so important when it comes to the diet of an athlete. Athletes need protein to rebuild and repair muscle that is broken down during exercise. Just as a refresher, I will go over the basics again for protein consumption. At least one serving of protein should be consumed in every meal. Lunch and dinner need two servings of protein each while a snack should have one serving. Protein powder is a really easy way to get protein into your diet. It is especially helpful for right after a workout. Some of the protein powders that our strength and conditioning coach at Illinois State recommends are American Iso, Muscle Milk Whey, Syntrax, EAS, and Optimum Nutrition Whey. These protein powders are meant to just add some extra protein into your diet if you are not getting enough naturally. Other protein powders serve as a meal replacement. This means that they not only have protein but carbohydrates as well.
Athletes should never skip a meal but there are times that you may not be able to fit a decent meal in due to hectic schedules. Even though this option of protein powder is not better than an actual meal, they give your body the nutrients and fuel it needs. Our strength and conditioning coach recommends Cytofuse, Gatorade Protein, Rockin' Refuel, and Muscle Milk Collegiate.

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