Supplements and Their Place in a Training  Regimen

We are frequently asked what supplements our athletes should take in conjunction with their training. This is not an easy question to answer.  It is true  that heavy training increases an athletes’ caloric needs, and it is true training creates stressful demands on both the musculoskeletal  system and the cardiovascular system. A good diet, balancing protein and carbohydrates, is very important to assist recovery and performance. Heavy training on a consistent basis makes it difficult for the athlete to eat enough to meet his or her needs. This is where supplementation can play a key role in an athletes’ performance.

When speaking about supplements, the first thing that pops into everyone’s head is steroids. Steroids are illegal, destructive, and have no place in sports. Supplements by definition are dietary aids taken to fill a need in one’s diet. The most common example is a daily multivitamin. When examining athletic performance, the most common and effective supplements are protein, creatine, and caffeine. Creatine and protein directly affect muscle building and muscle performance. Caffeine directly affects muscle performance in endurance athletes. All three supplements have been studied exhaustively, and all have been found to be safe and effective. The NCAA has put limitations on the amount of caffeine an athlete can consume before competition.

The question we are examining here is:  What supplements should an athlete take?  Protein and creatine are a must when it comes to building strength. Both can be found in red meat, and there are several powder forms of protein and creatine. Why take supplements? Why not? In conjunction with good training habits, results can be seen within minutes, days and weeks. Results from a good training program alone or just diet alone take weeks to months.

The best strategy is to clean up your diet first. Set your goals of training to include your diet. After you have good discipline with your diet, then slowly add supplementation to complement your goals. You may consider consulting a dietitian to guide you through a proper diet plan. When it comes to supplements, we at Kinetic Connections have found Advocare products and Pro-Grade products to be the best and most pure products to use. It is important to know if any of the products your athletes are taking have banned substances in their ingredients. Neither of these product lines do. Both offer a contact number if you have any questions regarding their products. If you are interested in purchasing either of these products, you may do so by clicking here.  If you have any questions regarding this topic feel free to e-mail your question or call us.Continue reading »

Week one of training has come to an end.  Both Carley and Jon made it through without injury.  The first week went off without many problems. Carley and Jon handed in food journals before the start of week one. Some changes had to be made in both of their eating habits. Both of them ate well, but their greatest flaw was not eating often enough. Jon appears to eat enough calories, protein, and carbohydrates, but he was eating three times a day. He was aldo waiting a long time after workouts to eat. Carley also ate three times a day, but her calorie intake was very low with very few sources of protein.

The plan was set, both received their workouts, and advice on changes in their diets. Both followed a 6 day training program with a day of complete rest as the 7^th day. Jon is familiar with the gym and lifting. He went right to work on a lifting program with a small amount of cardio added into the program. The goal of the first six weeks is hypertrophy and muscle fiber recruitment. The addition of cardio is to assist with some excessive fat loss. Carley admitted to mainly doing cardio workouts and some yoga. She was given a basic weightlifting program and a more extensive cardio program. The goals of her first six weeks were to get her familiar with weightlifting to address all muscle groups and to increase muscle tone. The more extensive cardio was again to decrease lose some weight and work toward a more lean appearance.

The only problems during the first week were Continue reading »