Articles

As we’re entering the summer months, hydration becomes a greater importance to support thermoregulation during warmer climates. Many athletes grasp the idea that you should consume more fluid to offset fluid losses via sweat. However, many athletes forget sodium. Therefore, exercise associated hyponatremia (EAH) can occur, i.e. low blood sodium levels. Small sodium deficits won’t

What are the key factors that negatively impact performance (and health) during ultra-endurance events (> 6 hours)? A recent meta analysis by Martinez-Sanz (2020) aimed to answer this question concerning both the possible/probable nutritional and medical complications experienced during competition. Ultimately, if we can identify the risk factors, we can navigate through them accordingly to

This week, we investigate the calorie need of building muscle in elite athletes. The fundamentals of building muscle can be broken down into three key areas: 1) Training (progressive overload).2) Energy intake (calories).3) Protein intake. If one criterion is not met, then your muscle building potential will be limited. Of which, energy intake is an

Athletes who undergo very high training loads frequently complain of gastrointestinal distress. It’s been reported that 46% and 54% of elite athletes experience upper and lower gastrointestinal discomfort. Of which these numbers increase to 53% and 60% during competition. These gut issues are commonly associated with the reduced blood flow to the gut during exercise

There’s compelling research indicating that high carbohydrate diets enhance exercise capacity in endurance athletes.On the other hand, acute exercise studies have shown that performing endurance based exercise under low carbohydrate availably (train low) can enhance the endurance adaptation.This is typically achieved by training and recovering in the absence of carbohydrates.A major drawback of train low

Creatine Monohydrate is a widely researched and used supplement for athletes looking to improve their athletic performance. Although unnecessary, creatine supplementation is typically split into two phases: 1) A loading phase which increases creatine stores within the muscle by ~20-40%.2) A maintenance phase which maintains this elevation in muscle creatine content. It’s advised after a

Today, we explore the carbohydrate need of an athlete looking to develop muscle strength and size. As previously discussed, offsetting glycogen depletion is undoubtedly important for maintaining exercise performance. This however has been directed more towards endurance and team based sports. For muscle strength and size, the magnitude of an athletes training stimulus is ultimately

An athletes sleep quality and quantity plays a large role in governing both their physical and mental performance. In the perfection world, every athlete would sleep perfectly every night without any deprivation. However, this is not always the case where sleep loss negatively impacts the body and mind. When we think of high performing individuals

Today, we revisit the use of dieting breaks to further support fat loss and peak performance. Unsurprisingly, progressive fat loss phases are associated with a number of compromises. For the athlete, these are often expressed in their physical performance, recoverability, cognition, mood and food focus. It’s previously been reported that intermittently increasing food intake to

This week, we address the question of how long it takes to build muscle once you start a new training programme. Considering that many individuals have started new training block this week with the reopening of gyms, how quickly gain you expect to see results? What does the time course look like? Firstly, many athletes

It’s the study we’ve all been waiting for. Can we drink beer every day for lunch and dinner whilst maximising gains? Well, as it turns out, there’s been a study… Molina-Hidalgo et al (2020) conducted a 10-week study to assess the impact of daily alcohol consumption on 83 healthy individuals (non-athletes) participating in HIIT training.

It’s pretty evident that multi-day running events are increasing in popularity. With this heightened physiological and psychological demand, there’s a need to identify the runners ‘fatigue factors’ and therefore programme strategies to overcome them in order to successfully complete these challenges. The fatigue factors attributed to a decline in performance are; dehydration, hyperthermia, carbohydrate depletion,

It’s been incredibly well established that consuming carbohydrates are fundamental for maximising performance at medium to higher intensities. Whilst we think of daily carbohydrate intakes first, we also need to consider carbohydrate ingestion during exercise, specifically long(er) duration based endurance work. There’s also been a plethora of research establishing how many grams of carbohydrates you

Today, we look at a novel way to stay cool, even when it’s hot. It’s very evident that athletes experience heightened physiological and psychological strain when training or competing in the heat. This increased strain on the body often results in poorer performances on the field, track or road. Menthol is a compound that imparts

The modern day professional rugby player is approximately 25% bigger than the amateur player back in 1955 – this increase in size is undoubtedly a result of becoming more jacked… The question is, when will the rate of gain stop? Is there an upper limit as to how much muscle rugby players can build? If