Articles

Following on from last week’s #D2EW where we investigated the link between creatine supplementation, water retention and weight gain. This week, we’re looking at whether creatine leads to dehydration and cramping. As covered last week, creatine supplementation increases the creatine pool within the muscle. Creatine is also an osmotically active substance which attracts water and therefore has

It’s been widely accepted that creatine supplementation always increases body mass. This notion originated from early research showing that supplementing with creatine (20g/day x 6 days) increased water retention. Further research then showed that total body water (TBW), extracellular (outside the cell) and intracellular (inside the cell) water increased after only three days of supplementation (Antonio et

This week, we look at the heightened calorie demand pro rugby players experience from playing competitive games. As you’re highly aware, rugby is a contact based sport where collisions during tackles, breakdown and set piece can result in muscle damage and perceived muscle soreness. Knowing this, players need to adjust their nutrition intake to meet the elevated

This week, we look at the potential association of body fat percentage with muscle damage from heavy eccentric exercise Ultimately, when athletes are exposed to a stimulus they’re unaccustomed to, they’re gonna be sore. As you know, the intensity of competitions isn’t always controlled. Therefore, the large spikes in workload cause higher amounts of muscle

Sleep, diet and exercise has been coined as the three pillars to peak health and performance. Furthermore, ignoring one pillar can cause the other two to suffer (Vitale et al, 2019). Traditionally, exercise and nutrition have been given greatest attention, where sleep falls by the wayside. As you’d know, sleep deprivation can negatively impact physical performance, mental

It’s very well established that fluid intake has both a positive and negative impact on cycling performances. When you, the athlete remains in a relatively hydrated state (<2% loss in body mass), thermal and cardiovascular strain is reduced, and power output is subsequently maintained to have improved performances over your dehydrated counterparts. Knowing the exact amount needed

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