Nutrition has a strong influence on the performance of the body. Athletes in particular should pay attention to the optimal intake of nutrients. When it comes to food supplements, additional knowledge facilitates the correct intake.
"Like diet, like performance - like performance, like diet." This old sportsman's adage has lost none of its validity. It doesn't matter whether performance is defined as maintaining health, gaining fitness, reaching the desired weight, or measurably improving one's best time. Only if the body is supplied with high-quality "fuel" adapted to its individual needs can it achieve the desired performance.
Conversely, the type and level of performance that athletes want to achieve determines what should be consumed and in what quantity. For us as humans - and as athletes in particular - eating and drinking means much more than instinct-driven food intake. Regardless of which of the aforementioned athletic goals I pursue, nutrition will be the second supporting pillar next to training that decisively determines how effectively set stimuli are implemented. Before thinking about "what, when, and how much?" it's worth addressing a seemingly banal question: "What does nutrition have to do, in general and in terms of my athletic goals?"
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Effective regeneration
Good nutrition for endurance athletes is characterized by its adaptability to the specific requirements of the individual sports. My diet must create the conditions for my training to fail not through insufficient energy recruitment, but through the processing of training stimuli and effective recovery from nutrient deficiencies. Among ambitious amateur athletes, regeneration that is too short and filled with the wrong content is one of the most common mistakes. Runners are no better than rowers, swimmers no better than cyclists or triathletes. After the race is before the race: Every athlete knows that regeneration begins at the finish line.
In endurance sports, it is important to bear in mind that prolonged exercise also means a lot of fluid loss. Consequently, athletes - whether professionals or ambitious recreational athletes - should be particularly conscientious about maintaining a balanced fluid intake.
Readjusting the balance between loading and unloading, enriching recovery breaks with active content, and offering urgently needed nutrients in the right quality and dosage is the key to optimal regeneration of the body. Especially in the first 45 to 60 minutes, the body craves fresh nutrients. During this "anabolic window" amino acids and enzymes are best absorbed and processed by the body. Now it is important to satisfy this craving as quickly as possible with high-quality nutrients. A conscious and regular approach to sensible nutrition and targeted nutrient intake protects the body and promotes overall athletic performance.
In the following overview, we have listed various products for use before, during and after sports.