The role of sports supplements in fitness training

The sports supplement industry in South Africa and globally has been experiencing unprecedented growth in recent years, as professional sportsmen and women and ordinary gym-goers look to gain muscle, lose weight and lift performance. 

The basis of good sports performance remains a nutritious diet, adequate hydration and a well-balanced training programme, but people are looking for a boost, and a dizzying array of products now promise this. 

Since supplements are not classified as medicines, they don’t undergo the same rigorous testing, and there has been growing concern around issues from raw ingredient contamination to label compliance discrepancies, and the unknown effects of the combinations in multi-ingredient products without clinical trials. This makes it vital to get these supplements only from trusted sources.

It’s also important to consult your health professional before taking them, especially if you have underlying health issues or are on medication of any sort, says Clicks pharmacist Waheed Abdurahman.

These are some of most popular supplements.

Protein

The main function of protein in your diet is to build and repair cells, including those damaged when you exercise to the point of momentary fatigue (being unable to do another repetition). To achieve increased muscle mass (muscular hypertrophy), strength training can help – training against resistance that increases gradually. The strain on your muscles causes damage to their fibres, which your body repairs, and doing this repeatedly causes them to adapt by becoming bigger and stronger. A 2016 review found training major muscle groups twice a week is enough to build muscle.

Food sources of protein include meat, poultry, fish, eggs and dairy, along with beans, lentils, nuts, seeds and soy foods, but many athletes turn to supplements to help. And a meta-analysis in the British Journal of Sports Medicine concluded that protein supplementation, coupled with resistance training, helped muscle growth and strength. That said, many dietitians stress that whole foods are always the best option. 

The Institute of Medicine’s recommended daily allowance of protein is 0.8g for every kilogram of body weight, regardless of age. But a review in the journal Nutrients says this is the minimum to meet your basic nutritional needs, and Harvard Health notes that consuming up to twice the RDA of protein ‘is a safe and good range to aim for’. If you consume too much protein, you excrete it as amino acids in your urine.

Creatine

Your body produces some creatine, and more can be obtained from your diet in small quantities from meat, chicken and fish. Most of this compound is stored in your muscles in the form of creatine phosphate, which can help you replenish ATP (adenosine triphosphate) – the form of energy your cells use to perform their function. It helps give your muscles energy for short-term activity.

Creatine is one of the most studied and widely used supplements for exercise and sports performance, and a number of clinical trials have shown a benefit for high-intensity, intermittent activity, notes the National Institutes for Health Fact Sheet on Dietary Supplements for Exercise and Athletic Performance.

It adds that ‘few safety concerns’ were reported at typical dose (20g a day for up to 7 days, 3-5g a day for up to 12 weeks). The only adverse effects were weight gain from water retention, and anecdotal reports of nausea, diarrhoea, muscle cramps and muscle stiffness.

Branched-chain amino acids (BCAAs)

BCAAs (valine, leucine, and isoleucine) are essential amino acids – proteins found in food which your muscles burn for energy. In a recent Position Stand, the International Society of Sport Nutrition pronounced them unique among the essential amino acids, for their role in protein metabolism, neural function, blood glucose and insulin regulation.

You can get BCAAs from foods such as meat, chicken, fish, milk and soy proteins. Athletes and body builders often use BCAA supplements to try to help prevent muscle breakdown and accelerate the repair of muscle damaged in exercise to aid recovery after workouts, and improve athletic performance. When taken for up to six month, they’ve seldom been linked to harmful side effects, though these may include nausea, headache and pain.

Studies suggest BCAAs may help enhance exercise performance by exerting an influence on fatigue substances in the body (such as serotonin), muscle damage substances and energy metabolism substances (such as glucose). They may help with muscle growth, muscle soreness and fatigue. But while they may prevent muscle breakdown when you exercise, they’re reported to be unlikely to improve athletic performance.

Joint support

Joints can take stress in high impact exercise such as running and jumping, which can result in join inflammation and pain. When joints are inflamed, don’t force yourself to do more than feels comfortable, the Arthritis Foundation recommends.

You can also support joint health with your diet. Harvard Health lists the best anti-inflammatory foods as olive oil, fatty fish such as salmon, mackerel, tuna and sardines, nuts like almonds and walnuts, which help your body provide healthy lubrication for your joints, and advises a Mediterranean diet, which includes these foods with plenty of vegetables, fruit and whole grains.

A number of supplements are now marketed to treat symptoms of joint pain, including fish oil, flaxseed, capsaicin and turmeric, but always talk to your health professional first. 

Also read: What is a sports recovery plan and why is it important?