Tuesday 27 March 2012

How Energy Is Helpful For Sports And Marathons

By Clint Reedy


If you're going to join certain events that requires endurance, like triathlons, then you're going to have to manage the energy reserves in your body. This could be difficult, considering the fact that none of us know how much energy is in our body.

Storing Energy

Everyday, the food that we eat gives us the energy nutrition our body needs. Consuming complex carbohydrates like rice and bread gives glucose and this is what is used to provide us with our much needed energy. Extra glucose that you don't need is turned into glycogen and placed in your muscles and liver. The extra glucose are then stored in your body as fat.

Using Energy

The body quickly uses our available energy when we exercise. The stored glycogen reserves are then drawn out, helping us in terms of endurance. However, the body's capabilities to store glycogen is limited. The decrease of stored glycogen causes the body to turn to fat as its extra energy. Unfortunately, it takes time to turn this fat into energy and it's not as effective as glycogen. This is why athletes sometimes slow down during the later stages of the event, especially when they're trying to burn energy faster than it can be produced.

Determine How Far You Can Go

Those athletes that weigh 150 lbs can store about 1800 calories as glycogen. This stored glycogen can be used for approximately 2 -3 hours, depending on how intense their effort and activity will be. For example, a marathoner who has consumed their glycogen reserves wouldn't be able to go on beyond miles 18 -20. However, with training, the muscles get accustomed to storing more glycogen. Not only that, it lets the body get accustomed to burning fat for energy when the glycogen available decreases.

How are Nutrition Supplements Helpful?

Power bars and gels are used by athletes to help improve their energy stores during events. But it all depends on the whether or not they would work. I personally don't like power bars because I have a hard time digesting it during marathons. It's advisable to try them out during training. FRS and Hornet Juice, which are newer products, are getting more popular. Not only are they easier to digest, but they also provide athletes with more energy.

However, proper training is still the most important for any athlete. Missing some workouts may cause you to falter during events and you can't do your best with just an energy nutrition supplement. Experienced athletes that are trained for endurance have knowledge on how to pace themselves properly. They know that going too fast at the beginning means using up available energy. You can achieve your very best by training hard and taking appropriate nutritional supplements during the day.




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