Performance enhancers shouldn't be substituted for a balanced diet.
An athlete's desire for improvement may lead her to consider incorporating dietary supplements and other performance enhancers into her training regimen. While certain supplements can improve athletic performance, the Department of Health and Human Services reports that a balanced diet provides the essential vitamins and proteins required for peak athletic performance. An athlete should consult her doctor before using any performance enhancer.
Caffeine
McMaster University's Dr. Mark Tarnopolsky states that caffeine dulls pain and gives athletes greater endurance by releasing calcium from muscle tissue. Louise M. Burke, head of sports nutrition at the Australian Institute of Sport notes that athletes only need 1mg of caffeine for every 1kg of their body weight to receive its full performance-enhancing benefits. Caffeine also helps the body burn fat instead of carbohydrates during exercise. The American College of Sports Medicine reported that caffeine doesn't dehydrate athletes by producing excess urine, but caffeine can produce anxiety, irritability and nausea. Caffeine can potentially trigger more severe reactions, such as insomnia, diarrhea and vomiting.
Hypoxic Air Tents
Hypoxic tents are chambers that simulate the effect of living and training in a high-altitidue environment by diluting their air with nitrogen, lowering the oxygen level from 21 percent to 15 percent. "Sport Science" published a study indicating that it takes several weeks for the body to adapt to this reduced oxygen level. Once the athlete adapts, his body begins to produce more oxygen-carrying red blood cells, and the study reported that this physiological change co-related with greater endurance.
Protein
Protein builds and repairs muscle and athletes often use protein supplements to increase muscle mass and boost their immune systems. Dr. Howard LeWine of the Harvard Medical School states that athletes need approximately .66g of protein per pound of body weight. Creatine is an amino acid available in supplements that provides a rapid energy boost that can enhance performance during short periods of exertion, but it doesn't increase endurance and can cause water retention. The National Institutes of Health point to meat, poultry, fish, milk and eggs as natural sources of protein that provide all of the amino acids the body requires.
Vitamins
Dr. LeWine indicates that a well-balanced diet is usually sufficient to provide enough vitamins and minerals to meet the demands of athletic performance. Training increases an athlete's need for B vitamins, which can be met with cereals, lean meat and whole grains. The effect of antioxidants -- such as vitamins C and E -- is controversial among researchers. A study by A. Goldfarb published in "Journal of Applied Psychology" found no protective benefit from antioxidant supplements, but "Sports Medicine" published results from J. Dekkers' research which indicated that additional antioxidants reduced muscle injury during training.
Tags: athletic performance, balanced diet, body weight, greater endurance, oxygen level, reported that