Most people believe sports food is unhealthy. These beliefs could be explained by different reasons which, however, have little to do with the facts. Here are top 4 myths about sports food: sports food is unnatural, it overburdens the digestive system, it can be replaced with natural foods, it is very expensive. This article debunks these myths.
Sports Food Myth 1. Sports Food Is Unnatural
Sports food products contain no artificial or man-made ingredients. In fact, sports foods are concentrated natural foods that are technologically processed to remove nonnutritive substances and other unnecessary components that could derail your sports diet. For example, saturated fats and excessive carbohydrates are removed from protein-based sports food products. Carb-based products are very low in fat and contain a basic amount of protein. Carb energizers are absolutely free of fat and protein fractions enabling fast absorption into the blood and providing the energy you need for workouts.
Substances Used by the Body during Workouts
Our body uses some substances more intensively during the training. And these very substances ensure effective recovering and physical performance (complex amino acids, branched-chain amino acids, glutamine, creatine, carnitine, as well as a great variety of vitamins and minerals). Extraction of such substances and production of natural food additives based on them have contributed greatly to records in many highly intensive sports.
Sports Food Myth 2. Sports Food Overburdens the Digestive System
The second myth is about sports food overburdening the digestive and excretory systems. Actually, sports food products are not accidentally referred to as food supplements. They just supplement your usual, but well-planned diet. They add the “final touch” to your properly balanced nutrition. Don’t forget about essential water intake. Just drink enough water to support your metabolism: about 1-1.5 liters (2-3 pt) of water per 100 g consumed protein.
Sports Food Myth 3. Sports Food Can Be Replaced with Natural Foods
The third myth is about replacing food supplements with fresh natural foods such as meat, eggs, milk, grains, vegetables and fruit. It is very hard, though, and sometimes practically impossible to balance your daily diet without food supplements, especially when you are trying to achieve specific goals like gaining dry muscle mass or building a muscle definition, i.e. reducing your subcutaneous fat. You can’t do without food supplements when you have to meet specific weight requirements in sports with weight categories. In weight-class sports, you need to maintain the “working” part of your body – your muscle mass – as well as effectively reduce your “nonworking” fat deposits.
Sports Food Myth 4. Sports Food Is Very Expensive
And the forth myth is about sports food being very expensive and unaffordable to most people, especially for amateur bodybuilders. It is far from the truth. Nowadays, your physical training costs include gym payments, the cost of food as well as the time spent on commuting to the gym and the training itself. If you don’t take the gym payments into account – everyone can find an affordable gym today – your food is the major expense item. Food supplements allow you to save money you spend on regular foodstuffs and additional visits to the gym as you don’t have to do extra aerobic training to burn your fat deposits.
Why Sports Food Is Highly Recommended
Skilled trainers or recover sports medicine physicians would recommend food supplements as they can help facilitate your training and shorten a long and grueling way to achieve optimal health and a good level of physical fitness.