GlycoStory

Athletes & Nutrition

Sports excellence is based on many factors, including mental toughness, natural skill, training techniques, desire and physical conditioning. To reach the top of your game, adequate rest, exercise and a nutritious diet are also necessary.

The importance of nutrition cannot be overemphasized for the athlete seeking to achieve maximal performance and rapid post-exercise recovery. Particularly in competitions involving elite athletes, dietary factors can often translate into those millisecond edges that separate champions from other competitors. Furthermore, an optimal diet can help to protect an athlete’s body from injury by providing many of the nutrients needed to strengthen tissue.

Eating Well Is Not Enough
Can you maximize your performance, minimize injury and recover as quickly as possible simply by eating the right foods? Scientific evidence says no. Optimal cellular structure, function and communication are dependent on eight essential sugars known as glyconutrients. Unfortunately, our bodies can only convert glucose (blood sugar) into glyconutrients through a complex enzymatic process. Even worse, these enzymes require glycoproteins (compounds made from glyconutrients) to function at their best. And since the cells in every organ of our bodies must function optimally for peak performance, this creates a problem.

It used to be that we could get these essential sugars from our diets. How-ever, things have changed — for the worse. There are two principal reasons for this change. First, the main source of these essential sugars is fresh, plant-ripened fruits and vegetables. If these foods are picked while they are green, the phytonutrients are still in the stems and roots, so there is only a small amount present in the produce when the shipping process begins. Second, there are enzymes in the foods that start to break down what sugars are present into an inactive form as soon as they are harvested. It can take three to five days to ship from the farm to the store; any phytoonutrients that may have been present in the prematurely picked fruit or vegetable are almost completely broken down by the time it reaches the store. So we must turn to supplements for our phytonutrients.

The Vital Role of Glyconutrients
Glyconutrients are converted into vital glycoproteins in a two-step process. In a tiny, intracellular Mixmaster called a Golgi body, one of the sugars, mannose, is blended with N-acetylglucosamine molecules (a second sugar). This molecule is then transported to another part of the cell called the endoplasmic reticulum, where it’s combined with a specific protein molecule to form one of the many glycoproteins.

More than 85% of the molecules in our cells are glycoproteins. If they are not created correctly in our cells due to a deficiency of the sugars, crucial cells and their components — such as enzymes, antibodies, collagen, muscle fibers, hormones and many others — are not created in sufficient quantities. Health and performance can be dramatically reduced. Furthermore, these sugars provide the fuel for most of the enzymes in our cells. With reduced fuel, these enzymes cannot function at their full potential. Finally, sugars are required for the correct positioning of most proteins in the cells.

Supplementation is a Must
The importance of protein supplementation in peak athletic performance has been well established. However, the majority of these proteins cannot be utilized correctly without a biochemical step that requires many of these eight sugars. Therefore, we can see that peak cellular function cannot be achieved without glyconutrients supplementation.

Glyconutrients are nontoxic at even high amounts, and there is no potential for long-term damage or drug interactions.

Studies Confirm Benefits
Does optimizing cellular function through glyconutrient supplementation result in enhanced performance? Many athletes have noted a difference. Roy Kurban, a karate black belt and Black Belt Magazine’s 1981 Man of the Year, says, “During the past 30 years, I’ve tried hundreds of new nutritional supplements — vitamins, energy bars, protein powders — and everything else imaginable to enhance performance. In late 1996, I was introduced to glyconutrients. They really work.”

A study of former NFL athletes showed that those taking glyconutrients had less pain, better range of motion in their joints and an overall improvement in their quality of life. Also, a Russian study involving 100 3,000-meter competitors found that a glyconutrient extract of Siberian ginseng (Eleutherococcus senticosus) reduced average race time by 38%.

It’s well known that excessive exercise diminishes immune-system function. This increases the risk of infection, prolongs recovery time and decreases tissue-repair mechanisms. Glyconutrients have been shown to enhance immune function. In fact, both the U.S. and Canadian Olympic teams officially endorse glyconutrient products for their athletes.

Glyconutrient super sugars can lower recovery time, reduce your risk of injury and, most importantly, enhance your sports performance. So when people tell you that sugar is bad, remind them that not all sugars are alike. Too much refined sugar, of course, can put your insulin levels on a roller-coaster ride and hold you back in your training progress. The eight essential sugars, on the other hand, can provide you with the fuel sources that you need to reach your full potential as an athlete.