Micronutrients for Athletics

Although the focus of my practice is the treatment of chronic disease, I thought I’d write this for personal trainers and athletes out there who may be interested in micronutrient optimization.  It specifically focuses on vitamins and minerals related to the health of your joints and ligaments because of all the stress we put on those during workouts, as well as immune function, which can be compromised when working the body close to it’s limit on a daily basis.

It begins fairly introductory and then ramps into both the specific and practical.

Vitamins

Theory:

• Vitamins are organic compounds that are required by the body, but cannot be produced by the body, therefore must be consumed through the diet.
• There are two major categories of vitamins
  • Water soluble vitamins have a short lifespan in the body and fast-acting effects
  • Fat soluble vitamins stay in the body much longer and have slow-acting effects
• Water soluble vitamins:
  • All B Vitamins
  • Vitamin C
• Fat soluble vitamins:
• A, D, E, K1, K2
• Some vitamins are made as waste products from healthy bacteria living in our guts, one reason consuming fiber is critical.
• We can get vitamin D from the sun; though at our latitude this is only effective May – Sept.
• Water-soluble vitamins help the body and mind deal with physical and mental stress.
• Fat-soluble vitamins are helpful for building a strong musculo-skeletal & immune system.

Science:

• In the United States and Europe it’s estimated more than 40% of the adult population is Vitamin D deficient.  It’s likely this figure is even worse in Canada.
• A 2013 study found vitamin D supplementation aided exercise recovery time.¹
• A 2013 meta-analysis found low vitamin D levels are strongly associated with depression.²
• A 2014 meta-analysis found even small amounts of vitamin D helped with depression.³
• A 2014 meta-analysis found vitamin D supplementation improved global muscle strength, especially in those who were previously deficient.⁴
• A 2014 study found that a year of vitamin D supplementation in men improved average testosterone levels by 29%, while there was no improvement in the placebo group.⁵
• A 2007 study found vitamin K2 supplementation improves bone strength, specifically increased compression strength 2%, bending strength 3.8%, and impact strength 1.7%.⁶
• A 2007 systematic review including 11,350 people found that in people who undergo heavy physical stress, daily Vitamin C supplementation reduces cold & flu incidences by 50%.⁷

Practice:

• • You will perform better, recover faster, and be less injury prone by eating a vitamin rich diet.  
  • Therefore concentrate on eating nutrient dense food, not empty calories.
  • Most natural and unadulterated food is rich in vitamins.
  • Grass fed / wild-caught / free range animal products have consistently shown higher levels of the fat soluble vitamins, A, E & K.
  • Vitamins B1, B5, B9 and C are destroyed by cooking, eat some raw plant matter every day.
  • A good B-Complex is a must for an athlete, go for one that uses 5-MTHF instead of folic acid; Doctor’s Best, Life Extension, and Thorne Research are all good, all on iHerb.

The most kick-ass nutrient dense foods are:

• Grass-fed organic animal liver
• Pastured egg yolks
• Bone-broth soup
• Leafy greens
• Oysters
• Sprouts

The least nutrient rich ‘natural’ foods are:

• Grains; which are also high in phytic acid, phytic acid blocks absorption of minerals

Bottom line:

• Learn how to make kick-ass, delicious & fulfilling salads & eat one every day!
• Be picky about animal products: grass-fed / organic / free-range / wild-caught

Minerals

Theory:

• Minerals are elements found in nature that are required for certain biochemical processes.
• The minerals needed in relatively large quantities are: calcium, phosphorus, magnesium, sodium, potassium, chloride and sulfur.
• The minerals needed in relatively small quantities are: iron, manganese, copper, iodine, zinc, chromium, molybdenum, and selenium. There are arguably a few others.
• Zinc is key for maximizing your testosterone production and the immune system. An older study found 90% of endurance athletes deficient. Deficiency also common in vegetarians.
• Magnesium is key for dealing with physical and mental stress, and to assist sleep.  Athletes require more magnesium than the sedentary.⁸  Deficiency is rampant.  Average intake is 200mg/day. Government recommendation is 400mg/day. Athletes need 500mg/day min.
• Manganese is critical for bones, joints, tendons and ligaments⁹ and deficiency is known to make bones and joints weak and prone to injury.¹⁰
• Sulfur is critical for dealing with chemical stresses and Sulfur is concentrated in joint cartilage, where it provides a substrate for cartilage synthesis.¹¹
• Selenium is critical for parts of your immune system.

Science:

• A 1992 study found magnesium supplementation improved strength in amateur athletes.¹²
• A 1993 study found male athletes supplemented with magnesium were able to increase peak oxygen uptake and total work output during capacity tests.¹³
• A 2000 review noted that supplemental magnesium and zinc have been shown to improve both strength and muscle metabolism.¹⁴
• A 2006 study showed that even slight magnesium deficiencies impair athletic performance, requiring more oxygen to produce the same amount of cellular energy (ATP).
• A 2011 study found magnesium supplements increased testosterone levels in athletes.¹⁵
• Many laboratory studies and animal studies suggest supplementary sulfur intake both protects joints from damage and speeds repair of cartilage tissue.¹⁶  No human studies prove this, but many human studies on arthritis show improvements in pain scores and joint mobility after supplementation.
• Sulfur has been found to reduce muscle soreness after strenuous exercise in four studies.¹⁷

^{No, that’s damn hard work son! But magnesium is essential.}

Practice:

• If you eat real food, use natural salts, drink spring water, and include high quality animal products and a lot of plant matter in your diet, you should get most minerals required.
• High levels of physical and mental stress will increase your requirements for magnesium beyond what a diet can likely provide.
• Repeated stress on your joints, tendons and ligaments will require extra sulfur & manganese (in addition to collagen as discussed in my Macronutrients For Athletics post).
• A Joint Support supplement is a good idea.  Don’t wait until you’re injured. Protect your joints daily now and improve chances of a longer career.  
  • ATP’s Collagenik is a proven, premier option
  • Doctor’s Best Glucosamine Chondroitin MSM is a great option on a budget
• Magnesium supplementation is an absolute must.  Taking it before bed can help improve sleep, do that in either case.
  • ATP Labs sleep formula Optisom includes sufficient magnesium if taken every day
  • ZMA, used by bodybuilders for years, is a good alternative. Any brand is fine.
• Multivitamins are good for filling nutritional gaps, but you get what you pay for.  You will still need extra magnesium, sulfur, D3, K2. A multi doesn’t cover it all.
  • ATP Lab’s Total Defense is the best premium multivitamin
  • Doctor’s Best multivitamin is a great budget option
• All non-ATP products mentioned above available on iHerb.  A more complete supplement regimen for athletes will be included in a future blog post.

What to Eat

Here’s a practical little chart to provide more clear guidance:

Reference Links:

1. https://nutritionandmetabolism.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/1743-7075-10-69
2. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/23377209
3. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/24632894
4. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/25033068
5. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/21154195
6. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1915640/
7. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/17636648
8. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/17172008
9. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/3117341
10. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/8409100
11. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/11896744
12. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/1619184
13. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/8325293
14. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/10919964
15. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/20352370
16. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5372953/
17. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5372953/