SPORT AND EXERCISE NUTRITION UNDER THE SPOTLIGHT
Health and fitness professionals have an exclusive opportunity to get up-to-date with latest trends in sport and exercise nutrition at Leisure Industry Week
The focus will be on:
• The ideal recovery drink
• Muscle building – the importance of timing, and
• Fat burning and fat burners.

The half-day ‘Sport & Exercise Nutrition: What’s New’ Conference being staged on Thursday September 25 is designed to present an update on the new and existing aspects of nutrition that can play an important role in helping participants achieve their individual exercise goals.
Ironman athlete Dr Professor Asker Jeukendrup – a professor of exercise metabolism at the School of Sport and Exercise Sciences, and director of the Human Performance Laboratory – will be accompanied by two members of his University of Birmingham team, Kevin Tipton and Michelle Venables.
The seminars are supported by Lucozade Sport and the Lucozade Sport Science.
The Sports Nutrition Conference is just one of a number of special feature areas and a comprehensive education programme of more than 100 sessions planned for LIW and Sports Development Week

NEARLY HALF OF EXERCISERS ARRIVE AT THE GYM INADEQUATELY HYDRATED
A study from the US suggests nearly half of all exercisers start their workouts at a disadvantage, by arriving at the gym inadequately hydrated.
Even minor dehydration can have a major effect on a workout. According to research, as little as 2% dehydration can affect workouts by dropping an exercisers’ endurance and causing workouts to feel much harder.
“When exercisers arrive at the gym dehydrated, it’s a challenge for them to catch up on their fluid intake, and their workout undoubtedly suffers,” says Dixie Stanforth, M.S., Kinesiology lecturer at The University of Texas.
Experts say what exercisers choose to drink can affect the amount they’re able to drink and ultimately, their ability to stay well hydrated. A summary of hydration research states that when drinking plain water during activity, exercisers only replace about 50% of what they lose in sweat,4 which makes it even harder to achieve an optimal workout.
 
“I tell my clients, especially those that have a tough time drinking enough plain water, that one of the best ways to conquer dehydration is to opt for a lightly flavoured beverage, such as Gatorade, which contains electrolytes and helps promote drinking for optimal hydration,” says Stanforth.
 
In addition to the overall dehydration findings, the study revealed:
• Men were more likely to be inadequately hydrated before they start their workout, as compared with women

Of the exercisers who arrived at the gym already dehydrated: 
• More than 90% work out three or more times a week
• Nearly 75% planned to work out for an hour or more
• More than half thought they were properly hydrated

SPORTS SUPPLEMENTS NOW THE NORM FOR GYM MEMBERS
A wide array of perfectly-legal substances to improve fitness and allow athletes to gain extra muscle is now the staple diet of those who just train to get fit.
A report by the respected Health Food Manufacturers’ Association says that sales of sports nutrition products are now the norm for “the average gym and leisure centre member” who wants to aid recovery and build.
Many top athletes feel they have to take the supplements to keep a level playing field between themselves and their competitors. Now gym members are taking supplements to help them train better and recover more quickly. The report reflects the boom in sports nutrition supplements in the past two years.
Supplements to improve performance are nothing new. Sports drinks with added glucose and replacement salt have been around for decades, but sports nutrition has entered a whole new level of complexity in recent years, with evermore sophisticated ‘ergogenic aids’ being marketed.
A recent report showed a record number of people taking the amino acid, creatine. Amino acids are the basis for other supplements popular with athletes. These include:
• Glutamine - claimed to reduce fatigue, build muscle and boost the immune system
• Trypthophan or 5HT - claimed to increase production of adrenaline, the ‘fight or flight’ hormone
• Protein powders - claimed to improve recovery after training and increase strength and muscle growth.

SPORTS CENTRES WILL BE KEY FOR FUTURE NUTRITION SALES
As mainstream consumers are becoming increasingly fitness and diet conscious, sports nutrition companies are no longer targeting just professional athletes. ‘Sports-specific diets’ are increasingly evolving into ‘people-specific diets.’
Dr Andrew Peters from the Nuffield Institute has reported that in 2008 leisure centres and gyms will become more sophisticated retail outlets to deal with the demand. “The convenience of delivery has ensured widespread adoption of products such as ready-to-drink liquid foods and supplements in the form of bars. The increasing trend is to see these foods and supplements sold close to where the training and exercise is taking place. It is a natural and understandable progression.”
Manufacturers are not just offering functional benefits but have improved the taste and textures to tap into the mainstream consumer segment. Some new flavours include cookies and cream, vanilla crisp, chocolate peanut, apple and cinnamon and cappuccino. These products cater to the nutritional requirements of both athletes and mainstream fitness consumers.
Although the lack of variety in delivery forms and weaker taste profiles has severely hampered sales in creatine and protein powder segments, they are likely to revive with the help of novel flavours and delivery technologies.
The increased emphasis on mainstream consumers has meant a wider distribution network to increase the availability of products. Traditionally, companies sold their sports and fitness nutrition products through specialised outlets, health food stores and pharmacies but gyms and fitness centres are where the future lies.

US MOVES AGAINST SUPPLEMENTS
A Bill that prevents coaches from recommending or selling nutritional supplements to athletes is about to be approved in some US states.
The measure does not impose penalties but coaches could be subject to disciplinary rules covering violations of state law.
“We’re very pleased,” said Michael Wallmark, Assistant Executive Director of the Oregon Athletic Activities Association. “We were strongly in support and testified in favour of this Bill. We believe it’s in the best interest of high school athletes to not have coaches in the business of distributing substances to them.”
The legislation was drawn up in response to an incident in which coaches were selling the legal, over-the-counter supplement creatine to athletes.
Creatine and androstenedione are among performance-enhancing substances targeted by the legislation.