Heightened performance is a critical factor in any sporting activity. Most athletes do various things to improve their performance; these include regular exercises, eating healthy, taking nutritional supplements, and more.
Luckily, this is now easier with technological innovations and modern training methods. Athletes can now do various things that no one imagined were possible. That’s not all, though! There are different nutritional supplements in the market, and they can help heighten your performance in various ways.
What are the best ways to improve my athletic performance?
1. Train your mind!
Your brain is a powerful muscle and is one of the most effective ways to enhance your performance. Most sporting activities not only rely on strong muscles but your mental capability as well. You use your brain to make multiple decisions that can significantly impact your performance. For this reason, you must train your brain if you have to dominate in any sport.
Luckily, there are many vision sports training devices in the market. These use visual stimulants to help you respond to stimuli and act promptly. When combined with performance tracking, you can be sure to take your performance a notch higher.
2. Consider nutritional supplements
Supplementing your diet with supplements is an excellent way of getting essential vitamins and minerals. This way, you’ll stay healthy and maintain optimal body functions. Most supplements will supply your body with a daily dose of Vitamins A, C, D, B12, and E. They are rich in essential vitamins like zinc, iron, magnesium, potassium, and more.
While there are different supplements in the market, most athletes prefer CarnoSyn® beta-alanine supplements. They contain New Dietary Ingredient (NDI) status are available in two forms. What’s more, these supplements offer different ways to dose, which are instant and sustained release.
Why go for beta-alanine supplementation?
Beta-alanine supplementation is a common practice among athletes. Taking these supplements has been shown to offer numerous gains to athletes. For instance, they can delay fatigue during workouts and boosts endurance during physical activities or training. Other known benefits include;
An intense increase in muscular strength and power output Increases lean muscle mass.
- Improves muscular anaerobic endurance
- Increases aerobic endurance
- Increases exercise capacity, allowing you to train and harder and longer.
3. Hydrate and make it a priority
Hydration offers numerous benefits and should be your top priority using workouts. Your body loses a lot of fluid through sweat, and drinking enough water restores lost fluids. As you exercise, your temperature rises, and you sweat more in an attempt to cool your body down.
Keep a bottle of water within and drink 20-40 ounces per hour. Otherwise, you’ll risk getting dehydrated, which can lead to concussions and impact your health and athletic performance.
Drink a lot so water before and after excising. This ensures that your body stays hydrated to produce sweat and aid in recovery after the workouts. However, avoid drinking too much, and stick to the 20-40 ounces as recommended. This can lead to bloating and nausea which can also affect your performance.
4. Track your performance
There are various monitoring devices that you can acquire to track your performance. You can acquire a wearable or use the conventional pen and paper and watch your workouts and performance. This will furnish you with the right data, which you can use to set goals for your subsequent workouts.
With the current technological advances, tracking your performance is easier than ever before. It’s now common to spot athletes with fitness watches and high-tech vests. Fitness wearables offer a lot of valuable information that you can use to improve your performance.
You can use a camera to record your workouts for future review. No matter your choice of wearable device, it’s good knowing that simple acts such as performance tracking can make a big difference in your athletic performance.
5. Set adequate time for recovery
Recovery helps prevent injuries and is as important as workouts. During workouts, your muscles endure a lot of strain and need time to heal. If you don’t rest, you risk muscle tears and injuries, which can affect your performance.
What can I do to promote healing and recovery?
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Rest
Set enough time for rest to strengthen and build up your muscles. It will replenish your energy stores, particularly muscle glycogen, which your body stores in the form of carbohydrates. Also, avoid intense workouts and cardio for some days or a week.
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Stretch
Stretching also works! It prevents injury during workouts and also helps in the recovery process.
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Get a massage
A professional massage will help align your muscle tissue, lessen inflammation and improve circulation. This will alleviate muscle stiffness and cramps resulting from lymphatic fluid buildup.
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Eat right!
Professional athletes are on strict diets than you can imagine. And you must choose your foods wisely if at all you have to improve your performance. Moreover, how you eat your food matters, and you should consume healthy foods at the right time.
For instance, you need an abundant supply of healthy carbohydrates, proteins, and fats for breakfast. This will fuel your body and muscles and supply you with adequate energy for the day. Avoid simple sugars and carbs and choose healthy alternatives like complex carbohydrates.
The body breaks them down easily, resulting in a rapid blood sugar spike. After consuming too much sugar, you’ll experience a quick energy boost, but this will be short-lived. You’ll later feel lethargic, which isn’t good for athletes.
Examples of good foods to boost your performance include;
- Fresh vegetables
- Bananas
- Healthy protein such as fish, chicken, turkey, eggs, legumes.
- Otameal
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Replenish nutrients immediately after intense exercises
You use a lot of energy during an intense workout and should replenish the lost nutrients immediately. Such workouts can cause damages to your muscles, and your body will be unable to repair them without an ample supply of proteins. This can lead to muscle mass loss, making it vital to ingest more nutrients, particularly protein, after the workout.
In summary, there are various ways to enhance your athletic performance. Although you may take a proper diet, this may not be enough, and you may have to consider supplements. These will furnish your body with all the essential minerals and vitamins for improved performance.