Improving Athletic Performance in Sports and Exercises

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Are you looking to optimize your Performance?

Advances in exercise physiology have identified individual biomarkers for assessing health, athletic performance, and recovery during exercise training.

The goal of any professional or non-professional athlete is to improve their performance when participating in a sport. During exercise, there is a considerable amount of time and physical resources required to increase an individual’s strength, speed, endurance, as well as help minimize the chance of injuries. The high level of physical training needed to compete can be affected by a variety of conditions such as underlying nutritional deficiencies, a genetic predisposition for certain diseases, and the ability to recuperate quickly after overtraining or suffering an injury.

What are Biomarkers?

A biomarker (biological marker) is a measurable product or substance used as an indicator of the biological state to objectively determine the body’s physiologic or pathological processes. In sports, biomarkers are key parameters for assessing the impact of exercise on different body systems, tissues, and organs1.

Biomarker testing is currently used for players on professional teams, but amateur athletes in any sport can benefit as well. These tests can offer all levels of athletes, coaches, and sports enthusiasts the opportunity to increase performance and lessen recovery time during exercise training. For you this can mean more strength, quicker and greater endurance.

Benefits of Biomarker Testing

The results of these tests allow an individualized program to be created for each athlete to optimize long-term health, nutrition and help achieve maximal improvements in performance while minimizing overtraining and the risk of injury.

The Aesthetic & Wellness Center offers a variety of performance tests essential for determining an athlete’s current health, micronutrients, inflammation, oxidative stress, bioenergetics, endurance, muscle breakdown, recovery status, and genetic predisposition for several chronic health conditions. The test panel can also be tailor-made to fit the individual needs of a specific team or athlete.

Here’s a brief explanation of some of these tests:

  1. Micronutrient biomarkers (blood test): Nutrition plays a critical role in athletic performance and recovery. When overall nutrition is inadequate, it can cause a reduction in endurance, performance, and muscle function. This test measures the intracellular levels of 33 nutrients, immune response, and total antioxidant capacity. Additionally, this test provides specific information on exactly how the body is utilizing these micronutrients and helps determine the type of supplements and healthy eating required for optimal performance.
  2. Inflammatory Markers (blood test): Regular exercise training can cause muscle damage and result in inflammation. Chronic inflammation is known to be a signal of injury or stress from overtraining. This could lead to decreased performance, which we want to help you avoid. The measurement of specific biomarkers in the bloodstream can indirectly detect the degree of muscle inflammation, alerting the athlete and aiding in preventing possible injury from overtraining.
  3. Telomeres (blood test): Telomeres are protective caps at the ends of chromosomes that wear down as we get older. Shorter telomeres imply a shorter lifespan for the cells. Studies have shown that telomere length is strongly associated with cardiovascular risk, nutritional deficiencies (particularly antioxidants), and cancer. Testing may be a useful biomarker for risk assessment. It can help predict how well our bodies will age and how vulnerable we are to chronic diseases.
  4. Healthy Weight DNA Genetic Testing (saliva test): This comprehensive health and wellness genetic test provides vital information about an individual’s genetic predisposition for a variety of conditions, including:
  • Weight and diet
  • Eating behaviors
  • Nutrigenetics
  • Metabolic health factors
  • Predisposition to several chronic health conditions
  1. Resting Metabolic Rate Assessment (breathing test): This test determines how many calories a person’s body burns at rest and calculates how many calories athletes should be eating to lose or maintain their weight.

 

Additional Testing:

  • Food Sensitivities Testing
  • Advanced Cardiometabolic Testing
  • Cortisol & Neurotransmitters testing

If you are ready to enhance your athletic performance, call us today at 941-749-0741.

 

References:

1Bouchard C, Shephard RJ, Stephens T. Physical activity; fitness and health: International proceedings and consensus statement Champaign III: Human Kinetics; 1994.