College Sports Nutrition

Eat the correct foods and fuel that sport scholarship body

Sports nutrition has many goals to enhance performance. First, it improves performance by improving body composition, which increases speed, quickness, mobility, and strength. This is an important ingredient to becoming a top world class athlete. Second, it will help the speed of recovery, which will in turn create more capacity for practicing and competition as the body is becoming more fit and adjusted to the coupling of the good nutrition incorporated into the workout.

American football scholarships, basketball scholarship athletes are training to there limits so being able to recover is important for these guys. Third, it will allow one to increase energy for both practice and competition, which will definitely help one's performance. Diet will also increase immunity, allowing one to stay healthy and be able to continue and intensify practice and training. More importantly, it will improve your overall health as proper health is a vital component for athletes on athletic scholarships to maintain

Sport Supplements 

Many college athletes on sports scholarships consider taking sport supplements because they are looking for the “ingredient” to increase performance. In the extreme case of performance-enhancing supplements, athletes may choose to use illegal substances such as anabolic steroids, compounds which are related to the hormone testosterone, which can quickly build mass and strength, but have many adverse effects such as high blood pressure and negative gender specific effects. If a college athlete did do this you would be in serious violation of the college sports rules. At no time can illegal substances be taken. Make sure whatever sports supplements you are taking have been cleared with the NCAA first.

Protein 

Protein a key ingredient used by muscle builders are now found in resistance
and strength training athletes who are on sports scholarship. Many athletic
scholarship athletes use protein intake part of the nutrient requirements for the
regular athlete and is an important component of exercise training, because it
can also aid in performance and recovery. Protein intake for well-trained athletes

 
should occur before, during and after physical activity as it is advantageous in
gaining muscle mass and strength. 

If too much protein and amino acid supplements are consumed, it can be
more harmful than beneficial; health risks include: “dehydration, gout,
calcium loss, liver, and renal damage and gastrointestinal side effects
include diarrhea, bloating, and water loss". A protein diet must be paired
with a healthy, well-rounded meal plan and  regular resistance exercise. Characteristics such as the type of exercise, intensity, duration, the carbohydrate values of diet, the individual's sex and  age and also the amount of background training and training environment.

Energy Supplements 

Energy supplements have shown to increase the performance of physical activity and are used by many track and field scholarship athletes. A study done at the University of Texas saw a 4.7% increase of performance in 83% of participants after drinking Red Bull Energy Drink which was more intense than the compared placebo. The energy drink most dominantly increased the noreprinephrine levels and beta-endorphins in the blood than before consumption. Caffeine, carbohydrates and Vitamin B are factors that may have favored performance increase with no change in perceived exertion.

Caffeine

Caffeine became popularly when its power of masking fatigue became highly recognized. Caffeine found in energy drinks shows an increased reaction performance and increased good feelings of energy, focus and alterness in quickness and reaction anaerobic power tests. Consuming an energy drink with caffeine increases short time/rapid exercise performance.

Sports Drinks 

Post-exercise nutrition is just as important and taken seroiulsy by many college athletes on sports scholarships. If not more important than pre-exercise nutrition as it pertains to recovery. Traditionally sport scholarship athletes take, sports drinks such as Gatorade and Powerade, are consumed during and after exercise because they effectively rehydrate the body by refueling the body with minerals and electrolytes. The drink was made of glucose and sucrose in water and helped the football scholarship athletes performance increase. 

Milk 

Current studies in 2008 have found milk, especially skim milk and chocolate milk may be the new sports drink, as milk leads to protein the synthesis which boosts net muscle protein balance. Milk naturally contains many electrolytes, nutrients and other properties that help to make it a great post-exercise beverage to commercial sports drinks.

When compared to plain water or sports drinks, research suggests that chocolate milk is more effective at replacing fluids lost as sweat and maintaining normal body fluid levels. Athletes drinking chocolate milk following exercise-induced dehydration had fluid levels about 2 percent higher (on initial body mass) than those using other post-exercise recovery beverages, allowing for prolonged performance, especially in repeated bouts of exercise or training.   


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