Exercise requires nutrients

“If we could give every individual the right amount of nourishment and exercise, not too little and not too much, we would have found the safest way to health.”

A– Hippocrates

S THE close of the year approaches, an interesting pattern of behaviour emerges. In November and December, unhealthy habits and poor lifestyle choices increase.

By contrast, in January, New Year’s resolutions to turn over a new leaf abound. Gyms and health clubs are busier than ever and fad diets are the in thing. But in a few weeks most people are back to where they started. Let’s change that unhealthy cycle.

In the Kingdom of Wellness, nutrition and exercise are indeed king and queen. Unfortunately, many people only focus on one or the other and fail to enjoy all the benefits that both can bring. Experts point out that exercise alone does not make people healthy.

Once you get to age 40, your body starts ageing faster than before. Studies have shown that after 40, without the proper nutrients and exercise, your body will age an extra six months for every passing year. That means that if you are now 40, when you get to 50 you may look and feel like 55 and by 60 you could have a 70-year-old body.

After age 35, most people begin losing muscle. You not only lose muscle, the tissue that gives your body shape, tone and strength, but you also add fat, the thing that contributes to many diseases. These negative changes can be slowed down and even reversed. You can look younger at 50 than you did at 40.

But research indicates that too much exercise, especially endurance exercises like longdistance running, can actually accelerate ageing. Balance is the key factor.

Exercise requires nutrients: When you exercise, your body requires more nutrients than when you do not exercise. Sweating during your workout increases your loss of minerals like sodium, potassium and magnesium. Accelerated free radical production caused by exercise increases the need for antioxidants like vitamins C and E.

After exercise, your body uses nutrients to strengthen and rebuild itself. If you do not provide the cells of your body with the right nutrients during that important period, your recovery will be compromised, and you lose the full benefits of all your efforts. Exercise damage your muscle fibres (micro-trauma), which are in turn healed and repaired using amino acids from dietary proteins, resulting in healthier, stronger muscles. Bones and joints subjected to the stress of exercise afterwards strengthen and remodel using nutrients like calcium, phosphorus and magnesium.

GREATER FITNESS

Planned nutrition is thus an extremely important part of any fitness programme. Even if you only exercise a few days per week, your daily diet and supplements are vital for best results.

Optimise protein: Protein is the main food class that the body uses to repair and heal. Your own protein requirements