ATP energy is also required on occasion, such as for the contraction of muscle cells during exercise and athletic performance, and each of these activities, conscious or not, requires adenosine triphosphate to enable muscular contraction.  As will be discussed, ATP is the source of all of that energy and so the more that can be produced during athletic performance, then the better you will perform.

ATP, and thus energy from ATP, can be produced in a number of ways within your body, such as how it uses its emergency energy store of creatine phosphate to add a phosphate group to adenosine diphosphate to generate the triphosphate. However, that is only useful for a few seconds, and the two major ATP energy creating routes involve cellular respiration of glucose to pyruvate followed either by the aerobic or anaerobic breakdown of that to adenosine triphosphate.

Here is each of these explained in slightly more detail:

Aerobic Respiration

Aerobic respiration proceeds from cellular respiration by using oxygen and an ignition source to burn the fuel:  glycolysis initially converts glucose to pyruvate as the fuel, and then aerobic exercise provides oxygen, with cellular charge as the ignition source. Very similar to a regular fire:  fuel, oxygen and ignition source.  GSH Ignite promotes this ignition of oxygen and pyruvate to generate ATP energy under aerobic conditions.

The aerobic exercise you use to promote this includes jogging,  floor exercises, step-ups and circuit training:  anything that makes you breathe hard. You take in oxygen and use it to ignite the oxidation reaction of pyruvate to ATP, CO2 and water, using up ADP (adenosine diphosphate) in the process. The greater the cellular charge, then the more efficient is the cellular respiration, in the same way that the newer a lighter flint, the faster and for longer it will ignite the gas.

Aerobic respiration is the source of ATP energy for your everyday living and for non-explosive athletic events. It is the phosphate bonds in the unstable ATP molecule that generate energy when they are broken back down to ADP.  If you remove one of the three phosphate groups, then the molecule is much more stable, and in doing that you also liberate 7.3 Kcal/mol of energy¹.

GSH Ignite provides the ignition source that makes best use of the cellular electrical charge that enables your cellular respiration system to operate at maximum efficiency.  Protein Extreme Energy also helps by maximizing that cellular charge on each cell in your body.

Anaerobic Respiration

Anaerobic respiration is respiration without oxygen, and enables adenosine triphosphate to be generated without oxygen being present.  It is not as efficient a means of generating adenosine triphosphate as aerobic respiration, but it can enable rapid short-term ATP energy production for immediate explosive power.

In the absence of oxygen, the pyruvate mentioned above undergoes a form of fermentation that creates lactic acid and adenosine triphosphate. This is sufficient to offer you maximum athletic performance for a period of 2 -3 minutes, after which the lactic acid builds up and you can no longer function without anaerobic respiration. Sprinters use anaerobic conditions, and Usain Bolt can break a work 100m record with just one deep breath. That provides all the ATP needed before lactic acid kicks in.

The more you train, the more you are able to expend energy under low oxygen conditions, and that is why those that train more can run farther at higher speeds than those that train less:  their cellular respiration is more efficient at producing ATP energy from the available oxygen before anaerobic respiration has to make up the balance. Likewise, their muscles can work longer under anaerobic conditions before lactic acid seizes up their muscles, and more oxygen is needed.

GSH Ignite supports cellular respiration, and also destroys the free radicals that are by-products of respiration. Free radical damage results from small oxygenated molecules  that can destroy the membranes of the cells that generate adenosine triphosphate, and GSH Ignite offers the free radical killer glutathione and the enzyme superoxide dismutase that help maintain efficient cellular respiration  through preventing these free radicals from destroying the cells that provide your ATP energy source.

Normal ATP Requirement

Around 160Kg of adenosine triphosphate can be created and used in the human body each day²; although at any one time you will have no more than around 250 grams available for use. In other words, your body can turn over its own weight of this amazing ATP molecule every day and athletes turn over even more ATP.

In summary, cellular respiration is responsible for the production of ATP in the mitochondria of your body cells, and the more effective your cellular respiration in oxidizing glucose ultimately to adenosine triphosphate, then the more ATP energy will be available to you to enable maximum athletic performance.  It is therefore essential that your biochemistry is tuned to producing as much ATP as possible, and that is dependent on many factors, of which cellular respiration is the most important.

By maximizing your cellular charge and reducing the damaging effects of the free radicals that are a natural by-product of the process, you will maximize the production of adenosine triphosphate.

Protein Extreme Energy increases the cellular electrical charge that enables effective oxidation of glucose, and also enables more effective hydrolysis of adenosine triphosphate to energy plus ADP, whereas GSH Ignite negates the effects of free radicals and enables maximum efficiency in the conversion of ATP to energy.

1.  Campbell, Neil. Biology, Third Edition. Benjamin Cummings, 1993: 97-101.

2. Törnroth-Horsefield S, Neutze R (December 2008). Opening and closing the metabolite gate. Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A.
105 (50): 19565–6.

Other reading:

Karp, Gerald (2008). Cell and Molecular Biology (5th edition). Hoboken, NJ: John Wiley & Sons.pp. 194.

ISBN 10-0-470-04217-6.

Copyright 2010 Elite Sports and Fitness

This is where the importance of antioxidants to athletes comes in to help combat oxidative stress and to provide oxidative stress relief.

Antioxidants help protect your cells from free radicals and oxidative stress. Free radicals (atoms with at least one unpaired electron) can damage your cells and DNA, sometimes even to the point of causing cellular death. Your cells produce free radicals when they make energy, so heavy exercise usually increases their production, because your body needs more energy. Free radicals, and as a result, oxidative stress, can also be produced by things like environmental pollution, eating fried foods, being stressed out, and cigarette smoke.

Antioxidants scavenge these free radicals, stopping them from doing their damage (by providing a pair for the unpaired electrons) thus resulting in oxidative stress relief. But, not all antioxidants are created equal – some are stronger than others, meaning they’re able to neutralize far more free radicals and deal with oxidative stress more efficiently than their counterparts. The strongest anti-oxidants are actually produced by you, within your cells – they are SOD (super oxide dismutase) and GSH (glutathione in its reduced form). These are hundreds of times stronger than anything found in fruits or vegetables, but after about age 20, our bodies produce less and less. This means cells are more vulnerable to attack and destruction from oxidative stress. GSH-Ignite helps to increase both SOD and GSH levels naturally and efficiently support oxidative stress relief.

The other important factor in fighting free radicals is making sure that those antioxidants can move effectively through your body so they can do the work they were designed to do. Protein Extreme Energy does just this, providing not only a supplement rich in antioxidants, but also helping to establish a recognizable, transferable electron process.

Antioxidants and combating oxidative stress should be on the top of every serious athlete’s list to help support faster recovery times, and reduce muscle loss and inflammation.

Copyright 2010 Elite Sports and Fitness

• promote longevity
• protect the body from heart disease
• prevent diabetes
• neutralize arthritis
• help to treat asthma and bronchitis
• reduce the effects of psoriasis
• reduce chronic fatigue syndrome and lupus
• boost the immune system

There are over 80,000 medical articles discussing glutathione.  Glutathione is your body’s master regulator of each cell.

Glutathione is produced naturally in your body and is a combination three building blocks of amino acids – cysteine, glutamine, and glycine.

Why You Need Glutathione

Glutathione is absolutely necessary for everyone to maintain a healthy immune system. Every major system in the body is affected by glutathione as it circulates through the body removing waste products and toxins while also giving energy a boost. When your body has high amounts of glutathione, it’s able to fight off minor illnesses quickly while keeping up your energy and alertness.

Glutathione is the primary antioxidant in your body. As free radicals and other dangers get passed from one place to another, they eventually wind up with the glutathione which helps to break the free radicals down and recycle them. Troubles begin to mount when the number of toxins is greater than the amount of glutathione in your system.

Without high amounts of glutathione, the body is hugely susceptible to the dangerous toxins and illness pervades. The lowest levels of glutathione have been found in the sickest members of our oldest generation. Time, exposure to the elements and natural aging effects decrease these levels, and if this continues unchecked, it can have a devastating impact on overall health.

Where Do These Toxins Come From?

For the first few thousands of years humans existed, the primitive glutathione system was able to handle any of the dangerous substances that found their way into the body. In just the last few decades, humans have begun a diet of processed, unhealthy foods and live in an area polluted with any number of toxins in the water we drink and the air we breathe. Many of us have been exposed to heavy metals and might have mercury fillings in our teeth. Thanks to our current diet and living conditions, it’s estimated that half of the population is lacking sufficient glutathione levels. They can’t fight off these toxins.

What Happens to Your Glutathione Levels

Glutathione levels can drop as much as 35% thanks to aging, physical stress and exercise. As glutathione is so closely linked to the body’s energy, this decrease in glutathione causes an energy decrease as well as the remaining glutathione is used for more critical jobs. The remaining glutathione is needed to fight off free radicals to prevent waste from building up, preventing the body’s cells from working properly, and the body’s cells don’t absorb vital nutrients. In this catabolic state, the body begins to break down.

Glutathione in Your Diet

It’s important to support the glutathione levels in the body, but it’s not obvious how to build up stores. Glutathione is produced by the body’s cells. To raise levels of glutathione, you must stimulate the body to produce it. This is done by consuming the building blocks of glutathione through some vitamins and nutritional supplements.  The best way to ensure the body has sufficient glutathione levels is through the consumption of direct glutathione supplements, such as GSH Ignite .

Supplements that lead to increases in glutathione are beneficial for everyone. Even individuals in good health can prevent future diseases and health concerns by raising glutathione levels. Young people especially can benefit by taking glutathione supplements as there will be greater health benefits over time as free radicals are constantly prevented from causing harm over years. However, while healthy adults benefit from glutathione supplements, those who are suffering from a medical condition have a more dramatic reaction to the antioxidant. Glutathione has created impressive results in regard to AIDS, Parkinson’s disease and cancer. High glutathione levels actually allow the body to heal itself.

The body produces glutathione, so taking a glutathione supplement to lead to this production does not create side effects or any dangers. Even healthy individuals lose glutathione stores as the body works to fight off the mercury, cigarette smoke and countless other toxins in the air. Supplements at any level of health are beneficial as you might be actively working to prevent diseases thought to be caused by aging, but truly caused by expose to free radicals over time.

Copyright 2010 LifeHealthSecrets

Antioxidants

Free radicals are small oxygenated molecules that possess an unpaired electron. In molecules, electrons generally go around in pairs and if an electron had no buddy then it desperately tries to find one. So desperately, in fact, that as soon as they are born they will steal one from the nearest donor they can find. In some cases that will be a skin cell, in others a low density lipid (LDL) molecule, and in yet others, DNA and proteins such as muscle tissue will be destroyed.

In each case, the molecules robbed of an electron are altered in some way or, as inferred above, even destroyed.  Thus, the membranes of skin cells are ruptured, causing the appearance of premature aging.  LDL molecules are rendered water-insoluble, so that they and the cholesterol they carry are deposited on the walls of your arteries causing atherosclerosis, and muscle cells are destroyed causing weakness and lack of athletic performance.

Free radicals are formed by exposure to pollution such as pesticides, tobacco smoke, industrial and traffic fumes and strong sunlight.  They are also formed during your body’s metabolism, and the more you exercise the more free radicals are generated.

Antioxidants destroy free radicals as soon as they are formed, and so prevent this undesirable oxidative stress taking place. Common antioxidants include Vitamins A, C and E, flavanoids, beta-carotene and many other forms of plant chemicals (phytochemicals). They can be used by athletes to prevent oxidative damage cause by the free radicals that are generated in the body during strenuous exercise.

Anti-Inflammatories

The immune system works in many ways to protect your body from invasion by pathogens such as bacteria, viruses, fungi and other foreign intruders. Part of your immune system is known as the inflammatory response, which occurs particularly when parts of your body suffer damage or become infected.

For example, arthritis is an inflammatory condition that occurs as a result of damage to bone tissue or cartilage, and subsequent infection of the synovial fluid. Another is the fever associated with serious bacterial and viral infections. Your body reacts to these situations by producing prostaglandins, opening up the blood vessels to allow the white blood cells to get to the source of the infection, thus causing swelling. They also increase the body temperature to render it less comfortable for bacteria and viruses, and produce chemicals such as cytokines that can call on the larger macrophages of the blood to the infected site.

The increase in the blood vessel size causes painful swelling while the temperature increase can lead to fever.  Some anti-inflammatories work by inhibiting the enzymes, mainly Cox-1 and Cox-2, that are responsible for prostaglandin production.  Inflammation reduces and the pain and swelling are relieved. These are the NSAIDs (non steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs) such as aspirin and ibuprofen. Others operate in a different way, but with the same end result.

Importance to Athletes

No Pain, No Gain – so they say. The trouble is that with pain you cannot gain. Pain caused through injuries is mainly caused by inflammation. Muscle degradation is caused by free radical oxidation, the free radicals being generated by extreme muscular exercise and metabolic activity.

Athletes and runners, who are particularly prone to free radical-induced oxidative stress and to inflammation of joints and muscles, require treatment that does not involve NSAIDs. It has been reported that some athletes using Advil, or ibuprofen, suffered more inflammation that those that did not1.  NSAIDs block the production of inflammatory prostaglandins, but also block a prostaglandin that protects the lining of the stomach and this can lead to internal bleeding.

They also reduce blood clotting, which results in increased general bleeding and bruising from injuries. For athletes, therefore, natural anti-inflammatories such as turmeric, papain(2), cocoa flavanols(3) (possibly) and trimethyl glycine(4) are preferred.  They work in various ways, including reducing prostaglandin production, although are much kinder to your body.

Reducing Inflammation

It is essential that free radical oxidative stress and inflammation be reduced to a minimum, not only to enable rapid recovery after exercise, and also after injury, but also to allow metabolic rates to increase without a corresponding increase in free radical damage to the cardiovascular system and muscle tissue.

The use of NSAIDs is commonplace, but, as explained, can cause several side effects if taken regularly. The safest method is by means of natural anti-inflammatories and antioxidants, some of which have been mentioned above though this is by no means an exhaustive list.

References

1.  Reported in http://well.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/09/01/phys-ed-does-ibuprofen-help-or-hurt-during-exercise/

2.  http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/11589110

3.  J Cardiovasc Pharmacol. 2006;47 Suppl 2:S163-71; discussion S172-6.

4.  http://www.arthritis-treatment-and-relief.com/supplements-that-help-ease-muscle-and-joint-pain.html

5.  http://arthritis.emedtv.com/diclofenac/diclofenac-risks.html

Copyright 2010 LifeHealthSecrets

Whether reducing free radicals can extend lifespan is still under debate and the subject of much ongoing research, but what is certain is that free radicals cause poor cell respiration, fermentation, waste accumulation, acid buildup, and pH derangements in the body. In short, they cause the “batteries” of our cells to emit a weaker charge. Congestion occurs, and our cells become less efficient at pulling in nutrients and expelling metabolic wastes.

Your body needs good quality fuel to run at its best. For athletes this means not only pure, healthy foods but also high quality supplements – you want the stuff that burns clean and that is sustainable in the long run, not the stuff that’s going to mess with your metabolism and leave you feeling burnt out six months down the road.

There’s a pretty strong consensus on the diet front – eat lean, hormone-free proteins, complex carbohydrates, omega-3 type fats and stay away from anything processed, packaged or that comes out of a deep fryer. Navigating the supplement industry is a little murkier though, and the purpose of this article is to break down what every athlete who’s looking to enhance their performance naturally should take, and why.

But first, as a caveat, let me acknowledge that different athletes have different goals and needs and so, while I’ve tried to tailor this to adults following a serious training program, you should always consult your doctor to make sure these things are right for you, and the information in this article shouldn’t be construed as taking the place of a doctor’s advice.

1. A High Quality Protein Supplement

Physically active people need more protein. Protein helps build muscle, so getting enough is critical for the serious athlete. In theory you can get it all through your diet; in practice it’s much easier to down a shake. But take too much and you can stress your liver and kidneys, especially if the protein source has a low Net Nitrogen Utilization (NNU) value. Protein 2.0 is a class of proteins called ‘bioactive’ protein – it gives you more bang for your buck because it not only helps you build muscle, it also offers active peptides that bolster your immune system and promote a healthy inflammatory response.

Tara-Hurdles-Competition

2. Anti-Oxidants

When you exercise, you breathe harder. This means you’re taking in more oxygen. Great, except that oxygen produces free radicals in your body that damage your cells and DNA. So antioxidants are critical to any athlete’s training regimen, because the harder you train, the harder your cells are going to get pummeled with free radicals.

Sure you can get anti-oxidants from some foods, but my money’s on glutathione, which is like the Great White shark of anti-oxidants – hundreds of times stronger than anything found in fruits or vegetables. Your body manufactures it internally, but production declines from as early as age twenty on. Unfortunately, a glutathione supplement is useless (it just gets digested). Fortunately, supplements that provide the precursors for your body to rev up its own natural glutathione production are effective. As an added bonus, when you increase glutathione production, you increase ATP – ATP energy, or cellular energy, so not only do you fight free radicals, you also get more energy.

3. Immune Enhancement

Train hard and your immune system crashes. “High intensity exercise impairs immune function for up to several hours post-exercise.” (Nieman DC. Is infection risk linked to exercise workload? Med Sci Sports Exerc 32: S406 –S411, 2000.). This means that you’re open to illness and infection – and being sick isn’t good for business. A mean flu can have you knocked on your ass for weeks. Better just to strengthen your immune system. Echinacea? Meh. Vitamin C? If you must. But, as I mentioned above, if you take a bioactive protein, you’re going to boost your immune system as a side benefit – and save money by not having to buy an extra product.

4. Adrenal Support

Your adrenals sit on top of your kidneys and regulate stress, including that handy fight-or-flight response that kicks in right before and during an event. You know, it’s that adrenaline cold sweat that makes you feel like you could wrestle a cougar (which is probably what that short burst of energy was originally intended for). Modern times haven’t been so kind to our adrenals though, and daily life stress (think traffic jams, your boss, bills, etc…) combined with workout stress spells adrenal burnout. If your adrenals aren’t at their best, neither are you, and your performance will suffer. So if you’re training or doing extreme sports, an adrenal supplement could be what you need.

5. Memory, Focus, Concentration

Sports and training aren’t just about strength – they’re also about focus, concentration, and reaction time. So taking something for your brain is a good idea. Fish with a low mercury content and high fat content is optimal because it contains lots of DHA, but it not always available and hard to take with you when traveling. Other promising memory and focus supplements are Gotu Kola, DMAE and CDP Choline.

While I’m not a professional athlete, I take my training and my body’s long-term health seriously. I’m not planning on making it to the Olympics, but I do want to be in great shape well into my retirement years.

Here’s what I take:

1-2 scoops Protein Extreme Energy in the morning before breakfast (for protein and immune system)

2 Maxodin with breakfast (for concentration, memory, focus)

1-2 scoops GSH-Ignite before work-outs (for free radical protection)

In some cases I will take 1 scoop of Protein Extreme Energy for post work out muscle support and recovery

2 Adrenal ReBoot with dinner (for adrenal support)

Copyright 2010 Life Health Secrets

Building Strength & Explosive are Critical to Peak Athletic Performance

Compare two athletes of the exact same body size and build, who have followed the same training regimen – they don’t necessarily have the same power, speed or explosive capacity. Why? Once athletes attain a certain level of strength and stamina, the difference in their capabilities comes down to their bodies’ bio-electric current flow. The stronger the current flow, the stronger the body, and the more explosive power and strength you have access to.

Bio-electric current, also known as cellular zeta-potential, is the movement of electrons through your cells and consequently, through your body. The moving electron is literally the catalyst for the chemistry of life – a body completely stripped of moving electrons is a dead body. Current is especially important to athletes because it feeds the nerves which then feed the muscles. More current = more explosive power, when all else is equal. However, the rigorous training athletes undergo tends to deplete current, and if they allow a deficit to build over time, eventually their bodies become depleted and their explosive power diminishes. The younger athletes with the stronger current win because they haven’t yet exhausted their systems.

A strong electron transfer system, along with an abundant supply of electron donors, is important to the athlete because it strengthens cellular respiration and cellular charge (membrane potential) – both of which are essential to explosive power and strength.

First, let’s look at why cellular respiration is important. Just like you have the lungs, you have 60-100 trillion small lungs in your body – your cells. If those cells are ‘breathing’ at their optimum capacity, then they can increase ATP production, providing you with more energy for explosive power, to move your muscles. The best way to increase cellular respiration? By increasing current, or the supply and transfer of electrons.

If you’ve taken the time to do a bit of research, then you know there’s a dilemma all athletes face when they’re training: the harder you work out and the more ATP you produce, the more electron-robbing free radicals your body produces, and the faster your cells and DNA become damaged by oxidative stress. Taking a supplement like creatine to increase cellular respiration just makes the problem worse – your body ramps up ATP production without any means of defending its cells against the increased free radical load. Not only does a high free radical load decrease your performance in the medium and long term, it also leads to premature aging.

This is why glutathione supplementation is so important. Glutathione solves the athlete’s dilemma by allowing cellular respiration to increase while protecting cells against free radicals. Glutathione is one of your body’s most powerful electron donors –so powerful, in fact, that we literally can’t survive without it. That’s why our bodies produce it internally. However, as we get older, from as early as 20 years old, our internal glutathione levels begin to drop by as much as 35%. That means that your body slows ATP production as well, to protect against increased free radicals. Remember, ATP is the energy your muscles need for power and explosive strength. By dealing with the free radicals from within the cell, glutathione permits ATP to increase naturally. Greater cellular respiration = more explosive power and maximum strength for athletes.

So is the answer just to take a glutathione supplement? Not so fast. Remember, there are two aspects to the body’s bio-electrical current: cellular respiration and cellular charge (the sodium potassium pump). Cell charge is the second element you need for explosive power and strength. When cellular charge is low, metabolic waste accumulates and cellular respiration is impeded. If this isn’t dealt with, then the cell’s osmotic pressure become so weak that it can no longer expel its own waste and old body fluids, and edema or water retention occurs. The cell has trouble pulling in nutrients and becomes congested. If you don’t increase cell charge, then glutathione supplementation is ineffective, or minimally effective at best, because the cell can’t even pull in the nutrients it needs to function. By strengthening cellular charge, metabolic wastes are efficiently removed and cellular respiration can increase.

So how can an athlete increase current, and by extension increase both cellular respiration and charge?

GSH-Ignite was formulated specifically to address these issues. By providing the body with an ample supply of bio-recognizable electrons, and using proprietary means to transfer and move those electrons throughout the body, GSH-Ignite allows athletes to achieve greater levels of explosive power and strength than they could through training alone. GSH-Ignite strengthens the body’s current and promotes healthy glutathione levels while also increasing cellular charge. The effect? Maximum strength and more explosive power.

Copyright 2010 Elite Sports and Fitness.com