Tagged with 'Endurance Nutrition'

What is Beta Alanine

23 Jan 2024

Beta-Alanine at a glance:

∞ INFINIT offers 725mg per serving as an optional “Extra” for Custom Formulas.
∞ Recommended initial dose of 6g/day for two weeks, then 4g daily as a “maintenance” dose.
∞ Oral ingestion of 4–6 g beta-alanine/day during 4–10 weeks increases carnosine concentrations by 40–80%.
∞ Doses larger than 800 mg (10 mg/kg body weight) can provoke moderate-to-severe paresthesia symptoms.

Beta-alanine is a hot topic in nutrition for exercise performance. Beta-alanine acts as a “muscle buffering agent” within the cells of muscle tissue. It is a naturally occurring amino acid that many athletes take in order to increase their muscles ability to delay fatigue and recover quicker from exercise. But how does it work?

Cyclists racing around a turn

Beta Alanine works by playing a huge part in creating a product called carnosine, this is a dipeptide that functions as an acid buffer as well as a calcium regulator in muscle tissue. This is particularly important in exercise as when the intensity increases, your body moves from an aerobic (using oxygen) to anaerobic (without oxygen) process. Anaerobic processes produce a large amount of hydrogen, creating what's called an acidic environment. This buffering function of carnosine in muscle tissue helps alleviate the acidosis within the muscle, thus combatting fatigue during exercise and enhancing your ability to recover.

Carnosine is also thought to play a role in calcium availability. Calcium is an electrolyte found in our mixes that is crucial to muscle contraction. A recent study supports that there is an increase in calcium sensitivity when more carnosine is present, meaning that the muscle is able to contract more readily. Not only this but, carnosine has been shown to have antioxidant properties. These functions all contributing to carnosine’s ability to maintain and improve homeostasis within the muscle which is vital to your performance.

So why is beta-alanine ingestion so important in the production of carnosine? Well, it’s because beta-alanine is the “rate-limiting” factor in carnosine production. What this means is that the amount of carnosine available to the muscle tissue is dependent on how much beta-alanine is present and available to be used.

While there are some mixed reviews on the effectiveness of B-alanine supplementation, it’s important to understand the types of exercise it has been shown to be of the most benefit. The best results are noticed in high-intensity activities and sports, including endurance events that involve a sprint to the finish such as cycling.

The most common side effect of B-alanine supplementation includes paresthesia, aka 'the tingles'. The cause of this is attributed to pressure on peripheral nerves. To avoid these sensory side effects, divide the daily dose into multiple ingestion times during the day or use specific time-release capsules.

More research is needed to establish clear guidelines about the optimal supplementation dose, but current findings support that benefits of beta-alanine on exercise performance do exist. Future research should also focus on improving our understanding on the vast differences in storage capacity among individual athletes, as well as the effects of co-ingesting beta-alanine with creatine and sodium bicarbonate to examine how these ergogenic aids may alter exercise performance and recovery.

Sources
Blancquaert, L., Everaert, I., & Derave, W. (2014, December 18). Beta-alanine supplementation, muscle carnosine and exercise performance. Current Opinion in Clinical Nutrition and Metabolic Care, 18(1).
De Salles Painelli V, Saunders B, Sale C, et al. Inﬂuence of training status on high intensity intermittent performance in response to b-alanine supplementation. Amino Acids 2014; 46:1207–1215.
Dunford, M., & Doyle, J. A. (2008). Nutrition for Sport and Exercise (Second ed.). Belmont, CA: Thomson Wadsworth.
Kendall, K., PhD, & Hyde, P., BS. (2015). Beta-Alanine Supplementation and Exercise Performance. Sports, Cardiovascular, and Wellness Nutrition: Pulse, 34(1), winter 2015, 1-5.
Seher, C., MS, RD (2012, July) Beta-Alanine Supplements — Evidence Shows This Amino Acid Boosts Athletic Performance. Today’s Dietitian, 14 (7), July 2012.

Posted in Science, Beginners Guide and The INFINIT Library

Premium Fuel I What is it?

11 Jan 2024

Premium Fuel - Fueling with Fructose

Infinit Nutrition Australia introduces Premium Fuel: The perfect custom blended liquid nutrition designed for athletes wanting to 'UP' their carb game.

What makes Premium Fuel stand out is its unique 2:1 blend of Maltodextrin to Fructose, allowing the body to absorb more carbohydrates during those extended training sessions. While typical sports nutrition products allow for an absorbtion rate of 60 grams per hour, Infinit's Premium Fuel increases your carb intake to 90 grams per hour - promoting improved athletic performance and facilitating optimal fluid delivery.

What is Fructose?

Fructose, often associated with high fructose corn syrup in processed foods, is the natural sugar food in fruit. Over the years it's gaining recognition in endurance nutrition for its potential to enhance athletic performance, power output and recovery.

So, lets break it down. What exactly is fructose?

Fructose is a naturally occuring simple carbohydrate. Like glucose, fructose is a monosaccharide - one of the most basic and simplest form of carbohydrates there is. However it is important to note that although glucose and fructose are both simple sugars they differ in a few ways.

Glucose Vs. Fructose

1. Fructose is naturally found in fruits, vegetables, and honey. Where as glucose is found more commonly in starchy carbs like rice, bread, oats and pasta.

In Sports Nutrition, fructose is usually found in the crystalline (granulated) form. Whereas, glucose is often found in the form of dextrose (powdered glucose) or maltodextrin (the long chain form of glucose structures).

2. Sweetness

Fructose as you have probably heard us say if you have had a call with us is FAR sweeter than glucose.

Pure fructose can be up to 2x sweeter than high fructose corn syrup and about 1.5x sweeter than cane sugar. This is often why you see fructose used in products marketed as low sugar as it creates a way higher level of sweetness.

3. Impact on blood sugar

Consuming glucose has a larger effect on blood glucose than fructose does.

Your glyceamic index (GI) is a measure of how carbohydrates affect blood glucose levels. To give you an idea of how this works, glucose has a high GI (100) because it is rapidly absorbed into the bloodstream, causing levels to increase quickly. High fructose corn syrup has a medium GI (65), similar to table sugar. Whereas Fructose has a low GI (19), meaning it does not cause rapid spikes or drops in blood sugar levels.

4. Absroption and Metabolism

The biggest key difference between glucose and fructose is how they are processed in the body. This difference in metabolism contributes to fructose's effectiveness as a fuel source, especially for athletes.

The absorption process in the gut further highlights the advantages of fructose. Glucose and fructose are absorbed using seperate transporters, fructose having its own (GLUT5). This unique pathway allows fructose to be absorbed and converted into energy even when the system is completely saturated with glucose-based carbs, providing a significant boost in fuel intake.

What does this mean for you and your Performance?

Research shows that consuming both carbohydrate sources (Glucose and Fructose) can help athletes take in more fuel, and in turn produce more energy to enhance their performance. Hence why with INFINIT we can get you up to 90g PER HOUR.

Since glucose is absorbed using one type of transporter in the gut (SGLT1), the system can become overused and thus oversaturated limiting the amount of energy that can be generated. Fructose, with its independant transporter, becomes a game changer in maximising fuel absorbtion and utilisation for optimal athletic performance.

Posted in Products, Beginners Guide and The INFINIT Library