One of the worst obstacles to working out is the hard cramp that seizes up your calf when you are walking or that spasm you feel in your upper arm when you are working on bicep curls. Your muscles cramp when they are worked past their energy levels. Obviously, muscles need energy to function at their peak performance.
So how do you provide your muscles with enough energy? For many athletes, that answer is found in sports drinks like Gatorade. These drinks provide plenty of carbohydrates, but you also want to make sure they provide plenty of protein as well. The protein will help convert the carbohydrates into glycogen, which can help elevate a high level of insulin. This will supply your muscles with plenty of energy.
If you do not take a daily vitamin supplement, you should also make sure your sports drink contains antioxidants such as vitamins A, C and E. These will antioxidants will help reduce damage to your muscles by dealing with the free radicals in your system. Another good vitamin source is the B complex vitamins because they actively particpate in energy production that your muscles will need. Electrolytes are found in most sports drinks as are amounts of caffeine, these two ingredients will help sustain your performance and allow you to complete your workout without collapsing from energy loss.
Make sure your sports drink has a 4 to 6% carbohydrate solution. Now while this is about 200 to 300 calories, you may be thinking that drinking that many calories is counter productive to working out regularly if you are trying to sustain weight loss. Remember, exercising regularly boosts your metabolism and continues to burn calories throughout the day.
You may want to avoid sports drinks if you are not exercising on a regular basis, building for muscle and endurance – such as training for a sporting event or long distance walking event. Water, daily vitamins and a healthy diet can provide you with many of these components without adding the excess calories from the sports drink. However, if you are experiencing cramping during your workouts, check your diet to make sure you are getting the nutrients your body needs.
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