THE VALUE OF VITAMIN D FOR ATHLETES
- Travis Hansen
- 4 days ago
- 2 min read
Vitamin D undoubtedly remains one of the most hyped and popular sports supplements on the market today. In this blog, you will discover answers to some of the more common topics related to this sports supplement.
To get things kicked off, here is a quick and very detailed primer that I contributed to over at T-Nation.com. It depicts how The Vitamin D pathway works in the body, along with some more evidence for athletes who may be lacking in the vitamin if you are interested.
Research Please...
A fascinating study showed that subjects who supplemented with vitamin D displayed quicker muscle recovery and torque generation following intense resistance training. Subjects exhibited around 15% improvement in strength display at 48 hours and seven days post-damage. 1
Does it really work?
Vitamin D is stored in the body, and when it is needed, it is converted into a bioactive hormone known as 1,25-dihydroxycalciferol. Negative things are associated with a state that attempts to produce the hormone but has insufficient vitamin D to do so, and supplementing vitamin D alleviates this possible negative. Thus, Vitamin D is critical for people in a deficient state. The combination of our indoor lives and pollution levels from the environment, means that most people outside of the tropics tend to be in a deficient state. Supplementing with 2000 IU while you get your vitamin D levels tested is a smart way to go. So, although the outcome is still beneficial, vitamin supplementation is more about alleviating negatives rather than inducing positives. 2
DOSAGE GUIDELINES:
RDA requirements for Vitamin D are low, but not optimal, so supplementing Vitamin D definitely may be in an athlete’s best interest since this micronutrient also requires higher intakes naturally. 1,000-2,000 IU taken daily with a meal is recommended in the more active and effective D3 form (cholecalciferol). There was one report, however, that showed a higher upper limit for dosing, and this has been reinforced by other credible experts as well. It appears that Vitamin D and K are the two types of vitamins that could potentially be beneficial at supraphysiological doses. 3
SCIENTIFIC REFERENCES:
#1-Owens, Daniel J., et al. “A Systems-Based Investigation into Vitamin D and Skeletal Muscle Repair, Regeneration, and Hypertrophy.”
American Journal of Physiology-Endocrinology and Metabolism, vol. 309, no. 12, 2015, doi:10.1152/ajpendo 00375.2015.
#2-https://tonygentilcore.com/2013/03/supplement-review-supplements-that-suck-supplements-that-work-and-supplements-that-are-underrated-part-ii/
Comments