Welcome to our weekly summary of the latest research from the world of sports nutrition.

In this week’s summary: 

 

Nutritional Strategies for Optimizing Health, Performance and Recovery in Female Athletes

This study reviewed the scientific evidence on how diet and supplements can improve performance, recovery and health in female athletes and active women. It analyzed 71 studies involving 1,654 participants, including competitive athletes, trained individuals and recreationally active women. The findings highlight that high-carbohydrate diets boost performance in activities that deplete muscle glycogen, and pre-exercise meals rich in carbohydrates enhance carbohydrate metabolism. Researchers also found that consuming 5–6 protein-rich meals daily supports muscle protein anabolism. Supplements like caffeine, nitric oxide precursors, beta-alanine, and certain sports food supplements (such as carbohydrates, proteins, or their combination, and micronutrients) can positively impact performance and health, especially when addressing nutritional deficiencies. However, the study noted moderate bias due to factors like inadequate control of the menstrual cycle phase and dietary intake.

Our thoughts: In one of my recent updates, I mentioned the emergence of (and the need for) more data on female athletes. This excellent review provides a summary of where the sports nutrition science is at and is a must-read for all women chasing their athletic ambition. It would appear that supplements like Beet It Sport, Beta Alanine and Egg White Protein Isolate can all play a significant role in helping female athletes improve their performance.

 

The Negative Impact of Sleep Deprivation on Performance

This study explored how acute sleep deprivation affects athletes' performance, aiming to help coaches optimize training and competition schedules. Reviewing 27 studies, the researchers found that overall athletic performance significantly declines with a lack of sleep, especially when sleep is disrupted at the end of the night. High-intensity intermittent exercises, skill control, speed, aerobic endurance, and explosive power are all negatively impacted, with the most substantial effects seen in high-intensity exercises. Additionally, athletes perform worse in the afternoon compared to the morning after experiencing acute sleep deprivation. These findings underscore the importance of adequate sleep for maintaining optimal athletic performance.

Our thoughts: It doesn’t take much for poor sleep to catch up with you, as acute sleep deprivation is usually just 1–2 days of sleep disturbance. This research highlights the importance of getting high-quality sleep for all athletes, and if you’re struggling with your sleep routine, you’ll benefit from our recent article about how to get better sleep and improve your athletic performance. 

Here are the key takeaways from this study:

• Sleep deprivation will impact performance immediately, especially if you wake up too early and can't get back to sleep.
• The impact on performance is less pronounced in the morning after a poor sleep but will have a more significant impact on performance in the afternoon.
• High-intensity intervals and skill-based performance will be most impacted by sleep deprivation, which is especially relevant for team sports athletes.

 

How to Target Specific Performance Goals with Weight Training

This study analyzed how different aspects of resistance training impact various physical performance outcomes, using data from 295 studies with 6,710 participants. The researchers aimed to understand how factors like training frequency, volume, and intensity affect strength, power, vertical jump, change of direction, and sprinting performance. They found that the intensity of the load (% of one-repetition maximum, or 1RM) is a key factor in determining improvements. Specifically, maximum strength is best improved with heavy loads, vertical jump performance with lighter loads (~30% 1RM), and power with moderate loads (40-70% 1RM). The study did not find significant differences based on training status or sex, highlighting that training intensity and the specific outcome being measured are the most important factors for optimizing resistance training programs.

Our thoughts: This is the biggest analysis I‘ve seen that looks at the impact of different "types" of weight training and how they will affect your physical abilities. 

Here's what this study shows in a nutshell:

• If you want to get stronger, lift as heavy as you can regularly (1RM)
• If you want to improve your explosive performance, stick with low loads (30% 1RM) and aim for speed (few athletes do this, yet it's the most likely to improve your athletic performance)
• If you want to increase your power output, stay between 40% and 70% 1RM and go to failure regularly

 

That’s all for this week! If you learned something new from this article and are curious to know more, head to the Blonyx Blog or our growing list of weekly research summaries where we help you further improve your athletic performance by keeping you up to date on the latest findings from the world of sports nutrition.

 

— Train hard!