Category — Personal Development

In every sport or endeavor there are numerous co factors that influence results and outcomes. People in the know and those with a high level of commitment discover what these co factors are and apply them in order to improve their results. One often overlooked influence on golf performance is nutrition status.

In this article I will talk about how nutrition influences golf performance the day of the event. However keep in mind that the larger nutrition picture on a weekly, monthly, and yearly basis also has an impact and will be discussed in an upcoming article.

What you eat and when you eat it the day of a golf tournament or golf event influences how you feel and how you perform. How you manage your food intake influences your degree of mental acuity, cognitive function, mood, and ultimately your quality of blood sugar balance and the quality of neurotransmitter activity in the brain. This then impacts the quality of your golf game.

Managing and cultivating your inner game will influence your golf performance. Managing your nutrition intake is part of managing your inner game because doing so effects your state of being.

The ultimate downstream effect of food on mental, cognitive, and overall human performance is felt about 2 hours after consumption. Have you ever had a meal and 2 hours later felt like you were hit with an elephant tranquilizer ? That result tells you that you consumed too many calories, consumed the wrong combination of foods, consumed foods that you may have a food allergy to, consumed food that was highly processed or high in sugar, or a combination of the above. This is a short list as there are other variables.

Ideally, you want to consume meals / food that creates an even / homeostatic level of mental and physical energy throughout the day. The opposite of that and what you want to avoid is a series of peaks and valleys which will detract from the quality of your golf game.

The 3 macronutrients are protein, fats, and carbohydrates. Let’s talk about protein. Examples of high quality protein include chicken, fish, steak, turkey, and eggs. Proteins are broken down into amino acids during digestion. Conversely, amino acids are the building blocks of protein. What’s more important is that neurotransmitters influence brain function and they are modulated by amino acids. Neurotransmitters facilitate communication between brain cells. So, the take home message is high quality protein positively influences brain performance which ultimately influences golf performance.

Many people mistakenly reach for a caffeinated drink for a mental lift when what they really need is a small to moderate sized meal that includes protein.

Amino acids, which are the breakdown byproducts of protein increase the production of dopamine, norepinephrine, and epinephrine. These 3 up-regulate levels of alertness and increase energy. Keep in mind that nutrients have a direct relationship with and influence on neurochemicals that optimize brain activity.

Begin to become more aware of how your food intake and nutritional supplementation influences the quality of your day to day life and your golf game. You can then begin to make adjustments as you go forward.

Optimum Performance / Human Performance Systems and Dr Joseph Sale can be reached at 480-241-2621

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There are many definitions of functional foods. I put functional foods into three categories for the benefit of efficiency. The topic of functional foods goes much deeper than this brief post.

The three categories are: 

1. those whole foods that inherently possess greater than average nutritional value beyond basic nutrition, for example an apple, spinach, or parsley

2. those  foods that have been fortified or enriched with various nutrients, phytochemicals, antioxidants etc in order to deliver superior physiological benefit, for example calcium fortified orange juice

3. and isolated bioactive components, for example Vitamin C is one of many bioactive components found in a lemon

At the most basic level a fresh fruit, vegetable , or herb can be considered a functional food.

Functional foods aren’t really new. Iodine was added to salt in the early 1900s with the intention to prevent goiter. This represented one of the earliest examples of fortification. Vitamin A, vitamin D, and folic acid are also early examples of  functional food fortification.

Isolated bioactive components are an interesting topic. For example a tomato can be considered a functional food. Its  most well known isolated bioactive component is lycopene. However in many cases other bioactive co factors  found in the whole food are known enhance or upgrade overall value at a cellular level. As an example Vitamin C is known to deliver greater benefits in combination with bioflavonoids.

Today high quality functional foods provide substantial benefits for improving quality of life and achieving peak human performance.

Popularity: 24% [?]

QUESTION: What is the mechanism of action for L-Carnitine ? What are good food sources of Carnitine ?

ANSWER: Carnitine upgrades the transport of fatty acids from the cell cytoplasm into mitochondrial matrix where fat burning takes place. Carnitine does this by enhancing the penetration across the mitochondrial membrane.

Carnitine is found primarily in animal protein. Examples include red meat, chicken breast, and lamb. Vegetarian or vegan diets are generally not rich in Carnitine.

Carnitine is known to be a contributor to both energy metabolism and fat metabolism.

Popularity: 28% [?]

QUESTION: Would you explain chronological age, biological age, and their significance ?

ANSWER: Chronological age is simply your age in years. Biological age is your age at a cellular level. These 2 numbers are not necessarily the same. Lifestyle factors such as nutrition/ food choices, exercise, nutritional supplementation, antioxidant status, and stress among others impact biological age. So, how you manage your life and the choices you make  on a daily basis can either accelerate or slow down your biological aging process  in  varying degrees. All this boils down to quality of life. 

 Examples of high chronological age with corresponding low biological age are  seen in the people of longevity hot spots around the globe. Among these are Okinawa Japan, Nicoya Costa Rica, and Sardinia Italy.  In these places  researchers find an unusually high number of centenarians. What researchers find worthy of study is that they have the biomarkers of people much younger than their years. 

Understanding the difference between chronological age and biological age is significant because once it’s understood that individuals can influence the process by choices they make on a daily basis they are more likely to initiate change.

Popularity: 85% [?]

I’ve had some questions concerning ORAC values recently so I’ll address them briefly at this time. ORAC stands for Oxygen Radical Absorbance Capacity. It’s a method of measuring the antioxidant value or power of a given fruit, vegetable, herb, supplement, or food. A higher ORAC number is representative of greater free radical squelching capacity. Keep in mind that the ORAC value of a specific type of fruit, vegetable, or herb can vary depending on the quality of the soil the crop was grown in, the degree of ripeness at harvest, growing season, and other variables. As an example, all blueberries won’t necessarily have the same ORAC  value.

An understanding of ORAC is most useful in providing guidelines for substances that tend to possess higher  antioxidant values which contribute to health, well being, and optimum human performance.

Popularity: 66% [?]

Moderate to high mileage cycling, and sprint cycling as well puts great demands on the human body. To hit your best personal times consistently, improve upon them, and keep you body healthy, pay attention to your food intake and nutritional supplementation. Since cycling burns significant calories its easy not to focus on nutrition. However if you plan on cycling for many years to come, injury free, you’ll need to go to the next level.

Amino acids derived from high quality protein sources and professional grade nutritional supplements are pivotal in maintaining lean body mass/ muscle, and triggering an anabolic state to build new muscle. Cycling training and/ or strength and conditioning work coupled with inadequate high quality protein and amino acids is a formula for creating an undesirable catabolic state where your body is breaking down muscle you worked hard to create. Keep in mind that high quality protein and the amino acids derived from it have an impact far beyond the maintenance of existing muscle and the growth of new muscle tissue. They influence immunomodulation, neurotransmission,  and much more.

Call Optimum Performance/ Human Performance Systems at 480-241-2621 to receive a free consultation and learn how our professional grade nutritional supplements can help you get to your next level.

Popularity: 63% [?]

The importance of proper hydration cannot be over emphasized. 70% of this planet is covered with water. 70% of your body is made up of water. What do you think it’s important to consume in significant quantity on a daily basis ?  Water.

Paying attention to hydration on a daily basis has a positive influence on sports performance, energy levels, general well being and the list goes on. Many people walk around every day in a sub clinical state of dehydration.  In this state  they are not operating at full potential. 

The following is a short list of  the benefits of water and staying sufficiently hydrated:

1. Water is a transport medium for nutrients.
2. Water flushes wastes and toxins out of your body.
3. Water hydrates your skin and contributes to healthier skin appearance. 
4. Water reduces the viscosity of the blood, which creates less work for the heart.
5. Water lubricates tissues and joints.
6. Water is second only to oxygen in its importance for health.

Morning is a great time to consume a significant amount of water because we generally tend to be somewhat dehydrated first thing in the morning.  Drinking water in the morning puts us ahead of the hydration power curve for the day.

Keep in mind that nothing takes the place of water. Soft drinks, coffee and the like are not considered a part of your water consumption for the day.  In fact, they act as a diuretic, and contribute to dehydration.

In closing, keep in mind that water consumption and hydration can be tricky.  Thirst may not be a dependable indicator of your water and hydration needs. In some cases thirst may actually be a late indicator of your body’s need for water.

Popularity: 55% [?]

Nicoya, Costa Rica is one of the Blue Zones, a name coined for a handful of longevity hot spots around the globe. Scientists and researchers spent 9 months in Nicoya, Costa Rica to study this community and ultimately to discover what cofactors here contribute to their exceptional longevity, health, and quality of life. The Blue Zone Expedition Team described the experience as life changing.

This video covers the take home message from Nicoya, Costa Rica on the keys to health and longevity.

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For years researchers have been fascinated with long lived cultures around the globe. These small pockets of people have extremely high numbers of centenarians/ 100 years old and greater, and also have exceptional quality of life in their late years. They experience a glaring absence of many of the diseases that we accept as par for the course in the United States.

According to this CNN report, lifestyle is responsible for 70% of our longevity. Our genes make up the difference. That being the case, we have more influence over our quality of life and longevity than we may have previously believed.

 These longevity hot spots around the globe may be our best examples of optimum human performance.

Enjoy the video.

Popularity: 48% [?]

Let’s start with a foundation we can build on. The 2 most effective fat loss tools available are intelligent, customized exercise and high quality nutrition/ food.

Notice that I do not use the term diet here. The word diet implies a food plan that is done for a relatively short period of time, maybe 12 weeks, and then going back to your old way of eating. Dieting also implies deprivation and not feeling satiated from the food you do eat. Dieting implies that the approach is not sustainable. Do not think in these terms. When you are on a healthy, intelligent food plan you will eventually wonder how you lived any other way.

Now we’ll discuss intelligent, customized exercise. I refer to intelligent because it’s important to exercise in a manner aligned with human anatomy. When you do so you have the least wear and tear on connective tissue, ligaments, tendons, cartilage etc. What we are talking about here is intelligent resource management. Your human body is the resource.

Customization refers to you as a unique person.  For example, an effective exercise program for a  20 year old male  would be quite different from that of a 60 year old female. Another facet of customization is choosing an activity that you enjoy. If the process is enjoyable your more likely to do it consistently.

Popularity: 39% [?]