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What's New?
By Monique Cole
Remember the good old days when
we only had one sports drink to choose from and supplementing
meant taking a multi-vitamin from the grocery store? Sports nutrition
has come a long way since those simpler times, and the variety
of products to choose from can sometimes be overwhelming. That
said, here's the lowdown on a handful of new products to add
to the mix.
Vidafit
Nutrtion meets the Internet
with this web site that allows customers to create personalized
dietary supplements. At www.vidafit.com,
you can select up to 60 different vitamins, minerals, protein,
supplements and herb ingredients, and determine the daily intake
values, sugar level and flavor you want.
It's easy to use, too. If you're not
a nutrition expert, you can choose a template to work off of,
based on your athletic goals or specific health conditions. Some
of these categories include weight management (gain or loss),
general health fitness, and athletic performance (strength, endurance
or recovery). After choosing a category and entering information
about your gender, age and weight, you're given suggestions of
daily intakes for each ingredient, all of which you can tweak
up to a set maximum amount.
Although the web site is also chock
full of up-to-date nutrition information, you may want to consult
an expert and determine your nutritional deficiencies through
a blood test to make the most of your personalized formulation.
The base cost is $29.95 for a month's supply, with additional
charges for extra ingredients. Average costs are $35-$40 per
month. <www.vidafit.com>
GNC Pro Performance Elite
General Nutrition Companies,
the leading sport supplement retail chain, recently launched
a new line of seven products aimed at "supporting the performance
goals of athletes of all levels."
The products inclulde Mega Whey (whey
protein with glutamine and amino acids), Mega MRP (milk, egg
and whey protien blend with creatine, vitamins, minerals, carbohydrates,
and enzymes), Mega Creatine (an effervescent blend of creatine
and phosphates), Turbo ATP (carnitine, CO-Q10, creatine and taurine),
Intact Colostrum (bovine colostrum processed with low heat),
During (hydration drink with carbohydrates, electrolyes, caffeine
and glycerol), and Distance (a recovery drink with carbs, electrolytes,
B vitamins, d-ribose, whey and glutamine).
The company promises to conduct clinical
trials at independent universities to confirm that their products
work. However, a press release dated last May cited clinical
trials for only two of the seven products, stating "additional
clinical trials are underway and are expected to demonstrate
measurable clinical benefits."
All GNC's products are available exclusively
through their retail stores or by mail/website order. <www.gnc.com>
VitaShots Runner's Matrix
You might just hear your grandmother's
voice saying, "Take your medecine, dear," as this new
liquid dietary supplement hits your tongue. If you manage to
choke it down, perhaps you will experience the benefits claimed
by its manufacturers - better carbohydrate utilization, improved
high-intensity workouts and increased endurance.
This supplement offers vitamins, herbs
and amino acids encapsulated into a liposome matrix (patent pending).
Liposomes are artificially created, multi-layerd microscopic
spheres that allow effective delivery of nutrients into the bloodstream
steadily over time.
If you are currently experimenting with
green tea leaf extract, synephrine, ginkgo biloba, ginseng, guarana,
creatine, and isoleucine, you'll find all these things and a
whole lot more in this formulation. Just make sure you don't
spit it out after tasting the bitter flavor - these little 20ml
servings cost $2.99 each! <1-888-633-7468; www.vitashots.com>
Accelerade
Launched last May, this new
hydration drink comes from the makers of the recovery drink Endurox
R4. What makes Accelerade unique is that it has the same 4 to
1 ratio of carbs to protein found in Endurox R4. The manufacturers
claim this ratio speeds the movement of carbohydrates from the
blood into the muscle during exercise. In their clinical studies,
subjects drinking Accelerade increased endurance performance
by 24 percent compared to subjects drinking "conventional
sports drinks."
Accelerade has the blessing of Dr. Edmund
Burke, a pioneer in sports recovery and professor of exercise
physiology. "Accelerade will help athletes perform better
by shifting the energy dynamic during exercise to provide greater
endurance," he states. "And its antioxidant profile
will lessen post-exercise muscle soreness."
Accelerade will be sold exclusively
through Performance and RoadRunner Sports in 2.2-pound canisters
with a price of about $0.86 per serving. <1-877-363-8769;
www.performancebike.com
or www.roadrunnersports.com>
GU2O
If you can't tolerate the syrupy
sweet taste and texture of full-strength sports drinks, then
you'll probably like GU2O. This new drink from the makers of
GU promises the carbohydrates and electrolytes you need for rehydration,
without being bogged down with extra sugar.
"In our consumer surveys, we learned
athletes are diluting other companies' drinks because they are
too sweet or too strong in flavor," states Director of Research
Dr. William Vaughan, who invented PowerBar and GU. "When
athletes cut their drink mix, they are losing out on the necessary
electrolyte levels they need."
Like the energy gel GU, this drink utilizes
maltodextrin - a rapidly and easily absorbed glucose polymer
- as its complex carbohydrate. Only a dash of fructose is used
to sweeten this product which comes in two natural flavors: lemon-lime
and raspberry. The result is a light and refreshing drink.
GU2O is sold in powder form in 1.4-pound
canisters with a cost per serving of $0.67. <www.gusports.com>
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