SUNDROPS SPORTS BLOG

Vitamin K2 is an essential part of maintaining your heart and bone health. Not to be confused with vitamin K1, which is important for blood coagulation.

Vitamin K2 activates two proteins in our body, which bind calcium in the arteries and deposit it into the bones. This helps support heart health by reducing calcification and supports bone health by increasing bone mineralization.

Of all the types of vitamin K2 available, MK-7 has the best half life, meaning it lasts longer in your body. Researchers have recently found that for every 10mcg of vitamin K2 taken, the risk of cardiovascular disease dropped by 9 points.

Find vitamin K2 in our Amazon Store.

When you decide to lose those extra few pounds or more, you may benefit from a special diet plan during the first two weeks. The Sundrops plan reduces your carbohydrate and calorie intake by 30% to 40%, actually mimicking the calorie-restrictive effects of lap- band surgery. This short period of calorie restriction helps reset your body’s ability to use glucose efficiently. Good insulin receptors and glucose function are critical to your cells ability to burn fat effectively.

While reducing calories, you can also support liver detox, health and function by supplementing with nutrients involved in the process. One of the best products for supporting good general liver health and detox is Xymogen’s Opti-GHI, a powdered meal replacement product that supports the two phases of liver detoxification. Another option is Pure Encapsulations Liver GI Detox, which contains the same nutrients without the meal replacement.

Sundrops recommends using the detox meal replacement for two meals a day and then optionally supplement with the Liver GI Detox formula after the two week induction period. Your third meal should be high in protein and low in carbs.

Visit our website for more resources on getting your weight loss started or speaking to a nutritionist.

Glutamine is the most abundant amino acid in muscle tissue. It is needed for skeletal muscle contraction and to prevent lactic acid build up.

Research suggests that after intensely working out, glutamine levels in the body are significantly reduced. Since the body relies on glutamine as cellular fuel for the immune system, scientific studies suggest that glutamine supplementation can minimize the breakdown of muscle tissue and improve protein metabolism.

Sundrops recommends 1-5 grams post workout and 1 gram during off days. Find it in our online store.

Among the most beneficial and effective supplements in any sports nutrition program are branched chain amino acids (BCAAs). These are the essential amino acids: leucine, isoleucine, and valine.

These amino acids are the building blocks of lean muscle and during exercise they are used by muscle cells for energy and to increase recovery.

BCAAs are of special importance for athletes because they are metabolized in the muscle, rather than in the liver. After digestion, once proteins are broken down into individual amino acids these aminos can either be used to build new proteins or be burned as fuel to produce energy.

Sundrops recommends 3-5 grams before and after your workout, and 1-2 grams on your off days.

Supplementing with essential Omega-3 oil can have many positive benefits including:

• increased metabolic rate
• reduced appetite
• lower inflammation and pain in joints, arteries, eyes and brain
• reduced risk of heart disease
• reduced risk for sudden heart attacks
• lower risk of age-related macular degeneration
• reduced dementia
• increased breast, prostate and colon health
• healthier skin and protection against UV ray damage

Browse our selection of fish oil products online.

In addition to healthy diet changes and smart supplementing, there are changes you can make to your workout to help you reach your goals.

• Strength train with increasingly heavier weights to “muscle failure.”
• Workouts should be about 1 hour or less in addition to limited cardio.
• Stretching is essential to help keep your muscles flexible.
• Schedule your workouts three to four times a week with at least one day between each to allow for recovery.

Visit our website for more on healthy weight management.

One of the first steps to increasing your mass is to increase your overall caloric intake. However, this does not mean eating poorly. You can increase your food intake with healthy options and still gain mass.

BCAA: Including this in your pre/post workout regimen can help you repair muscle tissue after heavy weight lifting.

Glutamine: This amino acid can be depleted from muscle tissue through exercise and be conditionally essential to repair and recover from strenuous exercise.

Creatine: This supplement helps to recycle ATP, the body’s energy molecule. (link to creatine post)

Co-Q10: Co-Q10 helps make ATP, which when combined with creatine leads to increased energy when needed most.

GPLC: This unique form of L-Carnitine helps deliver fatty acids for energy, supports blood flow and is an antioxidant.

HMB: This supplement reduces muscle tissue breakdown to allow for the build up of mass more rapidly.

ZMA: Magnesium, Zinc and Vitamin B6 are used up more frequently from exercise and this combination of the three has been shown to improve recovery.

Find these supplements in our online store.

There are a number of reasons that your appetite may seem out of control.

• Inadequate protein and fat at meals can cause you to feel hungry sooner.
• Consuming too many quick-digesting carbohydrates will raise your insulin levels and in turn reduce your blood sugar too much and make you feel hungry.
• Constant stress can cause high cortisol levels, which can make you crave carbohydrates.

There are certain key nutrients you should try to incorporate into every meal, which will help you feel satisfied and sustained between meals.

• Lean protein and fish in an amount equal to the palm of your hand.
• Beneficial fat from avocados, extra virgin olive oil, and monosaturate nuts.
• Carbohydrates from whole fruits and vegetables.
• If you struggle with high cortisol, consider Relora, a plant derived substance which reduces cortisol.

For more resources on healthy weight management, visit our website.

Sundrops recommends the following supplements for immune system enhancement.

NAC
A trial involving 262 elderly subjects experimenters gave active subjects 600mg NAC twice daily. Over the course of 6 months, those in the NAC group had a 43% lower incidence of flu-like symptoms than those in the placebo group.

Vitamin D
Seasonal cold and flu outbreaks may be related to seasonal deficiencies in Vitamin D. In a trial where participants supplemented 2000IU per day of vitamin D, the self-reported incidence of colds and flu was nearly eliminated.

Elderberry
Elderberry extract has been shown to help speed recovery from flu symptoms.  In one study, the majority of the group receiving elderberry experienced “pronounced improvement” within 3-4 days, whereas the placebo group took 7-8 days to reach the equivalent improvement level.

Olive Leaf
Researchers have shown olive leaf constituents to inhibit the replication and diminish the infectivity of viruses, including those responsible for colds and flu. Anecdotal reports indicate that olive leaf extract taken at the beginning of cold or flu symptoms can prevent the full onset of the illness or significantly shorten the duration.

Find these products in our online store.

By the time we’re in our twenties, we have already reached our peak bone density and it has already begun its slow decline. In addition to weight bearing exercises, Sundrops recommends supplementing with New Chapter’s Bone Strength.

This formula contains a new form of algae based calcium called AlgaeCal. It is a cold processed plant based mineral source containing calcium as well as 74 trace minerals. It is also very porous, allowing for 74% calcium absorbability and 97% dissolution in 30 minutes.

For those with specific bone density concerns, we recommend adding extra Vitamin K2 to New Chapter’s Bone Strength. Vitamin K2 is uniquely important because it activates proteins in our body that remove calcium from the arterial walls and deposit it into bones. It is beneficial both from a bone and a cardiovascular standpoint. We also recommend adding an extra 2000 of vitamin D.

Find New Chapter’s Bone Strength, vitamin D and vitamin K2 products in our store.