FREE ESSAY ON SPORTS INFO

SPORTS INFO

supplements range from protein shakes to illegal anabolic steroids. Some sports izzle out,
while others still work well but do more damage than good in the long run. In the past
athletes had to turn to such things as anabolic steroids or blood doping (the process of
taking out blood and adding oxygen to it and putting it back into your body in order to
increase a persons endurance). However, these procedures have many drawbacks. Mainly,
thCreatine One of the primary things an athlete will do is put supplements into their
body. ey are illegal. An athlete may be suspended from playing their perspective sport
for using them. They have many long terms and short term side effects. Many supplements
are as simple as packaged energy and others require a strict exercise and eating regimen.
I will explore sports supplements focusing on creatine and it's effect on the sport
world. The first and most basic sports supplements are protein weight gainers. This
normally comes in the form of powder and works best when mixed with milk. The main reason
for taking extra protein is to gain weight and muscle mass. In today's athletics, whether
it is high school, college, or professional, the athletes are getting bigger and
stronger. Protein works the best when the athlete is on a strict work out regimen. Many
sports supplements are a combination of herbs and proteins. A popular supplement of this
sort is called Heat. Heat has many different ingredients in it that allow the athlete to
experience more energy by creating more heat. This allows the athletes' body to work more
efficiently and therefore work faster, stronger, and longer. This is very important in
the sports world because it is becoming harder and harder to compete at an unsupplemented
level. Athletes want every advantage that he or she can receive. Now there is a substance
that can give an athlete the edge that they desire. One of the most popular and effective
sports supplements on the market today is Pure creatine Monohydrate. Creatine was first
introduced to the US in 1993 by a supplement company called Experimental and Applied
Sciences. Since that time it has become one of the most demanded items on the market. The
creatine that is bought in stores duplicates the natural creatine that is produced by the
kidney, liver, and pancreas. Creatine Monohydrate has been proven to significantly
enhance athletic performance in the areas of power, strength, and muscle mass. Most
importantly though, it doesn't seem to have any serious side effects. Also, since
Creatine is found naturally in the body and in foods, it is likely that it will not be
removed from sports. What is Creatine? Creatine is a nutrient that is found in many
foods. It is most highly concentrated in lean red meat. A half-pound of red meat contains
about two grams of Creatine. Every human body also produces Creatine in very small
amounts, though some people produce more than others. Creatine is necessary for proper
cell functions and cell reproduction, it is also a primary storage for energy in muscles.
How does Creatine work? When somebody is exercising, his or her muscles demand energy.
The energy that the muscle gets is called adenosine triphosphate (ATP). As the muscles
keep contracting, the ATP is turned into adenosine diphosphate (ADP). ADP causes your
muscles to fatigue. Creatine Phosphate helps to convert ADP into ATP when the ATP is
gone. In doing this, the athlete has better endurance during his of her workout or event.
Creatine producers and users claim it to have many advantages, such as increased
endurance, increased overall work potential, increased speed of muscular action, and the
potential to further increase muscle mass. Creatine also accelerates protein synthesis.
If all this were true, it would be easy to see why athletes are turning to Creatine for
an edge on their competition. But are these claims real? Is their scientific proof of
what Creatine does? Yes, since Creatine came onto the supplement market it has been
tested extensively. Research in human sports science indicates that if you supplement a
normal diet with Creatine it will increase the Creatine content in the muscles. The Texas
A&M football program, experimented by putting only a few of their players on Creatine in
1994, and as a result by 1995 they put their whole team on Creatine. The facts don't lie
Creatine has definite advantages. Since studies on Creatine loading have only been going
on for less than a decade, it is still unknown what long-term effects will have. Several
small short- term side effects include dehydration, diarrhea, and muscle cramping. Also,
Creatine might not be able to help a person in their sport. For example, Creatine does
not always benefit an athlete who participates in an aerobic sport such as swimming, and
long distance running. From a long distance runner's point of view, Creatine would be bad
to take. Creatine causes an athlete to retain water, causing them to gain weight. The
Athletes that will receive the most benefit from creatine are athletes in power and
performance sports such as football and wrestling. Though even with wrestling creatine
can be dangerous because of the weight gaining factor, so more effective use my be during
the off-season. For such sports as football, Creatine can be very useful in gaining
strength and size, while maintaining or increasing speed and endurance. Bodybuilders can
also use Creatine as a legal and effective way to enhance muscle growth. Creatine use can
best summed up pretty easy, a person can take all the Creatine they want, but if the
proper biological, physiological, and nutritional factors aren't in place, it won't be of
even the slightest benefit. Creatine is a true athletes supplement. It allows an athlete
to work out harder and more frequently. Plus, it helps an athlete to become bigger,
faster and stronger. In addition, Creatine delivers these benefits without causing any
serious harm, if any. The only proven side effect has been weight gain(AFQ, pg. 44). What
is the positive side of sports supplements such as Creatine? With the rise of popularity
in sports supplements, sports are becoming more competitive. This creates new interest in
sports and helps athletes get in better shape. Creatine almost works like magic and gives
the athlete an extra boost when it is really needed, and the athlete is struggling. With
sports becoming more and more global, natural athletes are dominating the playing field.
Sports supplements are out there to help those with less natural talent reach their full
potential by helping them to become faster, stronger and to have more endurance. As long
as athletes are encouraged to accept the norms of the sport ethic without question or
qualification, they will continue to voluntarily try anything or take anything to remain
in sports(Coakley, pg.175). Sports Supplements have taken sports to a new level of
competition helping more athletes succeed. Creatine though is not without its down sides.
Many people criticize and worry that extensive use of this somewhat new supplement may be
premature. The side effects are very minimal so far and are restricted to cramping,
nausea, and diarrhea. The cause of this, many scientists believe, is because the user
doesn't drink enough water while working out, and with creatine the athlete can dehydrate
much quicker because water gets absorbed into the muscles faster. As of right now, it is
perceived that creatine does more good than evil and is, therefore, worth the occasional
stomach ache. Though many reports say that Creatine may cause a person to dehydrate, some
disagree with this view. Steven Plisk, director of sports conditioning at Yale U.,
Creatine doesn't have a dehydrating effect on individual muscle cells. If anything,
creatine adds water to the muscle-explaining some of the weight gain(AfQ, pg. 44). Many
still argue the credibility of negative comments toward creatine, but none argue its
positive effects. Just shoving creatine into your body without proper exercise will
result only in creation of fat and waste. Creatine is not going to make someone a better
athlete, he or she has to go out and do it themselves. If anything creatine requires one
to increase their workouts and effort, because the body's tolerance to exhaustion is
higher. Another problem that people may see with creatine is the cost factor. A Creatine
supply for a month will average close to forty-five dollars. With the cost of this and
other supplements being so high, it seems that the higher class athletes would have an
advantage, which causes many critics of creatine(or supplements in general) to deem it
unfair. Their case is, athletes of one group should not be permitted to have an advantage
over another due to something such as money. In conclusion, Creatine is and can be a very
effective supplement for athletes, it doesn't help everyone. Depending on the person and
the sport they are participating in creatine's effects can be either positive or
negative. Though long term research on the effects of creatine have not been confirmed,
as of now the only side effects are diarrhea, nausea, and weight gain. These are
outweighed by the increased success that one may have in their strength and performance
in sports. Creatine has a positive effect on sports as well as its negative effect,
therefore each person should weigh the positive and negative, then make the decision for
themselves. 
Fall Back On Fitness As we head into the cooler autumn months, we undoubtedly expect that
the upcoming holiday seasons surrounding Thanksgiving, Halloween, and (yes, already)
Christmas will lead to our spending more and more time indulging and less and less time
keeping ourselves healthy and fit. This doesn't have to be the case. We are not bears,
and regardless of what one may think, we do not need to store up extra fat so that we may
hibernate for the winter! Awareness of the potential pitfalls of the holiday season can
prevent the pounds from sneaking up on you. Treat yourself to an early gift by purchasing
a journal in which you can keep a daily record of your eating, exercise and stress
behaviours. Keep an eye on your journal entries so that you'll notice your less than
healthy behaviours and make changes before you get overwhelmed. One suggestion is to
weigh yourself once a week during the holiday season. One study of weight loss over a
50-week period found that some study participants gained 500 percent more weight per week
during holiday weeks as compared to non-holiday weeks. But the good news: Participants
who consistently monitored and recorded their own behaviours were able to lose weight
during the holidays. (Published in Health Psychology, July 1998.) The next suggestion is
to remember that your body needs movement more than ever during the holiday season.
Exercise releases tension, expends the calories of those holiday goodies, increases your
energy levels so you can shop til' you drop, elevates your mood so you can combat
holiday-related depression and be the life of the party, and gives you the gift of time
for yourself. Here are some great ways to fit exercise into the busy fall season: ?
Exercise first thing in the morning before you begin your busy day. ? Try to plan holiday
activities around family and friends, instead of around food. Tell family and friends to
bring walking shoes and comfortable clothes to your celebration. Then take a 30-minute
walk together. You can do it in shifts so someone's always basting the turkey! ? Get into
a routine now, before the holidays strike! Those who have previously developed a solid
exercise habit will make the time to exercise even when they feel like they are "too
busy" to find the time.