Sports+ Pod: Low-Calorie Nutrient Support for Your Active Lifestyle

Sports+ Pod: Low-Calorie Nutrient Support for Your Active Lifestyle

Nutrition is essential to athletic performance. And here at Vitapod we want to help you reach your fitness goals – which is why we went ahead and formulated our SPORTS+ pods. These pods provide a unique blend of electrolytes, amino acids, micronutrients and antioxidants to fuel your workout. Aiding in both performance and metabolic recovery our SPORTS+ pods come in a delightful green apple flavor that will satisfy your taste buds and quench your thirst.   

The Best Things About SPORTS+  

  • No artificial preservatives or sweeteners.  
  • Low calorie (20 calories a pod).  
  • Only 2 grams organic cane sugar per drink.  
  • Contains essential BCAAs (branched chain amino acids which support muscle growth and recovery).  
  • Replenishes the four key electrolytes lost in sweat: sodium, potassium, calcium, and magnesium.  
  • Includes choline – which plays a role in decreasing post-workout muscle damage.  
  • With 100mg of caffeine from green coffee beans it packs the perfect punch!  

Why caffeine?  

Caffeine helps your performance during exercise by shifting your muscles to burn fat quickly which prevents your muscles from getting tired and sore. Not only does it make your workout more enjoyable your performance with caffeine is likely to improve. In a 1,500-meter run, regular caffeinated coffee drinkers were 4.2 seconds faster than the decaffeinated runners. Caffeine is more than an energy-booster – it’s a performance booster too! 

Let’s chat amino acids.  

So what are amino acids? Glad you asked. Amino acids are the building blocks of protein – essentially they help build muscle. The three amino acids we have included in our SPORTS+ pods are L-citrulline, L-arginine, and L-leucine. L-citrulline and L-arginine increase nitrate in your body and blood flow to the working muscles while L-leucine enhances post-exercise muscle protein synthesis.  

Polyphenols and Flavonoids.  

Simply put, polyphenols are plant compounds and flavonoids are plant antioxidants – mix ‘em all together and they help reduce oxidative stress and inflammation after you exercise and improve your body’s defense system. So we packed them into a little pod for you to enjoy! Learn more about them here 

Recovery.  

Nutrients needed to recover from workouts are low in the typical diet. Vitapod SPORTS+ provides those vitamins and minerals – including vitamins A, C, D, E, folic acid, calcium, and magnesium. The result: your overall metabolic recovery from intense workouts is enhanced. 

Electrolytes.  

Electrolytes help retain water in your body. The electrolytes we include in our SPORTS+ pods are magnesium, potassium, and sodium – but don’t worry, not too much sodium! With the average American having excessive sodium intake – which results in high blood pressure we instead combined magnesium, potassium, and the ideal amount of sodium for optimal hydration. 

What about sugar?  

Yes, our SPORTS+ pods have 2 grams organic cane sugar. Let us explain ourselves! We are all about providing you with an optimal workout experience and believe it or not that experience includes a pinch of sugar. Sugar, in its most basic form is a carbohydrate and your body needs carbohydrates to help fuel your workout and aid in your recovery. So a spoonful of sugar it is!  

Working out with SPORTS+  

If you intend to exercise for more than 60-75 minutes, drink SPORTS+ and eat a banana before starting. The carbohydrate from the banana will help keep your blood sugar normal during long and intense exercise. And if you are exercising for more than 90 minutes (okay, look at you go!) Enjoy a second drink with banana, raisins, or other fruit to provide the carbohydrates that your working muscles need.  

 

REFERENCES: 

 

  1. Burke LM, Jeukendrup AE, Jones AM, Mooses M. Contemporary Nutrition Strategies to Optimize Performance in Distance Runners and Race Walkers. Int J Sport Nutr Exerc Metab. 2019;29(2):117–129. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/30747558/ 
  2. Duranti G, Ceci R, Patrizio F, et al. Chronic consumption of quercetin reduces erythrocytes oxidative damage: Evaluation at resting and after eccentric exercise in humans. Nutr Res. 2018;50:73–81. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/29540274/ 
  3. Figueroa A, Wong A, Jaime SJ, Gonzales JU. Influence of L-citrulline and watermelon supplementation on vascular function and exercise performance. Curr Opin Clin Nutr Metab Care. 2017;20(1):92–98. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/27749691/ 
  4. Machado ÁS, da Silva W, Souza MA, Carpes FP. Green Tea Extract Preserves Neuromuscular Activation and Muscle Damage Markers in Athletes Under Cumulative Fatigue. Front Physiol. 2018;9:1137. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/30174618/ 
  5. McAnulty SR, Nieman DC, McAnulty LS, Lynch WS, Jin F, Henson DA. Effect of mixed flavonoids, n-3 fatty acids, and vitamin C on oxidative stress and antioxidant capacity before and after intense cycling. Int J Sport Nutr Exerc Metab. 2011;21(4):328–337. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/21813916/ 
  6. Nieman DC, Ferrara F, Pecorelli A, Woodby B, Hoyle AT, Simonson A, Valacchi G. Postexercise Inflammasome Activation and IL-1β Production Mitigated by Flavonoid Supplementation in Cyclists. Int J Sport Nutr Exerc Metab. 2020 Sep 15:1-9. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/32932235/  
  7. Nieman DC, Gillitt ND, Chen GY, Zhang Q, Sakaguchi CA, Stephan EH. Carbohydrate intake attenuates post-exercise plasma levels of cytochrome P450-generated oxylipins. PLoS One. 2019;14(3):e0213676. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/30883596/ 
  8. Nieman DC, Gillitt ND, Chen GY, Zhang Q, Sha W, Kay CD, Chandra P, Kay KL, Lila MA. Blueberry and/or Banana Consumption Mitigate Arachidonic, Cytochrome P450 Oxylipin Generation During Recovery From 75-Km Cycling: A Randomized Trial. Front Nutr. 2020 Aug 7;7:121. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/32850939/ 
  9. Nieman DC, Gillitt ND, Sha W, Esposito D, Ramamoorthy S. Metabolic recovery from heavy exertion following banana compared to sugar beverage or water only ingestion: A randomized, crossover trial. PLoS One. 2018;13(3):e0194843. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/29566095/ 
  10. Nieman DC, Goodman CL, Capps CR, Shue ZL, Arnot R. Influence of 2-Weeks Ingestion of High Chlorogenic Acid Coffee on Mood State, Performance, and Postexercise Inflammation and Oxidative Stress: A Randomized, Placebo-Controlled Trial. Int J Sport Nutr Exerc Metab. 2018;28(1):55–65. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/29035597/ 
  11. Nieman DC, Kay CD, Rathore AS, et al. Increased Plasma Levels of Gut-Derived Phenolics Linked to Walking and Running Following Two Weeks of Flavonoid Supplementation. Nutrients. 2018;10(11):1718. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/30423955/ 
  12. Nieman DC, Lila MA, Gillitt ND. Immunometabolism: A Multi-Omics Approach to Interpreting the Influence of Exercise and Diet on the Immune System. Annu Rev Food Sci Technol. 2019;10:341–363. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/30633566/ 
  13. Nieman DC, Valacchi G, Wentz LM, Ferrara F, Pecorelli A, Woodby B, Sakaguchi CA, Simonson A. Mixed Flavonoid Supplementation Attenuates Postexercise Plasma Levels of 4-Hydroxynonenal and Protein Carbonyls in Endurance Athletes. Int J Sport Nutr Exerc Metab. 2019 Nov 21:1-8. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/31754080/ 
  14. Pahlavani N, Entezari MH, Nasiri M, et al. The effect of l-arginine supplementation on body composition and performance in male athletes: a double-blinded randomized clinical trial. Eur J Clin Nutr. 2017;71(4):544–548. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/28766558/ 
  15. Thomas DT, Erdman KA, Burke LM. American College of Sports Medicine Joint Position Statement. Nutrition and Athletic Performance. Med Sci Sports Exerc. 2016;48(3):543–568. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/26891166/ 

Get Started with Vitapod