Nutrition, Athletics and Stress Management: Learn How to Calm Athletic Stress with Holistic Nutrition

Nutrition, Athletics and Stress Management: Learn How to Calm Athletic Stress with Holistic Nutrition
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Athletes are the term used for people who participate in physical activity on a competitive basis. This portion of the population is relatively small, but that does not mean they do not have very real forms of stress that affect the body. The athletic stress can be calmed with nutrition and stress management.

How Do Athletes Feel Stress?

Despite the most common definition of stress, the majority of the athletic population feels a different form of stress every day. The athletic stress is m ore of a physical stress on the body. The fight or flight syndrome is a common reaction in people who are stressed emotionally. In the athlete, the physical reaction based in the fight or flight response is enacted every time they perform on the athletic field. Nutrition and stress management can decrease the physical and emotional effects of this athletic stress.

Using Holistic Nutrition to Calm Athletic Stress

Any activity that causes strain on the body can be considered stress. In athletes, productive stress is the most common form of stress. Productive stress refers to the use of stress to gain a positive outcome. No matter how positive the outcome, the reaction of the body is very similar to a less productive form of stress. Nutrition and stress management base treatment on reversing the negative effects on the body resulting from stress.

Athletes need to focus on four aspects of nutrition to deal with athletic stress. The nutrition choices that help the body most effectively are foods high in chlorophyll, enzymes, prebiotics and probiotics. Raw foods are a great source of all these energy gaining elements. Another aspect of nutrition the athlete needs to consider in order to reduce stress is in supplemental form. Many athletes choose supplemental vitamins and minerals as a means of better health. This is a great choice, but only when all body necessities are covered. Fat soluble vitamins should never be taken in high amounts. The fat soluble vitamins are A, D, E and K. The consumption of whole, natural foods on a regular basis help to regulate supplement intake as fiber controls the body’s ability to absorb and store these vitamins.

The Rebuilding of Cells

Nutrition and stress management is a proactive choice for athletes. The body will regenerate all of the cells in the body in six to eight months. These new cells will be formed from the holistically nutritious choices the athlete consumes. If the body is healthy and the nutritional choices are those that benefit overall nutrition, the new cells will be stronger and more apt to fight off the stresses of daily and athletic life.

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