Get swole! High-intensity sports – digital magazine

Increasing muscle mass has always been at the heart of the sports supplements space, but as the category invites more consumer types to the game, brands are catering to that broader audience with evidence-based ingredients that address diverse needs and emphasize transparency along with efficacy.

Customers are beginning to demand clear ingredient labels and dosages. They progressively distrust proprietary blends. Research-backed ingredients aim directly at addressing various needs and look beyond stimulants to accomplish this.

Top ingredients – with perhaps creatine leading the list – are focused on muscle performance and, outside the realm of athletics, brain health benefits. Muscle growth, fat reduction, immune support and easy absorption are also prized by formulators. Promoting cellular health, inflammation management and longevity are some of the modern applications of the pre-eminent sports nutrition supplement formulations.

Many of the secrets known by the muscle-bound crowd, but useful to the everyday athlete, can be discovered by downloading this free digital magazine. The articles include:

Viewpoint: Third-party certification weeds out banned ingredients

Certification programs promote fair competition and protect athletes and brands, Content Director Todd Runestad surmises, but rigorously testing supplements for banned substances also ensures quality control (QC). Third-party certifiers like Informed Sport, Informed Choice and NSF Certified for Sport are touchstones for supplement brands like NOW Sports and TYM Athletic Performance, and while the certification process can be rigorous, the results are worth it, brand representatives said.

5 MIPS key ingredients for 2024

From hardcore bodybuilders to everyday athletes, students and gamers, the target audience for pre-workout products is expanding, Nick Collias reports. As such, today’s best pre-pump formulas are focused on multiple benefits including endurance, mood, focus and energy. Specifically, leading multi-ingredient performance supplement formulas are leaning on beta-alanine for work capacity, caffeine for power and energy, L-citrulline for fatigue fighting and muscle pumps, essential amino acids (EAAs) for muscle soreness, and Alpha-GPC for focus and mental fatigue.

Hits from the NFL (Nutrition Formulation League)

Douglas Kalman recounts the sports nutrition ingredient draft held at SupplySide West 2023, which showcased five trending ingredients: creatine, whey protein, hobamine, HMB and BCAAs. It’s easy to see why these five leading sports nutrition ingredients are either popular now, have always had an audience, or are emerging with a growing audience of potential consumers who would benefit from the product as part of their exercise, nutrition and lifestyle program.

New ingredient advances with big market potential

Todd Runestad pulls together four innovative plant-based protein solutions, each targeting distinct needs in the health and wellness industry. Taking the spotlight are EverPro, the upcycled barley protein from EverGrain by AB InBev; PURIS HiLo, an acid-stable plant protein optimized for low pH/high acid applications; YESTEIN fermented yeast protein from Nura USA; and 3DPump Breakthrough from NutraShure, a triple-action pump ingredient combining L-citrulline, high-yield glycerol and a standardized extract of amla fruit (Phyllanthus emblica).

The creatine renaissance

Once mainly used by athletes for bulking, creatine is now gaining popularity for its wider health benefits, Denis Faye explains. Research reveals potential benefits for muscle health, brain function, aging and even women’s health. Experts including Richard Kreider, Ph.D., director of Texas A&M’s Exercise & Sport Nutrition Laboratory, and Robert Alber and Mirko Holzmüller from creatine monohydrate supplier AlzChem, offer reasons why creatine has seen a surge in sales, jumping 120% in 2022 compared to 2021, from $16 million to $36 million, according to SPINS.

Examples of high-intensity sports takeaways for your business include:

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