Is your diet helping or hindering your recovery ?

So, it’s that time of season again with increased training loads and unfortunately increased injury rates.

 I’m seeing a current trend with the athletes passing through our clinic, either picking up new injures trying to ramp up their training post-Christmas (trying to undo all the indulging over the Christmas period) or they are battling with old present injuries from last seasons events, carrying them through into the new season.

Today’s post is focusing on giving you a quick insight into what happens after that initial damage is caused to the body and the stages following and how we can adjust and change are nutrition to aid in the body’s natural healing process and to avoid chronic inflammation.

Stages of the recovery process

Stage 1 – Inflammation

The inflammatory process function is to clean out the dead damaged cells preparing for the lay down new ones. Inflammation is stimulated by the increased movement of immune chemicals (leukocytes, neutrophils, macrophages, phagocytes, etc.) recruited into the injured area. These chemicals attract plasma (fluid from the blood) and blood proteins to the site of injury taking care of the cellular debris, clean the affected site.

Inflammation is characterized by three components;

Pain, to prevent you for movement or using the affected limb to prevent any further damage.

Swelling is a result of fluid seeping through damaged, now hyper-permeable blood vessels damaged by the initial trauma.

Heat is a catalyst for up regulating enzymatic activity at the affected area and attracts the necessary components for stage 2.

Stage 2 – Proliferation

Once the inflammation of stage 1 begins to subside, most of the damaged tissues will have been removed from the site of injury. new vasculature will have been developed. This restoration of oxygen and nutrient flow to the damaged area allows fibroblast proliferation/multiplication, allowing temporary tissue to be built. Otherwise known as scar tissue.

Stage 3 – Remodelling

Eventually, the scar tissue (typically made up of type II collagen) will be degraded and type I collagen (much stronger) will be laid down in its place. Although this new tissue will never likely be 100% normal, it can become about 80% as strong as uninjured tissue.

Nutritional strategies to support the stages of recovery

Stage 1 Inflammation

Inflammation is a crucial as it initiates the cascading effect leading to recruiting all the necessary repair and remodelling chemicals to start the recovery process. For the first 48 hours allow the body to promote acute inflammation at the affected site. However if  inflammation is persistent this will have a negative effect. Hence the incorporation of naturally occurring anti-inflammatory foods need to be added at a later stage.

• Need to eat more anti-inflammatory fats (fish, avocado, fish oils, olive oil), introduce these foods from the third day 3 post injury.

• Need to reduce your intake of pro-inflammatory fats (processed foods containing tran’s & saturated fats)

• ·Add more inflammation controlling herbs & spices onto your food (garlic, coca, berries, turmeric, bromelain (from pineapples).

Stages 2&3 Proliferation / Remodelling

• Balance energy intake – Aim to reduce calories enough to maintain body weight preinjury and preserve muscle mass, even though our BMR will increase due to the injury overall energy expenditure will decrease as a direct result of less movement.

• Get adequate protein in across 3-4 meals per day (0.4g/kg bodyweight) per meal.

•   Don’t be deficient in anything, hence eat the rainbow.

•   Balance dietary fat – 30% from saturated, 30% from monounsaturated, 30% from polyunsaturated.

Don’t be deficient

As the old saying goes don’t be deficient in anything (vitamin & mineral) wise, as you want to cultivate the optimal environment for your body to do its thing, rebuilding and growing new tissue whether it’s to do with bone, muscle, ligament or tendons.

However, with most individuals there will be lack of the daily required intakes for your vitamin and mineral intakes. So, I have put together this list of high priority vitamin and minerals we must get in.

Vitamin D

Increasing levels of vitamin D reduce inflammation, pain, and myopathy while increasing muscle protein synthesis.

Selenium

Selenium helps your body make special proteins, called antioxidant enzymes. These play a role in preventing cell damage

Vitamin A

Vitamin A supports cell growth and differentiation, playing a critical role in the normal formation and maintenance of skeletal muscle tissue

Vitamin E

Vitamin E is a fat-soluble antioxidant which stops the formations of free radicals, which cause damage to bodily tissue and organs

Supplements to aid recovery

Valerian is taken as a sleep aid also reducing anxiety. Enhances the signalling of one of the main sedative neurotransmitters, gammaaminobutyric acid (GABA). May help improve sleep. (dosage 1-2 tablets 60 min pre sleep, start low then build up).

Zinc is partially responsible for synthesis of protein, DNA, RNA and cell proliferation (increasing cells). Low zinc levels will inhibit these process and thus slow recovery. (dosage of a loading dose of 10–30 mg of Zn, followed by the daily maintenance dose of 2.5–5 mg)

L-Arginine may stimulate insulin release and IGF action. These powerful anabolic hormones can stimulate protein synthesis and collagen deposition. Growth & formation of ligaments, tendons and muscle tissue. (dosage 5-6 grams daily while recovering)

Turmeric inhibits stimulation and reduces circulating cytokines (inflammatory) the blood which has a direct effect on reducing inflammation. (dosage 5 grams daily).

Note; supplement dosages are recommended for the recovery period (typical lasting 6-8 week).

Practical suggestion

If you’re the type of person who doesn’t like fish, or has it occasionally, then adding a high strength fish oil supplement can help bridge the gap as a practical way for you to up your anti-inflammatory fat intake. I would also recommend supplementing with vitamin D3 5000IU per day (especially in the winter months) as most people are deficient this time of year. Aim to eat the rainbow of veg looking to get in at least 5 portions across the day, handy the likes of the inflammatory managing herbs and spices mentioned above to flavour your veggies, might make it a bit easier to up your intake.

Take home message

• Don’t be deficient in anything, eat the rainbow

• Eat more anti-inflammatory fats

• Balance energy intake to avoid weight gain or loss

• Get adequate protein in across the day ideally between 3-4 meals

• Let the body do its thing

References

Lin, P., Sermersheim, M., Li, H., Lee, P., Steinberg, S. and Ma, J. (2017). Zinc in Wound Healing Modulation. Nutrients, 10(1), p.16.

Tipton, K. (2010). Nutrition for Acute Exercise-Induced Injuries. Annals of Nutrition and Metabolism, 57(s2), pp.43-53.

Wall, B., Morton, J. and van Loon, L. (2014). Strategies to maintain skeletal muscle mass in the injured athlete: Nutritional considerations and exercise mimetics. European Journal of Sport Science, 15(1), pp.53-62.