Relieve Exercise Soreness Naturally
Then Power Through Workouts Like Never Before
Overcome with determination. It's that time again. We're motivated to shape up. We're encouraged by glum feelings we don't want repeating... eating and drinking a share more than needed. Planning to work it off but never do. So, right now is the time we make a decision. We put the effort in... make time to exercise... really crank up our efforts.
In particular, the fitness industry is awash with people like you and me making new year plans to get fit and healthy. The gym is packed with regulars, newbies and the erratic and flighty. Classes are busy to the point that we have to book in advance. But exercise's health benefits might be short-lived. It's because of the soreness and stiffness a hard workout brings. You'll then probably need a way to overcome the pain... especially if you haven't trained for a while. Or you're trying something new and working muscles you never knew you had...
...you're gonna need something to help your muscles recover after a workout. Something to lessen the muscle pain. Decrease the damage. And give you a 10% performance boost.
In reality, only our current will powers us through. Which reminds me of a gym induction some years ago. I'd been through it all before, you know, lapsed and started again at a new place. So, as the showoff I am, it all felt easy and I was like 'it feels good, I think I can push a little more'. Well, my instructor was fit. I didn't want to look weak and helpless! However, I ended up almost unable to move a couple of days later. My muscles began to stiffen up that following day. And the day after that, I was incapacitated.
As a result of my eagerness to look good, I did too much. My performance didn't take a little drop after the session... it was wiped out. My muscles bore multiple microtears. Which opened the floodgates to calcium and white blood cells. This causes oxidative stress and inflammation. The tissue starts to break down. And that's why I was in so much pain and discomfort.
If I only knew then what I know now...
...I could have used my nutritional insight to protect my muscles
To help them recover faster. And keep on track with my exercise program. Or even outperform my targets. I could have been in shape years ago.
Nevertheless, I'm there now and I can share my insights with you. Just like this powerful phytonutrient food.
Following the beginning of this century, sports scientists have been testing food for performance. They've taken a sidestep away from fuelling for performance and typical vitamins and minerals towards phytocompounds. They are looking at the power of fruit and vegetables.
As a result, a number of studies have proved cherries pack some power. They show that drinking cherry juice decreases symptoms of exercise-induced muscle damage. It reduces the feeling of pain related to microtears and your body's response. And aids faster recovery so you can perform just as well tomorrow as you performed today. In fact, one study shows the participants barely lost any strength when drinking cherry juice while those taking the fake stuff lost around 20% of their strength. And another study helped endurance runners finish half-marathons 13 % faster by taking a supplement of tart cherry powder. Actually, many simple tests show performance improves by around 10%. Also, markers of inflammation were 47 % lower. And soreness measured 34 % lower. Plus, a study using Montmorency cherry concentrate found markers of free radical damage and inflammation were again significantly reduced.[1,2,3,4,5]
Seeing that cherry supplementation can protect your muscles from pain and support your performance... the question experts struggle with is why?
In order to discover the secrets, the cherry varieties have been prodded and poked. Consequently, the cherries revealed their phytonutrients. In 100g the sweet types have 110mg of phenols in total and sour cherries contain 229mg. They also found that cherries continue to increase phenolic compounds by up to 60% when stored in the fridge. They ripen and the colour intensifies.
But you don't have to buy them fresh to gain their goodness. They are proven to provide high levels of anthocyanins and phenolics dried, frozen, juiced, concentrated, powdered, and even canned. However, sugar processed cherries will dilute the total anthocyanins and total phenolics. And the phytocompounds will leach into the liquid. Although, cooking does not seem to damage them.
The phytocompounds found in fruit and vegetables typically show the prevention of cancer, cardiovascular disease and obesity. They significantly decrease markers of inflammation and oxidative stress. So with cherries containing such a high amount compared to other fruits, they merit buying.[6]
In fact, it is believed one of the six anthocyanins, cyanidin, is responsible for the anti-inflammatory and antioxidant effects on your body. Cyanidin is a pigment found in many red, blue, and purple berries including blueberry, cherry, cranberry, elderberry, loganberry, açai berry and raspberry. It's also seen in apples and plums and red cabbage and red onion.
On the whole, cherries are not extremely sugary so you can slide them into your grub fairly easily. 100g of the sweet ones will give you over 13g of sugars and the sour cherries will provide around 8g of sugars. Just be aware of any added sugars in products that will top-up the total.
Admittedly, you'll still take on a lot of sugar. So you might have to adjust your diet because participants in the studies drank two cans of cherry juice a day, including the days after their workouts, to get results. And one study supplied a cherry powder supplement that they took once a day to boost performance.
However, I'd be more inclined to go for the frozen fruits. Morello (sour) cherries or a standard sweet variety is my preference because they'll give you more nutrients, including fibre, all year round. Alternatively, buy the fresh cherries when they're in season. You can't go wrong that way. In fact, dark red and blue frozen fruits are always in my freezer. And I always eat red and purple vegetables daily because they also hold a collection of phytocompounds.