During work out and physical exercise, our body undergoes a lot of stress. This stress helps us in improving our fitness and in the stimulation of muscle protein synthesis. Once the physical workout stops, the body enters the recovery mode, in which adapts to the stress it experienced during the workout. If there is under-recovery of the body, there is more risk of injury as the body did not have the chance to recover to the stress caused due to exercise. Overall, optimal stress recovery results in improved fitness and physical strength.
On this note, we have good news for GLX3 users who regularly chase after a runner’s high: omega-3 fatty acids help in building and repairing body muscles, which helps your body recover faster after exercise. The fatty acids also help in reducing muscle loss because of small periods of disuse.
Recent studies have shown that omega-3 fatty acids elevate the rate of something known as muscle protein synthesis, which means it helps in producing proteins to help your body build and repair muscle.
This is huge for those of us who regularly put strain on our legs, ankles, knees, and feet.
Benefits for runners
The muscles in your legs undergo a lot of vigorous exercise. Omega-3 fatty acids help you recover faster, offering improvement in muscle function as well as strength, and minimizing muscle soreness and damage.
Omega-3 supplements like ours built from Green Lipped Mussel Oil are also useful in preventing exercise-induced muscle damage – possibly reducing muscle recovery time. Several clinical trials studying and assessing the impact of omega-3 supplementation on muscle soreness have reported significant reductions in muscle soreness in both the lower limbs and arms after exercise with Omega 3s supplementation.
Omega-3s have been shown to play a significant role in muscle strength and function
- Regular consumption of fatty fish oils which offer omega-3 has been linked to maximized grip strength. One serving each week has been seen to elevate grip strength by 0.43 kilograms in men and 0.48 kilograms in women.
- And for older runners, daily supplementation with 1.2 gram of omega-3 has been reported to increase physical performance in exercise and even in walking speed for postmenopausal women.
- Omega-3 supplementation has been reported to amplify the effect of physical exercise in increasing muscle strength, which complements the recovery process by making you more prepared for the next workout.
Omega-3 supplements further enhance your athletic performance by helping the lung and heart function at their best leve.function.Everyday supplementation of 120 milligrams DHA and 180 milligrams EPA has been reported to improve lung function in young male athletes.
Omega-3 fatty acids also help to lower blood pressure and regulate heart rate during exercise in cyclists, and your heart rate increases during a hard run much like it does during a bike ride. These benefits are not only visible in athletes for exercise performance — one investigation confirmed improvement in muscle function in people over 50 in combination with resistance exercise. 45 subjects consumed two grams of omega-3s and undertook a progressive resistance exercise program for ninety days. Neuromuscular function and muscle strength significantly improved with combined resistance exercise and omega-3 supplementation.
Ok. Enough with the scientific talk. Here’s how this all breaks down for you as a runner:
Top 5 benefits of Omega 3 for runners
- Reduced inflammation
Omega-3 fatty acids are potent anti-inflammatory agents, which is our main selling point here at GLX3. In combination with the New Zealand Olive Oil we use, the Green Lipped Mussel Oil acts as an anti-inflammatory powerhouse, reducing joint pain and inflammation and keeping our customers more mobile. Improvement in the ratio of omega-3 fatty acids to omega-6 in the diet by increasing EPA and DHA consumption is correlated to minimization of inflammatory diseases and improvement in the inflammatory response.
- Improved athletic performance
As we’ve covered throughout this article, Omega-3 fatty acids offer performance-enhancing benefits to athletes. Research supports that omega-3 supplementation results in improvement of the anabolic impact of training and counteracts muscle loss. Also, fish oil helps counteract the effects of DOMS i.e., delayed onset muscle soreness.
- Reduced anxiety
Low levels of EPA and DHA have a direct correlation with anxiety. Improvement in EPA and DHA levels results in reduced anxiety levels, which is especially beneficial for athletes who are suffering performance anxiety. Omega-3 fatty acids — our primary active ingredient — can help with both.
- Increased muscle mass
Omega-3 supplements have been shown to complement regular exercise in Increasing fat-free muscle mass. This research shows a direct elevation in the body’s anabolic response to amino acids and insulin, along with an increase in muscle cell size and muscle protein concentration in already healthy adults.
- Fat loss
Regular physical workout and exercise, in combination with GLX3, is directly associated to enhancements in body composition via fat loss. This can be attributed to the benefits of our supplement including decreased cortisol and increased blood sugar regulation, along with improvements in liver function. In short, your body processes calories better and faster.