Batter Up! How to Support Your Nutrition to Optimize Your Power on the Baseball Field‡

By: Heidi Harris, RD-N, LD-N, CD-N

What You’ll learn: In this blog you’ll learn about the nutrients needed to help support power, strength, and speed to help maximize your baseball season.^‡

It’s finally here! All the hard work and training you put in during the off season has now paid off. Baseball season has finally arrived! The stands are filled with loyal fans and you’re ready to hit that homerun, make the crowd go wild, and elevate your team to new levels of success ranking!

While the excitement of the game and the energy of the crowd may fuel you on a mental level, what are you doing to fuel your nutritional needs as an athlete during baseball season? In this blog, we’re going to talk about the nutrients to help support your power, strength and speed on the field.^‡

How to Fuel for The Game

Carbohydrates

Have you ever heard of the term “Carbo-loading?” It’s a common term usually most well associated with runners before a big race. Did you know this concept applies to all athletes and not just endurance athletes? Why? Simple! Carbohydrates, or sugars, starches and fibers, are an athlete’s primary fuel source during exercise.¹ These carbohydrates get broken down into smaller complexes, or sugars, which your body uses as an immediate source of energy during exercise.

Some examples of carbohydrates that would be good options to consume before a game include:

• Starches and whole grains. Examples of these starches and whole grains include healthy whole wheat bread, cereals low in added sugar, oatmeal, crackers, rice, potatoes and even pasta.¹
• Fruit is another carbohydrate source that provides not only simple sugars for energy, but fruits are also a good source of many vitamins and minerals essential for your body’s needs.¹ Fruits also contain fiber which is another type of carbohydrate to help fuel an athlete’s nutritional need.^‡
• Milk and yogurt is another good source of carbohydrates. I like to think of these two dairy products as half a carbohydrate and half a protein source. Milk and yogurt are a great source of both carbohydrates for energy support and lean protein.¹

Since carbohydrates provide immediate fuel for your body, it’s a very popular way to help provide your body with energy to optimally perform on the field.^‡

Protein

Another important macronutrient to consider is protein. By protein, I mean lean protein. Simply put, lean protein is a protein source that is low in fat, saturated fat and cholesterol. More specifically, the USDA, or United States Department of Agriculture, defines lean protein as having less than 10 grams of total fat per 3.5 ounce portion, 4.5 grams of saturated fat per this portion and fewer than 95 miligrams of cholesterol in the same 3.5 ounce portion size.²

It’s generally recommended that athletes intake their protein roughly 3 to 4 hours before a game. This will allow for ample amount of time for protein to be digested and not leading to potential gastrointestinal discomfort while exerting high amounts of physical energy output.³

Some healthy sources of lean protein include:

• Beans and Lentils are great sources of proteins low in total fat and high in fiber. Fiber is another type of carbohydrate essential for performing athletes.^{4 ‡}
• Lean meat such as 93% ground beef, pork loin or even skinless poultry like chicken breast, of white meat turkey.⁴
• Seafood and fish are other great sources of lean protein. These include white fish and even fatty fish like those high in omega-3 fatty acids like salmon, anchovies, and trout. Shellfish such as shrimp, lobster, clams and mussels are also great lean protein sources and very nutritious. ⁴

Protein in a Time Crunch

What if you’re in a time crunch and you don’t have time to prepare a well-balanced meal before the big game? We’ve got you covered. Our Klean Isolate is a clean whey protein isolate that can easily be added to any beverage (shout out to milk from earlier!) to help enhance your daily protein and amino acid intake.^‡

Studies suggest that protein needs may be affected by age and activity level. Scientists have also found that when carbohydrate intake is limited, adding protein may help power performance. Research also suggested that increased protein synthesis follows prolonged exercise.⁵ If you’re looking for a different flavor option, our Klean Isolate comes in natural chocolate, vanilla and strawberry too! So many to choose from.^‡

Are you a vegan athlete? If you are, I’m guessing you’re well-versed in the supplement world especially as an athlete. We hear you loud and clear! Our new Klean Plant-Based Protein is a blend of pea and organic brown rice protein providing amino acids for muscle protein synthesis.  Want to know what else is great about our Klean Plant-Based Protein? It is specifically formulated to include ProHydrolase® enzymes to help break down protein for amino acid absorption and ease of digestion.  That’s something particularly helpful for when you’ve got to batter up for the big game later!^‡

How to Support Your Power Output

It might not seem like it to the fans in the stands, but believe me, I know there’s a lot of intense power that goes on during a baseball game. From momentum and muscle training to swinging that bat and sprinting to the next base, power is a huge part of the game. That’s why we’ll focus on nutrients to support your power while on the field next.

Creatine

Creatine has made a name for itself with athletes, and there’s a good reason for it. Creatine monohydrate supports ATP regeneration and enhances work output in activities such as weightlifting and sprinting. Creatine’s primary role is to regenerate the energy molecule ATP, which works to fuel muscle cells. Creatine may also serve as a buffer during exercise, potentially delaying muscle fatigue and discomfort.⁶ Creatine may help you build muscle strength and mass and may even help you recover from strenuous exercise.  Our Klean Creatine contains pure creatine to support muscle strength, performance and recovery.^{7 ‡}

• Creatine is an energy carrier that is naturally present in your muscles, brain and other organs. In muscles, creatine in the form of phosphorylcreatine acts as a reserve of high-energy phosphate to provide energy during anaerobic exercise by regenerating ADP to ATP.^8‡
• By increasing the rate of creatine phosphorylation, ammonia and lactate levels in the blood are lowered resulting in faster recovery from exercise. Creatine also promotes growth factor signaling and glycogen storage to support gains in muscle strength, size and other adaptive responses to training.^9‡
• Animal muscle – such as fresh meat and fish – contains significant amounts of creatine. Dairy products contain only small amounts.
• It also may be of benefit in other modes of exercise such as high-intensity sprints or dynamic movements for improved performance.^9‡

Beta-Alanine

Another supplement that’s a great addition to an athlete’s portfolio, but maybe not as popular as creatine, is beta-alanine. Klean Athlete offers a SR Beta-Alanine, which helps delay fatigue, supports muscle endurance and supports exercise capacity during short periods of intense effort.  Unlike most beta-alanine supplements, this is a patented, sustained release formula that improves muscle retention of carnosine. The sustained release profile allows for higher BA daily dosage which leads to greater retention of carnosine in the muscle.¹⁰ 

A loading phase is optional. Athletes may choose to obtain optimum beta-alanine intake by employing a “loading” phase into their workout regimen by ingesting higher amounts per day for a set amount of time before reducing the beta-alanine intake amount to a more typical maintenance dose of 3.2 g.  

The administration and dosing of beta-alanine may be a unique part of an athlete’s training and nutrition routine. Be sure to follow the instructions for use on the label or product information sheet.  It’s best to work with a trainer, coach or healthcare practitioner to find the right protocol for you.

Hit a Homerun

From healthy carbohydrates, lean proteins and nutrients like creatine and beta-alanine, you have a whole array of options available to you to help support your nutrition for more power, strength and stamina on the field! Before you step up to the plate to bat, make sure you fill your plate with nutrients to help nourish you for success and optimal performance.^‡ Which Klean Athlete products will you choose to help get you game-day ready?

 References

1. The Best Fuel for Your Body Before Playing Sports. Health Essentials from Cleveland Clinic. Published March 1, 2018. https://health.clevelandclinic.org/the-best-fuel-for-your-body-before-playing-sports/
2. Proteins | Nutrition.gov. www.nutrition.gov. https://www.nutrition.gov/topics/whats-food/proteins
3. University of Chicago Medicine. What young athletes should eat before and after the game. https://www.uchicagomedicine.org/forefront/pediatrics-articles/what-young-athletes-should-eat-before-and-after-the-game
4. U.S. Department of Agriculture. Protein Foods | MyPlate. www.myplate.gov. Published 2020. https://www.myplate.gov/eat-healthy/protein-foods
5. Walker T, Smith J, Herrera M, et al. International Journal Of Sport Nutrition And Exercise Metabolism [serial online]. October 2010;20(5):409-417.
6. Dabidi Roshan V, et al. J Sports Med Phys Fitness. 2013 Jun;53(3):232-9.
7. Aaserud R, et al. Scand J Med Sci Sports. 1998 Oct;8(5 Pt 1):247-51
8. Buford et al. Scand J Med Sci Sports. 2007;4(6)
9. Izquierdo M, et al. Med Sci Sports Exerc. 2002 Feb;34(2):332-43
10. Décombaz J, et al. Amino Acids. 2012 Jul;43(1):67-76.

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