3. Zinc
Zinc is useful for muscle growth. It is involved in nearly all phases of growth. This mineral is very crucial for bodybuilders because it has been proved that high intensity workout may lead to the loss of the excessive amount of Zinc. Also some athletic diets are very low in Zinc. If you don’t start to consume Zinc your growth may be stymied.
2. Calcium
Human body has excessive amount of this mineral. Calcium is the second most necessary mineral for bodybuilders.
The advantages of Calcium for bodybuilders
* It is hard for bodybuilders to preserve the proper 1:1 Calcium to Phosphorus ratio. At first many lifters get rid of diary products that are rich in Calcium because they are afraid that these products can 'smooth them out'. Second, a typical bodybuilding diet is high in protein, and also contains a lot of phosphorus (further throwing off this ratio) and due to this extra amounts of calcium is excreted in urine. * Calcium is important for muscular contraction.
* The stress that occurs due to weight training requires the Calcium intake in order to preserve high bone density.
* Calcium is very useful for female athletes because low estrogen levels can decrease the absorption of Calcium and more Calcium can be lost. It is necessary to know that Vitamin D assists in the absorption of Calcium. Fortified dairy products that contain Vitamin D can be a good source of this mineral.
1. Magnesium
Magnesium takes the leading position because it has a theoretical mechanism of action which is helpful for bodybuilders. Also researches show that magnesium supplementation can increase the performance.
Magnesium is very important in bodybuilding because it assists in the energy production and in the synthesis of protein. The studies on athletes show that extra magnesium is lost in sweat. Most bodybuilders don’t compensate these loses in their diets and they don’t include in to the grocery list food high in magnesium (nuts, legumes, etc).
Brilla and Haley from Western Washington University in Bellingham recently published the results of a research study in which lifters that consumed magnesium managed to buid greater quadriceps than the lifters that didn’t take these supplements. It should be mentioned that a lot of sport nutrition specialists who train strength or power athletes are satisfied with the great magnesium potential.
Conclusion
You shouldn’t forget that minerals are necessary for the peak performance. But overdosing of any of these elements can be very dangerous. Excessive amount of one mineral in your body can lead to the functional imbalance of another mineral or negative side effects can occur. If you consume too much Zinc it can lead to the lowered HDL levels known as good cholesterol levels. The main point is that you shouldn’t overdose and take only proper amount of minerals.
Minerals are very crucial for bodybuilders even more than the other nutrients that have calories because they have unique physiological functions. The 10 minerals that have been listed in the article are very useful for bodybuilders. They play an important role in muscle growth, the production of energy and the contraction of muscles. That’s why they mustn’t be omitted in your diet.
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