Sports nutrition for lifestyle consumers

AN emerging group of health enthusiasts provides the sports nutrition market with the opportunity to extend its offering to new buyers. Alongside products aimed at athletes and bodybuilders, new product ranges – such as beverages intended to restore energy and enhance nutrient intake – are being targeted at new, so-called lifestyle consumers for whom sport is a leisure activity or whose use of such products is not exclusively linked to exercise.

Whilst the need to engage in physical activity is a given for any age group, these products are aimed in particular at women, seniors, youngsters, and people who are simply "on the go". Physical appearance and self-esteem seem to be the top motivations for women, seniors are looking to stay in shape and keep active, and youngsters and busy people are after something with a kick which will help them to keep up with a demanding pace of life.

The approach adopted to target these new audiences is altogether different from that used to appeal to traditional athletes and sportsmen in terms of product development, distribution channels and advertising. It's not a matter of merely "simplifying" the products and modifying the packaging, which risks both disappointing the new consumer and confusing the traditional user.

These new consumers are governed by different purchasing criteria. For them, taste, ease of consumption, ethics and price are of much greater importance as purchase drivers, whilst the performance aspect is not the one and only goal. This development goes hand in hand with the diversification of distribution channels and advertising, moving from specialist shops and sales sites towards mass market channels.

Standing out amongst current market offerings are protein-packed drinks intended for consumption post workout or at any point in the day to maintain energy levels. Plant proteins in sports nutrition Plant proteins (pea, soy, lupin, potato, etc.) are on a roll in a number of markets.

According to athletes and bodybuilders, plant proteins have suffered from a poor reputation in the past in terms of nutritional value, their essential amino acids composition being less "complete" than that found in animal proteins. However, some plant proteins offer highly competitive nutritional value. For example, natural ingredients firm Cosucra offers a pea protein isolate 'Pisane', which has a branched-chain amino acid profile that closely resembles that of casein. It is also digested at a moderate speed, between a "fast" protein (lactoserum) and a "slow" protein (casein).

The product contains branched-chain amino acids, in particular leucine and arginine, which are especially beneficial for athletes. Leucine plays an important role in stimulating the production of muscle protein, especially post-workout during the recovery and muscle-building phase. Arginine enables the endogenous synthesis of nitric oxide, a powerful vasodilator.

Combined with other proteins, Pisane can help stagger the speed at which other proteins are digested whilst ensuring a highly beneficial amino acid profile. For instance, a mix of 20% whey protein isolate and 80% Pisane is highly digestible, with digestion speeds ranging from moderate to fast, is rich in branched-chain amino acids, and has a high arginine content. On the other hand, combining Pisane and casein results in a slow to moderate speed of digestion and scores highly for branched-chain amino acids and arginine content.

Pisane can also be used as a sole source of protein. Its high digestibility, balanced branched-chain amino acids profile, high arginine content and moderate speed of digestion make this protein especially suitable for those practising endurance sports. Likewise, it is rich in iron, an essential component of myoglobin and haemoglobin, two proteins involved in delivering oxygen to the muscles.

This plant protein can help prevent deficiencies, provided it is combined with vitamiAir Presto Flyknit Ultra