Using gelatin to improve performance, prevent injury, and accelerate return to play

[Pat (pogo69)]

Every forum dedicated to the pursuit of human health and performance is rife with stories of musculoskeletal injury.  This one is no different.

Tendinopathies seem to be particular prevalent, which would come as no surprise to anyone with more than a passing interest in the field.

The consensus of opinion here, with which I wholeheartedly agree, is that active rehabilitation methods are most efficacious; and indeed necessary for optimal recovery of form and function.

The following is an article that gives an overview of some recent research into the use of Vitamin-C enriched gelatin in conjunction with targeted loading, to accelerate the rehabilitation process:

http://www.mysportscience.com/single-post/2017/03/15/Using-gelatin-to-improve-performance-prevent-injury-and-accelerate-return-to-play

A link to the research paper on which it is based, is provided at the end of the article.

The timing and specificity of the targeted loading vary, depending on the injury (or focus where performance enhancement is the goal) and the sport for which the person is training.  But I've been using the following to assist with the rehab of a mild Achilles tendinopathy (medial gastroc insertion):

"To increase collagen synthesis, we had the subjects jump rope for 6 minutes, one hour after taking the supplements"

My sport is trail running, so jump rope is a particularly useful tool.  Obviously if you are experiencing elbow tendinitis, you will have to find an alternative rehab exercise.  This can be repeated as often as you are able, but with at least 6hrs rest in between efforts.  I'm sticking with once per day, because... life.

[Nathan]

I thought I had posted about this before on here, but I don't see anything in a search so it must have been elsewhere. For those that prefer to listen instead of read, there's a good interview with Dr. Keith Baar, who actually did this research, on the Sigma Nutrition podcast. They talk about the research and his recommendations for giving the protocol a go.

[Pat (pogo69)]

I  first learned of the protocol from listening to Keith Baar talk about his research in a podcast, @Nathan.

Actually, I think it was Sigma Nutrition Radio.  They release a lot of really interesting material.