What do you get when you boil a funny bone?
A laughing stock.
That’s humerus.
Ok, enough with the corny jokes. On a more serious note…
No one likes to be injured, but chances are you have either experienced a sport-related injury or know someone who has. Did you know you will incur at least one or more injuries in your career whether you consider yourself an elite athlete or someone who is recreationally active. Crazy right?
What exactly do I mean by the word ‘injured’? I’m talking about fractures, strains, and tears. No one wants any of that. Even though the odds are against you as far as risk goes, there is some good news! …this post isn’t all doom and gloom. Even though injury can’t be 100% avoidable, there are many things you can do to prevent it.
Can you guess what plays an important role in prevention? You got it: Nutrition! It is a vital piece in preventing injuries by assisting you in building strong muscles, bones, and joints. Think: proper nutrition = stronger = less injuries.
First things first, I can not stress enough the importance of consuming a sufficient amount of calories. Simply providing your body with enough energy can make or break injury prevention. How? For starters, it helps you maintain ligament strength and bone density. To further protect these tissues, it’s important to provide your body the necessities to maintain their healthy structures such as collagen and nutrients that promote collagen synthesis.
Colla what? I am sure in some way, shape, or form you have come across this word before, whether you have seen it at a supplement store or listed as an ingredient in a coffee creamer. So what exactly is it? Collagen is the most abundant protein in your body and is a building block for bones, skin, muscles, tendons, and ligaments. You can think of it as the ‘glue’ holding the structure of these tissues together. As an active person, it’s normal to experience typical wear and tear on your joints, but the kicker is, collagen production decreases with age and repair is just not as efficient as it used to be when you were younger. BUT there are actually foods that promote collagen production and tissue repair, so you can, in a way, counteract this effect.
You can do this by either eating foods that contain collagen or consume it in its pure form. You can find collagen naturally in foods like eggs, the connective tissue of animals, and bone broth. If that’s not your thing, you can opt for a collagen supplement (hydrolyzed collagen or gelatin). Which typically comes in a powdered form and can be added to juice, smoothies, water, etc. If you prefer this route, try to find a product that is NSF certified, which means the product complies with the standards of the FDA and USDA. If you need help or aren’t sure, seek out a dietitian, like me, for a collagen brand recommendation.
For optimal results, try to get at least 15-18 grams of collagen combined with a source of vitamin C one hour before or after physical activity. This doesn’t mean you have to take it with a vitamin C supplement, simply eating food containing vitamin C with collagen containing foods is what I mean. Vitamin C is required to build collagen and will help stimulate production. Research shows that consuming collagen in its whole form (such as those I just mentioned) can thicken cartilage, improve joint health, and strengthen bones. However, you can also help your body produce its own collagen by consuming the nutrients needed to make it, such as specific amino acids (proline & glycine), vitamin C, and copper.
Sources of these nutrients:
Proline: Egg whites, dairy products, wheat germ, cabbage, asparagus, and mushrooms.
Glycine: Pork and chicken skin, gelatin, beef, seafood, and legumes.
Vitamin C: Citrus fruits, kiwi, bell peppers, strawberries, papaya, and broccoli.
Copper: Organ meats, sesame seeds, cocoa powder, cashews, and lentils.
By combining these nutrients in a meal, consuming bone broth regularly, or utilizing collagen peptide powder you can boost your collagen-building abilities and improve the health of your joints, bones, and muscles. Remember, strong joints, bones, and muscles decrease your risk of injury. Though, keep in mind that it is just a part of the puzzle and is not a silver bullet to a bulletproof body.
If you want to try incorporating collagen into your diet in a delicious way, I have two recipes for you this week. A warming, Fall-inspired bone broth soup and a nutrient-packed smoothie. You can find the smoothie recipe below and the soup recipe here.
Spiced Pumpkin Smoothie
Ingredients
6-8 ice cubes
1 large banana
3/4 cup vanilla or plain greek yogurt
1/2 cup pure pumpkin puree
3 tablespoons nut milk of choice
2 heaping tablespoons (2 scoops) Collagen powder
1/2 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice
Pinch of nutmeg and cinnamon
INSTRUCTIONS
1. Place all ingredients in a blender and blend until smooth and creamy!
What is your favorite way to enjoy collage? Comment below; I would love to know!
