Browsing by Subject "kehon koostumus"

Introduction: Fitness athletes change their nutrition a week before competition during “peak week” in the hope of achieving a better physique in competition. There is little evidence of the benefits of peaking in fitness sports and current literature suggests that these peaking methods might even be harmful to athletes’ condition or pose a risk to their health. Aim of the study: The aim of this study was to investigate the nutritional strategies of fitness athletes during the peak week and the effects of these strategies on body composition, anthropometry, and hormonal markers. Materials and methods: Participants consisted of 6 female and 10 male fitness athletes preparing for the 2019 Finnish championships. The participants’ hormone levels (cortisol, estradiol, T4, FSH, T3, insulin, free testosterone, leptin, and ghrelin) were measured from blood samples collected before the beginning of the peak week and on the day after the competition. Body composition and anthropometric measurements (weight, fat mass, fat free mass, intracellular water, total body water, chest circumference, waist circumference, vastus lateralis CSA) were taken at the same time points. The energy and nutrient intake of the athletes was estimated based on self-reported food diaries. The associations between nutritional factors and changes in body composition and hormonal markers were investigated with regression analysis. Results: The competitors were found to significantly (p < 0,05) increase their energy intake, carbohydrate and sodium intake, and to decrease their protein intake when transitioning to peak week. During the peak week body weight, fat free mass, intracellular and total body water, waist circumference and vastus lateralis CSA increased statistically significantly (p < 0,05). A statistically significant decrease was found in cortisol, estradiol, free testosterone and ghrelin levels, whereas T4, FSH, T3, insulin, and leptin levels increased significantly (p < 0,05). Conclusions: We found that fitness athletes change their nutrition a week before the competition in the hope of achieving a better competition physique. The changes in energy and nutrient intake were not associated with changes in body composition, but they may be connected to hormonal changes. The hormonal changes detected during the peak week indicate that athletes start to recover from a long period of energy restriction, which may lead to a better competition physique.