What is Collagen and how can it help you?

Collagen supplements have become extremely popular with athletes in the past year or so.

What is it and what is all the fuss about?

Nearly 2/3^rd of all visits to the physio for sportspersons are due to a musculoskeletal injury. Weakness within the extracellular matrix (ECM) is often the cause of these injuries to muscles, tendons, ligaments, bones and cartilage. Therefore, any improvements we can make in strengthening the ECM will help to reduce the risk of injury. This is where Collagen comes in.

The strength and function of ECM is determined by the amount of collagen and water stored within the tissue. Researchers have shown that to improve the ECM (make it stronger) you need to increase the absolute amount of collagen and the number of cross-links binding the collagen proteins together. (this is why plyometric exercisers are used by coaches).

A recent study* was conducted, in which, short periods of loading were targeted to specific tendons, ligaments, bones, and cartilage. The results showed that the specific exercise combined with a supplement of 15g collagen with vitamin C, was very beneficial. Compared to the excersise alone, the use of the supplement increased the collagen synthesis in the tissue two fold.

Improving performance and minimizing injuries by understanding more about collagen and ECM is a rapidly growing area of research in sports nutrition.

*https://academic.oup.com/ajcn/article/105/1/136/4569849

So, in short, if you have a musculoskeletal injury, or a high training load, it may be beneficial to include some additional collagen in your diet to promote tissue repair. Ideally taken 1 hour before you do your re-hab exercises or strength work.

So how to you include additional collagen?

It comes from the super-nutritious bones, hides and connective tissues of animals. You can buy a powdered supplement to add to water or a smoothie (they are tasteless). Or you can make a homemade bone broth and drink it. You know you’ve made a good bone broth if it sets like jelly when it’s cold  – (cooked collagen is called gelatin).

Here is a link to how to make a bone broth:

https://www.madonnutrition.com.au/chicken-bone-broth-stock/

Or if you’d prefer a powder I recommend one that is made from collagen peptides (these are the most bioavailable forms).

My favourite brand is Designs for Health, Whole Body Collagen. It requires a prescription from a practitioner to access it, please ask if you would like me to organise this for you. It can be ordered online.

An added bonus is your hair, skin and nails will also benefit. Whilst not visible – it will strengthen your gut lining.

If you would like to read more on this topic, here is an article by one of the world’s leading researchers (guru) on sports nutrition.

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