Functional Approaches to Athletic Training

Functional Approaches to Athletic Training

Research continues to support the idea that exercise is an effective countermeasure against aging. Still, many athletes - both elite and recreational - lack an understanding of the metabolic consequences of prolonged, intense exercise. At Innovative Health, we work to properly balance the athlete's metabolic, nutritional, and supplemental needs so they can perform optimally!

Many athletes come to us because they are seeing a decrease in their performance, they cannot lose weight, they are constantly getting sick, or they are just constantly fatigued. The effects of training affect the body's metabolism and must be balanced to produce performance results. At Innovative Health, we provide individualized, comprehensive, supportive plans to bring performance to the next level!

Today, more than ever, athletes want to optimize their power-to-body weight ratio.

Optimizing weight in athletics is a delicate balance.

Innovative Health provides Body Composition testing, including assessments of hydration, muscle and fat mass, and metabolic rate, along with advanced options such as nutritional status, food allergies, digestive health, and hormone levels. We tailor these tests to your specific performance goals, ensuring you understand how each can help optimize your training and health.

Our comprehensive nutritional plans are customized based on your unique training demands and health status. With app support, recipes, and macro guidance, we help you implement nutrition strategies that enhance performance, recovery, and overall wellness, ensuring safe and effective results tailored to your athletic profile.

Addressing optimal weight in athletes

Many natural plants and extracts can help with weight loss. Natural options include certain fibers such as psyllium and guar gum. Caffeine supports thermogenesis and helps suppress appetite. Apple cider vinegar can slow gastric emptying and improve blood sugar after meals.

Humulus lupulus is a bitter hops extract and a natural appetite regulator. It targets bitter taste receptors (T2Rs) in the Gut. This supplement naturally decreases cravings and appetite. It also slows gastric emptying and lowers post-meal glucose levels—similar effects seen with some prescription options. You can use it with other natural choices, such as berberine, or as part of a program that uses prescription medications.

Berberine is a natural GLP-1 Receptor Agonist that modifies blood sugar with minimal side effects. Berberine is an alkaloid in barberry, goldenseal, Oregon grape, and Chinese goldthread. Berberine improves insulin sensitivity, reduce appetite, and lower visceral fat. Many patients have genetic factors that make them suitable candidates for this therapy.

Prescription and Compounded Peptides

GLP-1 (Glucagon-Like Peptide) and GIP (Glucose-Dependent Insulinotropic Polypeptide) are hormones that the gut releases after eating. They play an important role in metabolism and appetite regulation.

Compounds often include peptides, B12, and amino acids to support energy and weight loss.

At Innovative Health LLC, we assess whether prescription or compounded microdosing of GLP-1 or GIP therapies fit your needs and integrate them into a tightly managed plan for slow, safe weight loss and long-term maintenance.

Peptides and Bioregulators

We utilize FDA-approved peptides and bioregulators to support recovery and performance. Our team carefully evaluates each option for safety and evidence-based benefits, providing you with transparent, regulated strategies aligned with your health and performance goals.

Nutritional Guidance

Nutritional deficits are huge in athletes! The right type and amount of protein, carbohydrates, and fats will influence performance. What are the best sources of these for athletes? The answer is dependent on the athlete. We strive to help our athletes understand the importance of nutrition timing for performance and recovery.

Hydration

Dehydrated muscles lead to chronic cramping, muscle pulls, and/or tears. Studies show that hydration status impacts up to 50% of injuries.

Immunity

Intense exercise and overtraining may affect the immune system. Upper respiratory infections are common among athletes who overtrain and can derail the best training programs. Comprehensive nutritional and supplementation plans bolster the immune system during times of high training and stress.

Managing Stress

Intense and/or prolonged exercise can affect the body's cortisol and other stress hormones. Athletes with elevated stress hormones may experience disruptions in sleep patterns, mood fluctuations, and digestive disturbances. Difficulty with weight loss in athletes is often related to elevated stress hormones. Athletes who are over-trained may present with lowered levels of stress hormones that can cause chronic fatigue, burnout, and immune issues. We test stress hormones and get you back on track with your training.

Optimized micronutrients

When athletes train, they lose lots of minerals! Which ones and how much? Minerals like magnesium, chromium, and zinc, as well as antioxidants, function best in just the right balance. At Innovative Health, we can test your individual stores of minerals, antioxidants, and amino acids to help balance deficits and optimize performance.

The Athletic Gut

Problems with the GI tract are common in athletes and can interfere with training and performance. Many competitive athletes have leaky Gut, food allergies, or intolerances. Issues with diarrhea, constipation, gas, bloating, and abdominal cramping are all signs of Gut imbalance. Functional Testing of the gut biome is part of every athlete's plan.

Overtraining Syndrome

Overtraining is prevalent among elite athletes and recreational athletes alike and is a common cause of underperformance. Signs of overtraining include increased fatigue, mood changes such as depression or anxiety, increased illness (inability to get rid of a cold or sinus infection), prolonged recovery time (disproportionate soreness), changes in libido (lowered), and sleep disturbances.

Detoxification

Athletes need to be able to get rid of all the toxins they accumulate to through exercise, both within the body and through external environmental exposure (like the fumes you inhale while running or riding on the road, or in the chemical exposures on our skin such as sunscreen) We measure genetics that impact detox such as MTHFR, glutathione, and the enzyme pathways and provide supportive plans for liver, renal and Gut detox.

Supplementation in Sports

The use of supplements to enhance sports performance is widespread today, and many of our athletes come to Innovative Health for guidance. Discover what research indicates as necessary, safe, and effective for training and performance.

We Are Athletes

At Innovative Health, we understand the importance of sports optimization because we are athletes ourselves. Ms. Williams has completed 10 full Ironman triathlon races and over 40 half Ironman triathlon races, and has competed at the world championship level. She has raced in multiple marathons, including the Boston Marathon, and was a competitive road cyclist.