Research into the potential effects of Magnesium (Mg) on sporting performance within amateur athletes

Abstract

Enhancement of athletes’ sports performance is becoming a global phenomenon, with astronomical expanse of interest and research being invested into development of new and safer methods for athletes to enhance their performance. The objective of this study was to determine whether Magnesium (Mg) supplementation has a positive or negative impact on athletes sporting performance, and whether this would be significantly greater than that of a Vitamin C supplement, used as the placebo. This study also examined if mineral supplementation could be a more ethical and affordable enabler for sporting enhancement. The study was conducted by a randomised single-bind placebo controlled crossover in a 21-day repeated measure design in order to investigate Mg. Analysis was carried out by Bioelectrical Impedance Analysis (BIA), Mg assay and an ergometer bike. This study employed previous research combined with its own findings to discover the effects of Mg. Results revealed that there was a significant inverse correlation between Mg and time trial, as Mg consumption increased, the time taken to complete the time trial decreased. There was a significant difference between the time taken after supplementation of Mg in comparison to baseline (p=0.006). Results also indicated increased habitual Mg intake leads to a decreased time trial time (p=0.01). The BIA results suggested that with a decreased Mg, the individuals’ impedance increased. The study failed to establish whether Mg supplementation would have beneficial effect on the wider sporting performance of athletes, this mainly due to the uncertainty on what area the supplementation was effecting most. This study should be regarded as a pilot analysis of the effects Magnesium supplementation has on enhancing sports performance within athletes. This study highlighted the complexity regarding methodology; future studies should incorporate a larger cohort with variables such as different aerobic exercises, longer supplementation periods, a set maximal heart rate and a more studied method of assay. Key words: Magnesium (Mg), Vitamin C, Enhancing sports performance