To perform your best in training or competition, and to recover afterwards, you need to be properly fueled. That means taking care of the ways and means in which your body produces the energy needed to compete at the highest level. As both athletes and coaches – and the formulators of this product – we know this, so we created 3FU3L for this exact purpose.
We compete in all kinds of sports (remember, everyone who formulated 3FU3L isn’t just a coach, but a competitive athlete as well) and we wanted a product that would fuel over the most extensive range of duration and intensity regardless of the event. This is more difficult than it seems because over different times and intensities, the body constantly shifts from the use of one fuel source to another.
For short bursts of power, your body depletes its phosphocreatine supply to generate Adenosine Triphosphate (ATP), and contract your muscles as rapidly as possible. Your body can’t move without ATP being used – it’s the “product” your body purchases with metabolic “currency”. Four minutes after a maximal contraction, your body finally replenishes your phosphocreatine and you’re ready for another maximal contraction.
But if you do multiple efforts at maximal intensity and you’re not waiting four minutes, your body begins to migrate from the phosphagenic pathway towards the glycolytic pathway. At this point, glucose (blood sugar) is used to generate ATP. Soon afterwards, at about the 3-4 minute mark, your body begins to rely on protein, fat, and carbohydrates to continue paying for ATP. And while your muscles are busy converting your fuel into energy, they’re also producing waste products, like lactic acid, and causing you to sweat, losing methyl donors like Betaine, that are used to help create more ATP. It begins a vicious cycle, causing you to hit the dreaded “wall” – where your body goes into shutdown mode.
In terms of generating enough ATP, carbohydrates are the most easily used macronutrient, but they only go so far. Even carb-loaded marathoners will hit the wall at about the 20 mile mark – which is less than two hours into their run. At that point, ATP depletion is so severe that performance suffers dramatically. But consider a Strongman who competes all day, or a MMA fighter at a tournament, or a functional fitness athlete who has an entire weekend to get through…they’re getting themselves into a similar situation without even knowing it.
Running a Tough Mudder, Spartan Race, or Warrior’s Dash? You better have the right fuel in your body because you can’t double fist energy drinks while you’re climbing a wall or jumping in a mud pit.