The Body’s Energy Production Systems

Whether you’ve taken performing science classes or just took junior high courses in P.E. And nutrition, you’ve probably heard of “aerobic” and “anaerobic” system, While these terms are not necessarily incorrect, they are somewhat simplified and out-of-date given what we know about how the body works during exercise.

At Evd Nutrition, we want to inspire you to better understand your body and how our fitness supplements will help you improve every workout. Read on to learn more about the three big bioenergy systems, and find the right Evd Nutrition supplements for you!

The Three Primary Energy Pathways

We all know that the human body needs the power to work, but where does the energy come from? In the end, the fuel that keeps us alive comes from the food that we consume. Nonetheless, we can not use energy directly from food — it must first be converted to adenosine triphosphate or ATP, Immediately available source of chemical energy used for all cell functions. The body stores a minimum amount of ATP in the tissues, but the rest are synthesized from the food we eat.

Meat consists of sugars, fats, and proteins, which are decomposed into the purest forms (glucose, fatty acids, and amino acids) during digestion. Once these carbohydrates have been broken down, they are transferred through the blood to be either used in the metabolic pathway or put to good use.

Because we do not contain a significant amount of ATP and need a continuous supply, it must be continuously re-synthesized. It works in several ways using one of the three energy systems:

Phosphagen (immediate source)

 Anaerobic (somewhat fast, uses carbohydrates) 

Aerobic (slow, uses sugar and fat)

Phosphagen

The system uses creatine phosphate (CP) and has a very high rate of production of ATP. The creatine phosphate is used to rebuild ATP once it has been broken down to release the power. The total amount of CP and ATP contained in the tissues is minimal, so there is little energy available for muscle contraction. Nevertheless, it is instantly available and necessary at the start of the activity, as well as during short-term high-intensity exercises lasting about 1 to 30 seconds in length, such as sprinting, weight-lifting and ball-throwing.

Anaerobic Glycolysis

Anaerobic glycolysis does not exhale carbon dioxide and requires glucose-containing energy for the production of ATP. This pathway occurs within the cell and breaks down glucose into a simpler component called pyruvate. As an advanced pathway between all the phosphagen and aerobic systems, anaerobic glycolysis can generate ATP quite quickly for use during activities requiring large energy bursts over a somewhat long period (30 seconds to a maximum of three minutes, or during strength activities before steady-state).

Aerobic Glycolysis

This process uses oxygen to generate ATP, as carbohydrates and fats are only consumed in the presence of oxygen. This mechanism exists in the mitochondria of the cell and is used for tasks involving sustained energy production. Aerobic glycolysis has a sluggish production rate of ATP and is primarily used for longer-term, lower-intensity tasks after phosphagen and anaerobic processes have been fatigued.

It is important to remember that all three of these mechanisms contribute to the body’s energy needs through regular exercise. These devices do not act independently, but rather at different times, depending on the duration and intensity of the operation.

A QUICK WORD ON ENERGY

Any kind of muscle activity is powered by ATP: adenosine triphosphate, a compound made useful by its triple phosphate groupings. ATP breakdown produces ADP (adenosine diphosphate). A chemical reaction to add a third phosphate group to ADP to convert it back to ATP is needed to keep your muscles contracted.

The ATP-PC method, as you might have known from the title, is the fastest and easiest ATP source for your muscles. Nevertheless, at any given time, all three of these energy systems are available. The body simply selects one device to produce most of the energy it depends on based on the effort needed to perform the exercise, how long you’ve been operating, and how much ATP is readily available.

THE ATP-PC SYSTEM

The ATP-PC (adenosine triphosphate-phosphocreatine) system, also referred to as the phosphate system, is the key player when it comes to short-term, high-intensity workouts. The system uses ATP to provide a lot of power for a short duration of workouts such as one-rep max exercises. Your body will depend on the ATP-PC mechanism for up to 30 seconds, but if you want to hit it again, rest on it.

THE GLYCOLYSIS SYSTEM

When the body starts to drain the ATP-PC cycle, it switches to the glycolysis process. This system breaks down glucose to re-synthesize ATP and can provide a decent amount of power for a short period, although it doesn’t get drained as easily as the ATP-PC process. This generates most of the power the body uses after 30 seconds or up to two minutes.

This phase of the exercise is also correlated with lactate and muscle-melting, which we will address in the next chapter! The crucial thing you need to know about your glycolysis system is that you can help maintain the strength with carbs and BCAA supplements.

THE OXIDATIVE SYSTEM

 Last but not least, your body is turning to an oxidative system. This usually takes less than two minutes to exercise, kicks in for things like a one-mile run, which uses carbs, fats, and sometimes proteins to provide power. The oxidative cycle does not provide as much strength as the first two phases, but it can provide fuel for a long time to come. This phase is aerobic–meaning that it needs oxygen–which may cause you to slow down or decrease the strength of your exercise, particularly when acidity builds up in your muscles. However, if you don’t stop, many people in the general population have enough stores of fat and carbohydrate to b.

You will help the antioxidant cycle and the energy you need to keep you going by staying hydrated and concentrating on your intake of food and electrolytes. You can also train your body to focus on specific energy substrates – carbohydrates and fats – to increase efficiency. You can improve the efficiency of all these phases by practice, but most individuals have the greatest potential when it comes to the oxidative cycle.

Fuel Your Body Better With EVD Nutrition

Now that you have a better understanding of your body and how fuel is used, you can choose better fitness supplements for your next workout.

EVD Nutrition delivers pre-, intra-and post-workout supplements to meet your needs, all specifically designed to produce great results and taste. Browse our set to get started today!