When looking for the best nutrition for athletes, understand that live enzymes are not nutrients resembling vitamins and minerals. They are catalysts, which appear as biochemical agents combining two compounds so they can react with each other, while the enzyme itself remains intact.

The relevance of live enzymes, notably in nutrition for athletes, cannot be over-inflated, "In short, virtually nothing happens in the body without the help of enzymes", says Ellen W. Cutler, co-author of 'Micro Miracles'. Live enzymes are frequently mentioned in discussions surrounding nutrition for athletes, but what are they, why does anyone need them, and where do people uncover them?

Enzymes are not nutrients like protein, vitamins, minerals, or carbohydrates, but they are catalysts for the chemical reactions that make those nutrients work in the body. While there are 1,300 distinct variations of live enzymes that help the body function, the most common are digestive enzymes. Equally fundamental are metabolic enzymes that are important to burning fat and generating energy.

Metabolic enzymes originate in five different areas of the body, the stomach, liver, salivary glands, the wall of the small intestine, and the pancreas. Since energy is fundamental to build muscle, to sustain a natural weight loss routine or to stay physically fit, metabolic enzymes play a central role in appropriate nutrition for athletes.

It is quite clear that digestive enzymes are crucial live enzymes, too. If your body does not have an adequate amount, the organs switch functions. The liver and the pancreas from producing metabolic enzymes, so tasks like converting fat into energy are given a lower priority. That is not beneficial for an athlete requiring nutrition to burn fat and spark energy. Live enzymes help deliver essential nutrition for athletes to most effectively burn fat and produce energy.

According to Joseph Brasco, M.D., Gastroenterologist at the Center of Colon and Digestive Diseases in Huntsville, Alabama, "Because the pancreas and liver need energy to produce enzymes, the resulting drain renders the organs temporarily unable to perform their functions of detoxification, blood sugar control and fat burning". So, lacking those healthy, digestive, live enzymes and metabolic enzymes, you feel lethargic, tend to get fat, and you could even endure mood swings.

To understand why live enzymes are critical in nutrition for athletes, you should know the description of enzymes from 'The Nutrition Almanac-4th Edition' (1996 McGraw Hill, Gayla J. Kirschmann and John D. Kirschmann), "The active chemicals in the digestive juices which cause the chemical breakdown of foods are called enzymes, combinations of amino acids that are capable of inducing chemical changes in other substances".

Fortunately, live enzymes are now relatively easy to come by in concentrated whole foods that deliver absolutely natural nutrition for athletes. Some of the ultimate concentrated whole foods and health drinks with live enzymes are offered only online. Teeming with effective antioxidants that can be readily assimilated by the body, these formulas deliver a brilliant regenerating effect on the liver and pancreas, as well as the adrenals, reproductive glands, nervous system and kidneys.

To acquire the correct digestive juices that change nutrients into energy, explore the Internet for online health food stores that suggest nutrition for athletes with live enzymes from whole foods. Look for natural whole foods and health drinks that are made from real fruits, herbs and other plants. Feeding the body the nutrients it needs with live enzymes helps it to absorb those nutrients more productively and perform at optimal levels over the long haul.