Want to know what the secret weapon to physical wellbeing is? COLLAGEN! And it’s the number 1 thing most people miss in their diet which could be affecting their physical performance.

Collagen is the largest and most abundant protein in our bodies, it's the ground substance, the structural material in the human body is collagen. It's basically the building blocks of 'us', the glue that holds us together. In fact the word 'collagen' derives from the Greek word 'koala', meaning 'glue'.

Collagen is secreted by a variety of different cells, but primarily by connective tissue cells. While young, the body consistently produces collagen but production naturally declines with age, reducing the structural integrity of the skin and leading to the formation of lines and wrinkles and sagging skin. In fact - collagen levels start to deplete from around the age of 20 and by the time we hit 40 - we’ve lost a third of our natural collagen.

However, it's not just sagging skin and aesthetic properties that collagen is good for. Other things we may notice as our collagen levels deplete are the following:

Muscles; Lean muscle gain and muscle tone, collagen will help with this. You may notice your triceps are heading floorboard, this is due to collagen depletion.

Joints: Collagen helps rebuild joints.

Organs;   As we age our organs have a floorboard tendency and begin to sag. Often women get a prolapsed uterus, a wearing of the organ due to decreased collagen production as we age. All your organs are made of collagen, even your heart and lungs, collagen also assists in arterial strengthening.

Bones; You may have heard the term ‘bone on bone’ this is when the disk between the top and bottom bones wear due to age and collagen deficiency.

Digestive tract and leaky gut; A common culprit in allergy symptoms is leaky gut, also known as intestinal permeability. Leaky gut is a condition in which the lining of the digestive tract becomes inflamed and porous, allowing undigested foods, bacteria, yeasts, and other toxins into the sterile bloodstream.

Collagen helps to regulate stomach acid secretion, helping to prevent heartburn, stomach ulcers and other digestive conditions caused by an overly acidic environment

Collagen helps digestion by holding water in the intestine, helping move food through the GI tract more smoothly.

Anti-inflammatory; Hydrolysed marine collagen may have anti-inflammatory effects due to it being rich in amino acids, these amino acids also play an important role in the building of joint cartilage.

Additionally - collagen is also a secret workout weapon and increases our physical well-being whilst training or exercising.

If you are someone who exercises you are probably aware of the importance of protein in your diet – but if you think about it muscle isn’t actually built by what you eat but more so how you’re training to rip and rebuild muscle.

Any form of workout you do, be it yoga or weights, is aimed at stretching the muscle and producing micro-tears – which then stimulates re-building – and that’s where collagen comes in.

Collagen is the most abundant protein in the human body, our building block, and is responsible for ‘glueing’ us together and healing. Probably the biggest barrier to increasing physical performance is soreness and pain or injury. If you’d like to fulfil your highest level potential – then you should consume collagen daily.

Our bones, tendons, ligaments and muscle are all made up of collagen. After exercising, we can get soreness in the shoulders, tendons, ligaments…and it is collagen that will repair them!

Collagen peptides trigger bone formation, and increases bone mineral density. It can also trigger an anabolic effect on cartilage tissue, maintaining the structure of the joint and aiding joint comfort.

Collagen protein also has a high-percentage of the amino-acids glycine and arginine – together they synthesise creatine which helps to improve athletic performance and increase lean body mass.

Many sports medicine practitioners and chiropractors will recommend collagen for disc care too. Whereas whey protein is good – collagen is paramount.

So if you want to ensure your long term health and fitness goals - drinking Absolute Collagen is a must.