Adrenaline: How it Affects Athletic Performance and the Body

As an athlete adrenaline is a really big part of the early stages of all my races, the intense surge of adrenaline allows me to perform at my peak. It creates a lot of confidence in me, that I know that I will be able to function as my max capacity during a race. If I'm not nervous or feel my heart racing before a race I feel really lackluster and not ready to perform. Adrenaline also gives me the feeling of excitement and allows me to perform in an intense and aggressive way which aids me in securing medals with the rest of my boat. 

    Athletes tend to defy all odds and push their body's boundaries to the extreme for sport. A big part of that is the presence or absence of adrenaline. Adrenaline primes and prepares the human body for exercise and allows for a short to moderate period of time during exercise where the body isn't feeling any discomfort or pain. Adrenaline's true purpose is to aid during dangerous situations, by causes temporary changes in the body. Heart rate and breathing increases as part of the body's innate "flight or fight" response.

An adrenaline molecule 

Adrenaline is most commonly known as a hormonal response to a stressful and anxiety inducing situation, more specifically when athletes are about to compete. Adrenaline increases heart rate and blood pressure, expands the airways leading to and from the lungs, and redistributes and redirects blood to the muscles which alters the body's metabolism to maximize blood glucose levels. Sometimes athletes will attempt to improve their performance with drugs that act on the β-adrenergic system. Which regulate airway function, muscle tone, increases vascular permeability and muscle contraction, and plasma secretion. Plasma is apart of blood and more plasma inn the bloodstream results in a hyper-responsiveness from the body. Some athletes take supplements and or drugs in an effort to enhance their performance by simulating the effects of adrenaline.

Too much hyper-responsiveness from the body due to adrenaline can result in weight loss, palpitations, anxiety, and even panic attacks. Which leads many athletes to take up mechanisms to calm themselves down like meditating, yoga, and deep breathing as a way to control their heart rate, so they can feel calmer and more in control when they're nervous before a race or event.

    

Track & Field Sprint Event 2016 

The stress or nerves an athlete feels before a race or sport event sends a signal to the adrenal glands to produce either epinephrine or adrenaline. Which begins the priming for rigorous physical exertion, once adrenaline is in the bloodstream it binds to the receptors on the outside of the cells of the liver and begins the signal transduction pathway. This causes a conformational change and activates the receptors, The activated receptor triggers a cascade of events within the cell, beginning with the activation of a G protein. The G protein then binds to the activated receptor, releases GDP, and takes up a molecule of GTP. After taking up GTP, the G protein is released from the receptor and splits into two parts. One of the parts is activated and continues the signaling cascade. Soon, the hormone also leaves the receptor, and the receptor reverts to its inactive form. 

 

The RIKKIO Rowing Team in 2018

When athletes develop an adrenal insufficiency, it is most likely due to overtraining, exhaustion, and/or stress. Which causes chronic fatigue, inconsistent or less production of epinephrine or adrenaline which is crucial to the beginning stages of any race. When a person has an adrenal insufficiency the body takes longer to properly get ready for any sort of exercise, whether it's extreme or moderate. It makes it more difficult to perform well. An adrenal insufficiency also leads to an individual not being able to cope with stress; and being an athlete is very stressful. So when an athlete is dealing with an overwhelming amount of stress and no adrenaline is being produced that will most likely lead to poor performance.

The Body's Response to Stress Diagram  

Let's dive in a little deeper: In the adrenal cortex cortisol, cortisone, and aldosterone are regulated. These hormones are cornerstones of bodily function. If production rate isn't high enough, the kidneys are not able to regulate themselves. Which then causes blood pressure and volume to drop (which can result in a life-threatening situation). Cortisol is a multipurpose hormone, it carries out a lot of jobs. For instance it maintains blood pressure and cardiovascular function, slows the immune system's inflammatory response, and stabilizes the effects of insulin in breaking down glucose for energy. It is also involved in the regulation of the metabolism of proteins, carbohydrates, and fats, which give athletes nutrients and the energy to perform. This simulates the liver into raising the blood sugar in response to metabolic demands, physical activity, and stress. Cortisol remains in the blood for a long time after being expressed, and is the body's long term response to stress, in contrast with adrenaline which is a very immediate its response is short lived.

If the adrenal gland complex isn't functioning properly it poses a great threat to the body and one's athletic performance and ability. If the long and short term responses to stress are compromised then adrenaline isn't properly produced and utilized and makes optimal performance for any athlete very difficult and or near impossible.