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The sports nutrition market is fast becoming a crowded place, but that doesn’t mean it is full - companies just have to look harder to spot the untapped opportunities.

One area that is woefully under-served is endurance sports nutrition. Endurance sports like triathlon or running are growing, yet specific nutritional support has still potential to be explored further.

The majority of endurance nutrition products on the market today are carbohydrate-based energy options which deliver fast-acting fuel to muscles during exercise, helping to replenish energy levels and delay fatigue. Whilst these have a short-term role to play as instant energy-givers, they don’t do anything to improve condition and performance over the longer term.

There is scientific consensus that protein requirements are elevated in endurance athletes, yet there is a huge gap in the market for products that fulfil this need. Endurance athletes wanting to up their protein intake generally have no choice but to reach for one of the many protein supplements formulated for body shaping and muscle building.

No ingredients…no innovation

Historically, this area of the market may have been overlooked because of the absence of convincing, outcome-based ingredients on which to build concepts.

Now, thanks to the development of PeptENDURE^® - the first collagen protein solution for enhanced endurance performance - there is a science-backed solution. Composed of Bioactive Collagen Peptides (BCP^®), PeptENDURE^® is a sports ingredient with adaptive capabilities. It has been proven to enhance the effects of training and increase endurance as well as performance over the long term.

These benefits have been demonstrated in two placebo-controlled clinical trials - one with men (1) and one with women (2). In both trials, participants took 15g of PeptENDURE^® or a placebo daily for 12 weeks. At the end of the study, all participants took part in a one-hour running trial. The results showed that men were able to run 660m further with PeptENDURE^® than with a placebo and that women were able to run 330m further. Participants also showed improvements in several markers of metabolism, including a higher lactate threshold and a reduction in body fat mass.

Daily adaptation: a new niche

With PeptENDURE^®, brand owners have the opportunity to create an entirely new ‘daily adaptation’ sports nutrition segment around supporting endurance-based training. The beauty of adaptive nutrition is that it is not a ‘me too’ or an ‘instead of’ proposition - it is an ‘as well as’ solution. It complements existing sports nutrition solutions such as ‘hydration’, ‘energy’ and ‘recovery’, enabling players to develop new sales avenues rather than cannibalise existing ones.

The ‘daily adaptation’ concept is also attractive for brand owners because it inherently promotes repeat purchase and loyalty; they can design products that encourage consumers to experience the benefits of incorporating PeptENDURE^® into their daily routines and can position PeptENDURE^® as a trusted ‘training partner’. Powder is the obvious format for delivering a daily dose of PeptENDURE^®, as it tastes neutral and dissolves quickly and easily in water and other drinks, but it can also be added to foods such as bars or gels.

Make it happen

The sports nutrition market is expected to grow by 9.3% year on year up to 2032 (3). But in order to harness this growth potential, manufacturers need to look beyond what is already out there and apply sharp segmentation to build new niches. Adaptive protein-based endurance nutrition is an opportunity-in-waiting, and now, with PeptENDURE^®, the race to market is on.

To find out more about building product concepts around PeptENDURE^®, contact our experts today.

References

(1) Jerger et al. (2023): Effects of Specific Bioactive Collagen Peptides in Combination with Concurrent Training on Running Performance and Indicators of Endurance Capacity in Men: A Randomized Controlled Trial. Sports Med - Open 9, 103. https://doi.org/10.1186/s40798-023-00654-9  

(2) Jendricke et al. (2020): Influence of Specific Collagen Peptides and Concurrent Training on Cardiometabolic Parameters and Performance Indices in Women: A Randomized Controlled Trial. Front Nutr. 2020 Nov 19;7:580918. doi: 10.3389/fnut.2020.580918. 

(3) Future Market Insights, 2022. URL: https://www.futuremarketinsights.com/blogs/sports-nutrition-market-2023, last accessed: 09.02.2024.