by Matt Weik
It’s always fun for me to read other “insider” opinions on what’s going to be hot the next year. Well, I found an post where someone tossed in their two-cents on 2020 sports nutrition trends and I figured I’d give my opinion on whether or not I agree with what they are saying and maybe how our views differ. I saw this post on NutraIngredients.com and the writer who put this all together is Shane Starling.
Now, before we get into this, Shane didn’t think of these trends off the top of his head, he used insights from Lumina intelligence to gather the info and then he added his Camiseta Manchester United own spin to each category.
Here goes…
Supplement reviews on the Rise
It’s hard to dispute this topic even though I (personally) don’t agree with a lot of reviews out there. I even wrote an post on the subject not too long ago. consumers like feeling better about their purchasing behaviors and don’t want to shell out their money on something if people are saying it’s a bunch of junk. I can’t blame them. So, will this be one of the 2020 sports nutrition trends that blow up? I think so.
Look, despite my opinion that brands are paying for lots of of the reviews we read, you cannot dismiss the fact that the majority of consumers will look at reviews prior to making a purchase – it doesn’t matter if it’s supplements or home appliances. This trend will absolutely continue and a lot more and a lot more brands will be trying different ways to get customers to leave high-quality reviews on their products.
The Power of protein Powder
In the article, they pointed out that the cost of protein is low. I’m not sure what planet they live on but there is no money in protein (from a maker or merchant point of view). everyone is working off of low margins and if you speak to a retailer, they will likely tell you that they would like to sell just about any other product on their shelf instead of protein – there’s no money in it. If you want to stay competitive, Camiseta Selección de fútbol de Inglaterra you’re going to need to shed margins or risk losing the sale to a competitor. and online prices are hammering brick and mortar these days which makes things even a lot more difficult.
But will protein continue to flourish and be on the list of 2020 sports nutrition trends? I think so but I don’t see it being one of the hottest trends. protein these days has become very boring. then you have brands like Ghost and BSN who are collaborating with food and snack brands with flavoring profiles – THIS is what will be a 2020 trend in my opinion. I couldn’t care less about the protein space. However, brands who think outside the box like Ghost with their Chips Ahoy flavored protein and BSN with their cold stone Creamery collaborations will set a new standard for protein powder flavoring.
Transparent Labels
All aboard! The copycat train is about to leave the station. Yes, I agree with the post that transparent labels will be one of the 2020 sports nutrition trends. However, and this is my opinion, it’s getting played out. brands are using this as their only indicates of marketing saying they have transparent labels. who cares? There are tons of brands doing this now and in 2020 you need to find a point of differentiation if you want to win. sitting back and claiming transparency isn’t going to pull your product off the shelf anymore.
Here are my own two-cents with this topic… you must be using brands that you trust. I don’t care if you have proprietary blends or if you’re genuinely transparent. If someone doesn’t depend on your brand, they have no service even getting or supporting your line. depend on me, I see brands that are “transparent” who I STILL don’t depend on what their labels say. So, while I see transparent labels still being hot in 2020, brands need to think of a method that is a lot more long-term than that.
Plant protein is Growing
This post brought up plant proteins. Why? I couldn’t tell you. The post even claimed that the statistics show that 75% of consumers are purchasing a whey protein and only 15% are purchasing a plant-based protein. no one is knocking out the champ (whey protein) anytime soon. and especially not plant-based protein. I get it, vegans and vegetarians Camiseta Everton FC flock to a plant protein but if you survey the population, you’re going to find that the majority of consumers absolutely hate the taste and texture of a plant-based protein.
Sure, plant protein may be boosting year over year but don’t get too excited, it will never hold a candle to whey (animal protein).
Pre-Workouts will Change
I absolutely agree with the post that pre-workouts are going to be one of the (if not THE) greatest 2020 sports nutrition trends we see. However, I have a different spin on the subject.
For years we have seen pre-workouts slamming as much caffeine in them as possible. I see this changing. As a lot more and a lot more people find they aren’t getting the same effects from stimulants, they are going to start trying to find something different. I see a trend being pre-workouts with a much lower dose of caffeine (if included at all) and it going a lot more towards “pump” formulas with the inclusion of nootropics to improve focus and mood.
I could probably make a whole new heading for this but I’ll keep things rolling here. The stims we see today will remain in the RTDs like Reign, Bang, C4, etc. We will even have some hardcore pre-workouts with a bunch of stims. but I feel like nootropics are going to slowly start chipping away at the pre-workout sales or at least start being used heavily in future versions of pre-workouts.
If brands are sleeping on nootropics, they are going to miss out. I see nootropics being a huge category in the coming years as a lot more and a lot more people are trying to find products to get them dialed in both in the office and the gym. Personally, I use and love nootropics. The a lot more I speak to people, the a lot more they too are getting ecstatic about what’s to come in that category.
Brands, if you’re reading this, heed my warning. If you’re not currently working on products with the inclusion of nootropics (standalone or pre-workouts), you will be left out.
BCAAs Still Booming
Uh, no. I completely disagree with having this on the list of 2020 sports nutrition trends. While BCAAs will seemingly always step off store shelves, I don’t see this being a huge trend next year. In fact, I’m confused why they even feel this is worthy to make the list. If anything, EAAs must have made the list.
In 2019, people started to trend towards essential amino acids (EAAs) over BCAAs when new research was published saying in buy to help build muscle, essential amino acids are needed – not just the big three (leucine, iso-leucine, valine) anymore. brands have already been making moves to change formulas and even come out with certain EAA products.
The downside to this is that there hasn’t been much research done on EAAs in terms of optimal dosages and brands seem to be taking a shot in the dark rather than having some science behind the profile like we did with the 2:1:1 BCAA ratio that has been so popular over the years.
I can see EAAs being added to a lot more product formulas these days to help with the recovery aspect as well as muscle-building potential. I don’t see BCAAs disappearing but I can see them losing a little bit of their appeal due to the EAA craze here of late. Does that indicate I think BCAAs are worthless and you shouldn’t utilize them? Not at all. In fact, I still sip on them throughout the day. but I will say that as a lot more research comes out shedding a lot more light on EAAs, we may see a shift in sales.
Source: NutraIngredients
