What is Autophagy
Firstly, autophagy is a recently discovered phenomenon; it was discovered by Yoshinori Ohsumi in the 90s, who received a Nobel Prize in 2016 for his efforts.
Autophagy is delineated as self-eating, that is, cells break down material to remove junk before they can be repaired.
I have also embedded a video below that explains what autophagy is, originally sourced from Dr. Sten Eckberg, who has a prominent YouTube channel:
As Dr. Sten Eckberg has disabled video playback on other websites, you may find his channel here, and it is highly informative: https://www.youtube.com/@drekberg
Why might this be important for boxing, or athletics in general, well, lets move onto that.
Damaged proteins and cellular material can stay in the body, and potentially lead to disease; it is important to control this to reduce the risk.
Autophagy may also provide a neurological benefit from injury such as a concussion, providing that neurons and related cells are able to remove material, and repair themselves.
Fasting has been linked to a reduced risk in the following diseases: heart-disease, Diabetes type-II, Parkinson’s and Alzheimer’s disease, at least in animal studies.
I have provided a citation for a study below:
Mattson MP, Longo VD, Harvie M. Impact of intermittent fasting on health and disease processes. Ageing Res Rev. 2017 Oct;39:46-58. doi: 10.1016/j.arr.2016.10.005. Epub 2016 Oct 31. PMID: 27810402; PMCID: PMC5411330.
How is it Induced?
Next, how can autophagy be achieved? Dr Sten Eckberg explains in this video:
To quote from the video, autophagy can be achieved via high-intensity training (HIIT is an example of this); however, exercise is catabolic, and results in damage.
Long-term fasting is arguably the best way to achieve autophagy, that is, avoiding enough calories to not break the fast over a period of 72-hours or more.
Fasting does pose it’s risks, an example is muscle-loss, especially if there are no fat reserves, lean individuals may find that their bodies will use the protein available for energy via gluconeogenesis.
In fat-adapted individuals, that is primarily those who have gone through ketosis and fat is broken into ketones and used as an energy source, may find it easier to fast long-term without loss of muscle.
For boxers, or athletes in general, I wouldn’t recommend long-term fasting, and to a lesser degree intermittent-fasting during a training camp, or competition.
It is best to fast during rest, however, fasting combined with exercise, can help reduce the duration for autophagy to take place.
Whilst fasting, consumption of electrolytes and essential minerals and vitamins is highly beneficial, and can negate risks associated with fasting, such as dehydration, or fatigue.
Lastly, fasting can speed up recovery of an injury, and this also includes brain-injuries, so adding it as part of a program may be of a benefit to a boxer who wants to speed up recovery after a hard session.
Of course, the boxer will need some time off from training whilst this occurs.
Creatine can also provide a recovery benefit for brain-injury.
