Active nutrition for all: Evolving industry moves to serve broader category beyond sports

Once exclusive to athletes, sports nutrition supplements and ingredients now cater to a broader audience as busy professionals, fitness enthusiasts and health-conscious seniors use these products to enhance daily performance, energy management and overall well-being. Experts state that this evolving market reflects a more inclusive consumer approach to active living and aging.

Nutrition Insight sits down with experts from Balchem Human Nutrition and Health, Gencor and HTBA to discuss the ingredients and innovations that go beyond athletes.

“At Gencor, we have a deep commitment to sports and active nutrition not only from an ingredient perspective but also from personal passion — from having a professional athlete on our team to professional umpires to working with international sports leagues, we intimately understand what athletes require for a holistic approach to athletic performance and beyond,” explains Maggie McNamara, Gencor’s VP of global marketing.

She adds that Gencor offers ingredients that boost mental and physical health, recovery and performance, including testosterone and muscle strength enhancers, while supporting athletes and active individuals “at any level and any stage of life.”

“Sports nutrition has evolved beyond just fueling athletes for peak performance — it’s now about optimizing every aspect of health and well-being,” reveals Dominik Mattern, the VP of science, business development and marketing manager at Balchem Human Nutrition and Health.

“In fact, more people are hitting the gym or upping their daily steps, blurring the lines between professional athletes and broader audience groups eager to maintain their health.”

“Today, sports nutrition is as much about daily cognitive function and longevity as it is about muscle recovery or hydration. The modern approach is holistic, targeting not just elite athletes but anyone who values proactive health, from fitness enthusiasts to everyday consumers. It’s about building mental agility, supporting women’s unique health needs, and even promoting skin and aesthetic goals. In short, sports nutrition is now a dynamic blend of performance, health and lifestyle.”

Mattern adds that this offers brands a special opportunity to adopt a broader and more inclusive strategy by creating new products that resonate with a wider audience and notes that innovations that boost workout efficiency while enhancing general physical and mental health and sustaining energy all day are set to dominate this sector.

“On the one hand, you have ‘amateur athletes’ — consumers who may not make their living on the sports field but take fitness almost as seriously as those that do,” says Tom D’Hoore, the chief commercial officer at HTBA. “This includes avid gym-goers and so-called ‘weekend-warriors’ — a growing cohort of consumers keen to live their downtime to the fullest, often in the great outdoors.”

“On the other hand, you have shoppers drawn to the world of exercise by a desire to ‘get healthy.’ This includes people of all ages but is most often associated with older consumers looking to stay fit and independent into middle- and later-life.”

Answering market demands

Innova Market Insights’ data suggest that brands are launching products format-friendly that are tailored for everyday life, which contain electrolytes, protein, vitamins and minerals.

Additionally, D’Hoore states that Statista research indicates that hiking, running and cycling — three of the top five outdoor activities in the US — require substantial physical effort, leading to increased demand for ingredients that enhance performance. Meanwhile, fishing and camping are also popular, reflecting a demand among active nutrition consumers for holistic solutions that nourish the mind, body and soul.

“All these interwoven factors are having a profound effect on ingredient innovation, raising the profile of effective, science-backed solutions with broad consumer appeal to help brands cater to every aspect of the evolving active nutrition market,” he says.

Moreover, McNamara points out that changes in sports nutrition have seen a growing focus on endurance, recovery, mental health and mood support, alongside a significant trend in catering to female athletes. Women have distinct needs from men, leading to more clinical research and the launch of ingredients, finished products and dosages specifically designed for them. 

Managing market trends

Mattern highlights that, although traditional workout enhancers remain popular, there’s an emerging trend toward functional nutrition that supports both the body and mind as individuals aim to enhance “daily performance.” 

He adds that consumers are increasingly seeking energy and mental clarity throughout their day, not just during physical exercise. This holistic approach has led consumers to embrace foundational micro and macronutrients, recognizing their importance in achieving “complete nutrition.”

“Another notable trend in the sports nutrition market is the growing popularity of hydration and endurance products, especially in powder form, driven by the success of brands like Prime and Liquid IV,” Mattern underscores. 

“And let’s not forget the rise of ‘protein plus’ solutions that build on the cornerstone of sports nutrition — protein — by integrating essential vitamins and minerals, providing both muscle and overall health support.”

All-inclusive ingredients

D’Hoore states that athletes and active individuals are emphasizing the mental components of peak performance, recognizing the need to fortify mental strength alongside physical fitness. Consequently, there’s a growing inclusion of cognitive-enhancing ingredients like vitamin B12 and citicoline in active nutrition products.

“Take Cardiose, for example — our 100% natural sweet orange polyphenol extract, which offers benefits for active performance and cardiovascular health at a low daily dose of just 500 mg,” he adds. 

“Also, HTBA’s citicoline ingredient, Xerenoos, provides an equally powerful proposition to active nutrition brands, with its extensively researched role in sustaining brain cell membranes helping amateur athletes and everyday exercisers alike stay focused, whether they’re waiting for a starting pistol, hitting the gym or heading out to buy groceries.”

Mattern at Balchem spotlights that in today’s “fast-paced world,” consumers seek convenient, nutritious options that fit easily into their daily lives and they prioritize flavor and texture, particularly in protein-rich snacks.

“Balchem’s comprehensive portfolio, including our flagship brands OptiMSM, Albion Minerals, K2Vital and VitaCholine, can be combined to cover a wide range of benefits, enabling manufacturers to develop next-generation products that deliver well-rounded health offerings for all sports enthusiasts.”

Furthermore, McNamara concludes that Gencor provides a variety of extracts and ingredients for sports nutrition, focusing on muscle strength, recovery and body composition, as well as lesser-discussed aspects like sleep and stress, which are essential for optimal physical and mental performance.

“Consumers increasingly seek products that combine clinically studied ingredients across multiple structure-function categories to deliver an ‘all-in-one’ type of finished product,” she emphasizes. 

“Combining ingredients with different mechanisms of action, such as Levagen+, HydroCurc and Tesnor, creates a formulation addressing multiple areas of sports nutrition — joint health, recovery, muscle strength and cognition. Adding these ingredients to a protein premix would further the product toward sports nutrition and help achieve the all-in-one effect.”

“The newest addition to our arsenal of sports nutrition ingredients is by Gnosis, Landkind Pure Salidroside. As the official distributor for this ingredient in the US, we are responsible for its introduction to the market, and it will be a game changer in this space.”