AIS ACSM Classification and the IAPE Pledge

Performance nutrition needs a game-changing approach. 

The effectiveness, safety, and quality of nutritional products and ingredients vary enormously.   There is also a lot myth and misinformation surrounding performance nutrition.

One of our goals is to help create a culture of technical expertise and critical, informed rugby players at all levels.  We believe the best way to do this is through impartial and rigorous sports science.

We make an industry-leading pledge we call IAPE.  Independently Approved,  Proven Effective.  This means we always ask what cutting edge ingredients are approved for use by the world’s leading non-commercial sports science institutes.

These two institutions are:

  • the Australian government’s Australian Institute of Sport (AIS)
  • the American College of Sports Medicine (ACSM)

Our IAPE pledge

Independently Approved, Proven Effective

We will only use ingredients that are evidence-based and safe by referring to the AIS and ACSM

Both these world-leading institutions conduct the most rigorous programme of sports science research, and reviews of available research and literature.  They each have a very similar approach in classifying performance nutrition ingredients into four categories.  These categories broadly correspond to:

  1. Ingredients that are safe and effective with a comprehensive body of evidence.
  2. Ingredients that are safe and effective with growing evidence for certain athlete types.
  3. Ingredients that do not perform as claimed.  Many actually impair performance.  Both the AIS and ACSM state that the majority of products fall into this category.
  4. Ingredients that are dangerous, banned or illegal.

We are very proud of the safety and effectiveness of RugbyMax.  Our latest review of the information put into the public domain by these organisations puts two of our cutting edge ingredients into category 2 and the remainder into category 1.

Examples of the classifications

Category 1

  • Antioxidant vitamins C and E
  • Bicarbonate and citrate
  • Caffeine
  • Calcium supplement
  • Creatine
  • Electrolyte replacement supplements
  • Glucosamine
  • Glycerol
  • Iron Supplement
  • Liquid meal supplements
  • Multivitamins and minerals
  • Sports bars
  • Sports drinks
  • Sports gels

Category 2

  • B-Alanine
  • Colostrum
  • Glutamine
  • HMB
  • Melatonin
  • Ribose

Category 3

  • Branched chain amino acids (& other free-form amino acids)
  • Carnitine
  • Chromium picolinate
  • Coenzyme Q10
  • Cordyceps
  • Cytochrome 
  • Cdihydroxyacetone
  • Gamma-oryzanol & ferulic acid
  • Ginseng
  • Inosine
  • Nitrous oxide supplements
  • Oxygen boosters
  • Pryuvate
  • Rhodiola rosea
  • Vanadium
  • ZMA

Category 4

  • Androstenedione
  • 19-norandrostenediol
  • 19-norandrostenedione
  • DHEA
  • Ephedra
  • Strychnine
  • Tribulus terrestris & other herbal testosterone supplements

Find out more about the two institutions' systems of classification at the links below

AIS

ACSM - this page deals generally with their findings on nutrition and supplements. The outline of the the classification system is about half way down the page.