magnesium and calcium supplements

[nathank]

i spent last weekend at a training camp for mountain-bike racing -MTB Marathons here in Europe are longer with lots of vertical usually 50km and 1500-2500m vertical (5000-8000ft)- anyway, the trainer mentioned 2 supplements that are important for significant endurance training: calcium and particularly magnesium.

not sure exactly, but supposedly magnesium helps muscles recover better and help prevent the soreness after a hard workout.

i was told to take the calcium and magnesium NOT together - i.e. magnesium in the morning and calcium in the evening...

anyone know more about these and what exactly they do and how much is good to take? i was planning on buying some supplements and taking about half of whatever the bottle/manufacturer recommends...

[RiPHRaPH]

first magnesium. magnesium is said to boost the levels of insulin in your system. i think that the effects on endurance is self-evident. you still need to have the sugar/carbs on board for your body to process it.
magnesium and calcium is frequently seen together in combination in tablet form. magnesium is used in this combo to boost/recirculate calcium resorption. calcium is absorbed from the body rather poorly and the magnesium binds to a site on the kidneys that allow the resorption of calcium. the calcium has no where to bind in the kidney, so it takes a second trip around the body before elimination and more can be seen/absorbed from the body.