It's the Supplement Issue

I'm finally getting to what I've been wanting to write about all week.  Nutrition and supplements.  I want to preface this post with the notation that you have to use what is best for your body and health.  I'm just sharing some of things I'm trying and the things that seem to be working for me.  My friends at Vitality offered me some suggestions of products that endurance athletes should add in to their daily nutrition.  These are some great ideas for my Vitality Giveaway this week!  Here we go...

Pure Endurance.  This is in pill form and I use it before my long runs.  The owner of Vitality actually formulated this himself.  As per the description:  Pure Endurance Intensified is a completely new approach to pre workout supplements. This unique formula is designed to produce 3 major benefits: Muscle Endurance, Physical Energy and Mental Focus.  Intensified means you get everything you need plus a swift kick in the butt to wake you up and get you moving. Caffeine, Acacla, Yohimbine get you going and naringin keeps you going to hours.

And it works!  The dosage calls for taking 5 to 6 pills 20 minutes before workout.  I only take three and then I take another two to three at my half-way point.  The thing I notice most is that my breathing is much easier all the way through til the end of my run and even on uphills.  I know you are probably remembering my hard marathon in Park City but I really believe I would have been considerabley worse without those pills.  On all other training runs I can feel the difference these pills make.  Even the mental focus is noticable.  I've given some out for my family and friends to try and all have come back with tons of positive feedback and want to use it again.  Hopefully they'll comment on this post and give a thumbs up for Pure Endurance!

They also have a caffeine free version, which is the one I use.  I get nervous and jittery all on my own so I feel like I don't need the extra caffeine to add to it. : )  They not only help your oxygen intake with your breathing, it also helps get oxygen to your muscles more efficiently so they endure through those long runs.  Can't say enough about these. 

I'm betting a lot of you know Udo's Oil.  I add it into my protein shake every morning.  I'm only up to two tablespoons a day, working up to three.  There are lots of benefits to using the oil and you can check out the facts here if you're interested:  Udo's Oil study  Udo's Oil Facts.  There are many who swear by it for helping them stay healthy and leaning them out with muscle tone.  2 names:  Hilary Swank while training for Million Dollar Baby - remember how crazy buff she was? and Scott Jurek, the Badwater Ultramarathon runner swears by it, as well as others here.  People also mix this into their eggs and salad dressings, you could mix into just about anything except you're not supposed to heat it.  Even drizzle over veggies. 

Trace Minerals are up next.  I also add these into my protein shakes - about 40 drops a day is what is suggested.  Here's one of the benefits according to the product's site: 
ConcenTrace® captures the perfect balance of those minerals. Using ConcenTrace® every day (mix with juice, food or remineralize purified water) will help renew and energize your body's entire electrical system.† You'll have more energy and will generally feel better.

You can find more info on this product here and of course can google oodles of info on these products and their benefits.

The protein shakes that I use are from Isagenix.  You may know them from their 9 day cleanse program.  I've done the cleanse in the past and really love them.  They make me feel great! 

However, I use their Isalean proteing shake daily.  They are great for quick meals as well as recovery drinks.  It has a high standard of pure whey protein and they taste good too.  I mix the powder with water, ice, a half of banana, the Udo's oil and trace minerals.  All for about 250 calories and a killer morning kick start.  This product you can't purchase from Vitality.  You have to purchase through an Isagenix associate.  If you don't know someone, let me know, I'll hook you up!

After a long run of 20 miles or more I use After Shock Recovery Drink.  This one I mix up in my Blender Bottle with just water.  It's easy to mix up quick and get down within a half hour of a marathon or long run.  It makes the difference between whether I can walk and funtion the rest of the day as well as the rest of the week!

After I had that super hard race in Park City I downed an After Shock recovery drink and walked all over Park City for the rest of the day.  No nap, no ice bath, no down time.  We left the race and literally walked around Park City all afternoon, ate lunch, went back to the hotel, swam with the kids and didn't go to sleep til ten o'clock that night.  And I was just as good the day after.  No way could I have done all that without a good recovery drink.  If you haven't tried one - do it.  You'll thank me.

I can say that I definitely feel the difference in using these products.  I have no deals with these product companies, I just want to share good supplements that have helped me.  I mostly feel just an overall wellness from these things.  My energy is up all day long, usually when I'm in heavy marathon training I need a nap at two o'clock everyday.  Now, I never feel tired during the day and feel like I recover quicker from my workouts each day.   And I've remained healthy so far.  I'm going into my fourth marathon in four months and haven't had an immune system breakdown - no colds, no sore throats, no sick days.  That's pretty awesome.  It will be interesting to see if I can keep it up through the winter!

I know this is tons o' info for one post.  But it's best to put it all together in one spot.  I'll post it somewhere easily accessible on my blog so you can refer back to it in the future if need be.  Hope it helps! 

Anything you all want to add in to the must haves of training supplements?

Have a great weekend and get those entries in!