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Off-season Supplement Suggestions

Note: This article first appeared way back in 2000, in Endurance Newsletter #29. While a lot of the information from the original article is still very valid, I felt it was time to revise the article and supplement suggestions.

Free Radical Neutralization - Important All Year Round
Premium Insurance Caps | Race Caps Supreme | Mito-R Caps
Carlson's Norwegian Salmon Oil | Phytomax
Summary

For many of us, the competitive season is fast coming to a close. If that’s the case for you, as your in-season training and racing schedule is winding down, you know it’ll soon be time to look back and evaluate all the things that went right as well as the things that need improvement; it’s an ideal time to set your goals for the next season. Dr. Bill Misner has suggested that “preseason goals should be realistically set at 1-3% above personal bests at each distance with planned training peaks set to meet those goals methodically.” If you’re like most athletes, you’ll probably be doing some form of aerobic cross training outside your primary sport as well as weight training. But the day to day training, the accumulation of several hours spent running, cycling, swimming, or whatever your training involved, is definitely on the decrease. When I lived in Southern California the off season simply meant less miles on the bike. But ever since I moved to colder climates I have used cross-country skiing and weight training (and now the Compex as well!) as my winter training in preparation for the cycling season. So I try to stay active all year round even if the duration and intensity is less than during my main season.

Whether or not you choose to be active year round, once your main competitive season ends does that also mean the end of your supplement program? I don’t believe it should be and later in the article you’ll find my supplement suggestions for the off season. If you plan to remain active, training frequently and racing occasionally, I wouldn’t hesitate to remain on pretty much the same program you followed during your main competitive season. There’s no reason to stop supplementation if you’re going to remain active because you will still want to provide your body with the nutrients it needs so that you can get the most benefits out of whatever type of training you do. Now, you may find it desirable to cut back on the dosages if you’re not training as heavily, but I would definitely continue your supplement program. I do not believe there is any reason to cycle off supplements, especially the three Daily Essentials – Premium Insurance Caps, Race Caps Supreme, and Mito-R Caps – during the off season.

Free Radical Neutralization - Important All Year Round

Louis Pasteur, recognized as the father of modern medicine, once said, “the key to medicine is host resistance” and this is where antioxidants excel. Antioxidants strengthen our immune system, increasing our resistance to many types of toxins, bacteria, viruses, and degenerative diseases. They accomplish this primarily through the neutralization of excess amounts of free radicals. Researchers Bradford and Allen write, "A free radical is simply a molecule carrying an impaired electron.... All free radicals are extremely reactive and will seek out and acquire an electron in any way possible. In the process of acquiring an electron, the free radical... will attach itself to another molecule, thereby modifying it biochemically." [R. Bradford & H. Allen. Oxidology. Chula Vista CA: R.W. Bradford Foundation, 1997. Pp. 64-65.] Leibovitz and Siegel state: “However, as free radicals (FR) steal an electron from the other molecules, they convert these molecules into FRs, or break down or alter their chemical structure. Thus, FRs are capable of damaging virtually any biomolecule, including proteins, sugars, fatty acids and nucleic acids.” [Leibovitz, B. & Siegel, B. (1980) "Aspects of free radical reactions in biological systems: aging" J Gerontal 35: 45-56.]

So even though some free radical activity in the body is actually a beneficial thing, allowing free radicals to accumulate and go unchecked – which they easily do, overwhelming the body’s built-in antioxidant defenses – is definitely not beneficial. Dr. Bill says, “The human body uses free radicals to destroy specific microbes; however, when free radical volume accumulates in time or in high volume, mutagenic activity or degenerative disorders may occur.” Free radicals are now believed to be a primary culprit behind a tremendous range of diseases including cancer, cardiovascular disease, Alzheimer’s disease, Parkinson’s disease, and others.

A good portion of free radical damage results from the process of oxidation, which is somewhat of a double-edged sword. For example, whenever our bodies convert food to fuel it is done by oxidation, a vital, life-sustaining process. The down side is that the process is not 100% efficient and the metabolism of food, especially foods that are high in fats, can cause high amounts of free radicals to be produced. And even though oxidative damage occurs at higher levels during intense and prolonged exercise, it occurs at ALL times. In addition, free radicals are also produced from environmental pollutants and ultra violet radiation. In addition, stress of any kind creates free radicals.

Free radicals are higher in people who

Exercise beyond 90 minutes duration

Exercise above 80% VO2 Max

Have a higher body fat percentage (above 15% for males, above 20% for females)

Eat animal meats and dairy products

Are older (above 40 years old)

Weigh more (above 200 lbs)

So even though you may be taking some well-earned time off from full-time training and racing, free radical production NEVER takes a day off and neutralizing them is the primary reason for the supplement suggestions I’ve made.

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Premium Insurance Caps

Every athlete I’ve designed a supplement program for or given supplement advice to knows that I consider a multi vitamin/mineral supplement the foundation of any program and that I consider Premium Insurance Caps to have no peer in that category. It’s especially important during the competitive season because you’re depleting these basic nutrients at very high rates, nutrients that are important maintaining the optimal performance of many bodily functions, including the protection and enhancement of the immune system. It’s also important to replenish our bodies with these basic nutrients during the off season as well, if only because our food supply is severely lacking in these important vitamins and minerals. I often recalled something Dr. Misner wrote and his words have been instrumental in why I believe supplementation with a multivitamin/mineral product is so important: “Athletes today ingest only 11% of the organic nutrients from their food sources that the athletes of the 1940’s enjoyed. Modern science has concluded that marginal nutritional deficiency and imbalance is directly responsible for 644 diseases or disorders.”

For the replenishment of vitamins and minerals, supplying what the diet cannot, and to provide the basics of antioxidant support, taking Premium Insurance Caps on a daily basis is an excellent idea. You may not require the full two-packet dose (which we recommend for workout sessions over 1.5 – 2 hours) but the consistent intake of one half to one packet (4-7 capsules) a day will help provide the nutrients your body needs that it cannot get in adequate amounts from our food sources.

Antioxidants in Premium Insurance Caps

• Beta carotene
• Vitamin C
• Vitamin E
• Manganese
• Selenium
• Zinc

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Race Caps Supreme

This product is a “must have” during the competitive season as its nutrient components powerfully enhance energy production, endurance, and recovery. The primary nutrients in Race Caps Supreme, Coenzyme Q10 (CoQ10) and idebenone, are vital for the production of adenosine triphosphate (ATP), the basic energy molecule of each cell, and this is but one reason why it’s such an important “during season” supplement.

However, I believe that as good as the athletic-specific benefits are, the general health ones of this product (especially from CoQ10 and idebenone) outshine them, which is why Race Caps Supreme is on my year-round supplement list. Entire books have been written on just CoQ10’s antioxidant benefits and you could spend an awfully long time on the internet reading about the other numerous benefits of this incredible nutrient. Here are but a few of the ones attributed to CoQ10:

Improves blood circulation and aids in lowering blood pressure

Alleviates asthma and allergies

Helps alleviate chronic fatigue syndrome

Prevents the oxidation of lipoproteins, thus potentially reducing the risk of arteries from forming plaques and getting damaged.

Used as a preventive and therapeutic agent for heart disease, cancer, periodontal disease, neurodegenerative diseases, such as Alzheimer’s disease, Huntington’s disease.

Now, as important as CoQ10 is, and with such tremendous benefits, there are some experts that feel that idebenone, the synthetic variant of CoQ10, is an even more powerful antioxidant and a substance that yields even greater benefits. In fact, the antioxidant powers of idebenone are so potent that it is used to protect organs from damage when they are removed from donor for transplant to patient.

With Race Caps Supreme you have two powerful substances, which, along with the vitamin E in the product, have some outstanding general health benefits. All three substances – CoQ10, idebenone, and vitamin E – are premier antioxidants and cardiovascular health nutrients, which is why I believe using this product every day is a very wise strategy. The dosages I suggest in the article “The E-CAPS Daily Essentials Formula” would very much be appropriate here.

Workout Days Under 1.5 Hours and On Days Off

Athletes weighing less than 150 pounds or any athlete under the age of 20: 1 capsule twice daily with food on non-workout days. On workout days of 90 minutes or less take 1 capsule 30-90 minutes prior to exercise (with or without food) and 1 capsule after exercise with food.

Athletes weighing more than 150 pounds: 1 capsule three times daily on non-workout days. On workout days of 90 minutes or less take 2 capsules 30-90 minutes prior to exercise (with or without food) and 1 capsule after exercise with food.

Workout Days Over 1.5 Hours

Athletes weighing less than 150 pounds or ANY athlete under the age of 20: 1 capsule 30-90 minutes prior to exercise (with or without food). If workout exceeds two hours, 1 additional capsule may be taken every hour during the workout. Another 1 capsule after workouts, with food, is also suggested.

Athletes weighing more than 150 pounds: 2 capsules 30-90 minutes prior to exercise (with or without food). If workout exceeds two hours, 1-2 additional capsules may be taken every hour during the workout. Another 1-2 capsules after workouts, with food, is also suggested.

Antioxidants in Race Caps Supreme

• CoQ10
• Idebenone
• Vitamin E

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Mito-R Caps

I think the most exciting anti-aging research I’ve read in many years was that of Dr. Bruce Ames regarding the effects of two nutrients, Acetyl l-carnitine (ALC) and r-alpha lipoic acid (r-ALA), on the health of the mitochondria. Ames’ landmark studies found that both ALC and r-ALA (both of which are contained in Mito-R Caps) played vital roles in improving mitochondrial activity and cellular metabolism, which is beneficial not just for athletic performance but even more so for general health. The anti-aging implications of the ALC/r-ALA combination are staggering when you think about the potential they have for delaying, and even possibly reversing, mitochondrial aging, which would mean that the millions of energy-producing “furnaces” in our bodies might possibly be restored to more youthful levels.

In addition, r-ALA is one of the most potent antioxidants discovered and what makes it so unique in that regard is that it is both a water-soluble and fat-soluble antioxidant, able to neutralize free radicals in both the fatty and watery regions of the cells. In addition, it has the unique ability to boost and recycle other antioxidants such as vitamins C and E, CoQ10, and glutathione. No wonder so many nutrition experts refer to it as “the universal antioxidant.”

What Dr. Bill wrote when we first introduced Mito-R Caps is at the heart of why I recommend taking the product every day of your life: “The longer you can stimulate the lifespan or health of the mitochondria, the longer you will live and the better you will perform in endurance events. The athlete who has the most healthy/efficient active mitochondria is the athlete who performs at their best.” As with Race Caps Supreme, the dosages I suggest in the article “The E-CAPS Daily Essentials Formula ” would very much be appropriate during the off season.

Workout Days Under 1.5 Hours and On Days Off

For all athletes, regardless of size or age: 1 capsule three times daily, with food, on non-workout days. On workout days of 90 minutes or less take 1 capsule 30-90 minutes prior to workouts (with or without food) and 2 capsules after workouts with food. A fourth capsule may be taken with dinner on workout days that were 60-90 minutes in length.

Workout Days Over 1.5 Hours

For all athletes, regardless of size or age: 2 capsules 30-60 minutes prior to exercise (with or without food), 2 capsules after exercise with food, 2 capsules with dinner. If workout exceeds two hours, 1 additional capsule may be taken every hour during the workout.

Antioxidants in Mito-R Caps

• r-Alpha Lipoic Acid
• Vitamin C (as ascorbyl palmitate)
• Vitamin E

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Carlson’s Norwegian Salmon Oil

If there was ever a group of nutrients that I would classify as being essential all year round, it would be the Omega 3 fatty acids. As I wrote in an earlier edition of Endurance News, the components of fish oil (DHA/EPA) improve endurance by increasing mitochondrial efficiency via their positive effects on coenzyme Q10 and idebenone, two key substrates involved in energy production. The absorption rate of these two fat-soluble nutrients is greatly increased in the presence of a fat source and there’s arguably not a healthier fat than fish oil.

For general health purposes, fish oils provide one of the absolute defenses against cardiovascular disease. For example, an ever-growing body of research suggests that athlerosclerosis, angina, heart attack, arrhythmias, stroke, and congestive heart failure may be prevented with the consumption of fish oils. Fish oils help to reduce blood pressure, maintain arterial wall elasticity, and prevent blood clotting… they really are the heart’s “best friend.”

Newer research shows that fish oils have a positive influence on brain function and mood, including the alleviation of anxiety, insomnia, and other symptoms of depression. In addition, Omega 3 fatty acids from fish oil have been shown to provide impressive anti-inflammatory benefits by reducing specific pro-inflammatory cytokines and Series 2 prostaglandins, while increasing the level of anti-inflammatory Series 3 prostaglandins.

There are two essential fatty acids (EFA) that we need for life itself – the Omega 3 fatty acids and Omega 6 fatty acids. Our bodies cannot make either of them so it’s necessary that we obtain them from dietary sources. However, while most of us consume an overabundance of Omega 6’s, our Omega 3 intake is woefully lacking. In fact, while research points to a 1:3 Omega 3 to Omega 6 ratio as ideal, most people’s diets show a 1:20 ratio, which is obviously very much out of balance. The bottom line is that we need Omega 3 fatty acids and the best source for them is fish. However, consumption of certain types of fish (such as salmon, mackerel, and sardines) two to three times a week, while being an extremely wise strategy, is simply not possible for most of us. That’s where the Carlson’s Norwegian Salmon Oil supplement comes in. 1-2 soft gels twice daily is a super easy way to make sure you obtain the essential O-3 fatty acids.

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Phytomax

I wish I could say that my diet is excellent all the times. The truth is that it’s not always possible, especially in the winter where I live, to obtain substantial amounts of vegetables. I have found this product to be a real benefit for helping provide additional nutrients not found in other foods or supplements. The vitamins, minerals, enzymes, and phytochemicals in Phytomax (I suggest 3 capsules daily), along with the vitamins and minerals in Premium Insurance Caps, will very much fulfill your nutritional “basics” and augment the nutrients you obtain in your diet.

One of the benefits of Phytomax is its ability to help promote optimum alkalinity in the body, which helps create the best environment for the health of the cells. Other benefits that can be obtained with consistent use of the product (and we hear these frequently from regular Phytomax users) are increased energy levels, faster recovery, improved immune system function, improved moods and mental clarity, and a higher quality of sleep.

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Summary

One of my favorite “quotes to live by” comes from sports nutrition expert Dr. Michael Colgan. In his book, OPTIMUM SPORTS NUTRITION [Advanced Research Press, 1993] Colgan suggests that we should, while we have the opportunity, make our athletic goals a major focus of our lives. In doing so, however, he urges that we understand that achieving excellence is not possible by doing things halfway or by moderation. Excellence in athletics is a year round proposition so even though the off-season may be a time for cutting back on heavy training, I believe it still requires a full time commitment to your athletic goals, especially as the focus shifts more towards general health requirements than it does actual training. A year round supplement program is vital for making positive increases in both fitness and health and I believe the one outlined in this article covers a tremendous amount of nutritional “bases.”

Steve Born, Technical Advisor
E-CAPS

Steve Born is a technical advisor for E-CAPS with over a decade of involvement in the health food industry. He is a three-time RAAM finisher, the 1994 Furnace Creek 508 Champion, 1999 runner-up, the only cyclist in history to complete a Double Furnace Creek 508, and is the holder of two Ultra Marathon Cycling records. In February, 2004 Steve was inducted into the Ultra Marathon Cycling Hall of Fame.

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