Do Endurance Athletes Need Vitamin Supplements?
As a general rule, athletes take better care of themselves than most people. They eat better (remember I said, in “general”), smoke less, get more exercise, and hopefully understand the benefits of preventive medicine (proper screenings, annual checkups, etc.).
So the question becomes, do athletes need to take vitamins? The answer, if you follow the scientific literature, is absolutely! In fact, athletes need more vitamins and minerals than the average person. The reason is quite simple. Athletes lose more essential nutrients through sweat, and because of increased oxygen consumption they are also more likely to suffer from oxidative stress.
Oxidative stress? When we exercise we obviously utilize more oxygen than when we are at rest. That additional oxygen helps deliver important fuel to the muscles and lungs, but it also produces dangerous free radicals. Free radicals are a by product of the metabolism of oxygen. They are unstable oxygen molecules that go searching for an extra electron in order to help them stablize. Those needed electrons can come from many sources including DNA, cell membranes, and LDL (the “lousy”) cholesterol. When that happens, bad things can result including heart disease (our #1 killer), cancer (our #2 killer), arthritis, Alzheimer’s, and depressed immunity.
Don’t take your immunity for granted. Ever wonder why so many runners, cyclists and triathletes train for months leading up to a big race and then just days before the event they get sick? That’s not a random occurrence. Dr. David Neiman, the director of the Human Performance Laboratory at Appalachian State in North Carolina, conducted a study of over 2,300 runners at a marathon in Los Angeles. He found that about 13 percent of the runners got sick either right before the race or in the weeks shortly thereafter. Only 3 percent of a control group of runners who didn’t participate in the marathon became ill.
It seems your mileage also has something to do with your immunity, or lack thereof. Runners that trained more than 96 K (about 60 miles) per week DOUBLED their odds of getting sick compared to those who were training less than 32 K (about 20 miles) per week.
Why? It might have something to do with oxidative stress and the production of free radicals. A study in Ulm, Germany found that DNA damage (a result of oxidative stress) was significantly increased following bouts of intense exercise. The researchers also found that much of that DNA damage could be countered by high doses (1,200 IU) of vitamin E.
That’s where the whole concept of ANTIOXIDANTS comes into play. They help counter oxidation. There are hundreds of antioxidants in the world; many that have yet to be discovered. I remember the main one’s by the acronym “ACE”….vitamins A (best when consumed as beta carotene), C, and E (best when taken in the natural form, d-alpha tocopherol, as opposed to the synthetic form, dl-alpha tocopherol).
What form of vitamin E are you taking? To find out, you’ll probably need to read the fine print on the back of your vitamin bottle. The “d” form of alpha tocopherol is more expensive but is 3 to 5 times better absorbed than the synthetic form (dl). An easy way to remember is that “d” stands for delivers, and “dl” stands for delivers less.
So if you are an athlete which vitamins, and how much of each, do you need to be taking? It’s a multi-billion dollar industry and there are obviously plenty of choices. Since nutrition is not an exact science there is always room for debate but a great place to start is with COOPER COMPLETE ELITE ATHLETE. This product is specially formulated for runners, cyclists and triathletes. If you are running more than 30 miles a week, or exercising at a high level (5 hours or more, at at least 80 percent of your predicted max heart rate as defined by 220-age x .8) then the ELITE formula is for you. If you aren’t hitting those numbers then consider either the COOPER COMPLETE “With Iron” or “Iron Free” formulations.
Why COOPER COMPLETE? For many reasons. First of all, it was developed by Dr. Ken Cooper, the “father of aerobics” and founder of The Cooper Clinic in Dallas. In 1997, Dr. Cooper and four of his medical colleagues from three leading universities, formulated COOPER COMPLETE based on published, scientific data. Everything in the COOPER COMPLETE vitamins (25 ingredients) is there for a reason, and in the amounts that have been shown to be beneficial. All the COOPER COMPLETE products are guaranteed for purity and potency, and the three adult formulations are protected by two U.S. patents.
But the main reason for you to consider COOPER COMPLETE is that it works. Both a pilot study and double-blind, clinical trial have shown COOPER COMPLETE to be highly absorbed and to positively impact the oxidation of LDL cholesterol, as well as lowering blood levels of homocysteine (high levels of which are associated with heart disease, stroke, colon cancer and Alzheimer’s) and C-reactive protein.
C-reactive protein (or CRP) is a measure of inflammation. It is probably the hottest topic in medicine right now. Recent studies by Dr. Paul Ridker, at Harvard, have shown that elevated levels of CRP may be more important than high levels of LDL cholesterol in terms of predicting future coronary events.
This could be especially important to athletes since the immune pathways and inflammatory pathways are very similar. Anecdotially, we hear from many high level athletes that tell us they recover faster between workouts when they take COOPER COMPLETE ELITE. The reason could very well be because COOPER COMPLETE lowers inflammation. In a double-blind, clinical trial of almost 200 subjects, COOPER COMPLETE lowered C-reactive protein in the treatment group by 32% (American Journal of Medicine, 2003; 08.024).
Remember, the Journal of the American Medical Association (June 19, 2002) recommended that all adults take a daily multivitamin. JAMA pointed out, “Our usual North American diet is sufficient to prevent overt vitamin deficiency diseases such as scurvy, pellagra, and beri-beri. However, insufficient vitamin intake is apparently a cause of chronic diseases such as cardiovascular disease, cancer, and osteoporosis.” It’s clear, even if we eat as well as possible, we won’t be able to get the level of most micro-nutrients (vitamins and minerals) that the science shows we need. COOPER COMPLETE will help you solve that problem.
Another very important nutrient that most everyone, athletes included, could use more of are the omega 3 fatty acids, in particular EPA and DHA. These “essential” fats, which are found only in fish or in fish oil supplements, are critical for cardiovascular and brain health. They are also extremely beneficial for the eyes, immune system and have also been shown to reduce pain. There are now over 14,000 published scientific studies showing the benefits of EPA and DHA. The biggest problem is that the average American only consumes fish once every 11 days. Our recommended daily dose of EPA/DHA is between 1,000-2,000 mg.
Keep in mind that’s NOT 1,000-2,000 mg of “fish oil” but 1,000-2,000 mg of EPA and DHA. Most over-the-counter fish oil supplements offer only a 30% concentration of EPA/DHA. The higher quality fish oil supplements offer between a 50% and 60% concentration.
The Cooper Complete Advanced Omega-3 formula provides a 60% concentration of EPA/DHA in a deodorized form which eliminates any risk of “burp-backs.” It also is molecularly distilled no there is no risk whatsoever of mercury or PCB contamination.
Cooper Concepts, Inc., the company that distributes COOPER COMPLETE Nutritional Supplements, is delighted to have partnered with KGS Bikes. We are dedicated to providing the finest nutritional products in the world. With COOPER COMPLETE you will always know that the products are guaranteed for purity and potency. In other words, what it says on the bottle is exactly what’s inside the bottle. Dr. Cooper wouldn’t have it any other way.
KGS Bikes' customers receive a 10% discount on all COOPER COMPLETE products. When ordering online at www.coopercomplete.com, simply type “KGS” in the promotional code box during checkout. Your discount will be automatically calculated.
Should you have any questions regarding supplementation please feel free of contact me directly at twhitthorne@cooperwellness.com or at 972-560-2656.
Stay well!,
Todd Whitthorne
Cooper Concepts, Inc.
Whitthorne is the President and CEO of Cooper Concepts, Inc., a division of The Cooper Aerobics Center in Dallas. Todd holds a bachelor of science degree in kinesiology from U.C.L.A. He is also a member of the American College of Sports Medicine and is Chairman of the Our Kids’ Health Foundation.
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