Comments on: IRON AND ENDURANCE ATHLETES

By: Edie Bogdanski

Edie Bogdanski — Mon, 25 Jan 2010 09:28:18 +0000

I was looking for more personal opinions on this issue today when I came upon your really interesting blog post…thanks a million for sharing. I will surely be checking up on your blog and visiting again to read new articles.BTW since when have you been blogging?

By: Force Factor

Force Factor — Tue, 29 Dec 2009 15:48:46 +0000

well,this is awesome post. i have red your post. it was pretty good you have made some good points. thanks for sharing
regards,

By: Robert Kunz MS

Robert Kunz MS — Thu, 27 Aug 2009 17:28:11 +0000

Emma,
Consider using a source like Iron Amino Acid Chelate found in our MultiV and you may find the constipation to subside.
http://www.firstendurance.com/nutrition/control/product/~product_id=82005

By: Emma Harley

Emma Harley — Thu, 27 Aug 2009 08:10:36 +0000

This is very informative and goes some way to explaining my situation really being a marathon runner. What amazed me is why no-one picked up on the lack of iron and only did so after i’d been ‘drained’ through exercise. I too am supplementing with iron and my levels have come back up but now I have the added side effect of constipation, so i’ve adjusted my doses (as recommended by my nutritionist) and hopefully this will help to correct this.

Emma

By: Jeff Rocco

Jeff Rocco — Wed, 10 Dec 2008 20:02:49 +0000

Response to David’s Question:
David ,

Your Iron numbers look ok at first glance. The primary indicator for non-anemic iron deficiency is serum ferritin with a normal range of 10-200ng/ml. Yours is within that normal range. However, in the studies above, Brutsaert defined iron deficient as Ferritin<20mcg/L (equal to 200ng/ml), and Hinton defined iron deficient as Ferritin<16mcg/L. According to those definitions, you may be considered Iron deficient. In the studies by Brutsaert and Hinton, there was a significant improvement in muscular fatigue resistance and ventilatory threshold for athletes with ferritin levels in your range. Another clue to modestly low iron stores is your Total Iron Binding Capacity (TIBC) at the upper end of the normal range (“normal”=250-375 mcg/dl). A higher TIBC means that the body is “looking for iron” and looking to incorporate iron into bone marrow reticulocytes (immature red blood cells).

Looking at Bob Seebohar’s and my own personal experiences above, I believe that you could most likely benefit from Iron supplementation. The chelated Iron source in Multi-V is very well absorbed, and should be enough to top off your body’s iron stores.

Back to considering your cramps for a moment… Calcium and Magnesium are critical electrolytes for muscle function, and deficiencies can be responsible for cramping. Consider your electrolyte replacement beverage. Does it contain adequate Calcium and Magnesium? See

http://blog.firstendurance.com/2008/07/energy-and-electrolyte-drink-comparison/

MultiV contains Magnesium. EFS drink, bars, and liquid shot all contain significant levels of Calcium and Magnesium. Ultragen also has significant levels of Calcium and Magnesium.

Good Luck in your training, and let us know how you are doing in 6-8 weeks.

By: David

David — Tue, 09 Dec 2008 18:46:37 +0000

This is a fascinating article that relates to my training, but because of some of the subtleties and technicalities, I am not sure whether I need to take action. I have been training for half ironman events for 2 years. During several events, I had severe leg cramping during the run, so began to investigate potential causes. Although I am a heavy sweater, my coach and I thought that issue had been addressed through sports drinks and electrolyte replacement. To investigate more deeply, we examined a blood test taken in season, and also created a recent baseline test out of season. I am not suggesting that the iron levels have anything to do with the cramping, but that perhaps another issue exists which needs to be addressed. Because of the various measurements (iron, TIBC, transferrin saturation), it is unclear whether my iron levels would be considered “very low” and if so, what kind of supplement should be taken to remedy. Here are my baseline results:
Iron: 64 mcg/dl
TIBC: 309 mcg/dl
Transferring saturation: 21%
Ferritin: 129 ng/ml
The doctor thinks these levels are fine, but it is not clear he is taking into account my endurance training.

By: Bob Seebohar

Bob Seebohar — Fri, 12 Sep 2008 14:21:25 +0000

I thought I would let you in on a little experiment I did with myself.

I stopped taking the MultiV for 2 months and then had blood work done to test my ferritin levels (12/07). I then started taking MultiV (3 tabs per day) for 2 months and had my ferritin measured again (2/08). My initial ferritin reading was 49 and two months later it was 79!

The only factor that may have influenced this result on a small level was the fact that I was not training much the two weeks leading up to my second blood test due to being very sick.

However, even given that, this is a tremendous finding and support of the use of the MultiV, even though it was only an n of 1. My daily diet was very similar to what I normally do (I don’t stray too far from my norm) and I am a vegetarian.

By: Jeffrey Rocco

Jeffrey Rocco — Tue, 26 Aug 2008 18:22:51 +0000

I agree. Personally, I believe that the iron in MultiV has made a significant difference. I believe that I did have iron deficiency without anemia. Since using MultiV, I have experienced better energy levels for better training and racing. My wife has had a similar experience. As an example, last week at the Xterra Mountain regional championships, I improved my time 23 minutes over last year’s performance (on the same course). I took second place in the sport Clydesdale division. I had very good energy levels during the race, and at the end I felt very good–not depleted, and ready to go again.

By: Robert Kunz

Robert Kunz — Tue, 26 Aug 2008 14:27:48 +0000

Cindy,
Thank you for your comments on Iron and what you have experienced with MultiV. Low Ferritin levels seems to be more prevalent than the research suggests. We get many customers who start taking MultiV and immediately feel renewed energy which is likely driven by improvements in their Ferritin levels. Two members on our Endurance Research Board have both experienced these improvements, with one (Bob Seebohar) measuring significant increases in his Ferritin after only a couple weeks.

By: Cindy O'Reilly

Cindy O'Reilly — Mon, 25 Aug 2008 23:53:06 +0000

I started researching 1st Endurance because I found your last report on Iron and Endurance Athletes. That was a great report! I have been dealing with iron deficiency anaemia for almost one full year. It has not been an easy year. Training is very challenging. I discovered that your MultiV had Ferrochell in it. That was like discovering gold! I looked further into the products that 1st Endurance has to offer and was impressed with what I found. I started using MultiV and noticed my anaemia was having a positive reaction to the combination of products immediately. I am now recovering better as well. Even my labs show that my Ferritin is going up. I am very pleased. I just had a PR in my last race!
My concentration, energy and regular abilities to swim, bike, run, do yoga, walk, and just breathe are so much better now.
Thank you 1st Endurance!