How To Supplement Like A Champ (with Lyme Disease or Without!)

I’m coming up on three weeks up here in Colorado Springs.  Training has been better than I ever thought was possible. I’m no stranger to altitude, but the last time was 5 years ago (pre Lyme crash). I think there are several reasons why everything is going so well. 

 One is that I didn’t just spend a number of years getting over Lyme Disease, I spent those years getting over ALL of my health issues, no matter how small. Like most people with Lyme, it’s never just about Lyme. The breakdown occurs because the body is being bombarded by too many negative issues. I’ve repaired all of them, systematically.

 The second reason for success so far is that I’m being a real stickler about my diet. Okay, I guess you could say totally anal-retentive and slightly obsessive.  I’m taking notes on how much protein I eat everyday, what kinds of protein, what kind of grains, a large assortment of vegetables (only ones that are IN SEASON), making sure my meat and eggs are local and if not, at least hormone free. All of this really adds up. Sure, it may not be the cure to Lyme, but it starts with what you consume. So if you can’t find the will power to change your diet, you’ll be in the deep end for a very long time, if not indefinitely. I apologize for being so direct about it.

 The third thing is that I’m anal-retentive about supplementing. I know what I need and when I need it.  I brought with me my aloe, my taste sensitive electrolytes, my taste sensitive minerals, my smell sensitive vitamins, a few different oils, in case I come into contact with Swine Flu, branched chain amino acids, creatine, glutamine and Siberian ginseng (just so I can adapt to the altitude quicker).

 * After a hill workout at 6400 feet. Still trying frequency (notice necklace and there is a card over my heart. See the outline of it on my chest).

 Mineral Recap

 Oddly enough I don’t need my minerals this week. In fact, they tasted horrible, so I stopped taking them. This is really the first time that so many of the minerals (in the 6 essential mineral kit) taste bad. I’ve officially been on these minerals since mid 2008. I had some weeks where I didn’t need a certain mineral and because I could taste how bad it was, I could easily stop taking that specific one.

 So I’m thinking this has happened for two reasons. One because of the minerals in the tap water in CO Springs I could be getting certain minerals I wasn’t back in South Carolina OR the other reason could be that I finally have fully replaced any deficiency that I had of these essential minerals.  In any case, I’m ecstatic about it. Too many illnesses, like Lyme, take advantage of mineral deficiencies and this is something that’s very easy to have ( I would say every person in the U.S. has at least one type of mineral deficiency, but usually these things go hand in hand with other deficiencies.)

 Vitamin Recap

 As far as the essential vitamins go, this varies, because some vitamins are water-soluble and some aren’t. Some vitamins, like D, you can store up easier, but ones like B vitamins, C, etc. you can use those up quite quickly (especially if you are sick). It’s always a good deal to smell what you need so that you don’t get hypervitaminosis (this is a real thing by the way). Some people actually get sick from taking too much of supplements THEY DON’T NEED.

 I’ve been taking quite a bit of Vitamin D right now. The kit is letting me know I need it, so I have been taking therapeutic doses of it here when it smells good. There was a cold snap last week. The high on Saturday was 19 degrees and with the weather change and the training I could tell in my throat I was about to get really ill. I had just come back from the gym (the greatest place on earth to get the COLD or FLU). Sometimes it really angers me to see people working out with a full blown cold or flu, but it happens!

 Long story short; crisis adverted. It took less than 24hrs to snap out of it with extra D and one day of rest.

 Electrolyte Recap

 And as far as the electrolytes go, it varies. Because it’s cold, I’m making lots of bone-stock soups which provide electrolytes in the most natural form…but even so I will have days where I’m very stressed out physically and the taste sensitive electrolytes taste salty and thick (the indication that I need to take them).  So I take them when I taste test them and need them. So simple… right? 

 Just a few weeks ago my friend and I were climbing this crazy mountain trail called “The Incline”- She takes a lot of aspirin and if you’ve been getting my newsletter you know that any type of medication will screw up your electrolyte imbalance and can make you feel awful. It’s not particularly warm here, but she felt quite sick after the hike up. When we got back and after we ate, she still felt bad. I made her take the electrolytes and all of that dizziness/ill feeling went away.  If you’re on meds, then you must balance your electrolytes!

* The view from the top of The Incline at 9300 feet. Want to keep up with my crazy training and racing, go to www.PerryFields.com

Misc Supplements

As far as glutamine and creatine, most people don’t need this. These are really athlete type supplements. Glutamine is an amino acid and it helps your muscles recover from exercise. That’s why most people take it.

 Creatine is awesome. It actually occurs naturally in our bodies. It helps supply energy to muscles and helps the recovery process (from training) as well. Creatine is synthesized from a few different amino acids.   The only downside to creatine is if you take too much of it, you can get cramps…everywhere! I made this mistake once. I took too much and didn’t take enough water with it. BAD IDEA. You have to be careful with it. It could be used for muscle conditions like neuromuscular disorders or arthritis. So far mostly athletes use it and I haven’t heard of too many people using it for ailments.

 Siberian ginsing is a great adaptogen! There are several herbs that help your body cope with stress. This is one of them. My body is under tremendous stress from the training here, but I’ve been taking this herb (as a tincture) to help my body cope instead of blowing a fuse. 

 ** I want to talk about using adaptogens in full detail in an upcoming newsletter- so stay tune! There are lots of different kinds.

 The aloe is important for me to keep taking. As an athlete and not a person with Lyme anymore, I still am still subjecting my body to inflammation because I’m working out hard.

  Inflammation can damage everything. Some people (including doctors) think every illness is inflammation related. So this is my little saying: Inflammation= Death.  Actually it leads to degenerative conditions…which is DEATH ultimately…like a slow death really.  You do not want inflammation in your body ever! So I continue to take aloe (usually with my supplements to increase absorption power of the supplements). And I feel great even after all this barbaric exercising.

  Well…my test of health here is basically not just my newfound ability to run faster and lift more. It’s the fact that my appetite is so good because when you are sick and tired (from daily life or exercising or whatever), or if you’ve lost your appetite, that’s really a very bad indication. Sure emotions can get in the way of healthy calorie intake, but that’s not the issue. When there aren’t any emotions getting in the way, you might be very ill.

 The other indication is your ability to recover. I may be slamming workouts here, but I wouldn’t keep slamming them if I wasn’t waking up every morning recovered from the previous day.

 If you’re on that endless cycle of getting up in the morning and feeling BAD or feeling exhausted, then you aren’t recovering.  Of course, poor sleep could be an issue, but if you sleep well (and hard) and get up tired then you could be quite sick.

 Those are probably the two simplest ways of understanding how well you really are.

 *Another interesting self-test is how well your solar plexus feels. This is actually very interesting so stay tune!

 You probably know of someone who wanted to run a marathon or tried to run a marathon or is training for a marathon.  Many people believe this is the ultimate self test and while people get all excited about finishing a marathon, it makes me realize that most people don’t really know what the human body is capable of. Doctors don’t know, the general population doesn’t know, scientists don’t know. The smart ones will tell you, it’s limitless. I think it’s a fantastic achievement to run a marathon, so don’t get me wrong. However, running a marathon is just the beginning of what most people are truly capable.

 People laugh when I say a woman is going to break 4 minutes soon (and not the hermaphrodite or steroid type) …probably within the next 5 to 10 years.  Honestly, I’m hoping it’s me.  Perhaps I’ve made the first step to actually believing that’s going to happen.

 Does anyone remember when the first 4 minute mile was broken? Did you know that about 16 other men broke it right after? Why? Because they finally believed that it was possible!

 Now think about that for a while…………………

 Expect the Best,

 Perry