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Supplements for Long Distance Runs- What is Doc Taking?

Updated: Aug 31, 2023


**Transcript**

Hey Dr. McNamara here and I'm about to go on my long run for this week today. The run is going to be about 16 to 18 miles. And for this run, I'm going to be wearing

my Illinois Spina Bifida Association Jersey so I can represent. And today I want to talk about a question

I get often which is do I take any supplements before my run to help my performance as well as that post recovery.


And the answer is, yes, I do take supplements. I take some every single day because they're more effective that way and they support my overall health. Some supplements I just take for the run because they're going to help my performance as well as that post recovery. And I'm going to show you guys which one is, which and I'll leave information below in the description, so you guys can find these products and possibly use them in the future.


So here are the supplements I take and if you cut a line down the middle, this is the stuff I take every day and this is the stuff I just take for the long runs as well as other exercises to help with my performance.


So, let me start with what I took first in the morning and that is a little bit of Himalayan pink salt, and some creatine monohydrate now, creatine monohydrate is one of the most well studied performance-enhancing supplements. It's used in energy systems and there's also been some evidence that it helps with cognition. I take that with the pink Himalayan salt because it helps with the absorption of that as well as pink Himalayan salt.


Also being an important part of nerve conduction so it's going to help my nervous system as well as perform those activities. I also take some Tonkat Ali, this is to help support my testosterone because when you're training this hard and when you get to a very lean body mass level, it may be hard to support your testosterone. And I also take some Fadogia Agrestis because that also helps support that testosterone.


Omega monopure I take this supplement, this is a EPA dominant and this is good for the cardiovascular system and it's going to support you know, healthy cholesterol and help fatty acids in the body, I take an iron glycinate because my last blood test showed that I was a little bit low in iron and when you're trying this hard, that is pretty common thing. So I just take the iron just to make sure I touch bases with that. I love this supplement. This is my Mitocore, this is kind of like a multivitamin that supports the mitochondria of our cells.


If you can remember from high school biology class, the mitochondria is the Powerhouse of the cells. So it's kind of like our battery pack. So you want to keep those healthy in order

to support. Energy in the body. And then I also take this ashwagandha, ashwagandha

is an adaptogen and it helps the body deal with stress essentially. And there's also some evidence that it can help support testosterone. So, I've been taking this and this is also

been very helpful.


Alright, so now for the supplements that I just take for the exercise and performance and I'm going to start with the essential amino acids as well as electrolytes powder. That I really like, I love this because it's got essential amino acids which as they say, they're essential to the body plus it's got those electrolytes.


So it helps me absorb more water helps nerve function and keeps me hydrated throughout my workouts. I also take this beet juice, I really like this stuff. So beet juice has been shown to be a Potent, nitric oxide activator. So I've been taking this because nitric oxide in the body is going to cause vasodilation which is going to allow more blood to reach the cells.


So we get more oxygen delivered so we can help produce more energy going along with that beet juice, as a nitric oxide, precursor to help the cardiovascular system. Another couple supplements that I like to take is the CitraNox which is citrulline and this N.O. max which is Arginine.


Now, arginine is the precursor to nitric oxide which is going to help vasodilate and interestingly Citroen AX is actually been shown to increase more endogenous Arginine. So I just take both of these just to really cover my bases, just to make sure that I'm getting enough nitric oxide to support my body during exercise.


Now for the last couple supplements that I take the, this one right here is ultra Alpha GPC.

Now, this is an acetylcholine precursor and what is really cool about this is that it can cross the blood-brain barrier very easily and readily and it's going to help with cognition and focus. And I find it very helpful to take this before my long runs because it does really help kind of focus you in and dial you in.


And then last but not least is the SynovX This is a joint pain relief formula. That is very, very effective. Generally, I try not to use this if I don't have to, but if I'm feeling a little bit sore before the run, I have a little bit joint pain. I'll take one and oftentimes after the run, I'll be very much in a little bit of joint pain. So I'll take some after just to kind of mitigate the inflammation response and keep that controlled.


So that answers the question on what supplements I'm taking on a daily basis, as well as the supplements that I like to take to help my performance as well as post recovery. So, I hope that you guys enjoyed this video and that you learned a little bit of something from it.

If you have any questions, just leave a comment below and we'll be sure to answer those other than that.


All right, so I got done with the long run. It was tough, it was very hot out, lost a

lot of water, lost a lot of sweat. And when you lose sweat you lose a lot of

minerals. So the last thing I like to do to finish off after a long run, is have a little LMTE Throw

it in some water anywhere from 16 to 32 ounces. I prefer 20, I like that flavor ratio, so that's just going to replenish me and make me feel better.


Good work.

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