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Threshold Performance Club | The fitness newsletter
Threshold #25 | These drugs enhance performance.
Robert Hester
April 30, 2023
This week the triathlon world got rocked by EPO.
Collin Chartier, elite Ironman athlete & winner of the 2022 US Open admitted to juicing with EPO last year and has been handed a 3 year ban.
Erythropoietin is one of the famous drugs Lance Armstrong admitted to taking. It’s main benefit is increasing red-blood cell production.
Don’t do illegal drugs, they can be dangerous.
But there are legal supplements.
So what are they?
The Main Feature
Leg one: What is EPO
Erythropoietin, or EPO for short, is a hormone produced naturally in the kidneys. It stimulates the production of red blood cells in the bone marrow, which in turn regulates the oxygen-carrying capacity of blood. EPO is also used medically to treat certain types of anemia, especially in people with kidney disease or undergoing chemotherapy.
However, EPO has gained notoriety in the sports world as a performance-enhancing drug. Endurance athletes such as long-distance runners, cyclists, and cross-country skiers have been known to use EPO to gain an unfair advantage over their competitors. By increasing the number of red blood cells, EPO can help athletes deliver more oxygen to their muscles, improving their endurance and reducing fatigue. However, using EPO in sports is illegal and unethical. It provides an unfair advantage and can have serious health risks, such as blood clots, strokes, and heart attacks.
You want the science? Ok.
Erythropoietin (EPO) is a (glyco)protein that is mainly involved in erythropoiesis, the (re-)generation of erythrocytes, or red blood cells. Red blood cells are cells without a nucleus that transport oxygen through the blood. Owing to a lack of ability to repair themselves without a nucleus and other cellular machinery, erythrocytes have a lifespan of approximately 120 days in the circulation and after that need to be replaced 2. The spleen removes the old erythrocytes (2–3 million every second) and, to keep the oxygen-carrying capacity of the blood at a steady level, constant erythropoiesis is necessary 2. Erythropoiesis starts in the bone marrow, where red blood cells originate from pluripotent stem cells 3. These stem cells continuously make identical copies of themselves and, in that way, create progenitor cells for, among others, erythrocytic cells 3. These cells go through different stages, one of which is the burst-forming unit-erythroid. This cell type matures into a colony-forming unit-erythroid (CFU-E), which in turn forms the proerythroblast, which divides four times into 16 reticulocytes, later developing into mature red blood cells 3.
T-1: Mental Preparation
If you believe in what you’re doing, you will feel more confident. For example with supplements, they may not make a 10% improvement to your performance, but the belief they give you may be worth it.
Leg 2: The legal drugs: Creatine & CBD
Creatine is thought to improve strength, increase lean muscle mass, and help the muscles recover more quickly during exercise. It works by increasing the availability of phosphocreatine in the muscles. Phosphocreatine is a molecule that is used to produce ATP, the primary energy source for muscle contractions. By increasing the availability of phosphocreatine, creatine supplementation can help athletes perform more high-intensity exercise before experiencing fatigue. Creatine is particularly effective in sports that require short, intense bursts of activity, such as sprinting, weightlifting, and football. It has been shown to improve power output, increase muscle strength, and reduce fatigue during high-intensity exercise. But be aware that while creatine is generally considered safe when used as directed, it can cause side effects such as gastrointestinal upset and dehydration, particularly if not consumed with adequate water.
Maybe you want to explore CBD instead?
Research suggests that CBD, or cannabidiol, shows promise in helping relieve pain and reduce inflammation. It is a naturally occurring compound found in the cannabis plant. Unlike THC, another compound found in cannabis, CBD does not have psychoactive effects and is not associated with a "high."
In recent years, CBD has gained popularity as a potential treatment for various medical conditions, including pain, anxiety, and sleep disorders. Some athletes have also started to use CBD as a way to manage pain and inflammation, reduce anxiety and stress, and improve sleep quality, all of which can be beneficial for high performance sports. It is thought to work by interacting with the body's endocannabinoid system, which plays a role in regulating pain, inflammation, and other physiological processes. By modulating the activity of the endocannabinoid system, CBD may help to reduce pain and inflammation, promote relaxation and stress relief, and improve sleep quality.
T-2: Gear to change into
Shop natural supplements formulated to enhance performance:
🌱💊 542 Performance Nutrition Daily Green’s ultimate super greens capsules are a perfect blend of superfoods, vitamins, minerals and wholefood-sourced ingredients enhancing your immune system to help you perform in training.
🍄 542 Performance Nutrition Mushroom+ capsules are single-ingredient, high-strength mushroom supplements, helping you deliver energy to your body for training.
💪 542 Performance Nutrition Marine Collagen is the highest quality, and most bioavailable source of collagen available, helping to provide structural integrity to joints and bones.
💤 542 Performance Nutrition Ashwagandha+ (KSM66) is formulated with Cordyceps & Ginseng to help combat stress and adrenal fatigue, while also supporting the immune system, energy levels & mental performance.
🏋️♂️ 542 Performance Nutrition Plant Protein delivers 17g of premium vegan protein per serving with just 1.5g of carbs, 88 calories & no artificial sweeteners.
🏋️♂️ 542 Performance Nutrition Whey Protein delivers 22g of premium whey protein per serving with just 1.2g of carbs, 108 calories & no artificial sweeteners.
Leg 3: Implement supplements into your training
The use of supplements can be a helpful tool to support high performance training in athletes, but it is important to approach their use carefully and under the guidance of a healthcare professional. Here are some general guidelines for implementing supplements in a high-performance training program:
Establish a Solid Foundation: Before considering the use of supplements, it's essential to have a solid foundation of a balanced diet that provides all the necessary nutrients to support your training. A balanced diet should include nutrient-dense foods such as lean proteins, complex carbohydrates, healthy fats, and a variety of fruits and vegetables. Additionally, it's important to stay well-hydrated by drinking water and other fluids throughout the day.
Identify Specific Goals: Different supplements can support various aspects of high-performance training, such as increasing energy, improving endurance, building muscle, and reducing inflammation. Identifying your specific goals and consulting with a healthcare professional or a sports dietitian can help determine which supplements may be appropriate for your needs. It's important to choose supplements that have evidence-based research to support their effectiveness.
Monitor Results and Be Aware of Potential Side Effects: It's important to monitor the results of using supplements to ensure that they're achieving the desired effect. Keep track of any changes in performance, body composition, and overall health. It's also crucial to be aware of potential side effects that may occur with the use of supplements. For example, some supplements may cause gastrointestinal distress, interact with medications, or have adverse effects when taken in excessive amounts. It's essential to follow the recommended dosage instructions and avoid taking more than the recommended dose.
Overall, implementing supplements into high-performance training should be done with caution and under the guidance of a healthcare professional or a sports dietitian. A balanced diet and proper hydration should always be the foundation of any high-performance training program, and supplements should be used to complement a healthy lifestyle, not replace it.
Remember, don’t do EPO.
So that’s more on legal performance enhancing supplements.
Aid station: Listen as you recover
Coaches Corner
Change one thing at a time to understand its effect on your body. With supplements this becomes all the more important. Some may help you, others may not. Add one at a time.
WOTW: Workout of the week
This swim workout is designed for intermediate swimmers looking to improve their endurance and speed. The main set includes a combination of distance and interval training to challenge the swimmer's aerobic and anaerobic systems.
Warm-up:
200 meters freestyle swim at an easy pace
4x50 meters kick with a kickboard, alternating between flutter kick and dolphin kick
Main set:
4x200 meters freestyle swim at a moderate pace, with 30 seconds rest between each set
8x50 meters sprint swim at maximum effort, with 20 seconds rest between each set
4x100 meters freestyle swim at a fast pace, with 20 seconds rest between each set
4x50 meters pull buoy swim at a moderate pace, with 15 seconds rest between each set
4x25 meters underwater dolphin kick, with 30 seconds rest between each set
Cool down:
200 meters easy-paced freestyle swim
4x50 meters easy-paced swim, alternating between freestyle and backstroke strokes
In this workout, the swimmer will use a combination of freestyle, kick, and pull buoy swim to improve their endurance and speed. The main set includes interval training with sprints and fast-paced swims, which will challenge the swimmer's anaerobic system. The cool down allows for a gradual reduction of intensity and helps to prevent muscle soreness. It is recommended to track distance and time using a swim watch or app to monitor progress over time.
Finishing line: Races next week
Tweet-athlon
Chartier suspended from PTO and removed from rankings. Confirmation he was tested before and after US Open in September and results were negative for EPO.
— Tim Heming (@Timheming)
7:42 AM • Apr 28, 2023
MemeOTW
Thank you for reading this weeks newsletter.
You can keep up with us daily on Instagram here and follow my (Robert, triathlete - Ironman 70.3 athlete) Strava here.
Currently training for Ironman Staffordshire in June.
DM me on Instagram personally if you're London based - we're always out for group runners & rides. Connect here.