Are Supplements Necessary for Triathletes and Endurance Athletes?
We all want a quick fix for our problems, the easy road. Unfortunately in life and sport, there are very few shortcuts. Although supplements have their place in a busy performance-based lifestyle for triathletes and endurance athletes, they cannot be the foundation on which an athlete or coach relies for progress. Supplements should never replace the fundamentals, specifically, good training, a strength routine, rest, and proper nutrition. If supplementation is used, it must be carefully tailored to meet the needs of the person and athlete. You should never just blindly follow the latest trend in sports media or chase supplement company marketing claims.
Lets Lay This Out:
The Performance Puzzle
Supplements can be a powerful tool in a triathlete or endurance athlete’s arsenal but should only be considered after first nailing the four basic pillars of performance:
A tailored endurance training program
An integrated and year-long strength regime
Consistent and appropriate nutrition and hydration habits
Sufficient recovery periods and quality sleep
Once these pillars are mastered and continuously applied until they are habitual, you can begin to think about how to use supplementation to elevate your performance. However, obsessing over details like supplementation can be a detriment to performance. You may lose focus on the more important basics by attempting to fill in gaps in your regime using supplements rather than nutrition or rest.
More often than not, the common biomarkers (Vitamin D, Testosterone, Ferritin, etc.) where we see athletes lag can be resolved using ‘natural’ methods, like stress reduction and better sleep. Long-term sustainable solutions are key, not a quick fix in the form of a pill you take with your cornflakes.
The Role of Supplements
Endurance athletes place a lot of stress on their bodies.Plus, a busy life filled with responsibilities ranging from long hours at the office to dealing with kids can make it difficult for the body to maintain optimal levels of some biomarkers. Supplements can come in handy in this context to patch up some weak spots in a time-starved lifestyle.
The road to recommending supplementation is a four-step process:
Stress Reduction: First, we examine the need for better sleep or a less demanding work schedule.
Training Load: Then, we look at your training load. Is it too high? Are there too many very taxing sessions?
Nutrition: A vital part of recovery and health is good food and sufficient hydration. Before recommending supplementation, we advise examining your diet and perhaps adding good staples like oatmeal or more veggies or increasing your fiber and protein intake.
Supplements: If despite having quality sleep, a reasonable training load, and proper nutrition habits, you still aren’t feeling fresh, we will consider recommending supplements.
Furthermore, regularly taking a supplement is no excuse to relax focus on the four pillars of performance. Supplementation should be woven into healthy habitual practices, not replace them. Supplements are by definition just that, supplements.
Assessing Personal Needs
Once the decision to supplement has been made, it is crucial to find the correct product that addresses your needs. It’s not just about taking a multi-vitamin. Additionally, every athlete is personally responsible for understanding the ethics and laws around Anti Doping rules. Therefore, we recommend checking and double-checking that any supplement you consider taking is labeled ‘NSF Certified for Sport®’ by the USDA.
There are several supplements that endurance athletes commonly take, but we at Purple Patch recommend utilizing periodic blood analysis to truly tailor to your specific needs. We recently partnered with Inside Tracker, a science-backed blood and DNA analysis company that provides peer-reviewed nutrition recommendations and habit change advice from longevity doctors and performance experts.
Having blood work done 3-4 times annually allows you to get information on your body’s needs and track progress as you incorporate positive habit changes. Inside Tracker utilizes a narrower window of acceptable biomarker standards than the medical community. This is because they are aiming for optimal levels, not just acceptable. For performance-driven individuals, optimization is always the goal.
Inside Tracker’s goal is not to recommend supplements. They are unaffiliated with any such brands. First and foremost, Inside Tracker will recommend habit and dietary adjustments. Supplementation will only be advised if absolutely necessary, and the suggestions will be specific and brief.
Although supplementation can be a part of the performance puzzle, you should never consider it the solution to all your problems. Supplements can be powerful tools if used appropriately and in tandem with the four pillars of performance. Also essential is the individual tailoring of the supplementation prescription. Supplementing with vitamins or minerals your body doesn’t require is useless. Be smart, stick to the basics, and use supplements only after exhausting ‘natural’ solutions.