Tips for The Low Carb Athlete Performance & Recovery

How are you improving your performance and recovery?

This past weekend, we finally had a mini-vacation hiking at Park City on the mountains …starting from our hotel back door!  We hiked a little longer each day, Thursday to Sunday, as the altitude started around 7000 ft. in Park City, Utah.

We did a short hike Thursday afternoon as we got used to the elevation and we drank extra electrolyte waters during the day and night time (LMNT salt packs).

Friday morning we waited for the weather to warm up and went to Whole Foods to get some breakfast- eggs and bacon (plus some kelp noodles, olives, cheese and beets.  I had some Kion Aminos and LMNT Salts in water before our hike plus Hammer Nutrition Race Caps.

Our Friday hike started around 11am and we started climbing up the mountain to the gondola base then around a big loop so we could do some trail running.  We ended up hiking and running about 4 hours before we took the gondola back down the mountain.  Fueling was two water bottles with LMNT salts.  I wasn’t hungry until we were done – around four hours of hiking as it is a fat burning activity for my body so my energy stayed up except the need for more sea salt water than we had available!

Saturday morning hike started from the base again (hotel) to the top around 8:40AM… this day we didn’t go out for breakfast but ate some mix nuts and gluten free almond pretzels that I picked up the day before at Whole Foods (so good!!) plus a cup of Nespresso coffee in our hotel room and LMNT with Kion Aminos in water before we started.  Again, we hiked around four hours with LOTS of elevation gained (peak almost at 10,000 ft!) and some trail running.  I didn’t get hungry- and great energy throughout hike.  We took the gondola back down the mountain after about four hours of total hiking (with a lodge stop around 10:15AM for rain delay!).

Sunday morning, we just had a cup of Nespresso and LNMT water then headed out early, 7:40 AM, for a short uphill hike and attempted to run back down switch backs before our flight home (10:30am departure to airport).  To add to our adventurous weekend, it rained hard Saturday night which left the dirt part of the trails very muddy and NO traction (especially in running shoes).  I had to “bear crawl” to the top of our hill climb up- as the last section was more mud than rocks and very steep then our descent back to the base was mostly steep muddy single track hills where I had to slide down and “reverse rock climb” to get down some sections.  Finally we could run towards the bottom part of the mountain!  We finished the morning off with breakfast at the hotel- eggs, bacon, potatoes and arugula greens.

What an adventure we had!  You can see my pictures and videos on my LOW CARB ATHLETE Instagram and Facebook page!

Next up- Fueling tips.

Training, Racing and Workout Performance Tips:

You should try taking…

1. Kion Aminos before or after workouts
2. Electrolytes before, during and after as RELTYE or LMNT SALTS– here is link to order on Amazon
3. Glycine amino acid post pre or post workout plus great before bed – Here is the one I use on Amazon
4. Use REAL SALT for minerals on food (not white salt) as https://redmond.life/pages/realsalt
5. Make sure you are taking essential fatty acids as Kion Omega or Cod Liver Oil
6. Magnesium- slow release as Jigsaw MagSRT or Bioptimizers Magnesium (great at night)
7. Athletic Greens: 75 Vitamins, Minerals and Whole Food Sourced Ingredients- one scoop with water per day

Here is the link for BiOptimizers website but look for my favorites:

1. Gluten Guardian
2. Mass Zymes for digestion
3. KAPEX for digestion, fat burn, and energy
4. Magnesium for everything and of course sleep

Here is the link for Jigsaw Health for other favorites:

1. Magnesium- slow release throughout the day
2. Electrolytes and vitamin mix “Pickleball Cocktail” and “Adrenal Cocktail”
3. Omega fatty acids

BiOptimizers:  Why Getting ALL 7 Forms of Magnesium Transforms Your Stress & Performance

One of the biggest misconceptions about magnesium is that you just “need more” of it and you’ll be healthy and optimized.

But the TRUTH is, there are many different types of magnesium — and each plays a critical role in different functions in your body.

Most “healthy” people only get 1-2 forms at best (much of the population is deficient in all forms) — but when you get all 7 major forms of magnesium, that’s when the magic happens.

• MAGNESIUM CHELATE:  This form of magnesium is especially important for muscle building, recovery, and health.
• MAGNESIUM CITRATE:  Helps with the effects of obesity. In fact, one study found that this form helped arterial stiffness in healthy overweight individuals.
• MAGNESIUM BISGLYCINATE:  Often used to treat symptoms of excess stomach acid, such as stomach upset, heartburn, and acid indigestion.
• MAGNESIUM MALATE: Some believe this to be the most bioavailable form of magnesium. It’s found naturally in fruits, giving them a “tart taste.”   Magnesium Malate can help with migraines, chronic pain, and depression.
• MAGNESIUM SUCROSOMIAL:  This form of magnesium helps you to effectively produce energy. It also supports the immune system and is critical for bone health and skeletal development.
• MAGNESIUM TAURATE:  This is the form of magnesium best for your heart.  One study noted: “The complex magnesium taurate may thus have considerable potential as a vascular-protective nutritional supplement.”
• MAGNESIUM OROTATE:  While also helpful for the heart, magnesium orotate is believed to be the best form for metabolic improvements.  This makes it a favorite for athletes seeking enhanced recovery, energy and performance.
• Getting ALL of these forms of magnesium, in the optimum dose, upgrades virtually every function in your body.  

Learn more on the benefits of Magnesium from BiOptimizers:  Magnesium Breakthrough Benefits

1. Promotes Heart Health

   Magnesium is extremely important for heart health^[2] and blood vessel health. Magnesium deficiency seems to worsen the inflammation, blood vessel constriction, blood clotting, and stress responses that trigger heart conditions. Correcting deficiency appears to improve heart health and reduces risk of deaths, although it is unclear whether supplementation alone is sufficient to treat these conditions.

2. Improves the Ability to Deal With Stress and Helps to Relax

   A magnesium supplement significantly reduced stress^[3] in people who are deficient in magnesium. Also, combined^[4] with vitamin B6 was 40% more helpful than alone for severe stress. Findings support the need for magnesium supplementation for people living in conditions of chronic stress.^[5]

3. Helps With Mood, Cognitive Function, and Mental Health

   A magnesium supplement significantly improved^[6] mood^[7] after 2 weeks. Another trial found that magnesium supplements improved^[8] mood in seniors with type 2 diabetes.

4. Promotes Healthy Blood Sugar Hormone Function And Promotes Healthy Metabolism

   Magnesium is important for hormones that regulate blood sugar^[9] to function well. Therefore, many people with blood sugar issues,^[10] metabolic syndrome, and diabetes are deficient in magnesium. Even when diabetes^[11] is well-controlled, a supplement would still be necessary to achieve healthy levels. In a clinical trial involving 65 diabetes patients, magnesium supplementation promotes healthy function^[12] and metabolism.

   A large-scale systematic and dose-response analysis found that magnesium supplementation correlated with reduced body weight^[13] and waist circumference among specific groups of people. Those with resistance, hypertension, obesity, magnesium deficiency, and women seem to weigh less and had smaller waist circumference if they took magnesium supplements.

   In pregnant women with gestational diabetes^[14], magnesium supplementation improved blood glucose control and pregnancy outcomes.

5. Supports exercise performance and recovery

   Magnesium supplementation improves speed and strength,^[15] possibly by making glucose metabolism more efficient. It also supports the necessary stress response to exercise, reduces muscle damage,^[16] and improves exercise recovery (400 mg/day, taken at breakfast).

6. Improves Sleep Quality

   In a small clinical trial involving 46 elderly subjects with insomnia,^[17] 500 mg of daily magnesium supplement reduced insomnia scores, sleep latency, and cortisol. Subjects also had more serum melatonin, slept deeper, and were less likely to wake up in the middle of the night.

7. Builds Stronger Bones

   Magnesium is a key building blocks of your bones.^[18] Magnesium deficiency can contribute to osteoporosis by:

   • preventing healthy bone formation, creating brittle bones
   • causing low-grade inflammation
   • increasing cortisol, which can contribute to bone loss
   • reducing parathyroid hormone

   In a clinical trial^[19] involving 73,684 postmenopausal women, low magnesium intake was associated with lower bone density in the hip and whole body. Magnesium intake slightly higher than the Recommended Dietary Allowance was associated with lower arm and wrist factures from falling.

8. Promotes Healthy Blood Pressure

   A meta-analysis of 34 randomized control trials found that magnesium reduced blood pressure.^[20] However, the effect size is clinically small (<2 mmHg). Therefore, it may be good for supporting overall health and healthy blood pressure, but you may also need other interventions to achieve healthy blood pressure levels.

9. Promotes Balanced and Healthy Immune System

   Magnesium deficiency^[21] increases inflammation.^[22] In a meta-analysis^[23] involving 32,198 people, those with more magnesium had less serum C-reactive protein (a marker of inflammation).

   Overall, magnesium deficiencies tend to exacerbate or increase the risk of conditions that involve chronic inflammation.^[24]

10. Supports Vitamin D Activation and Metabolism

    Both Vitamin D and magnesium have important roles in bone health, immune function, and metabolism. Magnesium is a cofactor in vitamin D conversion and activation.^[25] Some people cannot increase their blood 25-hydroxy vitamin D levels despite supplementing with vitamin D3 because they are deficient. In other words, magnesium deficiency can make vitamin D ineffective.

    Also, in people deficient, high doses of vitamin D3 could worsen magnesium deficiency and increase the potential for side effects of vitamin D3, such as having calcium deposits in the arteries

Are you curious about your health to improve performance and longevity?

Schedule a consultation with me, Coach Debbie, to learn about how you can get a personalized “The WHOLESTIC Method” program created for your needs, goals and “areas of opportunities”.

Chat soon,

The WHOLESTIC Method Coach,

Debbie Potts