A Car Accident Left Me With Compression Fractures

I have been running competitively since I was 8 years old, and involved in triathlon since I was 11.  It is a sport that I love because there is always potential to improve.  I was recruited out of high school to run at a state university, where in the first month of training I was involved in a car accident that left me with compression fractures in my back and contusions on my heart and kidneys.  The doctors told me that my days as a competitive athlete were over, while they handed me a bottle of pain killers.  Devastated, I accepted my fate without question.  Four years later, after gaining over sixty pounds, I was diagnosed with Ulcerative Colitis and desperately wanted to get back into shape.  Through a few years of training again I started to see my times and performances resemble those of middle of the pack runners within my age group, but I was unable to resume to my days of running up in the front of my age group.  I continued my training, trying new approaches, new equipment, new supplements, none of which seemed to improve my performances, none of which worth the ridiculous price tags they came with, and many of them hindering my training due to their effect on my Ulcerative Colitis.  I continued in frustration, not willing to let go of my hopes to be up front, setting goals that I believed could be obtained with the proper discipline.  In the fall of 2009, during the Cross Country season (I coach high school Cross Country and Track) I was gaining significant ground when I was introduced to a new product that came to me risk free in a sample packet, Extreme Endurance.  I saw my fitness sore; I was working harder, running faster, and recovering in time to put in another hard day, day after day.  After a few very solid races, in which I ran faster than I had in years, the season ended and I chalked my success up to my hard work.  I did not reorder, as I believed Extreme Endurance was not the primary reason for my improvements.  Two and a half short months later my goal race came around, PF Chang’s Rock and Roll Marathon, at which I performed 30minutes slower than the target pace I had set (3:00.00 goal).  A miserable performance that made me question what had changed from November to January.  I reordered Extreme Endurance, I needed to know how much effect this product was having.  Once again, my training magically improved (true, I wanted to redeem myself but these were extraordinary workouts).  I signed up for a ½ Marathon in Prescott, AZ, The Whisky Row, which is known as a challenging race due to its elevation increase (from 5,000 to nearly 7,000) which would occur on May first.  After four months of solid training with the assistance of Extreme Endurance, I ran hoping to finish with a time of 1:35 or better, figuring that would translate into a 3 hour marathon on flatter terrain and lower elevation.  I smashed my goal, running 1:28.18 and finishing 6^th overall, and 2^nd in my age group.  It was and awesome feeling, KNOWING that I still have opportunities to compete, something I had missed for so long, knowing that with the right recovery I can continue to elevate my training with less risk of injury and fitness to gain, KNOWING that there is a product out there that is designed for athletes like me, that help to provide that opportunity.  I woke up the next morning with no post-race soreness or discomfort, just as had been my experience during the hard workouts I put in during the lead up to the race.  I am very grateful to have happened upon this product, it has given me back some confidence and re-energized my approach to training and racing, it has been the only product that I can firmly say does what it claims without irritating my Ulcerative Colitis. It is also in my teacher/coach budget which is more than any other product I have tried can say.  I recommend the product to anyone serious about making that next jump, get beyond your plateau by using a product designed to continuously aide you to the next level, you won’t regret it.  I will be toeing the Marathon line again in January, so watch out you 35-40 year-old age groupers, I’m coming!

Thanks again, Happy Training

Geoff Johnson – - Glendale, AZ

 

Pro-Cycling News

These aren’t magical little beans that will turn you into a Euro Pro – you still need to put the miles in – but they will decrease lactic acid build-up, therefore allowing you to train at a higher intensity for longer…

I am a little wary as I begin to write this review. I’ve written many before as part of my job as a cycling journalist, so it’s nothing to do with nerves or trepidation.

It’s because I want to keep these little pills all to myself…

I race for the Fuji-Asia team on the UCI Asia Tour, so the racing is quite intense. I’ve also been working full-time since May, so my 20-24 hour a week training schedule has gone out the window, the net result of which is a shorter, more intense training routine. Until I got a hold of the Extreme Endurance pills, I was finding my legs tired and heavy throughout the week, and as a result the quality of my training suffered.

Initially skeptical, I decide to take the pills for just one week, to see if there would be any difference. But after just 4 days, on my usual hill-repeat course, I noticed a complete lack of burn in my legs.

The next day I headed out early to do a 50 kilometer loop on which I do a hard time trial ride – again, no burn, even up the last little 3 km climb to the finish.

After these two hard rides I felt no significant tiredness or ache in my legs, and generally a higher level of energy through the day. The improved rate of recovery was very important for me, as my tight schedule meant that I had to maximize my time on the bike and recovery The Extreme Endurance pills really helped me to do this.

These aren’t magical little beans that will turn you into a Euro Pro – you still need to put the miles in – but they will decrease lactic acid build-up, therefore allowing you to train at a higher intensity for longer.

This year I’ve racked up some good wins and seem to have gotten over the cramping problems I had last year too -  whether that’s due to the Extreme Endurance pills or not I don’t know, but I suspect so.

Without doubt, this is best supplement I have ever tried. Just keep that to yourself…

~~~~

You can find more information and purchase Extreme Endurance at a 20% discount at this link: http://xendurance.com/dailypeloton/ or by clicking on the advertisement at the top of the Daily Peloton page.

Full disclosure: The Daily Peloton will receive a commission on sales of this product that will support the website and staff.  The review above is as stated by Lee Rogers. Lee has been one of our staff writers for the past six months who signed his neo pro contract this year. I asked Lee and to test and review the product and give an honest appraisal of the results. I also checked with a long time friend and coach who I trust; who told me, “this stuff is the real deal, it works. I use it and distribute it to my clients. I would recommend it.”

I’ll look forward to your comments on the product in the future if you choose to purchase and use it.

Thanks, Vaughn Trevi -  publisher Daily Peloton

Austria Powerman in Weyer

Extreme Endurance was at Austria Powerman in Weyer last weekend. It was a hot and successful even for the queen and the king of Zofingen 2008 as they dominated the Powerman Austria Duathlon. The Hungarian Erika Csomor and the Swiss Andy Sutz won in Weyer. For Csomor it was already the third victory in Austria, for Sutz it was the first one. In the women’s race the Swiss Jacqueline Uebelhart became second and therefore celebrates a marvellous warm-up for the Powerman Duathlon World Championships in Zofingen on the 5th of September 2010. - Powerman Austria www.powerman.at / Raphael Galliker

“I’m done but I’m very happy! I’ve never thought that I could make it for such a clear victory”, said Andy Sutz with a big smile after the finishing line. The 29-year-old from Schaffhouse was talking about a hard race. “On the running-track I had problems with my legs. When I became reported, that I had such a big lead, I could relax and go slower a bit.” The winner of the Powerman Zofingen 2008 dominated the race in Weyer from the beginning.

Erika Csomor, the Powerman Queen, handled the high temperatures best. The 36-year-old Hungarian lady won after 2001 and 2004 for the third time in Austria.

She left Jacqueline Übelhart 107 seconds behind her. The 35-year-old from Aarwangen/BE shows up in a great form. “When I realized the strong starting field I wanted to finish within the top-five”, said Übelhart. On the race-track she felt very good and everything went on plan. After 15,6 K running and 82,4 K on the bike Csomor and Übelhart where still together in the lead. “I lost the 107 seconds on the last running section which was 7,3 K”, said Übelhart who had celebrated her so far biggest victory at the Powerman Memorial Benny Vansteelant on the 6th of June 2010 in Torhout/BEL. “This second place here in Weyer is very nice as well”, so Übelhart who even could have won in Weyer. “I could have gone faster on the bike but I didn’t dare to overtake Erika Csomor.” Übelhart had no problems with the hot weather. “If there’s gone be a similar situation on the 5th of September in Zofingen, I’m taking my chance and I’ll go faster on the bike than Erika Csomor.” That means: Übelhart is ready for the Powerman Duathlon World Championships in Zofingen. Before she goes back home to Aarwangen she will celebrated her success in Weyer. “Im going to have a holdrio and a few beers now!” By the way: Third place in Weyer went to the 44-year-old Michelle Parsons from Great Britain.
Text: Raphael Galliker

Overview of the Results

POWERMAN Austria 2010 men

1. Sutz Andy (SUI) 3:34:05
2. Bauer Sigi (AUT) +9:25
3. Prungraber Karl (AUT) +10:26
4. Neyrinck Jochen (BEL) + 10:41
5. Baumann Jonas (SUI) +14:16
6. Vaughan David (IRL) +16:42
7. Wrzaczek Stefan (AUT) +18:46
8. Le Duey Anthony (FRA) +21:41
9. Goncalves Paulo (LUX) +23:51
10. Kleber Andreas (AUT) +24:02

POWERMAN Austria 2010 women

1. Csomor Erika (HUN) 4:14:12
2. Übelhart Jacqueline (SUI) +1:47
3. Parsons Michelle (GBR) +5:13
4. Ussher Elina (FIN) +10:53
5. Beck Victoria (NZL) +11:16
6. Rechberger Daniela (AUT) +19:31

Petr Vabrousek wins Half Ironman Trisport Days Trebon

Congrats to Extreme Endurance athlete Petr Vabrousek for his win at the Half Ironman Trisport Days Trebon.

This is what he had to say about the race, “Great new venue, very hot weather. Felt fully recovered after Copenhagen and went on strong in all 3 parts.”

Training for Hawaii Ironman

My preparation for Hawaii is going very well.
I was able to train more hours than ever before in my life and I feel great I think, no I know, extreme endurance helps me a lot to recover faster
and to train more and harder.

Together with my coach and boyfriend Juergen, I spend some days in the
mountains in Switzerland. There we had perfect conditions and we were able
to climb real high mountains with our bikes (like Mount Lemon).

On 5th of September we will fly to Lanzarote.
This Spanish island is very similar to Hawaii. It’s also a volcanic Isle and
there is always lots of wind and heat.
I am really looking forward to the World Championship in Hawaii

The last 3 weeks we had a lot of rain here in Germany.
Very often when I was training it began to rain.
But my immune system is much better than in the last years.
One of the reasons is: Vital 40.
This keeps me healthy and strong

Product like this is golden

Been using your product for a week now sbd cause away on my honeymoon just doing a run each day and I have no soreness in my legs at all, I have been in triathlon over 10 years snd to have a product like this is golden it means I recover so much quicker and with doing my 3rd ironman next year I can’t wait.
www.ironholt.blogspot.com

Leadville 100 MTB

Racing the 2010 Leadville 100 MTB. Colorado. August 14th and Extreme Endurance in my back pack. Keep training and take them. Amazing combination.

Yvonne van Vlerken (Tri Team Lustenau/Endurance Team Austria) wins with new course-record record and takes the Ironman 70.3 European Champion’s titles.

Tragic death of an athlete hangs over world class event.

The weather conditions could not have been more record-hostile. In the morning athletes were greeted with a violent downpour at the start area. Especially difficult the bike-course promised to be in these conditions. Already tough with more than 1500 metres vertical climb the numerous difficult departures would be extra-challenging in wet version. Nevertheless, the titleholder Yvonne van Vlerken looked very much determined before the start and exactly this determination was later the key to success.

The starter field was in the women´s and men packed with world-class names and promising newcomers under it the extremely run-strong Hawaii 2nd of 2006 Desiree Ficker/USA, Rachel Joyce/GBR (6. Ironman Hawaii in 2009), Nicole Leder/ GER, Andrea Steinbecher/GER, the former Duathlon world champion Ulrike Schwalbe as well as 2nd of the Ironman 70.3 Switzerland 2010 Nicoles Hofer.

It was strong biker Nicole Hofer 2. Out of the water that pushed hard on the bike. Yvonne van Vlerken followed with only a good 4min gap, with her Desiree Ficker and the German surprise newcomer Diana Riesler who had posted the quickest ladies-bicycle time at the Ironman European Championship in Frankfurt 6 weeks ago. Hofer was 40 seconds quicker on the bike than van Vlerken who only was 3 minutes slowler than in the year before in the nasty conditions. Nicole Hofer took 5:10 min advantage on the selective run distance, behind her one bitter hunt from unfolded. Desiree Ficker
had come out of T2 just behind Yvonne van Vlerken from T2 and together both world class runners struck a crazy run-speed. After 6 km they had only more 3:30 min gap, had already edged out the German Julia Wagner of the 2nd place. Then Yvonne van Vlerken pulled away from Ficker an opened to 10 seconds. Then dramatically Hofer´s lead melted away.
With km 13 these were only 1:20min, then with 17.5 km Nicole Hofer faced the inevitable destiny and Yvonne van Vlerken and Desiree Ficker passed her.

Then full of suspense the last kilometre between the turbo-duet started, however, Yvonne van Vlerken was not letting her hard fought lead go any more and defended as the first lady in the history of the Sparkassen Finanzgruppe Ironman 70.3 Wiesbaden with a new on this day impossibly looking course- record her last year’s title and crowned herself to the first Ironman 70.3 European Champion.

In the men´s World Champion Michael Raelert was a little quicker than Sebastian Kienle (both GER).
Tragic death of an athlete overshadows European Championship.

Unfortunately, the race was overshadowed by the tragic death of a 55-year-old athlete who had to be rescued on the swimming distance by the safety-team from the Schiersteiner harbour. Unfortunately, all immediately initiated revival measures on site and furthermore in the clinic were unsuccessfully. The athlete was a good swimmer, closer details are not published yet.

Quote Yvonne van Vlerken: “I am very happy with my performance and am glad that I’m, after I returned to my former coach Frank Senders again, on the right way. Especially on the mental side I could turn things straight and the cooperation of Frank and Thomas (Vonach) formed a valuable basis for my latest development. It was a very tough race, I had big fear on the descends and had to lay it all on the table in the run. I am very happy about this title. But to me it is a big concern to express my condolences to the family of the athlete that lost his life today. We triathletes are a big family, no matter whether you are a top-pro or amateur-athlete. We are in the same boat, and if such a thing happens, one of us leaves. I dedicate my title to this sportsman!”

Ironman 70.3 European Championship Wiesbaden/Germany

Titleholder Yvonne van Vlerken (Tri Team Lustenau/Endurance Team Austria) faces strong ladie´s field

in the fight for the crown of the Ironman 70.3-European Championship-title.

Fresh of her silver medal at the ITU Long Distance Worlds and as the defending champion the 31-year-old Dutchwoman and Austrian resident heads to the startline as one of the race-favourites. However, she will face a strong field which contains some top athletes that have indeed the potential to be involved in the fight for the first Ironman 70.3 European Champion’s title.

Nicole Leder/GER, Nicole Hofer/CH, Andrea Steinbecher/GER and American Desiree Ficker (2nd Ironman Hawaii in 2006) belong among others to this circle of exceptional females (see start list above). The 90 km bike-course is, like the one at the ITU world championship two weeks ago, very demanding and waits with 1500m that athletes have to climb during this leg of the race. Advantage for the strong cyclists in the field. However, the decision might happen nevertheless on the run. There it could come to a showdown between the former Duathlon colleagues Desiree Ficker and Yvonne van Vlerken, both strong runners.

It promises to be an exciting race…!

In the men´s there is also a very strong field at the start-line. The focus is on the duel of both German young-stars Michael Raelert (reigning world champion on this distance) and Sebastian Kienle who recently gave his very successful long distance debut in Roth. Many names from the absolute world-elite like Björn Anderson/SWE, Phil Graves/UK and the winner of Ironman 70.3 2010 Austria Filip Ospaly/CZE round out the favourites.

Original quote Yvonne: „Now after the health problems around my lung infection in spring it feels like going in the right direction again. I have executed the ITU World Championship two weeks ago as a hard training-session. This has felt good and now I am looking forward to the great atmosphere and the scenic and selective course in Wiesbaden. I think that spectators will see an exciting race on Sunday.“

For those who missed it we have here the link to the video of the thrilling sprint-finish between Erika Csomor and Yvonne at Ironman 70.3 St.Pölten 2010 to get you in tune for Sunday:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5YVCBm2owF0

ELITE FEMALE

Yvonne VAN VLERKEN NDL

Desiree FICKER USA

Nicole HOFER SUI

Sonja JAARSVELD NDL

Rachel JOYCE GBR

Nicole LEDER GER

Kristin MOELLER GER

Heike PRIESS GER

Diana RIESLER GER

Jenny SCHULZ GER

Sarah SCHÜTZ SUI

Ulrike SCHWALBE GER

Andrea STEINBECHER GER

Inge VANCAUWENBERGHE BEL

Debbie VERSTRAETEN BEL

Julia WAGNER GER

Susan DIETRICH GER

ELITE MALE

Björn ANDERSSON SWE

Gerhard DE BRUIN RSA

Sean DONNELLY GER

Nicolas FERNANDEZ FRA

Sean FROST GBR

Philip GRAVES GBR

Mathias HECHT SUI

Thomas HELLRIEGEL GER

Joel JAMESON GBR

Toby JAMESON GBR

Sebastian KIENLE GER

Stanislav KRYLOV RUS

Damien LANDON FRA

Cédric LARGAJOLLI FRA

Lothar LEDER GER

Filip OSPALY CZE

Michael RAELERT GER

Felix SCHUMANN GER

Maik TWELSIEK GER

Ollie WHISTLER AUS

Uwe WIDMANN GER

Picture by Kerstin Winterkamp

Comparative incidence of the presence of banned substances in raw ingredients/ materials sourced from global suppliers – summary of findings

Research has shown that some nutritional supplements used by elite sports people can be inadvertently contaminated with trace amounts of prohibited substances that could have serious consequences for a drug-tested athlete(1,2,3). The primary sources of such inadvertent contamination are: a) use of raw materials that are contaminated at source and b) use of shared manufacturing equipment that is not sufficiently cleaned in between production runs.

Recent media coverage has drawn attention to ingredients supplied from the Far East, and in particular China. The aim of this project was to further investigate raw materials as a potential source of contamination in sports nutrition products by analysing a range of ingredients from China, and a number of other countries, for the presence of substances that are prohibited in sport.

A total of 120 raw material samples were sourced and supplied by Cambridge Commodities Ltd. Samples were obtained from a mixture of ‘controlled’ and ‘uncontrolled’ sources (controlled = where the supplier relationship was well established and suppliers were aware of the implications of prohibited substances in sports doping control and took steps to ensure their materials do not come in to contact with prohibited substances; uncontrolled = where a long term relationship was not established). They included a mixture of botanical, vitamin and ‘other’ ingredients (the category ‘other’ included materials such as mineral salts, amino acids, carbohydrates and creatine). Figure 1 shows the breakdown of samples obtained from each country, and the product classification.

Figure 1: No. samples by country and ingredient type 2 of 3

All samples were analysed for trace levels of prohibited substances (ng/g quantities) using HFL procedure PANA030 – ‘Nutritional Supplement Analysis’ (Note: All findings represent screening indications – no additional confirmatory analysis was performed).

GCMS analysis revealed low levels of steroids in 21 of the 120 samples tested (17.5%). The most common steroids identified were: androstadienedione (13 samples showed evidence for this); androstenedione (12 samples showed evidence for this); DHEA (9 samples showed evidence for this); androstenediol (7 samples showed evidence for this) and testosterone (4 samples showed evidence for this). No samples showed evidence for nandrolone or nandrolone precursors.

13 of the 84 samples analysed from China showed evidence for at least 1 steroid (15.5%). All of these were in ‘botanical’ ingredients. Of the 16 samples sourced from India, 4 showed evidence for at least 1 steroid (25%). These were also found in botanical materials.
LCMS analysis showed low levels of stimulants in 25 of the 120 samples tested (20.8%). The most common stimulants detected were: ephedrine (25 samples showed evidence for this); methylephedrine (6 samples showed evidence for this); and norpseudoephedrine (4 samples showed evidence for this).

17 of the 84 samples analysed from China showed evidence for at least 1 stimulant (20.2%). The vast majority of these were in ‘botanical’ ingredients, but 1 sample that showed evidence for stimulant(s) was a vitamin and 2 samples were from the category ‘other’. Of the 16 samples sourced from India, 7 showed evidence for at least 1 stimulant (43.8%). These were all found in botanical materials.
Overall, taking the combined GCMS and LCMS analytical results (for steroids and stimulants), 42 of the 120 samples analysed (35%) showed screening indications for at least one prohibited substance. 9 of the 16 samples from India (56%) showed the presence of steroids and/or stimulants; 26 of the 84 ingredients of Chinese origin (31%) showed the presence of steroids and/or stimulants.
Steroids and stimulants were also detected in samples from South America (2 botanical samples), New Zealand (2 ‘other’ samples), USA (1 ‘other’ sample), Europe (1 ‘other’ sample) and an unspecified region (1 botanical sample). However, due to the small number of samples analysed from these regions it is difficult to assess the comparative incidence of contamination in raw materials supplied from these areas, compared with those supplied from China and India.

Of the materials supplied by ‘controlled suppliers’ at Cambridge Commodities Ltd., 5 of the 39 samples from this category (12.8%) showed evidence for low levels of steroids/stimulants. Of the materials supplied by ‘uncontrolled suppliers’, 16 of the 29 samples from this category (55.2%) showed evidence for steroids/stimulants.

Conclusion
Manufacturers of sports nutrition products (and foodstuffs in general) need to be aware of the potential presence of low levels of prohibited steroids/stimulants in the ingredients they use in their products. Steps to minimise the risks of using ingredients containing such compounds include the use of raw materials from reputable ingredient suppliers (i.e. those who ensure that the ingredients they supply to the sports nutrition industry are from trusted sources). This survey showed the presence of low levels of prohibited substances in a range of raw materials sourced from a number of countries; however, due to the low sample numbers from areas other than China/India, conclusions cannot be drawn as to whether certain regions pose more of a risk than others.

The present study showed the highest incidence of steroid/stimulant presence in botanical ingredients. These should be used with caution in products consumed by drug-tested athletes. However, it should be noted that many botanical materials contain natural plant hormones and alkaloids. Further work is required to distinguish between the ‘natural presence’ of steroids/stimulants in such ingredients and true ‘contamination’ findings. 3 of 3

Acknowledgements
HFL would like to thank Cambridge Commodities Ltd (CCL) for funding this work and for sourcing and supplying ingredients for analysis. CCL is the first nutritional ingredient supplier to be registered with the Informed-Sport programme.

References
1) HFL Sport Science: Survey of Supplements in the UK (2008)
2) Informed-Choice: Survey of Supplements in the USA (2007)
3) Geyer, H. Parr, M.K. Mareck, U. Reinhart, U. Schrader, Y. & Schanzer, W. (2004). Analysis of non hormonal nutritional supplements for anabolic-androgenic steroids – results of an international study. International Journal of Sports Medicine, 25, 124-129