Just wondering if I’m interpreting this correctly. Doc said my levels are ok but doesn’t really know what triathlon is and the training involved. I went to him to get a battery of tests as I am racing and training shit and thought it be a good idea in conjunction with general rest. Everything was normal but double checking iron I’m not so sure. I have attached it below. Things look low to me and could be a reason why I have zero power, pace etc ?
Looks a bit like mine, when I was struggling with fatigue. Battery of tests and a few borderline. Took OTC iron tablets and after 3 weeks started feeling better. Same happened a few years back with similar positive outcome when It took supplements.
Be careful though as too much can result in some digestive distress.
So this is a non medical N+1 experience based off doctors tests and on their advice for me, albeit the doc is ‘sports aware’.
Oh, and I’m M47, and am almost vegetarian - wife is vege so aside from occasional meals I eat a vege diet hence it wasn’t surprising I was low iron.
I won’t look at your results as I’m not qualified, though as a coach we respectfully (strongly) recommend iron testing/blood work yearly….iron deficiency is a killer and with our testing usually indicates 20-25% drop off in Vo2 max and associated thresholds.
As a male you lose a lot through sweating, and in discussions with some US coaches on here gastrointestinal bleeding is not uncommon or could be something to check out.
Here is some guidance from AIS:
https://www.ais.gov.au/__data/assets/pdf_file/0014/1000490/Sport-supplement-fact-sheets-Iron-v4.pdf
Maurice
Looks a bit like mine, when I was struggling with fatigue. Battery of tests and a few borderline. Took OTC iron tablets and after 3 weeks started feeling better. Same happened a few years back with similar positive outcome when It took supplements.
Be careful though as too much can result in some digestive distress.
So this is a non medical N+1 experience based off doctors tests and on their advice for me, albeit the doc is ‘sports aware’.
Oh, and I’m M47, and am almost vegetarian - wife is vege so aside from occasional meals I eat a vege diet hence it wasn’t surprising I was low iron.
I eat a tonne of chicken so I was suprised too. But I sweat heaps. My doc doesn’t really understand the sports side and prob just glanced at ferritin levels and said yeh ur fine. I did get some otc iron tabs but wary of taking them without his say so. Will try call again
As a male you lose a lot through sweating…
I doubt that as I have never heard of losing iron through sweat, but I’m willing to learn. Do you (or any one else here) have a source to that?
Looks low to me
Not a doctor or pretending to give medical advice but iron supplementation could be the fastest way to get that back up
It’s also worth looking at b12, hemoglobin and hematocrit levels as they are relevant here too. If they are “low†that will impact energy and no power.
But it’s relative to other blood tests - so it’s good to know what your “normal†range is and if you’re training hard or lost weight recently or not training much etc you can then look at how that impacts it
If I were you I would be getting an iron supplement once or twice daily and test in 2-3 months to check it again
Look into things to take with iron to increase absorption
Ash beech has some good YouTube channel videos on iron
Yep b12 is ok although one doc mate of mine rekons inject an ampoule of b12 in case because the test doesn’t account for ‘active b12’
Don’t think that’s worth doing.
Hemotocrit ok too.
Yeh may get an iron supp I think. Evaluate in a month
I am on my phone so don’t have the source material for iron loss through sweat, but it can be one of the biggest contributors to iron loss in endurance athletes.
I do a lot of work in this area. The key really is your ferritin, which is basically fine. So I would not focus too much on you having low iron, but I cannot give you a medical opinion on here and there is a fair bit of additional information we would look at.
Do you know what your haemoglobin is?
Edit: first hit on google gives a nice overview, not hard to find the work on iron loss in sweat if you want it, I am just on my phone though so a pain in the you know what to search etc!
https://www.gaudianiclinic.com/gaudiani-clinic-blog/2018/8/29/iron-deficiency-in-athletes
Yep hemoglobin 145 as per attached b12 404
Aside from general rest i have had, I still feel fatigue and tiredness and am having the worst season to date. Bike and run are about 20 watts down consistently in a race. Run about 15 sec per km off too. This is sprint race paces. Been ongoing. Not sick other bloods like test etc are good.
I no ferritin is ok at 84 but I figured even then it was ‘low normal’.
Would taking Maltofer which normalises iron levels and doesnt over correct but only absorbs if needed, be of any problem ?
Yep hemoglobin 145 as per attached b12 404
The interplay between your iron levels, TIBC and ferritin is complex.
I would not be too concerned, your HB is good, your ferritin is good, you likely don’t have any issues with low iron levels sufficient to cause any detriment to your athletic performance. In saying that, there is no real harm in trying some over the counter iron supplements, just they give you a pretty high incidence of GI distress, so you may not benefit.
If you are having power/pace issues your iron in this case will not be a panacea.
Thanks for that - just edited to include maltofer seems to bring up iron only if needed and doesn’t overcorrect. May be worth a try just a bit of a loss- it’s not pace issues although that came into play last long course race. It’s outright power from the start in sprints
Thanks for that - just edited to include maltofer seems to bring up iron only if needed and doesn’t overcorrect. May be worth a try just a bit of a loss- it’s not pace issues although that came into play last long course race. It’s outright power from the start in sprints
Outright power at the start of a sprint…would be unlikely to be a low iron issue!
I guess I didn’t phrase that well - I meant just the ability to bring power up to normal. I’m tired as soon as I get on the bike.
Thanks! I like learning. I found this study where they have studied the amount of loss of iron through sweat during exercise.
2 hour easy exercise, resulting in 3% loss of RDA of iron for men, 1% for women, through sweat.
Thanks! I like learning. I found this study where they have studied the amount of loss of iron through sweat during exercise.
2 hour easy exercise, resulting in 3% loss of RDA of iron for men, 1% for women, through sweat.
Here is a link to the full study:
https://docplayer.net/27790737-Sweat-iron-and-zinc-losses-during-prolonged-exercise.html
Of particular note in this one are sweat rates of around .2l per hour women and .4l per hour men….not being flippant but those sweat rates in my book do not really constitute “exercise†meaning under load and well trained I am closer to 2.5l per hour (indoor bike, or outdoor long run) and fit females we train between 1.2-1.8.
one would need to determine their average weekly exposure to sweat loss to determine if it’s a concern or not.
Maurice
I’d kill for iron / ferritin levels as high as yours (my ferritin was at 14, from a test a month ago, but I’m not anemic). Daily supplementation has finally gotten it a bit over 20, but it’s still having bad effects on my sleep.
What’s your sleep like? Any history of or testing for sleep disorders like apnea or restless leg syndrome? Low iron levels can make these disorders worse.
I’d kill for iron / ferritin levels as high as yours (my ferritin was at 14, from a test a month ago, but I’m not anemic). Daily supplementation has finally gotten it a bit over 20, but it’s still having bad effects on my sleep.
What’s your sleep like? Any history of or testing for sleep disorders like apnea or restless leg syndrome? Low iron levels can make these disorders worse.
If that is your level then just honestly get an iron infusion. Makes life so so much easier!!
Thanks! I like learning. I found this study where they have studied the amount of loss of iron through sweat during exercise.
https://www.researchgate.net/...g_Prolonged_Exercise
2 hour easy exercise, resulting in 3% loss of RDA of iron for men, 1% for women, through sweat.
Here is a link to the full study:
https://docplayer.net/...longed-exercise.html
Of particular note in this one are sweat rates of around .2l per hour women and .4l per hour men….not being flippant but those sweat rates in my book do not really constitute “exercise†meaning under load and well trained I am closer to 2.5l per hour (indoor bike, or outdoor long run) and fit females we train between 1.2-1.8.
one would need to determine their average weekly exposure to sweat loss to determine if it’s a concern or not.
Maurice
I read it as ~.8L per hour for males (Based on Figure 2 and Table 1. Did you possibly not take the Body surface area into account?). But yes, even those sweat losses might not be that relevant compared to what a lot of people produce while exercising.
Sleep and legs are ok
Sleep apnea rarely but do have history
14 is super low !!! Agree with the other poster why not get an infusion ?
Thanks! I like learning. I found this study where they have studied the amount of loss of iron through sweat during exercise.
https://www.researchgate.net/...g_Prolonged_Exercise
2 hour easy exercise, resulting in 3% loss of RDA of iron for men, 1% for women, through sweat.
Here is a link to the full study:
https://docplayer.net/...longed-exercise.html
Of particular note in this one are sweat rates of around .2l per hour women and .4l per hour men….not being flippant but those sweat rates in my book do not really constitute “exercise†meaning under load and well trained I am closer to 2.5l per hour (indoor bike, or outdoor long run) and fit females we train between 1.2-1.8.
one would need to determine their average weekly exposure to sweat loss to determine if it’s a concern or not.
Maurice
I read it as ~.8L per hour for males (Based on Figure 2 and Table 1. Did you possibly not take the Body surface area into account?). But yes, even those sweat losses might not be that relevant compared to what a lot of people produce while exercising.
Good catch, I took that as gross but you are correct as in per m2 not weight.
Maurice