I few months ago, I posted about what a horrible meet, performance-wise, I had at short course nats this year. Couldn't figure out why I swam so slow, and why I was feeling so fatigued.
Anyway, I had a physical a few weeks later, and my blood work showed my ferritin level at 11, and my hematocrit at 39%. Both very low values for an endurance athlete. Doctor has me taking iron pills (ferrous sulfate, 325 mg, twice daily), and I've been taking Proferrin ES for about 6 weeks. Just in the last month, I've noticed a huge increase in performance. I went a :52:33 for my swim split at Ironman Boulder, and I've been feeling great in workouts. Anybody else ever experienced iron deficiency? I'm wondering if the increased performance I'm seeing is due to the replenished iron, or if it's due to something else.
Okay, I think some of you folks are being a bit judgemental about the red meat comment. Notice it wasn't the only reason he gave. Also, realize that most of us deal with a general practicioner, not someone who deals with people who train 20 hrs a week. I guess it's also my fault that I condensed his statement about iron-rich foods.
Anyway, I don't have any symptoms of internal bleeding or any other indications of excessive blood loss. If you research some of the distance running forums, there's a lot of comments about very low ferritin levels in runners. One of the causes for this, among others, is that foot strikes can cause ruptures in many of the capillaries in your feet, leading to blood loss. There's also some interesting comments about how iron levels can affect performance.
running.competitor.com/.../iron-level-upkeep-for-runners_63445www.runnersworld.com/.../ferritin-and-fatigue
Okay, I think some of you folks are being a bit judgemental about the red meat comment. Notice it wasn't the only reason he gave. Also, realize that most of us deal with a general practicioner, not someone who deals with people who train 20 hrs a week. I guess it's also my fault that I condensed his statement about iron-rich foods.
Anyway, I don't have any symptoms of internal bleeding or any other indications of excessive blood loss. If you research some of the distance running forums, there's a lot of comments about very low ferritin levels in runners. One of the causes for this, among others, is that foot strikes can cause ruptures in many of the capillaries in your feet, leading to blood loss. There's also some interesting comments about how iron levels can affect performance.
running.competitor.com/.../iron-level-upkeep-for-runners_63445www.runnersworld.com/.../ferritin-and-fatigue
