Biomarker analysis for athletes
is becoming increasingly popular. True Ventures, an initial venture capital
investor in Fitbit saw merit in the concept and has recently invested in a biomarker
analysis company.
In simple terms, Biomarker analysis
for athletes means getting your blood tested for various parameters which
can/may/will affect your athletic performance, both physically and mentally.
For the past 1.5 years, while
practising law, I’ve been working on a side project and using myself and my
co-founder, Yashraj Rao, as
guinea pigs to test different biomarkers in our blood in response to the
effects of, (i) different types of exercise; (ii) different intensities of
exercise; and (iii) different nutrition.
Our findings from our blood tests
are pretty interesting and helpful for curating an exercise regime, but nonetheless
we could have behaved better before giving our blood samples to the lab. But,
hey! both of us are semi-hedonists and (almost) failures in the start-up world, and
therefore as god’s imperfect creatures we are prone to ingesting unhealthy liquids and
solids, and inhaling plants which are not permitted by law unless you reach a
certain age.
I won’t take you through all the
parameters we got our blood tested for but I will highlight one biomarker which
has immense potential in not just making a better athlete but also a better
man. That biomarker is Testosterone.
In the year 2016, I had written
an article
on Testosterone when, 33 year old, two time Olympian and American half
marathon record holder (59:43), Ryan Hall had announced his retirement from
professional running. He did this just a few weeks before the U.S. Olympic
Trials and the reason was his critically low Testosterone from excessive
running mileage and low calorie diet, which had made him suffer both physically
and mentally.
The article linked above contains,
(i) guidelines for running mileage; (ii) list of food which can help; and (iii)
importance of strength training, to help maintain healthy Testosterone levels,
so I won’t delve again into those aspects here.
In the article linked above, I
had not focussed on the mental benefits from maintaining a healthy Testosterone
level. Before we proceed further, allow me to give a caveat --- barring a few studies
(which I think may have been funded by nutrition companies selling bull semen
or bull testicle candy to men), most of the scientific studies have been unable
to conclusively establish a positive link between mood and testosterone levels
in the male body. Having said that, let us not forget that Testosterone is
essential for numerous critical functions in the male body, and therefore maintaining
a healthy level of Testosterone is akin to maintaining a healthy bank balance
-- you may not need the money all the time, but when the need arises, you must
have it circulating in your system.
Testosterone plays an important
role throughout the body in men (and women too). It affects the brain, bone and
muscle mass, fat distribution, the vascular system, energy levels, genital
tissues, and sexual functioning.
A drop in testosterone levels can
contribute to, diminished erectile quality, changes in mood, reduced
intellectual and cognitive function, fatigue, depression and anger, decrease in
muscle mass and strength, decreased body hair, skin alterations, decreased bone
mass/mineral density and increase in abdominal fat mass.
Endurance exercise like distance
running, cycling and swimming have been shown to reduce testosterone levels in
a male body significantly.
So a lower base level of
testosterone which is common in men nowadays, coupled with testosterone losses
from endurance exercise sounds like a recipe for disaster for amateur athletes.
Moreover, training will suffer due to low testosterone levels since energy
levels will be low, mood swings will be present and fatigue will be holding you
back. There will be higher chances of a burnout and bad race timings.
Coming back to my blood work.
Towards year 2017 ending, I had reduced my running and strength training to
negligible levels due to the Delhi’s air pollution but I had increased my cycling
--- predominantly low intensity cycling but high weekly mileage on the indoor trainer
to prepare for a mountain bike race in Himachal Pradesh in February 2018.
During this span of 3-4 months of
low intensity cycling, my weight did not increase but I lost a lot of muscle
mass and gained noticeable abdominal fat, and mood-wise I felt about 5/10.
Maybe it was the lack of sunlight, but I’m not sure!
So during my scheduled blood work
in the beginning of January 2018, my test results showed that my Testosterone
level was 535.54 ng/dl (Normal Range 241 – 827 ng/dl). Needless to say that I
was not pleased with this and I decided that after finishing the cycle race in
February 2018 --- from March 2018, I will get back on a balanced exercise
program with focus on physical and mental improvements, and not just be cardio
obsessed.
 |
| January 2018 blood work |
For the past 2 years, I have
become significantly less obsessed with race timings, high weekly mileage and
posting workouts on social media. My goal from exercise has shifted towards
balance and using exercise to not being in general a typical asshole. So, I work
out hard-ish and keep my biomarkers in check (while being a semi-hedonist), and
simultaneously ensure that I feel positive enough to not snap or get annoyed
with friends, my family, my lady, the boss-man and my colleagues without due
reason, but still have enough fire in my system to not be ‘meek’. Actually, not
snapping at my parents takes the top spot in my main goals from exercise. You
can’t be a prick at home but pretend to be a saint on social media. Jordan
Peterson and the old Stoics would be proud of me. I’m cleaning my room Dr. Jordan.
Ok, so from the beginning of
March 2018, I commenced more running (since it is better at changing biomarkers
than cycling), lifting weights and eating more fat and meat. The plan was to
also introduce one day of running HIIT per week to boost Testosterone levels, but
I messed that up by doing too much too soon and getting injured, and by the
time May 2018 had arrived for my scheduled blood test, I had done only one HIIT
session. Notwithstanding the lack of a proper overhaul of my exercise routine,
my biomarker testing in mid-May 2018 showed that my Testosterone level was at
634.22 ng/dl (Normal Range 241 – 827 ng/dl).
 |
| May 2018 blood work |
So in 2 months, there was an
increase of 100 ng/dl in Testosterone, lower abdominal fat and mood-wise (unless
I’m hungover) I feel about 7/10 on most days. Win-win!
I’ve commenced the next phase of
training and nutrition for my upcoming blood test, and this time the major
change is that I’ve introduced some read meat, and Zinc Picolinate and
Magnesium Glycinate tablets to my diet. I except to gain some lean muscle mass and
also see a positive spike in the next blood test. Well, I could reduce my
weekly cardio and increase weight lifting for faster results, but unfortunately
I love pavement pounding too much.
- Aman Yadav
