Biomarker analysis for athletes

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