Ok. I am not a doctor, nutritionist or even overly educated in the medical sciences of the body, yet. So anything you read in this post is based on how my body FEELS and only that. Just saying.
I’m training as an amateur athlete now. In 5 weeks, I will compete in the Colorado Golden Gloves State Tournament. Holy Crap. So this last 2 months, my training has really been more intense. I’m taking class 5-6 times a week, sparring at least once a week, sometimes having private time, and working on the regular bag and speed bag. I’m also running a little (<10 miles a week, I wish it could be more) but the weather and my body are making it hard.
I have gotten through my entire weigh loss journey with three containers of protein powder. Up until recently, I only took it when I was sore or I had put in way more work than usual at the gym. Maybe a couple shakes a month. Dan takes them too but also rarely. Up until now I have only taken my usual multi-vitamin and the occasional B-12 or something. This week: I had to invest in a new pill box because I have started taking so many supplements.
Last week, I suffered an minor-ish injury in the ring. I’d rather not literally publicize my weaknesses but I HATE being injured. I have a hard time being slow and making myself rest. I had JUST hit my fight weight so I, ONCE AGAIN, reached out to my amazing friend Jessica Kidd. She recommended adding Glutamine to my smoothies in the morning. I am already have a protein shake a day and I’m trying to get my nutrients from food as much as possible. But maybe it’s possible I’m expecting my body to do things it just can’t without some extra help. I’ve been feeling MORE than just sore for a long time now. Adding a crap ton of protein to my diet helped but only took the edge off. So after a trip to the store and talking to other people, I’m on three things:
- Glutamine: Is a building block of protein, and sometimes your body just can’t make enough of it to repair your muscles. It comes in powder and pill but I take powder. I put it in my smoothies in the morning. I noticed a difference the first day. I wish I could take 10X the dosage and feel 10 times better, but it doesn’t really work that way. I paid $30 for enough for 2-3 months. I’ll probably keep this in my regimen until I’m done boxing.
- Turmeric After Sport: To be perfectly honest, I only bought this because the lady suggested it. As I’m standing there, I could have counted about 15 things that hurt so I would have bought nearly anything. When I told her why I was buying the Glutamine, she suggested this. She also reminded me of their return policy and if I didn’t think it was doing anything, I could bring it back. So far, it seems ok? I’m not really sure if it’s doing anything yet.
- Fish Oil – I’m taking this because we had it in the house. A few people I talked to were surprised that I wasn’t already on them. They are supposed to help with joints and overall health right? But I also read recently that most Fish Oil pills are really nothing……so I’ll probably take these till their gone and then see if I see a difference.
My point is, when I was losing weight, it was important to me to do it without supplements and by getting what I needed from my food. But now I’m not losing weight. I’m training and I’m training hard. Maybe my body just can’t produce everything that it needs. I’m still trying to get as much as I can from my overall diet, but if I need a little help keeping my body in one piece to make it to the tournament, I guess I have to do that.