Taylor Stevens was a sickly child who grew into a wiry adult prone to colds and illness. But despite — or, perhaps because of — his weakness, Taylor had always aspired to be an athletic star. His particular goal was to run the New York Marathon — and, finish near the top. Determined to build strength and speed from an early age, Taylor would jog laps around the school gym after elementary school let out, often stopping to puff on his asthma inhaler, which concerned his protective mother. He convinced his father to buy him a bench press and free weights for Christmas one year, so he could pump iron every night before bed.
Ultimately, his persistence paid off. By high school, Taylor had become a key sprinter on the track team and even won a track scholarship to a prestigious southern university. Although he never quite lost his asthma, or his susceptibility to other respiratory illnesses, he was able to run consistently and cleanly in practically every race, earning the respect of teammates and rivals alike.
And, while he was never able to build muscle bulk, his thin, sturdy frame still served him well on the track, where he was expected to be agile and swift. When Taylor moved to Manhattan after college graduation, it looked like his dreams of a strong finish in the New York Marathon were right on track. True to his hard-working nature, he trained so thoroughly from the first day he arrived in the city that he was able to run the marathon his very first year in the Big Apple.
Unfortunately, he didn’t do so well. While training, Taylor had contracted the flu several times and developed chronic fatigue syndrome [CFS]. Needless to say, the experience had been much more gruelling than necessary. Taylor was determined to run the marathon the next year and finish with a better time, but he knew that he would need help. Chained to allergy pills, inhalers, and nasal sprays as a kid, however, Taylor was adamantly opposed to taking miracle drugs, or steroids, and he hoped that better nutrition might improve his marathon mileage. He called me to see if there were natural alternatives for a struggling athlete in need of strength.
As it turns out, there was quite a lot. I ‘tailored’ a special programme for Taylor to address every part of the body that is impacted by rigorous training. My programme included free radical fighters, such as vitamins E and C, N-acetyl cysteine [which is helpful for respiratory function], lipoic acid [a powerful antioxidant that is both water and fat soluble], and a proper diet high in complex carbohydrates, including whole-grain pastas and rice. These carbohydrates help the muscles store energy in the form of a sugar called glycogen. Marathon runners have a high need for this sugar, and it seems to enhance their performance. This is especially important in sports in which endurance is important. I also included immune-boosting nutrients, such as astragalus and echinacea, and glutamine — it is well-known that intensive exercise can actually suppress the immune system, and studies have shown that marathon runners are at greater risk for upper respiratory infections due to depleted levels of glutamine.
I also included nutrients to help preserve muscle, and the key was BCAAs. Research suggests that BCAAs can provide the competitive edge that he was lacking. I’d read a study in the British Journal of Sports Medicine that tested eight nationally ranked tennis players. Exercise caused a 14 per cent decrease in BCAAs, and it was found that supplements can actually replenish your stores. Other studies have shown that during intense exercise BCAAs are used up by muscles, and in one study five men who exercised to the point of exhaustion showed falling blood levels of BCAAs.
Boosting Taylor’s BCAAs could potentially protect him from tiring quickly and losing strength. These athletic amino acids also helped Taylor increase his endurance, diminishing the wheezing and breathlessness that he often experienced due to his asthma and frequent colds. One study showed that BCAAs worked better than a solution containing all amino acids in increasing the ability to breathe in healthy individuals. In another series of studies, BCAAs were shown to help premature babies breathe more easily. How do BCAAs enhance breathing?
It seems they actually decrease the amount of carbon dioxide in your blood, which means that your lungs don’t have to work as hard to blow out as much. A few months before the next marathon, Taylor reported that training was much more productive than it had been the year before. He was able to run progressively faster and more continuously as the marathon grew nearer — and, as his treatment plan continued — since he felt stronger and could go longer without losing his breath. By the time the marathon rolled around, he was just as confident enough, healthy enough, and energetic enough to perform well.
