As a life-long endurance athlete, I'm particularly concerned with getting Covid-19 and what impact it might my athletic performance and my ability to do the sports I love so much? If I get sick, will it have a long term impact on my aerobic capacity? In speaking to our medical experts at The Feed, the answer is a solid "maybe", I know, not super helpful. But in that "maybe" lies my answer, there is a risk that if I contract Covid-19 and have a more severe course of infection that I could lose some percentage of my aerobic capacity in the short term and maybe even over the long term. That is enough to scare me into figuring out what I can do to minimize my risk. As an Athlete your risk of getting COVID is no different than anyone else. Dr. Cedric Jaime Rutland, a pulmonary and critical care physician in Orange County, California, says athletes may have a better chance than nonathletes of experiencing less severe symptoms or fewer complications. The concern for athletes is that the virus attacks the air sacs in the lungs responsible for transmitting oxygen to the bloodstream. A study of 12 hospitalized COVID-19 patients in Hong Kong found that three of them displayed a 20%–30% diminishment of lung capacity in the near term. That is an exceedingly small sample, though, and since the virus is so new, it is too early to know if this will be a lasting impact. One thing all the experts I spoke with agreed upon is that the impact it would have on my aerobic capacity would be correlated to how bad "a course" of Covid I had. Meaning that if I fall into the asymptomatic or light symptoms category, my risk was much lower of having lasting damage to my aerobic capacity. What can I do to be low-risk? Let's be clear- there's currently no medication or supplement that's going to prevent you from getting the infection. Athletes are just as much at risk as anyone else. But there are a few low-risk things that are showing strong evidence that they can reduce my risk of more severe symptoms if I do contract COVID. Here are the 3 things our experts suggest Athletes should strongly consider adding to their routine. The top of the list is Vitamin D and this is especially important for endurance athletes. In speaking with our Chief Medical Advisor, Dr. Kevin Sprouse, in his patient population of elite endurance athletes, it is extremely common for them to have a Vitamin D deficiency despite their extensive sun exposure. A deficiency that is almost always treated with supplementation. Dr. Kevin Sprouse "More is not better, but you want enough Vitamin D just to be sure that you aren't deficient" The emerging data on Vitamin D is showing that if you are deficient your outcome after contracting COVID is significantly worse. In a Northwestern Study, 86% of all cases among patients with normal vitamin D levels were mild, while 73% of cases among patients with vitamin D deficiency were severe or critical. The lead of the study, Vadim Backman, hypotheses that Vitamin D regulates our immune systems from overreacting and avoiding the Cytokine Storm that is common in severe cases. On the impact of improving Vitamin D deficiency, "Our analysis shows that it might be as high as cutting the mortality rate in half," Backman said Next on the list is Vitamin C. Vitamin C gets a bad wrap from all the people that claim it can cure everything. I don't believe it is a cure-all, but I do believe that it is a super low-risk supplement that is a great insurance policy right now. The key with Vitamin C is getting enough. You aren't going to get an effective dosage (say 2 grams) from the food you eat. It would take 40 oranges to get 2 grams of Vitamin C per day. There is some data to suggest that Liposomal Vitamin C is the next most effective method of getting Vitamin C (next only to an IV). This is why I'm a big fan of Quicksilver's Liposomal Vitamin C. The last piece is a puzzle is immune regulation and cellular health. Now is the time you want your cells to be working at their optimal levels. The top Multi-Vitamin we sell for Athletes is Thorne Multi-Vitamin Elite. It comes in an AM and PM dosage (you get 2 bottles) to get the optimal vitamins and minerals you need to be spaced out throughout the day and a different formula for AM an PM for maximum bioavailability. Thorne Multi-Vitamin Elite is NSF Certified for Sport. Let's review: 1) Vitamin D: Take 4 drops per day of Vitamin D/K2 2) Vitamin C: Take 4 pumps per day of Quicksilver Liposomal Vitamin C 3) Thorne Multi-Vitamin: Take 4 capsules in the AM & PM The easiest way to get all 3 is to grab the Athlete Immunity Pack on the right side of this page and you will get Fast Free Shipping. If you want just ONE of the products: [product-row products="ortho-molecular-d-k2?variant=31960648384575,quicksilver-vitamin-c-with-rla-liposomal?variant=30318371602495,thorne-multi-vitamin-elite] Want to do even more to protect yourself? Active Spray Anti-Microbial Face Spray Active Spray is in huge demand right now, especially as people are venturing outside and wearing masks. It is an Anti-Microbial spray that is safe to use on your face (eyes, ears, nose, and mouth) and you can also use it on your hands. It won't sting and it is safe for Adults and Kids. The active ingredient is HOCI a proven anti-microbial. All evidence points to it working well on Covid-19 and the active ingredient is in the final stages of EPA approval for killing Covid-19 on hard surfaces. Tip: If you are wearing a mask outside, definitely use Active Spray to spray all over your face and mask BEFORE removing your mask. Zinc Zinc is a really popular supplement right now. The theory is that Zinc gets into virus cells and stops them from being able to replicate. While there isn't a ton of data on it working specifically on Covid-19, there are lots of big believers on the power of Zinc right now. It is low risk and the best version you can get is NK-Stim from Ortho Molecular. Sleep Make sure you are getting enough sleep is more important than ever. If you have trouble falling asleep or wake up in the middle of the night, try out LipoCalm from Quicksilver. The taste is a bit strong but it is VERY effective and I'll do anything for a better night of sleep. It uses PharmaGaba to calm your brain and put your right back to sleep. You put 3 to 4 pumps under your tongue and hold for 30 seconds then swallow. [product-row products="active-antimicrobial-face-mist,ortho-molecular-nk-stim?variant=31985398579263,quicksilver-scientific-lipocalm] Finally, be sure you're getting 45 minutes of exercise per day (I know most of our Feed Athletes are still doing way more) If you want to learn even more about how to regulate your training, check out the podcast we did with Dr. Kevin Sprouse on "Should I be training right now". - Stay Healthy, Be Safe, and Keep up the Training.

Athletes are worried about how Covid might effect their long term performance. | What our experts suggest athletes consider taking.

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