Fueling is just one piece of performance. The athletes I see at the highest level right now are the ones paying attention to the full picture — recovery, sleep, tissue health, muscle preservation. Here's what that looks like in practice, and how to make it easy.
Performance Wellness
Something I've been thinking about a lot lately: optimizing your performance as an athlete isn't just about carbs per hour anymore. The athletes I see performing best are the ones paying attention to their whole wellness picture. We call this Performance Wellness.
When you actually dial it in, it's a different feeling. Better energy, better recovery, you just feel good. It takes time to figure out what works for you, and what works for me probably won't be exactly right for you, but I figured I'd share my current protocol in case any of it sparks ideas.
I hate taking a bunch of pills, so I've spent years cutting mine down to just the stuff I can actually feel working.
Morning
I'm taking a few more things than usual right now because I'm six weeks post-back surgery, but here's the routine.
Before Breakfast
Omega-3 and CoQ10 (energy and inflammation), and Nitric Oxide Pro (blood flow, which helps cardiac health and performance).
After Coffee
H2Tab or Quicksilver H2 Elite — hydrogen water. I'll be honest, I don't know for sure if it works, but I feel great on it. I use it instead of a regular glass of water to take everything else.
SwissRX Soft Tissue Complex. I started this right after surgery and I swear it's a big part of why I'm recovering as well as I am (the other big part is Dr. Sonny Gill at Steadman. If you ever need a back surgeon, he's the guy). Soft Tissue Complex is expensive, no way around it. But it works. I'd say it's a must after any injury or surgery, and a lot of our athletes use it during their biggest training blocks too.
Synthesis. This one's become the most repurchased product we've ever had at The Feed, which tells you something. It upregulates mTOR, which is basically the switch your body flips to build and preserve muscle. I'm certain it works for me. I've got my parents on it to prevent muscle loss, and anyone I know on a GLP-1 I send a bottle to. The PeptiStrong ingredient is in clinical trials for GLP-1 support right now.
After My Morning Workout
Protein shake. I rotate between The Feed Lab, Momentous, Transparent Labs, and ProMix depending on what I'm feeling. But the one thing I always add is Foundation.
Foundation is the product I'm most proud of that we've made. I got tired of having a counter full of tubs, so I put everything I take daily into one powder — Creatine (5g), SwissRX Collagen, SwissRX Gut Defense, Synthesis, and Taurine. Buying all of those separately would run you close to $8 a serving. Foundation is $3.99. You'll notice it has Synthesis in it, and yes, I also took Synthesis in capsule form earlier. I don't worry about doubling up — some of the clinical studies used 8x the daily dose.
Before Bed
Pillar Triple Magnesium and a shot of Dream Shot. That's it. No pills.
Someone I really respect in the human performance space (big on Substack, you'd know the name) messaged me this week:
"I've been DIGGING taking this every night as my training has ramped up. I know it's a sleep supplement but recovery also improves."
That's the thing with Dream Shot. It's sold as sleep, but the recovery piece is what keeps me on it.
A Couple of Brands I'm Excited About
Real Food Fueling
Real food for fueling is easier on the stomach, and I genuinely think the energy is better than anything manufactured. It seems to hit faster and also doesn't mess with your stomach as much.
A few years back we carried a brand I thought was the best real food fueling I'd ever tried, and then they disappeared on us. They're back, and now exclusive to The Feed.
Veloforte. Start with the fruit chews — the energy hits fast and I think it's because they're actually made from real fruit. Their new protein shakes and protein bar are also must tries.
Lecka. Won our gel taste test, easily my favorite. The new Lecka Ultra Gel (passion fruit mango) has 65g of carbs and 410mg of sodium in one gel. That's a full session of fuel at endurance pace, or two an hour if you're going high-carb.
Two Pieces of Gear I'm Into Right Now
If you need a run watch, this is a steal at $249. 41 hours of GPS battery (more than I can run in a week), big 1.2" AMOLED screen, and it weighs 32 grams — lighter than some gels. I was genuinely impressed.
Quick context: I think music is the most underrated performance enhancer there is. Getting into flow state on a hard effort is non-negotiable for me. But AirPods aren't safe outside — too much traffic, too many pedestrians, and where I ride, the geese might actually be the bigger threat.
So open-ear is the move. I used to wear the Shokz OpenFit, and the new OpenFit Pro is a real upgrade. They added wind noise filtering that actually works, you lose the hiss but keep the awareness. Dolby Atmos sound, 50% better bass, head-tracked audio. $249. Calls are crystal clear too, which has been clutch on training rides.
