Week 3 – Here Comes Santa Claus… with a Cold

Editor’s note: Ian Murray is using Zwift to train for the International Triathlon Union Long Course World Championships held in Odense/Fyn, Denmark July 2018. His weekly Zwift Insider series discusses the previous week’s training and the plan for the upcoming week.

Some people love the holidays, and some people hate them. I hate that the holidays often bring more virus issues like colds. Colds suck. The week started off AWESOME only to go sideways midweek with the onset of a cold. Fortunately, it was short-lived, and I got to get back at it on the weekend. While still not a perfect week, it was better than the last one.

Week 3 – It’s Complicated

I mistakenly thought that the week leading into Christmas would be calm and quiet. Yes, I thought that I would have plenty of time to train and recover. Or… one of my officemates could bring in something that his kid got from the petri dish of a school that he attends. Grrr.

To make it worse, I got a last-minute invite to a big event that would definitely be described as mandatory fun. Don’t get me wrong, the party was fun, but I would have much preferred to be able to go to bed early, not have a couple glasses of Buchanan 18 year-old Scotch (ok, that’s not true), and listen to some really loud music for six hours. Friday was a bit rough, as my ears were still ringing from the noise, and I sucked down some DayQuil to help with the congestion.

Anyway, getting back to the training: Monday went well. A nice easy 10.5-mile run, commuting to and from work, and a good strength workout got things off right. Tuesday followed with a nice swim, 16 by 25 meters followed by 5 by 200 meters alternating regular and with paddles. Wednesday is when things started to go awry. I had a good strength-focused bike workout, followed by commuting to and from work, and the SkillZ and DrillZ Ride. Even before the ride home, I could feel the cold coming on. On Thursday morning, I woke up and felt it. I tried to get a run in, but I called it at 10K. I just didn’t have anything else in me! Friday became a rest day. I got home from work and crawled in bed at 7PM. It was awesome! I slept for 12 hours and woke up feeling much better.

Getting good rest on Friday was very important because Saturday I had the TeamODZ Superhero race. (It actually had a much longer name, but I don’t have enough space to type it out here.) The race format was basically a super Cat & Mouse, with teams of nine riders starting at different intervals based on the average FTP and w/kg of the riders. First team with five riders to finish wins.

Because of my slight cold, I did not feel like I would be one of the top five riders for my team. Thus, I planned to do a lot of work on the climbs and sit in on the flats. From the gun, our plan fell apart, as riders had technical issues and the second time up Box Hill proved too tough, splitting our group apart and leaving me as the fifth rider. Just short of vomit output level, I pulled the plug and eased off, quickly losing 45 seconds to the other four. Eventually, I grouped back up with two other teammates, and we drilled it to the end. Let’s just say, we didn’t win. A for effort, though. Twenty minutes after the race, I did my last strength workout of the week. Yeah, it sucked, but I got it done. Here’s the video to prove it:

[embedyt] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zuRDj5Ip1fQ[/embedyt]

I ended up taking Sunday off. I wish I took it off because I dug so deep that I was still gassed. Nope. I went to a Christmas party Saturday night and then to a friend’s house afterward. I behaved at the party, even leaving by 9:30, but the BS session turned into an accidental Rusty Nail marathon. I walked home at almost 2 AM and did not get nearly the amount of sleep that I should have. So, I just rested on the recliner for a good portion of the day, catching up on tv shows that I have missed over the last few months. Besides, I had a big day planned for Monday, so extra rest was probably a good thing.

Week 4 – Race Practice, Lots of Miles – 

This will finally be an easier week at work because most people are on vacation. I will be able to roll in a little late and take off a little early to get in a second workout. On Christmas, I gave myself a little present, 120K on the bike and a 30-minute run after. The rest of the week is a little better up until New Year’s Eve when I plan on adding a 3K swim and an additional 30 minutes of running to the mix.

So, some of you may be asking yourselves, “What the hell is he doing?” Yes, I know that some of this makes little sense from the perspective of a standard build. However, I am coming off of having a fair bit of mileage in the legs and want to build the volume up quickly. To do so, I am sacrificing a little intensity and spending more time in the saddle. Some of this is because I have some work travel coming up in January that will keep me off of my bike, and some is because I have a plan. Once my volume is up, I will pull the Fast Freddie Rodriguez methodology. I will go progressively closer to race effort for the distance, reducing the saddle time but increasing the intensity. Meanwhile, I will pick up the swim and run volume. By May, I want the 120K to feel like nothing. I want to get off the bike feeling fairly fresh. I will likely ride a bit longer of distances as we progress just to really get the legs ready. Plus, I can generally take a fair amount of TSS, as long as I get my seven to eight hours of sleep per night.

We’ll see how it goes this week. The goal TSS is a bit high, but I have done much more than that on a number of occasions. I’ll be riding around Watopia or London on Sunday for about four hours and then running for one. Drop on in or throw me a ride on. I’m sure I will need it at some point during the ride.

On that note, it’s off to bed for me. I’ll get Week 4’s recap up a little quicker, as I have the day after my long workout off to sit on the couch and recover. See you out on the course. Until then, look for me on Wednesday mornings at 5:15 AM EDT leading an Endurance Lab group workout and 6:30 PM EDT on the ODZ SkillZ and DrillZ ride.

Zwift for Weight Loss: The Supplement Conundrum

Is there a ‘magic pill’ for weight loss? Please say no. There are hundreds of claims, hundred of sales offers, and hundred of test results.  We must ask, how was the test carried out? Who paid for the test?

Let’s Talk About Studies

One test was paid for by a company that sells a certain kind of fruit. What did their test reveal? Their fruit prevents cancer. When this test was conducted properly, the results showed no such benefit. It is easy to take a group and select the healthier ones to test the product on. Then, compare them to the other group. This is one way to lead the results. Don’t trust every test, especially any quoted in a sales ad.

A proper scientific test should have a placebo group. A randomized controlled trial is A study design that randomly assigns participants into an experimental group or a control group.  Double blind means the testers don’t know which group is which. Certain criteria must be followed. Did participants exercise 60 minutes a day or did the participants merely say they exercised? Having a participant simply check a box ‘yes’ or ‘no’ is not accurate enough. The other problem is when a test lasts just a few weeks or up to three months. This isn’t long enough to gauge a loss that is gradual over one year. Yet, they are often pushed to get fast results.

My favorite example of positioning such a study is one that revealed salt is bad for you. Many quoted it and said, “Salt is bad for you. There’s proof.” Was it true? Were there health problems? Yes. Were they caused by salt with reliable results? No. Here’s why: the group eating salt were people who ate a high salt diet consisting of hot dogs, pizza, potato chips, bacon,etc. They should have selected healthy individuals who lived on a healthy diet with high salt content to prove their point. They only proved that salty junk food is unhealthy.

Two views often exist side by side. To illustrate: an athlete sees his workout shirt has dried salt deposits. (Is it actually sodium chloride?) He immediately proclaims, “Look how much salt I’ve lost. I should replace it.” A different athlete reacts, “Look how much salt I’ve lost. I must be eating too much. I better cut down my salt intake.” Doctors who examine a controlled study will disagree as well.

I had some points on chromium picolinate based on one doctor, but I changed my mind after doing more research. Dr. Jeukendrup agrees with a study of studies that show little to no effect on fat loss. Still, it was averaged at 1 pound of fat lost over the groups not taking chromium. That could add up to four pounds a year (Onakpoya at Oxford). Some who touted chromium are now rather silent on the matter. Chromium supplements of any amount should be discussed with a doctor, especially if you are diabetic. My interpretation of chromium in brief: high sugar diets will cause fat gain and chromium loss. Cutting out sugar will lead an active person toward weight loss. Chromium may help those individuals. Ask your doctor.

Getting the right nutrients might require only a change in diet. But, that is not always possible. While the body generally maintains the level of sodium chloride, potassium levels can get low. Should you run out and buy potassium then? If so, what kind and how much should one take? First, always calculate how much is actually needed. Second, how much are you getting?  Add the amount in your diet plus the amount in your one-a-day vitamin pill. What is the difference?

Example: Potassium

• Recommended amount: 4700 mg (MNA)
• Dietary level (average): 2000-2500 mg
• Vitamin One-a-Day level: 0
• Natural sources: Potato 900 mg, Banana 450, Kiwi (2) 430 , Spinach 420, Sweet Potato 540, Sport drink 37, Milk 382 (Ask me what I drink.)
• Regular table salt: zero
• Lite salt (Potassium Chloride) 1/4 teaspoon 600 mg

Supplement Dangers: Potassium

“Dangerous heart rhythm problems and even cardiac arrest” is possible in some cases. Use only with the guidance of a medical doctor. May have fatal effects with certain health conditions and/or medications. Extreme care is needed with diabetes, heart problems, high blood pressure, and various medications “such as spironolactone.” Quote from Deepak Bhatt, MD Harvard Heart Letter June 2016. 

Vitamin D

There’s good news respecting vitamin D3. More than one study shows what applies to almost all supplements. Vitamin D does not cause weight loss. Vitamin D deficiency may impair fat loss, especially in the stomach or belly area. What can we base this on? One study shows women lowered their fat with vitamin D. Another showed vitamin D lowered the amount of body fat. Keep in mind this vital point: the test subjects were given a healthy diet and exercised. The supplemented amount brought their vitamin D levels to where they should be.

Specifically, these studies used D3 oil gel caps. (not dry tablets). Natural vitamin D comes from sunlight. If you are outdoors with exposed skin you may get enough, and it’s free. It is unlikely for many of us to get enough exposure especially in the winter. What about the vitamin D in my one-a-day vitamin pill, in my milk, and in my breakfast cereal? All I can suggest is that it is probably not the right type. How much money are corporations going to spend for this vitamin to be added to their product? Further, will D3 prove to be the next Chromium, touted one day and forgotten when the wind shifts to another supplement?

Recommendations from those test results are to take a high dosage for 90 days to overcome a deficiency, then supplement according to daily recommended levels. 4,000 iu was used as the highest level in testing. Don’t go higher. By at least 10,000 iu, there is a strong toxicity danger. More is not better.

Here’s what bothers me in advertising. This is a quote from a vitamin D ad where I will not mention the company. “Shed pounds fast”,” No foods are off-limit”. “Fat-melting” and “You’ll lose weight quickly.” This ad worries me.

Consider using a supplement that will meet your requirements. Daily amount total is around 600 iu (Institute of Medicine 400-800). Studies show overweight individuals may require 1000-2400 iu. (1000 iu = 25 mcg) IOM Summary. A doctor can run a blood test. Just because you are D deficient does not guarantee that vitamin D supplements will cause weight loss. The jury is still out. Time will tell if the current studies are tried and true.

Dr. Soares says, “Overall, there is consistent evidence that calcium and vitamin D increase whole body fat oxidation.” But added that there are not defined levels of the vitamin administered and the resulting change. So, it does work, as he sees it. But, it’s unclear how much benefit it brings. (I say, for 10 dollars it seems good to try. For 50 dollars, I want solid proof.)

Dr. Pathak finds little evidence in eleven studies. However, he reports that none of the testers imposed a calorie restriction, nor was there any exercise protocol. One additional study did show a decrease in fat mass for women. Again, it does not state the full parameters. How much did exercise and diet come into play?

Caffeine and Green Tea

Caffeine seems to increase fat metabolism slightly. If it helps you ride harder for a longer time, then that’s an added benefit. If you need an excuse to drink coffee, this is it: Dr. Graham. For me, I just love to drink it. If you are going to drink caffeine, do so before exercise. Then, wait for it to kick in.

Green tea has health benefits that may include fat metabolism. Catechins in green tea and decaf green tea may account for greater benefits than the caffeine in coffee. One study had a weight loss of 5.5 pounds in a three months versus 3 pounds for the group without tea. Definitive proof? No. It seems to be a fairly cheap approach though. I prefer to buy a good quality of loose leaf tea.

“Fat oxidation rates, during a 30-min cycling at 60% VO2max, were significantly higher (17%) following GTE ingestion compared to placebo.” Dr. Jeukendrup concluded, “Green tea has the potential to increase fat metabolism at rest, also during exercise, and may help to lose body fat and body weight. As with caffeine, the effects appear to be relatively small.” Dr, Jeukendrup’s article.

Protein Powder

Whey Protein Concentrate is being haled as a weight loss aid. I much prefer egg white protein as it is very easy on my stomach. Does it reduce body fat in tests? It is difficult to say. Protein will benefit any weight training program. Is this protein in addition to a healthy diet? Is it a replacement for a meal protein like fried chicken or a cheeseburger? There’s so many variables from one study to another. It quickly gets confusing. Every ad has an agenda, “Buy our product.” Be careful with your health and your money. I take protein powder to get the right amount in my daily diet. The amount will differ from one person to another. It is based on muscle mass and the amount and type of daily exercise. I don’t think protein will ever prove to change your fat metabolism. It may help you to eliminate saturated fats from your diet. That in itself, is a big step in the right direction.

Conclusion

There’s no way to cheat the system of exercising and eating healthy. If you are regularly cycling and lifting weights, you should gradually lose weight. Hopefully, Zwift enhances your exercise and increases your health. If something works for you, please share it with us at ZwiftOff. Join us for our group workouts as well.