Biological Testing

Biological Performance Enhancement Profiles

Local athletes will be among the first in the U.S. to benefit from the innovative testing services of Bend-based Bioletics

As a dedicated athlete, you know that having the right training program can make a measurable difference in improving your performance. You also understand how important it is to work toward achieving-and maintaining-the highest possible level of overall health.

Being a healthy athlete begins with fueling and hydrating your body properly. Many athletes also find that taking nutritional supplements is a necessity when it comes to optimizing both their health and performance.

But how do you know if everything you're doing is enough?

According to Richard Cohen, M.D. of Bioletics, a new sports performance assessment company based here in Bend, "Even a small nutritional deficiency or slight physiological imbalance can significantly reduce your athletic performance potential."

Tim Monaco CMTA, co-founder of the company adds, "Based on extensive research, we have identified four, fundamental biological parameters that work either for or against an athlete's health and performance." He continues, "To feel and perform well, athletes need to know if their iron and vitamin D levels are adequate, if they are fueling their bodies with foods that are metabolically-appropriate and if their internal pH is balanced."

Cohen and Monaco both stress that biological deficiencies and imbalances are pervasive among athletes and are frequently overlooked by coaches, physicians and athletes alike.

Surprisingly, more than 40% of all male athletes and 70% of all female athletes are iron deficient. Iron levels can be rapidly depleted by sweat loss and the destruction of red cells from the impact of running and other higher impact activities.

Iron is the mineral responsible for delivering oxygen from the lungs to the muscles. Less than optimal levels of iron can significantly diminish athletic performance. Severe iron loss results in a reduction of red blood cells (known as anemia), but it is important to realize that an athlete does not have to be anemic to be suffering from low iron.

Symptoms of iron deficiency include:

• Poor performance and delayed recovery
• Increased fatigue or lethargy
• Heavy legs
• Susceptibility to infection
• Irritability
• Ice cravings
• Feeling colder than others around you

Interestingly enough, vitamin D is not really a vitamin at all. It is a hormone manufactured by your body (in the skin) during critical periods of sun exposure. Vitamin D is the building block of almost every physical process-from immune function to the production of key digestive enzymes, neurotransmitters and hormones.

Because every athlete is a genetically unique individual, each has very specific nutritional needs. As a result, specific needs for food and nutrients will differ. Today, most links to metabolically-correct diets have been lost due to the globalization of foods, the loss of seasonality in the food supply chain and the blending of genes through cultural intermarriage. Still, each individual retains an evolutionary "memory" of the particular foods and nutrients that are optimal for his or her health and performance. This means that one athlete may thrive on a high-carbohydrate meal of bagels and juice while another would falter as their body requires more protein and fat.

Finally, more than half of all athletes have internal pH imbalances that make their bodies too acidic. When the body is too acidic, it will extract essential minerals from bones and tissues in an effort to maintain proper blood pH. Over time, these losses can lead to a number of serious, long-term health concerns including low bone density.

Inadequate mineral intake, the sweat-induced loss of calcium and magnesium, stress (both physical and psychological) and the intake of caffeine and acidic beverages (including sodas and other sugary drinks) disrupt the body's blood chemistry. The combination of mineral loss and over-acidity will decrease athletic performance and will dramatically increase the risk of bone loss for both men and women.

Fortunately, each of these performance-inhibiting factors can now be easily-and inexpensively-evaluated. "None of the tests we've made available will require a doctor's visit," explains Cohen. "We're giving athletes the opportunity to take complete control of both their health and their performance."

"In most instances, the issues we see can be addressed and eliminated in six to eight weeks though nutritional supplementation and simple dietary adjustments," adds Monaco.

Bioletics is currently the only company in the U.S. focusing specifically on evaluating the biological aspects of athletic performance. Rebound Sports Performance Labs is the first facility to make the company's biological performance profiles available. For more information or to schedule testing, please contact Tim Monaco at Rebound Sports Performance at 541-948-7018 or by e-mail at tim@bioletics.com.

Mention reading this article and you'll qualify for a reduced cost on your initial testing. Have your iron, vitamin D, metabolic type and mineral status all evaluated for just $95.00.

Dr. Cohen is a physician and avid athlete who brings almost two decades of experience in preventive medicine and sports performance to Bend and to Bioletics. He has been training and counseling members of the American medical community on nutritional issues for the past 15 years and, more recently, has become recognized as one of the leading authorities in the biological analysis of athletic performance factors. He is a former world class athlete, having competed in the sport of luge during the mid 1980's.

Tim Monaco is a Certified Metabolic Typing Advisor, CHEK HLC III, CHEK Level I Practitioner, NSCA Certified Personal Trainer, Licensed Massage Therapist and USA Cycling Level II Coach. For over twenty years he has been on the cutting edge of endurance athletics as an advisor and competitor. He competed as a professional triathlete from 1996-2001 and raced around the world in hundreds of events. During that time he won numerous national-class and pro titles in triathlon, duathon, and ultra-distance running. Today he continues to compete at a high level as a Masters athlete and puts into practice the elements of health that he recommends to his clients.