A Runner's Supplement Stack

Before we hop into this, I want to point out that I do *not* actively take all of these, but either have in some capacity or have studied them extensively.

Taking all of these would be a significant monthly cost, and probably even time consuming, but I wanted to list all over-the-counter/readily available supplements you can take to help in your training.

**This is not medical advice, all of the supplements I am listing are available for purchase in the US and not on any banned list**

When it comes to training, we need all the legal help we can get. Scraping out a few percentage points here, a few extra seconds to hold the lactate off during intervals, or improved blood flow for recovery; we take what we can get.

Because, in the end, all of these small inputs can lead to an output where we hit out next PR or finish that ultramarathon. In the hunt for greatness, we inevitably go down rabbit holes searching for the magic pill.

I urge you to take what I give you here and apply some of your own research.

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Tart Cherry Extract

“Short-term supplementation of Montmorency powdered tart cherries surrounding a single bout of resistance exercise, appears to be an effective dietary supplement to attenuate muscle soreness, strength decrement during recovery, and markers of muscle catabolism in resistance trained individuals.” (LINK)

High in anti-oxidants, tart cherry extract and juice can dramatically reduce inflammation after hard/long efforts. Along with generally feeling better after say, a peak long run, you will be able to get back on your feet quicker in the next 24 hours, allowing for proper active recover.

The effects of this one are downstream from the actual exercise portion, but still important and play a role. (LINK)

Tart cherries pack a punch with anthocyanin, a natural compound that fights inflammation just like painkillers such as ibuprofen and naproxen.

Many older athletes deal with joint issues like osteoarthritis, which can really slow down training. But drinking tart cherry juice can actually ease joint pain without the nasty side effects of arthritis meds or painkillers. When your joints feel good, it's way easier to stay motivated and push yourself in training.

Just one of the small levers we will be pulling in our journey towards new PRs and a higher VO2 max.