Thanks in advance for any advice regarding this matter. I am greatly in debt to y’all and your great work in the training and outdoor athletic communities. I am writing to humbly request your advice and recommendation regarding how to train and recover from a recent diagnosis.
In late September of 2016, I began to experience symptoms of chronic tiredness and blood loss during bowel movements that was far different than the heavy lifting induced hemorrhoids I had experienced occasionally in years past. These symptoms persisted with increasing severity over time. My “hard-headed” attitude assumed I could just power through it and that the symptoms would solve themselves over time. By May of 2017, I determined I had to have the problem assessed, due to how drastically my performance had dropped in all categories. I went from a 2 mile in 12:45 in SEP16 (which is poor for me historically) to a 14:49 in MAY17, lifting heavy sets of deadlift at 395 to 245, and dropping from a lean 172# to 158#. I was grasping at my fitness performance with no success and finally “dropped off the deep end” in June, when I was seen by the doctor and diagnosed with ulcerative pan-colitis, anemia, and iron and vitamin D chronic deficiency. My hemoglobin and hematocrit levels are both below healthy levels. In summary, the doctor said that due to my body’s inability to absorb nutrients (as a result of the immune system-related disease), my body was constantly in a malnourished state (burning muscle due to malnutrition in Army Ranger School was his example).
I was given medication that has been very successful in suppressing the symptoms of the disease, and am taking every supplement under the sun (Multivitamin, Omega 3s, whey protein, beta alanine, creatine, Sportlegs, iron) in an attempt to recover my weight/muscle mass and aerobic endurance. Also on week 4 of the Whole 30, trying to self-diagnose any triggers for the symptoms of the colitis.
Thankfully, even though I serve as a leader in the military, I’ve been blessed with a supervisor who has personal experience with a similar disease in a family member, who is happy to protect me to rest and to train as necessary to return to full health. Based on the recommendation of others with this condition, I’ve mixed hypertrophy training (~3x/week) with interval based aerobic efforts (2x/week) and a few long Z1 endurance efforts (1-2/week) in my personal plan in an effort to fight what this disease has stripped from me, for lack of a better term. I am using hypertrophy programming from MTN Tactical/Military Athlete combined with endurance methodology from Jack Daniels and TftNA. I’m seeing some return in muscle definition, but minimal weight gain (now ~161#). My most recent blood tests show another drop in hemoglobin/hematocrit again after an initial rise, even after 2 months of supplementation and a full month of rest before easing back into training at a reduced load and intensity. My body is rapidly recovering its anaerobic endurance (previously the best of my personal fitness attributes), but my strength is still pathetic and my aerobic system is entirely out of whack. A 4-mile run last week that felt pretty easy at an average pace of 8:50 had me in Z3 almost the entire time. It seems like my Lactate Threshold is as low as it could be.
Any advice that you might have would be immensely appreciated.
Thanks for all you’ve done and continue to do.
