Supplements and WADA

Following Thursday's power workout, I commented that I was really digging the fitness supplement that I took in the morning: Rhodiola. Brent asked if it was WADA, World Anti-Doping Agency, compliant. I said that it was as of 2009, which he said was not good enough. This led me to really dig into the prohibited list of drugs for 2011 to make sure I was still good.

As a point of reference, prior to the workout, I felt like absolute garbage. Yoga was rough and my general alertness/feeling was pretty bad. I popped two Rhodiolas prior to heading over to the shop, curious to see what would happen. It is supposed to adapt to my physical needs and help fuel my exercise and recovery. By the end of the workout, Brent's famous power pyramid intervals, I felt fantastic! I could not believe how good I felt! It was incredible!

Anywho, back to WADA. What is permissible? What is not? These are important, albeit oft neglected, questions to ask if you are an elite athlete or an aspiring elite athlete. On my quest to determine the legality of my precious Rhodiola, I dug around to find what is permitted and what is not. I stumbled across the 2011 Prohibited List, which is a scientific document of all of the chemical names broken down into categories for what is not allowed or what dosages are not allowed. To make life easier, the USADA, US Anti-Doping Agency, publishes an athlete's guide to the prohibited list in language that the average bear can understand. Because I have a science background, I read both and compared all of the supplements I take, a rather daunting task, to make sure that I am not accidentally taking anything I should not be. One of the most shocking discoveries was that pseudoephedrine is prohibited in-competition. In-competition means that you can take it, but it must not be in your body or below a certain level prior to showing up at the start line. I see this as an easy one to inadvertently break while trying to fight the common cold.

Now that I have rambled on for a little while, I would like to point out that all of my supplements, including Rhodiola, are completely WADA compliant! Wahoo!

Happy Training!