I am big fan of an animal-based, protein rich diet that contains veggies cooked in butter (or olive oil), nuts & seeds, fruit as dessert, whole-fat dairy, eggs and fermented foods like pickles, sauerkraut and kombucha. And bone broth. That ish is a cheat code! However, I do take supplements as well. Because I am interested in long term health, achievement of that extra 5-10% and feeling awesome on a daily basis. Plus, I need all the help I can get to increase my HRV, more on that in a later blog. If you want to read more about my diet, read here.
Below are the supplements I take everyday and those I am experimenting with as well. I give a brief description and have links to products I take below the description. Enjoy. And reach out if you have any questions.
Here are the supplements I take a few supplements everyday:
- Multi-Sourced Collagen Protein – The most abundant protein in our body that helps with bone strength, digestive function, amazing hair/skin/nails, joint support, strong tendons and ligaments and decreases overall inflammation.
- LMNT Electrolytes (Salt in particular, but also potassium and magnesium)– As Dr. Cate says, most of us are woefully under eating salt. Did you know salt is involved in basically every function of the body? And that Himalayan pink seat salt containers every single mineral on the periodic table? Salt helps to establish healthy hydration levels and electrolyte balance, nerve health, nutrient absorption, and muscle function. Just to name a few. Dr. Cate says we need 3-5 grams per day, but if you sweat and/or are an athlete, you might need 5-10 grams per day!
- LMNT Citrus (The citrus tastes like yellow Gatorade, yum)
- Nutrafol – for the hair health! As much as I think I am, unfortunately, my hair is not 19 anymore. I wish I would have been taking this years ago, I might still have the same hairline… But it is coming back!
- Melatonin – Our bodies create melatonin when the sun goes down, but if I take 2-3mg I go to sleep very, very quickly. And go into restorative sleep (REM, Deep) faster and stay there longer (thanks Whoop band). Maybe it is the placebo effect, but I don’t leave my house without melatonin when traveling.
- Coffee – This is not a supplement, I know. But hey, I consume it every day and have basically vowed to the Coffee God’s to be a faithful and loyal steward, forever… We drink Ralph’s grinded at home, but will do Bulletproof and Death Wish k-cups when needed.
- Coconut Oil – Rich in amazing fats like MCT’s that contribute to overall health, including skin, hair, anti-cancer, anti-microbial, oral health and encourages fat burning while delivering fuel directly to your brain in the form of short chain triglycerides.
Being an avid reader has led me to books like Life Force (by Tony Robbins & Peter Diamandis), Lifespan (by David Sinclair) and Super Human (by Dave Asprey) and many more (check out my Books Page). Therefore, I am playing with many other supplements right now (see below). Also, listening to podcasts hosted by Andrew Huberman, Tim Ferriss and Andy Galpin also catch my attention on all things supplements… This list changes and many products move into the everyday consumption category above.
- Vitamin K2 – plays a yuge (yes, I spelled it that way intentionally) role in bone health via calcium metabolism (meaning it controls calcium density in our bones and works to ensure calcium doesn’t build up in the arteries), heart heath, strengthens our teeth, and blood clotting, which sounds scary but is actually vitally important or else we would bleed to death every time we cut ourselves.
- Vitamin D – I forget which book said this (I will remember one day…), but it stated that vitamin D should be called a hormone not a vitamin, it is that important. It helps with so much – fights and protects from 17-thousand diseases, promotes the creation of testosterone (yup, you read that right dudes…), improves mood, boosts our immune system, might save your life from covid (seriously), absorption of calcium and phosphorus to help our bones (and teeth!) be strong and awesome… Sign me up!
- NMN (Nicotinamide Mononucleotide) – David Sinclair has made this compound famous and rightfully so, it is pretty amazing. NMN is a powerful anti-aging compound that can improve brain health, heart heath, exercise, our livers and sleep. NMN improves insulin sensitivity, increases energy, assists in DNA repair which is the reason for anti-aging benefits. To get sciencey real quick, NMN gets converted into NAD (nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide) in the body, so technically NAD is what is giving us all the benefits mentioned above.
- Resveratrol – The antioxidant in red wine, but you’d have to drink like 16 bottles to get the 1 gram of resveratrol I take each day. Please don’t do that… Anyway, resveratrol is another anti-aging, antioxidant with anti-inflammatory properties. It can help lower oxidized LDL, lower blood pressure, lower blood sugar and increase insulin sensitivity, have protective benefits to brain health, fight cancer growth and protect our joints by making our cartilage stronger.
- Glutathione – Our bodies make this powerful antioxidant in our livers, however many/most people are woefully low in their levels. Glutathione is found in every cell in our bodies and benefits include protecting the body from disease by supporting immune function, improve insulin sensitivity and therefore help control blood sugar, transport mercury out of the bran (metal detoxification), slow cancer progression, and can even help reduce/fight again oxidative stress.
- Ashwagandha – stress reliver, increases muscle strength, lowers overall blood sugar, increases testosterone :), aides in bran health especially with attention and focus, can help increase VO2 max and therefor improve heart health.
- Fish Oil – A wonderful way to get some clutch Omega 3 fatty acids, which helps with brain function, heart health, eye health, help with depression, decrease inflammation, and like 16 other things. Take it… And don’t be afraid to double up what the label recommends per day… All you’re consuming is fish fat 🙂
- Pterostilbene – reduce damage to cells from free radicals, anti-inflammatory, blood-sugar balancing effects, anti-obesity effects, heart health, brain health, health aging.
- Turmeric (& Ginger) – powerful antioxidant/anti-inflammatory that helps with arthritis, digestive disorders, respiratory infections, allergies, liver disease, depression, and many others.
- Creatine – improves muscle mass, endurance, energy. I have found creatine allow me to fast for 16+ hours and not lose weight either. However, creatine makes me gain about 5-8 pounds very quickly, which I don’t particularly love at my current stage of life…So I only take like 2g per day.
- Vitamin C – Powerful antioxidant that helps protect our cells against free radicals. Boosts immunity, heart health, memory health, manages high blood pressure, protect against chronic disease.
- Iodine – critical for proper thyroid function, inherent antiseptic that contributes to a healthy immune system, nerve health, brain health, and very important for fetal development (which is not a reason why I take everyday). This one is on the list of supplements I give to my kids every day, it is that important!
- Magnesium – I get a little bit of Mg in my LMNT supplement, but not enough for my daily needs. Mg is used by every cell in the body and used in hundreds of biochemical reaction throughout the body, and worst of all most people are deficient. It helps with muscle and nerve function, heart function, combats depression just to name a few. It helps chill me out at night and drift off into sweet slumber.
- Boron – very important for bone health, aids in wound healing, teeth/gum health, it increases the biological half life of vitamin D thus disallowing a deficiency (whoa! thank you Dr. Steven Lin), balances hormones and reduces overall inflammation.
- Beef Liver – Liver is the healthiest food in the word, and the nastiest. I can’t do it. But I want it. So I take pills. Liver helps with well everything… Strong joints and connective tissue, brain health, heart health, bone density, immunity, liver support, kidney function, and more!
- Vitamin E – Another powerful antioxidant that helps with healthy skin, hair, vision, reproductive health, increases red blood cell count and support a healthy immune system.
- Methylene Blue – Potential miracle compound…Â Powerful antioxidant, antiviral, antifungal, mitochondrial health, improved energy production, anti-aging, this list could go on forever. Hard to take though, I have to put drops in a capsule every morning with my morning smoothie. But worth it!
If you order any of these as powder in bulk from a company like Bulk Supplements, know that many of these powders are absolutely disgusting. Consider purchasing some capsules and stuff into them… Yes, I am a wimp. A very smart wimp… Here is the 1g+ size I use – Capsuline Size 000
Supplements I have played with and no longer take…
- Beta Alanine – I have tried to take this 3 separate times and it just makes me feel weird. Maybe I am just weird?
- L-Citrulline DL-Malate 2:1 – Similar to Beta Alanine, just makes me feel weird. And after reading a few books, including those by mark Sloan, I don’t think anyone should be taking this or anything that is a Nitric Oxide booster…
- Carbon 60 – I use Olive Oil on pretty much everything, so I cut this out.
To be continued…
(Last edit 9/5/2023)