This KIW Research Note has been written by Dr Jeff Rothschild
Jeff obtained a PhD in Sport Nutrition and he is Sport Nutritionist at High Sports Performance New Zealand.
You can find Jeff and many interesting things he is working on his website here.
At some point in your cycling journey, you’ve probably:
heard someone mention iron supplements,
watched a teammate “magically” rebound after starting iron, or
wondered if your fatigue is more than just hard training and poor sleep.
Iron deficiency is one of the most common nutrition issues in sport, with rates reported to be as high as 17% in male and 50% in female endurance athletes! [1] Female athletes have higher iron requirements due to menstrual blood losses, and when combined with training-induced reductions in absorption and increased losses, iron deficiency can occur more frequently than in males.
Unlike other supplements we’ve talked about, iron isn’t a performance enhancer per se. It’s a performance enabler, which means when it’s missing, nothing else you do can fully work. Iron is not only critical for haemoglobin and oxygen transport; it also plays key roles in energy production (via mitochondrial enzymes and oxygen storage/transfer inside your muscle).
The practical consequences of deficiency can include reduced energy production, reduced VO₂max, and significantly compromised endurance capacity.
Although iron deficiency may be more common in runners due to footstrike hemolysis (the breakdown of red blood cells caused by repetitive impact forces when your feet hit the ground), cyclists can increase risk via high training load, sweat losses, GI stress, restricted energy intake and low dietary iron intake.
1. TESTING IRON STATUS
