Boosting Your Energy Level with Vitamin D

Boosting Energy A Vitamin D and Testosterone self-experiment

using biomarker and activity tracking

Maximilian Gotzler

QS Meetup Berlin - August 22nd, 2013

Maximilian Gotzler QS Meetup Berlin 22/08/2013

Outline 1.  Initial Situation - Why did I do it?

2.  The Experiment - What did I do?

3.  Results - What did I learn?

4.  Next Steps - What will I do next?


1. Initial Situation Before I started the experiment, I was experiencing:

• Shoulder pain • Bad mood, winter depression • Lethargia, no motivation to work out • Sleepiness during the day • Light skin rash on upper arms • Restless nights Low level of energy


Vitamin D •  Vitamin D is a secosteroid, technically not a vitamin

•  Can be built by the body with UVB-light

•  Present in certain foods and supplements

•  Regulates more than 1,000 genes

•  Recommended level varies between 30-100 ng/ml in the blood

•  Peak athletic performance usually reached at around 50 ng/ml

•  Vitamin D increases need for Vitamin A and Vitamin K2


Vitamin D Deficiency • Depression or seasonal affective disorder

• Obesity • Daytime sleepiness

• Joint and bone pain • Skin rashes and acne • Osteoporosis • Low sex drive


Baseline-Test • Blood test checking multiple markers including:

•  Vitamin D

•  and Testosterone

2. The Experiment Supplementing Vitamin D3 and tracking biomarker, mood, and activity changes


In a Nutshell

Total Vitamin D : 10,600 IUs /day Total Vitamin A : 3,500 IUs/day

Doctor‘s Best Vitamin D3 5000 IUs 2x per day = 10,000 IUs/day

2 Green Pasture cod liver oil capsules 2x per day = 3500 IUs Vitamin A

and 600 IUs Vitamin D

May 29 August 14

Baseline-Test 2.5 months of supplementation

Re-Test


Expectations •  Increase in Vitamin D 25 OH Cholecalciferol level

•  Increase in Testosterone level • Less shoulder pain •  Improved mood • Less sleepiness during the day • Better sleep at night • Better skin

More energy


Activity Tracking Using Jawbone UP

•  Tracked my basic activity level and sleep patterns

•  The UP broke after 1 month of tracking

•  Sleep started to improve •  Data does not show activity while not wearing UP band


Subjective Changes • More aggressive, competitive •  Irritable mood • Less pain in shoulder • Rash completely gone on arm

•  It feels as if injuries heal much faster • Better sleep, feel more rested during the day


Re-Test • Blood test, this time only checking:

•  Vitamin D

•  and Testosterone


Trend

29.2

52

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

29-‐May 14-‐Aug

Vitamin D 25 in ng/ml

4.92

3.79

0

1

2

3

4

5

6

29-‐May 14-‐Aug

Testosterone in ng/ml


Possible Explanations • Bizarely, testosterone dropped

•  Vitamin D and Vitamin A were expected to increase testosterone •  Aggressive mood and more energy pointed to an increase

• Potential reasons •  The dose of 10,000 IUs of Vitamin D induced a deficiency in Vitamin K2,

which is also related to testosterone production •  Daily fluctuation •  Another androgen increased instead of testosterone such as SHGB or

(sex-hormone binding globulin), which binds to Testosterone making it inert, or LH (Luteinizing Hormone), which also increases aggression


3. Expectations Revisited ü Increase in Vitamin D 25 OH Cholecalciferol level

- Increase in Testosterone level ü Less shoulder pain - Improved mood ü Less sleepiness during the day ü Better sleep at night ü Better skin

More energy - YES


4. Next Trial • Check Vitamin A, K2, LH, and SHBG levels

•  Increase Vitamin D dose to 20,000 IUs/day

• Supplement Vitamin K2 2,000 mcg/day

• Record mood changes using a mood tracker • Record strength increases in the gym

Can I get rid of allergies and remaining joint pain using Vitamin D?


Thank YOU! Want to reach me?

[email protected] Tel.: +49 160 964 77329

Boosting Your Energy Level with Vitamin D

Self Improvement

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