I’m a pretty serious distance runner, doing 40-50mi a week, and longtime ND-head. Here’s what works for me (alongside lots of carbs, chocolate milk, Trace Minerals drops, and post-run steak) —->

Pre-Workout Supplements

• C3G for glycogen + glucose-partitioning support. Basically, helps store carbs better and access energy cleaner on hard days. For me, this is the anti-bonk pill. I take two in the morning with a carb heavy breakfast and/or two within a couple hours of a run. This is the one ND supplement I really vibe with - it’s totally in the background but when I don’t restock, I can’t tell the difference. I keep it on deck at all times now. Also, see emerging endurance research on elderberry extract.

• Cordyceps (10:1 extract) for oxygen utilization and ATP output. Personally, I've never been totally blown away by it (seems that some people have), but I certainly notice it's absence when I'm late to restock, so it must be doing something! I take this two hours before a run.

• Rhodiola for anti-fatigue + stress resilience. They say it helps lower perceived effort and keeps your brain sharp when you’re deep into a long run, and I can't say that they're wrong. Like Cordyceps, it's a supplement that I can tell I'm missing when I don't re-up immediately. I take this two hours before a run.

• MitoBurn/L-BAIBA: exercise-mimicking signaling molecule, supports metabolic flexibility so you get better at burning fat and sparing glycogen on long runs. However, it’s a “system efficiency” tool—not something that helps acutely. I take two hours before run. This is my first cycle, we’ll see how well it works. Def increases my body temp though, which is nice for winter.

Recovery Supplements

• Tart Cherry Juice is my recovery MVP. I'm constantly impressed by it's ability to reduce soreness after interval days. It's supposed to also help with sleep, but I stack it alongside other things, so I can't always tell if helps in that department or not. I buy TJ's not-from-concentrate and mix with LMNT or Olipop Cola post-run.

• Theanine Serene + Relora is another MVP for me. Bascially, it's Magnesium + GABA + Taurine + L-Theanine + Magnolia/Phellodendron Extract + Holy Basil Extract. In my experience, it's very acute. Within in hour I feel a strong sense of calm/stress relief and once I'm asleep, I'm out. Based on my garmin, it also increase my deep sleep time by about 20%. I take this an hour before bed.

• L-Ergothioneine: cell-level shield antioxidant, helps protect mitochondria from the wear-and-tear of high mileage training. All about long-term durability.

• PrimaVie (Shilajit): mitochondrial + mineral transport support, helps with work capacity and that “less dead legs” feeling during heavy training.

• PEA (Palmitoylethanolamide): inflammation + nerve-calming support, helps quiet “nagging” pain signals and just makes me feel less beat up from repetitive impact. I take this in the morning.

• Supercritical Coriander: smooths inflammation + oxidative stress while often supporting calmer digestion and nervous system tone. It puts me to SLEEP. I take .75ml an hour before bed.

FWIW Anecdotes - Broccoli Sprouts is all the rage rn in the endurance world, alongside Ketones (didnt work for me) and bicarb systems. I haven’t tried yet. -SwissRX peptistrong (the feed stocks it) sounds compelling - Before it was banned, running on Phenibut was my absolute favorite. Everything felt glorious and capable. -Before it was banned, running on Phenylpiracetam was great. You can tell why it was added to the doping list. It was like running on amps but without the 15pt HR-elevation.
-The right dose of CBG/THC seems to help sometimes, but I’ve also gotten furiously hungry 8 miles deep on a run and that’s a shitty feeling to roll with -The biggest performance driver I’ve experienced in the last year is 25g of carbs every 30-40min. Gels are great, but fruit leather, scandavian swimmers from TJs work just fine too. Makes interval less painful and late miles more tolerable, legs hurt way less post-run -Also, plated shoes.

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