Nootropics for Athletic Performance - Day 1
Two stories from my day today, one was just an overall very solid ride with a new PR on my local climb:
I felt on the climb like I was going well, so I'm not too surprised by this. My Garmin 935 reported (thanks to Firstbeat algorithms!) a new FTP of 221 W. VO2max still hanging out at 55 ml/kg/min.
OK so the interesting angle on this, and part of my ongoing effort to optimize my life, is my use of a new (to me) nootropic, phenylpiracetam. It's a cognitive / focus enhancer, and a member of the racetam family. You can read all about that here:
https://www.nootropedia.com/phenylpiracetam/
One of the effects of phenylpiracetam is that it's a powerful stimulant, so much so that the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA - https://www.wada-ama.org/) prohibits it. Lucky me, I'm not competing with anyone but myself. The biggest thing I noticed today was that my RPE-HR relationship felt like it was shifted. Normally when I get to 160 BPM the "warning lights" start to come on, but today on the climb I was pinned at 165 and ready for more.
I can also say that my focus while working yesterday morning on the phenylpiracetam was awesome. I'll be using it more over the next months and let you know how it goes.
I guess the other story of the ride was just how gorgeous it was to climb up above the fog/cloud layer and enjoy the sunshine up on Skyline and the top of Hwy 9 & Page Mill. Being up above the fog is magical, I could see the hilltops across the Bay peaking up above the fog about 50 miles away. Unfortunately, I never ride with a phone, so no pics to share...
BTW if you did not see the footage from the Tour de France today, it was epic. Less GC carnage than we expected on the cobbles. And of course, Richie Porte crashed out. In any case, hope he and all the others who crashed recover well. Nice job to Degenkolb to get a big win. Looked to me like a lot of riders went back to rim brakes to make flat tire changes easier, which would make a lot of sense on the cobbles. But I have not done a thorough analysis of it.