Daily Vitamin Ritual

I thought I’d share what vitamins I take each day. I have an “old person” container I fill each week, so I know if I’ve taken my vitamins each day. It is kind of cheesy, but hey, it works.

I’ve been taking most of the same vitamins for several years now. I use vitamins only to fill in the nutritional gaps I may have missed with the food in my diet. I don’t depend upon them, but use them as a way to ensure I am getting the right amount of vitamins and minerals each day.

Women’s Multivitamin

I have been taking this Rainbow Light Women’s One Multivitamin for several years now. It has great reviews on Amazon, and I like that it is 100% natural. I’ve never had problems with it making my stomach upset. (I do remember having problems with the Wal-Mart Equate brand.). The only thing that didn’t work for my body was the lower value of iron in the supplement. I’ve struggled with anemia in the past, and the 6 mg of iron (33% of your daily value) in this multivitamin wasn’t enough for my needs and high running volume.

Prenatal Vitamin

Several years ago, at a general check-up, the nurse practitioner recommended I start taking a prenatal vitamin one year prior to getting pregnant, so about a year out from when Craig and I were ready to try for a baby, I started taking this Rainbow Light Prenatal One Vitamin. I chose this one because I liked the Rainbow Light Women’s multivitamin, so I decided to stick with this brand. I continue to take this prenatal because I will likely be getting pregnant sometime within the next year. Plus, it also has a much higher dosage of iron (30 mg), which my body needs when I’m running a lot.

Iron

Last winter I had a bout with anemia where I was really struggled during tempo/speed workouts. It took me a while, but I realized it was because my body didn’t have enough iron. After realizing how much iron my body needs, I made sure to take an iron supplement in addition to my multivitamin. I’ve chosen this brand because the amount of iron is higher than most other brands I’ve looked at. This Nature Made Iron has 65 mg, which is 361% of daily value. That’s a lot of iron (in addition to what’s in my multivitamin), but it’s what works for me!

Fish Oil

The third supplement I take consistently is fish oil. I really like this Pure Alaska Omega brand as the oil is from wild Alaskan salmon. Occasionally I’ll burp a fishy taste, but it isn’t often. I get it at Costco, and I’ve been using it for several years now.

Glucosamine

I’ve taken glucosamine on-and-off over the years. To be honest, I can’t tell if it has helped, but I figure it can’t hurt. Glucosamine is supposed to help with joint flexbility and cushioning. I think most people who take it are elderly/older and have chronic joint pain. I’ve heard other runners taking it for joint repair and trying to keep everything in top-working condition, so I figured it was worth a shot. I know the second summer my mileage peaked at 100 miles I was taking this, and I felt like I recovered from each run a lot better (but then again my body already had some conditioning from running the high mileage before).

Hair, Skiny, and Nail Supplement

I took this hair, skin, and nail supplement for a few weeks, but after taking it for a while, I started to smell a metallic-y smell coming from myself. After trying to figure out what it was, I’m 95% sure it was this supplement. I initially took the supplement to see if my hair would grow faster, but I wasn’t willing to smell a metallic-y smell all day long.

Question

What supplements do you take?