The Miracle Nutrient

Brian Frank & Steve Born

1983, I was an overachieving high school student in Long Beach, CA, training 3-5 hours a day playing water polo and racing motocross, while maintaining a 3.8 GPA in honors and accelerated classes! On top of all of this, I worked two or three jobs to pay for my racing. Not surprisingly, I was out of energy long before the day was over. I struggled with my energy and recovery despite the fact that I ate a healthy whole foods diet rich in protein, lacking refined sugars, carbohydrates, and chemical additives. At the suggestion of my father, the late Jerry Frank D.C., I began taking high doses of coenzyme Q10 along with vitamin E and Inosine. The difference I noticed in my energy, endurance, and recovery was so profound it was hard to believe.

I used these three micronutrients, along with all of my other normal vitamins, for the remainder of my high school career. I continued using high doses of coenzyme Q10 when I went to college in San Francisco and developed a love for road cycling as rehabilitation for my second knee surgery. It was during my long rides over the Golden Gate Bridge and into the Marin Headlands that I realized that I could make a business out of selling these nutrients to triathletes, cyclists, and endurance athletes of all ages. This led me to start E-CAPS in 1987 with the help of my father.

Keep in mind, at this time coenzyme Q10 was largely unknown to the general public and research was in its early stages. Today, coenzyme Q10 is the single most studied and researched nutrient and is the most widely used in the world for cardiovascular health.

Now you know a little bit more of my experience with coenzyme Q10, I encourage you to read Steve’s excellent article on why our CoQ10 formulation is the one you want and is still your best source your best choice and the most effective, most economical way of making this miracle nutrient an everyday part of your life!

CoQ10

In 1957, Dr. Frederick Crane made one of history’s most important nutritional discoveries while isolating compounds from beef heart mitochondria: a quinone now known as Coenzyme Q10 (CoQ10), a member of a class of cyclic organic compounds. Dr. Crane’s discovery sparked Dr. Peter Mitchell’s Nobel Prize-winning research showing that CoQ10 is a naturally occurring nutrient that produces ATP (energy) at the cellular level, energy that the body requires to stay healthy and optimize all of its functions.1,2

Ever since Dr. Crane’s and Mitchell’s landmark research in the late 50s/early 60s, countless studies have been done on CoQ10, which is classified as ubiquinone, from the word “ubiquitous,” CoQ10 was given this name because it is present in every cell in the body,

Nutritional scientists are universally in agreement about the importance of CoQ10; here are just a couple comments:

"Without CoQ10 or a good substitute, human life quickly ends." - James South MA

“That CoQ10 plays a crucial role in aging is beyond doubt. The same applies to CoQ10's role in the immune system. And there is a vital connection between the immune system and aging that cannot be ignored.” - Emile G. Bliznakov MD

"CoQ10 is energy on call. I have long considered CoQ10 a wonder nutrient because of its ability to support heart health.” - Dr. Stephen Sinatra

“Ubiquinone (CoQ10) is possibly the hub around which life processes revolve in the human body.” - Dr. William V. Judy

Along with its many benefits for numerous aspects of human health, CoQ10’s energy-producing properties, along with its antioxidant capabilities, make it an ideal nutrient for naturally enhancing athletic performance and recovery. 34 years ago, most people had never even heard of CoQ10, let alone understood its multiple benefits for athletic performance and overall health. One company, however, Hammer Nutrition (known as E-CAPS back then), was already "in the know" about this remarkable nutrient, harnessing the power of CoQ10 (ubiquinone) into a product called "Race Caps."

It didn't take long for the word to get out that a truly effective, safe, and perfectly legal endurance-enhancing supplement was finally available. If you were a serious endurance athlete in the late 1980s and 1990s, Race Caps was a part of your arsenal. In the coming years, athletes and non-athletes became more informed about the plethora of benefits attributed to CoQ10, and CoQ10 supplements became more readily available. Hammer Nutrition continued to blaze the trail. In 2003, while other companies were still trying to play catch up, we reformulated a great product into something even better and renamed it Race Caps Supreme. A great product had become even better, so a new name was in order: Race Caps Supreme.

What about Ubiquinol?

“That’s all great,” you may be saying. “But what about this ‘new’ CoQ10 called Ubiquinol? I heard it’s better than the ‘old’ ubiquinone CoQ10. What’s the deal?”

All good questions, and here’s some information to help answer them:

Both are CoQ10. Ubiquinone is the oxidized form of CoQ10 and ubiquinol is the reduced form of CoQ10.

Until 2007, ubiquinone was the only form of CoQ10 on the market. Since then, a patented technology was developed to produce the active and trademarked form of CoQ10 called ubiquinol. As a result of the development technology and patent, ubiquinol is more expensive than ubiquinone.

There has been significantly more research on ubiquinone than ubiquinol. According to Dr. William V. Judy, “Hundreds of clinical studies show that ubiquinone is effective and is still the choice of practicing cardiologists.”

CoQ10 in the body continuously shifts between the two forms. No matter which form of CoQ10 you take, your body will convert it to the other form as needed.

While ubiquinol is suggested to be a better-absorbed form of CoQ10, at least one study has shown that higher absorption to not be insignificant. The researchers concluded “…the difference in the bioavailability of comparative ubiquinol capsules was not statistically significant in comparison [to standard ubiquinone capsules]. It is important to also highlight that we did not observe significant differences between formulations in the redox status of the absorbed CoQ10, which indicates that CoQ10 appears in blood almost exclusively as ubiquinol, even if consumed as ubiquinone.”3

It is generally accepted that ubiquinol supplements do not get absorbed as ubiquinol, according to Dr. Judy, the body absorbs it mostly as ubiquinone because the gastric system oxidizes ubiquinol to ubiquinone before absorption.”4

Most absorption differences between ubiquinone and ubiquinol are minimized or even resolved with the inclusion of a patented black pepper extract, known as Bioperine®, which is found in Race Caps Supreme. Research shows a 30% increase in absorption when administered with Bioperine®.5

Ubiquinol do not appear to be as heat-stable as ubiquinone supplements. That’s one reason why Race Caps Supreme contains dry ubiquinone; it’s a much better option for use during prolonged bouts of exercise, especially in the heat.

Highly absorbable and so much more!

In addition to its CoQ10 and Bioperine® components, Race Caps Supreme contains much more than the standard ubiquinone or ubiquinol supplements, to increase endurance, recovery, and general health benefits.

Idebenone

An analogue of CoQ10 (the "good substitute" that James South mentioned earlier) and a superb complement to CoQ10, with some suggesting it may be even more powerful than CoQ10. One nutritional scientist explains, "Idebenone supplies all of the same benefits as CoQ10 plus some distinct advantages and features based on its more complex chemical structure." These include:

1. Improved cognition and mood, reduced damage from Parkinson's disease and Alzheimer's disease, and a role in the prevention of damage caused by excitotoxins (a class of substances produced from the consumption of substances such as MSG and some artificial sweeteners) which can impair neuronal functioning.

2. Improvements to liver mitochondrial function, which suggests that it would support and enhance the detoxification functions of the liver.

3. Perhaps the most remarkable feature of idebenone is its unique ability to operate under hypoxic (low oxygen) conditions, helping to produce energy and maintain high energy levels without creating free radicals. In other words, under the same cellular low oxygen conditions that can cause CoQ10 to act as a pro-oxidant, idebenone helps prevent free radical damage while still supporting ATP production.

Vitamin E

Energy production is not a completely "clean" process; a naturally occurring and unavoidable metabolic by-product is the free radicals that can cause tissue and cellular damage. That's why vitamin E is a vital component in the Race Caps Supreme formula. Vitamin E is a powerful antioxidant that, along with CoQ10 and idebenone, helps neutralize the free radicals naturally produced during energy production. Vitamin E has numerous health benefits as well, especially in the cardiovascular and circulatory systems.

Research in animals has shown that supplementation with vitamin E alone reduces inflammation by lowering the levels of C-reactive protein (CRP). Higher levels of CRP are associated with an increased risk of cardiovascular problems. Co-supplementation with CoQ10 significantly enhances this anti-inflammatory effect of vitamin E.6

Oxy-Assist

A unique blend of nutrients that combine to enhance oxygen utilization, optimize fat burning, increase energy production, and buffer against acid buildup.

1. Trimethylglycine (TMG) helps convert fatty acids to energy. It has been used to treat muscular weakness and degeneration, due in part to its role in transporting oxygen to muscle tissues. TMG is also a powerful antioxidant that helps lower elevated levels of homocysteine, which is implicated in cardiovascular disease.

2. Inosine helps increase the oxygen-carrying capacity of the blood, allowing more oxygen to be delivered to working muscles, thereby reducing fatigue.

Krebs cycle intermediates

Supports the Krebs cycle process (AKA the citric acid cycle or the tricarboxylic acid cycle) of energy production by supplying precise amounts of malate, citrate, aspartate, lysinate, and glycinate, chelators for the minerals calcium, magnesium, and potassium. Another Krebs cycle intermediate, alpha-ketoglutarate, is included as well.

Enzyme Blend

Race Caps Supreme’s unique Enzyme Blend (protease, amylase, glucoamylase, lipase, cellulase, phytase, maltase, and sucrase) helps ensure proper digestion and absorption of the nutrients.

Summary

Race Caps Supreme supplies so much more than stand-alone ubiquinone or ubiquinol CoQ10 supplements. The extraordinary combination of "super nutrients" found in Race Caps Supreme helps maintain consistent and efficient energy production, while also supporting enhanced recovery. For 34 years and counting, the athletic performance benefits supplied by Race Caps Supreme continue to be completely unmatched by any other athlete-specific supplement.

Perhaps even more impressive are the product’s health benefits.7 For enhancing both athletic performance AND overall health, consistent supplementation with Race Caps Supreme is a no-brainer strategy. We firmly believe that all people would benefit from this product and it's an absolute essential for athletes.

References available upon request