It must be divine intervention to let me find Dr Franz Burini now. He was introduced to me by a colleague friend who’s training for an ultra cycling event this summer. My friend knew him from his kids kindergarten, and he hasn’t met him yet. I googled him and he seems legit. I don’t have a good idea of what sport doctor does. His background is quite interesting. Sport medicine doctor, specialized in metabolic health, treats professional athletes including the national Olympian team. he consults with national delegation on surfing, soccer, swimming, and cycling.
We scheduled the consultation for Friday 11am. We spent 2 hours talking! He asked my life style, very detailed routine, went though blood test one by one, MRI results, dexa, physical exam, filmed me doing squats, and most importantly what is my goal. I told him: my bigger goal is healthspan, second goal, sport longevity (I want to keep running until 80s), and short term to get to NY marathon injure free.
Well, I was blowed away by his insights, explaining the mechanics of what he sees on me, why he’s suggesting I do these changes, and how and why I will see improvements. He also says that my knee issue, cartilage degeneration is inevitable and currently not visible on MRI. He says every type of sport will cause some imbalance and area of weakness. It’s not caused by any athlete doing anything wrong but expected. For cyclist it’s the lumbar, for runner the knees, for surfers hips, etc etc. For each type of athlete, we need to make adjustment to overcome these weaknesses to ensure sport longevity.
He’s also data driven. He accompanied a 62 years old endurance cyclist to do cross America cycling for 12 days. he in the van following the cyclist, measuring all his metrics and providing adjustments to his nutrition, hydration, how many hours of sleep, etc. he showed me the data and wooo! I was like?! How did I get so lucky to have him as MY doctor too?!
Anyway… now I fully understand why I need to do certain things, what blood markers are worrisome (although no other doctor has told me so yet), and my protocol for the next month. The protocol is simple, tailored for my personal situation, and super doable.
- Twice a week strength training targeting muscle groups to support knee
- Band warm up before the run
- Ice after the knee
- Increase my carb intake especially around training. Plant based diet is ideal and I’m already doing it. Just need to time it better. Fuel before during and right after.
- Creatine 5g to support muscle growth
- Glutamine before bed to support inmune system
They are not rocket science but his explanation made me understand key characteristics of my body and my beloved sport.
I’m super excited!!! 😊
Our New Journey 
How is the glutamine helping the immune system? And why at bedtime? What dose did he recommend?
LikeLike
I have two doctors recommending glutamine for recovery and overall inmune support. So it seems is what I need. It has many benefits but not everyone will see impact. In my specific case, it is likely to see bigger effect.
I take one scoop before bed for overnight recovery support, 5g.
LikeLiked by 1 person
That is so interesting. I have not read anything about this particular supplement. I’m in the process of researching creatine. So much to learn.
LikeLike
Coco, what a lucky find. This sounds way beyond a normal appointment. Two hours, movement analysis, blood work, MRI, and actually explaining the why. That is gold. He almost seems like a physio too, not just a sports doctor.
I take creatine and glutamine as well, so I was nodding along.
You sound fired up and ready for decades of healthy running!
LikeLiked by 1 person
Yes! I feel so grateful to be here at this moment when my running “career” has became fragile. Now I’m more confident I can keep running and become faster. You are my role model!
LikeLiked by 2 people
This is fascinating, Coco. Can’t wait to follow along with your experience. I love how you deep dive into these health topics!
Also, it sounds like you’re already doing so many of the right things, it makes it easy for a professional to suggest a few tweaks here and there (not like he’s completely overhauling your routine).
LikeLike
This sounds incredible. Amazing that he talked to you for two hours. It sounds like he really got to the bottom of what’s going on in your body. Your knee should be good with all this strength focus. And I’m intrigued about the glutamine! Also… i want to start taking creatine. We have it in the house because my daughter takes it. I don’t know what I haven’t tried it.
LikeLike
Wow, what an awesome appointment! It seems like the kind of doctor that would be really hard to get an appointment with! I am glad you had such a great experience and walked away with some tangible things to do!
LikeLike
Did he say anything about glutamine helping joints? I feel like my elbow, ankle, etc have been achy randomly and I don’t know if it’s lil an “injury” or acute thing, or if this is just me getting old… lol.
LikeLike
He recommended glutamine for immune support. For joint pain, I’d suggest you to check hormones, it’s one of the early sign of estrogen deficiency in peri menopause.
LikeLike
That sounds like a great consultation and great insights from this doctor.
LikeLike