I.E. Joint Pain
Recently, I stumbled across posts about joint pain and possible correlations to pterostilbene and/or NAD+ precursors, such as NR or even NMN. Having performed a site-wide Google search on this issue and reading various anecdotes, I am now convinced I need to make some changes.
I am 38 years old, as of January.
Short Explanation of my Experience:
4.5-5.5 Months Ago: NMN + Pterostilbene supplementation begins. Sleep occurs a little more on the weekends after heavy exercise throughout the week.
3.5 Months Ago: Take NR during some cycles and then back to NMN. Significantly more sleep, but I was probably the most active I have been since my teenager years. (This ended in tendon injury.)
2.5 Months Ago: C60 protocol begins with continued NR and NMN use. Sleep levels off slightly but is still higher than the "4.5-5.5 month ago period."
2 to 1.5 Month Ago: Fission/fusion promotion protocol begins. C60 protocol continues (fusion days only). Sleep volume is EPIC as of late. How in the world am I sleeping 12-15 hours most days of the week?
I have had significant issues with over-sleeping too, but I am mostly interested in the significant joint issues I have been having.
Detail of Joint Issues:
At the 3.5 month ago mark, I began using NR. I also switched from Aikido classes to Brazilian Jiu Jitsu (BJJ) classes. The BJJ classes were significantly more strenuous, and the ENTIRE time, I was having significant joint issues. I have never experienced anything like this in my life, and consequently, I did not let it stop me. I grit my teeth and bore the pain. Unfortunately, this ended in a hip flexor injury that even affected my ability to walk. NOTE: There was never any obvious reason why this happened. To be specific, no one jumped on my legs the wrong way or anything weird like that. The pain just sort of began one day, along with joint pain in my shoulders, neck, both wrists, and both ankles! The pain was worse in my left wrist, shoulders, and hip. I even wore a wrist brace to practice after the first 2 weeks, and I tried wearing a hip brace to prevent re-injury during sleep (which happened frequently for both wrist and hip).
A week or so ago, I began a heavier exercise program (finally), albeit still FAR from where I was. This resulted in significant joint pain behind my elbows after the 1st or 2nd day. It dissipated, however, after a few days.
Fast forward to today, most join paint has subsided, but it is still present in my left wrist and in my middle finger on my right hand (jamb during BJJ practice). I also still am dealing with hip flexor issues. On top of that, when doing push-ups, my shoulders pop almost like snap-pop firecrackers.
My Reaction:
Naturally, I just figured I was getting old and couldn't handle the level of exercise. However, there are other older participants at BJJ that were RUNNING CIRCLES around me (in other words, they've had no issues practicing for 1+ years at ages >38 years). Also, I could tell people generally thought the joint issues I experienced were odd/unusual.
I began taking EVERY joint supplement under the sun to offset this, and it did help somewhat, but not really. The only time I saw a significant improvement was when I stopped BJJ practice for 1 week, and then when I completely stopped when I decided I was headed potentially for a wheelchair, due to the hip flexor / walking issues.
Plan of Action:
1. Drop Pterostilbene - This seems to be the obvious first step, due to the site-wide Google search I linked above.
2. If no improvement occurs after 1 month, drop all NAD+ precursors.
3. If no improvement occurs, maybe drop all supplements as I have seen some describe.
I will report what happens here.
Here is a mash-up of my current stack:
I take no rest in between fission/fusion cycling. A fission day always follows a fusion day and vice-versa.
Fission / Senolytic Day
- TruNiagen NR sublingual x 300 mg x 2 times a day (I open the capsules up, but I only started doing that in the last 2 weeks. Before then, I was just taking the full pills.)
- Quercetin
- Cinnamon
- B Complex Sublingual
Fusion Day (I know people are going to say NMN is not a fusion promoter, but look at this post.)
- NMN sublingual x 250mg x 3 times a day
- BroccoMax (sulforaphane)
- Turmeric Curcumin
- Niacin
- C60 in olive oil
Every Day
- Pterostilbene
- Tart Cherry Extract (love this stuff, been taking it for years)
- Ubiquinol (CoQ10)
- Vegan Daily Vitamin (I am a vegetarian at this point, been taking these for years.)
- Hyaluronic acid (added to combat recent joint issues)
- FIsh Oil (have taken this for my eyes for years)
- Glucosamine Sulfate (been taking on and off for years, added to combat joint issues)
- Alpha Lipoic Acid (been taking this for many, many years)
- Acetyl L-Carnitine (also been taking this for many, many years)
- Vitamin D3 (started in January)
- Lion's Mane Mushroom Extract
Most Days (sometimes I forget these, but generally they are every day)
- Bromelain
- Rutin
Every Evening (began ~1 month ago)
- 12g collagen peptides (began this about a month ago or so, mostly due to blasted tendon issues)
- GABA oral (for elastin promotion)
- 1g Lysine
I also am using a topical cream as described in the elastin promotion thread, but I can rule that out in terms of these joint issues.
Edited by jgkyker, 13 March 2019 - 08:01 PM.