How I'll Get Your Vitamin D Levels Back to Optimal Levels

In today’s blog, we’ll share tips on how to restore your vitamin D levels to optimal levels—especially in winter—and do something good for your health and mental well-being.

The following tips are from America’s star personal trainer, Charles Poliquin

1. First, I’ll order a blood test.
   
   
2. My goal is to raise
   
   your level to 80 nmol/L (International Units) or 32 ng/mL (Standard Units).
3. Based on the blood test results, I’ll determine your dosage.
   
   
4. For physiological reasons that aren’t yet fully understood, a higher dose of vitamin D taken twice a week is more effective than a daily dose. In other words, 35,000 iE twice a week is more effective than 10,000 iE per day. I learned this trick last May at a Biosignature seminar in New York City from Dr. Tim Hall, M.D., from Colorado Springs. Since then, I’ve been using this dosage, which has proven to be more effective.
   
   
5. Let’s say a Canadian athlete named Joe-Louis Buveuxdepepsi, who has an unacceptable vitamin D level of 14 nmol/L, comes to see me. I would recommend a dosage of 50,000 iE twice a week for 8 weeks and then order another blood test. This dosage corresponds to 12.5 PEAK vitamin D tablets twice a week. If, after 8 weeks, his level is 62 nmol/L, I would reduce the dosage to 35,000 IU and have his vitamin D status tested again after another month.
   
   
6. Since most health insurance plans cover the test and it’s very affordable, it’s not a big hassle to have your vitamin D levels checked monthly so you can adjust the dosage as effectively as possible.
   
   
7. It’s also a good idea to measure your magnesium levels in red blood cells as well as your zinc levels when you have your vitamin D status checked.
   
   
8. If you can’t replenish your stores quickly enough, increase your magnesium and vitamin E doses. Since zinc works synergistically with all nutrients, increasing your zinc dose will also help.

Your PEAK Team

by Charles Poliquin

Translated by PICP Coach Wolfgang Unsoeld

Charles Poliquin has been one of the world’s most successful strength coaches for over 30 years. He has trained athletes from the NFL, NHL, and MLB, as well as hundreds of Olympic athletes. His greatest achievements, however, are the world record holders in 10 Olympic disciplines. He currently heads the Poliquin Strength Institute in Rhode Island, USA, and conducts seminars on training and nutrition worldwide.