Colin O'Brady: Impossible No More
INTERVIEW
FEATURE
Interview with
Dr. Kristine Polley, PhD
Dr. Karma James, PhD
The widely reported “Impossible Row” concluded earlier this year as the most recent world record accomplishment by the extreme athlete and author Colin O’Brady. The feat involved a six-man team powering through 12 days of rowing to cross the treacherous Drake Passage from Cape Horn in the south of Chile to the Shetland Islands and the tip of Antarctica, covering 655.2 nautical miles. In all, the expedition broke five existing world records.
The secret weapon of the team was none other than Standard Process. Standard Process provided the team with nutritional bars that enabled the team to keep their bodies wellnourished, burning energy while avoiding the fallout associated with malnourishment or caloric deficit. For this early summer edition, we wanted to take a look at the science of creating the nutrition bars, and what happened behind the scenes.
Read on to learn about the role that the newly christened Standard Process’ Nutrition Innovation Center (NIC) had in this exciting journey, as The American Chiropractor (TAC) interviews dietary experts Dr. Kristine Polly and Dr. Karma James.
TAC: What are some of the factors that need to be considered when formulating a nutrient bar like the Impossible Row Bar?
The factors we considered for the Impossible Row Bar are:
1. The athlete’s nutritional needs. The bars should con-
tain high-quality, whole-food nutrients; healthy fats; carbohydrates, both simple (fast-releasing) and complex (slow-releasing); and quality protein. The bars should also supply phytonutrients and antioxidants to support both physiological demands and mental stress. Nutritional support of mental and physical well-being during expeditions and extreme exercise are important due to long days of demanding physical activity with interruption of sleeping habits that would have a significant impact on athlete’s circadian rhythm.
2. The environment and conditions. The rowers would be in cold and wet conditions and in close quarters with one another. So adding nutritional ingredients that help support the athlete’s immune system is important. Also, the composition of the bar had to be adjusted to be suitable for that environment. Keeping in mind that there would be no opportunity to replenish food or supplies, and there would be limited space on the boat, the bar had to be compact, accessible, and satisfying.
3. Duration of the expedition. The trip was scheduled to take about 21 days. This helped us determine the number of bars that would be needed so that we could schedule development and production. Since the row challenge was a shorter duration than Colin O’Brady’s Antarctic expedition, the macronutrient content was adjusted accordingly.
TAC: What was it about Colin that complicated the recipe?
We made extra efforts to accommodate Colin’s dietary preferences, ingredient intolerances, and other dietary needs.
TAC: Is the Colin Bar available to the general public?
The Colin Bar is currently not available to the general public. The bar was designed and developed specifically for Cohn during his Antarctica and Impossible Row expeditions. Environmental factors for each expedition were taken into consideration during the bar’s development.
TAC: Is this type of bar similar to the typical Standard Process nutrition bar?
Both bars were designed to encompass our wholefood philosophy and show that consuming whole, nutrient-dense foods and supplements can be used to successfully support our bodies through the stress of everyday life, as well as athletic pursuits. The expedition bars developed for Colin followed the same whole-food philosophy while tailored for his extreme physical and mental needs during his trips.
TAC: What role did the Standard Process Nutrition Innovation Center play in the formulation of these bars?
The multidisciplinary team at the Nutrition Innovation Center (NIC) led the formulation, development, and production of the bars for Colin’s expeditions. The NIC team is comprised of food scientists, nutrition scientists, clinical scientists, and discovery scientists.
TAC: Do clients of Standard Process have access to you at the Nutrition Innovation Center?
Standard Process holds many educational events every year at the NIC where our customers are able to hear the latest on research and development at Standard Process and interact with us here at the NIC. This allows us to better cater to the needs and feedback of our customers.
TAC: The Antarctica Impossible First was Standard Process’s first foray with this type of sponsored event. How did that influence the nutritional content of the Impossible Row Bars?
The Antarctica Impossible First Bar worked for Colin, so we modified that formula to fit the different environment and physical demand profile for the Impossible Row Bars. The Antarctica Impossible First Bar was designed and formulated to provide the nutrition Cohn would need to make the Antarctica trek. We took into consideration the environment and Colin’s specific dietary and nutritional needs when selecting the ingredients for the bar. For the Impossible Row Bar, we lowered the fat content (specifically so that the bar wouldn’t melt in a slightly warmer environment), increased the carbohydrates slightly, and added immune-supporting ingredients (for cold, wet, close-quartered environment).
TAC: Is there a line that the general public can Colin O ’Brcidy, professional endurance athlete, stands on the InBody scale which measures body composition. Kristine Polley, PhD., Nutrition Scientist at the Standard Process Nutrition Innovation Center captures results. Standard Process ’ InBody scale measures body fcit mass and skeletal lean muscle mass.
purchase? For those extreme athletes or weekend warriors, to help support their bodies with the physical demands they are experiencing?
We have just launched our Sports Line for individuals who engage in regular physical activity and exercise! To learn more, visit: www.standardprocess. com/Campaign Sports-Performance-Recovery-Products
These products are designed to support a wide range of physically active individuals, whether you’re an exercise enthusiast or dedicated athlete.
TAC: Any other exciting news we should look for from the NIC in the upcoming months?
We have ongoing, exciting clinical and discovery science research aimed at providing support for our patients’ needs. Be on the lookout for publications this year providing science-based evidence for the role of whole-food nutrition in health. We are also ramping up our Sports Line with new products in the works.
TAC: Any final words?
One of the biggest takeaways from our collaboration with Colin on both the Antarctica and Impossible Row Bars is that whole-food nutrition works. The nutrition we provided embodied our whole-food philosophy and was able to successfully support Cohn in some of the most extreme physical and mental undertakings.
For more information, please visit: https://www.standardprocess.com/Campaign/ColinOBrady
