Athletic & Lifestyle Medicine

What is Athletic Medicine?

If you haven't heard of Athletic Medicine - don't worry that's because I made it up.

Athletic Medicine means primary care for athletes (more on that below).

Lifestyle Medicine generally pertains to healing root causes of illness via Lifestyle. At Performance Health, our Lifestyle Medicine Program is what other companies would call their "Weight Loss Program". More about this here.

Regarding Athletes: Healthcare has always been geared toward non-athletes. Special considerations are emphasized for people with chronic conditions. We are taught from day one in any medically oriented education that we need to be mindful of the elderly, the obese, those with chronic disease. While the importance of these special considerations cannot be under stated - they are no longer "special" - they are the norm. The majority of the American population falls into at least one of the categories aforementioned categories: elderly, obese, or having a chronic illness.

Athletes and athletic individuals are shockingly under represented in medical literature and therefore medical education. Most primary care and internal medicine providers have no idea what specific pathology to look for in trained individuals. From kidney function to iron studies - athletes have special needs that have long been ignored by mainstream medicine. We are here to change that.

We aim to support athletes so they are able to perform their best at the things they do.

Athlete Specific Services:

Athlete focused primary care services
Health and sport specific health coaching (Powerlifters have different needs from marathon runners)
Referrals to personal trainers and nutrition coaches if needed
Peptides
Hormone Replacement Therapy (HRT)
Testosterone Replacement Therapy (TRT)
Inflammation management
Supplement recommendations/dosing
Medications to help with performance/endurance (NOT steroids)
Monitoring (labs, heart, vasculature) when you are using illicit substances
- We do not recommend using "gear" but if you are going to use it anyways let a provider try to help monitor you for complications and hopefully reduce harm.

What is Lifestyle Medicine?

Lifestyle Medicine is using lifestyle modifications to treat the root cause of conditions, like obesity. We have chosen to put our weight loss program under the Lifestyle Medicine umbrella because it quintessentially encompasses what Lifestyle Medicine is. Adjusting your lifestyle for your best possible health.

With regard to weight loss: "Weight Loss" as it is commonly practiced doesn't work. So much so that I was on the fence about offering weight loss services at all. If you feel like you are seeing tons of ads for easy access to GLP-1 medications, it's because you are. Companies all over the country, large and small, have realized that they can make money hand over fist to give people unfettered access to weight loss drugs. These same companies and individuals will shy away from the dreaded "Calories in, Calories out" because it is bad for business.

The truth is that the primary mechanism of GLP-1 medications is reduction of hunger and lower calorie intake. Balance of calorie intake with activity expenditure IS what determines whether bodies get bigger or smaller. There are no exceptions. Metabolic dysfunction and genetics can affect how hungry you feel or how much of a deficit you need to be in to lose weight, but the law of calories still applies.

Medications, while effective for many people in the short term, come with serious known and potentially unknown consequences. Furthermore, even the research sponsored by the pharmaceutical companies shows most people gain the weight back. This is why a complete lifestyle overhaul is usually necessary to maintain weight loss. Furthermore, while weight loss is good - there is longevity and health magic in muscle gain.

Athletic Medicine in this instance is referring to using athletics as medicine. Physical activity is the closest thing to a a fountain of youth that we have today. It keeps us metabolically healthy and able to enjoy the things we love to do for longer. At Performance Health we combine weight loss medications (after discussion of risks and benefits) with extensive education and accountability. We don't provide some generic education, we sit and problem solve with you on how you can incorporate more activity, fewer calories and improve personal consistency and accountability. We strive to use the lowest dose of all medications for the least amount of time possible. There is way more to "Weight Loss" than losing weight. It is a whole life change.

We are not trying to help you "lose weight", we are trying to help you become an athlete for life.

Weight Loss Specific Services

Assessing for factors that make weight loss harder - hormone imbalances, depression, metabolic dysfunction.
Individual assessment of your 24 hours in a day and how to work in more activity and better diet.
Medication assistance GLP-1s and others if needed.
Health and fitness coaching directly from your provider.
Referrals to personal trainers and nutritionists as needed.
Monthly checkins either via telephone or in-person.

Weight Loss