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Hematocrit

Edogawakikkoman

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Jan 14, 2007
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Got my medical check data back yesterday and happy to see that my hematocrit is quite high...and rising.

2007 47.7%
2008 50.0%
2009 51.1%

I think they must have EPO in Zero Cola...

Would really like to do one of those full sports health checks that mob was planning on doing.
 
Nice. Doesn't 50%+ make you ineligible for UCI events?

Where did you get tested?
 
Nice. Doesn't 50%+ make you ineligible for UCI events?

Where did you get tested?

The high school I work at make us do a full on physical every April.
I think over 50% puts me under suspicion.

No More Hematocrits Higher Than 50%

At their annual meeting in Geneva (24 January 1997), UCI delegates, in consultation with medical professionals, decided to implement blood testing to deter the alleged use of rhEPO by selecting a 50% hematocrit as an upper limit. In an article entitled "Cycling Pro's Saddled with Blood Tests" appearing in The European (30 Jan - 5 Feb, 1997), it was reported that random blood tests would begin on March 22 at the Milan to San Remo Classic bike race. UCI president, Hein Verbruggen, has stressed that the testing is a " health check" and that a positive test does not imply rhEPO use. The testing has been primarily established to insure that professional cyclists will not begin a major road race with a dangerously high hematocrit. In contrast to a positive drug test, which can result in prolonged suspension from competition, riders with a hematocrit greater than 50% would be suspended only until values decreased to an acceptable level. But are there data indicating that a 51% hematocrit is dangerous for a professional road cyclist? And more importantly, what is the normal incidence of a hematocrit above 50% in professional cyclists not taking rhEPO? It appears that answers to these questions are currently not available.

:eek:

I'm O minus too. I can probably sell my blood to the pros....
 
Mine's been dropping steadily, from 46 in 2005 to 43 last year. I just had my health check yesterday after a year of getting serious and riding almost every day, so we'll see what the results are in a few weeks.
 
What does this mean for your riding style?

Basically, it means if I have an accident and am losing blood... I'm in deep shit. :eek:

Minus too, which is very rare in Japan. The good part (for others) is that it's universal so anybody can use my blood...but I can only use O minus.

I'd have to ride to the nearest hospital before I pass out probably... (very fast). :angel:
 
Nice. Doesn't 50%+ make you ineligible for UCI events?

Where did you get tested?

Nope - you can actually have a Hematocrit level over 50% if you have a biological passport to back it up that it is naturally high.

If he was to say race a JBCF race and get spot checked - they would not be able to do anything about his Hematocrit level, yes it would trigger a red flag which would result in more testing of the blood. But unless they found anything that identified potential drug abuse or banned methods there is nothing they can do - this is why the passport was started.
 
Got my medical check data back yesterday and happy to see that my hematocrit is quite high...and rising.

2007 47.7%
2008 50.0%
2009 51.1%

I think they must have EPO in Zero Cola...

Would really like to do one of those full sports health checks that mob was planning on doing.

Don't tell me you drink that crap :eek: Good lord, do something safe like heroin please :rolleyes:
 
Interesting.

How does hematocrit relate to performance? Is it a case of higher is better? Also, are there any lower limits one should be concerned about?
 
How does hematocrit relate to performance? Is it a case of higher is better? Also, are there any lower limits one should be concerned about?

I think it's indirectly related to performance as it's basically the percentage of "solid" bits in your blood (i.e. non-plasma) which includes red blood cells that can carry oxygen.
 
That time of year again.... (just keeping a record here).

2007 47.7%
2008 50.0%
2009 51.1%
2010 49.9%
2011 49.2%
2012 52.7%
2013 47.2%

Almost no cycling since October (torn calf/ knee operation etc).
Joined the gym and trying to get fit again in the last month...still relatively high....
 
Yeah, mine is always around those numbers to. No idea what makes the numbers shift.
 
2007 47.7%
2008 50.0%
2009 51.1%
2010 49.9%
2011 49.2%
2012 52.7%
2013 47.2%
2014 49.4% today...

Also hit the minus 10kg mark with my diet this morning...
blood tests came out with perfect results for everything as well...which means my liver is not suffering anymore. perfect as in every category in normal ranges.
Body is doing a good time of healing itself....still plan on sticking with my current diet eating plan for the next 2 or 3 months...then adjust it slightly when my weight has plateaued with stability.
 
Do you sleep in an O2 tent or something? :) Those are 'gifted' levels. Basically (if you read Tyler Hamilton's book), riders at the time took EPO to get their haematocrit levels to 50 from wherever they were naturally (mine has always been around 42 so I guess I'm handicapped). At the time, synthetic EPO was available over the counter in Switzerland with no prescription necessary. EPO was designed for kidney transplant patients that needed to trigger the body's red blood cell manufacturing but didn't have kidneys to do it naturally. Since there was no test for synthetic EPO and the UCI decided that the natural limit for the human body was 50% and hence that's where they drew the line. Anyone higher than 50% was immediately under suspicion. Even Lance got a warning letter and summons. This line is somewhat arbitrary since a crit test even a few hours apart can yield vastly different results on the same person (10-12 points according to my Dr. friends) since it largely depends on hydration levels.

My personal opinion is that this was basically like an open opportunity from the UCI to dope and anyone not at 50% was basically no-competitive so everyone did it. According to Tyler's book, Bjarne Rjiss won the TDF with something like a 54%.
 
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