Does anyone have personal experience with donating plasma to pick up some extra cash while doing some pretty good training? How did it impact your training? What steps did you take to make sure it didn't impact your training (extra hydration, certain foods, and so on)?
I am training for road races of 5k-15k and am putting in 60-80 miles a week. Thanks!
no extra hydration will put the blood back in your body any faster. it takes a couple of weeks to return to normal blood volume. during that time, your training will suffer--you can't train at the same level you would normally if you have less blood. the effect is like blood doping in reverse.
also, i'm almost positive you can't donate blood for money anymore.
They would be taking plasma out of my body, not red blood cells. Thanks though.
I used to donate twice a week for years until my ALT tests came back abnormal. Honestly, it never affected my training. Try it out, then if it impairs your training stop.
I had a professor who said that while he was in grad school, he and his buddies would sell their plasma Friday afternoons...just before going out drinking. The reduced blood volume would allow them to get drunk for less $$$, so they would still come out ahead even after hitting the bars. I'm guessing that this would have a negative effect on running.
How much do they typically pay per visit?
Back in college I would go twice a week, you could pull in I think $200-300 a month. You just have to make sure your nutrition and hydration is good, you'll lose water and electrolytes.
Alan
Last year i was donating plasma twice a week while doing marathon training. It was my first marathon and i was only hitting 40-45 miles a week. At the time, i didnt notice any ill effects. I made sure i was hydrated and eating healthy, and it seemed to be fine. I was tired all the time, and did feel like i lacked energy during workouts at times, but i attributed it to training for a marathon.
Now i'm training for another one at a much higher level. After being told over the summer by my superiors at the running store i work at that it decreases blood volume (which i didnt even think about... yeah, retarded), i realized it wasnt a good option. Havnet donated at all this semester, and i'm feeling about 100x better. Putting in more work, faster workouts, more mileage, and i'm not tired all the time. My times are significantly better.
If you're serious about your running, at least for right now, dont do it.
Why refer to it as 'donating plasma' when you get paid?
Everyone says this, including me. You are not DONATING plasma you are SELLING plasma.
I guess it just sounds better.
I used to sell plasma and never noticed any impact on my running.
Yes it drops blood volume...but of course that can be replaced in 48 hours or so by drinking lots of water.
Alan
i did it for a semester, twice a week, it left me pretty drained, i ended up with extreme anemia eventually. i would say do not do it, its not worth the 60 bucks a week, just get a real job