3 Sprinting Medals Earned by HEALTHandMED.com President Mark Axelson in Utah Summer Games
We are pleased to announce that HEALTHandMED.com President Mark Axelson has recently received three medals in the Utah Summer Games while competing against other athletes from his age group (40-44) from around Utah and some from other states. He received a Bronze medal in the 100 meter dash with a time of 14.65 seconds while running against the wind. He received a Silver medal in the 200 meter dash with a time of 28.98 seconds, just missing the gold medal by 0.24 seconds. The 400 meter dash (once around the track) was his best event. He was able to earn a gold medal with a time of 1:03.97. Says Mark, “If I hadn’t earned any medals, I still would have felt like a star. My wife Jenai and five daughters were right there near the finish line cheering exuberantly.”
Mark has never in his life competed in either the 100 or 200 meter dash, although he did compete in one or two indoor 400 meter races when he was 14 years old. He very had little idea about how well he would be able to compete at the Summer Games. “When I got to the starting blocks, I was like hmmm — how do I use those?” Mark prepared for the competition by running quarter mile once per week starting in the winter. When the competition was one month away, he began training in earnest. He checked online to learn the best warm-up exercises for sprinters such as the A-skip. When he trained, he would run two 100’s, two 200’s and two 400’s at the Canyon View High School track in Cedar City, Utah at 6 a.m. Sometimes, he would take his daughters with him. They would run or act as starters or timers. “I wanted my girls to see how a person can work hard for something and then actually accomplish it.” Another key to his preparation was taking the highest possible quality nutritional supplements for muscle building. After completing a 30 day cleanse, he switched to the Isagenix Athlete’s Pak which consists of delicious IsaLean chocolate and vanilla meal replacement shakes with whey and casein protein, fiber calcium, vitamins and ionic alfalfa as well as Ionix Supreme with adaptogens that help neutralize the effects of power performance, IsaPro whey protein, IsaLean snack bars, and Want More Energy powder. According to Mark, “The Isagenix products are also used by Willie Gault, a former wide receiver from my all time favorite football team, the 1985 Super Bowl Champion Bears. He was also an Olympic champion — from the real Olympics. And many other well known athletes have found success while using Isagenix supplements.” With the all physical and nutritional preparation, Mark was feeling well prepared until two weeks before the event. “I went to the fitness club and threw out my back somehow while using a squat machine! This wasn’t just an ordinary back injury — it was the kind of injury that send people home from work for weeks. As the guys at the office noticed, I walked with a forward hunch and leaning to the right! I had to ask my daughter to carry my carry-on through the airport since I was too weak to do it. And I only had two weeks to go before my big day!” Fortunately, Mark was already scheduled to fly to Chicago that day and was able to receive treatment from a woman that he calls, “the best back fixer in the world, Sharon Sauer.” Ms. Sauer also taught Mark how to use trigger point compression, stretching and range of motion techniques so that he could fix his own back. In fact, Ms. Sauer has just recently authored a book on the subject of self-care treatment for the back. “I was using back-fixing techniques on myself regularly, even right up until a few minutes before my races. Mark Axelson hasn’t decided whether he will compete in the Utah Summer Games again next year or not. “Maybe I will wait five years.”