A FREE WEEKLY E-ZINE OF MULTISPORT RELATED ARTICLES.
The Runner's and Triathlete's Web Digest is a weekly e-zine dealing with the
sports of running and triathlon and general fitness and
health issues. The opinions expressed in the articles referenced by the Digest
are the opinions of the writers and not necessarily
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Canadian Olympians.

1. Emilie's Run - The Emilie Mondor Memorial 5K Race for Women:
The RunnersWeb5K.com Race for Women has been renamed in memory of Canadian
Olympian Emilie Mondor who died in a car crash September
9th on her way to her high-school reunion. Emilie had just completed a 2 hour
plus run along the Ottawa River during which she
talked with her coach about the upcoming Philadelphia Half-Marathon (September
17th) and the New York City Marathon in November.
For a story on Emilie read Emilie Mondor: Life Cut Too Short at:
http://www.runnersweb.com/running/news/rw_news_20060913_LB_Mondor.html
The first RunnersWeb5K.com Race for Women was held on June 24th at Ottawa's
Aviation Museum. Canada's #2 ranked marathoner, Nicole
Stevenson, won the race in 16:28. Thirty-five women ran under 20 minutes. For a
race report and photos go to:
http://www.runnersweb.com/running/news/rw_news_20060624_RunnersWeb5K.html.
The 2007 race date will be Saturday, June 23, 2007. The prize money will be
increased from $3,000 to $5,000 for open and masters
runners. The team competition will be expanded to include Open, Club and
University Teams. A children's (12 and under) 1K run will
also be held.
More information at: http://www.emiliesrun.com and at http://www.somersault.ca
Online race registration is now available through Events Online at:
http://www.eventsonline.ca/events/somersault_rweb/
We have added a Google Group for Emilie's Run. Join and the group and contribute
at:
http://groups-beta.google.com/group/emiliesrun?hl=en

3. Road Runner Sports, the world's largest running store at:
http://clickserve.cc-dt.com/link/click?lid=41000000010069822.
Check out their Perfect Fit Finder for running shoes.

4. Toronto Waterfront Marathon. September 30, 2007.
http://www.torontowaterfrontmarathon.com/

5. The Toronto Marathon, October 14, 2007
http://www.torontomarathon.com

6. Carmichael Training Systems
http://www.trainright.com/promos.asp?code=DSBYBFCSP


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THIS WEEK:
The Runner's Web is pleased to be the presenting sponsor for the Mark Allen
triathlon clinic January 1-21, 2007. For more
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ACTIVE.COM
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* Sports Nutrition by Sheila Kealey.
Sheila is one of Ottawa's top multisport athletes and a member of the OAC Racing
Team and X-C Ottawa. She has a Masters in Public
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Associate with the University of California, San Diego. Her
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* Peak Performance Online
Peak Performance is a subscription-only newsletter for athletes, featuring the
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Check out our article archive from Peak Performance Online at:
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* Peak Running Performance
Peak Running Is The Nation's Most Advanced Running Newsletter. Rated as the #1
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Delivering world class running advice are some of
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Scott Tinley (2 Time Ironman Champ) Steve Scott (3 Time Olympian) and many more.
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Running Research News:
RRN's free, weekly, training update provides subscribers with the most-current,
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purpose of this weekly e-zine is to improve
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Running Research News also publishes a complete, 12-page, electronic newsletter
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learn more about Running Research News, please see the Online Article Index and
"About Running Research News" sections below or go
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Check out the article index at:
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THIS WEEK'S PERSONAL POSTINGS/RELEASES:
We have ONE personal posting this week.
ONE:
From: "jaymeandlen" <jaymeandlen@...>
Date: Thu Dec 7, 2006 8:02 pm
Subject: Display Group
Looking for a used Chronomix display clock. Anyone have one for sale?
mailto:jaymeandlen@...



THIS WEEK'S DIGEST ARTICLE INDEX:

1. VO2 Max Newsletter by Jason Karp
2. Sports Psychology: Women in Transition Part II
3. Multisport: Muscle Fatigue
4. Spice of Life
The Case for Multi-Pace Training.
5. Extra Weight, Higher Costs
6. Joe Henderson's Running Commentary - True Miles
7. Run with more muscle
8. Key sessions for Half Ironman triathletes
9. Small Changes - Big Rewards
10. Dr. Gabe Mirkin's Fitness and Health E-Zine
11. When does REST become DETRAINING?
12. A new approach to strength training for runners
I have been a strength and conditioning specialist for over ten years and a
runner/endurance athlete for six of those years. During
that time a few things have become readily apparent to me.
13. Can Too Many Miles Make You Sick?
Understanding How Stress Affects Your Immune System.
14. Daily vitamin: Is it really necessary?
We're told the multivitamin is a prudent backup to the American diet. Here's how
to decide for yourself.
15. Sportsmedicine: The Truth About Stretching
16. Sportsmedicine: Stretching and the Warm-up
17. Coaches-Corner-Applied Nutrition December 2006
How do I get enough calories in during long races?
18. This Week in Running
19. Extra-Ordinary Speed Work
Making Track Sessions More Fun.
20. Bodywork - Your Knees, Stand and Deliver
Knees are critical joints, and they can't be traded in like last year's cell
phone. Keep your hinges state-of-the-art with our
complete guide to strength, conditioning, and injury prevention.
21. Electrolytes and Hydration
22. The Best Bagel
By Molly Krause, CTS Sports Dietitian
23. Is Marathoning Too Much of a Good Thing for Your Heart?
24. Lab Report: Essential Ingredients VIII
Pre-race Preparation: Rest, Fuel & Warm-up.
25. Digest Briefs


RUNNER'S WEB WEEKLY POLL:
"Do you agree with the practice of some major marathons setting aside a large
number of registration slots for charity groups?"

You can access the poll from our FrontPage ( http://www.runnersweb.com) as well
as checking the results of previous polls.
Post your views in our Forum at:
http://www.runnersweb.com/running/runnersweb_forum.html
[Free Registration Required]

LAST WEEK'S POLL RESULTS:
"What do you believe the weekly mileage should be to safely complete a
marathon?"
Answers Percent
1. 100 6%
2. 80 2%
3. 70 28%
4. 60 17%
5. 50 11%
6. 40 17%
7. 30 or less 19%


FIVE STAR SITE OF THE WEEK: Flora Duffy, Triathlete.
"Pain is temporary but glory lasts forever"
Welcome to my Web Site.
Since the age of 7 I have been competing in the sport of triathlon and have
always dreamed of representing Bermuda at the Olympic
Games.
After an unbelievable 2006 season, my dream looks like it will become reality in
2008.
Anything can happen in triathlon, but with the great help I get from my family,
coaches, sponsors and a lot of hard work ..
I'll see you in Beijing!!
Flora
Visit the website at:
http://www.floraduffy.com




PHOTO SLIDESHOW:
Our Photo Slideshow is updated on a random basis. Check it out from our
FrontPage.


BOOK OF THE WEEK: Running Trivia.
Mark Will-Weber is the genius behind The Quotable Runner, which sold over 30,000
copies in hardcover, and started the successful
Quotable series. Now, in the same gift-book format, he has gathered a series of
delightful trivia questions sure to entertain,
perplex, and astonish everyone who loves running. The questions vary in
difficulty from "Bronze" for beginners to "Gold" for the
experts, with a few bonus questions even beyond Gold-brain-busters that might
elude the most hardened veteran of track trivia.
Q: Who was the first man to run four minutes for the mile?
A: Roger Bannister? No! England's Derek Ibbotson ran exactly 4:00.0 in 1955. He
eventually set a world record of 3:57.2 in 1957,
after Bannister, of course.
Q: When New Zealand's John Walker became the first man to break 3:50 in the mile
at Gothenburg, Sweden, in the days of enforced
amateur status, he was rewarded with a small amount of appearance money and what
else?
A: A. An audience with King Gustav VI
B. A case of beer
C. A silver stopwatch with 3:49.4 engraved on it
D. A date with a Swedish model
(Answer: B for Beer. The Kiwi runners such as Walker and Dixon were quite fond
of it.)
And there are 999 more in this ebullient celebration of running. It is all
endless good fun and a sure hit among the rabid running
crowd.
Buy the book from Amazon at:
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/1891369571/runnersweb/102-0182896-9006569\
?v=glance&s=books

For more publications on running and triathlon visit:
http://www.runnersweb.com/running/human_kinetics.html and
http://www.runnersweb.com/running/amazon.html


THIS WEEK'S FEATURES:

1. VO2 Max Newsletter by Jason Karp:
* VO2max and Mileage
If you've been training for a while, chances are that your VO2max has plateaued.
VO2max is a pretty stable parameter, with further
improvements in performance resulting from improvements in other physiological
variables like lactate threshold and running economy.
While the exact volume of training at which VO2max plateaus is individual, a
number of researchers have suggested that it plateaus
at about 70 miles per week. Any training above this won't likely improve VO2max
unless you include more intensity.
* Race Pace
(excerpted from Karp, J.R. The Errors of Our Running Ways. Running Times.
July/Aug. 2006, 338, pp. 28,30-33.)
I used to coach a talented runner who ran the first mile of every race too fast,
only to slow down dramatically during the latter
segments and end up disappointed with the result. He thought he was better than
his workouts and he let his competitive spirit and
pre-race adrenaline obscure his knowledge of his true fitness level. It was
frustrating to watch him start off so well and get
slower with each successive lap of the track.
The faster you run the first mile of a race, the more your muscles rely on
anaerobic metabolism to produce energy. With the greater
reliance on anaerobic metabolism and muscular work comes an increase in muscle
and blood acidosis and the accumulation of metabolic
by-products that cause fatigue. Whether the race is a mile or a marathon, you
can't put running time in the bank. You will end up
losing more time in the end than what you gained by being "ahead of schedule" in
the beginning. No matter how strong your will is,
the metabolic condition caused by running too fast too early will force you to
slow down during subsequent stages of the race.
Although race strategy sometimes dictates that you change the pace during the
race to challenge your competitors, the best way to
run your fastest possible race is by starting out at the pace you can maintain
the entire race. While it may feel easy, especially
in the marathon, to run the first mile of your race at the same pace as the
last, your patience will pay huge dividends during that
last mile. Ideally, the second half of your race should be equal to or slightly
faster than the first half (i.e., negative splits).
To negative split a race requires
accurate knowledge of your fitness level, confidence to stick to your plan when
others have taken the early pace out too fast, and a
good dose of self-restraint.
When you race, you don't run at some arbitrary intensity. The percentages of
your VO2max and lactate threshold you can sustain for a
specific amount of time are predictable.
The longer the race, the lower the percent VO2max at which you'll run it.
Research has shown that the speed at VO2max can be
sustained for only about 8 to 10 minutes.
Talented, highly-trained runners therefore race 3,000 meters at 100 percent
VO2max, 5,000 meters at 90 to 95 percent VO2max, and a
marathon at 80 to 85 percent VO2max
(about 95 percent of lactate threshold). Your workouts, which should be
performed at specific speeds that correspond to specific
percentages of VO2max or lactate threshold, are invaluable for providing you
with knowledge of your fitness level and for predicting
your average race pace (assuming you account for such things like the terrain
and the weather). As I tried to convince my
overzealous athlete, your workouts don't lie.
* To view past newsletters go to: http://www.runcoachjason.com/newsletter
Copyright Jason Karp All Rights Reserved - http://www.runcoachjason.com


2. Sports Psychology: Women in Transition Part II:
The Model!
This is the second of three articles of which I am going to provide pieces of my
dissertation on the transition of women
triathletes. I think this is very interesting material particularly because my
research is on recreational women triathletes which
have never been done. I thought some of you women (or men) might find this
interesting and wanted to share it with you. This model
may be developmental aspects that add or subtract to a women's experience of
transition in triathlon. I am going to find out. Once I
have concluded my research (in approximately 6 months) I will share my
conclusions.
Developmental Model of Transitions in Sport
Wylleman and Lavallee
Beginning in the 1970s, sport psychologists have focused their attention on two
identifiable transitions in organized sport;
transition into and out of sport. Although the transition out of sport has been
highly studied, recognizable by the vast amount of
information now available, little attention has been paid to the transition
process(s) athletes go through during their athletic
career and how those transitions effect their performance. In response to this
need Wylleman and Lavallee (2004) proposed a
developmental model (see Figure 2.2) that takes into consideration normative
stages from the beginning through the ending and
"reflects the developmental, as well as the interactive, nature of normative
transitions at athletic, psychological, social,
academic, and vocational levels" (Wylleman & Lavallee, 2004, p. 519).
More...from the Runner's Web at:
http://www.runnersweb.com/running/news/rw_news_20061205_SM_Women_Transition.html


3. Multisport: Muscle Fatigue:
By Jason Anderson
Question:
I thought Jason Anderson's recent Research Corner Q&A regarding Spot Reduction
for Glutes was fantastic; however, there is one issue
that confuses me. When we work a muscle, will other muscles take over, as in his
example of fatiguing the legs, causing the glutes
to handle the load during squatting comfortably and not respond by growing?
Wouldn't the muscles working on their own like this
cause them to grow? And where does this leave us in response to muscle
activation such as stretching the adductors and working
abductors before squatting or lunging?
Answer:
Many thanks for your feedback and your question.
In the example of the "upright" squat, the angle of the femur and therefore the
knee placement has moved further from our center of
gravity, subsequently placing greater emphasis onto the quadriceps to control
the increased forces at knee (work = force x
distance). This is ever present in the deceleration of running or walking down
steps.
More...from the Runner's Web at:
http://www.runnersweb.com/running/news/rw_news_20061205_PTontheNet_Fatigue.html


4. Spice of Life:
The Case for Multi-Pace Training.
By the time they reach their early 30s, most elite runners-at least in
theory-are immune to broad-based training revelations. But
when Keith Dowling was preparing to train for the 2002 Boston Marathon, poring
over the logs of some other top runners led him to
something of an epiphany.
Dowling, after a solid showing at the Parkersburg Half Marathon the previous
August (1:03:59), had locked into a traditional
training program for the New York City Marathon in November. In the final six
weeks before the race the program had him doing
threshold work to the virtual exclusion of other types of hard workouts. In the
Big Apple, Dowling struggled to a 2:19:09.
"Before Parkersburg, I'd done training that included repetitions, threshold, no
VO2 workouts but some short races like 8Ks and 5Ks,"
says Dowling. "It was only when I moved into the next phase of primarily
threshold training that I got stale."
Dowling's sub-par New York effort led him to look at his own training from 1996,
2000 Olympic marathoner Rod DeHaven's training, and
"pretty much anyone's training that I could find," he says. "I noticed most
elite long-distance runners rarely followed a strictly
periodized program like Lydiard. That's when I realized that a mixture worked
better. In fact, the earlier phase before Parkersburg
seemed to work better because it included a little bit of everything."
More...from Running Times at:
http://www.runningtimes.com/rt/articles/?id=5610


5. Extra Weight, Higher Costs:
As you snatch a couple more Christmas cookies or down another eggnog, you might
be thinking about what those extra calories will do
to your health.
But have you considered what they will do to your wealth? The sugar and fat will
add pounds, which can lead to heart disease,
diabetes and a shortened life span.
There is another consequence to packing on extra weight: being fat costs money -
tens of thousands of dollars over a lifetime.
Heavy people do not spend more than normal-size people on food, but their life
insurance premiums are two to four times as large.
They can expect higher medical expenses, and they tend to make less money and
accumulate less wealth in their shortened lifetimes.
They can have a harder time being hired, and then a harder time winning plum
assignments and promotions.
We're not talking about people who are merely carrying a few extra pounds, or
only those who are Jabba the Hutt in their dimensions,
either. People carrying 30 to 40 pounds extra can be affected.
"Being overweight can be dangerous to your wealth," said Jay L. Zagorsky, an
economist at Ohio State University who has looked at
the relationship between various economic and sociological factors and a measure
of obesity called the body mass index.
More...from the NY Times at:
http://www.nytimes.com/2006/12/02/business/02money.html?_r=1&ref=fitnessandnutri\
tion&oref=slogin


6. Joe Henderson's Running Commentary - True Miles:
How far did you run today? Chances are, you think you know. Chances are even
better that you're at least a little off.
The mile is the gold standard of running in the U.S. Runners here talk in terms
of minutes per mile and miles per week.
You know exactly what a mile is: 1760 yards, or 5280 feet. But running exactly a
mile isn't so simple.
A true mile is hard to find. Distances resist measurement to the degree of
accuracy that runners demand.
I can't tell you how long my run was this morning. Outside of races, I don't
need to know -- don't even WANT to know, because that
would remind me daily how much I've slowed through the years.
Almost 40 years ago I opted out of mile-checking. Instead I ran by time periods
-- 30 minutes, an hour or longer -- without knowing
or even estimating the distance covered in that time.
This practice, still followed today, greatly simplified my running: no courses
to plot or follow. A minute is the same length no
matter where it's run, and more easily and accurately measured than a mile.
Despite this preference for by-time running I've stayed interested in how, and
how well, courses are measured. That's because I want
my race distances to be as correct as possible, and because most runners still
run by the mile, and because my students insist on
knowing how far they run.
So let's look at the ways runners check their miles, from least to most
accurate. This list also traces fairly closely the history
of measurement.
-- Wild-guess method. After winning one of my early road races in "world record"
10K time, I guesstimated the true distance at 5-1/4
miles. The race organizer apparently hadn't even quick-checked the course by
car.
-- Pedometer method. These devices, which I tried and discarded early on, are
hopeless for runners. They're good at counting steps
but not at calculating the length of those steps, which vary widely from runner
to runner and for you within any run. You could
guess distances as closely, which means coming within a mile.
-- Minutes-to-miles method. Here you run a unmeasured course and divide the
total time by your typical pace per mile. But that pace
differs from day to day, so your estimate could be off by a half-mile in either
direction.
-- Car method. This remains the most common way to measure courses. Its
weaknesses: car odometers aren't always accurate and aren't
calibrated closer than tenth-miles; you can't often drive the shortest possible
route that a runner would take, and you can't drive
off-road where a runner might go. Cars almost always measure courses longer than
they really are.
-- Map method. Using a large-scale map, we once measured with a ruler. Now this
method is easier with web devices by the dozen
(Google "running routes" for a list). These can be fairly accurate -- if the
course involves mostly straight-line running. The more
curves, the lower the reliability of plotted distances.
More...from Joe Henderson at:
http://www.joehenderson.com/archive/home.php?article=2086


7. Run with more muscle:
By Matt Fitzgerald
In its essence, running is a certain type of communication between the brain and
the muscles. The brain sends electrical "motor"
signals to the muscles, causing them to move in the exquisitely choreographed
pattern we know as the running stride.
The muscles, in turn, send sensory feedback signals to the brain, which uses
this information to modify the stride for greater
efficiency, to change pace, to produce feelings of fatigue and so forth. To
train for running is to practice this special type of
communications between your brain and your muscles. Such practice improves these
communications in ways that make you a stronger
runner.
For example, training increases the number of motor units that your brain is
able to access and use to contribute to running. (A
motor unit is a bundle of muscle fibers that is fed by a single motor nerve.)
Some very interesting studies have shown how improvements in muscle performance
derive from a simple boost in the amount of muscle
tissue the brain is able to recruit during exercise -- an improvement that is
completely independent of structural change in the
muscles themselves.
For example, in one study, subjects engaged in a strength training program for
the calf muscles of only one leg, while leaving the
other leg alone. After six weeks, maximum voluntary contraction force was
improved in both legs. The improvement in the untrained
leg was clearly correlated with increased neuromotor output to it.
More...from Active.com at:
http://www.active.com/story.cfm?story_id=13617&sidebar=13


8. Key sessions for Half Ironman triathletes:
Two Half Ironman races take place in early 2007. This article provides some
insight into the preparation for this exciting distance.
As the vacation season approaches and longer daylight hours become a reality,
now is the time to get in extra miles, especially on
the bike.
The bike
One of the aspects of triathlon we as South Africans need to improve is the bike
leg. Whenever we compete overseas, there appears to
be a trend that we run well but struggle on the bike. There are a number of
reasons for this observation that are not relevant here,
but if you are to make a New Year resolution, make some time with your bike one
of those wishes.
Mileage
From my conversations with triathletes, it seems 200km/week is a reasonable
mileage for Olympic distance triathletes. Ideally, I
would aim for more than 200km if you want to compete well at Half Ironman. This,
of course, depends on the time you have at your
disposal.
If you are recording this sort of mileage (200km or above), I hope you riding at
least 4 times/week.
For me, the more frequently you ride the better you get. Riding is one of those
sports where time is important and you notice
improvements as a result. I encourage triathletes to ride 5-6 times/week.
However, if that volume is not possible, 4 times/week can achieve positive
results nonetheless.
More...from Cycling News at:
http://www.cyclingnews.co.za/Pages/Default.asp?More=Key%20sessions%20for%20Half%\
20Ironman%20triathletes&FeatureID=2214&SectionID=40
[Long URL]


9. Small Changes - Big Rewards:
Unhappy with your last 10-K? Convinced you could have finished a little faster?
Unless you're Haile Gebrselassie, you're probably
right. (If you are Haile Gebrselassie, you can skip this article.)
Or maybe faster race times don't matter to you at all. Maybe your training just
isn't where it should be, but you're not sure what
to do about it. The good news is there's no need to make any radical changes.
With the right "tweaks," you can nip and tuck your way
to better running. The trick is knowing just what to tweak and how to tweak it.
This is the challenge we issued to our panel of experts: Tell us the little
things that will help us train and race smoother,
easier, and faster. No suggestion is too trivial. Individually, some of these
tips might not amount to much. But taken together,
they can shave seconds--even minutes--from your next race, as you'll see in the
racing section (we did the math for you). Even if
the clock isn't running, there's plenty here to make your daily runs easier.
Training
1. Boost Your Breakfast
If you're eating a light breakfast and a heavier dinner, your afternoon runs may
be suffering. "I call that 'eating backward,' "
says Nancy Clark, R.D., director of nutrition services at Sports Medicine
Associates in Brookline, Massachusetts, and author of
Nancy Clark's Sports Nutrition Guidebook. "Better to frontload the calories, so
you eat a larger breakfast and lunch, run with a
well-fueled body and then eat les - and sleep better - at night."
2. Start Your Runs One Minute Per Mile Slower
Take a cue from the Kenyans and start each training run super-slow. "Let the run
'come to you,' " suggests Robert Udewitz, Ph.D., a
clinical psychologist specializing in peak performance training at
www.behaviortherapyny.com. You may even consider walking briskly
for a few minutes before easing into a jog.
More...from Runner's World South Africa at:
http://www.runnersworld.co.za/static/jumpstart.php?js_id=25


10. Dr. Gabe Mirkin's Fitness and Health E-Zine:
* Fit Older Women Live Longer
The strongest, best-coordinated, fastest older women with the most endurance
live the longest. French women over the age of 75 were
tested to see how fast they could walk (speed), how many chair stands they could
do (endurance), how well they could balance
themselves (coordination), and the pressure of their handgrip (strength). Women
at the low end of scores for the total of the four
tests and for each test were at increased risk for dying in the next four years
(European Journal of Epidemiology, Volume 21, 2006).

Strength, speed, endurance and coordination are measures of fitness, determined
by how active you are and how much exercise you get.
What you do now is more important than what you did in your younger years. More
than fifty years ago, a study showed that college
football players die younger than their non-athletic classmates. Data acquired
many years later showed that some hormones, such as
insulin-like growth factor-1, help muscles and bones to grow and make a person a
better athlete. However, these same hormones cause
fat cells to fill with fat which increases a person's chances of suffering
diabetes and heart attacks. Obesity is a major risk
factor for premature death. If athletes continue to exercise and do not become
overweight in their later years, they probably are
not at increased risk for premature death.
Any type of exercise can help to control your weight and protect your health.
However, out-of-shape people are the ones at highest
risk for sudden death during exercise. If you are out of shape, ask your doctor
to give you a nuclear stress test to determine your
susceptibility to heart damage during exercise. If you pass the test, you should
start a supervised exercise program today.
* Exercise Lowers Salt Sensitivity
Excessive intake of salt causes high blood pressure in some, but not all,
people. High blood pressure increases risk for heart
attacks, strokes, and kidney damage. Why do some
people develop high blood pressure when they take in a lot of salt, while others
do not? A recent study from the University of
Minnesota shows that middle-aged people who start an exercise program lose their
tendency to develop high blood pressure when they
take in extra salt (Journal of Human Hypertension, May 2006).
All people who exercise frequently and hard need to take in extra salt. During
World War II, Dr. James Gamble of Harvard Medical
School showed that the only mineral that exercisers need in large quantities is
salt. If heavy exercisers don't take in enough
salt, they will eventually run low on salt and suffer fatigue, muscle aches and
cramps, and be at increased risk for injuring
themselves.
The Minnesota study measured blood pressure in people when they followed a
high-salt diet and again when they went on a low-salt
diet. The salt-sensitive people who developed high blood pressure on a
high-salt diet were started on an exercise program. After
six months, many of these people did not develop high blood pressure when they
again ate a high-salt diet. This shows that regular
exercise can control high blood pressure caused by a high-salt diet. Previous
studies show that it is very bad advice to tell most
exercisers to restrict their intake of salt. This new study shows that many
people who develop high blood pressure from a high salt
diet when they are sedentary, will not develop high blood pressure on the same
diet when they exercise.
From Dr. Gabe Mirkin at:
http://www.drmirkin.com


11. When does REST become DETRAINING?
by Coach Mike Ricci
There have been a few studies done on detraining. How quickly you lose fitness
depends on how fit you are, how long you have been
training, and how long you stop.
From the Mailbag:
I imagine it will be very different for different physiques, different
metabolisms, and different people. But, is there a GENERAL
formula that we could subscribe to? I ask because I travel frequently for work.
While I always attempt to fit in workouts of one
sort or another, it's not always possible. So, I try to plan my rest days and or
easy weeks around this fact. But, I'd like to know
where rest is no longer helpful, but actually becomes detrimental (i.e.
detraining).
Answer:
Hi and thanks for the question. You are 100% correct that athletes will all
differ on how much fitness they lose. How quickly you
lose fitness depends on how fit you are, how long you have been training, and
how long you stop.
Detraining studies
There have been a few studies done on detraining. One group were exercisers that
have been training for one year and then were told
to stop training for three months. These athletes lost about 50% of their
fitness. People who were newer to exercise had it much
worse off. In this study the new exercisers were started on an exercise program
for two months and then told to stop exercising for
two months. These people made huge aerobic gains during the two months of
training, but when they were re-tested after the two
months off, it was apparent that they lost almost all of their fitness gains!
Recently there have been studies done to see what decreasing one's fitness level
does to training in terms of detraining. So far,
the initial results have shown that cutting back on training doesn't have that
much of a dramatic effect on losing fitness as does
stopping altogether. One study had sedentary men strength train three times per
week for three months, and then cut them back to one
time per week for three months, and there was almost no loss in strength
whatsoever.
More...from D3 Multisport at:
http://www.d3multisport.com/articles/detraining.htm


12. A new approach to strength training for runners:
I have been a strength and conditioning specialist for over ten years and a
runner/endurance athlete for six of those years. During
that time a few things have become readily apparent to me.
By Gary Lavin
First I realized to win my age group (or even place for that matter) I should
have picked better parents since genetics is a big
factor. The second thing I realized is that if I have some free time I would
rather be outside running. Third and most importantly,
it amazes me that very few of the runners/endurance athletes I encounter ever
step foot inside the gym. If they do go to the gym it
is usually because of bad weather and they need to use the treadmill.
When I ask runners why they do not lift, the answers are invariably the same.
They feel that the additional pounds added from
strength training will be a decrement to performance. This is a common
misunderstanding. The truth is that the additional strength
and power output gained from the additional muscle mass far outweighs the stress
of carrying a few extra pounds. Furthermore the
ability of the endurance athlete to gain lean muscle mass is limited by an
endurance based program as well as the fact that most
runners (like myself) are not genetically predisposed to great gains in mass
(ectomorphs). Others feel that if they have free time
they should be out running.
Although it is true that a lot of training time needs to be dedicated to
running, you must also take into consideration the
efficiency of your running. Specificity is a concept in physiology that says you
get what you train for. Therefore if you want to
run faster then you should be out running. This is true if the efficiency with
which you run can be improved or the power output
increased. Then you can easily see that incorporating a strength training
program or strength training in a more functional manner
can be of great benefit.
The few "thrill seekers" that do enter the gym to strength train usually do so
in a somewhat dysfunctional manner. They train in the
seated or lying position. They train using open chain exercises (foot not
attached to the earth). They train in a single plane of
motion (i.e. sagittal) for multiplanar movement and when standing they train on
two legs for a single leg event (running takes place
on a single leg).
More...from Cool Running at:
http://www.coolrunning.com/engine/2/2_1/a-new-approach-to-strengt.shtml


13. Can Too Many Miles Make You Sick?
Understanding How Stress Affects Your Immune System.
By Claudia Piepenberg
Norm Klein was worried-worried about the health of some of the athletes he and
his wife Helen had come to know as friends and fellow
competitors during Norm's 14-year tenure as race director of the Western States
100. "It was after I was no longer race director, in
2000, that I started observing what I believed was a cancer trend in runners who
had competed over the years in the event," Klein
says. The 20 athletes he refers to are or were all residents of northern or
central California and northern Nevada; 15 men and five
women, two of whom are now deceased.
Klein, a former surgeon, explains that it "seemed unusual that people in such
excellent physical condition would be developing
cancer." The majority of the cancers in the male runners were cancer of the
prostate, while the women developed various unusual and
rare forms of the disease. "The man who died was our best friend; he died 16
months after his prostate cancer diagnosis. The woman,
who was in her mid-40s, died of a particularly vicious cancer that produced
tumors and lesions throughout and all over her body. She
was dead within a few months after winning the women's division of the Rio Del
Lago 100."
Was it possible that there was a connection between the high mileage these
runners had maintained over the years and their
developing serious, even terminal illnesses? Klein wanted to find out, so he
called on Dr. Robert Lind, at that time the medical
advisor to the Western States 100, for help. Upon hearing of Klein's
observations Lind was quickly caught up in the medical mystery
and became equally determined to understand what was happening within the
runners' bodies.
The Complex Immune System
"Even though what Norm was telling me was anecdotal, I knew that something had
to be going on. Since I was the medical advisor to
the race I was familiar myself with many of the athletes' health concerns. It
seemed that there might be a connection between immune
system dysfunction and the stresses runners endure when training for and
competing in ultradistance events. But we had no proof,"
says Lind. "So I started searching for people who might be interested in
pursuing a possible connection."
More...from Running Times at:
http://www.runningtimes.com/rt/articles/?id=9255


14. Daily vitamin: Is it really necessary?
We're told the multivitamin is a prudent backup to the American diet. Here's how
to decide for yourself.
A multivitamin with the morning's calcium-fortified orange juice. A couple of
vitamin C tablets to fend off that cold that's going
around. A power bar for the commute into work, a sandwich with vitamin-fortified
bread, a chewy caramel chock-full of calcium.
Before you know it, you've dosed yourself with five, six, maybe 10 times the
recommended allowance for the day's nutrients.
"For years, dietitians have been saying, take a vitamin pill for insurance,"
says Chris Rosenbloom, professor of nutrition in the
college of health and human sciences at Georgia State University. "But people
are eating so many fortified foods now, I'm not sure
it's still necessary."
She's not sure, because nobody is sure. Nearly 40% of Americans take supplements
regularly, half of them taking a vitamin and
mineral product, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention,
making supplements a $1.3-billion to $1.7-billion a
year industry.
Yet despite an ever-proliferating array of supplements on store shelves, along
with nutritionists' almost motherly urging to take
them just to be on the safe side, there's little science to support America's
love affair with vitamins.
Studies showing how well the body absorbs all those compounds sprinkled into
Americans' cornucopia of fortified foods simply don't
exist. And when a panel of experts with the National Institutes of Health
examined studies of multivitamins last spring, they
concluded that any evidence of their health benefit was thin, and that clinical
trials were too short to determine any long-term
effects.
More...from the LA Times at:
http://www.latimes.com/features/health/la-he-vitamins4dec04,1,1251191.story?coll\
=la-headlines-health


15. Sportsmedicine: The Truth About Stretching:
A three year old study about stretching is being cited in many articles today,
and the conclusions reached by some writers may be
harmful to your muscle, ligaments and joints.
Is stretching before exercise harmful?
Stretching before fitness training and athletic training is being made out to be
a time-waster, not needed, and even harmful. This
is not true. In fact, there's a recent study that evaluates all the research on
stretching, and the study concludes:
"Due to the paucity (small number), heterogeneity (dissimilar study subjects)
and poor quality of the available studies no
definitive conclusions can be drawn as to the value of stretching for reducing
the risk of exercise-related injury." (The efficacy
of stretching for prevention of exercise-related injury: a systematic review of
the literature, 2003, Weldon)
Essentially, the researchers are telling us that there are not enough quality
studies to draw conclusions about this issue.
Study in question
The study that is generating all the hoopla was performed by the Kapooka Health
Centre, New South Wales, Australia on 1,538 army
recruits. It's a creditable study designed to show the occurrence lower limb
injury on a group of young army recruits. Despite what
you may have heard about stretching before training, this is what the
researchers actually reported:
A typical muscle stretching protocol performed during pre-exercise warm-ups does
not produce clinically meaningful reductions in
risk of exercise-related injury in army recruits. Fitness may be an important,
modifiable risk factor. (A randomized trial of
preexercise stretching for prevention of lower-limb injury, 2000, Pope)
More...from the Runner's Web at:
http://www.runnersweb.com/running/news/rw_news_20061205_TSH_Stretching_Truth.htm\
l


16. Sportsmedicine: Stretching and the Warm-up:
Are You Confused?
Lately, I've been receiving a lot of questions referring to the latest studies
and research findings, and one question that I
receive most queries about concerns the role that stretching plays as part of
the warm up.
Currently, there seems to be a lot of confusion about how and when stretching
should be used as part of the warm up, and some people
are under the impression that stretching should be avoided altogether.
This is a very important issue and needs to be clarified immediately. The rest
of this article is dedicated to dispelling some
common myths and misconceptions about stretching and its' role as part of the
warm up.
What has Science got to say?
Most of the studies I've reviewed attempt to determine the effects of stretching
on injury prevention. This is a mistake in itself
and shows a lack of understanding as to how stretching is used as part of an
injury prevention program and the warm up.
Stretching and its effect on physical performance and injury prevention is
something that just can't be measured scientifically.
Sure you can measure the effect of stretching on flexibility with simple tests
like the "Sit and Reach" test, but then to determine
how that affects athletic performance or injury susceptibility is near
impossible.
More...from the Runner's Web at:
http://www.runnersweb.com/running/news/rw_news_20061205_TSH_Stretching_Warm-Up.h\
tml


17. Coaches-Corner-Applied Nutrition December 2006:
How do I get enough calories in during long races?
by Robert Kunz, MS
As the distance increases in training and racing, so does the importance and
reliance on nutrition. Fueling a long workout can many
times be a daunting task when considering fuel type, electrolyte balance,
digestibility, solid vs. liquid, taste and performance.
Many athletes are left at a loss and don't know exactly what to do.
Though science and products have come a long way, endurance nutrition is still
in its infancy. There is still an abundance of
information we do not know about ideal fueling for ultra long training and
racing. With athletes pushing the limits of endurance we
are constantly evolving in our design and recommendation of endurance nutrition.
Because the human body is highly adaptable, the
task of developing a nutrition plan does not need to be as complex and
technically advanced as you think.
The following recommendations are based both on science and experience. I have
purposely left numbers and specifics out of these
recommendations because they tend to be too rigid and also cloud important
principals that should be used to develop an
individualized program. If you want specifics about what carbohydrates and
amounts you need review the Carbohydrates for Endurance
Newsletter. Follow these few basic principles and you will remain well fueled
for Ultra long workouts.
Nutrition Training!
Practicing your nutrition is equally as important as your physical workout. The
simple act of taking nutrition in at the same rate
and make-up as you plan on race day is the act of nutrition training. It may
take an athlete 12 weeks to work up to a 20 mile run.
Equally, it may take you 12 weeks to train your body to adapt to its nutrition
demands.
Adapt your Nutrition!
Make adjustments to your nutrition in order to pinpoint your strategy. Every
human is infinitely different and requires
self-adjustments in order to peak. A nutrition plan, weather it comes from a
book, coach or on-line is only a recommended
blue-print. Use this recommendation and adjust as necessary to meet your needs.
Find your limit! Training = Practice
How many calories can you consume in an hour when your heart rate is at
threshold? This is what practice is all about. When we
train, we all have workouts where we max our HR, hence we all know what our max
is. Knowing your max nutrition consumption is a big
step in determining what you can handle calorically over the long-haul.
Build from your Foundation
A foundation including a mix of carbohydrates, electrolytes and amino acids is
simply your foundation. Once that has been
established add foods, snacks or drinks personalized to you.
Eat what you crave
When going Ultra long, it is critical that you take in calories. It is much
easier and more satisfying to consume what you crave,
then to struggle with consuming what you think you should consume. As long as
your foundation (see above) is solid, consuming foods
that you normally crave, not only leads to satiety, it parallels what your body
needs. IE: Athletes who crave sweets, need
sweets..athletes who crave salt, need salt. Your body is very smart in its
ability to send signals to your brain letting you know
what you need.
The take home message in these recommendations is to treat your nutrition like
you do your physical training. Learn from your
workouts and constantly fine tune your nutrition. Keep in mind that practicing
your nutrition during workouts not only assures you
will be prepared on race day, it also goes a long way in improving your ability
to work out and recover better. In the end it's
these workouts that make you a faster endurance athlete. If you leave the
nutrition out until a week before your race, then you
missed a golden opportunity.
C Copyright 2005 First Endurance, All Rights Reserved
http://www.firstendurance.com


18. This Week in Running:
10 Years Ago- Bong-Ju Lee (KOR) won the 50th Fukuoka (JPN) Marathon with a time
of 2:10:48.
Alberto Juzdado (ESP) was just two seconds back at 2:10:50 with
Luiz Antonio
dosSantos (BRA) 3rd in 2:11:24.
20 Years Ago- Juma Ikangaa (TAN) won the 40th edition of the Fukuoka (JPN)
Marathon in
2:10:06. He was comfortably ahead of 2nd placer Yuichiro Osuda
(JPN) who
finished in 2:11:19 and 3rd placer Bruno LaFranchi (SUI) at
2:11:25.
30 Years Ago- Jerome Drayton (CAN) won the 30th edition of the Fukuoka (JPN)
Marathon in
a time of 2:12:35.0. England's Ian Thompson followed in
2:12:54.2 while
recently crowned Olympic marathon gold medalist Waldemar
Cierpinski (GER)
was 3rd in 2:14:56.0.
40 Years Ago- William Baillie (NZL) won the Owairaka Marathon in Auckland NZL
with a
time of 2:22:07.
50 Years Ago- Alain Mimoun (FRA) was the gold medal at the Melbourne (AUS)
Olympics marathon
with a time of 2:25:00. Franjo Mihalic (SER) collected the
silver medal with
his time of 2:26:32 and Veikko Karvonen (FIN) was the bronze
medalist at 2:27:47.
From The Analytical Distance Runner, the newsletter for the Association of Road
Racing Statisticians with a focus on races, 3000m
and longer, including road, track, and cross-country events.
The ARRS has a website at http://www.arrs.net.


19. Extra-Ordinary Speed Work:
Making Track Sessions More Fun.
By Richard A. Lovett
For many runners, "Tuesday" means "track." For years, this meant I had a
love/hate relationship with Tuesdays. As a tough workout
neared, my pulse would soar, my breath would quicken, and butterflies would
dance in my stomach. I would stare at my watch and
inform the butterflies that it was not yet time and that even if it were, I did
not have to do this. Sometimes they listened. More
often, they knew self-delusion when they saw it. "Yeah sure," they'd say.
Flap-flap, flutter-flutter. "We've heard that one before."
Then my club asked me to coach what had previously been an informal get-together
and I realized that I couldn't expect everyone to
do my butterfly-inducing workouts. Not if I wanted more than a handful to show
up.
Partly that was because, while I'm not an elite, I'd been experimenting with
elite-level workouts, just for the fun of it. Sometimes
they entailed quite a bit of mileage. But even if I backed off to something more
reasonable, I was accustomed to the traditional
standbys: 3 x 1 mile, 4 x 1,200, 5 x 1,000, 6 x 800, 8 x 600, 10 x 400, and so
on. They work well, but can get repetitive. And for
many people, staring at a string of 1,000s is intimidating, even if there are
"only" five of them.
A common way of dodging the intimidation factor is with broad-ranging ladders or
pyramid workouts, such as
200-400-800-1,000-1,000-800-400-200. (Pyramids are workouts in which the lengths
increase, then decrease. Ladders are ones in which
they successively increase. There are also inverted pyramids and descending
ladders.) These are popular because they create a nice
sense of progress, but they suffer two major drawbacks: (1) they're usually
trying to do too many things at once; and (2) most
people don't know how to pace them correctly. You can still get faster on such
workouts, but the old standbys are more efficient.
Was it possible, I wondered, to design technically sound workouts that are tough
enough for serious competitors, but also fun for
the average racer? While I was at it, could I use them to breathe new excitement
into my own workouts?
More...from Running Times at:
http://www.runningtimes.com/rt/articles/?id=9527


20. Bodywork - Your Knees, Stand and Deliver:
Knees are critical joints, and they can't be traded in like last year's cell
phone. Keep your hinges state-of-the-art with our
complete guide to strength, conditioning, and injury prevention.
Thank Australopithecus for standing upright more than three million years ago
and making possible such great human achievements as
the four-minute mile, the 360 dunk, and the Eddie Van Halen guitar solo. Of
course, A-Man also sentenced our knees to an eternity of
trouble: clicks, creaks, tweaks, tears, and pops that can make bipedalism look
downright backwards. Considering all that this joint
does for us, it's no surprise that knee problems-some 9.5 million annually in
the U.S.-are the leading reason people see orthopedic
specialists. That said, there are ways to avoid visiting the doc. Follow our
guide to proper care and maintenance, including
training and rehab secrets of the pros, and you'll stay in the game longer and
stronger. Your knees have evolved nicely over the
eons; it's high time the care you give them catches up.
Axis of Evil
Even if you avoid traumatic injury, these three forces are conspiring against
your knees
1. AGE
As you grow older, circulation and muscles both tend to get weaker. In your
joints, lubricating synovial fluid decreases and dries
up. Soft tissue becomes less elastic and more susceptible to micro-tears;
cartilage gets brittle and begins to
flake away. The meniscuses degenerate and lack the capacity to rebuild-a problem
exacerbated by weight gain, which increases joint
stress. As early as your teens, deterioration of your articular cartilage-a
precursor of osteoarthritis-can set in.
2. BIOMECHANICS
Bowed legs, flat feet, pronating ankles, knock-knees, recurring injuries-any
number of things can throw off proper alignment of your
joints, and in time even minor tracking deviations can result in major problems.
The kinetic chain that links your feet to your hips
is highly interdependent: If one part veers off, the entire system can break
down.
3. MUSCLE IMBALANCE AND OVERUSE
Simply put, too much of one sport or exercise creates disproportionate
musculature. Cyclists, for example, often develop quads that
are far stronger than corresponding hamstrings. This may be great for hammering
your pals on Saturday morning, but it can leave the
knee susceptible to injury, because underdeveloped muscles can't counter the
force of stronger ones. Devotees of high-impact
activities, like running and most ball sports, also increase their chances of
knee problems if they don't mix in low-impact
alternatives such as swimming and cycling
Q&A: Should I take glucosamine?
Yes, if you're suffering pain from osteoarthritis or are at risk for it. Both
glucosamine and chondroitin, each found naturally in
cartilage, help make the tissue shock-resistant. A recent National Institutes of
Health-sponsored study determined that these
supplements can help people with arthritis symptoms. Recommended daily dosage:
1,500mg of glucosamine; 800mg to 1,200mg of
chondroitin. Both are available over the counter.
More...from Outside Online at:
http://outside.away.com/outside/bodywork/200609/bodywork-knees-2.html


21. Electrolytes and Hydration:
Key Points:
. Electrolytes are vital to physiologic function and athletic performance
. High or low levels of electrolytes are detrimental to performance and health
. A majority of foods and beverages contain an overabundance of sodium and low
potassium in relation to the standard American diet
The term 'electrolyte' is a medical word for the electrically charged minerals
in the body. Electrolytes are vital to health, and
act as chemical messengers in the body carrying electrical impulses from the
nerves to control all tissue function and movement. An
imbalance of any of the electrolytes can lead to serious disruptions in
physiologic function. Many bodily processes are highly
dependent on them, primarily heart and nerve function, muscle coordination and
control, and maintenance of the body's fluid levels.
Electrolytes are found throughout body tissues. Blood, plasma (the acellular
portion of blood) and the fluid that bathes the cells
are high in sodium (Na+) and chloride (Cl-), which is similar to common table
salt, otherwise known as sodium chloride (Na+Cl-). In
other areas of the body (cells that make up organs), the electrolytes potassium
(K+), chloride (Cl-), calcium (Ca+), and magnesium
(Mg2+) are prevalent.
Electrolyte levels are tightly controlled by several hormones and by the
kidneys, which are primarily responsible for retaining and
removing electrolytes when necessary and keeping them in a constant state of
balance. An electrolyte imbalance can lead to serious
health issues, including eventual death if not corrected. The most common
imbalances occur with sodium and potassium. An excessive
blood level of sodium is known as hypernatremia, while an insufficient level is
known as hyponatremia. Excessive blood levels of
potassium are known as hyperkalemia, and insufficient levels are known as
hypokalemia.
Sodium
Key Points:
. Sodium is found in high amounts in the typical diet
. Too much sodium leads to increased thirst
. Extra amounts of sodium are rarely necessary
More...from Competitor Magazine at:
http://www.competitor.com/article/?Guid=04362952-bd9c-46ae-b6e0-462f7e0ca502


22. The Best Bagel:
By Molly Krause, CTS Sports Dietitian.
They're quick and easy, and we can find them everywhere and they don't cost a
lot of dough. But this boiled bread can wreak havoc
with your blood sugar levels if you choose one that has more in common with
sugar than complex carbohydrates. Choose a good bagel,
and you'll down plenty of chewy energy and nutrients to keep you going for
hours.
Motor Yacht (Quality Carrier)
Bruegger's Whole Wheat Bagel (avail. at Bruegger's Bakeries throughout the
country)
These foods provide good fuel sources to power your activities and they're
loaded with whole grains, fiber and minerals your body
needs for optimal health.
~ What's on Board: This choice contains 1 gram of saturated fat, but no trans
fats. It packs a healthy does of high-quality carbs
and fiber that any hungry athlete needs thanks to 390 densely packed calories
per bagel. Nutrient wise, we're pleased to see one
serving provides half a person's daily iron needs, a nutrient that helps move
oxygen throughout the body.
More...from Carmichael Training Systems at:
http://www.trainright.com/info.asp?action=display&uid=4285


23. Is Marathoning Too Much of a Good Thing for Your Heart?
HE had not expected to spend his 60th birthday in a hospital cardiac unit. R. J.
Turner, a commercial real estate broker from
Frederick County, Va., had planned a robust celebration. "I was going to finish
my 10th marathon," Mr. Turner said, "which isn't bad
for a guy my age."
But near the start of the Marine Corps Marathon on Oct. 29, Mr. Turner raised an
arm to wave at bystanders, and "everything went
black." Collapsing violently, he gashed his head, chipped a tooth and bit a deep
hole in his bottom lip.
Mr. Turner, who had passed a stress test a year before, had just had a heart
attack.
This has been an unusual season for the cardiac health of marathoners. After
years in which almost no deaths were attributed to
heart attacks at this country's major marathons, at least six runners have died
in 2006.
Two police officers, one 53, the other 60, died of heart attacks at the Los
Angeles Marathon in March. The hearts of three runners
in their early 40s gave out during marathons in Chicago in October, San
Francisco in July and the Twin Cities in October. And at the
same marathon where Mr. Turner was felled, another man, 56, crumpled near the
17th mile, never to recover.
This year's toll has sobered race directors and medical directors of marathons.
But, as Rick Nealis, the director of the Marine
Corps Marathon, said, "Statistically, maybe, it was inevitable."
More...from the NY Times at:
http://www.nytimes.com/2006/12/07/fashion/07Fitness.html?_r=1&ref=health&oref=sl\
ogin


24. Lab Report: Essential Ingredients VIII:
Pre-race Preparation: Rest, Fuel & Warm-up.
By Pete Pfitzinger, M.S.
What you do in the hours before the start of a race can have a big impact on
your racing performance. Let's look at what's important
and what's not on race day.
Many runners worry needlessly about how much sleep they get the night before a
big race. Typically, the more critical they think it
is, the less sleep they get. You can relax. How much sleep you get the night
before a race has not been shown to affect race
performance. What is important is how well you sleep over many nights leading up
to your race-chronic sleep deprivation affects both
your body's ability to recover and your ability to concentrate during the race.
You should load up on carbohydrates for one (before most races) to three (before
a marathon) days leading up to your race, so the
role of your pre-race breakfast is to top up your liver glycogen stores and
maintain your blood glucose level. Your pre-race
breakfast should typically contain 100 to 200 grams of carbohydrates and be low
in fat and fiber with a moderate level of protein.
Several studies have found improved endurance performance after pre-race meals
with a low glycemic index; however, this seems
somewhat variable between athletes and personal food preferences and tolerance
seem to be the most important factors. If the race is
early in the morning or you are too nervous to eat, then a high carbohydrate
sports drink or liquid meal replacement is a good
option.
How long before the race you should eat depends on how much and what foods you
will eat, and your individual tolerance. For most
runners, a light breakfast two-and-a-half to three hours before the race is
fine. To find what works best for you, test your
pre-race meal before less important races and workouts.
More...from Running Times at:
http://www.runningtimes.com/rt/articles/?id=9262


25. Digest Briefs:
* Owner's Manual: Eating for Fast Recovery
Watch Your Diet Grow
By Ryan Stuart
As featured in the November 2006 issue of Running Times Magazine
When Keith Wakelin wanted to become the fastest 50K runner in Canada he did what
most people would do - he trained hard and watched
his diet grow. That's right, grow. While other runners weighed their carbs and
proteins, Wakelin turned to wheatgrass and raw
vegetables. "My health and recovery time after training runs and races has
improved immensely since I started drinking wheatgrass,"
says the 46-year-old. His results improved too. Wakelin won a 50K race in
Victoria, BC, in just over three-and-a-half hours, posting
one of the best times in Canada this year for the distance. Scientists and
dietitians aren't surprised by Wakelin's result.
As scientists uncover more information on athlete needs, and on the vitamins and
nutrients in foods, they discover that what we eat
has more of an impact on how we run than they realized. Simply downing huge
plates of pasta isn't the only way to run well. In fact,
for shorter races under two hours, "carbo loading isn't that effective," says
Kelly Anne Erdman, a registered dietitian at the
University of Calgary Sports Medicine Centre. "There won't be enough need for
energy for the body to use the loaded carbs. And some
research questions whether females can properly carbo-load at all."
Each runner is unique in their nutrition needs, so Erdman recommends consulting
a dietitian. But there are some generalizations that
can be made. Runners need to eat foods high in vitamins C and E, antioxidants,
calcium and iron, such as whole grains, fruits,
vegetables and some meat.
Iron is a key component in the blood system, while calcium is important for bone
health, both key for running health. Antioxidants,
meanwhile, help rid the body of free radicals. These little nasty hippies
destroy cell membranes and contribute to the feeling of
stiff and sore muscles. Antioxidants, vitamins C, E and beta-carotene, remove
free radicals from the blood during and after
exercise. Most antioxidants and vitamins can be found in raw fruits and
vegetables (cooking has been found to kill some of the
beneficial properties of these foods).
* Active and perky?
No matter how tired you feel after work when you go home to face the kids, just
20 minutes of mild exercise before you get there
will give you enough of an energy boost to deal with them, according to
scientists at the University of Georgia. It's the same when
dawn breaks and work beckons, says Professor Patrick O'Connor, co-director of
the UGA exercise psychology laboratory. Take a
20-minute walk, and you'll be better ready to tackle the day. Prof. O'Connor and
colleagues analyzed 70 controlled trials involving
6,807 people. They said the positive effect showed up in almost all
participants, including cancer victims, diabetics and people
with heart disease, chronic fatigue syndrome, and depression.
Source: The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
* Shovelling snow
It can be dangerous for people with heart disease or who are out of shape to
shovel snow, says Dr. Mark Cichon, director of
emergency medical service at Loyola University in Illinois. "In a very heavy
snow, shovelling snow is the equivalent of running a
seven-minute mile race," he added. "It's an extensive cardiovascular workout."



THIS WEEK'S FEATURED EVENTS:
*Please verify event dates with the event websites*
Check the Runner's Web FrontPage for links to the race sites.

December 9, 2006:
Foot Locker Cross Country Championships - San Diego, CA

National Club Cross Country Championships, San Francisco, CA

Rocket City Marathon - Huntsville, AL

Santa Monica Venice Christmas Runs - Santa Monica, CA

Sunmart Texas Trails Endurance Runs - Huntsville, TX

Thunder Road Marathon - Charlotte, NC

Toronto Santa Speedo Run - ON

December 10, 2006:
Honolulu Marathon - Honolulu, HI

New Las Vegas Marathon - Las Vegas, NV

SPAR European Cross Country Championships - San Giorgio su Legnano, ITA

Tinsel Triathlon - Hemet, CA

White Rock Marathon - Dallas, TX


2007 EVENT PREVIEW:

January 19-21, 2007:
Mark Allen Triathlon Clinic
http://home.cogeco.ca/~geordiem/triathlonottawa/2007/home.htm

June 23, 2007:
Emilie's Run - The Emilie Mondor Memorial 5K Race for Women - Ottawa, ON
http://www.emiliesrun.com


For more complete race listings check out our Upcoming Races, and Calendars.
Check the Runner's Web on Sunday and Monday for race reports on these events at:
http://www.runnersweb.com/

For Triathlon Coverage check out The Sports Network at:
http://www2.sportsnet.ca/tvschedule/tvsked_sport.php?region=ONTARIO&schedule_id=\
25

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Have a good week of training and/or racing.

Ken Parker
Runner's Web
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All revenue from advertisers and affiliate programs goes into the support of
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