Tips on Energy Supplementation

Now that we are running 6 miles or more on Saturdays, it is important that we learn about the options we have to re-energize our body. There are sooooo many options that it might seem overwhelming to some people. The good side is that because there are so many options, it is very likely that you can find exactly what you need.

Ok. So let's start by saying that a runner's world is more than just getting out the door to run. You could do that, and that is ok. But, if you are running consistently 3-5 times a week, every week, you know that what you eat and drink, the weather, the shoes, your apparel, stretching, and sleeping can have an impact on your run. In other words, blisters in your feet - ouch! Strained muscles - ouch! Hitting the wall - ouch! You don't want any of these to ruin your training or your life... taking the kids to the zoo with a blister in your foot doesn't sound fun to me! If a runner wants to make the most out of a run it is important to consider all those things I mentioned before. But let's focus on nutrition and the role it plays.

Maybe you have heard other runners say the phrase "hit the wall". Hitting the wall is when your body literally runs out of fuel, and your body feels tired and fatigued and your brain is not computing well. You shut down and crash. So what is the fuel you need? Your muscles, brain and nerves need glucose to work... glucose is your fuel. Some of it is in your blood, but the majority is stored in your muscles and liver as glycogen. There is a limit to how much glycogen your body can store. So when you run out of it, you hit the wall - ouch!

How do you know your body is about to hit the wall and how to prevent it? As a common baseline you will hear that around 60 minutes into your workout your body will have depleted it's glycogen reserves. Another nice fact to know is that if you are a beginner runner, your body will deplete it faster than an experienced runner.

What does this mean? If you are working out for an hour, you will do ok with your reserves, so make sure you hydrate appropriately and make sure to have something to eat after you are done to restore your energy, and you should be fine. If you are working out for more than an hour you need to refuel your body throughout your workout with more glucose. An easy way of doing that is with carbohydrates. Don't wait until your body has reached it's limits. Have you felt you are dragging your body or you can't think or calculate well your laps or time running? You might have been close to your limits. Make note of how much time you have been working out and start to refuel around 15 minutes before. Keep refueling in frequent and small doses. This might be every mile or every two miles, depending on each runner and what the fuel is.

Now that we know why we need to refuel and when we need to refuel, we need to learn what we can use to refuel. From powerdrinks, gels, bars, sports beans to gummi bears, crackers, cookies, pbj, etc. The options are practically limitless. This is the bottom line: you need carbs... what type of carbs to eat is for you to find out. Are you the candy type or the bar type? Are you the organic type? Are you the drink type? You need to experiment and find out. Some people do ok with only sportsdrinks, some people need more fiber to keep their sugar levels at a steady state and prevent sugar highs and lows. Others do well with a combination of these. So don't limit your options to bars or gatorade. Before these products were so easily available people would use bananas, crackers, nuts, honey, etc. They are carbs too!

Another important note is not to over do it! You don't want to eat too much and then go running to the porta-potty, or be propelling yourself with gases, or cramping due to carbs overload. Listen to your body. That is another beauty of runnning. You have to get to know your body and feed it what gives it life, forcing you to stay away from lots of foods that just numb you and slow you down. So choose well and remember to refuel your body after every workout to keep it running.

Here are some links to articles that I found very useful and have good info:

• Carbs on the Run
• Running Times Guide to Energy Bars
• Design Your Running Diet
• The Best Foods for Runners
• Ask the Dietician: Hydrating and Fueling for Half Marathon

Other supplementary articles:

• The Right Stuff
• Re-Fueling the Runner: Post Workout Nutrition
• Fueling the Runner: Benefits of Food Logs

Wow... hope this sheds some light into the vast world of nutrition. This is just the tip of the iceberg. There is much more to consider, but as long as you follow this guidelines and have a healthy balanced diet you will do great!

Choose to be strong, choose to be healthy and lets live a full life! God bless and have a peaceful run!

Recap from Dr. Nadeau's Stretch and Injury Clinic

This is just a quick post to go over some important points Dr. Nadeau talked about:

1. Always stretch after your runs. Hold the stretch for at least 15 seconds and do at least 2 repetitions. Pay attention to your problem areas.

2. Cold baths are great for after long runs to aid in recovery.

3. Soreness and pain are part of a runner's training but usually it fades out by the second day. If you have pain in an area for more than 48 hours you should have it checked by a professional, it might be an injury. Pain is a symptom and many times the problem area and the pain area are not the same. There are many types of injuries a runner can have and many sources.

4. To prevent injuries there are many things a runner should pay attention to, nutrition, hydration, stretching, resting/sleeping and a balance training schedule.

5. Dr. Nadeau went through many of the common injuries... I really can remember all and even less the names of the muscles. In general we all have one or more weak points and we should pay attention by stretching and strengthening those areas with strength training.

6. It is important to start at a moderate pace and then build up to your "cruising speed".

7. Sports drinks like Gatorade are very concentrated in electrolytes, dilute them in water or drink water after taking them.

Her link is in this blog at the right of the page. And I still have some discount cards if anyone is interested. Also remember that in the binder at the practices there are stretching exercises, tips on apparel and breathing, and little by little I'll be adding more things. Thanks Dr. Nadeau!!!

Want to feel great when running? There is more to running than you think.

As I have promised many of you. I am going to post some tips on how to gain speed and endurance so you can feel great after a run.

There is soooo much more to running than just the "run". To become a good runner you need to consider:

• Nutrition
• Stretching
• Cross Training
• Strength Training
• Endurance Training
• Quality Training
• Rest
  

Let's see these one by one briefly...

Nutrition
I am not going to talk much about this right now because it can get long. But just try to keep a balance diet with wholesome grains and carbohydrates. Stay away from fatty foods that will slow you down. You need energy that is easily assimilated by the body. And if you are going to run for more than an hour you need to supplement while you run, after an hour of running you have depleted your reserves.

Stretching
Stretching is important to prevent injuries and stay flexible to have longer strides. The longer strides will increase your speed without wearing you out as much as trying to move your legs faster. We have talked about this topic prevously, go to my post on Stretching Tips and Basics for the basics and some useful links.

Cross Training
This is a great way to increase endurance without the impact of the road. Incorporate bicycling, swimming, elliptical machine at the gym or any other low impact cardio workout. The amount depends on your level, but one day a week, 20 to 50 minutes is good enough. The objective is to train your body to endure long periods of workout. And in this way you won't feel "dead" at the end of your run.

Strength Training
An overall weight training program to supplement your runs will help your body support itself for long distances. Strong legs will mantain long strides for more distance, a strong core will support your upper body well so your lungs can hold as much air as possible and strong arms will give you momentum. An overall workout 2 days per week is good enough. Don't over do it, you want to lift weights to be an agile runner not a body builder. Some great exercises are:

• Dumbell lunges
• Dumbell step ups and step downs (great for shins and calves)
• Leg curls with weights
• Toe raises
• Bench press
• Push ups
• All abs workout
• Lower back exercises with exercise ball

Endurance Training, Quality Training and Rest
No matter if you are a biginner runnner or experience runner you need to mix in your training different types of runs. For a seven day week, you need one long run to build endurance. One medium run that includes some quality training like intervals, tempo run, sprints or hills. This type of run will involve more effort than the other runs and you will be pushing your body to it's limits.

• Intervals are runs that alternate hard running and easy running; the time should be about the same or you can take the time of the easy interval down to half of the time of the hard interval.
• Tempo runs are runs that you keep a strong steady pace all through the run, where you need each breath to keep up with the demand.
• For the hill workout go up hill sprinting and come down hill jogging at an easy pace.

Then, have 2-3 shorter runs at a moderate pace. And finally, have 2-3 nonconsecutive days of rest to let your body regain energy and build up strength.


Try different types of combinations of runs, workouts, cardio, gym classes to incorporate some strength training, endurance training, quality training and rest. Listen to your body and work those areas that are tight or weak. And finally, don't over do it... if your long run is 6 miles that week, don't do 6 miles for a short run, if you have never done hills, don't do hills everyday of the week... you will just injure yourself instead of getting stronger.

In overall a week could look like this:
Monday - Short run at moderate pace (2 to 4 miles) and Strength Training
Tuesday - Medium run with Quality Training (3 to 6 miles)
Wedenesday - Short run at moderate or easy pace (2 to 4 miles) or Cross Training
Thursday - Short run at moderate pace (2 to 4 miles) and Strength Training
Friday - Rest, get ready for your long run
Saturday - Long run (6 to 12 miles)
Friday - Rest, get ready for the new week

Some useful links are:
Men's Health: Run for... - General advice for different type of trainings
Men's Helath: Run: Half Marathon Training - General advice for those trying to finish strong in a half
Men's Health: Run for Endurance - Tips to gain speed and endurance
Runner's World: Boost Your Endurance - Great article with many quality workout options
Runner's World: Endurance Cross-Training - Cross Training highlights

I think this is a nice overview, hope you can gain more than knowledge from it. And that you can tell me that you are running your miles faster and feeling great at the end. Peacefule run everyone!