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Training & Nutrition Newsletter:
July 2005 Now is a great time to start planning your running experiences for the Fall. By including a few good running events and running "treats", most find that motivation stays at a higher level. Even if you schedule a run each month on a beautiful course, your running and your life will be enhanced. The trip to the original marathon in Greece still has some openings. Dozens of past participants tell me that this trip made them feel directly connected to the rich history of running. There is nothing like running on some of the fields where the ancient Olympians competed. I still get chillbumps. For information, contact my friend Paul Samaras: paul@athensmarathon.com. A hidden jewel in the fall marathon season is Durango's Rocky Mountain Festival for Runners: Marathon, Half, 25K trail run, 50K trail run. This beautiful Colorado mountain town supports the runners and the events. The scenery is beautiful, and the aspens are turning gold. See DurangoMarathon.com for more info! There are other events that will get you inspired. Write them on the calendar and get your training on track! Jeff --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- "In less than 2 hours I learned more than I had in 12 years
of running." BD --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- A “Walk Break Watch”. Yes, folks it's
true there is a watch that can help you with your run/walks. It's
the Timex Ironman Triathlon 100 Lap. We've been using and recommending
it for many years. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- from Running
- Testing Yourself by Jeff Galloway (Meyer & Meyer Sports
(UK), Upcoming Training
Program Kickoffs --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Which Fluid Hydrates Best: Water or a Sports Drink? Water is by far the most popular fluid choice during exercise. However, sports drinks actually do a better job of hydration. Unless you’ve been living under a cave, you have probably seen those television advertisements in which a leading sports drink maker claims its product “hydrates better than water”. The fact that the message of these ads hasn’t changed in many years suggests that a lot of athletes aren’t buying it. But it’s actually true. Why do sports drink hydrate better than water? There are three reasons. First, fluids are absorbed through the gut and into the bloodstream faster when their osmolality closely matches that of body fluids such as blood. Osmolality is the concentration of dissolved particles in a fluid. Sports drinks contain dissolved minerals (sodium, etc.) and carbohydrates, whereas water does not, so water does not reach the bloodstream as quickly. Sodium and other nutrients also play important roles in regulating
fluid balance in the body. In other words, they help determine how
much fluid enters into muscle fibers and other cells, how much remains
in the blood, and so forth. Again, because sports drinks contain
these nutrients, they do A third advantage of sports drinks over water with respect to hydration is that the sodium content of sports drinks stimulates thirst, so athletes usually drink more when they have a sports drink than when they have plain water. The Protein Advantage Conventional sports drinks contain no protein. Yet new research shows that sports drinks containing a small amount of protein hydrate even better. One of the most important characteristics of any sports drink is its gastric emptying rate – that is, how fast it empties from an athlete’s stomach. The faster a sports drink enters the bloodstream from the stomach and intestine, the faster it hydrates the body. Many athletes are not aware that different sports drinks have different gastric emptying rates. The key factor affecting how quickly a sports drink leaves the stomach is, again, its osmolality. While all sports drinks have a much higher osmolality than water, each sports drink has its own osmolality and therefore its own unique effect on gastric emptying. Protein is an often-overlooked nutrient that affects osmolality just as minerals and carbs do. A recent Spanish study has found that the addition of a small amount of protein to a sports drink increases the gastric emptying rate beyond the level of conventional sports drinks. The study was conducted by exercise physiologists at San Antonio Catholic University in Murcia, Spain, and published in the Spanish Journal of Nuclear Medicine. Twenty-four well-trained cyclists participated in the study. They were fed either of two sports drinks at rest and during a workout. Drink A was a conventional sports drink containing 15 grams of carbohydrate per 100 ml. Drink B contained 10 grams of carbohydrate per 100 ml plus proteins. After 60 minutes of exercise, the researchers found that a significantly greater amount of drink B, containing carbs and protein, had been absorbed than drink A. These results indicate that a carb-protein sports drink may hydrate better than a conventional sports drink. The addition of protein to a sports drink appears also to aid fluid retention. When a beverage is too dilute, it tends to pass quickly through the bloodstream to the bladder so it doesn’t “water down” the blood and other body fluids. New evidence suggests that the right amount of protein in a sports drink, in combination with the right amount of carbs and electrolytes, may boost fluid retention and help you hydrate better during exercise. At the 10th Annual Congress of the European College of Sports Science, researchers from St. Cloud State University reported the results of a new study showing that a carb-protein sports drinks was 15% more effective than a conventional carb-only sports drink in rehydrating athletes and 46% more effective than water. In the study, cyclists exercised until they lost 2% of their body
weight and then consumed one of three beverages: a sports drink
containing carbohydrate and protein in a 4:1 ratio; a conventional
sports drink containing carbs and electrolytes but no protein; or
water. Over the next three hours, the Sports drinks have other advantages over water for athletes and
exercisers that go beyond better hydration. Specifically, the carbohydrate
(and sometimes protein) in sports drinks has been shown to increase
energy and endurance, limit the immune system suppression that sometimes
follows hard Water is a great drink choice outside of workouts, but during exercise you’ re much better off with a sports drink. In this case, there’s truth in advertising. This article was adapted by the author from The Cutting-Edge Runner:
How to --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Injury of the Month: Plantar Fasciitis The plantar fascia (a connective tissue structure) stretches from the toes and ball of the foot, through the arch, and connects to the heel bone in three places: outside, center and inside. Normally it helps the foot spring as it rolls forward. It also provides support for the arch of the foot. The plantar fascia helps keep the foot on track, cutting down on oscillation. When the foot over-pronates (rolls to the inside) the plantar fascia tries to stabilize it and prevent excessive roll. In time, the inside and sometimes center connections are overstressed and pull away from their attachments. The first sign is usually heel pain as you rise in the morning. When you walk around, the pain may subside, only to return the next morning. Inflammation and increased soreness are the results of long-term neglect and continued abuse. A heel bone spur may develop after a long period of injury when there is no support for the heel. The plantar fascia attaches to the heel bone with small fibers. When these become irritated they become inflamed with blood containing white blood cells. Within the white blood cells are osteoblasts which calcify to form bone spurs and calcium deposits. The body is trying to reduce stress on that area by building a bone in the direction of stress. Unfortunately, these foreign substances cause pain and further irritation in the surrounding soft tissue. Symptoms: Heel pain, usually on inside of forward part of heel. It's worst in the morning and eases as it gets warmed up. Treatment: After pain starts, but before inflammation, rest 4-5 days. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Sports Nutrition News from ACSM What’s the latest sports nutrition news? At the annual meeting of the American College of Sports Medicine (Nashville, TN, May 31-June 4th), exercise scientists presented their research on nutrition and performance. Here are a few highlights that might be interest. Performance Steroids Muscle damage Glutamine Weight and exercise Oxygenated water Sports dietitian Nancy Clark MS, RD counsels both casual and competitive
athletes at Healthworks, the premier fitness center in Chestnut
Hill MA (617-795-1875). Her popular Sports Nutrition Guidebook ($23),
Food Guide for Marathoners ($20) and Cyclist’s Food Guide
($20) are available via www.nancyclarkrd.com or by sending a check
to PO Box 650124, Newton MA 02465.
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