Eat Garbage, Feel Like Garbage, Run Like Garbage

Picture from ecofriend.com

“My wife is always trying to get rid of me.  The other day she told me to put the garbage out.  I said to her I already did.  She told me to go and keep an eye on it.”

–Rodney Dangerfield

Yesterday started off just as any weekday does.  I packed my lunch pail with great tasting healthy options.  The only problem is that my sweet tooth got tempted into bake good after bake good, and to top it off some Rita’s Water Ice.  Putting that much garbage into my body absolutely did me in come track time.  I share this experience with you so you can learn from my foolishness.  There were a lot of sluggish runners last night, and I realize that the heat plays a part in slowing us down.  If not being acclimated to the heat and humidity is all that caused the weaker running performance then by all means skip ahead to the end of this post.  If you made the mistake of eating poorly or did something else to cause yourself to run less than adequate, you should probably read on. 

The following post on Talk Brooks Running goes on about proper nutrition for before, during and after running.  The tips come from Anne Mauney a Registered Dietitian in D.C. and worth a quick read. brks.co/fueltherun  In addition to properly eating we need to get a healthy amount of sleep each night.  “Many of us try to sleep as little as possible. There are so many things that seem more interesting or important than getting a few more hours of sleep, but just as exercise and nutrition are essential for optimal health and happiness, so is sleep. The quality of your sleep directly affects the quality of your waking life, including your mental sharpness, productivity, emotional balance, creativity, physical vitality, and even your weight. No other activity delivers so many benefits with so little effort” (Helpguide.org).  The average adult should get 7-9 hours a night to perform at their best.  I’m aware that this is difficult for most, because of the busy and hectic schedules of our families.  Allyson and I get made fun of because we’re in bed by 8:30 PM most nights.  Our friends constantly call us old, which I find strange being my mom-mom stays up well past 10PM every night.  

Eating and sleeping are only two parts of the puzzle; the last important part is properly hydrating.  Mike Dolce a well know trainer for the UFC and creator of the Dolce Diet stresses the importance of water intake. “Water intake is crucial. 1 Gallon a day at least” (Mike Dolce).  Dolce isn’t the only one that believes that drinking an abundance of water is good.  I have found that drinking 64 ounces of water or more a day (I drink a gallon on the really hot days) has allowed me to get through the toughest of workouts in extreme heat, not to mention my skin has never looked better.  “Finally, water consumption is crucial to a healthy lifestyle. Without water our bodies could easily begin to shut down. Because water is needed for so many different functions in the body, it is important to consider how much water you are consuming. You should not drink water only because your body is telling you to by way of thirst. Usually your body is already needing water, even before you feel thirsty. Most importantly, think about how water consumption can effect your body and your health. Drinking water on a regular basis can boost your health and keep your body feeling great” (Fitness.com).  Keep drinking that H2O people!

Attending last nights workout:

Allyson, myself, Kevin, Tim, Joe L, Cherie, Marc, Jeff, Brian A, Christy, Jason, Bharminder, Christine, Michele, Glenn, Matt, Renee, Jay, Joe H, Jimbo, Brendan, Scott, Greg, Steve, Brian J, and two new members David Jacoby and Beth Coleman (Welcome!).  Going forward please print your names in the attendance book.  Two people autographed the book making it tough, and in one case impossible to figure out who’s those autographs belong to. 

Workout:

I call this the negative split workout.  You’re to run the first half at your 10k pace and the second half a tad faster.

1 mile warmup

200(200) 10k

400(200) 10k

600(400) 10k

800(400) 10k

600(400) 5k

400(200) 5k

200(200) 5k

1 mile cool down

Next up:

We will meet Thursday at the Brick Hotel (1 Washington Ave. Newtown, PA 18940) at 6PM.  We will do a nice relaxed 4-5 mile run through Newtown.  After the run we will go inside the Brick for Speedsters Happy Hour!  Bring a towel, a change of clothes, and some deodorant.

Friday we will be kicking off the Fourth of July holiday with the Revolutionary Run.  Help is needed with handing out postcards and manning the Speedsters table and tent at the finish. 

Till we run into each other again…