It is cold and flu season, so it's time to review the guidelines to when to exercise when you are sick. First things first: it is perfectly okay to NOT exercise when you're sick. Sometimes the safest course of action is to "sit your ass down," as RuPaul would say, and drink plenty of fluids until you are on the mend. But when you have a cold that lingers for weeks and races coming up, that can be difficult. So please use good sense when deciding whether to exercise, and follow these rules.
1) Do not exercise with a fever over 100. It is a terrible idea. If you are already running hot, exercise (which increases your core temperature further) is the last thing you should be doing. Fevers don't last long, so just sit your ass down and drink ice-cold Gatorade.
2) Do not exercise with a chest cough. Chest coughs can be a sign of a lung infection such as bronchitis, which during intense exercise can travel to your heart and kill you. If that sounds like a fun way to spend your autumn, whatever. If your cough is very "shallow," you can work out, especially if it is infrequent.
3) If you have a headache or sinus pain, you can work out, but you might not want to. These can be exacerbated by dehydration, and sweating is usually a bad plan. If you work out with these symptoms, take it easy.
4) If you have a runny or stuffy nose, you can work out. A runny nose might get nasty, though, and a stuffy nose might make it difficult to breathe. Something to consider: if you exercise outdoors with a stuffy nose, take a route that doesn't have too many bugs, because you will need to mouth-breathe.
5) If you have a sore throat, you are probably good to go, unless you suspect you have strep throat. Sore throat + fever = sit your ass down, perhaps in an urgent care waiting room.
6) Vomiting or diarrhea...please, don't. Even without the obvious practical concerns, you run a high risk of dehydration anyway, so drink your Gatorade and stay away from the public.
7) Sneezing is okay. If you have severe allergies, though, you might want to take your workouts indoors until your allergen is less prevalent.
Follow these tips and you might make it through cold and flu season in decent physical shape! And remember, if you feel too run down to work out, it is okay to take a week off. You won't get deconditioned at all unless you take off a few weeks. Take care of yourself first - the training plan is less important.
Friday, September 22, 2017
Wednesday, September 13, 2017
A New Kind of Interval Training
As we saw in June, I have gotten into obstacle course racing, which is a very satisfying way to cross-train for walkers. We develop upper body and grip strength, which is helpful with walking (keeping elbows at 90 degrees, and carrying bottles and such). It keeps things from getting boring (because let's face it, sometimes walking many miles every week and doing nothing else is a bit dull). It gives us a break from the same-old when we're burned out on cardio. And it makes us more well-rounded as athletes in general.
But pounding out reps at the gym is not always super fun, either. "There's got to be some kind of compromise!" we scream, remnants of protein bar flying out of our mouths. Good news: there is! Interval training! And it ain't your momma's interval training...assuming your momma does interval training. Mine doesn't. No, my favorite newfangled kind of workout combines walking and weights/calisthenics in a stupendously exciting way.
Two examples of my version of an interval workout:
1) Take something heavy (I have a 30 lb Spartan Pancake, which is essentially a round sandbag) to a local park. I have a pond/lake in my town that is surrounded by a 1.2-mile bike trail spotted with four outdoor exercise rigs. I carry my pancake around the lake, stopping at each rig to do monkey bars across, then climb through and around the outside of the rig, then maybe do some rig-related calisthenics (pushups, pullups, box jumps, etc) before picking up the pancake and moving on to the next. This mixes things up and keeps you constantly engaged, while at the same time giving you a distance to put miles on your feet. Imagine how much easier those miles will feel WITHOUT the pancake.
2) Mock Spartan Race. There is a free "outdoor gym" about 30 minutes from my house, featuring all kinds of interesting stuff - tire-flipping, arm ropes, A-frames to climb over, monkey bars, climbing ropes, etc. I have written out a workout that has about a dozen different "obstacles," and between each I need to walk a short (1/10-mile or so) loop in the area. You can do the circuit as many times as you want. Again, it's a fun way to keep your body guessing, and incorporate cardio into your workout so that you can have great all-around fitness.
Standard intervals are all about mixing up speeds, or "hard/recovery." With these sorts of interval workouts, you can keep the entire thing fairly difficult, while still being able to catch your breath and have fun. Win/win/win!
But pounding out reps at the gym is not always super fun, either. "There's got to be some kind of compromise!" we scream, remnants of protein bar flying out of our mouths. Good news: there is! Interval training! And it ain't your momma's interval training...assuming your momma does interval training. Mine doesn't. No, my favorite newfangled kind of workout combines walking and weights/calisthenics in a stupendously exciting way.
Two examples of my version of an interval workout:
1) Take something heavy (I have a 30 lb Spartan Pancake, which is essentially a round sandbag) to a local park. I have a pond/lake in my town that is surrounded by a 1.2-mile bike trail spotted with four outdoor exercise rigs. I carry my pancake around the lake, stopping at each rig to do monkey bars across, then climb through and around the outside of the rig, then maybe do some rig-related calisthenics (pushups, pullups, box jumps, etc) before picking up the pancake and moving on to the next. This mixes things up and keeps you constantly engaged, while at the same time giving you a distance to put miles on your feet. Imagine how much easier those miles will feel WITHOUT the pancake.
2) Mock Spartan Race. There is a free "outdoor gym" about 30 minutes from my house, featuring all kinds of interesting stuff - tire-flipping, arm ropes, A-frames to climb over, monkey bars, climbing ropes, etc. I have written out a workout that has about a dozen different "obstacles," and between each I need to walk a short (1/10-mile or so) loop in the area. You can do the circuit as many times as you want. Again, it's a fun way to keep your body guessing, and incorporate cardio into your workout so that you can have great all-around fitness.
Standard intervals are all about mixing up speeds, or "hard/recovery." With these sorts of interval workouts, you can keep the entire thing fairly difficult, while still being able to catch your breath and have fun. Win/win/win!
Tuesday, September 12, 2017
Fear the Unknown
"Stick to what you know." Seems like obvious advice...until we forget to follow it. And all of us occasionally forget to follow it!
When it comes to sport, particularly repetitive endurance sport, we want to make sure that whatever we put on or in our bodies is tried and true. You cannot wear a new outfit for a long workout, or try out a new pair of shoes. Your short workouts are for trying new things. You don't want to be stuck with shorts that chafe or a shirt with a weird seam somewhere when you have ten more miles to walk. And you certainly don't want to try a brand-new breakfast or mid-workout fueling plan when you have your most important race of the year on the line.
Sadly, there are times when even I get a bit careless and make a mistake. I screwed up badly on Sunday, you guys: I tried a new brand of sports drink. [pause for "GASP! NO! YOU FOOL"s]
I realized on Saturday that I had not purchased my trusty blue Powerade Zero for Sunday's long walk (10 miles), so I stopped at a Kwik Star and picked up a zero-calorie KwikAde fruit punch. Pretty quickly into my walk, I realized this was a massive error in judgment. Miles 1-5 were spent battling heartburn. Miles 6-10 the unpleasantness traveled to my small intestines and made me feel just awful. Oogy, as I say. Fortunately "an unpleasant feeling" was the total extent of it, but the damage was done, and my 10-mile walk was 5 minutes slower than the previous week.
It might seem like switching to a different brand or flavor of sports drink shouldn't be a big deal, but weigh the risks versus the potential benefits. At best, you will be fine, you may have saved 50 cents, and have an alternate option available if you forget your favorite again. At worst, your workout will be ruined. These are mistakes you want to make in your shorter workouts, if you must make them at all. Revel in the familiar; fear the unknown.
And avoid KwikAde!
When it comes to sport, particularly repetitive endurance sport, we want to make sure that whatever we put on or in our bodies is tried and true. You cannot wear a new outfit for a long workout, or try out a new pair of shoes. Your short workouts are for trying new things. You don't want to be stuck with shorts that chafe or a shirt with a weird seam somewhere when you have ten more miles to walk. And you certainly don't want to try a brand-new breakfast or mid-workout fueling plan when you have your most important race of the year on the line.
Sadly, there are times when even I get a bit careless and make a mistake. I screwed up badly on Sunday, you guys: I tried a new brand of sports drink. [pause for "GASP! NO! YOU FOOL"s]
I realized on Saturday that I had not purchased my trusty blue Powerade Zero for Sunday's long walk (10 miles), so I stopped at a Kwik Star and picked up a zero-calorie KwikAde fruit punch. Pretty quickly into my walk, I realized this was a massive error in judgment. Miles 1-5 were spent battling heartburn. Miles 6-10 the unpleasantness traveled to my small intestines and made me feel just awful. Oogy, as I say. Fortunately "an unpleasant feeling" was the total extent of it, but the damage was done, and my 10-mile walk was 5 minutes slower than the previous week.
It might seem like switching to a different brand or flavor of sports drink shouldn't be a big deal, but weigh the risks versus the potential benefits. At best, you will be fine, you may have saved 50 cents, and have an alternate option available if you forget your favorite again. At worst, your workout will be ruined. These are mistakes you want to make in your shorter workouts, if you must make them at all. Revel in the familiar; fear the unknown.
And avoid KwikAde!
Sunday, September 3, 2017
Troubleshooting Your Blisters
I wrote about blisters a long time ago, but I realize now that I was remiss in not giving an extensive list of ways to troubleshoot your blister problems. I tried a LOT of stuff over the course of YEARS before I finally got down to the bottom of it. So here it is, a comprehensive list of things you should try if you get blisters "on the reg," as the kids say. I will start with the most obvious things at the top, and as you work your way down, you may find some very specific and/or bizarre-sounding advice that, no kidding, works like a damn charm if you have stubborn blisters. Between each number, just think the phrase "if THAT doesn't work, try..."
1) Build your mileage slowly. If you usually go 3 miles and decide to go 15 one day, yeah, you might get a blister or two.
2) You might be wearing improperly fitting shoes. Make sure they are a bit longer than your foot (to allow space for swelling), but not wider, unless your feet swell like crazy every time. Many people need a narrow shoe to avoid lots of sliding around in there, or might need a different shaped last (if you get large blisters in your forefoot, get a shoe with a narrower forefoot. Same with the heel). Running stores are notoriously terrible at helping with blisters - they are, after all, staffed by expert runners who have probably never had problems in their lives - but they can help you locate different-shaped lasts.
3) Consider orthotic inserts to get your perfect fit, also.
4) Socks make a difference, too. I like a thick technical sock (FitSox are my current favorite), bonus is it helps cuddle my narrow foot in my narrow shoe for an even more narrow fit. Some people prefer thin socks, but this is a shit idea, no offense. If you get blisters, go for a thick sock, because you might have weird sweat. My feet don't sweat much, but the sweat can be kind of sticky, which causes problems for me. The following are things you will want to try in an attempt to manage or even reconfigure your foot sweat.
5) Talcum powder. Put it all over your feet before putting socks on. My podiatrist gave me Sanabalm, one $6 container of which will last for approximately 5,000 years. I assume Gold Bond is similar.
6) Lotrimin AF foot spray. Seriously, I use this a few times a week before bed because even though I don't visibly have a foot fungus of any sort, it serves the dual function of instantly cooling my feet after a walk AND making my sweat less tacky. If you have tried a lot of stuff and still get blisters, give this a shot daily.
7) Drink lots of water and limit your sodium intake. Don't get me wrong, sodium is good, but cut it back to maybe 3000 mg a day and drink a gallon of water every day. Your sweat might change just enough to make blisters stop reappearing.
8) If you get to this point and are still getting huge blisters all the time, I don't know what to tell you. I have exhausted my troubleshooting capabilities. Chances are, for 99% of you, these tips will work. If they don't, go to a podiatrist who has experience with athletes.
9) Desperate times = desperate measures. If you still get blisters and want to try to prevent them in a more immediate way, the only ways I have found that work are either covering the typical blister area (BEFORE you get a blister there) with a blister band-aid or duct tape. Yes, duct tape. You can also apply a liquid bandage such as NewSkin to the area, although this does not work quite as well (it is more comfortable than a bunch of duct tape, but try it at your own risk, because blisters may form).
1) Build your mileage slowly. If you usually go 3 miles and decide to go 15 one day, yeah, you might get a blister or two.
2) You might be wearing improperly fitting shoes. Make sure they are a bit longer than your foot (to allow space for swelling), but not wider, unless your feet swell like crazy every time. Many people need a narrow shoe to avoid lots of sliding around in there, or might need a different shaped last (if you get large blisters in your forefoot, get a shoe with a narrower forefoot. Same with the heel). Running stores are notoriously terrible at helping with blisters - they are, after all, staffed by expert runners who have probably never had problems in their lives - but they can help you locate different-shaped lasts.
3) Consider orthotic inserts to get your perfect fit, also.
4) Socks make a difference, too. I like a thick technical sock (FitSox are my current favorite), bonus is it helps cuddle my narrow foot in my narrow shoe for an even more narrow fit. Some people prefer thin socks, but this is a shit idea, no offense. If you get blisters, go for a thick sock, because you might have weird sweat. My feet don't sweat much, but the sweat can be kind of sticky, which causes problems for me. The following are things you will want to try in an attempt to manage or even reconfigure your foot sweat.
5) Talcum powder. Put it all over your feet before putting socks on. My podiatrist gave me Sanabalm, one $6 container of which will last for approximately 5,000 years. I assume Gold Bond is similar.
6) Lotrimin AF foot spray. Seriously, I use this a few times a week before bed because even though I don't visibly have a foot fungus of any sort, it serves the dual function of instantly cooling my feet after a walk AND making my sweat less tacky. If you have tried a lot of stuff and still get blisters, give this a shot daily.
7) Drink lots of water and limit your sodium intake. Don't get me wrong, sodium is good, but cut it back to maybe 3000 mg a day and drink a gallon of water every day. Your sweat might change just enough to make blisters stop reappearing.
8) If you get to this point and are still getting huge blisters all the time, I don't know what to tell you. I have exhausted my troubleshooting capabilities. Chances are, for 99% of you, these tips will work. If they don't, go to a podiatrist who has experience with athletes.
9) Desperate times = desperate measures. If you still get blisters and want to try to prevent them in a more immediate way, the only ways I have found that work are either covering the typical blister area (BEFORE you get a blister there) with a blister band-aid or duct tape. Yes, duct tape. You can also apply a liquid bandage such as NewSkin to the area, although this does not work quite as well (it is more comfortable than a bunch of duct tape, but try it at your own risk, because blisters may form).
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