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At what intensity should endurance athletes train?
Posted October 3rd, 2007 at 7:35 PM by Shannon Clark
Section: Running & Training, Training Tips, Health & Fitness, Exercise
One question that some endurance runners ask themselves is how much of their training they should be dedicating towards higher intensity runs and how much of their training is better off at low intensity. The common thought would be that since they are training for endurance, they should train in a similar manner. Some coaches and professionals however believe that training at higher speeds will help to improve their total body conditioning better and thus simply transfer over to a better performance during endurance related events.
Some researchers recently set out to run some tests on just this. The study was designed to compare the effect of two different training programs on endurance performance, one that comprised a great portion of training time in a lower intensity zone and a second that comprised more time in a higher intensity zone.
Read the rest of this entry at our partner site: HesFit.com
Video: Heart rhythm problems in endurance athletes
Posted May 21st, 2007 at 6:20 PM by Adam Jacobs
Section: Running & Training, Injury & Rehab, Health & Fitness, Injury & Rehab, Exercise
Portable electrolyte tablets: What’s all the buzz about?
Posted December 16th, 2006 at 6:19 PM by Jonathan Faccone
Section: Nutrition, Hydration, Race Prep & Recov, Supplements
Since the advent of Gatorade, manufacturers have been in fierce competition to one-up each other with new and better ways to fuel athletes. This has created a very saturated market; one that features a plethora of choices for competitive athletes. As a result, athletes vary greatly, especially in the world of endurance sports, about which option they believe is the most effective.
One alternative that has begun to slowly, pick-up steam in the market is the electrolyte tablet. There has been a lot of buzz surrounding these portable tablets, such as Nuun and Zym, because they are quick and convenient mechanisms for obtaining vital replenishment of electrolytes and other vitamins.
Read the rest of this entry »
What causes muscle fatigue during endurance events?
Posted December 5th, 2006 at 3:00 PM by Martin Kennedy
Section: Running & Training, Injury & Rehab, Training Tips
When you exercise for a long time, your muscles start to burn and feel sore, which forces you to slow down. You call this fatigue and tiredness, but a recent study from Japan shows that muscle fatigue is caused by damage to the muscle itself (Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise, July 2005).
This also explains why exercising long and hard enough to feel the burn for an extended period leaves your muscles sore for one or more days afterwards. Athletes call this Delayed-Onset Muscle Soreness (DOMS) and they learn that they have to have this next-day soreness to improve for competition.
Read the rest of this entry »
TFS Review: Gatorade Endurance Formula
Posted November 30th, 2006 at 1:00 PM by Jonathan Faccone
Section: Nutrition, Hydration, Race Prep & Recov, Product Reviews, Special Features, TFS Reviews
Check out TFS’s review of Gatorade’s Endurance Formula; a revolutionary new product for mainstream endurance sports.
Product: Gatorade Endurance Formula
Price: $1.49 (24 oz bottle), $1.69 (34 oz bottle), $24.99 (50.2 oz powder canister)
Rating: Very Good 8.3/10.0
Pros: Provides increased electrolytes and other benefits for endurance athletes; good value; convenient to purchase
Cons: Slightly salty taste; could include some additional vitamins
Overall: If you can get over the slight difference in taste, then all things considered - Gatorade Endurance Formula is one of the top hydration choices for your training runs and endurance events.
Effectiveness - 8.5 - I used the Gatorade Endurance Formula during several of my training workouts and found it be more effective than my traditional endurance sports drink. I noticed that it prevented me from feeling as fatigued in the latter stages of my workouts; presumably because of its substantially increased electrolyte and potassium content. The Endurance Formula has nearly twice the amount of sodium and potassium as Gatorade’s original formula and substantially more of both nutrients than Accelerade. Read the rest of this entry »
Low-carb, high-fat diets negatively affect performance
Posted November 17th, 2006 at 12:00 PM by Martin Kennedy
Section: Nutrition, Healthy Eating, Race Prep & Recov
A recent study from South Africa, published in the Journal of Applied Physiology, shows that eating a low-carbohydrate diet slows extended sprint performance of cyclists. Competitive bicycle racers ate a high fat or high-carbohydrate diet for six days followed by a high-carbohydrate diet for one day and completed time trials on their bikes. Then they ate the opposite diet for six days followed by a high carbohydrate diet for one day and repeated their time trial. Diets did not affect their times or power output for 100 kilometers (62 miles), but the high fat diet slowed their sprint performance over one kilometer (0.6 miles).
Muscles get their energy from sugar and fat stored in muscles or from the bloodstream. The limiting factor in how fast an endurance athlete can exercise is the time it takes to transport oxygen from the blood in the lungs to the muscles. Muscles require far more oxygen to burn fat than to burn sugar for energy. So when a muscle runs out of its stored sugar, called glycogen, it becomes less efficient, hurts, is difficult to co-ordinate and slows you down. Read the rest of this entry »
You don’t know “SQUAT”: Part 2
Posted November 6th, 2006 at 4:00 PM by Jonathan Faccone
Section: Running & Training, Training Tips, Cross Training
This is the second and final part of my series on beginner strength training for endurance athletes. Make sure to also go back and read Part 1.
We understand WHY strength training is important for runners, but now we’re left wondering HOW to start a program.
There are so many variables and concerns in commencing a weight training regimen. Unfortunately, many people choose not to properly research what they are doing; nor do they have the money to spend on personal trainer. The good news is training programs do not have to be complicated, nor they should they (especially for beginners). When starting a training program it is best to keep it simple because, that way, it will allow you to focus on the fundamentals and make it easier for you to stick with it.
For endurance runners, one great exercise to start with is the one-leg squat. Owen Anderson, of Peak Performance Online, believes this exercise is great for runners because it:
Mimics the basic biomechanics of the footstrike portion of the running gait cycle, and therefore can dramatically improve running-specific strength and coordination.
You don’t know “SQUAT”: Part 1
Posted November 3rd, 2006 at 9:00 AM by Jonathan Faccone
Section: Running & Training, Training Tips, Cross Training
I’d like to begin by clearing up the misconceptions concerning the importance of strength training in an endurance runner’s training regimen. Some runner’s feel that strength training is not as important as their endurance training. Others, fearful of putting on additional mass, believe that it may hurt running performance.
However, both notions are far from the truth. Several studies have shown that strength training can be incredibly beneficial to performance and help with injury prevention.
According to Owen Anderson of Peak Performance:
Recent scientific research has linked strength training with a 4 percent improvement in running economy, reduced heart rates while running, and improved race times at distances ranging from the 5K to marathon.
In addition, Wayne L Westcott, Ph.D. and fitness research director, believes that injury prevention might be the most benefit of weight training. Read the rest of this entry »
Supplements Made Easy - Part 3
Posted October 26th, 2006 at 12:15 PM by Jonathan Faccone
Section: Nutrition, Supplements
This is Part 3 in my “Supplements Made Easy” Seriesfor runners and other endurance athletes. Make sure to also go back and read Part 1 and Part 2!
Shopping for supplements can be a daunting task, but remember to keep it simple and that supplementation will only help if you first help yourself by doing your best in giving your body what is needs via your food intake.
Once you have taken care of proper eating, you can move onto supplements. Keep in mind, everyone’s body is different and therefore supplementation choices that you pick should be as unique as yourself.
BCAA (Branched chain amino acids) include the leucine, isoleucine, and valine. They are essential for aerobic metabolism and may have performance enhancing qualities for endurance events lasting longer then three hours. Lack of BCAA’s during endurance events could accelerate the breakdown of muscle glycogen and cause premature muscle fatigue.
Glutamine is the most abundant amino acid found in the body and is usually used for strength training as a muscle recovery agent, but may benefit endurance athletes as well. Evidence has shown that in times of stress, like exercise, the body cannot produce enough of this amino acid. This has been shown to contribute to muscle breakdown, diminished immune function and reduced performance.
Supplementation with 6-8 grams/day of BCAA and glutamine has been shown to decrease protein degradation during ultra-distance triathlon competition, decrease exercise induced muscle damage after prolonged running, and has shown to improve performance in 40K cycling time trial performance Read the rest of this entry »
Supplements Made Easy - Part 2
Posted October 25th, 2006 at 12:30 PM by Jonathan Faccone
Section: Nutrition, Supplements
This is Part 2 in my “Supplements Made Easy” Series for runners and other endurance athletes. Make sure to also go back and read Part 1!
Below is what all endurance athletes and runners should keep in mind before buying supplements.
Stick to the Basics:
There is no better way to start then beginning with the most important nutrient of them all, water. Water is the most abundant nutrient in the human body and has a wide variety of responsibilities from delivering oxygen and nutrients to different parts of the body as well as reducing friction between joints to facilitate movement.
Remaining hydrated before, during, and after running and endurance events is not only important for peak performance, but optimal recovery and overall health.
GES (Glucose-electrolyte solutions) is just the scientific term which simply means a sport drink containing water, carbohydrates, and electrolytes. Research continually indicates that when drinking a solution with the appropriate amount of carbohydrates can help maintain your body temperature as effectively as water and may enhance performance during prolonged exercise. Read the rest of this entry »
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Vry Disgusted said:
Why are you flogging this junk? What will be next - first we have flavored water - now jazzed...