TheFinalSprint.com - Track & Field, Marathons, Racing News, Training Advice, Elite Athlete Blogs, Interviews, Podcasts, Videos and More! - TheFinalSprint.com is the Premier Destination for Track & Field, Marathon, Cross Country, Olympic and Road Racing Enthusiasts.

Lead Stories: Sunday, November 23, 2008

AquaJoe: New, Convenient & Portable Hydration System

Posted January 8th, 2008 at 10:15 AM by Paul Petersen

Section: Gear & Apparel, Miscellaneous, Nutrition, Hydration

The new AquaJoe portable hydration system gives runners and active individuals a convenient solution for carrying their favorite powdered drink.
The concept is simple:

1. Fill the AquaJoe with the desired measure of powdered drink
• Each AquaJoe holds up to 3 tablespoons of powder
2. Seal the AquaJoe to ensure no spillage during your activity
• Just turn the scoop 180 degrees to seal
3. Clip the AquaJoe to your hydration pack or water bottle, or tuck into your backpack

• The device weighs about 1 oz and is 6″ in length, making it very portable
• Is compatible and works well with hydration devices (Fuelbelt, Camelbak, etc.) and Nalgene waterbottles.
4. When you need a new drink, just add the required concentration of powder to water.

• This allows you to refill your water bottle and add powder several times during a single activity.

Read the rest of this entry »

One comment, add yours | Permalink

Gatorade and Tiger Woods Join Forces to Develop a Signature Line of Sports Performance Beverages

Posted October 17th, 2007 at 9:00 AM by Martin Kennedy

Section: News & Results, Nutrition, Hydration, Supplements

The Gatorade Company, a division of PepsiCo, and Tiger Woods announced today a collaboration to develop Tiger- inspired sports performance beverages for athletes at all levels. Terms of the licensing deal were not disclosed.

“Gatorade has been part of my game plan for years, whether I’m training or competing, so this is an ideal match,” said Woods. “Gatorade is a winning brand with a proven formula and the science to back it up. That’s why I wanted to partner with them. I’m eager to launch my first signature product in a few months and look forward to developing additional sports performance beverages with Gatorade in the coming years.”

The first product, Gatorade Tiger, is a Gatorade Thirst Quencher subline that will be launched in March 2008. The subline charters new territory for Gatorade, as it marks the first-ever licensing deal for the $5 Billion brand (US) and Tiger Woods’ first-ever endorsed sports beverage.
Read the rest of this entry »

3 comments, add yours | Permalink

The Juice on Juice: A nutritional, medicinal, and flavorful guide to the perfect post-run drink

Posted July 10th, 2007 at 11:00 AM by Bridget Sullivan

Section: Nutrition, Hydration

The following article clip recently appeared in Runner’s World Magazine. Author Leslie Goldman, MPH, is a women’s health writer who regularly contributes to Runner’s World, Women’s Health, Shape Magazine, People, and the Chicago Tribune. Her highly acclaimed debut book, Locker Room Diaries: The Naked Truth About Women, Body Image, and Re-Imagining the “Perfect” Body, recently came out in paperback and is available at amazon.com. Leslie regularly blogs about body image and women’s health at ivillage.com.

It’s hot out, you’ve finished your workout, you’re standing in front of the mini-mart fridge considering your options. Water isn’t quite enough, and you had a pre-run sports drink. Here’s something new: a juice blend called pomegranate blue. Sounds refreshing and, as a bonus, healthy. But is it?

“All juices are not created equal,” says Princeton University sports dietitian Mandy Clark, R.D. “Are you getting nutrients or are you drinking sugar water?” Indeed, some fruit-juice products contain only 10 to 15 percent juice; the balance includes as much as 27 grams of high-fructose corn syrup, sucrose, or even the healthful-sounding organic cane sugar. They may look like fruit juice, but technically they’re “fruit drinks,” and the distinction is important. Nutritionally speaking, fruit drinks are not much better than soda and should be consumed sparingly, according to the Beverage Guidance Panel, a group of health experts established to make recommendations on what and how much Americans should drink to stay healthy and control their weight.

Read the rest of this entry at: RunnersWorld.com

Comment on this post | Permalink

TFS Review:
Ultima Replenisher
“Balanced Electrolyte Drink”

Posted June 11th, 2007 at 10:00 AM by Paul Petersen

Section: Nutrition, Hydration, Supplements, Product Reviews, Special Features, TFS Reviews

Most of us are accustomed to sugared sports drinks - Gatorade, Powerade, Cytomax, and others. Although the sugars provide glycogen (energy) that can aid us during long runs, for many athletes it is “too much” and leads to stomach cramping and/or crashes in energy.

Ultima Replenisher electrolyte drink offers an alternative to traditional sugar-bearing sports drinks, and if you’ve had bad experiences with Gatorade, Powerade, or Cytomax, you may want to check it out.

Here are a few of Ultima’s most appealing characteristics:
Read the rest of this entry »

6 comments, add yours | Permalink

Exercising in hot weather and the body’s need for salt

Posted May 31st, 2007 at 11:00 AM by Jamal Walker

Section: Nutrition, Hydration, Health & Fitness, Exercise

Fatigue during hot-weather exercise is caused by lack of water, salt, sugar or calories. Of the four, exercisers are most ignorant of their sodium needs. A study from The University of Otago in New Zealand shows that taking a salty drink prior to competition can help an athlete to exercise longer and harder. (Medicine and Science in Sports and Exercise, January, 2007; and Clinical Journal of Sport Medicine, January 2007).

Athletes who took the salty drink had larger blood volumes and greater endurance. Salt makes you thirsty earlier so you drink more, and salt in your body holds water so you have more water available to meet your needs.
Read the rest of this entry »

One comment, add yours | Permalink

TFS Review: CamelBak Elixir

Posted May 16th, 2007 at 2:25 PM by Paul Petersen

Section: Nutrition, Hydration, Product Reviews, Special Features, TFS Reviews

Sometimes plain water just isn’t enough for the hydration needs of running. As you sweat, you lose water and electolytes, which both need to be replenished during the hydration process. Traditional sports drinks, such as Gatorade and Powerade, have offered viable electrolyte replacement drinks for years, but their high sugar content translates into an unsavory aftertaste in the opinion of a variety of testers. Moreover, hydration packs are particularly difficult to clean after holding sugary sports drinks.

In an effort to address these issues, CamelBak recently introduced their Elixir Electrolyte Enhanced Hydration as a convenient, no-sugar, no-mess hydration alternative.

The ingredients alone make the Elixir tablets an appealing choice. The electrolyte blend of Manganese, Sodium, Magnesium, Calcium, and Chloride works together to re-hydrate the body more quickly and more effectively. Other nutritional information to note is that each tablet contains only 10 calories and over 100% of the daily value of Vitamin C.
Read the rest of this entry »

3 comments, add yours | Permalink

BOSTON MARATHON PREDICTION CONTEST:
Win a year’s supply of nuun portable electrolyte hydration!

Posted April 15th, 2007 at 8:00 PM by thefinalsprint.com

Section: Nutrition, Hydration, Special Features, Sweepstakes

Here at nuun, we want you to stay hydrated; wherever you are, whatever you’re doing! … that’s why we are proud to sponsor …
… thefinalsprint.com’s 2007 boston marathon prediction contest!

how fast do you think this year’s men and women’s champion will run the race? … not sure? … well give it your best shot because if your prediction is among the top two for either the men’s or the women’s race, you’ll be awarded nuun for a year (retail value = $234); an equivalent of a tablet per day for a year or 54 gallons of hydrating goodness!

TO ENTER: just leave a comment on this post with your predictions for the winning men’s and women’s finish times at the 2007 boston marathon.
Read the rest of this entry »

115 comments, add yours | Permalink

Q & A: Can sports drinks cause stomach cramping?

Posted March 7th, 2007 at 9:00 AM by Hariz Siddiqui

Section: Nutrition, Hydration

A study from the Netherlands shows that sugar in sports drinks slows absorption and increases stomach cramping in running races shorter than 12 miles.

Fluids pass through your stomach and are absorbed almost immediately in your intestines. Exercise slows fluid passage from the stomach but does not affect intestinal absorption. Sugar added to drinks can delay stomach emptying to increase risk for cramps.

Another study from the University of Utah, reported in the same journal, shows that taking a salty drink just before exercise increases endurance. Dehydration is the most common cause of fatigue during exercise in fit men and women. This study used salted drinks or placebo (unsalted) drinks with two groups of cyclists, and demonstrated a significant improvement in an endurance time trial as well as better maintenance of blood volume in the group that had the salted drinks.
Read the rest of this entry »

Comment on this post | Permalink

Thanks for participating in our Gatorade Endurance Formula Sweepstakes!

Posted March 6th, 2007 at 5:00 PM by Adam Jacobs

Section: Special Features, Sweepstakes

The Final Sprint and I would like to thank the thousands of people who took the time to enter our Gatorade Endurance Formula Sweepstakes!

We also sincerely appreciate all of the support from our friends at Gatorade and thank them for generously awarding our lucky winners with four-month supplies of Gatorade Endurance Formula!

Speaking of our winners … check out the pictures of Andrew and Tom, two of the four randomly selected grand prize recipients, showin’ some love to their new and beloved training companions.

Thanks again … and stay tuned … because we’ll be announcing another exciting sweepstakes in just a few days!

Read the rest of this entry »

Comment on this post | Permalink

Gatorade Endurance Formula Sweepstakes: You still have three more chances to win!

Posted February 8th, 2007 at 8:00 AM by Adam Jacobs

Section: Special Features, Sweepstakes

The Final Sprint and I would like to thank the hundreds of people who have already taken the time to enter our Gatorade Endurance Formula Sweepstakes.

We would also like to announce that our first grand prize winner is . . .
Tom from Apple Valley, MN!

Tom was randomly selected on February 6th in the first of four weekly drawings and will be receiving six 50.2 oz canisters of Gatorade Endurance Formula Powder (retail value = $140.32) to help power him through his spring marathon training!

Wasn’t selected? … Don’t worry! … There are still three more chances to win!

So what are you waiting for? Hurry up and enter … because like they say - You’ve got to be in it, to win it!” All entries must be received by February 27, 2007 at 11:59pm EST.
Read the rest of this entry »

Comment on this post | Permalink