You versus the sand: How to win

Races like the Beast on the Bay offer athletes a different type of fun.  The competitors are never quite sure of what they might encounter along the race course which can make training for the event a bit tricky.  Participants in the upcoming Beast will know one race twist: they will be running in the sand. 

Running on the sand is challenging.  It requires 1.6 times more energy than running on a hard surface.  When your foot lands in soft sand, there is no flat, resistive surface to greet it.  There is nothing to help stabilize your foot during toe-off.  Instead, the foot lands on a surface that is soft and shifts.  Moving in sand forces your foot and calf muscles to work hard to steady your foot.  Sand workouts are really more of a whole body workout requiring all of your muscles to work together to control ankle, knee, hip and core motion.  An athlete not prepared for training in sand faces an increased risk of injury including plantar fasciitis, calf strain and hip flexor strains.  On the flip side, athletes who train regularly in the sand report improvements in overall strength, agility and endurance.  Runners who regularly run in the sand report faster times and improved performance when they move to a sand-free environment.

It takes time to build up the muscle strength in your legs and core and to build your stamina in order to run well in soft sand.  If you are not used to running in the sand, experts recommend you start with a slower pace.  You will find that you are forced to take smaller steps and foot strike on the middle or front part of your foot.  Initially, your calves will seem to take the brunt of your new workout. 

Start out with an alternating running program:  run for a couple of minutes on firm surface (hard packed sand at water’s edge or road), run for 1-2 min in soft sand for a total of 15-20 minutes.  If you try to go too fast for too long, you increase your risk of pre-race injury.  Run on the flat parts of the beach because running on an angle is hard on your knees, hip and back and can result in injury.

For you science geek runners, check out the following article:

Heglund, N.C., LeJeune, T.M., & Willems, P.A. (1998). Mechanics and Energetics of Human

Locomotion on Sand (1998).  The Journal of Experimental Biology, 210.  Retrieved from http://jeb.biologists.org/content/201/13/2071.full.pdf

Look for more to come in the weeks to follow from our healthcare experts at Saint Vincent!

Laura McIntosh, MD

Saint Vincent Sports Medicine

Saint Vincent Hospital

Hydration 101 from Saint Vincent Hospital

Before we start, a quick message from our friends at Saint Vincent Hospital:

Saint Vincent Hospital is proud to be a co-sponsor of the 2014 Barber Beast on the Bay with our partner Highmark Blue Cross Blue Shield.  Saint Vincent associates, physicians and nurses have worked to focus more on prevention and wellness and together we hope to inspire participation in this challenging and fun community fitness event.

Saint Vincent Sports Medicine physicians, our Corporate Wellness team and nutritionists along with our therapists from Saint Vincent Rehab Solutions will all provide you with important tips and information in this blog to help you be your best to tackle the Beast on September 6^th.  

Our health care experts will provide information on nutrition, training, and injury prevention.  We are excited to be part of your journey and look forward to hearing your feedback!  The first topic we will tackle is a critical component to any form of exercise … hydration!

HYDRATION 101

The count-down begins!  With 17 weeks to go before the Beast on the Bay, it is never too early to begin thinking about a training plan and no training plan is complete without proper nutrition and hydration.  It’s some of the most important “equipment” you can arm yourself with to perform optimally!  Below are some tips to get you started on your hydration plan:

Goals of Hydration

   1. Begin exercise well hydrated by drinking sufficient fluids throughout the day and within the hour before exercise.

Tip: Monitor the color of your urine to determine your hydration status.  It should be clear (see chart below)

 

      2. Replace sweat loss by drinking regularly during exercise.

   3. Rehydrate after exercise to replace weight lost as fluid during exercise.

Tip: Check your weight before you exercise and after you exercise to determine how you’re doing with your hydration plan.  Your sweat rate will fluctuate depending on the climate you train in so do your best to train in a climate that best mimics your event.

  4. Follow a personalized fluid replacement plan to prevent the consequences of excessive dehydration (>2% body weight loss) such as fatigue, cardiovascular stress, increased risk of heat illness and decreased performance.

What to Drink

  1. For low to moderate intensity activity lasting < 60 minutes, water is the best choice to drink before, during and after exercise.

  2. For activity moderate to high intensity activity lasting > 60 minutes, sports drinks (6-8% carbohydrate solutions) are great options not only as a means to replenish fluid losses but also electrolyte and energy losses.

  3. For those who are salty sweaters (you know who you are because you can see & feel the salt crystals on your skin or clothing after exercise), eat salty foods in a pre exercise meal or add salt to your sports drink consumed during exercise.

  4. Rehydrate after exercise by consuming fluids sufficient to replace weight lost during exercise.

You’re not alone! A sports dietitian can assist you in designing a personalized plan that considers thirst, urine color, and weight fluctuations under varying conditions of exercise.

Look for more to come in the weeks to follow from our health-care experts at Saint Vincent!

Leslie Lawton, RD, CSSD, LDN, CDE

Board Certified Specialist in Sports Dietetics

Saint Vincent Hospital

The Three Mile Isle File

Let’s face it: The Beast is scary. It’s 10 miles loaded with obstacles, and it’s sure to give you all you can handle. If you’re not an extreme athlete, you’re probably wondering how you can get ready for the Barber Beast on the Bay without having to run on a treadmill for hours on end. That’s where Three Mile Isle comes in.

If you’re a sports fan, you know a team can’t go right to the championship game. They have to play in a series of games to get there. If you’re into video games, you know you take on different levels before getting to the boss. And if you’re into music, you know there’s always a show opener at the concert that gets the crowd ready to go and pumped.

Three Mile Isle is those things and so much more.

If you want to see how you fair for the Beast, Three Mile Isle is the perfect opportunity for you. Why? It’s like a smaller version of the Beast. If it were a soda, it would be Diet Beast, now with 1/3 of the calories of regular Beast. It’s still challenging and fun, but on a smaller scale. Three Mile Isle is, as the name suggests, three miles with 12+ obstacles all along the shores of Presque Isle State Park. 

Look, there’s plenty of benefits to participating in Three Mile Isle before the Beast. Here are some:

-It’s three months before the Beast. If you struggle at Three Mile Isle, that probably means you’ll have to ramp up your training for the Beast.

-It goes through Beach 10 and Beach 11 along the shoreline rain or shine. This will get you prepared to run on sand, in water, through mud, etc.

-You get $10 off registration if you’ve already signed up for the Beast.

-It’s a whole ton of fun, it’s exciting, and it’s filled with fellow runners and participants.

-The course will include three new obstacles

-Your registration gets you on the course, a performance t-shirt and Joe Root's Grill will feed you and give you a beer when you are done. How cool is that?

-It benefits our own beautiful Presque Isle State Park.

If you’re still not sold (and really, how could you not be?), check out their site at http://www.discoverpi.com/events/three-mile-isle/.