Submitted by Dan Jordan
Tips on What to Eat Pre Workout
Should you eat before working out? Is it better to exercise on an empty stomach so that you tap into your fat stores and burn them away? What if you have a sensitive stomach? Should it be carbs or protein or both?? So many questions!
The bottom line: When you eat carbohydrate-rich foods before exercise, you will perform better--mentally and physically--during your workout. The question then becomes, what works best for your body?
Sensitive Stomach?
Choose low-fiber and low-fat foods before exercise. Try to eat at least one hour before beginning your workout. Skip the peanut butter and high-fiber dry cereals before your workout. Fat and fiber hold food in the stomach longer and with your sensitive stomach, you want the food that you eat before a workout to be digested and out of your gut when you start exercise. Best low-fat, low-fiber foods:
Banana
Low-fat yogurt
Whole wheat English muffin
Trying to Burn Fat?
While it is true that exercise on an empty stomach allows you to burn fat during exercise, this does not translate to a reduction in body fat. When the body is burning fat for fuel during exercise, it inevitably means that you are working out at a lower intensity. What does that mean? It means that you are burning fewer calories per minute of exercise.
To really blast through fat stores, you need to be in the carbohydrate-burning zone. When your body is using carbohydrate to fuel exercise, it means that you are burning more calories per minute. When carbohydrate isn’t available, your intensity drops, both physically and mentally. Exercise on an empty stomach generally feels much harder. Choose a satisfying meal or snack, but keep the high calorie additions to a minimum if you are trying to lose body fat. Give yourself 30-60 minutes to digest and then hit a high intensity workout. Best lower calorie, carbohydrate-rich foods to blast fat:
Unsweetened cereal with skim milk and fruit
Toast with light spread of almond butter and preserves
Low-fat yogurt-fruit parfait
Protein to Build Muscle?
Eating protein-rich foods before exercise won’t necessarily lead to bigger muscles. Focus your attention on protein-rich chicken, salmon, turkey and Greek yogurt for after your workout when your muscles are more receptive to the powerful muscle-building affects of protein.
Before any workout, you need carbs. Carbohydrate powers exercise, especially high-intensity workouts like weight lifting. You can blow through your glycogen stores (carbohydrate stores) during a heavy lifting workout. When glycogen levels get low, mental and physical energy will drop. When trying to build muscle it’s a good idea to incorporate small amounts protein into every meal and snack, provided that you aren’t sacrificing carbohydrates. Choose pre-workout meals and snacks that provide carbohydrate and a bit of protein for extra calories to build lean mass. Best muscle-building options:
Hummus with cucumber and tomato slices on whole wheat pita
Oatmeal with fruit and low-fat chicken sausage
Baked sweet potato topped with low-fat cottage cheese
Prime your body for exercise by choosing carbohydrate-rich foods for your pre-workout meal. When possible, give yourself at least 30 minutes to digest the food and absorb the nutrients. Experiment with which foods work best for your body.
Friday, May 21, 2010
Ten Tips for a Fast Transition
Submitted by Dan Jordan
Ten Tips for a Fast Transition
1. Practice your plan
Have a plan of exactly what you are going to do and practice it over and over again until you are fast with no mistakes. Practice it physically several times in training and then rehearse it mentally several times on race morning. By the time you are in transition on race day, you should be moving on autopilot. Never try something new on race day.
2. Be a minimalist
The fewer tasks you have to do in the transition area, the faster you will go. Skip the socks and get rid of anything you don't absolutely need. Clutter will slow you down.
3. Bike shoes in the pedals
Coasting down the course at 15 mph while you put your feet in your shoes will move you far ahead of your buddy sitting on his butt in T1 doing the same task. Set your bike up in the transition area with your shoes attached to the pedals and rubber bands looped between the heels and frame, holding the shoes horizontal. On leaving T1, pedal with your feet on top of your shoes. Once you are cruising at speed, coast and slip your feet into your shoes. Keep your eyes ahead on the road, not down on your feet. On the return, slip your feet out of your shoes before you reach T2. Learn this skill first on an indoor trainer before taking it out on the open road.
4. Run with your bike
The distance from rack to mount line can be considerable at large triathlons. By running safely and quickly with your bike, it is easy to fly over this distance. Run upright with good form on the left side of your bike, holding your seat with your right hand. Your left arm swings by your side. Hold the bike upright to go straight and lean it to the side to turn. Practice in an empty parking lot.
5. Speed over the mount/dismount line
Learn a cyclo-cross mount and dismount to cruise over this line without losing any momentum. In the race you will be doing this in bare feet but initially learn and practice this skill wearing running shoes.
6. Attach your stuff to your bike
Handling small items sucks up time. Everything you need on the bike course should be attached to your bike. Tape gels to the frame, water bottles should already be on board, sunglasses looped to a cable, spare tube in a seat pack and CO2 cartridge taped to the seat post.
7. One outfit for all occasions
Start the swim with your full bike/run outfit under your wetsuit. A one piece tri-suit is ideal. Any clothing changes will add lots of time.
8. Navigation
Have you ever come out of a different mall door at Christmas time and had trouble finding your car? You can have a similar experience in a large transition area. Note where your rack spot is and how to find it from the swim exit and bike entrance. From your rack, know where the bike and run exits are and the quickest route to them.
9. Speed laces and baby powder
Tying your running shoe laces in a bow takes time. Eliminate this step using lace locks or speed laces. To help your feet slide smoothly into your running shoes, prime them with a sprinkling of baby powder.
10. Grab and go
In T2, grab what you need and go. Put on your hat and fuel belt while you are running. It is always faster to complete your tasks moving down the course rather than standing in front of your rack.
Ten Tips for a Fast Transition
1. Practice your plan
Have a plan of exactly what you are going to do and practice it over and over again until you are fast with no mistakes. Practice it physically several times in training and then rehearse it mentally several times on race morning. By the time you are in transition on race day, you should be moving on autopilot. Never try something new on race day.
2. Be a minimalist
The fewer tasks you have to do in the transition area, the faster you will go. Skip the socks and get rid of anything you don't absolutely need. Clutter will slow you down.
3. Bike shoes in the pedals
Coasting down the course at 15 mph while you put your feet in your shoes will move you far ahead of your buddy sitting on his butt in T1 doing the same task. Set your bike up in the transition area with your shoes attached to the pedals and rubber bands looped between the heels and frame, holding the shoes horizontal. On leaving T1, pedal with your feet on top of your shoes. Once you are cruising at speed, coast and slip your feet into your shoes. Keep your eyes ahead on the road, not down on your feet. On the return, slip your feet out of your shoes before you reach T2. Learn this skill first on an indoor trainer before taking it out on the open road.
4. Run with your bike
The distance from rack to mount line can be considerable at large triathlons. By running safely and quickly with your bike, it is easy to fly over this distance. Run upright with good form on the left side of your bike, holding your seat with your right hand. Your left arm swings by your side. Hold the bike upright to go straight and lean it to the side to turn. Practice in an empty parking lot.
5. Speed over the mount/dismount line
Learn a cyclo-cross mount and dismount to cruise over this line without losing any momentum. In the race you will be doing this in bare feet but initially learn and practice this skill wearing running shoes.
6. Attach your stuff to your bike
Handling small items sucks up time. Everything you need on the bike course should be attached to your bike. Tape gels to the frame, water bottles should already be on board, sunglasses looped to a cable, spare tube in a seat pack and CO2 cartridge taped to the seat post.
7. One outfit for all occasions
Start the swim with your full bike/run outfit under your wetsuit. A one piece tri-suit is ideal. Any clothing changes will add lots of time.
8. Navigation
Have you ever come out of a different mall door at Christmas time and had trouble finding your car? You can have a similar experience in a large transition area. Note where your rack spot is and how to find it from the swim exit and bike entrance. From your rack, know where the bike and run exits are and the quickest route to them.
9. Speed laces and baby powder
Tying your running shoe laces in a bow takes time. Eliminate this step using lace locks or speed laces. To help your feet slide smoothly into your running shoes, prime them with a sprinkling of baby powder.
10. Grab and go
In T2, grab what you need and go. Put on your hat and fuel belt while you are running. It is always faster to complete your tasks moving down the course rather than standing in front of your rack.
Tuesday, May 18, 2010
massage therapy
Lets support fellow club member Ray Arroyo who is working on becoming a massage therapist through the Lone Star College - Cy Fair!!!! Starting May 19th until August 12th, students are required to practice for a certain number of hours before taking their exam. You can call or e-mail him to make an appointment: raa26pt2@hotmail.com or 832-407-0211. 1 hour massage is only $25!!! Monday, Wednesday, Thursday 9:00 a.m. - 12:45. You can also call the college for other appointment times, 832-482-1022 or e-mail cfmtherapy@lonestar.edu.
Friday, May 14, 2010
Ten for Texas Running Program
Ten for Texas Running Program presented by Coach Dana Lyons!!!!!!!!!
12-Week Program July 17 - October 5, 2010
Click on the following link for more details!!!!
http://campaign.constantcontact.com/render?v=001ritck83OfZkelx6ny5yFO4UML4sAauRrioqmkmJ2o74QN-WBojv7r01XWXQ7IvxfQ39Go_XHwb1sSNrOU6GcIiemjRRqLG_OzH57afZpWbrFppSdyG47C1wecCwsKSqZpCffspYJaxw%3D
12-Week Program July 17 - October 5, 2010
Click on the following link for more details!!!!
http://campaign.constantcontact.com/render?v=001ritck83OfZkelx6ny5yFO4UML4sAauRrioqmkmJ2o74QN-WBojv7r01XWXQ7IvxfQ39Go_XHwb1sSNrOU6GcIiemjRRqLG_OzH57afZpWbrFppSdyG47C1wecCwsKSqZpCffspYJaxw%3D
Wednesday, May 12, 2010
Organized Ride & Club Meeting
There will be an organized ride this Saturday (May 15th), leaving the Branch Crossing YMCA at 8:00 a.m. Sag & refreshements will not be provided, however appetizers will be provided at Monday's (May 17th) club meeting and social, which will be held at Rico's - Indian Springs from 6:30 p.m. - 8:30 p.m. Hope to see you there!!!!!
Tuesday, May 11, 2010
Do Weak Hips Cause Pronation?
Submitted by Susan Rouse
New research suggests weak hips are behind injuries throughout the body
By Mackenzie Lobby
As featured in the December 2009 issue of Running Times Magazine
See if this sounds familiar: First your Achilles flares up. The next week your knee starts bothering you. Then your hamstring gets all hitchy. And all on your left side. It can't be a coincidence. It's gotta be the shoes, right?
Conventional wisdom has cast atypical pronation, or the inward roll of the foot upon striking the ground, as the running injury scapegoat. And while the torsional forces caused by atypical pronation shouldn't be disregarded in diagnosing an injury, new research suggests we look deeper, or rather, higher.
A recent literature review published in Sports Health calls for a top-down, rather than ground-up, approach when it comes to identifying the source of running injuries. Reed Ferber, Ph.D., and colleagues looked at 283 studies that examined running-related injuries and concluded that the connections between weak hip stabilization muscles and running injuries were far more conclusive than those of atypical foot pronation.
Ferber, the director at the Running Injury Clinic in association with the University of Calgary, describes the kinetic chain that makes up a human body on the run: "Typical mechanics are for your foot to pronate or collapse inwards, the lower leg then internally rotates, and with that, your upper leg internally rotates as well."
He says the foot will automatically collapse inwards because of the force created by its contact with the ground. Since the lower leg must follow the foot, it also internally rotates upon foot strike. "It's like a wrench and a bolt," Ferber says. "If the bolt turns, that being your ankle, the wrench is going to move with it, the wrench being your shin."
So, no matter what, your foot and lower leg respond to the impact force of the foot hitting the ground by rolling. The upper leg is another story. While you want your upper leg to move in conjunction with the foot and lower leg, weak hip stabilization strength prevents you from controlling your femur effectively. This is the root cause of much of patellofemoral pain syndrome, or runner's knee. "There's a misalignment occurring at the knee joint where it's going to collapse too far in because you don't have the strength to control how quickly it moves or how far it moves in," Ferber says. This is when misdiagnosis often occurs. Weak hips lead to a collapse inwards of the knee and thus the foot, called "induced pronation," because the foot is being forced inwards. Since this appears to be an excessively pronating foot, high-stability shoes or orthotics are prescribed. While this will relieve knee pain for some, many will continue to struggle regardless of their shoes because their hips lack strength.
Hip, Hip, Hooray
Ferber drives the point home by referring to research out of the University of Wisconsin, Milwaukee. Jennifer Earl, Ph.D., ATC, and colleagues prescribed a hip-strengthening program to a group of healthy female runners for eight weeks. In addition to showing a predictable increase in hip strength at the end of the program, the runners also exhibited significantly less pronation (measured by how far the heel collapsed inwards). Most impressive, the participants experienced 57 percent less pronation at the ankle joint.
"Mike Smith, who coaches the distance squad at Kansas State, as well as Olympian Christian Smith, says that this is one of the problem areas he focuses on with runners. "We often see poor hip strength coinciding with poor overall strength," he says. As such, Smith's runners spend lots of time on what many people consider supplemental exercises, but which Smith, co-creator of runningdvds.com, sees as fundamental for any runner wanting to consistently train injury-free.
Alli Grace (pictured on right, above), who runs for ZAP Fitness, is a testament to the importance of this type of strengthening. After years of struggling with IT band syndrome at the University of Kentucky, she finally identified hip weakness as the root of the problem. "I could tell my hips and butt areas were weak because once I started doing more core and drills at ZAP, I would feel my hip flexors, tensor fasciae latae, and gluteus medius/maximus muscles tense up during these exercises," Grace says.
She adds, "By strengthening the core and hips, I could handle more training, and was stronger and more powerful as a runner. It's so important to have strength in these areas, especially at the later stages of a race -- you can power through better." Since regularly incorporating hip-strengthening work into her routine and not losing down time to injury, Grace has set PRs at 5,000m (15:47) and 10,000m (33:12).
The Weak Hips Test
Do you need to strengthen your hips? Try the single-leg squat test (pictured right) to find out.
As you would do with a regular squat, keep your back straight and prepare to perform a "sitting" motion. Pick one foot off the ground and put it behind you as you squat on the other leg. Envision a straight line going from the hip, to the knee, and then to the toes of the planted leg. Avoid tilting your pelvis forward as you squat.
If the knee on the side of the planted foot falls inwards and you're unable to maintain that straight line, you need to get hip to the following strengthening exercises.
How to be a Hipster
The main hip muscles to focus on strengthening are the hip adductors, hip abductors, gluteus medius, tensor fasciae latae, piriformis, and hip flexors. If you're already injured, Ferber emphasizes the importance of "positive daily stress." Translation: Do the exercises below every day. Once you're out of the woods, two to three times a week is sufficient.
Perform 10 repetitions of each of the following exercises. For those that require you to work each side individually, finish the 10 reps before switching to the other side. Do the exercises in smooth, controlled motions. Hold each rep for two seconds. Start with one set of 10 the first day, two sets the second and third days, and three sets from the fourth day onwards. Once you're familiar with these exercises, they should take about 20 minutes to complete. Says Ferber, "We tell our patients that they are actually going to notice a positive improvement within 10 to 14 days."
1) THE BRIDGE
Lying on your back with your arms at your sides and your knees bent, slowly lift your bottom off the floor. Think of drawing a straight line from your shoulders, through your hips, ending at your knees. Hold for two seconds and lower yourself back to the ground.
2) LEG RAISE
Stay on your back with your arms at your sides and your knees bent. Straighten one leg and raise it upwards to reach a 45-degree angle with the ground. Be sure your foot is flexed and your toes are facing the sky. Lower slowly and repeat.
3) HIP EXTENSION
Lying face-down with your legs extended, lift one leg and hold for two seconds. As you lift, your gluteus medius muscles should respond by tightening.
4) HIP ABDUCTION
Lie on one side of your body with your arm closest to the ground extended and your legs straight. Use your other arm to brace your body. Lift the upper leg in a scissor-like motion. Hold and lower.
5) STANDING HIP ABDUCTION
Place your right hand on your hip and the left on a chair or table to help balance your body. With your left leg straight and planted firmly on the ground, lift your right leg to the side and hold for two seconds.
6) HIP FLEXION
Remain standing by the chair or table to stabilize your body. While you balance yourself with the hand closest to the chair, lift the opposite leg and bend the knee to a 90-degree angle with your torso.
Once you've mastered the first six, consider trying these more advanced exercises:
7) STANDING LUNGE
With your hands on your hips, take an exaggerated step out, bend the knee, and lower your body so your front leg is bent at a 90-degree angle. You should be able to draw a straight line from your toes up to your knee. Once you reach that 90-degree angle, slowly raise your body back up and step back to your original position. Alternate sides.
8) SINGLE-LEG BRIDGING
As in the original bridge, lie on your back with your hands at your sides. With one knee bent and the other straight, raise your bottom off the ground. Be sure a straight line follows from your shoulders, to the hip, knee, and toes of the extended leg. Hold, lower, repeat, and switch sides.
Copyright © 2010 Running Times Magazine - All Rights Reserved.
http://runningtimes.com/Print.aspx?articleID=18359
New research suggests weak hips are behind injuries throughout the body
By Mackenzie Lobby
As featured in the December 2009 issue of Running Times Magazine
See if this sounds familiar: First your Achilles flares up. The next week your knee starts bothering you. Then your hamstring gets all hitchy. And all on your left side. It can't be a coincidence. It's gotta be the shoes, right?
Conventional wisdom has cast atypical pronation, or the inward roll of the foot upon striking the ground, as the running injury scapegoat. And while the torsional forces caused by atypical pronation shouldn't be disregarded in diagnosing an injury, new research suggests we look deeper, or rather, higher.
A recent literature review published in Sports Health calls for a top-down, rather than ground-up, approach when it comes to identifying the source of running injuries. Reed Ferber, Ph.D., and colleagues looked at 283 studies that examined running-related injuries and concluded that the connections between weak hip stabilization muscles and running injuries were far more conclusive than those of atypical foot pronation.
Ferber, the director at the Running Injury Clinic in association with the University of Calgary, describes the kinetic chain that makes up a human body on the run: "Typical mechanics are for your foot to pronate or collapse inwards, the lower leg then internally rotates, and with that, your upper leg internally rotates as well."
He says the foot will automatically collapse inwards because of the force created by its contact with the ground. Since the lower leg must follow the foot, it also internally rotates upon foot strike. "It's like a wrench and a bolt," Ferber says. "If the bolt turns, that being your ankle, the wrench is going to move with it, the wrench being your shin."
So, no matter what, your foot and lower leg respond to the impact force of the foot hitting the ground by rolling. The upper leg is another story. While you want your upper leg to move in conjunction with the foot and lower leg, weak hip stabilization strength prevents you from controlling your femur effectively. This is the root cause of much of patellofemoral pain syndrome, or runner's knee. "There's a misalignment occurring at the knee joint where it's going to collapse too far in because you don't have the strength to control how quickly it moves or how far it moves in," Ferber says. This is when misdiagnosis often occurs. Weak hips lead to a collapse inwards of the knee and thus the foot, called "induced pronation," because the foot is being forced inwards. Since this appears to be an excessively pronating foot, high-stability shoes or orthotics are prescribed. While this will relieve knee pain for some, many will continue to struggle regardless of their shoes because their hips lack strength.
Hip, Hip, Hooray
Ferber drives the point home by referring to research out of the University of Wisconsin, Milwaukee. Jennifer Earl, Ph.D., ATC, and colleagues prescribed a hip-strengthening program to a group of healthy female runners for eight weeks. In addition to showing a predictable increase in hip strength at the end of the program, the runners also exhibited significantly less pronation (measured by how far the heel collapsed inwards). Most impressive, the participants experienced 57 percent less pronation at the ankle joint.
"Mike Smith, who coaches the distance squad at Kansas State, as well as Olympian Christian Smith, says that this is one of the problem areas he focuses on with runners. "We often see poor hip strength coinciding with poor overall strength," he says. As such, Smith's runners spend lots of time on what many people consider supplemental exercises, but which Smith, co-creator of runningdvds.com, sees as fundamental for any runner wanting to consistently train injury-free.
Alli Grace (pictured on right, above), who runs for ZAP Fitness, is a testament to the importance of this type of strengthening. After years of struggling with IT band syndrome at the University of Kentucky, she finally identified hip weakness as the root of the problem. "I could tell my hips and butt areas were weak because once I started doing more core and drills at ZAP, I would feel my hip flexors, tensor fasciae latae, and gluteus medius/maximus muscles tense up during these exercises," Grace says.
She adds, "By strengthening the core and hips, I could handle more training, and was stronger and more powerful as a runner. It's so important to have strength in these areas, especially at the later stages of a race -- you can power through better." Since regularly incorporating hip-strengthening work into her routine and not losing down time to injury, Grace has set PRs at 5,000m (15:47) and 10,000m (33:12).
The Weak Hips Test
Do you need to strengthen your hips? Try the single-leg squat test (pictured right) to find out.
As you would do with a regular squat, keep your back straight and prepare to perform a "sitting" motion. Pick one foot off the ground and put it behind you as you squat on the other leg. Envision a straight line going from the hip, to the knee, and then to the toes of the planted leg. Avoid tilting your pelvis forward as you squat.
If the knee on the side of the planted foot falls inwards and you're unable to maintain that straight line, you need to get hip to the following strengthening exercises.
How to be a Hipster
The main hip muscles to focus on strengthening are the hip adductors, hip abductors, gluteus medius, tensor fasciae latae, piriformis, and hip flexors. If you're already injured, Ferber emphasizes the importance of "positive daily stress." Translation: Do the exercises below every day. Once you're out of the woods, two to three times a week is sufficient.
Perform 10 repetitions of each of the following exercises. For those that require you to work each side individually, finish the 10 reps before switching to the other side. Do the exercises in smooth, controlled motions. Hold each rep for two seconds. Start with one set of 10 the first day, two sets the second and third days, and three sets from the fourth day onwards. Once you're familiar with these exercises, they should take about 20 minutes to complete. Says Ferber, "We tell our patients that they are actually going to notice a positive improvement within 10 to 14 days."
1) THE BRIDGE
Lying on your back with your arms at your sides and your knees bent, slowly lift your bottom off the floor. Think of drawing a straight line from your shoulders, through your hips, ending at your knees. Hold for two seconds and lower yourself back to the ground.
2) LEG RAISE
Stay on your back with your arms at your sides and your knees bent. Straighten one leg and raise it upwards to reach a 45-degree angle with the ground. Be sure your foot is flexed and your toes are facing the sky. Lower slowly and repeat.
3) HIP EXTENSION
Lying face-down with your legs extended, lift one leg and hold for two seconds. As you lift, your gluteus medius muscles should respond by tightening.
4) HIP ABDUCTION
Lie on one side of your body with your arm closest to the ground extended and your legs straight. Use your other arm to brace your body. Lift the upper leg in a scissor-like motion. Hold and lower.
5) STANDING HIP ABDUCTION
Place your right hand on your hip and the left on a chair or table to help balance your body. With your left leg straight and planted firmly on the ground, lift your right leg to the side and hold for two seconds.
6) HIP FLEXION
Remain standing by the chair or table to stabilize your body. While you balance yourself with the hand closest to the chair, lift the opposite leg and bend the knee to a 90-degree angle with your torso.
Once you've mastered the first six, consider trying these more advanced exercises:
7) STANDING LUNGE
With your hands on your hips, take an exaggerated step out, bend the knee, and lower your body so your front leg is bent at a 90-degree angle. You should be able to draw a straight line from your toes up to your knee. Once you reach that 90-degree angle, slowly raise your body back up and step back to your original position. Alternate sides.
8) SINGLE-LEG BRIDGING
As in the original bridge, lie on your back with your hands at your sides. With one knee bent and the other straight, raise your bottom off the ground. Be sure a straight line follows from your shoulders, to the hip, knee, and toes of the extended leg. Hold, lower, repeat, and switch sides.
Copyright © 2010 Running Times Magazine - All Rights Reserved.
http://runningtimes.com/Print.aspx?articleID=18359
SOCIAL - Lonestar Multisport club meeting
Rico's (Indian Springs)
Monday, May 17
6:30pm
Monday, May 17
6:30pm
Club meeting will be a social and we'll be taking a group photo!
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