The whole sports nutrition stuff seems pretty complicated. As I am not an elite athlete requiring special nutrition to fuel long work outs, I guess it’s okay that it all seems like a big difficult dilemma. Given my glucose metabolism dysfunction and current attempts to resolve it with a low simple carbohydrate diet, trying to figure this out would probably give me fits.
I usually have an Atkins shake on the way to the bike trail every day. This seems to give me the energy I need.
Right now, trying to lose weight and resolve metabolic syndrome, my diet needs are fairly cut and dry. The challenge will be when I am at goal weight and all factors are stabilized. I will want to slowly add back some of the healthy starches, and that will require paying quite a bit of attention to blood sugar, blood pressure, weight, etc.
I guess I should have read the fine print when I picked my parents. And behaved better in the years leading up to now.
Ok, don’t laugh at this - but I always had the problem that pants rode low on me and I had to worry about the dreaded crack (and not the cocaine kind). I always attributed this to having a long torso and how pants these days aren’t as high-rise as they used to me.
So I was examining this issue in the mirror and realized - I’ve sort of, um, flattened with age and that’s why my pants are sliding down the back of me!
So what do I do about this - I don’t want to make it bigger, necessarily - I do not want to go up in pants size. And I have no desire to look like a J Lo type or heaven forbid a Kim Kardashian.
I suppose there are lots of lunges and squats in my future. Other suggestions? Has this happened to other women?
I suspect some of us, especially ladies with Asian and Northern Euro genes, undergo the transformation described by abasket. I embrace the flattening - it allows me to wear Burberry jeans and other designer duds and look cool and chic even as I age.
I don’t think that workout nutrition is even an issue until you go past the two hour mark. I never found it to be a problem on three or four hour hikes. Just stop at the halfway point and have an apple and some nuts. Your body has enough readily available fuel for several hours of moderate intensity exercise.
Mkat:
I don’t think I could eat a peanut butter sandwich on a hot sweaty summer hike. I would have to stop for a while, cool down, and have a little picnic.
For hydration, I’m a big fan of Camelbak water reservoirs (actually, I use Osprey versions) with a drink tube. That allows me to grab a quick cool sip constantly. I freeze half the water overnight, top up with some ice water, and then have ice cold water all day as the ice melts. For long hikes, I fill up a big reservoir with 2 to 3 liters of water. I’ve never completely drained one, but I’ve come pretty close, down to maybe a half liter.
I also have a little tiny 1 liter bladder that I got last summer. Perfect with a tiny day pack for a couple hours. I am constantly amazed by the people who hike with no water or a little 16 ounce water bottle.
Don’t know if anyone is interested, but Strava is now offering training plans for runners powered by McMillan running. I’m going to take a look at it, but the plans seem designed for the more advanced runner. It’s included in the monthly premium service.
Clean the Camelback (or other brand) bladder with … are you ready… Polident denture cleaning tablets (or some similar brand). Fill the bladder, drop one in and let it fizz away. What could be more appropriate lol!
I never put anything in them but water, so keeping them clean isn’t a major ordeal. Initially, I bought the special cleaning tabs, but switched to Polident tabs at a fraction of the cost. The tabs and even the foil packaging is identical except one says Polident and the other doesn’t.
I just rinse them out after every use and hang them to dry. Then, every few uses I fill them up with hot water, drop a couple tabs in, let them sit for an hour, then rinse. I’ve got several detachable tubes. Those get washed and rinsed separately – dish soap and water.
Honestly, I don’t think cleaning them with the tabs is necessary the way I use them, but I suppose it’s a good precautionary measure.
Dilute bleach would also work, although the bleach could theoretically shorten the life of the bladder.
I’ve hiked several days with one bladder, just filling it up each morning from a spigot with some ice from the ice chest. No cleaning or rinsing in between. Doesn’t seem to be a problem.
I think you could get away with sports drinks or whatever, but you would have to be religious about thoroughly rinsing them several times as soon as you get home. Anything with sugar is going to turn them into petri reservoirs!
well, I tried to keep to my eating plan this weekend, but cheated just a bit. Tried to make up for it today by finishing week 7’s second 28 minute run and then kept going with a 30 minute walk. Loving the FB Charge HR - just watching the steps/miles during the day keeps me focused. And I’m glad to have purchased the HR - I think keeping track of my HR while I increase the exercise will be a good thing. As for nutrition, I feel like I try to eat “clean” as much as possible, and when at home, almost always cook from scratch so i know exactly what I’m eating. Not so much when we’re out, so then I focus on portion control. The key thing for me to limit is processed carbs. I’ve cut way down on bread and bread-type items and I think it’s making a difference. If not on the scale, at least on my body.
^^That actually makes sense. I would not skimp on sanitizing those bladders - it is amazing what can grow in moist environments even when all you put in there is water.
More running shoe questions – MoWC mentioned having shoes “in rotation.” And I’ve gathered that some of you have different running shoes for different purposes. I get that if I ran on trails I would need trail running shoes. But – I guess I have two questions:
What conditions do you need different shoes for? What would be the difference between shoes for a treadmill vs. pavement, for example? Right now I use the same shoe for both.
Is there a reason to have more than one running shoe, to not wear the same pair every day until it wears out and instead rotate among several pairs?
And thanks for all the advice on the water bladders. I’m about to lend mine to my kiddo, and I will now go out and buy Polident to clean it first.
People can weigh in more on the “why’s” - I will say that I enjoy having a couple to choose - one might vary from another in weight or the way it fits and just fit my mood or the weather that day. If it’s wet/muddy I’m not going to choose my newest pair!
This weekend I was traveling and only wanted to bring one pair of “sneakers”. I chose a pair that is fine for running but also fine for out and about wear. Some running shoes are more clompy than I want to wear for out and about.
Just like having more than one pair of flat sandals, I like a couple of running shoes in the rotation.
Fireandrain, in addition to letting the shoes “rest” and reshape themselves, there seems to be one more reason - fewer injuries in folks who rotate shoes.
The midsole material benefits from having a “day off” to bounce back. And, of course, there is the chance of getting the shoes wet in the rain or from sweat and they might need to dry out. Also, I agree with what Bunsen posted- your gait and the whole biomechanics are just a little different (and can be a lot different) in different shoes and it’s good for you to rotate. Some people do this even with the exact same model of shoe.
I’m the wrong one to ask, since I have a “problem” with running shoes. I stand in front of the rack of 10 or more pairs and say “Who wants to go out this morning?” (the real problem would be if they answer me…) I have lighter ones, more cushioned ones, faster running ones, racing ones, prettier ones, ones that I buy because I’m sure they will be the shoe that makes me oh so much faster… It’s just sort of my thing. Some feel like pillows the minute I lace them up, some need a mile or so and I’m sure I don’t like them and then I say to myself “Hey, these are pretty decent shoes!” Some are great for a 3 miler but my forefoot might hurt a little in a 6 miler. Some will never see the light of day for a half marathon or marathon and some are “my marathon shoes.” (Aren’t you glad you asked?)
Basement for me. The cool 65 degrees below ground felt pretty darn good on a day that hit close to 90. Slung some weights around. I’m having my annual bout with benign positional vertigo. Room starts spinning if I sit up or lie down. Makes DB bench press a little challenging…
I embrace the flattening - it allows me to wear Burberry jeans and other designer duds and look cool and chic even as I age. 
