Staying Motivated - Make A Commitment!

With the end of January nearing, spring racing season is going to be here before we know it! Living in Minnesota, many runners and people just trying to stay in shape, start to lack motivation with the cold weather. What can help you stay motivated? Scheduling and signing up for you races for the 2014 season! 

First of all, by signing up it makes you start to plan ahead and commit to a training schedule. By knowing which events and when you need to be ready to run, it can help kick your motivation in a positive direction. Instead of feeling like you need to run just to run, it jump starts a new way of thinking. It makes training exciting and presents a new challenge to your workout program. 

Check out this website for running events -

www.raceberryjam.com

Once you find some races you are interested in doing, get others involved! Try to find a training partner or group to also help keep you motivated! Now not only are you making a commitment for yourself, but you are getting others committed too! 

If you need to find a training group, find a local running store. I work at Running Room and we have running training programs and groups to help you with your running goals.

You can also sign up for a gym membership. Not only do you have access to indoor training, but you are in an environment of people that have similar goals and interests. I also work at Lifetime Fitness where we have many programs and resources to help you out! 

Staying motivated can be easy when you...

1. Make a commitment - sign up for a race or event

2. Have a training program

3. Get others committed

4. Use resources that will keep you on track and committed 

Feel free to contact me with any questions or for additional resources!

Happy Motivated Running :)

All About Recovery - Finding a Stress Balance

Why is recovering from exercise and the stresses placed on your body so important?

Everyday your body is put through a number of different stressors. Stress due to exercise, work, sleep, nutrition, your environment, other people, etc. When your body is put through so much stress and it doesn't have the ability to adequately recover, performance and health may suffer. Most likely your body will feel sore and fatigued because your body's recovery was not adequate.

Since many people only really see the external effects of stress, you can only imagine what is going on inside of your body! If we were to take a look, we may see some signs of increased inflammation, connective tissues that aren't healing, neurotransmitters and anabolic hormones going down and their catabolic hormones such as cortisol going up.

When your body isn't getting adequate recovery, there are a whole number of issues that have complex effects on the body!

There are two main categories for the underlying causes of fatigue -

1. Central (neuromuscular) - Our central nervous system (CNS) acts like a car engine regulator. If you are in full speed and revving too high for too long, it shuts down. Our brain attempts to protect our muscles the same way by reducing the rate of nerve impulses.

2. Local (peripheral) - Relates to energy system depletion and/or metabolic byproduct accumulation. Just like a car running out of gas.

When it comes to recovering from our exercise and workouts, the activities that we do between workouts greatly influences how efficiently we recover. These activities fall into two categories.

1. Sympathetic Activities - "fight or flight"

2. Parasympathetic Activities - "rest and digest"

Sympathetic activities include pursing ambitious career goals, building relationships, balancing finances, acquiring food and shelter, and all of the daily activities required for human survival. As you can imagine, most of us tend to be much too "sympathetic".  All of these activities are stressors that can increase our body's level of cortisol and adrenaline. Chronic sympathetic activity leads to high levels of circulating cortisol and adrenaline, both produced by the adrenal glands. This can cause our "non critical" functions to be inhibited - things like digestion, liver metabolism and detoxification, immune function, and reproduction.

When these sympathetic activities start to dominate our lives, it can result in...

1. Poor blood sugar management and insulin resistance
2. Depression, sleep disruption, and carbohydrate craving
3. Decreased thyroid hormone output and a reduced metabolism
4. Altered sex hormone activity
5. Amino Acid loss from muscle

If fatigue becomes chronic, the production of stress hormones can slow and the development of ongoing fatigue can occur. When the body is revving too high for too long it starts to shut down. This type of fatigue is central or neuromuscular. Removing all of your daily stressors not necessarily healthy or a positive thing. Rather than trying to fix all of the stressors in your life, finding a balance of stressful activities with relaxing and energizing activities (parasympathetic activities) is key.

Relaxing and energizing activities that are parasympathetic dominant include -

1. Mediation
2. Yoga
3. Pilates
4. Tai Chi
5. Spa Treatments
6. Meaningful Relationships/Discussions
7. Jacuzzi Time
8. Sauna
9. Relaxing Hobbies
10. Reading
11. Music
12. Drinking Tea
13. Daydreaming
14. Warm Baths
15. Candles
16. Aromatherapy

Mediation, yoga, pilates, and tai chi can help lower stress, improve oxygenation and stimulate recovery. They have been around for thousands of years because they work.

Spa treatments, sauna time and baths can facilitate lymph circulation and recovery.

Sleep and meaningful relationships can also regulate our recovery. A restful night sleep and a good laugh increase our energizing and recovery hormones. Most people need 7-9 hours of restful sleep each night to perform their best.

One activity isn't necessarily better than any other; it's more about what a specific activity does for you. Give your body time to retune and bring itself back into balance. Prioritizing 30 minutes of parasympathetic activity each day is essential for productive recovery!

I will have more of this topic in articles to follow! Please feel free to write comment or email me for questions!

Happy Restful & Recovered Running :)

Smart Fuel! Enhance your diet for a healthier brain and a better run!

I found this article in a Runners World Magazine and wanted to blog the topic! It's about eating the right foods to enhance your brain function and for a better run. Your brain is not only responsible for cognitive and memory functions, but is also critical in controlling fatigue levels during a run. Nourishing your brain with key nutrients will boosts its overall function and help you in the long run.

Here is a short list of the top brain foods -

Almonds - one of the richest sources of vitamin E and make for a smart snack. Vitamin E reduces oxidative stress in the brain caused by a crappy diet of refined carbohydrates (sugar and white flour) and unhealthy fats. Vitamin E is a potent protector for the brain's omega-3-rich cell membranes.

Eggs - Choline helps keep your brain's messengers (neurotransmitters) signaling properly.

Kale - Lutein protects neurons from oxidative damage caused by pollution and heavy breathing (hard running for example). Oxidative damage is linked to poor cognitive function, early memory loss, and Alzheimer's disease.

Salmon - The membrane of brain cells is made primarily of omega-3 fats - same fat in salmon. Consuming omega-3 fatty acids (fish oil) makes these cells more supple, optimizing your processing power. Omega-3s may also delay memory loss as you age and boosts IQ in kids.

Whey Protein - One of the main proteins in milk and other dairy foods, whey may save the brain. Enhances your brains ability to process oxygen which is a sign of optimal brain function.

Yogurt - The probiotics found in some yogurts may affect brain function. A study done of individuals who ate yogurt with probiotics twice daily for 4 weeks showed better connectivity between brain regions than the control group.

Brussels Sprouts - Vitamin K enhances verbal memory skills

Olive Oil - enhances your memory

If these foods are currently not in your nutrition, start adding some in! Each of the foods are nutrient dense foods that are not only good for your waist line and your running, but also your brain!

Please feel free to share any comments or email me for questions!

Happy Smart Fuel Running :)