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Exercise Common Sense in the Heat

The short-lived season Philadelphians call "Spring" appears to be over. Tomorrow, it's official: summer, with its stagnant humidity and oppressive heat, is here to stay. The high temperatures will certainly have an effect on your body - and will probably slow you down, but they don't have to stop you from exercising outside altogether. Understanding the physiological changes your body undergoes when working out in the heat can help you make smarter and safer decisions about continuing to do it.

When its ultra hot, your body's main concern is cooling itself down, which is does through perspiring. As sweat evaporates from the skin, it cools the body. (Think of the way rubbing alcohol feels cold on the skin as it quickly vaporizes.) Sweat's downside is that it reduces overall blood volume, forcing your heart to pick up its pace in order to do the same amount of work. On a hot day, you might feel your heart rate sky-rocketing for a task that normally feels easy. 

A second method of regulating body temperature lies in blood redistribution. Your body directs more blood to the skin to dissipate heat (this is why your face gets so red), therefore less is available to the working muscles/organs. Reduced blood flow to exercising muscles is another reason why your normal workout intensity may feel compromised. 

That's the nerdy scientific background on exercising in the heat - even Temple couldn't take the geek out me - but here is a user-friendly and practical checklist for how to handle these effects:

• Realize that you are not going to set any records in the heat. If you typically run a 9 minute mile with ease, don't be surprised when it feels nearly impossible on a hot day. Slow down. Respect that your body has a tremendous responsibility to regulate its temperature - your brain doesn't function at 105 degrees!
  
• Avoid exercising when the sun is higher in the sky, between 10am and 4pm. 
  
• Wear synthetic clothing that wicks away sweat. Remember, sweat has to evaporate off of the body in order to cool it. Cotton clothing will soak up sweat and cling to you, leaving no room for this process.
  
• Wear light-colored clothing. White = good. Black and navy = bad.
  
• Stay hydrated. Plan your route around water fountains or carry a water bottle.
  
• Try to stay in shady areas.
  
• Don't be afraid to take breaks!
  

Air Conditioner Deadlift

Ok, ok...I know I'm getting a little carried away here with this whole no-gym-needed concept, but rest assured, I am not suggesting that you do 3 sets of 12 deadlifts with your window unit. It occurred to me though, hauling the A/C upstairs this morning, that it would be pretty easy to injure yourself lifting one of these monsters improperly - or not being strong enough to lift one in the first place. 

So, if you know this job would be better left to someone a little bit burlier, invite said friend over and offer him/her a cocktail in exchange for the lifting and installation. If you are going about this yourself, keep a few things in mind for your own safety:

• Clear the path from the A/C to the window before you pick up the unit.
  
• Squat down to pick up the A/C, keeping your back flat.
  
• Come to a stand the same way you squatted down, with a flat back.
  
• As you come to a stand, keep your abdomen very tight to stabilize your spine. 
  
• Lift with your legs, not your back. The joint angle will change at your knees and hips, but your spine should stay extended throughout the movement. 
  
• Make sure you have someone to help you secure the A/C within the window. 
  

Bar Calisthenics

Muscle Group attendee recently spotted performing late-night couch dips at Pub on Passyunk East. Other possible calisthenic bar adaptations include:

• Bar stool squat jumps
  
• Dart board to pool table shuffle
  
• Break-the-seal squats
  
• Counter top planks
  

3 Breakfast Ideas

Several of my clients have mentioned to me that they either skip breakfast, skimp on it, or eat something that more closely resembles dessert (fyi, you put icing on a muffin and it becomes a cupcake). In each case, it seems that they are not eating enough food to supply adequate energy to the body until lunch time. If you are starving at your desk by 10AM, it's a good sign that you need to reconsider the morning oatmeal packet as a wholesome meal. Here are the main problems I see with what people are eating for breakfast:

• Not eating enough food. A single packet of flavored Quaker Oatmeal has about 140 calories. If you are someone who should be eating 1800 or so calories per day, you're not even eating 10% of the calories you need. 
  
• Lack of Fruits and Vegetables. It is actually possible to diversify your breakfast fruit menu beyond bananas. I promise.
  
• Not enough fat/protein. Fat and protein take longer to digest than carbohydrates (especially simple carbohydrates) so they keep you feeling full longer. 

To address these problems, here are three simple breakfast ideas. Bear in mind here, I am not a nutritionist. I'd be ok with swallowing any of this advice should a more qualified professional challenge any of it. But most of what I'm offering is pretty practical and widely available information. 

1. As pictured, half a bagel (or a slice of toast) with peanut butter and a handful of strawberries. You could substitute any piece of fruit but berries are coming into season:) If you are a more active person, the whole bagel might be more appropriate.
   
2. A 2-egg omelette with spinach and a sprinkle of cheddar, and a piece of toast. Again, you could substitute a different vegetable in the omelette like peppers.
   
3. A smoothie with vanilla yogurt, orange juice and berries/banana. Toss all the ingredients in a blender and pour this in your own to-go cup. I would recommend using a yogurt that is NOT fat-free because this breakfast has no other fat source. Many will contest this I'm sure, but again, you want something that will keep you feeling full until lunch. 
   

Take Time to Recover

I recently read an article about how to tell if you are adequately recovered from an endurance event like a marathon. Most of its content was pretty specific to committed athletes with grueling schedules. While I'm fairly certain most of my readers (if I still have any...I know, one post in May = lame) have more moderate exercise routines, we all have days where we don't feel 100%. On these days, should you push through it or back off and give your body a rest? Here are a few things to consider:

1. If your resting heart rate is elevated above normal, it means that your body's central nervous system is still "on" and you are not fully recovered from your training. If you don't know your resting heart rate, count your pulse in the morning right when you wake up for one minute...preferably not when you've jolted awake to an alarm or started thinking about your to-do list for the day.
2. If you have no idea what your resting heart rate is and you feel extremely sluggish, try a systematic warm-up before your next workout. If you're a runner who can typically run a 9-minute mile comfortably, try jogging for a couple minutes at an 11-minute pace. If the workout feels abnormally hard even at the lower intensity, again, you probably have not fully recovered. For those who lift weights, you could perform a warm-up with 50-75% of your normal load and gauge the difficulty. 
3. Don't forget to factor in the emotional recovery your body needs when you are experiencing stress over relationships, exams, pressure at work, etc. These will all prolong your recovery time. 
   

Not recovered? First off, give yourself a break. I see too many clients and friends who are really hard on themselves when they aren't performing to their own high standards, saying things like, "I don't know why this is so hard," or, "I should be able to do this." You will get back to your ass-kicking workout agenda when your ass is rested!! In the meantime, take a day off if your body feels depleted. (I recommend doing this once/week anyway.) The other option is to use active recovery - easy or light exercise - until you feel rejuvenated. This will facilitate the removal of waste products from the bloodstream. 

Broad Street Run 2008

The Broad Street Run: Where there's always someone faster than you. 

This year, I ran an 8-minute mile and still came in 4,146th overall. Oh, but wait, I came in 1,000-something among women. And 269th among women in my age group. My friend, Dan, said, "Don't worry there's a medal for you...I think it's zinc." Yea, yea. My point is, if you're gonna run Broad Street, you need to have your reasons in order. 'Cause this race dumps you into a land of crazy, swarming, GU-toting, die-hard runners that will whoop your ass, personal trainer or not.

This was the 4th time I've run Broad Street. It's not about crossing the finish line anymore. Here are the reasons I run it:

1. Community. Runners eat GU (essentially liquid tootsie roll). They wake up early on weekends in freezing cold weather to run long. They use Body Glide to prevent nipple-chafing. There is something very settling about standing among a community of 22,000 people, otherwise strangers, who consider this behavior normal.  

2. Spectators. Because I've lived in Philly for my entire life, I typically see a few familiar faces along the course. This year I was cheered on by my childhood best friend, my old roommate, a classmate from high school, and my chaffeur for race day. And that's not to mention how exciting it is to receive the generic fanfare coming through Center City.

3. Fever. I wasn't even going to run this year. I registered about five days before the event. But damn, May rolls around and I get this itching to be cruisin' down Broad Street.

4. Adrenalin. When I go out for a jog, I don't run 8-minute miles, and if I do, it's not necessarily easy. Last Sunday, I was so wired from all the excitement that despite having slept for only 3 hours - long story - I still felt like I had springs in my shoes.

5. Price. The Broad Street Run has all the frills of other distance runs (expo, goodie bags, water stations) but you're only charged for the price of the average 5K - $25 if you're on time.

6. Port-a-Potty Lines. You tell me where else thousands of people are anxious for their turn in a Johnny on the Spot, and I'll register for that event too. 

7. Challenge. For me, the challenge is obviously not to beat any body, or even to finish the race; it's to look up from the pavement once in a while and enjoy the run. 

8. Pictures. This year, there were so many participants that it was a tough job for the photographers to get a decent shot of everyone, unless of course, you knew exactly where they were stationed 'cause you wanted a picture for your blog!!!