The effects of alcohol on racing, what to eat for breakfast, weight training, telling insects to bug off, Clarksburg, Tennessee and the Pan Am Games.
In the midst of the European track season we're used to reading datelines like Stockholm, Hengelo, Zurich and Rome. So it seems odd to find the week's news coming from Clarksburg, Tennessee, and Winnipeg, Manitoba. Clarksburg's event was the Greater Clarksburg 10-K, which included names like Derartu Tulu (first female Olympic 10,000m gold medalist) and Catherine Ndereba (third in Boston this year and winner of the Broad Street Run, among others.) Ndereba and countryman John Korir came away with the wins, but Ndereba had to sprint for hers.
The word from Winnipeg was all Pan-Am games, and it started with the marathons last weekend. Vanderlei Lima of Brazil took that gold, with American Joe McVeigh in sixth; Johnny Grey took gold in the 800m, defending an eleven-year-old title; he won the same race in 1988. Later in the week, the 10,000m race saw more American hardware, as Pete Julian won bronze; then Marla Runyon outleaned Canadian Leah Pells for the 1500m title, adding yet another exclamation point to the fantastic year she has had.
If weight training is to be a part of your program, it’s probably most useful during your preseason training and should never be used as a substitute for running. Even if the benefits of weight training for distance runners are minimal, it does strengthen the support structures of joints and could help in preventing injuries. -- From Ken Sparks and Dave Kuehls's The Runners Book of Training Secrets, p. 24. You can buy this book at:
Repel bugs naturally: If you've shied away from insect sprays that contain DEET, you now have a natural alternative, developed at the University of Florida. Marketed under the names MosquitoSafe, TickSafe and FireAntSafe, the repellent is made from an oil extracted from plants that have a natural ability to protect themselves against feeding insects. It's sold at Geneva Stores, Rite Aids and some Walmarts. For more information send an email to byebugs@aol.com.
Alcohol and racing: Consuming alcohol the night before a race may intensify post-race muscle soreness, according to a study at Kent State University. Those who drank enough alcohol to get a blood alcohol level of .15 the night before a hard workout, had more intense and longer lasting muscle soreness than those who abstained.
Runners need to be selective when it comes to eating breakfast before a morning run. What foods do you fuel up with in the early a.m.? Share your pre-run breakfast secrets with other morning runners on our Nutrition forum: <>
Mary-Lynn Currier will be one of the U.S. marathon entrants at the World Championships in Seville, Spain, next month. Currier, a resident of Plymouth, Mass., was the top American woman at the 1998 Boston Marathon, finishing in 2:35:18. Runner's World spoke with her: <>
Saturday, July 31, Heart of the Hills 5-K/10-K, Bloomfield, Mich. Almost $1500 in prize money and savings bonds for these two Michigan races.
Saturday, July 31, New Milford 8-Mile Road Race, New Milford, Conn. Part of New Milford Village Fair Days. Exhibits, foods, special prizes.
Saturday, July 31, Quad-City Times Bix 7 Mile, Davenport, Iowa. The 25th anniversary, held in conjunction with a jazz festival. Life-size bronze statue of Bill Rodgers and Joan Samuelson to be unveiled.
To make hill running easier, do some upper-body strength work. The effect may be partly psychological, but hills started to seem much easier just a week or two after I started my upper body work. -- Susan Lindfors, copy editor
"Running is my meditation, mind flush, cosmic telephone, mood elevator
and spiritual communion."
-- Lorraine Moller, Olympic Marathon bronze medal winner at Barcelona and 1984 Boston
Marathon winner