Tag: Running

Health

Senior Runners Improve Marathon Performance

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Here I am finishing less year’s (2011) rain drenched Los Angeles Marathon

This is very good to know as I train for another Los Angeles Marathon.

Romauld Lepers and Thomas Cattagni, researchers from Inserm Unit 1093 “Cognition, Action and Sensorimotor Plasticity” at the Université de Bourgogone, have analysed changes in participation and performance of runners aged 20 to 80 in the New York marathon over the last 30 years. The results are largely unexpected: the best male marathon runners over 65 and the best female marathon runners over 45 have consistently improved their performance over the last 30 years. At the same time, the researchers also observed a strong increase in athletes over 40 participating in the New York marathon: from 36% of the total masculine runners between 1980-1989, to 53% between 2000-2009; and from 24 to 40% during the same periods for female runners.

I know the past two years, I have really stepped up my weight loss, and running training. I am running faster and farther.

I have never been a fast runner, but have managed to finish eight marathons, walking and running. These have been all at the Los Angeles Marathon – different courses though. Also, I have run a number of half marathons and other races (mainly for charity).

The researchers have thus concluded that, over the last two decades, the performances of the best male marathon runners over 65 and the best female marathon runners over 45 have particularly improved, whereas their younger counterparts have remained stable.

“The improved performances can be explained by the increased number of participants in these age categories, as well as the increased interest this age population has in terms of the benefits of physical activity on health and well being” says Romuald Lepers, whose research into motor function plasticity during aging is part of the overall research of Inserm Unit 1093 “Cognition, Action and Sensorimotor Plasticity,” directed by Thierry Pozzo.

In recent years, the gap in performance between men and women has stabilized, in all age categories, suggesting that the decline in physiological functions with age is similar for both sexes. The mechanisms via which physical activity acts advantageously in terms of slowing down aging-related processes remain to be explored. For the researchers, this initial data on athletes over 40, combined with new physiology and sociology data, will lead to improved understanding of the role physical exercise has in “aging well.”

This year I am hoping to improve my time by at least thirty minutes and more so in the years to come.

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Caffeine

Does Caffeine Improve Your Skill and Performance in Sport?

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The answer is Yes, according to a new study.

Caffeine combined with carbohydrate could be used to help athletes perform better on the field, according to new research by a sport nutrition expert.

Mayur Ranchordas, a senior lecturer and performance nutritionist at Sheffield Hallam University, carried out studies on footballers using caffeine and carbohydrates combined in a drink. Along with improvements in endurance caused by ingesting carbohydrate, the athletes’ skill level improved after taking caffeine and carbohydrate together.

Mayur said: “There is already plenty of research that shows that caffeine and carbohydrate improve endurance, but this study shows that there is also a positive effect on skill and performance.

I don’t know if I will need any particular skill this Saturday when I am running fifteen miles in Santa Monica, but I will appreciate the increase in endurance and the lack of fatigue.

Now, I can see more athletic teams with custom coffee or other caffeinated drinks, mixed with carbohydrates to increase performance.

Just a matter of time….

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Las Vegas Half Marathon

December 4, 2011 Las Vegas Half Marathon Race Report and Recap

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Alice and I hand in hand finishing the 13.1 Miler in Las Vegas this past Sunday

Alice, Tara and I headed out for the Las Vegas Half Marathon weekend on Friday AM and with stops at the Starbucks in Barstow (Lenwood) and a mid-way rest stop arrived in Sin City mid-afternoonish. We immediately headed to the Sands Convention Center for the pre-race Expo. We knew it would be a zoo there and it was.

We bought the obligatory race gear, ate a few free samples and then got the hell out of there before the real crowds arrived late in the afternoon. Here is a photo both Alice and Tara thought was funny. I was not so sure:

Tara was so kind to invite us to stay with her at her mother’s time share at the Cancun Resort on the Las Vegas Strip about 5 miles south of the Half Marathon start line outside the Mandalay Bay Hotel and Casino.

Saturday was a rest day and rest it was. Also, it was time for carbo loading and we obliged with some yummy donuts among some other carbohydrate rich foods e.g. candy and bagels.

Since the race began at 5:30 PM, we had more than half the day to rest and/or fret about the race.

But, the time arrived and we drove off towards the Mandalay Bay. Here we were jacked around for about an hour trying to discover a place to park. We were turned away from three parking lots by armed security guards telling us that parking was for their guests only.

Great job, Rock’n’Roll Marathon organizers – NOT.

We finally made it to the corrals and just in time. Here are a couple of quick, albeit dark photos:

Alice and Tara

Some good looking runner looking for the sun (why the visor?) and Alice

The race started and only about 40 plus minutes went by before we crossed the start line (groan). Remember there were over 35K participants although more registered. the number the race promoters kept using was 44K, but I don’t know if that was correct.

BUT….. there were many people there.

The race started.

The first five miles we dodged all of the slower walkers and finally were able to separate ourselves from the pack. Here is a photo of the strip – notice the motion:

Nice Christmas tree outside The Venetian

This was a crowded race and the entire half marathon consisted of avoiding other participants – elbows, bodies, discarded water cups, etc. But, hey, I knew there would be many participants, so I just dodged them and threw a few elbows myself.

Around mile 9 Tara’s back and hip problems were hurting her too much to sustain our pace, so she set Alice and me free. I was feeling pretty good and with the weather ideal for running (yeah, it was cool, cold) I eyed a PR.

I took off and made that PR time:

Here is the result:

Yeah, I am not a fast runner but from where I have come, I will take the time.

Alice and I finished together and here is another photo:

We crossed the line and received our medal. Thank God, since they later ran out. We had this photo taken:

We waited awhile, got a chill and decided to meet up with Tara inside the Mandalay Bay Hotel.

She finished a little while later and received a Marathon Medal since they ran out of Half Marathon ones. Our medal is blue and Tara’s is pink. Both glow in the dark.

Then…… we walked another hour back to our car (about a 5K) and collapsed back at the Cancun. Alice made pizza and after eating and a shower, this old guy went to bed a little after midnight.

Next race will be the Los Angeles Marathon in March 2012.

And…. we will return to Las Vegas next year. We all enjoyed our time and have vowed to spend a few more days prior and a few days more after the race in 2012.

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Health

Pregnant Runner Completes Chicago Marathon – Then Delivers Baby

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Amber Miller Gives Birth After Chicago Marathon

Truly amazing.

Amber Miller accomplished two monumental feats this weekend.

Days from her due date, the 27-year-old joined 45,000 other runners to participate in Sunday’s Bank of America Chicago Marathon and then gave birth to a baby girl named June hours later.

Miller, an avid runner, said she signed up for the 26.2-mile race before finding out she was pregnant. She said she never expected to finish the race.

“I was having a conversation with my parents and said, ‘You know what? I have no plans of actually finishing,'” she told reporters at Central DuPage Hospital this morning. “I was planning on running half, skipping to the end, then walking across the finish line.”

But Miller and her husband started running, and just kept going. They ran part of the race and walked the second half as her contractions started. It took the couple 6.5 hours to finish. She said she grabbed something to eat and the two headed to the hospital.

At 7 pounds, 13 ounces, baby June entered the world at 10:29 p.m. Sunday, just hours after her parents crossed the finish line.

Congratulations and I guess this answers the question as to whether YOU should train for a marathon!

Just do it!

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Health

Does Age Matter in Running?

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This is me finishing the Disneyland Half Marathon

Are you only as old as you run?

Success in running is not just a mental feat, of course, it’s physical, too. And the good news is that science backs up the cliché that age doesn’t matter, or at least doesn’t matter that much.

A few years ago researchers at the German Sports University Cologne took a close look at the finishing times of 400,000 marathon and half-marathon runners between the ages of 20 and 79. They found no relevant differences in the finishing times of people between the ages of 20 and 50. The times for runners between 50 and 69 slowed only by 2.6 to 4.4 percent per decade. “Older athletes are able to maintain a high degree of physiological plasticity late into life,” the researchers wrote.

That might explain in part why the running world is growing, and growing older. The number of runners who finished marathons in the United States, where 7 of the world’s 15 largest races took place last year, increased to 507,000 in 2010 from 25,000 in 1976, according to RunningUSA , an organization that promotes the industry.

In 1980, the median age for a marathon runner was 34 for men and 31 for women. By last year, the age had risen to 40 for men and 35 for women. People over 40 now comprise 46 percent of finishers, up from 26 percent in 1980.

This piece gives some solace to those runners like me who came to the sport late in life and whose physical prowess has perhaps declined due to the aging process. There is hope – I can accept a 5% decline.

Maybe my better PR’s (personal records) are yet to come.

I will continue to work on my diet, nutrition and training. Qualifying for the Boston Marathon at age 70 may not be an unreasonable goal.

So, come out and join me.

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