Suck it up, buttercup
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| An actual picture of me in the middle of aerobics Source: https://www.disneyclips.com/images/tigger1.html |
I sweat quite a lot when I'm working out (I swear quite a lot too, but that's another story). Give me a 45 minute Body Combat and I'm dripping wet. So much so that there is often a puddle the size and salinity of the Dead Sea where I've been exercising. It's not really a bad thing. I kind of like the feeling of being drenched in sweat when I've finished and the way my hair sticks to my forehead. It makes you feel like you've had a good session. On the other hand, it is annoying when you sweat so much it dribbles into your eyes an makes them sting. This happens usually at the end of the class during cool down or if there's a core track when you lie down or a conditioning track where you do push-ups or burpees. Even more annoying is sweat dribbling down your glasses or else streaks where your sweat-soaked hair has lashed the lenses. It's more of a problem with gym classes than running, to be fair, as I am much more animated, generally jumping around like I've got St Vitus' Dance in aerobics where I seem to spend about half the time in mid-air (I have the nickname Tigger with some of my gym buddies), compared to the sensible plodding of a good run. Usually I don't notice this until the next day after the streaks are dried and it dawns on me I can't actually see through my glasses very well.
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| Actual picture of sweat streaked glasses The struggle is real! |
Of course when you lose water you have to replenish it, so rehydration is an important part of post-exercise recovery. Well, I say that, but basically it means I'm thirsty and need a drink. Let's explore a bit of science behind fluid balance in an exercise setting. First off, sweat isn't pure water. It contains all sorts of other stuff, but mostly ions which are electrolytes (salts) and explains why sweat tastes salty. So in replacing the water, you also need to replenish the salts that are lost. It's more than that, however, because of the way that water is absorbed from the gut,. The fastest way for it to be absorbed is if it follows solutes (particularly sodium and glucose) that are actively taken up (ie using a process that requires energy). So, counter-intuitively, isotonic fluids (that is, fluids that have a similar salt content to blood) are absorbed quicker than hypotonic fluids. That's not to say pure water won't be absorbed, it will, but less quickly. After a workout, personally I'm not too bothered that fluid I drink will be absorbed as quickly as possible. All I care about is if it tastes nice and slakes my thirst, but it is good to know that the salts lost through sweating are going to be replenished too. Saying that, though, with a normal diet, you'd make up the electrolyte deficit quickly anyway. What this boils down to is that most of these isotonic electrolyte drinks and hydration powders are basically expensive, dilute salt solutions that most people don't actually need. Obviously, if you're training hard for half, full or ultra-marathon distances, you need to pay a bit more attention to fluid and electrolyte (and energy) balance as, if you're out on runs that go on for hours, you need to keep on top of losses through sweat, but if it's short, sharp sessions of (in my case) 90 minutes or less, drink what you want.
It's not that kind of salt, but it's also very important
Widfires by Sault
One of the best tracks from one of the best albums of 2020. Listen to these lyrics., and one of the most important ofthe last decade
For my own preference for rehydration, and given a free choice I'd drink a large glass of fizzy pop after working out (a diet version). As a now middle-aged man, I never grew out of drinking pop (I love a bit of D&B, by which I mean dandelion and burdock, not drum and bass, at least not in this context) but the problem I have in my house now is that my son also likes fizzy pop and ends up nicking the lot before I get a chance to drink it myself. This has two outcomes. Firstly, he drinks way too much, giving a greater risk of bed wetting, and, secondly, I've not got nice refreshing glass of pop to drink after a workout. I tried squash as well, but that didn't really cut it.
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| Rehydration for champions pt 1 Source: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Ben-Shaws-Dandelion-Burdock-Drinks/dp/B00L0UVHGA |
So what can I do about this? Well, despite what I said above about commercial rehydration drinks, I had bought rehydration tablets in the past which were kind of OK. I'd got them as freebies in goodie bags after finishing races. I looked for these online and found they're available in all sorts of weird and wonderful flavours so bought some and they make a decent drink to imbibe after your workout. Best of all, as they're special after-exercise things, they're Daddy's and not for little boys so I get to have my fill. So now I look for offers of hydration tabs and buy in a few tubes at a time. Plop one in a pint of tap water and hey-presto! your instant fruity, watery, slightly fizzy drink.
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| Hydration tabs Rehydration for losers Source: https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/260980910954 |
Of course, there's an elephant in the room. A pink elephant that staggers around and feels like shit the next day. I'm talking about the rehydration benefits of booze which I alluded to in this entry. As anyone knows, alcohol has a diuretic effect (ie makes you pee and this is referred to in Swift's Gulliver's Travels where the main character puts out a fire in Liliput by pissing on it, after a day necking wine from Liliputian wine barrels). However, consider a 500ml bottle of beer like my favourite, Bishop's Finger. It's got an alcohol content of 5.4% meaning you're consuming 473ml of water. Now, assuming the diuretic effect means you may lose (for argument's sake) 100ml of this water more than you would otherwise do, this means that the benefit of this bottle amounts to drinking 373ml water. True, the concentration of sodium in beer is actually quite low (about 10% of that in blood) and beer potomania is a real condition (basically, low sodium as a result of drinking too much beer, the science behind this is quite interesting, but not for this blog entry), so you need some mineral supplementation for this. Therefore, get yourself some nice, salty bar snacks: crisps, peanuts, pork scratchings and that's your recovery rehydration and electrolyte replenishment regime right there.
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| The Pink elephant in the Room! Soure: https://disney.fandom.com/wiki/Pink_Elephants |
This week's activities
Runs
I managed two runs this week, powered, as always, by Tikiboo. Setting off on my long(ish run on Sunday, I wanted something a bit different to listen to, so picked a Northern Soul playlist. Now, a good track starting off your playlist really sets you up for the run and this kicked in and, honestly, there can not be a better track to start running to than this haunting (no pun intended) lament for lost love.
The sound of Wigan Casino and, more recently, a run through Horbury, W Yorks
There's a Ghost In My House
by
R Dean Taylor (1967)
Friday: Lunchtime run at work. (6.23km, shoes: old Adidas ones)
Took in the back route which is slightly longer (6.2km) compared to my usual loop of 5km. It incorporates an awful hill but ends at the sandwich shop.
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| That's the hill |
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| Another Yorkshire Vista. This time South Yorkshire, but also with Emley Mast in the distance, which can be seen for many miles around. It's got the same dimensions as the Eiffel Tower, believe it or not |
Sunday: Less long than normal long run day, 8.57 km (Shoes: Asics Road Hawks, 670 kcal)
I was restricted for time, having promised my son we'd have a McDonald's breakfsst, so it wasn't as long as I'd normally try to run. In an effort to prevent the problem I've had with my feet going numb at the 5-7 km mark, I pulled my laces out of the top hole and it seemed to work.
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| The obligatory selfie with hill view in background |
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| Another Yorkshire panorama Yes, that's Emley Mast in the distance again |
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| Yeah, more of the same But look at those yellow fields of oilseed rape. They're allergenic, but they do look nice |
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| After the run Tikibees FTW |
Other stuff
Saturday: Rest day (may have done Combat if possible, but our son was hard work so never got the chance)
Monday: Body Combat (release 85, 315 kcal, in the conservatory)
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| Rocking the early 80s Rod Stewart look |
Tuesday: Back to the gym! (LIVE Body Combat 86 for the first time, 391 kcal)
First class in the gym since lock down. Fantastic!
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| Nothing beats that post-workout endorphin rush, especially after your first gym class in over 6 months |
Wednesday: 5-a-side football (35 minutes. Started the tracker late, but for the 30 minutes I did record, I burnt 281 kcal)
First time I've played football in I can't remember how long. While I'm fit enough to run the other players into the ground, I've not got on iota of skill. Our team got tonked
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| Yeah, I can do the macho football look too without Tikiboo |
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| Or can I? No I can't. Tikiboo checked running shorts under my footie shorts |
Thursday: Clubbercise in the gym! (45 minutes, 358 kcal)
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