Heat and Hydration

It's been hot.

It's August.  It's South Louisiana.  It goes without saying.

Nevertheless, it's been hot.  HOT.

There's always a silver lining to it, and that's how much better I'll perform when the weather gets cool again.  But it's tough to think about that when I'm sweating like the proverbial whore in St. Louis Cathedral.  Dealing with the heat, however, is a different mental exercise.  I feel like one thing I've gotten fairly decent at in this sport is just that.  The biggest hurdle for me though was to simply accept it.

When I first started running, I dreaded running in the heat and bad weather and would instead find a treadmill at the slightest indication of less than optimal conditions.  A 90 minute treadmill run in my garage got me to rethink that though.  The sheer tedium of running in place for that long, even when the alternative was running in the rain, just wasn't worth it to me any longer.  Luckily that was a mid-September run so I didn't have to think about it much beyond that point.

The following summer I was getting ready for my second Jazz Half Marathon, so the distance and time wasn't too bad.  I was able to keep the bulk of my weekend runs fairly close to home on a 5 mile loop I have mapped out and would simply stop at the house, get some water, and carry on.  This was fairly effective, but I got sick of running the loop, especially since part of it was crossing a fairly busy street twice per lap.  This was the point I started experimenting with carrying water on longer runs, and eventually found that it wasn't too horrible.

The first thing I tried was a Camelbak Flash Flo LR 1.5L.  It looks like a fanny pack with a blue tube coming out that you drink from.  My initial thought was 1500ml was plenty and I wouldn't run out of water on a run.  The reality though was 1500ml of water weighs about 3.5 lbs, and the belt and bladder that holds it weighs another pound, pound-and-a-half, and having all that sloshing around on my back for more than about 45 minutes sucked.  That's not even getting into how much of a pain in the neck it was to clean the bladder thoroughly, thereby negating the chance I'd ever use anything besides water in the thing.  I did like having the big pocket to stash keys and gels though, but I really didn't need anything that big.  I found myself not using the Camelbak that much though, and instead just running shorter loops in the subdivision and stopping at the house for water.  Which, ironically, is what I was trying to avoid.

That following Christmas, Mrs. Russ got me a Fuelbelt with two 10 oz. bottles and a little pocket.  The pocket was great for carrying a couple gel packs, but I was a bit concerned about the limited capacity.  It turns out, however, that it's almost perfect for my longer runs.  On the Tammany Trace, there's several public water fountains (and bathrooms, but that's another post when I'm less sober), and they're spaced about 4-5 miles apart.  It works out quite well for distances up to 20 miles (furthest I've run on the Trace).  I can stop to refill one or both bottles as needed and I'm not carrying enough water for an army.  The belt is lightweight and comfortable on longer runs, and the bottles are about as difficult to clean as a regular bicycle water bottle.  Fuelbelt also makes a 4 bottle model, and I'd consider that if I didn't have the Trace to run on.  I've been very happy with the Fuelbelt.

As for dealing with the heat, I think I've figured out a few things that have worked well for me.

First, and probably the most important, is to SLOW THE F*** DOWN!!!  It took a 5 mile run with a heart rate monitor in 85 degree weather to see that running a sub 8:00 pace probably isn't the smartest idea.  My average heart rate after that run was close to 180BPM.  Great cadence tempo.  Excellent thrash metal tempo.  Not good for the ticker to run that fast for that long.  I now do my tempo and interval work indoors, and keep my LSD (long slow distance) runs where my heart rate is in the 150s, which translates to about a 9:15 mile when it's hot.  I did break this rule last weekend on a 10 miler, but it wasn't until I was 8.5 miles in that I realized it and when I got home and saw my pace I immediately thought I needed to make a visit to a looney bin.  But I felt really good and it didn't get 'hot' until I was about 7 miles in.

Secondly, I'll pre-hydrate really well the day before a LSD run in the heat.  Even the night before I'll make it a point to drink close to a quart of water overnight by taking some big gulps every time I wake up.  And with my wife's snoring, that's easily 2-3 times each night.  Whatever I don't finish I'll finish when I get out of bed before I do anything else.

Thirdly, I'll drink and gel on a specific interval...  Every 2 miles I'll go to a walk and drink 4-5 oz. of water.  Every 6 I'll eat a gel along with the water.  I also leave the house with Gatorade and refill with water on my run.  Loading up on carbs and electrolytes early seems like it would be beneficial before they get depleted.

Lastly, I'll try to make up for whatever I've lost as soon as I get home.  On my last really long run (15 miles), I weighed myself in the buff before I left (yea, sear that mental picture in your mind), and again when I got home (now in a very sweaty buff).  Based on my calculations I probably lost about 7 lbs. due to sweat loss, put 3 of those back in what I drank on the run, and needed to get another 2-3 back in me to not feel horrible the rest of the day.  I immediately had a big glass of chocolate milk (probably 24oz.) followed by a substantial amount of water over the next couple hours while getting ready for church.  I weighed myself once more post shower and was still about 1.5 lbs below where I woke up, so I took a bottle of water with me when we left.  In retrospect, sitting in a crowded warm church probably wasn't the best idea because I still felt 'hot', but I was well beyond functional and sociable.

I'm sure there's some other things I could be doing, but this seems to work for me.  Along with the hydration strategies, I'm also leaving the house as early as I can stand to be up, running in the shade, wearing a singlet instead of a t-shirt, relying on moisture wicking materials, wearing a white cap, etc.

It's all worth it though.  That first 45 degree morning when I can go out and run a 7:45 pace for 8-10 miles is going to feel glorious.  And hopefully the weather in Orlando in January will be somewhat winter-ish for the Dopey Challenge.  My fingers are crossed, as I've read horror stories of both extremes.

Until then... slow down, hydrate, and sweat.

I'm adding a new section to my blog... Music reviews.  This won't be a regular thing, but an occasional rundown of something new I picked up and enjoyed.

I picked up Buddy Guy - Rhythm & Blues last week and gave it a thorough listen-to on my run Saturday, as well as a couple play throughs over the weekend.  I have to say... This pretty good stuff.  I've not spent a lot of time listening to Buddy, but have always enjoyed what I've heard.  This is no different.

This album is blues, all blues, and nothing but blues, and is quite good in all aspects.  Buddy explores various feels and grooves and his playing fits so nicely over all of it.  A couple of my favorite tunes are "What's Up With That Woman" and "I Came Up Hard".  "What's Up With That Woman" is a killer nasty groove about a woman of questionable morals and exceptional skills.  Buddy spices up the vocals with some nasty fills and a very tasty solo.  Pay attention to the lyrical twist at the end of the tune.

"I Came Up Hard" is Buddy's autobiography condensed into a medium slow 5:28 blues.  His fills are pretty straight forward but the solo is a fiery explosion of emotion... Just a simple song with great feel and emotion.  Love it.

"Whiskey Ghost" is another great tune... Love the subdued swampy groove and lowkey vocals.

There's a few interesting duets as well... "Messin' With The Kid" with Kid Rock (OK), One Day Away with Keith Urban (meh), "Evil Twin" with the boys from Aerosmith (dig it, but sounds like an outtake from Honkin' on Bobo), and "Blues Don't Care" with Blues wunderkind Gary Clark Jr. (best of the duets, IMO).

There's some great tones on this album and it never gets boring.  On the downside, it can be a bit formulaic, but it's 3 chords and 5 notes... Something is bound to repeat.

Overall, I'd give this 3/5 Gu Packets.  Well worth the listen if you're a fan of Buddy, and a nice intro to Buddy if you're a new fan of Blues.

Watch my Tweets and this space.  In a couple weeks I'm going to post about something Awesome.  But it Ain't Easy....

We are never done with lessons.  Not while we live - Mace Windu