Running over Myths: Side aches

Cramps, side stitches, side aches. Whatever you call them, they’re painful and distracting during a run. While there aren’t any proven causes of side aches, there are a number of things you can do before your run in order to reduce the likelihood of making grimacing faces whilst you run along your local trails and neighborhood streets.

According to the Running and Jogging section of About.com, there are three ways to avoid those pesky pains beneath your ribcage in a run.

1. Avoid eating one hour before your workout. Additonally, avoid sugary drinks and consume a good amount of water prior to your run.


2. Stick to a a consistent breathing pattern. The best and deepest of breaths come from your diaphragm, not your chest. Focus on inhaling from your belly.


3. Warm up. Warm up. Warm up. Even with some basic, preliminary stretches, preparing your body for cardio is much better than going out cold into a workout, no matter the distance or intensity.

In an article from Susan Paul at Runner’s World, she gives a simple process on how to treat a side ache without ever having to stop.

She says to take your pointer and middle fingers and apply pressure beneath the rib where you are experiencing pain. Apply pressure inward and upward with your fingers, and take deep breaths for about 10 seconds. This technique has been said to minimize or rid of side aches altogether.

While it’s not unordinary for runners to come upon some physical and mental hurdles, the finish line might not seem so unreachable without the distraction of side aches. 

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Unevenness

There’s a film of purple clouds looming overhead. From somewhere behind those dismal sky-bound sheets, the sun offers little light and even less of its warmth. I might believe that it’s a late Colorado evening. But I’m not a climatologist, and the analog digits of my watch speak to that fact, indicating that it is only midday.

Below my rhythmic running shoes, the black tar concrete sits beneath a layer of rain. The way the puddles have gathered upon the ground gives heed to the uneven contours of the concrete. Uneven like the pattern of breathing that fills up, and so readily escapes the trappings of my lungs. Uneven is the sweat that drips from either brow on my forehead as I sweep it onto my finger and flick it gone only to realize that only dewy drops of rain could be so cold. It becomes a motif –unevenness—as I hurdle puddles to avoid soggy socks. 

Side-aches hardly come in pairs and rocks are often lodged into the bottom of one of your shoes. Yet, we run through unevenness because there is always a remedy. For every aching side, you have an equally strong side to help you will away pain. 

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For tips on running in the rain, check out this article by Lauren Johnston in Daily News 

Running over Myths: Chocolate versus Strawberry Milk

The debate is not between whole or skim, rather, the debate is between chocolate and strawberry. While a lot of post-workout recovery drinks have become inflated—in benefits and in price—milk serves as a simple and hearty remedy for your post-workout routine.

Instead of cooling down with sugary swigs of Gatorade, or grainy gulps of protein, physiologists at Indiana University suggest that the best drink after your cardio exercise can be found in your dairy aisle.

In regards to the chocolate versus strawberry debate, there is a wider host of data that proves chocolate milk more worthy of helping your muscles recover and furthering your endurance.

In an article from FitnessMagazine.com, physiologists say that chocolate milk trumps other drinks, including water, because the high carb and protein content in chocolate milk gives the body something to metabolize after a strenuous and lengthy workout. Something that the article stresses is that chocolate milk is best after a long, sustained workout like cycling, swimming and long distance running.

Sure, strawberry milk provides the same basis of recovery as chocolate milk. However, the sugar intake in chocolate milk helps to remove that immediate sense of fatigue after a workout. The best strawberry milk recovery drinks should use real, blended strawberries such as the recipe in LovingtheBike.com.

When buying your preferred ingredients for chocolate milk, stray from the syrups that contain fructose and high concentrations of sugar. Opt for a chocolate powder so as not to backtrack on the progress you make in your exercise. Re-charge with a more natural drink and milk your run for all that it’s worth.

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Running into the Fall season

Better than your mere commute to work or school, setting out on your own two feet during this time of year exposes you to the most scenic of seasonal transitions. While running atop yellowed leaves and rain dampened concrete can encourage you to run further and discover more, there are some precautions to take into consideration.

Firstly, autumn days can be rainy days. Before departing for your run, plan a route for yourself with higher ground or sidewalks so as to avoid soggy socks. According to Active.com, a website centered of wellness and fitness, another area of potential problems lies with early sunsets. In order to avoid doing your workout under the dim, city street lamps, commit to a time during the day where you can get your mileage in. This will also benefit your training routine, giving your body consistent periods of rest and cardio from day to day.  

The after-math of a summer run can often resemble a crime scene. What with articles of clothing strewn across the concrete where you lay panting and squinting into the sun, the outline of sweat surrounds you like the chalk outline defining what would be your lifeless body if it weren’t for your frantically beating heart in your chest.

Thus, the cooler conditions brought forth by the fall season give runners more incentive to lace up their shoes for a run and spend less time with their head in the freezer afterwards.

Go out and run further than the summer sun allowed in month’s prior. Follow trails illuminated with the colors of your neighborhood trees. Find rhythm in the in-and-out breaths you take of crisp, cool air because that’s the only constancy you have in these ever-changing seasons. 

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Morning mixed drinks

No matter if you’re an early riser or an offender of hitting the snooze button more times than you can recall, a hearty breakfast can help get your day started on an energetic note.

Instead of starting your day with sugary cereals or a small portion of eggs, dust off your blender and make one of the following organic and wholesome smoothies for an easy, on-the-go breakfast. 

• Strawberry Banana Blend: Low in saturated fats and cholesterol, strawberried serve as a good source for vitamin C, dietary fiber, and natural sugars. Aside from their abundance in potassium, bananas yield good amounts of Vitmain B6. Peanut butter tops of the mix with a dash of protein.
• Ingredients: 1 ripe banana, 5-6 strawberries; 1 tbsp. of creamy peanut butter; 10 oz. of your preferred milk
• Directions: blend ingredients until smooth
  
  
• Orange Flax Smoothie: Oranges are good sources of potassium, magnesium, B1, B2, B3, B6, and folate. Flax oil (or hempseed oil) will slow down the release of fruit sugar into the bloodstream, giving you a steady supply of energy for a few hours.
• Ingredients: 5 peeled, sweet, seedless oranges and 3 tablespoons of cold-pressed flax oil or hempseed oil.
• Directions: Add a little cold water (about half a cup) and blend. Drink slowly. Great as a pre-workout drink. 

• Banana Wheat Grass Smoothie: Wheat grass is an abundant source of protein, potassium, magnesium, and B complex.
• Ingredients: 3 large sweet bananas; 2 cups cold water; 1 tbsp. wheat grass powder
• Directions: Process al ingredients until smooth. Pour into a large sports bottle

Maximizing your morning routine might mean leaving your coffee maker behind. However, your blender will put up a good battle for your tastebuds with these mighty mixes to start your day. 

Check out more recipes like the Orange Flax Smoothie and Banana Wheat Grass at OneGreenPlanet.org

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