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Newsletter: Volume 41, September 2002

Sale Items of the Month:

Jeff Galloway's Training Journal - $9.99 (was $13.95)
Jeff Galloway's Breaking the Tape - two 30-minute videotapes of instruction and inspiration plus an audiotape- $17.99 (was $19.95)

To order go to our Merchandise section

Jeff answers some pace questions:

Will I suddenly run two minutes per mile faster than my training pace in the marathon?
Probably not. The purpose of calculating a realistic goal pace and adding two minutes per mile to that pace is to calculate a comfortable long run pace. First time marathoners should be running at their training pace in their first marathon. This is a good rule for veterans also, unless you have been doing longer long runs (up to 30 miles) and mile repeat workouts. The latter is noted in my NEW MARATHON book on the time goal schedules as "10 x 1 mile", for example. Each mile repeat should be run 20-30 seconds faster than goal pace, with a 5 minute walk between each. If you haven't been doing all of the longer runs, and all of the mile repeat workouts, you are not ready to run your goal pace in the marathon.

How do I tell what is a realistic goal pace?
Go to back of my NEW MARATHON book and look at the prediction table in the back. This has been a very accurate way to predict finishing time in the marathon. You will run a 5K race pretty hard and then use the table to find the equivalent marathon finishing time. Beginners (or recreational marathoners) should add an hour to this - for your training pace and your pace for the first 18 miles of the marathon itself. Time goal veterans (who are doing the longer long ones and speedwork) should add at least 10 minutes to the predicted timw - which will then be your pace for the first 18 miles. After that point, you can pick up the pace at any time, as you feel capable.

For more info, See GALLOWAY'S BOOK ON RUNNING (pp. 266-271) or NEW MARATHON (pp. 202-203)

More on pace . . .
Run an even-paced effort: If the course is perfectly flat with no wind, you can run an even pace throughout. But since most courses have hills and most days have wind, you must be realistic. Miles with hills should be run with the same effort as flat miles. Uphill segments will therefore be slower than "pace," and downhill segments faster. The same "even-effort˛ principle applies to running into the wind, but you cannot quite make up for time lost to a headwind or to long or repeated hills.

Account for heat: Most runners begin to slow down at 55 degrees and start suffering at 65 degrees. Of course, the body can adapt to heat stress and push the threshold up a bit, but you'll never be able to run as fast on a 75 degree day as on a 45 degree one. High humidity is also a major problem. It's like a wet blanket - it doesn't allow much evaporation or perspiration and your body heat builds up. If you try to run too hard in hot or humid conditions you'll hit "the wall" sooner than expected. Trying to maintain a goal pace in heat is like going out too fast early in the race. Temperatures generally increase hour by hour; therefore you must adjust your pace for the temperature expected at the race.

Adjusting Race Pace for Heat

From Galloway's Book on Running, 2nd ed., p. 80

Avoiding Hyponatremia

1. Drink only 4-6 oz of water every mile.
2. Don't drink if you hear sloshing in your stomach.
3. Do not drink two or more cups of water at a time - wait 10 minutes between cups.
4. Eat some salty foods (like pretzels) at the end of long runs, and afterwards.
5. Some runners use a product called SUCCEED, taking one tablet every hour.
6. If you have any of the symptoms of hyponatremia, get help.

News

The Athens Marathon (the "original" course from Marathon to Athens) race committee has pushed back the official finishing time to 6 hours. Our Apostolos group has permission to start early for those who take longer than that. Prices are dropping on the air fares to Europe. For tour info, visit www.athensmarathon.com.

Jeff's Picks

Charleston Distance Run - August 31

Chicago Half Marathon - September 8

Durango Marathon - October 13 - I just visited this beautiful city of trails to kick off the training season for the Durango Marathon. This is the first marathon in this area and it will be memorable. Put it on your calendar!

US Marine Corps Marathon - October 27 - Jeff and team will be the official pacers!

Motorola Marathon - Austin TX, Feb 2003

Reassuring words from Jeff . . .

Almost everyone has at least one "bad" long run. You may never be able to discover why a long run may have been bad, but if you do know, learn from it! The tough ones teach you that you have hidden inner strengths, which you can draw upon in future challenges, both in running and in life itself. Knowing this will help your confidence and your ability to withstand adversity in the marathon itself. (from Jeff Galloway's Marathon: You Can Do It , p. 12)

The Athlete's Kitchen
Copyright: Nancy Clark, MS, RD 8/02
Value Meals: The High Price of Fast Foods

Someone once joked that building lots of McDonald's and Burger Kings in "enemy territories" would eradicate the need for atomic bombs; the obese population would soon self-destruct. Unfortunately, Americans have become are our own worst enemy and obesity has reached epidemic proportions. More than 60% of American adults are, well, super-sized as are 14% of American teens and 13% of 6- to 11-year olds.

While most of the readers of this column are fit and healthy, you've perhaps noticed your uncle, parent or neighbor become bigger and talk about high blood pressure, heart disease, diabetes and another undesirable health conditions. These diseases of aging not only interfere with longevity but also lead to worrisome medical expenses. This nation cannot afford to be so unhealthy!

Obesity is indeed a complex condition associated with over-eating, under-exercising, stress, fatigue and TV-viewing, among other factors. Some say obesity stems from ignorance. Children, in particular, may be unaware of the health dangers of a steady diet of fast foods; most would happily eat chicken nuggets and french fries daily. In New York, a person is suing four fast food chains (KFC, Burger King, McDonald's and Wendy's) for contributing to his obesity, diabetes and heart disease. His complaint: he didn't know how bad these foods were for his health.

With luck, good changes will arise from this suit. For example, perhaps we'll eventually see Nutrition Facts printed on fast food wrappers, telling us about a Super Burger's calories, fat and sodium content. Or perhaps a warning label will appear: "Consuming a steady diet with large portions of fatty, high calorie foods can be dangerous to your health.˛

While the verdict is unclear as to whether the food industry can be held accountable for America's problem with obesity, this suit does raise consciousness about the industry's efforts to overfeed Americans. Between value meals and super-size portions, hungry people can all-to-easily be lured into gluttony while thinking "I only ate one serving...." One Cinnabon, mind you, is more than enough for two people.

While I do believe that all foods (even fast foods, in moderation) can be balanced into a healthful diet, I also recognize the food marketing industry is succeeding at their goal of getting us to consume more and more and more. (For example, have you noticed how Coke, which originally came in an 8-ounce bottle and then in a 12-ounce can, is now prevalent in 20-ounce bottles - enough for at least two people?) Hence, the purpose of this article is to help you grasp the importance of feeding appropriate portion sizes to yourself, your family, and most importantly to the children who have never seen "small˛ as a menu option.

The High Price of Value Meals
At Burger King (and most other fast food restaurants), you can "Size it your way"; that is, you can have a medium, large or king-sized value meal with incremental increases in the fries and soft drink. By ordering the value meal, as opposed to ordering each item separately, you'll save 78˘ per increment (medium to large; large to king-size). And for those 78˘ you can get about 200 to 250 more calories. Calorie for calorie, the medium value meal costs a bit more than the king-size meal (3.5˘/calorie vs 3.2˘/calorie). The king-size Whopper with Cheese value meal offers a total of 1,825 calories from the burger, fries and soft drink. This equates to:
1) a whole large cheese pizza (that would more likely feed the whole family, not one person) or
2) the whole day's worth of calories for the average women.

If you are looking for the whole day's calories in one dose, as well as the whole day's fat intake (if not more), this king-sized value meal is seemingly a bargain. Unfortunately for our health, most people eat two other meals in their day - and the medical bills related to obesity will not come with a bargain price!

If you are a fast food eater, you have to decide for yourself if a value meal is truly a good deal­-and if it is really the best way to spend your calories. After all, almost half of those calories all too often come from fat, cloggage and the stuff that makes heart attacks. For example, Burger King's Whopper with cheese medium value meal provides almost 1,400 calories (equivalent to 3/4 of a pizza that feeds a family of three) and 71 grams of fat (more than you need). A peanut butter and jelly sandwich costs far less and is far more healthful...

The best value at a fast food restaurant is to NOT get the value meal, but rather just get one item. That is, by having just the Whopper with Cheese (no fries or soda, thank you), you can save 590 calories and $2.10. You'll still be left with 800 calories (that need to be balanced with lowfat choices at other meals). This is more than enough for most hungry people.

Even impoverished students, who commonly ponder how to get the most calories for the least amount of money, should skip the fries and soda. The Whopper with cheese costs about 3.6˘ per calorie, as opposed to the soda (5.6˘/calorie) and fries (4.4˘). Now of course, you'll save a few pennies per calorie if you upgrade to king size. But then, do you really want that money to go to waist?

For children, Burger King's "Big Kid Meal" is also a bad deal. For $4.39, a child can get a double cheeseburger, small fries and a small soda. This comes to just under 1,000 calories--the equivalent of two hefty peanut butter and jelly sandwiches or half a large cheese pizza (food for two kids, not one). I guess that's why it's called the "BIG Kid's Meal"; a steady diet of Big Kid's Meals will make kids big (and fat) ... that's for sure.

Equally worrisome, kids who eat the whole meal because it is just "one portion" will get stuffed. Each time a child overeats, he or she chips away at the body's natural ability to regulate an appropriate intake. The desire for big food grows, as does the waistline. Perhaps it's time to move back in time to "slow foods"; you know, the homemade meals that nourished the body, fed the soul and were one of life's pleasures?

Nancy Clark, MS, RD, nutrition counselor at SportsMedicine Associates, one of the largest athletic injury clinics in the Boston area, is author of Nancy Clark's Sports Nutrition Guidebook ($23) and her Food Guide for Marathoners: Tips for Everyday Champions ($20), available via www.nancyclarkrd.com or by sending a check to Sports Nutrition Materials, 830 Boylston St., Suite #205, Brookline MA 02467.

From the September 2002 Runner's World (p. 24):

Remember This: A daily run may help prevent Alzheimer's disease. We've known for years that running keeps our minds sharp and improves memory. Now scientists think that running may also help prevent Alzheimer's disease. Researchers Carl Cotman and Nicole Berchtold used a special "gene chip" technique to study rats as they ran for 3 weeks on their exercise wheels. They discovered that the rats had increased gene activity in the part of the brain (the hippocampus) responsible for memory, thinking and learning. Says Cotman: "Our studies demonstrate for the first time a connection between the genes that control growth hormones and other important molecules and the gene's ability to be stimulated by exercise. We think this may show us a way to determine how much and what types of exercise may help reduce the risk of cognitive impairment and, perhaps, Alzheimer's disease. Could running do the same thing for humans, whose brain is similar in many ways to the rats'? That's not known yet. But many years of running are likely to prove more powerful than 3 weeks. Our suggestion: To maintain your mental sharpness, don't forget to keep logging those miles.

- Beth Moxey Eck

Fast Facts

Be Like Popeye: A U.S. Department of Agriculture study showed that magnesium-deficient women burned 15 percent more oxygen and had higher heart rates while exercising than women with sufficient magnesium in their diets. To make sure you operate at peak efficiency, eat plenty of dark greens, such as kale, spinach, and Swiss chard, and sprinkle wheat bran or oat bran onto your breakfast cereal.

Berry, Berry Good: Red berry fruits such as the elderberry, chokeberry, and bilberry can improve arterial health by stimulating the nitric oxide system, which enhances blood vessel functioning. To find these red berry fruits, visit your local farmers market.

Read Jeff Galloway's tips on fitting in a run wherever you are in the September issue of Runner's World - www.runnersworld.com

- Beth Moxey Eck

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