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Summer Running: Tips to Help You Beat the Heat
Summer is here and the heat is on! With high temperatures and humidity, running in the scorching sun can be intolerable. Our Tiux ambassadors share their tips on how to beat the heat and stay safe during the summer months.
Trails and parks with lots of shade can help you stay cooler during your run. Look for any opportunity or location to avoid direct sunlight. Also consider outdoor space along the water, where you might be able to catch a nice cool breeze. – Heather Gardner
My tip for running in the summer heat is to hydrate, hydrate, hydrate!! Water is not necessarily enough — Gatorade or something similar will go a long way!! – Meredith Reccoppa
I would say that my favourite trick is one I learned from my coach. When racing, get your crew to have a ziplock baggy of ice to give you at the aid stations. Wrap it in a buff around the back of the neck, or stuff them down your pack or shirt. Pretty much the best thing ever. Another good one is to have an extra water bottle on hand to pour over your head as you go. – Hilary Matheson
One thing my wife and I like to do in our subdivision is run through people’s sprinklers. Also, if possible, scale back you distance on super hot/humid days and move the longer runs to cooler days. – Mike van Mil
Use Body Glide! Be aware that when you sweat, you run the risk of chafing so I’d suggest using something like Body Glide on those potential areas to avoid any surprises! Lastly, slow down. This will help you avoid the possibility of overheating. Your body will already be higher than normal because of the heat. – Linda Wong
Why not tri? A triathlon may not be your thing, but cross-training with some biking and running is a great way to beat the summer heat. Taking a dip in the pool or whizzing down the trail on your bike is certainly much cooler than pounding the hot pavement during a run. It will also give provide great cross-training, a new challenge, and potentially a new love in multi-sports! – Christina Wood
Training for the Chicago Marathon
This is a guest post by Christina Wood, Sports Performance Coach at The Athlete Factory.
Training for the Chicago Marathon officially kicked off for me in June. This will be my 6th full marathon and 4th (yes, 4th) attempt to BQ. I missed my qualifying time by 3 minutes at my most recent marathon, so I am pouring my heart and soul into this training cycle in hopes to turn my Boston dreams into a reality.
The next few months of my life will be dedicated to preparing for race day. From early morning runs, time in the weight room, to what I read, eat and how I sleep. I, however, do have life outside of running that involves a family and a full-time job, so it will all be a balancing act. But I am ready and excited to get training going and go see what I can do come race day!
Here is a look into how I am training for this upcoming marathon…
Training
Over the years, I have read several books on running marathon training from Galloway to Hansons. I enjoyed the cross training information in the Unbreakable Runner and the speed work from the Run Less Run Faster book. I have pulled things from many of these readings to develop a program that seems to suit my training needs and life schedule the best. This program involves three key runs per week, including speed work, a tempo run and a long slow run. Since I ran my first marathon in 2010, I have always followed a three per week schedule and it has worked best with my training and lifestyle, so I continue to do so.
Cross Training
As a performance coach and gym owner, I am most comfortable and confident in my strength and conditioning program. I have three cross training workouts per week that include one day of biking (I’m a spin instructor) followed by lower body strength training, an upper body strength training day and a metabolic conditioning day. I feel as if it accompanies my running program nicely, making me a stronger and faster runner, as well as aid in recovery from my long runs.
Nutrition
Ahhh nutrition. I have to admit, I was one of those “run to eat” folks who thought I could finish a run and devour everything in sight. It actually caught up with me pretty bad during my first marathon when I ended up gaining several pounds by race day! As a bit of a foodie, I continue to struggle with making healthy choices especially post run, but I have certainly gotten much better over the years eating cleaner the majority of the time. Most days I measure my food to control my portions and make sure my meals are fitting into my macros. I fuel and hydrate much better these days and it shows during my performance and recovery. Of course I still do enjoy my chips and beer post long run, old habits die hard, but moderation is definitely key in maintaining a healthy racing weight
Education
I’m a firm believer that we should never stop learning, especially when it comes to things that bring us great passion. I read at least one running-related book each month from training and nutrition, to mental game and biographies. I gain so much insight, inspiration, knowledge and motivation from reading about running. I am almost finished with The Runner’s Brain right now and I am deciding what to read next!
Balance
I never want marathon training to feel like a full time job. I already have one of those and I actually rather enjoy it. Of course sacrifice and sometimes stress do come with training for the full distance, but I do not allow it to consume me. Between my family, running a business and training for a marathon, I have quite a bit on my plate, but I do my best to always keep my priorities in check. A happy runner is a healthy runner after all, and the only way to stay happy is to stay balanced.
Tribe
No great things can be done alone. Even though running is technically an individual event and not a team sport, it is so important to have a great support system of fellow runners. In the past, I often trained alone. The trail would get very lonely and there were times where I gave up rather easily out there. More recently though, and especially now for this upcoming marathon, I have gathered my tribe. We have similar paces and goals, and are there to push, encourage and motivate one another. In fact, we are all training for the same event, so we can not only help each other through training but also come race day!
Attitude
In the past, I have taken an all or nothing approach to training. I was so focused on one goal and if it seemed like that wouldn’t happen, I was be absolutely devastated. Having experience three failed attempts to BQ, I am much more aware that sometimes, despite our efforts, things just don’t go our way. I am much better equipped now to handle whatever may come my way. But I also have more motivation and drive now than I ever have. I want that BQ so bad. I am laser-focused, working hard and visualizing my success!