RECOVER-ease: quick review

I have been using RECOVER-ease for three weeks already and can see the difference. It took my legs only two days to recover (even if not completely - to the level when running becomes comfortable again) after the Orange Curtain 100k last weekend. And the recovery itself was a way less painful than 10-days-long recovery after my first half marathon in 2006 :)

I usually take 8 pills after a race or a hard training runs (and 2 additional pills if the course was planned by Lambert), 4 pills after more relaxed long runs, and just 2 pills after weekday 3-5-mile quickies.

See the Wicked Fast website for more information of RECOVER-ease:
http://www.recover-ease.com/


When I was contemplating about whether to join the herd of RECOVER-ease drug addicts, I did a quick study of 8 ingredients of RECOVER-ease to make sure there are no side effects or anything like that: the whole thing sounds to good to be true - take a blue pill and you will outrun iMichelle and Keira in no time :)

Besides the fact there are no known negative side-effects from any of those 8 ingredients, one of them - "citrus bioflavonoids" - is instrumental in the prevention of cancers and cardiovascular disease. Just one more side effect (or better to say side benefit) of the RECOVER-ease...

P.S. Here is a review of RECOVER-ease from an independent dietary supplements reviewer: http://www.supplementwatch.com/reviews/doc.asp?docId=2384

Interview with Karl Meltzer

A pretty interesting an informative interview with Karl Meltzer: there is a lot about Karl’s ultras, goals and training, but still most of it is about nutrition.



Part 2 of the same interview:



Karl is promoting OPTYGEN formula by First Endurance. OPTYGEN is designed to increase VO2Max, increase the body's ability to acclimatize to high levels of physical stress and increase anaerobic threshold and reduce lactic acid.
Sounds like a new legal steroids-free doping :)

Vitamin T: definitely a friend :)

Following Steph's comment on my post about Vitamin I (Ibuprofen), I did a quick research on Tylenol to figure whether it can be used during the races. And the answer is... unless you get addicted and start overdosing, you totally can you use it during the races.

Tylenol does not belong to the family of Nonsteroidal anti-inflammatories (NSAIDs) such as Advil, Motrin, Aleve, ibuprofen, naproxen, etc. Tylenol is an acetaminophen, and it was shown to be safe.

http://www.sfrrc.org/content.aspx?page_id=22&club_id=798031&module_id=5042
http://www.tylenol.com/page.jhtml?id=tylenol/muscle/subfmarathon.inc

Vitamin I: friend or foe?

I found a couple of good articles about use of Ibuprofen during endurance events. If you know already you'd better refrain from taking it to stay out of trouble, you can skip the rest of this post :)
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Can I take Ibuprofen while I’m running?

1) If you have pain so significant that you can’t run without pain relievers, then you have a problem that needs to be treated by a physician and 2) talk to your doctor before taking any pain medications.

To answer the question directly, no you should NOT take Ibuprofen or other NSAID pain relievers while running. There are two reasons for this: one has to do with stomach problems and the other has to do with the kidneys.

Stomach issues can be serious, ranging from stomach upset to bleeding. You should always take pain relievers with food. During a long run or a race, the combined lack of food that you’ll likely be eating and the stress on your gastrointenstinal tract will make these problems even more serious.

In terms of kidney problems, NSAID drugs are processed out of the system by your kidneys. Your kidneys are already working overtime during a long run or race and when you are dehydrated they are under even more stress. Adding these drugs to the load on your kidneys can cause kidney damage.

http://coachjoeenglish.wordpress.com/2007/06/05/training-can-i-take-ibuprofen-while-im-running/

Based on what we know from research, the use of Ibuprofen can impair health and performance if taken in larger doses and if in combination with dehydration due to altered renal function. Endurance training and competition is highly dependent on your body’s ability to move fluids through the kidneys. The restriction of this fluid movement can cause numerous adverse effects including dehydration, hyponatremia and kidney failure. All of which do not bode well for a PR. For races and hard training sessions, the risks seem to outweigh the questionable benefits.

Therefore, the use of NSAIDs should be reserved for post-exercise and taken in moderation. A proper warm-up and good fueling practices may do more for you to prevent muscle soreness and inflammation than popping a few Ibuprofen.

http://www.firstendurance.com/newsletter_NSAIDS.html

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*) "NSAID" stands for "Non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs"

Gatorade RAIN

I tried a new Gatorade lately - Gatorade RAIN - and will stick with it further on.

Although it does not sound as cool and energetic as Frost, X-Factor or Fierce, it has very mild non-sugary taste, even when it is not cold. At the same time all the nutrition facts for it are the same as for the X-Factor and others.

CLIF SHOT Blocks

Thanks to Brian, I found a very nice alternative to my favorite PowerGel - CLIF SHOT Blocks.

I never tried CLIF SHOT Blocks before and found them much less sugary than PowerGel. The problem with the latter is that after mile 15 or 20 I cannot stand its sweetness anymore, especially when it is hot.

CLIF SHOT's have a bunch of flavors but I picked 2 for now - Margarita with extra salt and Black Cherry with Caffeine.
And from the point of nutrition facts CLIF SHOT Blocks are no worse than PowerGel too:

Gatorade A.M. (discovery)

I discovered a new sports drink recently ("new" means I never tried it before as I have no idea how long it's been around) - "Gatorade A.M."

I am used to the fact that Gatorade (and I tried a lot of different kinds of Gatorade - their bluish Frost is what comes to mind in the first place) has a taste that is close to a laundry detergent or some pesticide - especially when it warms up while I am running :-)

But this one is completely different - you can actually even enjoy it - even when it is not ice-cold anymore. If you like Mango juice you will like this one as well...