Wednesday, July 12, 2006

Supplementary Issues


I don't know about you, but I always have a problem knowing quite what to title my scribblings. Obviously when race reporting it's easy, but normal day to day ramblings become harder to title. Anyway, this one is about me running again, and since the race at the weekend, taking some advice about ways to steer clear of the cramping.

I managed a 5K run on Monday, in around 24:14, with no side affects. The right calf was a little tight at first (despite stretching beforehand), but once past 1 km, no problem, and I actually felt a lot better during the run. Tuesday I did 4 miles on the treadmill, again without any problems and at around 7:50 pace, so fingers crossed.

To supplement my running, I have decided to take up some advice, and start taking a few supplements to help. It would be interesting to hear what others think, as I am new to taking pills, I have always tried to steer clear of anything extra, feeling I have a balanced diet etc., but I'm always open to know if what I am doing sounds OK to others who know more about these things than I do. I'm starting easy, and taking 133mg of Magnesium, with 8mg of Vitamin B6, and 99mg of Potasium. The "brand" is Solgar, so if anyone has any comments, please feel free.

Hopefully, a few weeks late, I have attached a picture of the new flooring in the lounge of our house. This was one of my excuses a few weeks back, as we were in upheaval mode. Glad to report it was all worth it, and the house feels great. Next job will be the bathroom, but that can wait till the winter, or maybe next spring.

Had been hoping to try and get a run in with Thomas this week whilst he was up in the smoke, but it looks like we will have to postpone that one until next time, although I might take a trip down to Kerry. For those that read his posts as well, it's a beautiful place to be running. Still, I'll have to concentrate around Dublin for a little while longer - Where's that Open Road?

7 comments:

Anonymous said...

Liam, cramping in most cases is related to hydration levels... are you drinking enough water throughout the day? If you are, here is another thing to try to keep your body relaxed... stretch right before going to sleep along with 15-20 daily crunches and back raises for your core. Most of all, keep enjoying the runs :)!

Hey, any tips you can give me about running in Dublin? ...good parks, trails, etc... the marathon in October will be my first trip to Ireland and I am Ecstatic!

Dia Duit

Thomas said...

I take magnesium tablets for my cramps, and they really help. Other than that, Niamh usually forces me to take a Vitamin C, a multivitamin and a Omega-3 supplement. If you've ever heard of Patrick Holford, he's a nutritionist that very highly recommends vitamin supplements, and to Niamh he is The Guru.

Solgar is a brand I'm familiar with. I think their stuff is quite good.

Anonymous said...

The floor is beautiful. I'm a fan of hardwood myself and I refuse to put rugs down. One way to avoid scratching is to take shoes off at the door. (This is my one major pet peeve, actually; I always ask people nicely to take their shoes off unless there's a disability that makes it difficult. On the rare occasion that someone refuses, I get a little steamed.)

Can't provide any comment about supplements, but please do be careful. I hope the cramping improves.

Dori said...

Hey, the room looks beautiful! Here in Minnesota, it's common to ask people to remove their shoes--usually they do even before you ask. I actually don't mind people walking on the floor with their shoes, but I ask them to remove shoes if they're going to walk on the carpet.

Regarding the cramps, I don't know if you're talking about stomach cramps or leg cramps. To prevent leg cramps, I drink sports drink to keep my electrolyte levels up. For stomach cramps, I recommend Midol. :-)

Ryan said...

Great blog....What a nice header! Running in Ireland must be nice this time of year! Kerry is a marvelous place….I would love go for a run thru the Ring of Kerry! For supplements you could try Centrum Performance, it’s meant for the athlete and has everything packed in one pill!

Cheers

Jack said...

Liam, I have a teacher out of Cork University sitting in my office this week - he bikes around Caragh Lake on occasion. He said about what you did - an incredibly beautiful place to workout - no wonder Thomas runs so much ;-)

I take a calcium/magnesium tablet every day, as well as a multi-vitamin. Since I've done this I've had very little problem with cramps.

I also do 75-100 push-ups and 50 situps and/or crunches every day - helps keep the rest of the body in shape.

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