Tip on Staying Hydrated

With the super-hot weather we had this week I thought it would be good to touch on the importance of staying hydrated while exercising.

Here's some hydration facts:
1) Being dehydrated by 1% increases your heart rate by 3-5 beats per minute!
2) Being more than 2% dehydrated in warm environments causes a decline in performance!
- In one study of runners in a 12K race, those who were dehydrated finished 2:30 minutes SLOWER than the runners that were properly hydrated.
3) Dehydration causes your blood volume to drop which lowers your body's ability to transfer heat and forces your heart to beat faster.

So how do we properly hydrate??
1) Drink 8 - 16 oz of water 1-2 hours prior to a run (or any exercise done outdoors in heat)
2) Drink 4 - 8 oz 15 - 30 minutes prior to starting the run/exercise.
3) Sip as needed during your run/exercise. You should not get to the point you feel thirsty!
4) After exercise, be sure to consume 4 - 6 oz for every 20 minutes that you were running/exercising in order to replenish your fluids.

Are you a distance runner? Here's a tip for doing distance in the heat: Before your run, make a slushy of ice and your favorite sports drink. Or, fill your water bottle half full the night before and freeze; before your run top off the bottle with water or your favorite sports drink. Either option serves the same purpose - colder drinks lower your body temperature which thereby lowers your Perceived Level of Exertion (how hard you think your working). Lowering your PLE means you don't think you're working as hard and therefore you end of working longer.

I hope these little facts and tip are helpful to you. Remember that hydration is extremely important to our overall health and performance.

Sitting All Day?

We sit entirely too much during our days.  Work, emails, reading hunched over a book or the newspaper, slouching in the recliner or on the couch at the end of the day.  This all has a major impact on the health of our backs.  How we sit effects the alignment of our spine and the strength of our core muscles that help keep our backs safe from injury.

So how should you be sitting?

1)      Take frequent breaks – approximately every 15 – 20 minutes.  Take a short walk, do a couple stretches, a handful of squats; anything that helps loosen up the back and facilitates the back getting into proper alignment.

2)      Make sure that your chair is ergonomic and properly “fitted” for you.  This means that your hips, knees and ankles should all be at about a 90 degree angle with your feet flat on the floor to keep your spine in proper alignment. 

3)      While you are seated, stay to the front edge of your chair so that you are sitting up with a tall, straight spine. Keep the belly button pulled back towards the spine to keep the abdominal muscles engaged.

4)      Keep the chest up and the shoulder down and back.

Doing the above listed items will help build core strength and decrease back pain, which in turn, will decrease feelings of fatigue.

Summer Fun for the Whole Family!

I just updated the calender on my Outdoor Family Fitness website and it made me want to share the love so to speak.  Summer is just around the corner and I'm positive that I am not the only parent going "What a I going to do with my kids?"  Summer can seem like a daunting period for parents - trying to balance our children into our "normal" schedules.  What better way to stay on track with your exercise than to do a class as a Family.

Let me introduce you to Outdoor Family Fitness!  Outdoor Family Fitness is a family fitness class for parents with children of all ages.  It allows parents and children to exercise together in a fun and effective format.  Classes are held on Saturdays at Finley Park in Santa Rosa from 9:30 - 10:45 am. 

I'm have to head off now and prep for this mornings Legs & Core class!  Check out the class website (link is above) for more info.  You can also become a Friend of Outdoor Family Fitness on FaceBook.

See you in class soon!