Tackling PRs and Stress During the Holidays

No matter what difficulty this year has brought, the wintertime can still be enjoyable and end on a productive note. The change in lifestyle we’ve all had to deal with during 2020 has sure brought about an immense amount of stress for everyone. The change to a work-from-home situation seemed like a less stressful option, but in reality most of us loss a sense of structure to our days. It also has not been easy dealing with having to be socially distant from our families and friends, but hopefully knowing we are doing this for the good of their health makes it a bit of an easier choice.

Will We Ever Race Again?

That has been the question of the year for runners! It went from having our big spring races canceled to basically being without in-person races the entire year. It looks like the beginning of 2021 won’t be any different, so the near future planning of running goals is making most of us unmotivated to get in our training runs every day. During this season of the year, it will be most important to work on mental strength more than anything. It will take effort, but trying to put aside all of the stressors that we cannot control, is the key to getting back into the rhythm of taking care of our bodies. After all, exercise plays a pretty big role in stress management and immunity—a big focus with the current viral pandemic.

Since I’ve had a very long base building phase this year, I had a vision of using it to improve my endurance and work on weaknesses. Six months passed and I realized the anxiety of the life changes made me less focused on these goals. One of the most unwanted side effects of stress is lack of energy, and it was what was affecting me the most. Thankfully I turned to MitoQ and I’ve not only had optimal energy all day, but after taking a good amount of time off recently, my fitness has returned much quicker than ever before! I’m sleeping better and feel I can focus much more on my work without a problem.

MitoQ is a powerful antioxidant that works to limit the damage in our cells’ mitochondria—the powerhouse of the cells, and keeps them fired up for any activity. By doing this, it helps improve our stress levels, energy, sleep quality, digestion, immunity and reduce recovery times after hard workouts, since these are all jobs of the mitochondria. All it takes is two capsules in the morning before eating and you’ve got a productive day ahead of you!

Tips for Getting and Staying Healthy

Below are just a few of my go-to tactics when trying to remain focused and motivated to tackle my running and work goals. 

• Move every day for at least 20 minutes.

• Eat the rainbow! Keep a diet that has foods from every food group as many days as you can. But don’t deprive yourself—eating what we like every once in a while can be a stress-reliever!

• Incorporate supplements in your diet where you need them, and make sure they are supplements that have been clinically studied, such as MitoQ.

• Prioritize sleep and stress management: set aside time every day for yourself—to read, soak in the tub, or do some yoga.

• Don’t let what’s going on around you make you anxious—control what you can control and let the rest be!

Are you interested in beating stress, improving your fitness performance, and keeping your body healthy from the inside out? Click here to learn more about MitoQ’s benefits and how easy it is to feel your best all day with this powerful antioxidant!

Sponsored by MitoQ. All opinions are my own.

A Long Run Shoe You Can Count On – The Under Armour HOVR Sonic 3

Sponsored by Zappos. All opinions are my own.

If there is one thing I look for in a long run shoe besides cushioning, it’s flexibility. Nothing feels worse on runs over an hour than a stiff shoe. It leaves me with sore feet for days! Since I am prone to plantar fasciitis and have had a history of several foot and ankle injuries, I have to be a little picky about my running shoes. Most runners should be anyway, especially if they plan on training for a half or full marathon. After all our feet carry our entire bodyweight during any standing activity, so if you don’t take good care of them with supportive shoes, you will risk injuring another area in the body on top of limiting your performance.

I am happy I was able to get my hands on a pair of Under Armour HOVR Sonic 3 from Zappos. With their incredible selection of products, it’s always hard to choose just one pair, but this time I was in search of a good long running shoe and the Sonic 3 sounded perfect! As a Zappos rewards member I get free expedited shipping, so my shoes arrived the very next day after placing my order! Another great perk of the rewards member program besides the excellent customer service and speedy shipping, is the 365-day free return policy. If you haven’t joined yet, you are missing out!

Energy Saving

One of the key factors every runner tries to improve for distance running is endurance. It’s all about the way we teach our bodies to store energy and stay strong in order to last as long as possible. Shoes can have this ability, too, just in a different way. The lightweight technology of the Under Armour HOVR Sonic 3 helps transform the energy we put into our steps into energy released by the shoe for a more powerful and efficient stride. For a while, I made the mistake of wearing the wrong shoes for my long runs—shoes that felt light, yet stiff, and definitely not responsive at all. Switching to the Sonic 3 immediately made this energy-saving feature obvious from the start.

As usual, I took my brand new pair out on my regular Sunday short, easy run to test them out. They really didn’t need much ‘breaking in’, and I was surprised at how flexible they felt since I thought the heel counter would make the shoe feel a bit stiff. The heel counter is a great addition to the shoe for me, personally, because it keeps my foot in place. I tend to get annoyed when my shoes get loose during my runs, and this feature made sure to avoid that problem!

Lasting Comfort

As for long runs, this shoe does exceptionally well. First off, the materials are ideal for the intense heat and humidity I run through every day. The upper not only keeps my feet dry, but it provides a compression-like fit, which hugs my foot throughout my entire run—in the lightest way possible! It’s hard finding a shoe that not only feels light for high mileage, but also cushioned enough to keep my feet from getting sore in the days following. The Under Armor HOVR Sonic 3 is the perfect combination of these two features!

Running Tips Straight from the Gait

We rely heavily on the data from our running watches—cadence, pace, heart rate, etc. It’s a never-ending list that can get overwhelming when trying to improve our performance. What if I told you that your shoes can provide you with this information directly? Yes! The HOVR Sonic 3 are one of Under Armour’s connected gear that you can pair to your Map My Run App to get all of the insights of your gait pattern during different runs. The technology provides you with tips in real-time—like DURING your run, to help you correct faulty patterns that can lead to injuries. I’m constantly trying to work to improve my performance as a runner, so I’m excited to have this feature available to me!

The Under Armour HOVR Sonic 3 is officially part of my long run rotation, with its flexible upper, cushioned and compressive fit, and lightweight materials. I highly recommend this pair if you are looking for a light, neutral shoe for daily runs. Zappos has you covered with 5 sleek color options and super fast shipping when you sign up for the rewards membership! You’ll be sure to find any shoes or gear you are looking for when you shop!

Feeling Sore Days After an Intense Workout? It's Probably DOMS. Here's How To Beat It

Soreness can be a sign of a good workout, but not all soreness is a good thing. When you first begin an exercise program or get back into it after a long break, experiencing a bit of muscle pain later that day or the next is normal. This specific pain should not be so uncomfortable that it limits being able to move around as usual and should subside within a day or so. If the soreness causes you to not be able to lift your arms or go downstairs without severe pain, and lasts longer than two days, your workout may have caused delayed onset muscle soreness (DOMS for short).

Causes and Symptoms

Typically, delayed onset muscle soreness begins within 8 to 12 hours after intense exercise and peaks to its worst symptoms at 24 to 48 hours. The pain from DOMS subsides by around 72 hours, but may last longer for some individuals. This pain is normally felt with active movement and stretching the muscles. Along with muscle pain, other symptoms that come along with DOMS are a temporary loss in muscle strength, decreased range of motion, and possibly swelling in the muscles involved in the exercise. The sore muscles may feel as if “bruised” when touched with light pressure. This combination of symptoms may even last up to 10 to 14 days in severe cases.

What exactly is the “intense exercise” that can causes DOMS? Studies show that the usual type of exercise that causes this condition is eccentric movements, which is when the muscles lengthen during the contraction (think: the movement on the way down from performing a bicep curl). Although this is the most common exercise to cause DOMS, many other forms of workouts can lead to this intense soreness, such as running downhill, high intensity sprinting or plyometrics, and heavy weight lifting. Most of the time, this condition arises after performing new exercises at too high of an intensity that the body is not used to.

What Exactly is DOMS?

In the past, it was believed that delayed onset muscle soreness was the result of the so-called lactic acid buildup in the muscles during exercise. This buildup occurs during any exercise, but returns to normal levels as soon as an hour after the completion of the workout. Therefore, DOMS is not related to the lactic acid accumulation in muscle that occurs during physical activity. Unaccustomed eccentric exercises cause damage beginning at the muscle’s cell membrane, which results in inflammation that expands out to the entire muscle and surrounding areas, creating metabolic waste. This waste product stimulates the nerves surrounding the muscles causing pain. Keep in mind this type of damage occurs with certain forms of exercise as explained above, not with all exercise as with the regular lactic acid buildup.

Treatment

Although the first line of defense used when feeling this kind if pain is to take an anti-inflammatory pill, it may not be the best option. This route may help ease symptoms in most cases, but is shown to have the unattractive side effects of stomach issues and can eventually lead to poor healing capabilities in the future. The best initial treatment options are rest and ice—which is a safe, natural anti-inflammatory agent. Another go-to pain reliever sought out by most athletes is massage. Gentle massage helps ease DOMS pain, swelling and tightness in most individuals, reducing the severity and duration of symptoms. Massage has been shown to help decrease the compound in our muscles that causes inflammation. Deep tissue massage that is typically used by athletes for tight muscles is not advised for this condition due to the intense pressure that may exacerbate the pain.

Another helpful treatment option is light exercise such as cycling, pool exercises, and gentle stretching. These approaches will help maintain good circulation and keep the muscles warm to be more prepared for the addition of intense exercise once the DOMS has subsided. Intense exercise, especially the type of workout that initially caused the pain, should be avoided, as one of the symptoms of DOMS is a temporary muscle weakness. This decrease in strength causes delayed shock absorption, which can lead to injuries such as a muscle strain or tear.

Prevention

Performing a proper warm-up before any exercise is the first thing that should be done to prevent delayed onset muscle soreness. A warm-up, as in its name, basically increases the temperature of muscle, which improves its elasticity, making it more resilient to tearing. The effects of a proper warm-up lead to improved muscle contractions and better performance during the workout. Research states that warming up for an eccentric-type workout with concentric moves is effective in helping prevent DOMS. A good warm-up for running consists of more dynamic moves such as walking lunges, legs swings, and military marches. Static stretches, where you hold a fixed position for several seconds is not recommended, as this will cause muscles to elongate and remain in a more relaxed state. Save these for after your run.

If you are beginning a running or exercise program for the first time or after a long break, it is advisable to gradually ease into the intensity and make sure to include that warm-up. It is important to note the difference between DOMS and other causes of muscle pain. If you are experiencing pain during a specific exercise, it is most likely due to improper form, a muscle strain, or other injury. DOMS symptoms occur between 8 and 12 hours after the completion of exercise. You are able to perform lower intensity exercises with DOMS without continued muscle damage, whereas with a muscle strain, further exercise will continue to impair the muscle.

DOMS is not necessarily a bad condition since it involves a natural effect of new exercise, but it should be avoided when possible as it prevents any higher intensity exercise to be performed for several days or weeks. If you want to go “all-out” during your track day with brand new sprint intervals that you have never done, and you develop DOMS, expect to not be able to get your long run done even if it is a couple of days after the track workout. A good rule of thumb when increasing intensity of your workout program is to increase sets, reps, resistance, or mileage by only 10% or less each week. This is the safest way to help prevent the unwanted limitations of DOMS.

Sources

Miles MP, Clarkson PM, Exercise-induced Muscle Pain, Soreness, and Cramps, Journal, May 6, 2020.

Connolly D, Sayers SP, McHugh MP,Treatment and Prevention of Delayed Onset Muscle Soreness, Journal, May 6, 2020.

Zainab Zainuddin, Mike Newton, Paul Sacco, Kazunori Nosaka, Effects of Massage on Delayed-Onset Muscle Soreness, Swelling, and Recovery of Muscle Function, Journal, May 6, 2020.