Strenua's World» athlete

Review: HoMedics Compact Percussion Massager

Strenua — Wed, 14 Jul 2010 13:07:55 +0000

One of my favourite things about working in America was that my health insurance allowed me to have 3 free sports massages a week. I would have one before a race to relax me, one after to help recovery and another after a hard training session to undo any knots. Now I’m back in the UK I do miss the deep tissue massages.

Rolling back massagers are OK for relaxing the whole back but I never find they reach my shoulder area. And handheld manual massagers such as the ones supposedly that treat cellulite don’t get deep enough. So I was happy to trial a new massager from HoMedics who identify themselves as ‘an innovative leader in self-care, wellness and personal health products.’

What is Percussion Massage?

The HoMedics Compact Percussion Massager is described as having ‘Percussion action for deep tissue massage’. As I thought percussion was term to describe musical instruments I wasn’t really sure what that means in terms of massage so I did a bit of research, apparently in massage percussion movements are known as tapotement.

The purpose being:

to vibrate tissues
trigger reflexes from the skin
cause widening of the blood vessels (vasodilation).
disperse fluid and inflammation from an injury
reduce swelling

Benefits of percussion movements include:

being very stimulating
particularly useful to athletes before an event.
strengthen muscles by stimulating the muscle to contract.
useful in reducing fatty deposits and flabby muscle areas

Sounded great, although in massage terms as it is described as a cupping action I presumed that this massager was going to work the vibration principle.

HoMedics Compact Percussion Massager is described as compact and light weight. I found that it weighs 850g, around 950g with the plug and cable, and is 33cm long. Not that compact for carrying around, but it is the perfect size for what it is designed for. It is solidly built and if it was lightweight I would feel it wouldn’t be massaging deep enough, just tickling the surface of the skin. It is however not too heavy that you can’t hold it with one hand over your shoulder to massage your trapezius muscle effectively, although after a few minutes held in that position you can feel your hand and arm vibrating on their own. In terms of the length of the handle (25cm) it is ideal for reaching all areas of your body with the appropriate pressure.

It comes with 4 customisable attachments including, soft, medium, firm, although I have to say that I didn’t notice much difference between the various options. Admittedly I didn’t require very deep tissue massage such as after a marathon but I found them effective in easing stiff muscles the following day after a 10k race. There is also a heated attachment, but this requires the vibrating action to be switched on whilst it was heating and I felt I needed a stand whilst it was heating as I didn’t want to just hold it for 5 minutes but if you but it on a table it vibrated off and I was worried about leaving it on a carpet incase it over heated. Luckily it doesn’t heat that much to worry about, just enough to be soothing and whilst it isn’t silent it is no louder than an electric toothbrush.

Whilst I tested the compact massager there is also a version with a width adjustable head. I however was happy with the width of the compact head, it was a perfect size for my arms and what I found most useful was for treating my tarsal tunnel syndrome. It was the exact width for massaging the base of my calves to relieve my symptoms and especially useful was to use one head with the heat attachment on the base of my heel.

Overall

HoMedics Compact Percussion Massager is easy to use alone, due to the long handle and the solid head allows massaging of deep tissues efficiently.

Has two different speeds offering variable intensity massages for strong and therapeutic relief. The different attachments did not provide obvious differences in massage intensities.

Not particularly lightweight but appropriate for massaging deep muscles effectively.

Soothing heat attachment provides warmth whilst massaging but needs a support whilst heating which takes a while.

HoMedics Compact Percussion Massager RRP £34.99, available from Amazon, Boots, Sainsbury’s, and Lloyds Pharmacy.

Can Creatine and High-Intensity Interval Training Improve Cardiorespiratory Fitness?

Strenua — Wed, 30 Dec 2009 11:14:22 +0000

Creatine is a popular supplement used for increasing muscle mass and also recovery from exercise induced muscle damage. Now a study has looked at the effect of creatine supplementation and high-intensity interval training (HITT) on cardiorespiratory fitness.

Phosphocreatine is a high-energy storage molecule found within skeletal muscle. During intense exercise, phosphocreatine provides immediate replenishment of ATP (Adenosine-5′-triphosphate), which transports chemical energy from within cells for metabolic processes.

Traditional endurance training induces physiological adaptations such as improved aerobic capacity, along with a reduction in glycogen utilization and lactate accumulation. HITT has been shown to be an efficient way to produce similar effects.

Multiple HIIT bouts are designed to deplete phosphocreatine stores in the working skeletal muscle, and so reducing power output.

It takes more than six minutes to fully recover phospho-creatine stores after exercise-induced depletion. Therefore, if recovery intervals during HIIT bouts are less than six minutes, phosphocreatine may not be fully replenished, leading to a reduced performance.

Supplementing with creatine has been demonstrated to effectively increase muscle phosphocreatine stores. Specifically, one study showed a 20% increase in muscle creatine with ingestion of 20 g of creatine per day for just 5 days.

The purpose of the study published in the Journal of the International Society of Sports Nutrition was to determine the effects of high-intensity interval training and creatine supplementation on cardiorespiratory fitness and endurance performance.

The subjects were 43 college-aged men who typically performed 1-5 hours of exercise per week. None had taken sports supplements, including any form of creatine, in the three months prior to the beginning of the study.

Participants were randomly assigned to a creatine or a placebo group and supplemented for 30 days at a dose of 10 g per training day, taken in two doses – one dose 30 minutes prior to and one dose immediately following training.

Creatine group consumed 5 g of creatine citrate mixed with 15 g dextrose
Placebo group consumed 20 g of dextrose

A control group, consumed no supplements nor completed the high-intensity interval training, and instead only completed the testing measurements.

Participants performed HIIT five days per week, for six weeks at progressively increasing workloads, determined as a percentage of the participant’s baseline VO_2PEAKmax workload. Training increased in intensity each session beginning at 90% of their VO_2PEAKmax workload and progressing up to 120% of their VO_2PEAKmax workload.

Each training session began with a five-minute warm up, followed by a protocol of five sets of two-minute exercise bouts, with one minute of passive rest in between exercise bouts.

A maximal graded exercise test on a cycle ergometer was used to determine:

maximal oxygen consumption (VO_2PEAK)
maximum heart rate (HRmax).
total work done (TWD)
time to exhaustion (VO_2PEAKTTE)
ventilatory threshold (VT), this is the point during graded exercise in which venitilation increases disproportionately to oxygen uptake.

Endurance performance is commonly assessed using a measure of aerobic capacity. While the HIIT program was effective in improving maximal oxygen consumptionby 9%, creatine supplementation had no further influence on aerobic capacity. Ventilatory Threshold (VT) is another useful predictor of endurance performance as an indicator of the ability of the cardiovascular system to adequately supply oxygen to the working muscles. Performing exercise at intensities greater than VT often result in an inadequate supply of oxygen to the working muscles, quickly leading to fatigue.

If VT can be improved it could increase the time to exhaustion, reduce fatigue, and may enhance the efficiency of the body to supply oxygen to the working muscles.

However, when measuring VT in this study, significant improvements were only observed in the creatine group (16%), although the placebo group demonstrated a trend for improved VT (10%).

The researchers from University of Oklahoma found that HITT is an effective way to improve maximal endurance performance. The study also demonstrated an improvement to time to exhaustion with HIIT. However, whilst adding the use of creatine did improved ventilatory threshold, it did not increase total work done.

Previous studies have shown improvements in TWD after creatine supplementation which included a loading phase (20 g/d for 5-7 days). A loading phase was not used in the current study, so it may be possible that muscle phosphocreatine levels were not increased enough to aid in improving TWD.

The researchers did suggest that it is possibile that any benefits of low-dose creatine supplementation were masked by the effectiveness of HIIT alone.

Final Advice For New York City Marathon

Strenua — Sat, 31 Oct 2009 01:48:03 +0000

Luggage vans in front of Verazzona bridge at start of New York City marathon

I’m very disappointed that due to injury I have had to cancel my entry this week for the ING New York City marathon on Sunday. Whilst I probably could make it round, I haven’t trained properly for almost 5 weeks and I wouldn’t be able to put in a good performance, so I’d rather save myself for a different marathon in the new year.

As I have helped before at both the start and finish of the race, as well as running myself last year, I have a few tips to pass on to anyone else racing on Sunday. There are many people giving advice on running a marathon, New York Road Runners give their own advice on completing the race along with their race etiquette suggestions, which I have touched on in a previous post. Marathons also put a lot of stress on the body. If you have been suffering from any recent illnesses or have not been able to train as planned it is always acceptable to withdraw from the race and enter another later on. No matter what your experience make sure you rehydrate efficiently and don’t push yourself too hard.

Paula Radcliffe has also given her own tips to first timers running the New York City Marathon and surprisingly some of her observations apply to both the elite and mass participation runners. Observations such as the Jewish Rabbis, who obliviously walk straight in front of the runners with no concern for anyone else, whether they are leading the race or as I experienced when you are part of the mass pack. Can’t give any advice here except watch out especially as you run through Brooklyn around miles 9-10.

To allow time to arrive at the 5am coach pick up I had to leave before 4am, which was over 6hrs before the race starts, so I recommend you take food with you to eat at the start area. There is food available at the start but personally I found bagels too heavy to digest before a race so I prefer to take my own bananas and dried toast. When I volunteered at the start food stands I was surprised how many people were taking energy bars they had never tried before and eating them before the race or asking my advice on what they should eat before the race. The day of the race is not the time to be trying out new products and you should have already established your pre race breakfast. By all means take the free samples but save them to try during future training sessions.

Runners wait in start corral as others run across Verazzona bridge.

As the marathon starts on Staten Island which can only be assessed by official transportation you end up having to arrive very early in the morning. Aside from the very long wait allowing your nerves to develop and boredom to set in, it is also very cold at 5am on a November morning. I recommend taking a book or magazine with you for entertainment, something to sit on such as a plastic bag and the side of a packing box as insulation from the cold wet floor, or even a blow up pillow. In spite of wearing three layers of clothing I was freezing whilst waiting 5 hours for the start and I noticed a few people were sitting inside sleeping bags, which I would recommend. I don’t know if they are accepted in the luggage trucks as you need to use the clear plastic bags provided so it may be necessary to try to find a cheap one you won’t mind if you have to leave it behind. Also you have to drop off your bags and move to the start corrals over 1 hour before the race starts so it’s a good idea to wear old clothes over your race kit that you can remove just before the start. After the start volunteers collect the clothes to be donated to charity.

For those of you who haven’t raced a large marathon before you may not be aware of the blue line on the course. Whilst it is mainly of use for the elite runners, it indicates the route to run exactly 26.2miles. I’m not suggesting you religiously try to follow the line especially at the beginning but it can give you an indication where the turns in the course are as the line crosses over the road. According to my GPS I often run more than 1 mile extra during a marathon, something it would be good to avoid when you are already covering 26.2miles. It actually only equates to around 60meters extra per mile which isn’t much when you consider how much you move weaving between the crowds or crossing over towards the drink stations. Whilst every metre adds up, following the blue line will help to reduce your extra miles.

Finally make sure you remember to turn your clocks back on Saturday night before you go to bed so you take advantage of the extra hour of sleep.

Good luck to everyone running on Sunday.

Do recent deaths during races suggest marathon running is inherently dangerous?

Strenua — Tue, 20 Oct 2009 00:13:00 +0000

The three tragic deaths during the Detroit Marathon this weekend highlight the risks in running a marathon. Daniel Langdon, 36, Rick Brown, 65, and Jon Fenlon, 26, were competing in the half marathon and died within 16minutes of each other. Jon Fenlon collapsed just after crossing the finish line in 1:53:37. Although this follows the death last week of a 23 year old male competing in the Baltimore marathon, runner reported deaths in marathons are rare with these being the first in the Detroit event since 1994.

A study by Donald Redelmeier and Ari Greenwald published in the British Medical Journal randomly selected 26 marathons in the US with more than 1000 participants and followed each for up to 30 years from 1975- 2004. This amounted to 750 marathons and 3,292,268 participants encompassing 14 million hours of exercise. Over the 30 years there were 26 sudden cardiac deaths equivalent to 0.8 per 100,000 participants. The typical participant with sudden cardiac death was a middle aged man (average age 41 years, 81% men). 5 deaths were in individuals who had previously completed a marathon, with the most common location of death at or within 1mile of the finish. The risk of sudden cardiac death equated to about 2 deaths per million hours of exercise.

Whether due to the increase in popularity of marathon events or the increase in previously inactive people ‘wanting to have a go at one’ the incidences of deaths in marathons have increased in recent years. Deaths during marathon events are generally due to 4 factors:

Heart Disease - One of the common causes of death in marathon runners due to heart attacks brought about by underlying coronary artery disease. These attacks are brought on by a combination of the physical stress of the event combined with the person’s lack of cardiac fitness.
Sudden Cardiac Death - On average 12 young people a week die from sudden cardiac death. In 2007 the 28 year old professional runner Ryan Shay collapsed during the Olympic marathon trials. Ryan was young and highly trained and had previously run 7 marathons. His autopsy reported the cause of death to be Cardiac arrhythmia due to cardiac hypertrophy, meaning abnormal beating due to an enlarged heart.
Water Intoxication - This occurs when there is so much water in the body that it dilutes vital minerals such as salt to dangerous levels. It can lead to confusion, headaches and fatal swelling of the brain. In 2007 22yr old fitness instructor David Rogers died from hypomatraemia after completing the London Marathon.
Heat stroke - This is brought about by extreme dehydration. Learning to regulate body heat is important, rehydrating efficiently without becoming intoxicated by too much fluids. In the 2005 Great North Run half marathon four male runners died due to heat related illnesses.

Of the 24 autopsy reports available in Redelmeier’s study there were 21 cases of atherosclerosis, contributing factors included (2) coronary anomalies, (4) electrolyte abnormalities and (1) heat stroke.

People should not be discouraged from running full or half marathons as the health benefits of regular exercise by millions of people out weigh the tragic sudden deaths of a few participants. Whilst some deaths are medically related, a number of people who require emergency medical attention do so because they do not respect the marathon event.

My first marathon should have been a Golden Bond place in the London Marathon. The day before the race I awoke to my entire body and face swollen and red. A visit to the doctor revealed I just had a virus or allergic reaction to something and was advised not to run as I would be putting added to strain on my body attempting to complete a marathon while fighting an infection. Whilst being bitterly disappointed in missing the race I was persuaded that by running I was not only risking my own health but those of other runners if the medical teams had to treat me rather than another casualty. Three weeks later I was able to successfully run a different marathon, collect sponsorship for my chosen charity and I got a ballot place for London the following year.

Celebrities such as Katie Price, being praised for completing the race whilst still suffering from the effects of a miscarriage days earlier, or Jade Goody, admitting to have done no training but congratulated for making it to mile 18, just suggest to the public who ‘fancy a go’ that the marathon is not too much of a physical challenge and doesn’t need to be taken seriously. Thankfully there are celebrities such as Nell McAndrew, Tom Audenshaw and Gordon Ramsey who show commitment to their training, health and race performance.

Whilst deaths associated with marathons are rare, if anything can be done to reduce them even more, it should be implemented. In Italy before participating in a marathon runners are required to complete a medical sports fitness test including an electrocardiogram (ECG). Although it may seem an expensive inconvenience if this was extended to other countries this may identify those at risk of cardiac related conditions and save lives. Additionally if required to provide evidence that you have trained sufficiently or participated in at least a half marathon, runners will have at least experienced some physical stress of endurance exercise and had the chance to learn how to deal with heat and efficiently rehydrate.

How much do you know about your health supplements?

Strenua — Thu, 08 Oct 2009 16:30:22 +0000

I attended a presentation last week by the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA). Whilst we would all expect that the pharmaceutical drugs we take are regulated, the MHRA also monitor traditional herbal medicines. I was surprised that people still believe that if something is natural then it must be safe, even though people must be aware of examples of berries and fruits found even in the UK which are poisonous to humans. It is also interesting that people who care about their health so much that they choose to take herbal supplements, also believe that if a product is herbal or natural it must be good for you. Not paying attention to the concentration or how they may react to existing prescribed drugs.

Athletes are such a group of people who you would think would pay more attention to their body. In 1996 spending on supplements in US was $6.5 billion and in 2002 was $18 billion with sports nutritional products making up one third of sales, so sports supplements are a huge market.

It was interesting to read a recent study in the Singapore Medical Journal, which examined the use of nutritional supplements by university athletes in Singapore. As most studies have focused on Caucasian populations, this study looked at university students in Asia, who would be highly educated with access to scientific literature, yet also exposed to traditional herbal products since birth. Over 75% of the 82 athletes questioned used supplements, consuming on average up to 3 products a day. The most popular products included sports drinks (90%), vitamin C (49%) multivitamins (30%) and glucosamine (20%). Over 90% of the athletes were Chinese which could explain why other popular products were traditional/herbal preparations such as essence of chicken (11%), edible birds nest (11%), and ginseng. Interestingly only one athlete took creatine. Similar to studies of their peers in the West, the most popular products were sports drinks and vitamin/mineral supplements. However, whilst the majority of Western university females reportedly consume supplements for general health benefits and male athletes aim to enhance sporting performance, all but one of the Singapore students consumed supplements for health benefits. This could be because elite sports aren’t as prestigious as in the West. You could speculate that some of those taking supplements for sports may be ignorant or blasé to the risks if they are intent on enhancing sporting performance. But surprisingly in this study, it is the university educated people taking supplements to improve their health, who don’t investigate the health risks of what they are consuming.

The study found that:

93% didn’t know where to obtain reliable information
86.4% unaware supplementation can have adverse health effects.
More than 1/3 had no or minimal knowledge about the product they consumed
Males were more likely than females (81% vs 52%) to research a product and those with more knowledge were more likely to use supplements.
Before using 65.9% sought info from the media, internet, coaches and fellow athletes.
The most frequent explaination (38.5%) for not seeking further information was that ‘the product must be safe since it is commonly available’

Whilst this study may have limitations, it is concerning that people are unaware of the health effects of their supplements, nor do they know where to get reliable information from. I agree with the conclusions of the authors, which should be taken on board by those taking supplements for either health benefits or sporting performance.

Supplements with scientific evidence may only benefit specific athletes.
Athletes must be aware of the additive or synergistic effects of the supplements.
Endorsements by well known personalities fail to mention the long hours of training and sound nutrition which were responsible for their success.
Whilst some products have sound scientific backing, many traditional/herbal preparations have not been validated by rigorous scientific investigation.
Use supplements with caution and examine the product for safety, efficacy, potency and legality with a healthcare professional prior to use.

Ten Top Tips To Assist Marathon Runners

Strenua — Sat, 19 Sep 2009 13:12:52 +0000

I successfully ran the marathon last weekend in 3:55, as it was just a training run for New York City marathon in November I was quite satisfied. I was glad I wasn’t trying for a personal best as a few of my fellow runners may have made it difficult for me. So I have decided to suggest ten top tips for running a marathon in consideration of your fellow athletes. If you have more suggestions, feel free to leave your ideas as a comment at the end.

Fancy Dress- Fancy dress is common sight in the London Marathon and is becoming more so in other races around the UK. Fortunately it hasn’t invaded the races of many other countries around the world. There are benefits to fancy dress, it helps draw attention to your cause and gives identity to you if you are running in a group. But PLEASE think about what you choose to wear. If you have run many marathons and want to fund raise, running in costume makes it more challenging, but it shouldn’t be a challenge for the rest of us running around you. Superman outfits are fine until the cape catches the wind and wraps around us running behind you; firemen carrying 6 foot ladders are great as hurdles for fellow runners; or my favourite last weekend was the carrier of a flag on the end of a 6ft pole, which combines both obstacles.

Bin Bags – Large races often require you to leave your clothing on the busses up to an hour before the start and it can get cold so it’s sensible to wear something such as a bin bag to protect against the wind or rain. But you don’t see Paula and Haile wearing bin bags on the start line and I would guess they have less natural insulation than you do so get rid of your bin bags 2-3mins before the gun. ALSO don’t even think about running wearing it and disposing during that race. Aside from the bags catching the wind and making it difficult to race in they are frustrating and dangerous when they get tangled around runners’ legs.

Start at Correct Corral – This is my pet hate, the arrogance of joggers who ignore the race etiquette and insist and starting at the front. If you used to weigh 20 stone and have diet and exercised down to 15 stone then congratulations. You deserve recognition for your achievement but that doesn’t give you the right to start impeding the 5min/mile runners.

Linking Arms –You set out on the challenge together and have supported each other at every training session, but you are now at the race day so, (unless you have some physical disability) you should now have the strength to walk unaided without having to link arms 4 a breadth. Giving support to an injured tired participant is not a problem, but blocking the course from mile 1 so no one else can pass through your linked arms as you walk with you rucksacks, is not endearing you to your fellow competitors.

Stopping Abruptly – Often happens because of point 3. You start too near the front, try to keep with people around you and after 30 seconds of running at your max pace, you stop as if you had just been shot. Causing a pile up of everyone else running 10miles/hour behind you. Later in the race you may get tired which is understandable, but so is everyone else around who has to dodge to avoid you, so unless you have just had an immediate health emergency move to the edge of the course before you stop to recover.

Wash Your Kit – Everyone knows not to wear brand new kit for a marathon, and if you do decide to wear new kit specifically for the race then you should at least go for a run in it before hand. But for the benefit of your fellow runners, please at least wash your kit before the race. Sweat only smells when it becomes stale and bacteria is growing so I never understand why some people smell so bad as you pass them If they have only been wearing their running vest for an hour.

Personal Hyigene – Associated with tip 7, your fellow runners want to breathe in deeply as they run so if you want a people to help pace you along rather than hold their breath and sprint past you then deodorant and a shower is a top tip.

Watch Your Wings – This is for the tall people. It may be easy to run if you pump with your arms but consider us little people. I’m only 5’3 and when I try to run past, your elbows are level with my head. I try to shout out that I’m trying to pass, but you are often wearing your iPods loud and ignore me till my eye and your elbow make contact.

Water Bottles – drink stations normally have a number of tables so there is no need to stop at the first one. But no matter how thirsty you are, keep on running through the drinks station as we are all carrying on running behind you. DON’T stop at the table like you are leaning at a bar. When you throw away the water bottles or cups try to throw to them away from the road. Think of the slower runners who will also be tired at 24miles having to avoid twisting their ankle on 10,000 bottles on the course. But no matter how competitive you are taking the race also try not to take off you competitions head as you hurl your half empty bottle to the curb.

Talking – Occasional words of encouragement, comments about a how tough the course is or asking a fellow runner if they know the pace you are doing is fine. I just seem to attract people who try to have random conversations with me whilst I’m obviously trying to run hard. If you want to appear creepy then fine ask questions about what football team do I support, or what I am I studying at University, or wanting to know my name. You wouldn’t ask random people in the street so why would you think it’s OK to ask someone whilst they are running a marathon.

Sorry if I sound like a grumpy old woman, but not matter how fast or slow we are, we all find the marathon a challenge, so it would be nice if people could considered how they could help (or at least not hinder) their fellow competitors.