Exercising consistently outdoors in Austin in the summer months means early starts. I'm talking 'get on the trail' by 7am starts. In years gone by I would have written off such a routine as obsessive and unsustainable. However I have come to realize that it is an absolute necessity if you expect to make any real progress in a Texan climate where, by July, the overnight low is 75-78F and temperatures soar into the 100s by the afternoon. You snooze, you lose ...copious amounts of sweat in a belated workout.
Its a massive misnomer that exerting oneself in the heat represents a better workout, your heart is pounding and you lost 2lbs in weight by the end of the session so it must be effective right? Wrong! There is a reason all major running world records beyond 800m have been attained in cool climates and marathon performers are especially at risk from temperatures above 70F. The body simply can't perform at its highest level for an extended period of time when it is losing fluids so quickly in an effort to try and regulate its core temperature. Running in excessive heat will ultimately achieve two things-a slower running speed and massive stress on your body-not great ingredients for consistent training.
My run this morning was the 5 mile loop at the trail around Lady Bird Lake near downtown Austin. The time upon completion was 35:24, including two brief water stops. Not especially happy about that but it was fair given I began my hamstring training last night and thus my lower body was a little sore from the new movements-I'll probably write about that in far too much detail in a future post :)
I am trying my best to stretch diligently after the workout, although it's easy to bypass this when time is short and the morning rush hour traffic is building up. However I did get some key stretches in today.
No comments:
Post a Comment