Run Well *** Finish Strong

There are many conditions which will destroy human potential, but here I will speak of one that plagues athletic endeavor.

Hyponatremia, or so called water intoxication, can create problems for the athlete involved with endurance activity, such as a long run or triathlon or extended cycling. Specifically, hyponatremia is an electrolyte disturbance in which the sodium level (salt) in the blood is too low. A person sweats during extended or extreme athletic activities, excreting both water and sodium. The person drinks water to replace the loss, but typically the water is low or without sodium. Hence, the slow migration of blood plasma toward electrolyte imbalance. A good discussion of hyponatremia is contained on Wikipedia. People have been known to die from hyponatremia following extended, high stress physical activity such as a marathon. More over, while death is generally rare, physical distress can often accompany a mild state of hyponatremia. Heat exhaustion and dehydration have similar presentations and can be confused with hyponatremia.

Be Careful About Your Electrolyte Balance if you are involved in extended physical activity. This blog's suggestions regarding a re-hydration fluid which includes sodium. A listing of hyponatremia symptoms.

The Adidas Helvetia Half Marathon run in Hillsboro, OR on Saturday June 9, 2007 wound though scenic, but hilly country roads. Great scenery. Some hills were a bit challenging. (The website says only miles two through five and hilly. Trust me! It goes up and down almost the whole way until the last two miles, but it was not bad.) Great Run. Weather for today's run was 59 degrees (and cooled toward the end of the run), rain (which increased toward the end), and a mild wind. Never mind the weather, the run was well organized. Police had excellent crowd and traffic control. Aid stations were well supplied with plenty of cheerful and encouraging volunteers. Free hamburgers or veggie burgers at the end. An excellent half marathon to run. Free tee shirt for finishers. [BTW...do not ask me who "Paula" is. I do not know.]

There are many reasons for feeling fatigue during or at the end of a run. "That is a no-brainer" you say! "Running makes you tired!" you add. True, True...but consider another reason. Nutrient lack in your physical system of iron or folate or vitamin B-12 (both latter two are B vitamins). Read this article by Dr. Barker which is contained on the Run With Paula site.

Check out this article in Runner's World Magazine, July 2007 issue. Najime Nishi, a 58 year old retired Japanese executive, is on track to do 60 marathons this year--in 25 countries. In 2006 he ran 72 marathons in 11 countries. What is the deal? Read the article on page 29. He is an interesting fellow. Nearly always comes in last or near last...on purpose. Carries a waterproof camera and thinks if he does not take at least 100 pictures during the run he has not taken enough. Visit his site: Ecomarathon. He describes his goal for running is to find "harmony" in the run. His site is in Japanese and English. Click on the blog link to see pictures and comments regarding his runs.