That‟s where the experts at Fitnorama Magazine come in. Between them, there is over 150 years of fitness industry experi-ence. They‟ve seen fads come, go and of-ten come back again! Think kettlebells are new? In his article on this so-called new training device, expert Del Wilson reveals that kettlebells have been around for over a century! A wise man once said “methods are many but principles are few” and this is very true when it comes to health and fit-ness training. If you want to get fitter, you must raise your heart rate, if you want to lose weigh you need to expend more calo-ries than you consume, if you want to get stronger, you must lift heavier weights. We are here to help you separate the fact from the fiction so that every workout you com-plete and every meal you eat takes you one step closer to your ultimate fitness and health goals. We won‟t be promoting the newest diet, ex-ercise machine or workout unless it con-forms to the principles that, as experts, we rely on to train our own clients every day. You won‟t find any celebrity-endorsed all style but no substance nonsense in this magazine – it‟s the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth from here on in! In this month‟s issue, you‟ll find articles on exercise basics by Pippa, some top fat-loss tips from Amanda, an introduction to body-building from Del, an effective fat blasting workout from Andreas and a whole host of other informative and entertaining articles by numerous other Fitnorama experts.

If you have a question about any of the arti-cles in the magazine, want to suggest a topic for coming issues or just about fitness, health or nutrition in general why not drop us a line via our interactive website http://www.fitnorama.com Your questions will be addressed by one of our experts within 48 hours. Try to include as much detail as pos-sible so we can provide you with the very best information possible. Like any magazine, you‟ll see some adverts on the following pages for products and ser-vices that we, as a group of experts, trust and believe in. All the ads are clickable right off the page so please feel free to see what they are promoting. We want to take Fitno-rama magazine from humble beginnings to world domination (!) and to do that we need advertisers. Please mention to the adver-tiser where you heard about them! It‟ll make them happy and help us expand. So, without any further delay, welcome again to Fitnorama Magazine – we hope you enjoy it! Yours in Health and Fitness,

Have you noticed how cyclic the health and fitness industry is? One week you are being told that low fat diets are the best way to go and the next week the compass has swung 180 degrees and low carb diets are the new leader of the weight-loss pack. This constant change in stances, often lead by the media, can leave you wondering if you are doing the right thing or if you are causing more harm than good. Frustrating indeed!

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Editorial Contributors Andreas Michael Website: www.metrohealthandfitness.co.uk Pippa Crowther Facebook: PipFit

Hayley Kirby Contact number: 07545 372720

Del Wilson Website: www.achieverspersonaltraining.co.uk

Alan Butler

Amanda York Website: gymanda.com

Patrick Dale Website: www.solar-fitness.com

Kevin Parker

Magazine Editor Patrick Dale

Advertising Sales

Andreas Michael telephone: 07950 338897 Email: ad sales

Published online only Fitnorama magazine is published 12 times a per year Disclaimer: Opinions expressed here may not be in agreement with those of Fitnorama.com and their employees. The above parties are not responsible in any manner whatsoever for any injury or health condition that may occur Con-sult with your physician before starting any exercise program.

Here are some highlights of what you‟ll find in the March 2011 issue of Fitnorama.

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P6 - NEPA

P8 - 10 REASONS WHY YOU SHOULD TRAIN WITH KET-TLEBELLS

P18 - HYDRATION

P12 - INTRODUCTION TO EXERCISE

P14 - BEGINNERS GUIDE TO BODYBUILDING

TOTAL RUNDOWN P6 - NEPA P8 - 10 REASONS WHY YOU SHOULD TRAIN WITH KETTLEBELLS

P11 - STAYING SAFE P12 - INTRODUCTION TO EXERCISE P14 - BEGINNERS TO BODYBUILDING P18 - HYDRATION P22 - PHA WORKOUT FEATURE P27 - FAT LOSS SECRETS P29 - PALEO EATING AND ME P32 - 10 REASONS TO DRINK WATER P34 - MARATHON MARCH – THE FINAL PUSH!

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P22 - PHA WORKOUT FEATURE

P29 - PALEO EATING AND ME

P29 - MARATHON MARCH – THE FINAL PUSH!

Previous generations were considerably more active than most of us are today. The increase in availability of labour saving de-vices, passive entertainment like TVs and computer games, a reduced requirement for manual labour and increased car owner-ship/usage have all contributed to a signifi-cant reduction of daily physical activity. Many of us spend large portions of our day sat at a desk, in our cars or on the sofa watching TV and even with the best will in the world, the 3 hours or so a week we spend in the gym is not a sufficient replace-ment for the active lifestyle of previous gen-erations.

Combined with an increased availability of

calorie-dense food, the lowered amount of

daily activity is a significant factor in the

ever growing world-wide obesity problem.

Our appetites remain unchanged even

though our calorie requirements have been

significantly reduced. Your body was de-

signed to be active often and your stomach

(approximately 1 litre in size) is capable of

processing all of your nutritional needs to

fuel that active lifestyle. The problem is that

we aren‟t as active as we used to be and no

one has found a way to reprogram our ap-

petites!

So, you go to the gym 3 times a week and you work really hard during those few hours. There is no denying that you‟re doing your-self a lot of good but, what about the other 165 hours of the week? In this article, we‟ll lift the lid on Non Exercise Physical Activity (NEPA) and look at ways you can get more active to enhance your health and reduce your waistline!

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I‟m sure you can think of plenty of other

ways that you could get more NEPA into

your day. Start with a few small daily in-

creases in activity like maybe a 10 minute

walk before breakfast or after dinner and

build up from there with the aim of being

physically active for at least 60 minutes per

day. Don‟t worry – they don‟t have to be

consecutive minutes, just fit them in where

you can. The point of NEPA is that it should

become habitual – a shift in attitude where

you look for ways to move more and sit

less. By the end of the year you may well

find yourself several pounds lighter all be-

cause you made the effort to move around

a bit more every day. Go and get your

NEPA on!

Any significant reduction in calorie intake can trigger the starvation response meaning that metabolisms slow, body temperature is lowered, hunger levels are elevated and calorie burning is down-regulated. If cutting calories too greatly causes the starvation response, what is the alternative for anyone looking to maintain their weight and improve their health without starving themselves? The answer is Non Exercise Physical Activ-ity or NEPA for short.

NEPA simply means moving more. It does-

n‟t matter what you do but just by moving

more we will expend more energy. NEPA

shouldn‟t be tiring and isn‟t a replacement

for your regular exercise routine – it‟s just

additional daily activities done with the pur-

pose of using your body a little more than

usual to create a greater calorie deficit and

make up for all those hours when we are

sedentary.

Examples of NEPA

Walk instead of driving – especially if journeys are less than 1 mile Cycle instead of driving – especially if journeys are less than 4 miles Get off the bus or train a couple of stops earlier and walk the rest of the way to work Stand instead of sitting – standing uses far more energy Use the stairs instead of the lift Walk during lunch breaks instead of staying at your desk Wash your car by hand Water your garden by hand using a watering can instead of a garden hose Take the dog (or the kids) for an after dinner stroll around the neighbourhood Carry your shopping in a basket instead of using a shopping trolley Periodically stand up and move around whilst at work – don‟t get too desk bound Move at every opportunity – stretch while sat at your desk or while watching TV Try doing an active leisure activity like going bowling or ice skating instead of sitting in front of the TV

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Kettlebells. Most people that I speak to have never heard of them, yet they've been around for centuries!. In the United States their recent growth in popularity seems to have come from a guy named Pavel Tsatsouline, a former Russian special forces in-structor. They are yet to make an impact here in the UK, al-though, having said that, Virgin active health clubs are now stock-ing up with kettlebells and run classes. As a personal trainer, I have to say I love them and not just for cli-ents. About 50% of my own training is now done with kettlebells. As a die hard ex-bodybuilder, I have traditional heavy weight training ingrained in me and still train like a bodybuilder today so for me to start using kettlebells as a training tool it certainly says something for my believe in them. So, why are they so great? Here are 10 reasons why I believe you should incorporate kettlebells into your training.

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1 Great for metabolic workouts -Traditional cardio-vascular exercise

such as jogging and cycling always have a part to play in training. However when in-corporated as steady state (achieving an elevated heart rate and then maintaining it for a set period) you are missing out an post exercise calorie burning. You burn calories while you are train-ing, which is great but there is minimal metabolic effect afterwards. What about the remaining 23 hours of the day? Kettlebells by the very nature of the training pro-duce a tremendous after burn effect, boosting your metabolic rate for hours af-terwards. So just think, even when your just sitting around the house, you are continu-ing to burn more calories. That's got to be good news.

2 Time efficient - A super intense work-out can be had in 20 minutes or less. No

need to spend an hour doing boring CV. In fact, if you train properly with kettlebells you will struggle to surpass 20 minutes anyway. Of course, if you are a begin-ner, you will have to gauge the exercise intensity ac-cordingly. Make sure you use an appropriate weight bell, usually 8kg for a woman and 12 kg for a man. Check on my other article to determine the correct start-ing weight and type of kettle-bell.

3 Fun - OK, that may be a stretch (unless you're a masochist) but kettlebell training

is certainly more enjoyable than most forms of training. The ease at which you can swap instantly between ex-ercises makes training a lot more interesting than just sitting on a stationary cycle or treadmill. In a 6 minute circuit you could incorporate 6 different exercises, swiftly switching between exercises with no delay.

4 Works the poste-rior chain - If, like the majority of peo-ple you spend most

of your time sitting at work (all you IT workers out there) then you are spending your entire day in flexion. Even when you move from your desk and go for your lunch, you are sitting again, not too mention the drive to and from work. No wonder every-body has round shoulders, tight hip flexors, chest and hamstrings. Kettlebell training is part of the solution for this. When you swing a kettlebell, you are bringing the body to full extension which means stretching your hamstrings, extending through your back, tightening your glutes and pinning your shoulders back.

5 Postural benefits -This links to the point above. Great pos-tural benefits can be

had through kettlebell train-ing. Depending on your starting point and any postural dys-function you may have, the correct use of an appropriate kettlebell exercise will help remedy any problems you may have. For example, hunched up and rounded shoulders could be helped by swings (pinning the shoulders back) and windmills (to increase shoulder mobility)

6 Portability - Per-sonally, if I was go-ing on holiday via a plane, I would take

my TRX. If I was holidaying locally, and travelling by car, I would take a 20kg kettle-bell. It's all you need to cater for your strength and CV needs. Extremely portable, takes up no space and be-cause of the quick nature of the workouts, takes up very little of your time. The portability factor also allows you to take it out to your garden or even a local park. Unlike traditional barbells and dumbbells, the weight of the kettlebell is offset, therefore the kettlebell is constantly pulling away from you.

7 Works the stabilis-ing muscles - Unlike traditional barbells and dumb-

bells, the weight of the ket-tlebell is offset, therefore the kettlebell is constantly pull-

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ing away from you. This means that your body has to recruit a lot of stabilising muscles in order to control the weight. This is as far re-moved from sitting on a plate loaded machine as you can get. When you use these types of machines, you are forced to follow a certain groove. This negates the use of stabiliser muscles as there is very little stabilising to be done.

8 Strengthens every muscle - Unlike iso-lation movements, kettlebell movements

work multiple muscle groups

at once, highly functional in nature, these movements will also help strengthen the tendons and ligaments sur-rounding the joint.

9 Quick to learn - With the right instruc-tion kettlebell move-ments are quick to

learn. Once you know the basics you can start adding more advanced moves but in the beginning just a few moves will see you well on your way to improved fit-ness, fat loss and increased strength and flexibility. If you initially just master the swing

and the Turkish get up you will see many benefits.

10 Great for women - Unlike free

weight exercises, kettlebells won't add big muscles to your physique. What they will do however is build a svelte, lean shape very much enhancing the look of the female body.

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Be aware of your surroundings - Can I see any potential dangers nearby, is there a “safe” place where I can get help, where is the nearest escape route? These are all things that should go through your mind when as-sessing your environment. Know your limits - As I men-tioned in my last article becom-ing overconfident and cocky can be extremely dangerous, ego equals trouble. Project a confident image - Carry yourself in a confident authoritative manner. This will stop you from looking like an easy target. Objects as self defence weapons - Learn to everyday objects as self defence weap-ons, things like keys, pens and umbrellas are ideal. Mobile phones - Keep your mobile on your person not in a bag or briefcase which can easily be stolen. Keep your mobile fully charged.

What if you are in a violent situation?

If you find yourself in a poten-tially violent situation there are a number of things you should do. Keep your distance - Distance yourself from your attacker. Space is crucial, if you are too close you cannot defend yourself as effectively. Your punches and kicks will lack power due to the small distance they can travel. Keep-ing your attacker at a distance will also allow you time to think and if need be to flee. Barrier - Try to keep a barrier between yourself and your at-tacker. This links with the pre-vious point. By keeping an ob-ject between yourself and your attacker it will act as a barrier keeping them from you for ex-ample you are in a bar and a guy takes a disliking to you try to position yourself the oppo-site side of a table to him. With the table in the way your at-tackers reach is diminished. Voice - use your voice authori-tatively, give a command such as “STAY BACK” this will make you appear confident, and may deter some attackers. Stance - how you stand will

affect your ability to defend yourself, sounds stupid but it will make a huge difference. Try this: stand how you nor-mally do, ask a friend/ family member to gently push you………….. You almost fell; this is because you are off bal-ance. Now try again but this time split your stance. Take one foot forward and bend the front knee. Keep your back leg straight; Different result this time? That is because you are grounded in a solid stance.

Car tips Surroundings - Before exiting your car use your mirrors to survey your surroundings for danger. If in doubt drive on and find somewhere else to park. Returning to the car - When returning to the car, do so in a way that you can see all round it. What’s in the back - Before you get into your car, check the back seat to make sure there are no nasty surprises waiting. Yes I know its cliché but hey better to be safe than sorry.

Although the modern world is far safer than when your ancestors were wan-dering around the plains and forests hunting and gathering, there are still times when your personal safety and that of your family and/or friends may be at risk. There are a number of things you can do to reduce your risk of being a victim of violence...

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There are five components of fitness that you need to consider to develop a good level of all round fit-ness...Cardiovascular Fit-ness, Muscular Endurance, Muscular Strength, Flexibility and Motor Fitness. Cardiovascular Fitness or aerobic fitness describes the ability of the heart and lungs to take in and transport oxy-gen to the working muscles where it will be utilised. This is measure by estimating your VO2 max which means maximum volume of oxygen. (Cardiovascular exercise can further be defined as ‘an activity which is rhythmic, continuous and uses large muscle groups under low to moderate tension over an extended period of time’.) Muscular Endurance is the ability of a muscle to exert sub maximal force against a resistance over an extended period of time.

Muscular Strength is the maximum amount of forces that can be generated by a muscle or group of muscles against a resistance in one contraction. This is meas-ured as a 1rep max (1RM). Flexibility is probably the most underrated of the com-ponents of fitness and is the measure of the maximum range of movement possible around a joint or joints. Motor Fitness is skill based and will is specific to your activity. It encompasses co-ordination, reaction times, speed, balance and agility. In basic terms, motor fitness refers to how your nervous system communicates with your muscles to ensure the correct response. When considering what makes up a balanced pro-gramme, as well as the com-ponents of fitness, we must also remember that every-one is an individual and will have different genetics, eat

different diets and this may influence training results. If we are to achieve our goals and maintain our healthy life-styles we need to make sure that the exercise is specific to what we hope to achieve. Exercise Physiologists McArdle, Katch and Katch state „Specific exercise elic-its specific adaptations cre-ating training effects‟. This is the SAID principle. With ex-ercise, it‟s very much a case of what you do defines what you get in terms of results. By adhering to a few basic exercise principles, you can ensure that your workouts take you towards and not away from your goal of im-proved fitness... Specificity. This is the adaption of an individual to a specific training stressor. For example aerobic fitness for swimming will improve most when we train the specific muscles for that particular activity.

Are you considering starting a new exercise programme or returning to it after a break or a period of ill health? If so, there are a few things that you ought to know before

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For General Health. F 5 times a week. I 50-90% of maximum heart rate. T 30 minutes continuous or 2 to 3 accumulative sessions. T rhythmic continuous movement of large muscle groups. For Cardiovascular Fitness. F 3-5 times a week. I between 55-90% of maximum heart rate. T 20-60 minutes. T rhythmic and continuous use of large muscle groups. For Muscular Strength. F 2-3 times per week. I 90-100% 1RM for each muscle group. T can vary depending on muscle group. 1-3 sets of 1-6 reps. T at least 2 exercises per muscle group, using both concentric and eccentric dynamic

movement. For Muscular Endurance. F 2-3 times per week. I 40-50% 1RM for each muscle group. T Can vary depending on muscle group. 12 -15 reps 1-2 sets per exercise. T at least 2 exercises per muscle group, using both concentric and eccentric dynamic

movement. For Flexibility F at least 3 times a week. I to a position of mild discomfort. T 8-10 exercises large muscle groups. Hold for 10-30 seconds. T static, though dynamic and PNF where appropriate

Progression If we do not continually make the exer-cises we perform harder then how will we progress? We must increase the train-ing stimulus so that we can continue to adapt. Overload We can achieve this by manipulating various factors in our training, for ex-ample the frequency, inten-sity, time or type of activity. We must continue to push

that bit harder. When things get easier as our body adapts then it is time to mix things up again. Reversibility This refers to what happens when we stop training and reductions in fitness or strength that will occur. For overload to take effect and adaptation to occur we need to manipulate a few

variables. This is what is known at the FITT principle. Frequency, Intensity, Time and Type There are various FITT prin-ciples for various types of exercise and these are set by the ACSM (American Col-lege of Sports Medicine). These can be seen below.

To conclude when you start on an exercise programme in order to achieve the desired results consideration should be given to all of the above. Your trainer in your gym will be able to help and advise you how best to proceed. Next time I will look at why exercise is important and the benefits and risks of exercise. How to start from the very beginning and how to set goals to ensure you achieve the re-sults you want. March 2011 | Fitnorama | 13

Back in my twenties, I caught the bodybuilding bug, big time. I was a skinny guy with genes better equipped for a long distance runner, but, I didn‟t like my appear-ance and decided to do something about it. Initially, I was embarrassed to tell my friends that I was a body-builder, fearing ridicule, but regardless, I was at the gym 6 times a week literally mak-ing things up as I went along! However, attempting to follow the routine of the biggest guy there was fool hardy and one of many mis-takes typically made by guys today. The guy with the 18 inch arms has earned the right to his 6 day split rou-tine, I hadn‟t! In this article I would like to give some gen-eral advice on how to avoid some common mistakes in the art of building one‟s body and outline a basic pro-gramme you can follow and hopefully, as a consequence help your training get off to a flying start.

Start right for the biggest gains possible. When you train with weights for the first time you are cre-ating a massive stimulus for muscular growth within your body. Get it right and you will see great improvements in your physique. Get it wrong and you will waste that valu-able window of opportunity that exists when you intro-duce a new activity to the body. If you give your body the appropriate stimulus and feed it accordingly then, re-gardless of your genetics, you will grow! In the beginning, less equals more 3 days a week, training the whole body with 2 to 3 sets per body part for 8 – 12 repetitions is enough for the first 6 - 12 weeks. Focus on correct movement patterns as opposed to trying to lift the biggest weight possible.

Concentrate on learning good technique before wor-rying too much about the weights you are lifting. Good exercise technique learnt now will save you injury time in the future! So, what does this mean, let‟s take squatting, a funda-mental exercise that will be one of the corner stone‟s of your programme. You need to learn proper squat tech-nique right from the start. Don‟t load up your body with weight until you can squat just your own body with good form. The neuromus-cular adaptations laid down during this period need to be correct. It‟s very hard to „unlearn‟ something once learnt. Get the movement right from the start. Ask for advice from a qualified in-structor at the gym or a per-sonal trainer. It‟s beyond the scope of this article to delve into correct exercise tech-nique so proceed diligently.

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Use the following guide to set up your programme:

Training frequency 3 day per week

Training days Monday, Wednesday, Friday

Sets per exercise 2 - 3

Rest between sets 90-120 seconds

Repetition guide 8 - 12

Programme duration 6 – 12 weeks

Workout duration 45-60 minutes + stretching

What exercises should I be doing? The primary purpose of starting a resistance programme is muscular growth. As I‟ve al-ready stated, get everything right in the beginning and muscle growth should happen quite readily. Compound or isolation movements? The majority of the exercises performed need to be compound or multiple muscle group exercises. A compound movement uses multiple muscle groups at once to move a given weight. For example, take an overhead press. Not only are you using your Deltoids (shoulder) muscles as the primary mover , you are also using your Triceps as the primary mover and you have a multitude of other muscle groups all working together to control your shoulder blades and stabilize your shoulder joint. The involvement of all these stabi-lizing muscles is one of the reasons free weight exercises are so effective; they force you to activate extra muscle fibers. In contrast, take a cable lateral raise where you are solely trying to hit the lateral head of the Deltoid! Which do you think is going to force the body to adapt and grow? The exercises:

Squats (body weight, back or front squat)

Bench press (flat or incline) Deadlift

Quadriceps Pectorals Spinal Erectors

Glutes Front Deltoids Glutes

Hamstrings Triceps Rhomboids

Spinal erectors Latisimus Dorsi Trapizius

Overhead press (barbell or dumbbells)

Bicep curl (barbell or dumb-bell)

Triceps press (lying exten-sions, dumbbell or barbell)

Front/rear Deltoids Biceps Medial head of Triceps

Triceps Brachialis Lateral head of Triceps

Upper Pectorals Forearms Long head of Triceps

Wide grip pull ups or Lat pull-downs

Barbell rows Romanian deadlifts

Latissimus Dorsi Latissimus Dorsi Hamstrings

Rhomboids Teres Major Glutes

Teres major Rhomboids Spinal Erectors

Trapizius Trapizius

Lunges Calf raises (standing) Planks, front and side

Quadriceps Gastrocnemius Rectus Abdominus

Glutes Soleus Obliques

Hamstrings Inner core muscles

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This is how you may want to structure your programme:

Exercises

Monday Back Squat

Medium grip bench press

Deadlift Barbell mili-tary press

Barbell curl Lying Triceps extension.

Front plank/side plank

Wednesday Front squat

Incline bench press

Barbell row

Wide grip pull up

Dumbbell shoulder press

Dumbbell curl Dumbbell Tri-ceps extension

Friday Lunges Dumbbell bench press

Deadlift Romanian deadlift

Barbell clean and press

Barbell curls Lying Triceps extensions.

Perform a general warm up first with some light cardiovascular exercise and then a light to moderate weight warm up set before each exercise. Total volume equates to about 14 to 20 sets (once warmed up) per session. Although this may not seem like a lot, the majority of these exercises use multiple muscle groups so you are getting a lot of work done in a short pe-riod of time. There is nothing flash about this programme, no supersets, tri sets, pre exhaust, or fancy pyramids. It‟s just a basic programme which once adapted through an appropriate rep and set scheme will massively stimulate the body

to produce muscle. Fuel yourself right with a quality diet and live as „clean‟ as possible and you will see some muscle growth as a result. Never mind what the guy next to you is doing with his 20 set chest session and two hour workouts! You should be in and out of the gym in 45-60 minutes tops. Work hard, use good form and only increase weight as and when you can. Minimise cardio whist you are trying to gain. If you insist on doing some-thing, introduce a twice weekly interval ses-sion so as to get it done quickly, 20 minutes maximum. On completion of your workout, cool down thoroughly with some stretching.

Summary

Use body weight only for exercises such as squats and Lunges until you are confi-dent that your exercise form is good, like wise for weighted exercises Perform a general warm up first making sure you incorporate all major muscle groups. Progress slowly using moderate intensity initially, concentrating on good form. Perform a specific warm up for each muscle group before you begin your 2 to 3 „working‟ sets. Progress the weight only when you can hit 12 reps on all your sets.

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Maintaining proper hydration during physical activity is essential to ensure top performance and keeping the body healthy, safe and comfortable.

Effect of water on the body

Water has many important functions in the body including...

Transportation of nutrients / elimi-

nation of waste products.

Lubricating joints and tissues.

Temperature regulation through

sweating.

Facilitating digestion.

Name Definition Concentration

Hypotonic Hypotonic drinks are of a low osmolality, thus containing fewer carbohydrate and electrolyte particles. Due to the lower os-molality, the drink is more dilute, and is therefore absorbed at a faster rate than or-dinary water

Hypotonic drinks are generally considered to contain less than 4g of carbohydrate per 100ml.

Isotonic Isotonic drinks are of the same osmolality as the bodies‟ own fluids, thus containing comparable amounts of carbohydrate and electrolytes

Isotonic drinks usually contain between 4 - 8g of carbohy-drate per 100ml.

Hypertonic Hypertonic drinks are of a higher osmolality than the bodies‟ own fluids (it‟s more con-centrated)

Hypertonic drinks contain ap-proximately 8g of carbohydrate per 100ml

During exercise all of these functions are tested and choosing the right way to hydrate your body can help to avoid dehydration and fatigue. There are three main concentrations of drink that all serve a purpose before, during and after exercise

NOTE: Osmolality - osmolality measures the number of osmoles of solute particles per unit volume of solution. [1]

Replenishing energy stores and maintaining adequate fluid intake during exercise: There is wide variability in sweat rates, losses and hydra-tion levels of individuals. It is nearly impossible to provide specific recommendations or guidelines about the type or amount of fluids we should consume. While we exercise, the bodies main source of en-ergy is muscle glycogen and depending on the intensity and duration of the exercises these stores can be depleted and therefore need replaced.

As well as this, studies have found that a loss of two or more percent of body fluid through sweating is linked to a drop in blood volume. When

this occurs, the heart works harder to move blood through the bloodstream. This can also cause muscle cramps, dizzi-ness and fatigue and even heat illness[2]. This is when the type of drink consumed becomes important.

When you‟ve been exercising at a moderate to high intensity for an hour or more nutrients will need to be replaced and drinking water alone will not be sufficient in replacing electro-lytes lost through sweating and it does not contain any energy (glucose). It is important to consider the osmolality of the drink as too low or high con-centrations of solutes can in-hibit gastric emptying delaying the nutrients entering the blood stream.

The effect of solutes on Gas-tric emptying: Gastric emptying is the rate at which nutrients leaves the stomach. Absorption of water and nutrients occurs in the up-per part of the small intestine, and replacement may be lim-ited by the rate at which fluid is emptied from the stomach or absorbed in the intestine. Gas-tric emptying of liquids is influ-enced primarily by the volume of fluid in the stomach and by its energy density. Hypertonic drinks are good for replacing lost nutrient post ex-ercise however not during ex-ercise as increasing the nutri-ent content will slow gastric

March 2011 | Fitnorama | 19

emptying. Intestinal water absorption is a passive proc-ess: water follows osmotic gradients but will also follow the active absorption of nu-trients, especially glucose, which is actively co-transported with sodium. Glucose and sodium are ab-sorbed via a common mem-brane carrier in the mucosal epithelium of the proximal small intestine [3]. It is good to choose sports drinks con-taining glucose as well as electrolytes (sodium) be-cause water transport is

maximised by their presence in the intestine.

During intense exercise last-

ing longer than 1h, it is rec-

ommended that carbohy-

drates be ingested at a rate

of 30-60 g.h(-1) to maintain

oxidation of carbohydrates

and delay fatigue. This rate

of carbohydrate intake can

be achieved without compro-

mising fluid delivery by drink-

ing 600-1200 ml.h(-1) of so-

lutions containing 4%-8%

carbohydrates (g.100 ml(-

1)). The carbohydrates can

be sugars (glucose or su-

crose) or starch (e.g., malto-

dextrin). 7) Inclusion of so-

dium (0.5-0.7 g.1(-1) of wa-

ter) in the rehydration solu-

tion ingested during exercise

lasting longer than 1 h is rec-

ommended since it may be

advantageous in enhancing

palatability, promoting fluid

retention, and possibly pre-

venting hyponatremia in cer-

tain individuals who drink

excessive quantities of fluid

(osmiality definition) Widmaier, Eric P.; Hershel Raff, Kevin T. Strang (2008). Vander's Human Physiology, 11th Ed.. McGraw-Hill. pp. 108–12.

Consensus Statement of the 1st International Exercise-Associated Hyponatremia Consensus Development Conference, Cape Town, South Africa 2005. Clinical Journal of Sport Medicine. 15(4):208-213, July 2005. The effects of consuming carbohydrate-electrolyte beverages on gastric emptying and fluid absorption dur-

ing and following exercise. Sports Med. 1987 Sep-Oct;4(5):322-51.Murray R.

American College of Sports Medicine position stand. Exercise and fluid replacement. Med Sci Sports Exerc. 1996 Jan;28(1):i-vii. Convertino VA, Armstrong LE, Coyle EF, Mack GW, Sawka MN, Senay LC Jr, Sherman WM.

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T his six week Peripheral Heart Action (PHA) workout serves up a good amount of resistance and cardiovascular training within a single session. The aim of PHA is the keep the heart rate elevated for the duration of your training ses-sion. So if you‟re looking for an all body workout while getting mega dose of

cardiovascular training to boot then this workout is for you. The basic structure of a PHA workout consists of the below done within a circuit fashion Upper body push Lower Body Upper body pull Aerobic

Using PHA You really are full of options whereby you can experiment using different reps/sets number of exercises, and PHA makes for great circuit training. And session can be undertaken anywhere with lots, little or no equipment. The plan below will take you through a six week phase with the intensity increasing over the weeks

Main exercise

Week 1 & 2 Week 3 & 4 Week 5 & 6

Reps Sets Rest Reps Sets Rest Reps Sets Rest

Warm-up Any cardio until fully warmed up

Any cardio until fully warmed up

Any cardio until fully warmed up

Bench press

15 3 30sec 12 4 20sec 10 5 10sec

Squats 20 3 30sec 15 4 20sec 12 5 10sec

Bent over rows

15 3 30sec 12 4 20sec 10 5 10sec

Rower 500meters 3 30sec 750meters 4 20sec 1000meters 5 10sec

Lunges 15 3 30sec 12 4 20sec 10 5 10sec

Chins (FF) Form failure

3 30sec (FF) Form failure

4 20sec (FF) Form failure

5 10sec

Burpees 10 3 30sec 10 4 20sec 10 5 10sec

Notes: On the resistance based exercises select weights which enable you to only perform the reps required. Use the rest periods shown above betweens sets and allow as much rest as you need after each circuit. No more than 90seconds!

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BENCH PRESS BENCH PRESS

-- Breathe in and lower Breathe in and lower

the barbell under the barbell under

control towards your control towards your

chest while keeping chest while keeping

the elbows inline with the elbows inline with

shoulders. shoulders.

Then breathe out and Then breathe out and

return the barbell to return the barbell to

the start position. the start position.

SQUAT SQUAT -- Take a deep Take a deep

breath, contract the abdomi-breath, contract the abdomi-

nal muscles (core), slightly nal muscles (core), slightly

arch the lower back and tilt arch the lower back and tilt

the pelvis forward.the pelvis forward.

Bend forward from the hips Bend forward from the hips

and lower down avoiding and lower down avoiding

rounding the low back.rounding the low back.

When thighs are horizontal When thighs are horizontal

to the floor, proceed to to the floor, proceed to

straighten the legs and re-straighten the legs and re-

turn to the start position at turn to the start position at

this point breath out. this point breath out.

BENT OVER BENT OVER

ROWS ROWS -- Grasp the bar Grasp the bar

with an overhand grip with with an overhand grip with

hands shoulder width hands shoulder width

apart.apart.

Bend from the waist 45 de-Bend from the waist 45 de-

grees and extend your grees and extend your

arms until the bar is inline arms until the bar is inline

with you knees.with you knees.

Breathe in and pull the bar Breathe in and pull the bar

in towards your chest. in towards your chest.

Return and breathe out to Return and breathe out to

complete the movementcomplete the movement

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ROWER ROWER -- slide forwards, re-

maining tall, Drive back force-fully with your legs, arms straight, once handles passed knees, pull into ribs, repeat.

LUNGES LUNGES -- StandStand holding a pair of dumb-holding a pair of dumb-

bells. Breathe in and take a big step forward, bells. Breathe in and take a big step forward,

keeping an upright torso, strong back and core.keeping an upright torso, strong back and core.

When the front leg reaches horizontal return to When the front leg reaches horizontal return to

the start position and repeat the movement with the start position and repeat the movement with

the other leg.the other leg.

CHINS CHINS -- Hang from the bar with a overhand Hang from the bar with a overhand

grip. Breathe in and pull your chest up to the level grip. Breathe in and pull your chest up to the level

of the bar. Breathe out and lower down to the start of the bar. Breathe out and lower down to the start

position. position.

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1

2

BURPEES BURPEES -- 1. Start 1. Start -- standingstanding

2. Place hands on the floor and jump 2. Place hands on the floor and jump

back to a pressback to a press--up positionup position

3. Jump back into a crouched position 3. Jump back into a crouched position

and jump up, hands to the ceilingand jump up, hands to the ceiling 4. End 4. End –– StandingStanding

3

4

5

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Follow these daily tips to help you reach your fat-loss and fitness goals...

1 IF YOU FAIL TO PREPARE, YOU SET YOURSELF UP TO FAIL!

2 Use smaller plates, dishes and cutlery when eating to disguise smaller portions

(you‟ll consume 22% less overall)

3 Eat smaller portions of EVERYTHING, even fruit, and cut out unhealthy sauces

& dressings

4 If you make too much dinner, freeze it or put it in the fridge for lunch the following

day

5 Treat yourself to HEALTHY rewards when you‟re bored or stressed or in need

of a reward

6 Try making food from „raw‟ recipes – go shopping at farmer‟s markets or order

from Abel & Cole. Make it a special occasion – it tastes so good, you won‟t want regular su-permarket food again!

7 Snack on protein to fill you up so you won‟t feel like grazing on unhealthy

snacks (boiled egg, chicken strips, cottage

cheese, soya yoghurt, nuts&seeds etc – sends signals to your brain saying you‟re full)

8 Read food labels – go for natural ingredi-ents with less preservatives and chemi-

cals – the less on the list, the better

9 ENERGY INPUT HAS TO BE LESS THAN ENERGY OUTPUT! (don‟t treat

yourself just because you‟ve worked hard out-side / in the gym – you‟ll lose the benefits completely)

10 Keep a photo of when you looked / felt your best visible at all times; be that

person again and look for role models OR keep a photo handy of how you looked when you were less healthy and don‟t turn back

11 Cut carbs, dairy & sugars completely for one week before a special event / occa-

sion (do this gradually)

12 Think in small chunks – eg losing 2lbs / wk. Visualise the 2 lbs melting off your

body before giving in to cravings. Small goals add up to the overall picture. Visualise this – 1lb loss / week comes from nutrition / 1 lb loss / wk comes from exercise

March 2011 | Fitnorama | 27

13 Create a check-list of what you SHOULD CONSUME, rather that what

you should avoid. It‟s easier to focus on what you‟re allowed rather than what you‟re not

14 CONSUME 5 SMALL MEALS / DAY + 2 SNACKS

whole grains – fresh fruit & veg – good quality protein – good fats – nuts & seeds – herbal teas

15 Drink a hot lemon water upon rising to boost your metabolism and cleanse

your kidneys

16 Feeling peckish @ 11:00 / 15:00? Es-cape for a stair climb / brisk walk for 10

mins to cut your desire for junk food

17 Carry a back-pack when jogging to burn more Kcals

18 Fill up on more watery salads / veggies and cut back on carbs (peppers, cour-

gettes, cucumber etc)

19 GO TO BED EARLY – the body needs to repair and staying up late causes

muscle cells to become insulin resistant there-fore storing fat. Plus you‟ll crave bad foods due to lack of sleep

20 Take a high GI carb snack (ie ba-nanas & raisins) with a Green Tea 30

mins pre-workout to boost your glycogen stores and therefore your workout

21 You‟ll look and feel 2.1 years younger in your lifetime if you consume at least 5

portions of fruit and veg every day!

22 Before you put anything in your mouth pause with a few deep breaths and

study the food in your hands; ask it “what good are you going to do me”? If it‟s naughty, con-sider how your hard efforts in your last work-out will be totally quashed. It‟s not worth it.

23 Be mindful and stay present when eat-ing, chew slowly and don‟t eat when

you‟re upset or angry or bored. Relax your mind and you will digest your food better

24 Out of sight; out of mind – don‟t keep junk in the house / at work

25 Eat before you shop to prevent you from making bad choices and stay

away from „cardboard aisles‟ – stick only to the fresh fruit, veg & meat

26 Squeeze a stress ball throughout the day and walk whenever the opportu-

nity arises to keep the metabolism fired up. Literally go out of your way to fetch something or an extra block for coffee etc

27 Keep cool. The body uses more energy then to generate heat (heating low at

home, cooler showers)

28 Ensure your meal contains a mixture of tastes, eg sweet, salt & sour, so

you‟re not craving the missing taste afterwards

29 Eat soup! It‟s proven to keep your stomach fuller for 2 hours longer than

a meal with water

30 Eat low-fat dairy! It‟s meant to help you absorb less fat from other con-

sumed foods

31 Drink a hot water with a ginner root slice prior to eating to fire up the diges-

tive system, ayurveda style

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What is the Palaeolithic Diet? In very simple terms, the Paleo diet is based on what experts believe we used to eat 10,000+ years ago – a period referred to as the Old Stone Age. That means no grains, sugar, minimal dairy and no proc-essed foods. In a nutshell (and yes – you can eat nuts!) if you can catch it, kill it or pick it you can eat it. To help you with your food selections, try this – if you can picture what you are about to eat in the wild then it‟s fair game. If you can‟t imagine your in-tended meal roaming the plains or sprouting from the earth (is that a herd of donuts I see in the distance or maybe a Snickers tree??!)

you can‟t. Grey areas include dairy and grains. Both of these foods only really en-tered our food chain when we started to do-mesticate animals and raise crops so these are technically Neolithic or New Stone Age foods so they are therefore excluded from the Palaeolithic diet although some propo-nents allow small amounts of wild rice, qui-noa and fermented dairy products such as natural yogurt and kefir. As with many types of diet, there are degrees of compliance and I have opted to include natural yogurt, qui-noa and the small amount of milk I have in my daily coffee. Other than that, I‟m grain and dairy free and have eliminated virtually all processed foods and sugar.

The Palaeolithic diet is one of many lower carb approaches to eating for health and weight management and often stirs up some controversy whenever it comes up in conversation. On one side of the fence, fans of Paleo eating often exclaim that it is a diet founded on ancient principles and evolution while opponents express concerns over the lack of obvious carbohydrate and the effect this might have on your ability to exercise. With both sides of the argument in mind, and in the name of science, I de-cided to give Paleo a try for myself. This article is a brief outline of my Paleo experi-ence to date.

March 2011 | Fitnorama | 29

What happened next… Unlike many of my friends, I generally do very well on low/no carb diets and have fol-lowed variations of the Atkins plan, Cyclic Ketogenic Diet and other high protein/low carb approaches before so I knew I wouldn‟t experience any noticeable ill affects by go-ing caveman. I was also coming off a period of overeating from a holiday where every-thing I ate was a yummy wheat-based carb and while I wasn‟t fat, I was not as lean as I normally am. In truth, I was ready to em-brace some clean eating as the novelty of rich, sweet, grain based foods had well and truly worn off! I spent the weekend preceding my caveman conversion emptying my cupboards of bread, rice and cereals (and putting them in my belly) to eliminate temptations and en-courage compliance figuring that if I didn‟t have it, I couldn‟t eat it. As a side note, I am a firm believer in the law of possession…if you have it in your cupboards, you will eat it! Not today, and maybe not tomorrow but at some point that high calorie “just for emergency” snack will end up being eaten and, if like me once the carb gremlin comes calling you find it hard to say no, this can throw a real spanner in the works of all your best intentions. A Typical Paleo Day I started most mornings with eggs which I either scrambled, fried or had as an ome-lette as well as fruit and/or vegetables. One of my favourite breakfasts is finely chopped courgette which I stir fry and then mix into my scrambled eggs and sprinkle with a little bit of sea salt. Tasty and filling! Lunch consisted of a large salad and some form of meat; maybe chicken drumsticks, homemade chicken liver and bacon pate, cold pork or beef – whatever I had cooked the day before. I made sure my salad con-tained as many mixed leaves as possible plus tomatoes, cucumber, onion and olives as well as some grapes for added sweet-

ness. For dressing I used extra virgin olive oil and balsamic vinegar. Apparently sweet-corn is a grain so I didn‟t add these to my salad but did sometimes add some nuts if I felt like I needed to bulk up the calorie con-tent of my lunch. Flaked almonds work es-pecially well. Dinner usually consisted of a big plate of roast vegetables (courgette, peppers, au-bergines and tomatoes) served with a large portion of meat or fish. Although not strictly a Paleo food, I ate a few potatoes once a week and quinoa once or twice a week. Quinoa is considered an “ancient grain” so I figured if it was good enough for the Aztecs, one or two servings a week wouldn‟t derail my efforts too much. After dinner I usually had a big bowl of homemade fruit salad with natural yogurt, honey and flaked almonds as I have a bit of a sweet tooth and enjoy deserts generally. For snacks, I ate a cou-ple of pieces of fruit – mainly apples – and plenty of nuts with my favourites being Bra-zils and almonds which I combined with a few raisins for added sweetness. I also snacked on cold meats, homemade beef jerky, coconut and raw vegetables. If I ran low on snacks I occasionally had a whey protein shake but this was rare and, whilst I realise my caveman ancestors wouldn‟t have access to this type of food, I believe it‟s a fair compromise and better than re-sorting to a candy bar. Beverage wise, I drank around two litres of water a day which I sometimes flavoured with pure lemon juice in place of the proc-essed cordials I used to use. I also have one or two cups of filter coffee a day which, whilst not strictly Paleo is something I enjoy so won‟t be giving up anytime soon! I also drank green tea most days but all but elimi-nated soda – diet or regular.

30 | Fitnorama | March 2011

Once a week, usually at the weekend, I in-dulged in some 70 – 85 percent dark choco-late. Again, not exactly Paleo approved but the lack of sugar combined with a high anti-oxidant content makes it, for me at least, a justifiable addition to my weekly food intake. I suspect my caveman ancestors would have liked it too! The Results So Far… Interestingly I didn‟t really lose weight but I did lose a significant amount of fat while gaining some muscle. Prior to going cave-man I could see my upper abs if I really REALLY squeezed hard but now I can see all of my abs all of the time plus a whole bunch of muscles that I don‟t think I have ever seen before! My energy levels and hunger levels were stable all day long - in fact, I didn‟t seem to get hungry very often at all which I put down to stable blood glu-cose and therefore insulin levels. I main-tained my usual programme of hard training and did not experiencing any performance drop off despite only eating an average 150 grams of carbs a day.

Closing Thoughts Am I going to stay Paleo? Yes – I think so. I

may choose to lapse for the occasional

meal and enjoy some bread when I eat out

or, in the near future, a large piece of birth-

day cake, but I am enjoying eating like a

21st century caveman and certainly have

enjoyed the truly effortless fat loss I have

experienced thus far. Like any eating plan,

there are times when it would be easier to

grab a sandwich than make a salad but for

me at least, the results - both how I feel and

how I look – make the sacrifices well worth-

while. While not for everyone, the Paleo diet

does seem to live up to some of the hype

surrounding it.

March 2011 | Fitnorama | 31

1 Weight loss. Water is one of

the best tools for weight loss be-

cause it is calorie free and can

be used to replace fizzy drinks

and alcohol which are often very calorie

dense. It's also a great appetite suppres-

sant. Often when you feel hungry you are

actually just thirsty. Water has no fat, no

calories, no carbs, and no sugar – the per-

fect weight management beverage!

2 Heart healthy. Drinking a good

amount of water could lower your

risks of a heart attack. A six-year

study published in the May 1,

2002 American Journal of Epidemiology

found that those who drink more than 5

glasses of water a day were 41% less

likely to die from a heart attack.

With so much conflicting sports

drink advice around it can be tricky

deciding what product to use when.

Do you need isotonic drinks? Hyper-

tonic drinks? And don‟t forget hypo-

tonic drinks! It‟s so easy to get so

bogged down in the science of

sports drinks that you might actually

forget that, in many cases, water is

all you need to keep your body well

hydrated and functioning properly.

Here are out top ten reasons for

drinking the ultimate sports drink

that is water! Shoot for around two

to three litres a day to enjoy the

benefits listed below.

32 | Fitnorama | March 2011

3 Energy. Being

dehydrated can

sap your energy

and make you feel

sluggish. If you're thirsty,

you're already dehydrated

and this can lead to fatigue,

muscle weakness, dizziness

and other less-than-pleasant

symptoms.

4 Headache cure.

Another symptom

of dehydration is

headaches. Many

headaches are the result of

simply a matter of not drink-

ing enough water. There are

lots of other causes of head-

aches of course, but dehy-

dration is a common one.

Try drinking water before

you resort to pain medica-

tion – you may find your

headache disappears on its

own.

5 Healthy skin.

Drinking water can

clear up your skin

and people often

report a healthy glow after

drinking water. It won't hap-

pen overnight, of course, but

just a week of drinking a

healthy amount of water can

have good effects on your

skin. It‟s a secret that super-

models swear by.

6 Digestive prob-

lems. Our diges-

tive systems need

a large amount of

water to digest food prop-

erly. Water can help cure

stomach acid problems,

and, along with fibre, can

help prevent constipation

(often a result of dehydra-

tion).

7 Cleansing. Water

is used by the

body to help flush

out toxins and

waste products from the

body. Clear, non-smelly

urine suggest that your uri-

nary system is functioning

well and you have a low

concentration of toxins in

your body.

Consuming a

healthy amount of

water has also been

found to reduce the

risk of colon cancer

by 45%.

8 Cancer risk. Con-

suming a healthy

amount of water

has also been

found to reduce the risk of

colon cancer by 45%. Drink-

ing lots of water can also

reduce the risk of bladder

cancer by 50% and poten-

tially reduce the risk of

breast cancer.

9 Better exercise.

Water aids the

body in movement.

In order to move

various chemical reactions

have to take place within the

body, a lot of these need

water.

10 Tem-

perature

regula-

tion.

Your body uses copious

amounts of water to help

you keep cool. When your

core temperature rises, your

body produces sweat which

evaporates, taking heat

away from the surface of

your skin. If you are dehy-

drated than you are more

likely to overheat when ex-

ercising and this will reduce

March 2011 | Fitnorama | 33

The marathon season is nearly upon us. The month of April will

see thousands of runners take to the streets for the first time in

nearly seventy 26.2 mile challenges across Europe. So whether

you‟re running London or Limassol, Brighton or Belgrade, the

month of March is arguably the most important and tough in mara-

thon training. Focussing during the final few weeks of harder run-

ning before easing down your training for the big day can really

make a difference in helping you achieve your goals. Fitnorama

answers your common marathon questions about the final push to

the finish line.

W hat is the furthest that I should run in my long runs and how far before the marathon should

I do this distance? It is generally agreed that you should aim to do your last long run three weeks before the date of the marathon. This should be the longest run that you attempt and you should have built up to this distance progressively each week over the previous months of training. This run should be no longer than 22 miles. Anything further will lead to fa-tigue, making you tired for your other runs during the week. It will also make you more susceptible to injury. Save your energy for the big race instead!

S hould I be drinking anything whilst I train?

Yes! Practicing your hydration strategy with a sports drink will help your body acclima-tise to taking on fluid at regular intervals, keep you hydrated, replenish lost electro-lytes and help to fuel your muscles. It will also get you used to practicing the skill of drinking whilst running, which can take some getting used to. Find out which sports drink is being distributed at the marathon that you are running and take regular sips of this during training. It is better to find out now whether your stomach can tolerate this drink rather than on marathon day! Be very

34 | Fitnorama | March 2011

careful not to over drink as this can lead to hyponatraemia (low sodium levels) which can be dangerous. The key here is to prac-tice different hydration strategies whilst training and find the approach that works for you before race day.

W hat about eating whilst run-ning?

Again, yes! This is very important! When you are running a marathon, your main source of fuel is carbohydrate, which is stored as glycogen in the liver and muscles. The body has a limited supply of this fuel and it will run out if not replenished whilst running. This is known as „hitting the wall‟ and is where your glycogen supplies have reached empty and your brain and muscles are being starved of their primary fuel sup-ply. This can be overcome by taking on fuel at regular intervals (every 30 to 45 minutes) during the race. Practice taking either en-ergy gels, sports bars, jelly beans or food on your training runs to find out which your body digests most easily and gives you that energy boost to carry you through to the fin-ish line.

I ’m finding it hard to motivate myself to go out on yet another long run. What can I do?

The final few weeks of training can be as much a test on the mind as on the body. Running can take up a lot of your free time and can be monotonous after jogging so many loops of your local park, so it is some-times difficult to keep motivated. There are plenty of strategies to combat this. It is im-portant, at this stage, to focus on why you are doing this. Each training run that you do is like money miles in the bank, which will make it easier for you to achieve your mara-thon goal. To keep your running fresh, per-haps think about doing an organised event instead? There are numerous races all over the country every weekend which are spe-cifically geared to help with marathon train-

ing. Running with hundreds of other people will help to motivate you and get you used to the environment of marathon day. Check out www.runnersworld.co.uk to find a race near you. If you‟d rather not participate in a race, then maybe finding a running partner would help keep up motivation levels. Web-sites such as www.joggingbuddy.com and www.runningpartners.org.uk are tailored towards finding someone to run with nearby who has similar goals to you

Remember that you will run a more enjoyable race if you can keep your pace consistent throughout the 26.2 miles!

H ow fast should I run on marathon day? Should I be practicing this in my training?

This really depends on your goal. If you have a finishing time in mind, then you need to think about the pace per mile that it would take to achieve this. For example, if you are aiming for a 4 hour 30 minute finish, you will need to run 10 minutes 18 seconds per mile on the day. It is generally agreed that your long training runs should be around 10 per-cent slower than your race pace, as training at this speed can help use the glycogen stored in your muscles and liver more effi-ciently. So for a 4 hour 30 marathon, you should aim to train at around 11 minutes and 20 seconds per mile. Practice your pac-ing on your last few long runs and assess whether this speed will be realistic for race day. Don‟t be afraid to lower your pace if necessary. Remember that you will run a more enjoyable race if you can keep your pace consistent throughout the 26.2 miles!

Good luck with your marathon sea-son!

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