Chris Cooper's Blog
April 24, 2019
Skip the Post-Workout Electrolytes and Grab a Beer!
A recent Wall Street Journal article discusses new low-cal, low-carb, even electrolyte-infused options that are turning craft beer from a reward into a recovery drink.
���There���s definitely a trend to market craft beer to active people, and even some data that suggests active people are drinking more,��� said Christie Aschwanden in the article, a science writer whose book ���Good to Go: What the Athlete in All of Us Can Learn from the Strange Science of Recovery��� (W.W. Norton & Company) examines the latest research on post-exercise recovery and the growing market for related products.
But will beer really aid your post-workout recovery? Ms. Aschwanden explained that, ���It���s drilled into us by sports drinks that electrolyte drinks are these magic pellets, but electrolytes are simply salt, and we���re really not deficient in them at all,��� she said. ���But beer is mostly water, so it is hydrating, and the carbs in beer are actually helpful in recovery.���
Another reason for a post-workout brew is that the biggest benefit might be booze itself. ���One thing that���s often neglected after a hard workout is the need to relax. It���s important to send a signal to the body that it���s time to recover,��� said Ms. Aschwanden, which is when a mug of suds might just do the trick. She added, of course, that ���The trick is to stop at just one.���
March 19, 2019
The Boston Marathon in Hip Hop
For those running in next month's Boston Marathon, a little history in
Hip Hop form. Enjoy!
It���s on Patriot���s Day when they emerge
In Hopkinton where they converge.
Across the line they soon will surge
And purge any thoughts
Of finishing first
Only not to do their worst.
And here���s the thing, come each spring
That town���s the center of the universe.
Running it will take a while
Bring all your cunning and your guile
Cause the race to Beantown is 26 miles
Then brace yourself and add two tenths
I mean, how the hell did they get that length?
But every marathon is that distance
London, New York, Paris for instance
Still, Boston is a rarity
Why? You want some clarity?
Well, for Boston you must qualify
In another race they certify
For the age group that you specify
To ensure your time will verify.
So when you boast ���I���m running Boston���
The sentiment is not lost on
Others, because it���s understood
If you BQ you���re pretty damn good.
Then there is the history
Run to the harbor and throw in some tea
One if by land and two if by sea.
And Paul Revere could he
Steer that course without his horse?
That I���d like to see.
Sure, it���s a race like no other
See the faces on mothers, sisters and brothers
Who greet the runners along the route on
The streets of Ashland, Nattick and Newton.
At the halfway mark near Wellesley College
The coeds are full of running knowledge
And you���re acknowledged
By so many voices, your only choice is
To be astonished.
But soon after all that reelin��� and shoutin���
You may get a little feelin��� of doubtin���
Cause Heartbreak Hill can seem like a mountain
(It���s really several hills but then who���s countin���).
There���s apprehension and resignation
Is that sweat on your brow or condensation?
Just don���t let go of that determination
And pay attention on that glorious ascension.
And when you crest it, or is that ���if���
You���ll soon be tested or you better be fit
With so many miles left to go
Your mind and body will let you know
If your muscles cramp or your calf is tightening
Then the last half could be so frightening
Just hang in there and keep on fighting
And dang doesn���t all this seem exciting?
By now your time is measured in hours
So you���ll treasure that view of the Hancock Tower
Copley square? You���re almost there.
Cheering is louder but you don���t dare
Smile until the final mile.
And when you eventually cross the line
You really won���t care about your time
Because nothing there can ever diminish
The fact that Boston you did finish.
Be grateful cause not many can say it
In your mind you���ll want to replay it
Now take that medal and display it.
And after your head is once again clear
You���re compensated with no more to fear
And rehydrated with water and beer
You���re so elated almost in tears
The single thought you now hold dear
Is ���When do I qualify for next year.���
December 5, 2018
A Runner's 12 Days of Christmas
Back by popular demand ..............
On the twelfth day of Christmas,
my true love sent to me . . .
Twelve months of running
Ten days a-limping
Eight maids massaging
Seven thoughts of quitting
Four blown-out shoes
Two DNFs
. . . and a Boston qualifying time!
* * *
Stocking Stuffer: Check out MY BEST RACE for your running friends.
Paperback, audiobook, or eBook!
March 15, 2018
March 5, 2018
3:59.4
A tribute to Roger Bannister, who passed away on Saturday, from the New York Times:
On the morning of May 6, 1954, a Thursday, Roger Bannister, 25, a medical student in London, worked his usual shift at St. Mary���s Hospital and took an early afternoon train to Oxford. He had lunch with some old friends, then met a couple of his track teammates, Christopher Chataway and Chris Brasher. As members of an amateur all-star team, they were preparing to run against Oxford University.
About 1,200 people showed up at Oxford���s unprepossessing Iffley Road track to watch, and though the day was blustery and damp ��� inauspicious conditions for a record-setting effort ��� a record is what they saw. Paced by Chataway and Brasher and powered by an explosive kick, his signature, Bannister ran a mile in under four minutes ��� 3:59.4, to be exact ��� becoming the first man ever to do so, breaking through a mystical barrier and creating a seminal moment in sports history.
Bannister���s feat was trumpeted on front pages around the world. He had reached ���one of man���s hitherto unattainable goals,��� The New York Times declared. His name, like those of Babe Ruth, Bobby Jones and Jesse Owens, became synonymous with singular athletic achievement.
Then, astonishingly ��� at least from the vantage point of the 21st century ��� Bannister, at the height of his athletic career, retired from competitive running later that year, to concentrate on medicine.
���Now that I am taking up a hospital appointment,��� he said in an address to the English Sportswriters Association that December, ���I shall have to give up international athletics. I shall not have sufficient time to put up a first-class performance. There would be little satisfaction for me in a second-rate performance, and it would be wrong to give one when representing my country.���
After a long career as a neurologist, both in research and clinical practice, Bannister, who was knighted in 1975, died on Saturday in Oxford, his family confirmed in a statement on Sunday. He was 88.
His record-setting feat would be surpassed many times. Runners in the next decades would be faster, stronger, better-equipped, better-trained and able to devote much of their time to the pursuit while benefiting from advances in sports science. But their later success did not dim the significance of Bannister���s run.
���He was running on 28 training miles a week,��� Sebastian Coe, who set the world record in the mile three different times, once said. ���He did it on limited scientific knowledge, with leather shoes in which the spikes alone probably weighed more than the tissue-thin shoes today, on tracks at which speedway riders would turn up their noses. So as far as I���m concerned, that was one of the great runs of all time.���
November 6, 2017
At What Temperature Can You Run Your Fastest Marathon?
According to an analysis of more than four million finishing times from 20 years of marathon data, fastest times are run on days when the temperature is in the 40s.
A recent article by Michael Greenstone of the Energy Policy Institute at the University of Chicago also suggests how much slower a runner's time will be at varying higher temperatures. For example, running that 26.2-mile race on a 60-degree day (like the recent NYC Marathon) will likely add about 12.5 minutes to your time, relative to a day in the 40's.
Runners looking to set a PR, therefore, should not only look for that "flat and fast" course, but a race even later in the year and perhaps farther north than they originally intended.
October 5, 2017
Instead of Running Your Next Marathon, Why Not Volunteer?
Marathon season is officially here in the northeast, with cool, crisp temperatures and falling leaves. Two of the upcoming 26.2-mile races, New York City (Nov. 5) and Philadelphia (Nov. 19), first began as 3 laps around the local park - - Central Park in NYC, the Art Museum loop of Fairmount Park in Philly. Both now take runners away from the boring loop courses and into neighborhoods and historic sites instead.
If you've never run one, it's a good time to start putting in a foundation for a 26.2-mile race in 2018. For motivation, it's fun to venture to Manhattan for their race and watch wave after wave of runners go by on First Avenue.
Another option, besides being a spectator or running, is to be a race volunteer. How to do it? ���Most go through our Web site and sign up there,��� says Edwin Ortiz Jr., Assistant Manager for Volunteers and Community Outreach for the New York Road Runners, the group behind the New York City Marathon and other races.
Check out the Web sites of popular races near you for a chance to volunteer on race day. You'll be surprised how much work is involved behind the scenes, and how much each race depends on their volunteers. At a recent New York City Marathon, 6,000 volunteered to help about 40,000 runners navigate safely through the city���s five boroughs. ���That seemed to be enough to get the job done,��� says Ortiz, ���but we could always use more.��� How about you?
July 27, 2017
Why We Need to Jog (or run) after Age 50
For those who have doubts about beginning or continuing a jogging/running program after age 50, this article from nextavenue.org is for you. Enjoy!
July 11, 2017
Parkrun asks: Why Pay to Run a 5K?
With race fees now averaging $26 for a basic 5K, how about racing that distance free of charge?
Begun in England, the popular Parkrun running program is catching on in the U.S. as weekend runners race for fun and for free in local parks.
Here is more on this program from the Wall Street Journal.
March 17, 2017
Simple Rhythms: Poetry for Runners
Please check out my friend's and fellow running author's newest book on the poetry of running.
Simple Rhythms is only $8.99 in paperback / $2.99 for the ebook, and available at popular online booksellers.
Laura Cherry (author of Two White Beds) says, "As with Charbonneau���s prose, Simple Rhythms offers insight, commiseration, and humor that any reader is sure to enjoy.���
