Muscle power, cramps and the start line

​A friend sent me a link to an adventure style autorickshaw race across Sri Lanka and despite seeing this movie showing how bad stuffing yourself into an auto rickshaw for days would be (the heat, the bumps, the mechanical breakdowns, the monsoon rains coming inside), I still am like, HMMMM, that sounds fun. Why do I have to be this way?? Seven days of sitting in a car with air conditioning sounds bad. Sitting in a lawn mower in 100-degree heats sounds like a special kind of torture, but yet here I am, thinking HMMMM. I used to identify as a runner. Now I say I am an endurance person. I like to do things that last a long time and require snacks. I guess I need to update my definition to doing things that last a long time, require snacks and requires muscle power. 

MUSCLE POWER
Whether you are training for a long drive or a long run, join me on Wednesday night for Strength Training for Runners. Live to your screen and always free. Stay home, get strong. 

CRAMPS
Do you cramp in long runs or races and can't figure it out. Have you tried and tried to get more electrolytes but nothing is working? So far there has been no correlation between electrolyte balance and cramping in studies on why athletes get cramps. 

The current thinking on cramping is that local muscle fatigue and an altered nervous system losing the signal that tells your muscles to relax are more likely factors. History of cramping, running faster than your training supports, and prior injury are widely considered major risk factors. So, if muscle fatigue is a potential issue, there is a line of thinking that strength training can help prevent cramping. I mean, we should all be doing it anyway, might be worth a try!  

THE START LINE
What if a race partnered with a well established women's organization to help grow female and non-binary participation at that race specifically with scholarships, training opportunities and childcare assistance? Sounds pretty great. The Women of The Wasatch has partnered with the Speedgoat 50k to do just that. They are calling it The Start Line and I will be watching to see how it goes. Since Speedgoat is part of the UTMB family of races, it would be great if it works to see partnerships like this expand to more races all over. 

CROWDSOURCING PRIZE PURSES
A few weeks ago, at the Black Canyon Ultras by Aravaipa, the race directors gave money for podium prizes and then opened up a fund for spectators and fans to contribute to the prize. It seems intriguing as a way to up the prize money for a race, but also, bummer it has to come to this where brands and race directors aren't paying these prizes. Then there was this article talking about this structure more in depth and it hadn't occurred to me that trail running spectators aren't buying tickets like many sports and maybe the spectators do want to give something to up the stakes for athletes.