Steep hills, grape and raising the bar

Do you have friends that can make a hill less steep? If you run with a supportive longtime friend, this study says you do!  
"It is important that friendship duration moderated hill slope perception. The longer participants knew their friends, the less steep they estimated the hill to be"

The simple presence of a supportive person can change how difficult something feels, so maybe the hill isn't smaller, but it will feel that way. Knowing this we need to both watch out for bad route information from our most social of running pals and keep our friends on our same running plan.

I have definitely been guilty of sending people on routes I ran with friends telling athletes they weren't so bad and hearing otherwise. And I have been sent up the side of a mountain by friends remembering routes 'that will only be a little longer' on solo runs feeling like death marches needing at least three emotional support treats to keep from having a tantrum. 

Time to get in touch with some running friends to join you on your next tough run. (or text a laugh to someone who sent you up something too difficult!) 

Also, time to mark your calendar for Strength Training for Runners on Wednesday nights. Is it easier if you have been joining me for years and we are friends? Not sure I can make that kettlebell lighter but why not come and find out. Information on the always free class is here. 

MOOD AND ENERGY
If the study linked above has you curious to dive in more, there are lots of studies regarding "geographical slant", HILLS. Here is one study that notes, "observers in a sad mood reported hills to be steeper" and here is another in which "two experiments demonstrate that participants who had consumed a glucose-containing drink perceived the slant of a hill to be less steep than did participants who had consumed a drink containing non-caloric sweetener." Sounds like you need friends, good mood and calories for best results, but you could have guessed that! 

RAISE THE BAR
If you want to watch women's sports, here is a new resource for finding a sports bar that pledges to show women’s college games on at least 50% of their televisions throughout the tournament and to ensure a safe, inclusive space where fans can gather for March Madness. 

GRAPE FLAVOR IS TRENDING
Tailwind Endurance fuel just announced its grape flavor is no longer seasonal but part of its core lineup. Skratch just announced grape chews. What's next? Are we going to start seeing Grape Crush at ultramarathon aid stations? I just learned it does come in a drink mix (which has zero sugar, so I would avoid during a race!) But if you need your nostalgia hit pre-race, you can get it with grape Pop Tarts, which according to their own marketing are back by popular demand.