ActivAthlete

Running is great for those looking to get in shape. When you run in warm weather, you need to be careful in order to be safe. Learn how your body reacts to the temperature, and make sure you pay close attention. Run in the shade when you can, and always keep yourself properly hydrated. All of these careful precautions will help you avoid heatstroke, and remember that women in particular need to be aware of how the heat affects the body. Be very selective when you decide what you’ll wear on your run. Running clothes can help you stay cool in hot weather, but the wrong choices can make the situation worse!

Keep in mind that altering your outfit is probably not enough to protect you from the heat. Sure, you will most certainly wear fewer clothes and lighter clothes. Even if you go for a vest or a crop top, though, you should run in the earlier mornings and the later afternoons when it’s hot.

You really don’t want to wear cotton for your running clothes. It’s inexpensive and cotton does soak up sweat, but it just is not a good choice for running attire. It soaks up sweat but it holds onto it! Instead of evaporating and cooling you down, you just end up with a heavy, wet shirt. Manmade synthetic fabrics have been developed to pull moisture away from your skin. These wicking fabrics push liquid to the outside of the garment, where it evaporates more readily. When you wear running clothes with wicking fabrics, you’re making a significant step toward heat protection.

The moisture instead evaporates easily on the outside of the garment. Running clothes designed with this kind of wicking material stay light and dry. Don’t forget to also protect your body from the rays of the sun that accompany the heat. You need to make sure every bit of exposed skin is protected by sun block with at least a 15 SPF. You may also want to wear protective eyewear. The best active clothing stores such as www.lululemon.com and www.aetherapparel.com offer a great selection of running clothes including visors and beanies to protect your head. Remember that the temperature of your head is important to regulating your temperature as a whole.

In addition to your outfit, make sure you stay hydrated when you run. You need to do all you can to avoid dehydration! Did you know that you could lose between six and twelve ounces of fluid for every twenty minutes you spend running? You’ve got to stay hydrated. No amount of money you spend on quality running clothes that will suck away the heat will allow you to skip this! Pre-hydrate with ten to twelve ounces of liquid, about fifteen minutes before you run. Then, drink something every ten to twenty minutes along your running route. You can actually test your hydration by weighing yourself before and after you run. For every pound you’ve lost, you should have drunk at least a pint of liquid. Remember, too, that you may not experience thirst. That doesn’t mean you’re hydrated.

If you get chills or feel nauseated while running, stop right away. Stop also if you feel dizzy or if you stop sweating. Immediately go to a shaded area and drink fluids. Get help right away, if you don’t feel better in a few moments. You might have a heatstroke, which happens when body temperature rises because the body has lost its ability to regulate temperature. It can cause symptoms ranging from mild confusion to delirium to unconsciousness. Heatstroke can kill you, so don’t hesitate to get help. As you run, wear quality running clothing, try to stay cool by running in the shade and keeping yourself hydrated, and know your body and its reactions. If any sign of heatstroke comes up, deal with it immediately.

Basically, because I want (need) to work out. Walking just gets too boring after a while. Running is harder but much more fun.

I was never the athletic type in my life. I was the kid that avoided running in school. I even avoided running in the army, strolling along the path during officer’s course, while the other cadet’s were running along.

I guess the Internet made me start running. Reading about fitness, running came up repeatedly. People seemed addicted. I really wanted to give it a try, but wasn’t sure where to start. Then I found the Couch to 5K running program. Well, couch potato I was, so I had a good starting point! I decided to give it a try, skeptic as I was.

It was like a miracle. Gradually, week by week, I managed to complete the plan. Two and a half months later, I did it – I ran my first 5K (actually, a bit longer). For real runners, it may sound funny – it’s only five kilometers (or three miles). For a couch potato like me it was nothing short of a miracle.

It did come at a cost though – during the last month of the program, I had to end each run with elevated feet and ice packs on my knees. I gave myself some recovery time afterwards. It lasted a bit longer than anticipated… then we traveled, and then I just got lazy, and here I am less than a year later, having to start the running all over again…

I’ve decided to go at it at a slower pace this time around, to try and minimize the risk of injury. Instead of taking nine weeks to finish this, I am taking 18, repeating each week’s program for another week. Hopefully, this will let my body adjust more gradually and protect my knees.

This is the little beauty of a leg workout that I have been doing to get flexible and strong in weird ranges of motion for capoeira. Not much equipment is needed to do this leg workout and you can even do without the leg extension if one is not available, but that is for another time and place!

Exercises Sets x Reps - Rest

A1 Leg extensions 4×10-120

A2 One Leg Squats 4×10-120

B1 Sprinter Leg Curls 4×10-120

B2 Lunge Squat Lunge 4×10-120

C1 4 Corner Jumps 4x 1 minute

C2 Squat Calf Raise 4×10

Leg extensions - No need for a description

One Legged Squats - Hold onto the smith machine or something else stable to start with. Extend one leg out in front of you and sit back on the other working leg. Your foot will be flat on the working leg. Go all the way down for this leg workout. Your heel should touch your hamstrings. Stand all the way back up and do both legs.

Sprinter Leg Curls - You may require a partner for these. You can also hook your heels under something stationary. You will kneel on a matt with your hips forward so that you look like the letter L. From there you lean forward and then pull yourself back using only your hamstrings for this workout. Alternately you can go all the way to the floor and do a half pushup and then let the hamstrings take over for the rest of the pull.

Lunge Squat Lunge - Do a backstep lunge, come forward and then drop into a squat. Now go back on the opposite leg and then forward to another squat. That is one rep. This is a killer leg workout for the quads as well as the hamstrings if you go deep on everything.

Four Corner Jumps - Stay on your toes and jump side-to-side and front to back. It works the calfs and you can also do them jumping jack style….here is where is gets juicy…you do these for time not reps and then go right to...

Squatting Calf Raises - This is just your bodyweight for this lower part of the leg workout. Squat down and moving only your ankles, raise up your bodyweight. Just like on the sitting calf raise machine. Soon as you finish, go right back to the four corner jumps!

That is it for my athletic leg workout, hope you like it and have fun.