Episode 4-435 – The Athlete’s Gut

The RunRunLive 4.0 Podcast Episode 4-435 – The Athlete’s Gut  (Audio: link) audio:http://www.RunRunLive.com/PodcastEpisodes/epi4435.mp3] Link MarathonBQ – How to Qualify for the Boston Marathon in 14 Weeks - Hey Folks - Hello and welcome to episode 4-435 of the RunRunLive Podcast. So, here we are.  Mid-July in New England.  And all that brings with it.  The deer flies are thick as college students on a Florida beach.  The days are long and weather is a dirty soup-like mixture that drains the sap right out of you when you’re outside.  People are slowing down a bit and easing off to vacation houses for a bit of lock-down in a different place.   Ollie and I have been getting out for 8 or so miles in the woods 3 days a week. Then I’ve been mixing in a long bike ride on Saturday with a longish run on Sunday mornings.  My legs are tired but I have a good cadence going.  Even with only 4 days of running I’ll end up with 40 miles this week.  I’m catching up on the Great Virtual Run across Tennessee.  I should pass the buzzard this week.  This week - and I’m speaking to you from Sunday afternoon now - this week I ran Tuesday, Wednesday and Friday in the woods with Ollie.  Saturday, I talked my running buddies into riding the Great Circum Groton Fondo with me yesterday that ended up being 37 ish easy road bike miles in the sun.  It was a hoot.  We stopped for muffins in Pepperell center about half way in – so that will give you an idea of the intensity with which we were riding! I guess I have to back up a bit.  My friend Gordon, who is my friend Frank’s brother, (I run with Frank every Sunday), Gordon had this idea of setting up a relay race that went all the way around Groton, the town I grew up in and where my running club is based, without actually touching Groton at any point.  I borrowed his course and we rode it on bikes yesterday.  I toyed with making it into a real event for charity and such, but there wasn’t much interest, so we just went out and had a good long ride.  Then this morning I got up early and ran 4.5 miles of trails with Ollie, then went and met the guys at 8:00 for another 10 on the road.  A nice mix.  Done by 10:00.  I’m whipped!  I could nap!  I’m getting a good balanced set of miles in.  I’m avoiding most of the heat.  I’m giving the dog enough exercise to stay sane.  Last weekend Ollie and I went down to our house in Cape Cod for the 4th of July.  I ended up coming back early because it was just too crowded and frantic.  I didn’t even attempt to go do my annual; beach run or my long ride on the rail trail.  Maybe I’m turning into a hermit, but I was a bit disconcerted by all the people and how stressed out they were, so I came back.  Today We are going to talk about all kinds of bodily fluids.  Actually we are going to talk about ‘The Athlete’s Gut’ with Dr. Patrick Wilson.  It’s his new book from Velo Press that answers the questions around why do I get nauseous or gassy or poopy when I’m running and racing?  In section One I’m going to talk about sweat – because I realize that my half hearted treatment of hot weather running was a bit thin.  In Section two I’ll talk about why certainty in an uncertain environment is so powerful. My work is very busy, but I’m having a good summer.  I actually threw my hat in the ring for another role at this company.  I have an interview tomorrow.  I know there are a lot of job seekers out there these days.  So I have a tip for you.  There will come a point in that interview where you will get a hard question that you don’t know the answer to and when you do, you lean back, get a faraway look in your eyes, channel your inner Rutger Hauer and say: “I've seen things you people wouldn't believe. Attack ships on fire off the shoulder of Orion. I watched C-beams glitter in the dark near the Tannhäuser Gate. All those moments will be lost in time, like tears in rain..” That won’t get you the job but you’ll be the topic of conversation in HR for weeks! On with the show. About Zero ZERO — The End of Prostate Cancer is the leading national nonprofit with the mission to end prostate cancer. ZERO advances research, improves the lives of men and families, and inspires action. Link to my ZERO page: (for Donations) … I’ll remind you that the RunRunLive podcast is ad free and listener supported.  What does that mean? It means you don’t have to listen to me trying to sound sincere about Stamps.com or Audible.. (although, fyi, my MarathonBQ book is on audible) We do have a membership option where you can become a member and as a special thank you, you will get access to member’s only audio. There are book reviews, odd philosophical thoughts, zombie stories and I curate old episodes for you to listen to.  I recently added that guy who cut off is foot so he could keep training and my first call with Geoff Galloway.   “Curated” means I add some introductory comments and edit them up a bit.  So anyhow – become a member so I can keep paying my bills.   … The RunRunLive podcast is Ad Free and listener supported.  We do this by offering a membership option where members get Access to Exclusive Members Only audio and articles. Member only race reports, essays and other bits just for you! Links are in the show notes and at RunRunLive.com … Section one – Sweat - Voices of reason – the conversation Patrick Wilson Patrick Wilson is an associate professor of exercise science and directs the Human Performance Laboratory at Old Dominion University. He earned a PhD in exercise physiology from the University of Minnesota and completed post-doctoral training in sports nutrition at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. Wilson has authored over 50 scientific articles that span the disciplines of exercise science, sports nutrition, and health. He is the author of the recently released book, The Athlete's Gut: The Inside Science of Digestion, Nutrition, and Stomach Distress. Wilson is also a credentialed registered dietitian through the Commission on Dietetic Registration.  The gut does many wondrous things for us. Without it, we surely couldn’t exist. For many an athlete, however, the gut can also be a source of consternation before, during, and after exercise. Have you ever made a pre-race trip to the Porta Potty due to an uneasy gut? Or ducked into some roadside greenery mid-race because of an angry bowl? Or hurled up your breakfast in the loo before a big game? If yes, you’re just one of the innumerable number of athletes that have been plagued by gut issues. What is so often vexing about these gut problems is that they can have many different causes, and consequently, they often aren’t fixable with a single solution. Thankfully, there is now a resource available for athletes to turn to when they are struggling with gut issues: . It is without a doubt the most comprehensive, accessible book on how exercise and sport competition affect the gut. It helps makes sense of the complicated gastrointestinal tract and offers potential solutions to many of the digestive troubles that plague athletes, from the recreational to the elite.  is a must-read for any athlete who is experiencing gastrointestinal problems that interfere with training or competition, as well as for coaches and practitioners that work with such athletes. Written by , assistant professor of exercise science and registered dietitian,  combines the latest research on exercise and the gut with humorous descriptions and relatable, real-life anecdotes. After reading this book, athletes will better understand the inner workings of their own gut and will be equipped to implement strategies to perform—and feel—better.       Patrick B. Wilson, PhD, RD Associate Professor Human Movement Sciences Old Dominion University 2003A Student Recreation Center Norfolk, VA 23529   Section two – Certainty in uncertain times  –   Outro Ok my friends we have run, clutching our side in gastrointestinal stress to the end of the RunRunLive Podcast Episode 4-435. I registered for the virtual Boston Marathon, it was $50.  And, Apparently I was one of the first 15,000 so I get some special, super-secret care package from the BAA.  I have a plan.  I am going to run my Boston as part of a 43 mile out and back on the Wapack Trail on September 7th.  I would love company if any of you can come up.  We are going to start at Watatic and run to the end of the Wapack Trail on the back side of Pack Monnadnock, turn around and run back.  This is the double of the race I ran in the spring a couple years ago.  This will take us 10-12 hours.  My friend Eric is coming up to join, because he can’t resist stupid shit like this.  I will be able to wrangle some basic on course hydration support, but nothing fancy.  Since it’s an out and back people can turn around any point they want. The Wapack is typical New England mountain trail.  Mostly single-path and highly technical.  Lot’s of elevation gain and loss, basically running the spine of a mountain range.  In September the forest will be thick and shady, except where you break out on to the tops of the mountains.  The weather is a crap shoot.  You can get very hot days, well hot for us, mid-80’s.   You can get the tail end of a hurricane with cold rain.  That’s part of the fun.  For the most part it’s very sheltered from the weather under the canopy.  So – that’s what I’ll be training for.  That’s my summer project.  … I’ve been listening to a history of ancient Egypt.  And since we have been talking about digestion and hydration I have a story for you.  I would imagine you are familiar with the electrolyte mix called Nuun?  I can’t prove it but I’d like to think they based that name on the Egyptian creation myth.  In the beginning, all that existed was the sacred water.  The lifeless sacred waters from which all things would be made were called Nun.  They were the waters of chaos and the waters of everything.   The first god Atum created himself from the Nun.  He got bored with being the only god so he decided to create some more gods and other stuff, like all the rest of the stuff we have in this world.  Now he didn’t have a partner to do anything procreative with so he, umm, ‘handled that situation himself’ and fertilized the Nun from which everything else came into being.  So…Think about that the next time you take a big swig of that warm, sweet, cloudy Nuun at mile 40 of your ultra.  And I’ll see you out there. (Outro bumper) To take you out is Track number 14 from Brian Sheff The Rock Opera by - Called "Bobby LeFavre” Enjoy   MarathonBQ – How to Qualify for the Boston Marathon in 14 Weeks - Rachel -> Coach Jeff ->