Final week!

Monday 17/03/2008

So careful about not getting the flu or diarrhea that I'm resting more than I should! Too much taper may not be good?

Tapering for an ultra. Start your taper 3 weeks before (instead of 2) to give yourself a chance to get sick and get over it before the race.

Tuesday 18/03/2008

Ran last night's 8km 4 minutes slower than last week. My heart wasn't hurting or hyper pounding as much last night as when I was resting. Still trying to figure out what happened last week :-(

Early onset of fatigue during exercise is a common complaint among athletes, especially female endurance athletes. Overtraining, stress, or many other external factors can cause fatigue, but many cases of fatigue are attributable to a lack of iron in the blood, a condition known as anemia.

Symptoms of iron-deficiency anemia include muscle burning, shortness of breath during exercise, nausea, frequent infections, respiratory illnesses and a pale, washed-out appearance. Over 50 percent of female endurance athletes have depleted iron stores, which suggests dietary intervention may be necessary to prevent anemia.

The results suggest that low ferritin is more common among women who train for distance events than for sprints. This difference may by due to differences in bioavailability of food iron intake.

Clark notes that the fatigue often coincides with other symptoms, such as an elevated heart rate at lower than normal exertion, chest discomfort, shortness of breath or dizziness.

Wednesday 19/03/2008

Didn't find articles relating to sports anemia and diarrhea combined. Locked by medical sites :-(