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Monday, January 30, 2017

Donating blood and running

A few people have asked me, how donating blood affects my running, so I thought I'd share a few facts on the topic.

I've been donating blood for many years in both Denmark and in the UK. I've also been involved in an interval-study over a couple of years to find out more about, how often one can donate safely. You can read more about the study and how my body reacted here.

I like donating blood and as long as I'm not a professional runner, I'm more than happy to share a pint of blood once in a while to those in need! 

I have found a few links describing how long time a body normally would take to recover from donating a pint of blood. A website from NHS [National Health Service, UK] state that "most people's haemoglobin levels are back to normal after 6 to 12 weeks". So if you have a race coming up, and you are aiming for a PB, then you should probably wait until after the race to donate, as it affects the transport of oxygen in your body, which affects your performance. 

American Red Cross states:
"How long will it take to replenish the pint of blood I donate? The plasma from your donation is replaced within about 24 hours. Red cells need about four to six weeks for complete replacement..."

Another site from RunnersWorld.com state that it takes about 60 days for a full recovery from donating blood (only about a day or two if you donate platelets):

"About one-third of that volume is red blood cells and the rest is mostly water. The water is replaced within the day as long as you get plenty of fluids, but the red blood cell mass replacement can take about two months. If you are well trained, you will not notice the drop in hemoglobin level at rest, or even with light to moderate exercise. When you push toward your training or race threshold, the lower red cell mass will become apparent."
And it also states:

"recommend giving yourself a couple of days off after donating to regain your fluid volume before resuming your training. Wait at least a month before running a serious race, meaning a marathon or fast-paced shorter race. Two months would be safest, especially if you plan to run at an altitude that is higher than where you usually live and train."
So all in all, don't expect to be able to perform your right after donating and give your body time to recover. Every body reacts and recovers differently from donating. Listen to your body - what does is say?

Based on my previous experience of being low in iron levels and the fact that I'm 99% vegetarian, I have started taking iron supplements to ensure that my levels doesn't drop too much and that I have a source of iron to recover after donating.

Some sources of Iron-rich foods include (Source: NHS):
  • dark-green leafy vegetables, such as watercress and curly kale
  • iron-fortified cereals or bread
  • brown rice 
  • pulses and beans
  • nuts and seeds
  • white and red meat
  • fish
  • tofu
  • eggs
  • dried fruit, such as dried apricots, prunes and raisins
Some foods/drinks make it harder for you body to absorb iron (Source: NHS):

  • tea and coffee
  • calcium – found in dairy products, such as milk 
  • antacids and proton pump inhibitors (PPIs) – medications used to relieve indigestion
  • wholegrain cereals – although wholegrains are a good source of iron themselves, they contain phytic acid, which can stop your body absorbing iron from other foods and pills
I'm not saying you should avoid coffee/tea or milk/dairy products completely, but maybe not drink them right before, or as a part of your meal, or right after. Maybe wait an hour or two...

I hope this gave you a bit of insight to how your body reacts to donating blood. I can definitely tell that running after donating is harder, and my heart rate definitely increases as the heart will have to work harder to transport the same amount of oxygen round the body as before donating. Hence I try to keep the first couple of sessions at low intensity to give my body a break and a change to recover, and then pick up speed and/or intensity as it gets back to towards normal levels. 

Until next time - see ya all out there :-)

#GiveBlood 

Best M.


Friday, January 27, 2017

Reebok Ambassador + London Marathon 2017

It seems like I'll be running London Marathon 2017 after all 😀

Friday afternoon (27/1 2017) I got an email saying "You're in!". 
A week prior to receiving this great email, I had filled in an application to become a Reebok Ambassador. This also includes a place at London Marathon in April 2017. How awesome is that! 😎



Now, receiving an email like that is a kind of weird - you don't really believe it at first. However, I replied saying my thanks to the person sending me the message, and got a reply back that more information will follow next week. I'm very pleased and honoured that I've been selected with 3 other runners for this. From the email, it is also mentioned that I get a coach - cool! 😁

So far so good - so unless somebody made a (huge) mistake of sending me that email, I'll be running at London Marathon this year on 23rd April! I'd better get on those trainers and get moving...!

So from a "running" perspective, 2017 doesn't seem so bad after all. However, there are many other things that could be a lot better: The Trump Incident; the several refugee-crises around the world; The Trump Incident; Oh - and Trump has become President of the United States of America! 😱

Right - I guess this means that my focus for 2017 have changed a bit  - a least until after London. I'll be focusing my training on that the next 3 months, so maybe interval-training is back on the weekly running menu? I'll get back to that, when I know a bit more on what is going to happen... 

So until then - See ya all out there 😊

#Reebok #LondonMarathon

Best M.


Tuesday, January 17, 2017

New Year's resolutions

At this time of year many already have or are in the making of their New Year's resolutions.

First things first - I hope you all have a had a lovely Christmas and a great New Years eve, and that you have had a great start on 2017. As mentioned at the start of this post, many - or at least some - make New Year's resolutions. It can be about anything: be better your job, do more sports, make more friends, travel more often, etc. 

Many people make resolutions about wanting to loose weight, do more exercise, or be more fit in the new year, and use the switching between the old and the new year to bind themselves to that challenge or commitment. 

I think it's a great way to commit yourself to do changes in your life and possibly team up with friends or family to stick to the plan. I guess many are waiting for some kind of break or event to commit to do changes in their lives. There's probably a logical reason for this hidden within the human brain, why we tend to wait till Monday, or after the vacation, or after Christmas or New Years to commit ourselves to start doing it.

Personally, I usually don't make New Year's resolutions myself. Instead I try to make the changes and commitments along the way. I find this easier and I don't have to wait until New Year to get started. However, I may wait until Monday though... 😉

I've had a great year of running in 2016 and I'm very pleased with what I've done (See previous post here).

These are my goals for 2017:

  • Attend more club runs:
    Last year I started joining some Thursday-runs with Headington Road Runners, based not far from where I live. I've had some thoughts on joining the club from some time, and I went there 10th of November last year for the first time. It was great fun and I got to run in places I've never been in Oxford with some kind and friendly people 😄
    This year I want to join the club as a member and be attending more of these club-runs to spice up my training a bit.
  • Run more kilometers than in 2016:
    I've had some progressive years regarding my yearly-mileage of running, and I simply want to beat last years mileage-PB of 3722km 
  • 100 mile race:
    I want to do a 100 mile race at some point. I haven't found the right one just yet, but I've got some in my mind, which I could do. I'll get back to that when I've decided. Hopefully I'll get to do a few other races as well.
     
  • 24h race:
    I also want to try a 24 hour race. Again I have some that I would like to do, and I'll get back to it, when I've decided.
     
  • Improve core strength:
    I want to improve my core strength this year, so I have already started doing some exercises during the week to hopefully improve my overall fitness and strength but also my overall endurance in both running and kayaking.
Whether you do use New Years as an excuse to make changes in your life or you just make the changes when needed, I hope you get to do the changes you want. Just remember to have fun while doing it 😊

Here's to great new year!! 😎
See you all out there!!

Best M.