FEATURES

Surprising Benefits of Heat Training...

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By Meaghan Brown (outsideonline.com - July 2016)

One of the highest sweat rates ever recorded was that of marathon runner Alberto Salazar at the 1984 Olympics in Los Angeles. In the months leading up to the games, which were expected to be oppressively hot, the marathoner was put through a regimen of temperature acclimation training with the goal of helping him adapt to running in the heat. While Salazar placed only 15th overall, the program was deemed a success, physiologically speaking—vitals taken after the race found that Salazar’s hormonal and thermoregulatory systems were completely normal. His body had compensated by causing him to sweat at an incredibly high rate—about three liters per hour, compared to the roughly one liter per hour for an average human.  ...

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Happy 4th of July!

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30 Years of Free Pizza, Store Pets, Immeasureable Riches...

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Gear West. The Pig. Thirty years ago.

By Jan Guenther

Thirty years ago, Gear West Ski & Bike opened their door into a tiny, rented 500 sq foot building behind the Domino’s Pizza building in Long Lake.  We (Brian Knutson and me, Jan Guenther) invested $11,000 to stock basic bicycle repair items. A sprinkling of Bridgestone bikes and a few Fischer xc skis rounded out the offerings. I remember our first sale, a shift cable. Our building had a connecting door to the Domino’s pizza palace and all order mistakes were ours to eat.

Fast forward two years later, one location change and a lot of hard work, we purchased our own building, the old Long Lake State bank. Complete with an up and downstairs airless Safe room, the old bank was retrofitted to house a lot more skis and two additional bike lines. We built an enclosed boat yard to offer Wenonah canoes and to house a small potbellied pig. I had always wanted a tiny pig and this was my grand opportunity. Hoover, the piglet ate a lot and grew into a rather sturdy midsized  pig  with tusks, which elicited many comments from Long Lake’s residents. ..

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The Unhealthy Triathlete...

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By Jordan Blanco (active.com)

As a triathlete, your training likely keeps you in good physical shape, right? That's what I had always assumed.

For 10 straight years, I passed on the annual medical check-up offered by my doctor, given that I trained hard and I ate a healthy diet. Over the last few years, I brushed off a decline in my bike power and a slowing in my run times as old age. After all, I am in my 40's! I threw in a few other explanations for the slide in my performances: work stress, less quality training, not enough run miles, mistimed taper, not tough enough, etc. I'm good at that sort of thing....

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Start Line Feels...

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By Shyanne McGregor

Start line feels…

I’ve had races when I’ve been super calm at the start line and races when I’m fighting back anxiety ridden tears.

Part of that is expectation I put on myself, but another part is just the things that happen in my body in those moments.

The fight or flight response to these stressful pre race moments can cause an increased heart and breathing rate, shakiness, butterflies, nausea, dry mouth, the feeling of having to pee even though you just went 10 minutes ago. If we don’t understand why these things are happening, we can interpret them as more of a panic response leading to even more anxiety that something bad may happen to us….

It’s how we perceive what happens to us, not what’s actually happening. If We perceive these things as signs of “impending doom” we could freeze up or panic. ...

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