Does Your Sweat Smell? Eat More Carbs!

 
From time to time I notice that during a run I really smell bad. I don't mean the normal sweaty smell, but very acrid and funky. It's almost an ammonia smell and it's extremely gross. I was worried that I am dying so I turned to google to help me out. This, by the way, is almost always a bad idea. It seems to me that any time you search symptoms on google you will end up coming away from the experience assured that you have cancer are are going to die. If you are a runner, or do a fair amount of cardio, then you may have stinky sweat like me. The reason is not cancer and you are not dying. The reason is simply that your body does not have enough carbohydrate energy and is breaking down amino acids for energy. The best explanation of why this happens is from a great article from www.bodybuilding.com. Here's an excerpt from the article:

The chemical make-up of ammonia is NH3. This means that there is one Nitrogen atom bound to three Hydrogen atoms. Ammonia can be a weak acid or a weak base, depending on what type of chemical it is suspended in. Ammonia has a strong, pungent odor that is easily recognizable in cleaning products, cat urine, and, for some people, sweat!  The key to ammonia in urine and sweat is the nitrogen. The only macronutrient in your body that contains nitrogen is amino acids, the building blocks of protein. In fact, many bodybuilders are always seeking a "positive nitrogen balance" meaning that less nitrogen leaves their body than enters their body. Since nitrogen is in every amino acid, and amino acids are the building blocks of muscle, someone in positive nitrogen balance is more than likely gaining muscle mass.
Your body uses amino acids for energy every day. There is no way to avoid this. Your body constantly goes into catabolic (tissue breakdown) and anabolic (tissue building) phases. When you accumulate mass (lean or fat), your anabolic phases exceed your catabolic phases, but you still experience both phases. When your body uses an amino acid for energy, it must convert the amino acid to a useable form of energy.

It does this by stripping the nitrogen atom off of the molecule. The skeleton molecule that is left behind is then further converted into glucose and used as fuel. In order to get rid of the excess nitrogen, your body typically processes the nitrogen in your kidneys and forms urea, CO(NH2)2 - basically, a carbon dioxide molecule bound to nitrogen and hydrogen. Urea is then excreted in the urine. If your kidneys cannot handle the load of nitrogen, then the nitrogen will be excreted as ammonia in your sweat.

One other factor to consider is water intake. The methods used for getting rid of excess ammonia, such as urine and sweat, all require water as a transport mechanism. If you are not getting adequate fluid, then the solution (ammonia + water) will not be diluted. Therefore, water plays a definite role. If you are not drinking enough fluids to have at least one or two clear urinations every day, you should drink more.
Based on this explanation, it is clear that your sweat will smell like ammonia only if an excessive amount of amino acids are being used for energy, or you are not receiving adequate water. This helps us find a solution to the problem. (source)

Having stinky sweat does not mean that your protein intake isn't high enough. In fact, it may be the opposite! You may be getting plenty of protein but not enough carbohydrates. They key to avoiding the 'smell' is to eat enough carbs for your activity. If your body does not have sufficient carbohydrates it will break down amino acids (protein) and you will smell like cat pee. Don't smell like cat pee, eat more carbs!

Since I learned this I have made sure to eat some carbs before I go on run. It can be as simple as an eating an apple or a granola bar. The upside is that the carbohydrates will be used by your body to provide you with an energy kick. That means you will have more energy to run harder faster or longer. So if your sweat smells like a litter box just eat more carbs before you exercise.

Heat Acclimation

I've noticed a two-fold phenomenon since I've moved to the desert. First, most of my runs have been slower. Second, when I've been able to run in cooler temperatures (like in San Diego) my pace for the same effort level is significantly faster.

This is me running near the ocean in San Diego. I was rather easily doing a 7:15 mile/pace for 10k due to the cooler temperatures and benefits of heat training.

This makes sense in a lot of ways. Running in hot weather impacts performance. The hotter it is, the slower you go. If you tuned in for the US Olympic Marathon trials in February you probably saw the athletes comment about how the heat made it a slow race. The temperatures for that day in LA reached into the mid 70's. If you live in the Arizona desert, like me, mid 70's sounds anything but hot. But these athletes are not just being divas, the science shows that temperature above 60° start to impact running performance. This is why, for example, the Berlin marathon has hosted the last 6 men's marathon records. Berlin is a flat course, but it is also a cool course. The average temperature for the Berlin marathon is between 53-64°, right in the 60° sweet spot.

So why can I run faster in San Diego than Yuma? It's the heat. The heat slows me down, and the cool weather lets me run my best. But there is one more thing going on. I've been running outside in the heat for almost three months. I've logged about 380 miles since moving to the desert. I've run outside even when it's been in the 90's in the full sun. My body has become used to the heat and has gained an advantage from it.

Heat acclimation is a real thing, science proves it! A study in 2010 exposed 10 cyclists to heat when they trained for 10 days. The scientists then measured how the cyclists performed in cool conditions. They had a control group as well. The group that went through heat acclimation performed 7% better in cool conditions after just 10 heat acclimation exposures. That's a HUGE gain! Think about it; if you run an 8:00 min mile and then get a benefit of 7% in your performance you can run a 7:26 mile for the same effort! That's shaving 34 seconds off your mile time just by doing 10 sessions in the heat!

Why does training in the heat work? Heat acclimation improves the body’s ability to control body temperature, improves sweating and increases blood flow through the skin, and expands blood volume allowing the heart to pump more blood to muscles, organs and the skin as needed. In other words you become a super running machine. And unlike training at high altitude you get the benefit of heat training in as little as 10 sessions.

This is what you will look like after doing heat training; a super running machine.

Another study also concluded that the heat may produce changes in the exercising muscle, including enzymatic changes that could improve the amount of work done by the muscle.

But there are dangers. Overheating and heat stroke are very real and dangerous concerns. Dehydration can also sideline you and ruin your day. Some signs of overheating to watch out for include:

• If you are no longer sweating
• Feeling very thirsty
• Feeling sick to your stomach
• Headache
• Feeling dizzy
• Feeling a chill with goosebumps on your skin 

If you feel any of these symptoms, it's time to stop and cool off.  It's not worth damaging your body to train in the heat.

I, unfortunately, have no choice but to 'heat train'. It's just the norm living in the hot desert. If you decide to give it a go here are three tips that will help.

First, hydrate a ton before you go and as you go. Drinking water cools you off and keeps you going.

Second, slow your pace down. The slowing of your pace allows more blood to flow near your skin where it is cooled off by sweat. The point is not to go fast. You will get the benefit of heat training even if you are running at a very slow pace. Let go of any pace expectations.

Third, stay alert for signs of overheating. It's not worth damaging yourself to train in the heat.

I've personally seen the benefit from running in the heat, but it comes at a cost; lots of sweat and suffering!

You're Running Too Fast

Yes, I'm talking to you! You are running too fast and you need to slow down! Yesterday I had a great run. I say it was great even though I ran 5 miles at an 8:57/mile pace (my 5 mile PR pace is 6:30/mile). So why would I call that a great run? The answer is because slow, easy running is great for my training and fitness.

Sorry he looks so creepy today.

For a long time I fell into the trap of trying to do every training run as fast as I could. I'd muster up as much speed as I had that day and try and set a new record. Maybe you can relate. You try to run as fast as you can and feel bad if you are slow (whatever slow means to you). After all, you aren't going to get those Strava kudos on a slow run! This approach, fortunately, is a mistake. It is important to have some fast runs. It's a huge part of becoming a faster racer. However, if every time you lace up you go all-out and try to be speedy Gonzales you are actually going to hinder your training and end up injured.

Slow running has many advantages to your training. Even elite Olympic athletes incorporate slow running into their weekly routine. So what exactly do I mean by slow running? There are a couple of ways to define it but the easiest is 1.25-1.5 times slower than your 5k PR pace. If you don't have a 5k PR pace just go a minute or two slower than your race pace for any distance. For me, my 'slow running' pace is anywhere between 7:54-9:27. Realistically I aim for about an 8:15-30 but I'm not afraid to go slower! A slow pace for me is keeping my heart rate at about 130 or lower.

All that being said here are three reasons you need to slow down for some of your runs:

1. You burn the same calories if you go fast or slow.

It's amazing how many people don't realize this simple truth. If you run a mile at a 10:00/min pace or run a mile at an 8:00/min pace the calories you burn are basically equal. There's a lot of debate on this subject but for all practical purposes they are equal. The only advantage to running faster is you can fit more miles in the same amount of time, so you could burn more calories per hour. But 5 miles slow or 5 miles fast will yield the same result. If you are trying to shed some extra pounds or running to maintain weight and health a faster pace won't really help you. (Note: running does, however, burn more calories than walking.)

2. Slow running builds your aerobic capability with less wear and tear on your body.

When you run your body experiences stress. Your legs, joints, lungs, and heart all are stressed. At the end of a tough run, your body sustains micro-tears in muscle fiber, dehydration, glycogen depletion, and more. Your body responds by making adaptations. These adaptations are things like stronger muscles and tendons, and a heart that can pump more blood more efficiently. When you run slower you put less stress on your muscles and joints, but your heart still has to pump blood. Running slow applies "gentle" stress to your cardio-vascular system, which benefits you on a run of any speed.

If you need more convincing here's a great video from Sage Canaday, a 2:16:52 marathoner, about the benefits of slow running:

 

3. You can run more miles with less risk of injury.

The rule of thumb for runners is to only increase one thing at a time; speed or volume. If you try to increase your speed at the same time as the number of miles per week you run (also called your 'base') you will likely get injured. Let's say you are training for a half marathon. You currently run 15 miles per week and you know you need to get more miles in to run a good race. Slow runs will allow you get more miles in with less risk of injury. Making a few of your runs 'easy' runs will help you build your base without causing too much stress on the other parts of your body. If you are prone to injury or have been injured in the past you should really give slow runs a try. Incorporating some slow days into your weekly routine also allows you to really push it on tempo or speed work days.

One last thing about slow running; it is freeing! Knowing that it is OK and actually beneficial to take some runs slow is a great feeling. It will help you enjoy your runs more. It's ok to stop and smell the flowers or enjoy the view. In fact you should really give this a try. Stop during your run and look around, enjoy God's creation and stop worrying about how fast (or slow) you are going. There's a time for everything under the sun, including slow running (Ecclesiastes 3), so get out there and log some slow miles!

How to Understand Heart Rate

I recently got a GPS watch with a built in hear-rate monitor. I quickly realized that having a heart rate monitor is nice but it only helps you if know what the numbers mean. I did quite a bit of research and found that training using your heart rate is very helpful because your heart rate provides an objective measure of exertion, one that's usually more accurate than your mental gauge on how hard you are working.

In order for you to use heart rate in your training there are some terms you need to know. The first is max heart rate. Your max heart rate is the maximum rate your heart can beat. There are lots of ways to calculate what your max heart rate is but for simplicity I would go with MHR = 208 – 0.7(age).  Because I bet you don't like math just plug your age in the calculator I made below and it will spit out your MHR. For me (age 32) that put my MHR at 186. So if my heart rate goes up to 187 I will explode and die. Ok, not really. It's not a 'hard number' it's more of a good guess.


Even more important for runners is your lactate threshold heart rate (LT HR). Your LT HR is the point where lactate, a product of carbohydrate metabolism in the muscles, begins to accumulate because it’s being produced faster than the muscles can use it. Put even simpler it's when you are working out so hard that your body can't use all the lactate it produces. Ever been sore after a hard workout? Blame lactate. Lactate is a key part of how you get energy from your muscles when you run. So how do I find my lactate threshold heart rate? Unfortunately it's not as simple as plugging in a number.

There are a few ways to figure out your LT HR. The first is to go pay an exercise lab to do a threshold test on you. But who has time for that? The second way is to guess by feel. I know, it sounds mystical and it's not very exciting, but it will work just fine for you and me. Your lactate threshold heart rate is found at the fastest pace that you can sustain for 30 minutes (if you are not super fit), or 60 minutes (if you are very fit). The heart rate you have during that effort is your lactate threshold heart rate (LT HR). For most people you can find this during a 5k or 10k race effort. For me, this is about 158. This is also 85% of my MHR which corresponds to another popular, but less accurate method; estimating your lactate threshold based on a percentage of maximum heart rate (80-90% of maximum heart rate in trained endurance athletes). 

Got your LT HR figured out? Ok, great now here are the heart rate zones and what they mean:

Zones	Description	Use It For...	Example HR	Your Face in this Zone
Active Recovery	Barely even exercise. You are basically always in this zone unless you are dead or exercising.	Living, sleeping, watching Netflix and basically just chilling. This zone means you are able to recover and repair your muscles from previous workouts.	<127
Aerobic Threshold	Very comfortable and quite useful for building aerobic fitness, fat-burning capacity, and endurance.	Most of your runs should be here. Building your aerobic threshold is important because it will enable you to run faster for longer before you tip into anaerobic metabolism which cannot be sustained for as long.	128-141
Tempo	Just faster than jogging pace, 'comfortably hard'. This is the automatic pace you will run when training.	This will teach your body how to run at a fast pace for a longer distance. To do a tempo run jog for about 10 minutes, then do 3-5 miles at your 10k race pace. Then do a slow jog for about 10 minutes.	142-150
Sub-lactate Threshold	Running hard enough that it requires some conscious effort.	This is where  tempo training merges into the threshold power zone for training. This is an excellent place to increase your power at lactate threshold without the huge training stress generated when you train at and above LT. In other words you pretty much get the benefit of LT training without as much stress on your body.	151-157
Lactate Threshold	Even more stressful on the body than the previous zone. This zone is starts to become difficult to maintain for the long haul.	Your goal is to build up to 3 x 15 minutes with 5 minutes of recovery between hard efforts. This is your basic HIIT. Working out here will increase your LT which means you can run faster!	158-160
Aerobic Capacity	Very intense and stressful, but when incorporated into your training in small amounts it will elevate your running performance significantly. To run here you must do it in short intervals.	As your aerobic capacity increases, you can run farther and faster. Run slightly faster (10 to 30 seconds per mile) than your 5-K race pace. Run this pace for 3-5 minutes then recover. Don't do this workout more than once a week.	161-166
Anaerobic Capacity	This is anywhere from the fastest pace you could do a mile to a full on max effort sprint.	Do a set (4-12) of sprints as fast as you can for about 8-10 seconds. Do this only once a week and you can even do it up hills. You will be sore and you will run faster because of it.	167+

One great advantage to training based on heart rate vs pace is that heart rate percentages will remain the same. I might be in the tempo zone at a 7:00 min/pace but you could be in the aerobic threshold zone. Pace really isn't as helpful to your training as heart rate is. Everyone has different heart rate abilities based on genetics and training.

I've recently started to incorporate all this into my training and it has already paid off. I've let my recovery runs be slow (and I dont' feel bad about running slow) and I know that I really do need to push it hard some runs to get into that next 'zone'.  Until I did this I basically ran every training run as a tempo run. That's not effective because it doesn't let my body recover and I never truly push myself by going into the higher zones. How about you? Have you ever used heart rate training before? Has it helped?

The Side Stitch

We have sequenced the entire human genome. Scientists have all but eliminated Small Pox from the face of the earth. We've even landed a spacecraft on the surface of a comet using rockets, harpoons, and math. But no one really know what causes a side stich when running. Surprised? Yeah, me too. Scientists don't really know what they are, what causes them, or how to fix them. There's plenty of bro science out there giving you tips on how to avoid them but there's no real scientific evidence for their origin. The only thing scientists agree on is what to call side stiches. The official name is "exercise-related transient abdominal pain", because "side stitch" was just too simple.

So what exactly causes a side stitch? There are several main theories. One is that the ligaments under your diaphragm are being stretched. Another theory says it is caused by friction on the peritoneal tissue which is just behind your abdominal muscles. And perhaps the most popular theory is that your diaphragm is spazzing out due to a shortage of blood supply and oxygen when exercising. I don't really care all that much about what causes them. I just know they hurt and I want to avoid them like a Justin Bieber concert.

I've had a side stitch in the last two half marathons I ran. Both times it significantly affected my pace  for a few miles. If you've never had one let me explain what it feels like. On the right side of your abdomen, just below your rib cage you will start to feel pain. The pain comes on slow then develops into a raging furnace of torture. It feels like someone is taking a spoon and scrapping the inside of your rib cage. Not fun. So you want to PR? "No", says Mr. Side Stitch. You want to run fast? "Not today", he retorts.

Common causes guesses of where the side stitch comes from include:

• Eating or drinking before or during a workout
• Going too fast
• Not warming up
• Breathing too hard
• Having weak core muscles
• An imbalance of electrolytes

My last side stitch happened after drinking water at mile 5 of a half marathon. In fact, 50% of side stitches occur after drinking fluid. The pain was severe and it literally made me walk for a few seconds. My pace for the next three miles was over a minute less than normal and I only managed that with considerable pain. There is one sure way to stop side stitch pain; stop running. But that's not really practical in a race.

Some Bro Science ways to avoid and prevent a side stitch include:

• Stop running (yeah, right)
• Stretching
• Control your breathing
• Slow your pace if you can't stop running
• Be careful what you eat before a race
• Make sure you have enough electrolytes before a race

This is my 'post' side stitch face. I had just recovered from a side stitch and was trying to get back on pace.

Now that I've had two side stitches in two consecutive half marathons I'll offer my advice for how to deal with them during a race:

• Don't drink anything unless you have to.
• If you have to drink, don't water-board yourself. Stop, take a few controlled sips and swallow before you start running again. Losing 15 seconds for a drink is better than losing 5-10 minutes for a side stitch.
• It hurts, but it's not causing you injury. You can run through the pain but it's best to stop and stretch and try to relax for 30 seconds.
• If you are in a race and it doesn't seem to go away after you've tried stretching, run through it. Your pace may be hampered but the pain won't last forever. The side stitch will eventually release after a few miles (or at the finish line). At least that's what you have to keep telling yourself.
• Concentrate on relaxing and take controlled breaths.
• Think about something other than the feeling of being prodded with a butter knife on the inside of your ribs.
• If you feel one coming on but it's not fully arrived yet slow down your pace. This could help prevent a full blown episode.

I hope you never experience the side stitch. They are painful and frustrating especially on race day.  If you've had one, how did you deal with it? What worked/works for you? Have you ever just 'powered through' one?

It's Science

Ever wonder why you run faster during a race? Or why you just seem to fly off the starting line during a 5k even though you told yourself before the start to 'take it easy'? Well it turns out it's science. A recent article in the Physiology & Behavior journal looked at "the influence of the presence and absence of competitors on pacing, overall running performance, and mood state during a self-paced run". Basically they compared how amateur runners (like me) ran 3 km alone verse being in a group. The results are not particularly surprising. The runners ran faster overall, faster during the first 500 m, and perceived the effort/fatigue level at the end as less than when running alone.

I'm on the far right in the green. There's nothing like the pre race jitters.

The findings of this study suggest "that the presence of competitors induces a fast start, which results in an improved overall performance and reduced post-exercise vigor scores, compared to an individual run." There is something going on in the brain that makes us able to run faster, do better, and feel less tired about the whole experience when we have competition. In other words if you want to become a faster runner it's a good idea to run more races!

Look at these silly boys madly charging up the hill as the gun goes off.

For shorter distances, like a 5k, it's not always beneficial to fight the "run-fast" urge at the start. Going out fast against competition doesn't necessarily mean you will run slower overall. In fact the study indicated that running the first 500 m fast is part of how you end up with a faster overall time. Everyone seems to talk about how beneficial negative splits are. They certainly are the goal for longer races but not necessarily for the 5k. Other studies have shown that running the first mile of a 5k 3% faster than goal pace is the optimal pacing strategy. Forget trying to achieve a negative split, just run fast the first mile....but not too fast. How fast is too fast? If the first mile is run more than 6% faster than the goal pace you are likely to crash and burn. So if you're running a 5k, don't feel so bad about going out fast, you just might end up with PR.

In other news: I am enjoying enduring my taper week. Not running is actually harder than it sounds. I also have the strong urge to go pick up heavy metal things and put them back down in an attempt to build muscle, but I am resisting that urge so my body is rested, recovered, and ready for the Half Marathon on Sunday.