It’s that time of year again: crazy moustaches (even with face masks), 30 days of shaving hiatus and a facial hair face off. But this year Movember – the national movement to shine a spotlight on men’s mental health and overall wellbeing – has thrown down the gauntlet to everyone. The challenge? Walk or run 60 miles in the month, get sponsored and help raise money for the cause. There’s still time to get involved. Here’s how.
Pick Your Race, Set Your Pace
If you’re going to join the official Movember 60-mile challenge there are a number of paths you can take. Go to www.us.movember.com/register and register to take part. Or try one of the many online sites that round up virtual 10ks, marathons and the like. Try https://www.runningintheusa.com/classic/virtual/half-marathon for direct links and info on November’s races.
Go it Alone: Solo Training
You don’t need to join an official run to get your 60 miles in this month. The easiest way – make a weekly schedule and hit the treadmill in the family room, at your gym, or go old school and get outside while the weather holds. There aren’t many rules and it could be easy to get off track and lose momentum, so if you’re looking for a little motivation and a fun workout, try this – new treadmill training content from Fitscope Studio, now available on FitnessOnDemand – in club and via streaming at home.
Eat Right, Run Right.
Running, whether you’re taking it easy or leading the (virtual) pack, burns a lot of calories. To run right, it’s important to fuel your body with what it needs, when it needs it. Getting the balance wrong can leave your energy depleted or cause GI issues and side stitches on longer runs. For pre-run nutrition eat high carb and low fiber snacks. Things like a banana, with natural nut butter is high in potassium and protein to fire up your system pre-run, while dried fruit and particularly tart cherries will give you an energy boost and aid with sleep later. A good rule of thumb, although everyone is different, is to eat around 30 minutes before you start your run and again 20 minutes after your return and stretch. Protein rich snacks with a little carbohydrates will help your muscles recover faster. The options are endless: peanut butter, chocolate milk (the recovery drink of swimmers too), nuts and high protein yoghurt that has as much as 16g versus 5g of protein compared to traditional yogurt.
Hydrate for Health
As with all exercise, drink water and often. Fluids help regulate body temperature and can reduce inflammation by flushing damaged cells from exercise from the body. Experts say we should drink around half our body weight in ounces for proper hydration, so if you weigh 150 lbs., aim to drink 75oz of water a day. Remember too, that you can get water from tea, coffee and even some fruits and vegetables.
Author
