by Dr. Glen Hyman
It’s an inevitable fact of life: the older you get, the more likely you are to develop knee problems. More than anything else, it’s because your knees take an almost constant beating. There’s really no way of avoiding it.
Because the knee joint is so complex, and because so many things can go wrong, we’re going to focus on a very specific type of knee problem.
The technical term is ugly: Chondromalacia Patella. That’s Latin & Greek for, “bad cartilage behind the knee cap.” The knee cap, also known as the patella, serves as a way station for your quad. It disperses the force that your quad generates so its tendon doesn’t rip away from your shin.
The undersurface is lined with cartilage so it can glide smoothly. Chronically tight quads make the patella track too closely to the rest of the joint. The result is grinding, pain, and eventually destruction of the cartilage. Obviously, stretching your quads can reduce this problem. Seeing your friendly neighborhood Active Release® provider to breakup scar tissue in the quads also helps. More...
Join Coach
Mike on the IRON TOUR!
This summer I will be traveling
to all the US Ironman races –
Idaho, NY, WI, and FL! My
plan is to ride and run each
course a few days before the
actual race – a little recon, if
you will. If you are planning
on racing in 2005 and will be
at this year’s competition, feel
free to join me for a free
course tour. You can ask me
all the questions you want for
as long as it takes us to ride
the course. If you would like
to join me for a ride or run,
please let me know, as I
would enjoy the company!
Mike@d3multisport.com
Racing in the Heat
Dealing when the temeraptures rise
 Barney and D3 on the way to the summit of Mt. Kenya! |
The most important thing you can do is learn your sweat rate. Before you run, weigh yourself without any clothes. Then go run for one hour, take in whatever water you need, and then come back and re-weigh yourself again. Your diff e rence in weight, plus the addition of the water or fluid you drank will give you how many pounds you lost during your run. Divide that number by your starting weight and you will know your fluid loss per hour. If you start a log, figuring out percentage lost at what temperature you could really help yourself plenty. By doing this test regularly you in different temps, you will start to see how your body reacts to different temps.
Knowing that on a hot day you lose 2% of your body weight would be a big advantage over others who don’t keep track. You will know you need to take in ‘x’ ounces of water, which will eliminate your chance of dehydration. Of course don’t drink too much as that can cause hypnotremia – and that can be deadly. More...
 Coach Erik at IM USA, on his way to finishing his 10th IRONMAN! |
|