Sleep: Are you getting enough?

Now that we are in the prime of race season, many people are sacrificing sleep for training.  This is especially true for those who are training for Ironman/Half-Ironman events, due to the need to train in three separate events.  But is all this sacrificing of sleep, benefiting your performance on race day?  Anyone who has trained when tired, may have looked like Homer Simpson in the picture above during their workout!

According to a recent study by Wood (2012), sleep deprivation affects immune system much like the affects of stress.  In the study, they analyzed blood samples of individuals who resting for a strict 8 hours of sleep, and then compared blood samples from the same individuals after 29 hours of being awake.  Not surprising that after 29 hours of wakefulness, the body reacted immediately to the stresses of being awake for so long.  So how do we use this information to improve performance?  Try these recommendations:

1.)  When having to choose between sleep, or getting in your required amount of training for the day, choose sleep.

2.)  Be careful of using stimulants such as caffeine, sugar, alcohol, medications, and looking at blue light sources such as computers and televisions, close to bed time.

3.)  When travelling, and dealing with time changes, try supplements like magnesium, melatonin, and valerian root to aid in getting to sleep.

4.)  When traveling and staying in hotels, think about bringing ear plugs and a night mask to block noises and light sources.

References

Wood, J.  (2012, July 1).  Sleep Deprivation Affects Immune System Like Physical Stress.  Retrieved from http://psychcentral.com/news/2012/07/01/sleep-deprivation-affects-immune-system-like-physical-stress/40874.html

Goals to the New Year!

I know it has been awhile since I have posted an article, but if you know me personally, than you will know that I have been deployed overseas a lot last year. I wanted to talk a little bit about setting your goals for the new year. First I want to talk about how to set goals in your life, whether its athletic goals, personal goals, or work goals. There is a great acronym than you can used called the SMART method, which each goal should meet. The SMART acronym should look like this:

Specific
Measurable
Achievable
Realistic
Tangible

Each goal you set in your life should meet these requirements. How many times have you gone to a gym at the beginning of the new year and seen the gym packed? How long does that usually last? Normally it lasts days or a couple weeks and then the gym is dead again. That's because because get too ambitious or they just don't set a specific goal and lose interest early on. When setting your goals simply follow the SMART acronym and you will determine goals that will help keep you on track, and then you can modify these goals as you progress and get better or maybe need to re-evaluate.

Finally, how do you setup goals towards a event you have planned? Well that really depends on your past and the base you currently have established. Follow these guidelines and it should help out:

5k to Sprint Triathlon: 12-15 weeks
10k to Olypmic Triathlon: 12-20 weeks
1/2 Marathon to 1/2 Ironman: 12-25 weeks
Marathon to Full Ironman: 12-35 weeks

Again, these time goals are dependent on your previous experience, and a starting tool to get you to plan out your season. Simply take the date of your event and count back to get you a start and end goal. Once you get within 2 weeks of your event, make sure you throttle back and begin your taper so that you don't go into your race over trained. If you have more questions, be sure to ask them in a comment below and I'll get back to you pretty quick. I hope all of you set your goals early and follow through and have a wonderful season this year in 2012!