Welcome to active life at the University of Bristol
Our second Face of the Run Series is this year’s elected Sports and Student Development Officer, Rushab Shah. Rushab has been at home in Nairobi, Kenya since Christmas, which is where he will be running the Run Series virtual 5k on the weekend of 20-21 March.
Name: Rushab Shah
Staff or Student: Student Sabbatical Officer
Role: Bristol SU
Run Series Event: Whole Series!
If I say the words “sports nutrition”, what do you think? For many of us, the predominant image is probably a guy a bit like Arnie, downing a protein shake, wearing tight nylon short-shorts and a slinky vest. Fear not, I’m here to tell you that we can have a far more expansive view of what constitutes sports nutrition. In fact, as far as I’m concerned, anything that you put in your mouth which contributes to your training programme is, in essence, sports nutrition.
If a cup of herbal tea before bed helps you get a good night’s sleep then it is, to you, as important a sports nutrition drink as a protein shake is to Arnie! Nutrition doesn’t have to be prescriptive – a good nutrition programme is about listening to your body and responding to what it needs: if you are hungry then eat and if you are full then stop. There are a few basic points to consider which can help you hit the basics but, generally speaking, being incredibly precise about your food intake is not necessary unless you are an elite athlete training multiple times per day.
Cool down exercises form part of your wider recovery strategy, designed to return your body to its pre-exercise, rested, state as fast as possible. In this post, we will explain and provide examples of cool down strategies you can use after you have been for a run.
Exercise results in a temporary reduction in performance. This is essential for our bodies to rest and repair, and ultimately promotes the adaptations to our body that will help us in our continued training. Cool-down exercises support and encourage this process so that we can perform exercise more frequently.
Whilst cool–downs don’t directly reduce the risk of injury, they do help to improve our recovery time. Our chance of injury in future sessions is therefore reduced as exercising when fatigued is a major risk factor for injury.
You’ve signed up to your event, you’ve chosen your training plan, and you’ve got your eyes set on the finish line. Now you’ve just got to lace up your trainers and start running! But before you rush out of the door and bound down the path towards your next 5k, 10k, or Half Marathon, it’s worth taking a little time to consider how to safeguard yourself from the hazards and challenges that runners face if not prepared.
Wherever you are running in the world, whatever your level of running experience, and regardless of the distance you’ll be covering, there will be ways in which you need to be smart and savvy with your running; from route planning to the tech you use, and from weather conditions to kit choices.
Running is going to make you hungry. This is great because a) food is delicious and b) if you take a little care over the ingredients you use, you can get some powerful nutrients in your body which will add to the benefits you’re already getting from training.
Just like with any other aspect of your regime, the most important factor determining the effectiveness of your nutrition plan is whether you actually stick to it. If you don’t get that part right then none of the rest really matters. There is no point concocting the perfect blend of spirulina, raw biltong and ground flax seeds for your post-run snack, if realistically you’re going to find that way too difficult to stomach after you’ve got out of bed earlier than usual to do interval training first thing on your Wednesday morning.
The best running food will ideally be nutritious enough that it actively helps your body adapt to your training. It will be easy to prepare and store so that it doesn’t become an inconvenience. It will be cheap enough that you can eat plenty of it without it any negative financial impact. And finally, it will be so delicious that it actually increases your motivation for training.
Warm-ups are designed to get your body ready for upcoming activity, whether that’s running, lifting weights, swimming, or anything else that is over-and-above your ‘normal’ activity level. Preparing your body reduces your risk of injury, improves your performance and prepares you both physically, and mentally.
But what does ‘preparation’ mean in practice? A warm-up must gradually increase your heart rate, which in turn increases your blood flow, muscle temperature and oxygen delivery.
With up to 18 hours a day fasted, Ramadan is not the time to be smashing PBs; but aiming to sustain active behaviour is encouraged.
Maintaining exercise activity is the key. It is certainly not the time to start on a new exercise regime so don’t be looking to up your reps, weights, distances, etc. Intense cardio sessions, plyometrics and heavy weights are not recommended to avoid strain on your body. Limiting cardio sessions to two per week may also be advisable. Your fitness levels will likely change and given the lifestyle changes this is understandable so should not be a cause for concern.
With interrupted sleep and dehydration, it can be hard to maintain a normal workout routine but finding the time to work out will help to clear your mind and keep energy levels up.
Like all student sports at the moment, Women’s Cricket have taken their Club online. However with their season even yet to start, current circumstances added uncertainty if they’ll see any match-time this year. Should they continue training as normal? Undeterred by the distance between them, UBWCC took on the challenge of hosting a full-on virtual pre-season for their members – with huge success!
We asked Anna Biggs, UBWCC Captain, to write about the experience, and give her top tips for hosting socially-distance pre-season training, for any #WeAreBristol clubs that may find themselves in a similar situation come the Autumn term!
Staying active is important for both adults and children alike, and never more so that when we’re spending the large majority of our day indoors and in each other pockets!
COVID-19 can be seen everywhere in the news today, in fact it’s almost impossible to open up social media without seeing an article about it. However, at UBWRFC (Women’s Rugby), we didn’t let the fact our members are all hundreds of miles apart get in the way of everyone’s highlight of the year – the AGM.