So I talked last week about the fact that I was returning from my long run spent, hurting and weighing more than two pounds less than I had when I started.

Chris talked to me about being hydrated enough, something that I have really been bad about. For some reason, I have always thought I have been drinking plenty on my long runs. I also take a gel pack with my water, so that halfway through the run I can get some carbs into my system in order to make it back home.

Problem was, I wasn’t drinking enough.

This morning I took along two two-liter bottles. In one I put Gatorade and in the other plain water. I also took a power bar that had some carbs in case my stomach started to growl. I have a tendency to get famished on my long runs, probably because I start off with an empty (or mostly empty) tank. Since I get up and run quite early, I don’t have a lot of time to fuel up food-wise. I sometimes will eat half a bagel, or half of a half. This morning I shoved half a banana down my throat before taking off, and of course it wasn’t enough: I felt it around mile 5.

Anyway, the two liters of liquid were gone by the time I returned, and though my stomach felt bloated and I actually heard a few gurgles because I’m not used to consuming so much liquid for a ten mile run, I had not lost any weight. So, good sign! I was only down a few tenths of a pound, not the whopping two-plus pounds of last week.

Hydrated, yes. Full of liquid, super yes. I hope that once I get used to consuming that much drink it will get easier.

On another note, I hydrated with gatorade rather than a gel pack. I really don’t like Gatorade-way too much sugar for my taste-but in all honesty I think it may have worked better in sustaining my energy than the gel packs do. Since I take the gel packs only once during my long runs, and I drink the gatorade throughout, I figured that the drink, though sickeningly sweet and sticky as all get out, was keeping me fueled at a more even pace than the gel pack would.

Hope all of your runs were great ones this weekend!

I type this as I am hunched over my computer finishing up the design on a blog job that I have been working on. My eyes are strained and my posture totally stinks.

As I was stretching my back I thought about something I read today in my personal trainer exam book about posture and the effects that bad posture can have on your body.

So did that make you sit up a bit straighter, my dear?!

Holding your body in a certain position for a long period of time can throw off your muscles and cause you pain. It can also inhibit the way that you breathe. Slumped shoulders are not only bad for your shoulder area but for your back as well. Is your body aligned? If not, make a conscious effort to get it that way.

One thing the book mentioned was the way that many people who work in an office over a computer (ME!) have a tendency to hold their bodies slumped over more because, well, that is the way we sit for hours upon hours. Is this you? If so, each time you catch yourself sitting a certain way, such as with your head bent down low or your shoulders hunched forward, pull yourself upright. Take a moment to stretch. You can actually feel the tension in your back when you have been hunched for a while and you straighten up.

I thought I’d share a few great stretches I have that can help keep you aware of your posture while alleviating any pain you are causing by being all bunched over.

Arms up. One arm at a time. Hold the seat of your chair with one hand, place the other in the air and stretch high. Then stretch over to the side while keeping your body in alignment. Not too far, you don’t want to pull anything or fall on the floor. You should feel this in your oblique area of the side you are stretching. Mmm, mmm, good!

Typing too much? Flex and extend your wrists. Up, down, up and down. Then roll them around slowly.

Fingers cramped from the keyboard? Extend and flex these as well. In, out, in out.

Neck stiff from sitting in one position? Tilt to the right, tilt to the left. Slowly. While breathing in and out. Tilt it back, then tilt it forward. Keep breathing. Who cares what the officemates think?!

Arms sore from one position? Do a tricep stretch by placing your left arm in the air over your head, bending it back so that it touches your shoulder blade, and gently pulling it inward with your opposite hand. Then switch sides.

Still feeling a little stiff in the shoulders? Roll them!

And possible my favorite, because it combines the stretching and the nice, quiet breathing. Hold onto the back of your chair with your hands. Open your chest. Push those girls out in front of you, close your eyes, and streeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeetch.

Five to ten minutes of this a few times a day is certain to help not only your posture but your mental health as well!

So I posted the other day about my theory that perhaps I’m slightly dehydrated. I had a horrible Saturday long run, which never happens, and I’ve been so tired every day that I’ve had a hard time functioning by nighttime. My body has felt like led on the pavement, and I’ve been wondering if perhaps something was really wrong. I even scheduled a doctor’s appointment to make sure I didn’t have some dreaded issue!

Then I read about dehydration, and how if you lose more than one pound of weight after an exercise session you are losing too much fluid. I weighed myself at my five mile run on Monday and bingo, I’d lost 2.4 pounds!

Okay, so I’ve made a huge effort to keep hydrated and I think that it has worked. I’m feeling more revived, and my runs have been great. I shaved 11 seconds off my miles today from Monday, and I am back to where I was several weeks ago time-wise. I didn’t feel as sluggish this morning, and I wasn’t putting out full effort, either.

I cut back on the coffee, and minus the afternoon headache as my body screams for a cup of java, everything else has been fine.

I can’t say it was all hydration, but I”m guessing a huge part of my sluggishness both on and off the pavement was due in part to not being hydrated enough. So drink up before and after those runs!

I see a lot of people posting about running or taking up a running program during the brutally hot days of summer. Many have questions regarding running and exercising in the heat. Since many marathon programs run for about five months, those embarking on this journey are now beginning to train for endurance, which means covering a lot of miles when the days are at their hottest.

I always run in the early morning hours, typically starting before the sun even peeks over the mountains. It’s nice and cool, traffic isn’t ridiculous and I can get some quiet time, alone, just to think.

Yet I do see people out running in midday, when temperatures to me are soaring. But then again, anything over 75 to me is hot!

If you are wondering how to tell whether or not you have lost too much liquid during a workout, here’s a good rule to follow:

Weigh yourself before you go out, and then again when you get back. If you lost more than a pound, you aren’t getting enough to drink.

How much should you be drinking?
7-10 ounces of liquid every ten to fifteen minutes during a longer endurance run. If you are going far, shoot for something with a mix (6%) of sugar to keep the energy levels up.

Afterwards, continue to drink, consuming up to 20 ounces of liquid for every pound you lost while you ran.

Seem like a lot? Possibly so, but your body needs to stay hydrated.

So here’s the thing: I began thinking about this over the weekend, when I had the horrid run on Saturday. I have been tired lately, more tired than usual. And yes, I’m a working mother of two daughters under the age of four, but I also get plenty of rest and I eat well. I take a multivitamin since I’ve been known to run low on iron. I do yoga every night to unwind and relax before bed. So, what the heck was going on, I wondered?

Then Chris of Fab, Fit and 40 commented about the dehydration aspect and I thought, bingo! Immediately I knew that this was probably the case. Why?