Beat the lack of heat     

Beat the lack of heat     

Beat the lack of heat     

You wake up and look outside the window and notice it is cold, wet and, worst of all, it’s dark! With daylight saving now finished and winter rapidly approaching, the majority of people will find that their motivation for exercise will always start to wavier.

As the weather starts to become colder, here is why it becomes even more important to engage in physical activity.

Heat is the byproduct of metabolic reactions such as exercise, with nearly 75 per cent of energy created released as heat. From numerous studies it is well established that your body temperature will rise during exercise. As a result your body will try to counteract this increase in heat production by undergoing vasodilation, where your blood flow is redirected to the skin. This will result in an overall warming sensation of the body.
This warming sensation continues after exercise until you eventually reach your temperature equilibrium.

As a result, you will feel warmer post exercise making it easier to cope with whatever winter throws at you. Remember this wisdom from Tom Lehrer next time you are thinking of skipping exercise: “Bad weather always looks worse through a window”.
 

Hydration 101

The amount of sports science-related information that is available to the general public is mind-blowing. In previous years, this sort of information was only available to professional athletes and those in the medical profession.

Take hydration for example. We all know that it is important to hydrate during exercise and it plays a role in recovery. But what are the impacts of not hydrating to the required level?

Physical performance is impaired when a body fluid deficit of a little as 2 per cent exists (this would be 1.6kg for an 80kg athlete).

A 1 per cent fluid loss can result in an elevation of 0.3 – 0.4 degrees Celsius in core body temperature during exercise.

So what can you do to avoid these negative impacts? Some targets to keep in mind are drinking 400-500mL before exercise, drinking 150ml every 20 minutes you exercise and drink approximately 600mL- 1L post exercise (depending on how long you exercised). With these targets in mind, you will be preforming and recovering like the professionals in no time!
 

Wheel Women Ride Bikes

A regular ride group starting at designated start points in Docklands, Federation Square and Kensington (Bellair St coffee shops). No lycra necessary and coffee and cake is the desired destination … a social ride at a casual and non-elite pace.

Wheel Women Ride Bikes Programs are a beginner/intermediate course, excellent for those wanting some focused learning and to develop some serious ride skills.

To get involved, meet at the big dinosaur opposite the Ice House in Docklands on Saturdays. This amazing concept starts on May 4 and is conducted between 9.30am-11. For more information or to register please contact [email protected]

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