As a new study reveals that 80 per cent of runners are risking their health by exercising in areas of high pollution – raising their risk of respiratory problems, stroke and heart disease – experts warn there are other rookie errors which can reduce the benefits you get from workouts without you even realising:
Band width: Having a good sports bra is essential, but Canadian researchers have found that women often tend to buy bras with a tight underband, and this impaired breathing and oxygen intake. “Our findings suggest sports bra underbands can impair breathing mechanics during exercise and influence whole-body metabolic rate,” they warn.
This means a run requires more effort than it would to run the same distance in a well fitting bra, impacting your performance and making it harder to hit a personal best.
Conversely, wearing a bra that’s not tight enough brings its own issues. Sports scientists at Portsmouth University found that low to medium impact sports bras were effective at reducing bounce, but aren’t as good at restricting the side to side swaying movement of breasts when exercising.
The team from Portsmouth also believe that when support is lacking, you won’t perform as well in your workout, from having a less efficient running technique to taking shorter strides.
Amazingly, not wearing a fully supportive sports bra won’t just leave you with breast sag, expertes say it can increase your risk of leg injury, as runners who aren’t wearing effective training bras land down more heavily as their feet strike the ground.
To ensure the perfect level of support, go to a specialist fitter, or use an online bra-fitting tool – one study reported that 17% of elite women athletes who were given an individual bra assessment before the Toyko Olympics said it had significantly improved their performance at the Games.
Running on empty: If you’re exercising to lose weight, do it on an empty stomach. Researchers at Nottingham Trent University found fasting before exercise increases fat burning by 70%, although there was also a 3.8% dip in performance.
But if you want to build muscle and strength, fuel up on carbohydrates (1 to 4g of carbs per kg of bodyweight) and protein — which becomes increasingly important as we get older because of age-related muscle loss — but aim for an average intake of 0.25g of a high-quality protein per kilogram of body weight.
And make sure that you don’t run up a thirst because hydration is also hugely important for health and performance. Despite this a study of American track athletes found that just over half of them wrongly believed that thirst is the first sign of dehydration.
Warm to it: Physiotherapist and competitive bodybuilder Sammy Margo says failing to warm up – or doing warm-ups that don’t work such as standing stretches — are a common cause of muscle and joint injuries.
Analysis of 15 studies calculated that warming up reduces the risk of injury by 36%, yet consumer research for Deep Heat and Deep Freeze found only 34% of adults warm up before exercise and a mere 29% do a cool-down. Sammy says: “Your warm-up should include similar movements to the activity, so if you’re running, march on the spot, or walk briskly building up to a run. The aim is to increase circulation to the muscles you will be using.”
Using products like Deep Heat Muscle Massage Roll On (£5.49; Superdrug) will accelerate warming and help loosen damaged tissue around old injuries. Sammy adds it’s just as important to cool down. “This helps the body recover and helps clear carbon dioxide and toxins. A cool-down is like turning down a dimmer switch.”
No mean feet: “Getting the right footwear is essential,” says leading podiatrist Anne-Marie O’Connor, but she warns that the super lightweight running shoes which have become popular in the past five years or so don’t offer the support some runners need.
“Go to a specialist running-shoe shop where you can try shoes with different levels of support and try at least three different brands. Comfort is everything and if you are just starting out, or don’t run regularly, go for something that’s a little more supportive and slightly more robust.”
She adds, “Having more support within the trainer stabilises the foot, so everything above the foot is more likely to be in alignment.”
This will also help to head off ankle, knee and even hip pain caused by over-pronation, which happens when the arch of the foot rolls inwards or downwards more than it should.
