Wednesday
Jul132011
Podcast - Sink or Swim
Wednesday, July 13, 2011 at 4:09PM 
Photo shot during two-hour open ocean swim in La Jolla, CA.
Join in as I try to swim thirty miles in three days as training for the Lake Tahoe swim crossing with Jamie Patrick! I hit that goal and more when I total forty-two miles of swimming in just one week.
Also, check out the audio from TeamFeat UK as they finish second place in RAAM.
Looking for a challenge? Check out ZenTri Epic Camp and earn yourself a belt buckle!
Reader Comments (1)
Hi Brett,
Just listening to this, and hearing you discuss your plan for pain relief on long swings. I thought I'd give some input (though I'm probably one of a zillion with the same advice). I'm a physician assistant and endurance athlete, and have listened to your show for many years. I used to live in New Orleans, and had hoped to meet up with you when you ran the first New Orleans 70.3.
So here are a few fun facts about over-the-counter pain meds. 1. Advil and Motrin are both brand names for ibuprofen. They are the exact same thing. 2. Ibuprofen is an NSAID (nonsteroidal antiinflammatory drug), one of three available over-the-counter. The other I'd recommend using is naproxen (name-brand: Aleve). They are virtually interchangeable as far as their mechanism of action. Ibuprofen should last 6-8 hours, and naproxen should last around 12 hours. 3. The cautions should be the same for both, in that they can cause stomach discomfort, and even bleeding ulcers if taking a high-enough dose and regularly enough. Most physicians recommend taking these drugs with some food or milk, to counter the increased stomach acid produced by these. The other thing to be aware of is that these are both processed and excreted by the kidneys, so do not use them if you're not sure that you are well-hydrated (if you're not peeing yellow or clear, hold off). 4. The third drug in the NSAID category is aspirin. This is thought by many to be slightly harsher on the GI system, though it's questionable whether the literature show this. 5. The other drug that can work well to address minor pain is Tylenol (generic: acetaminophen). This doesn't actually decrease inflammation at all, but it works directly on masking pain. It doesn't tend to affect the stomach at all. It can be toxic to the liver (where it is metabolized) if taken in high doses or too often, so do not take it with alcohol or as a hangover cure.
So enough of that boring but potentially important stuff.
We are wrapping up a 2+ year post of living in Kigali, Rwanda, where I've done so much hilly trail running and mountain biking at altitude. It's been good for learning, as I grew up in Minnesota and came here from New Orleans, where there really are no hills and few trails. I'm gearing up for the Moose Mountain Marathon, a trail race on the Superior Hiking Trail that is incredibly rough, rooty, rocky, and challenging with so many hills it's surprising even for Minnesotans. It's in September, and there's also a 50-mile and 100-mile option.
Hope you and your family are all well. Thanks for continuing your great show, as it's helped me through a 2-year training period in a way that a running partner can't do.
Scott