Articles
Short analytical articles on the evidence behind training and race decisions, newest first.
- (9) The Greek Yoghurt Recovery Bowl Needs Carbohydrate
A 200 g serving can provide about 21 g protein and just 6 g carbohydrate. When another demanding run is close, the additions do much of the refuelling.
- (8) Outdoor Mileage Does Not Guarantee Enough Vitamin D
A long winter run provides daylight, but it may provide almost no vitamin D. Mileage is a poor proxy for usable UVB exposure.
- (7) Mouthwash Can Disrupt Beetroot Juice Without Proving a Performance Cost
Antibacterial mouthwash can interrupt the chemistry behind beetroot juice. Whether that interruption makes a runner slower remains unproven.
- (6) Cold Ultras Need Hydration Guardrails, Not a Fixed Drinking Rate
In cold weather, you can be losing fluid without sweating visibly and dehydrating without feeling thirsty. But the field data shows the risk cuts both ways.
- (5) HRV Is a Readiness Signal Before It Is a Fitness Score
HRV contains information about training adaptation, but a single number cannot separate fitness from sleep, illness, altitude or life stress.
- (4) Sleep Extension Before a 100-Miler Protects Alertness, Not Judgement
Extra sleep before a 100-miler can reduce starting sleep debt. Its best-supported benefit is sustained attention, not immunity from poor decisions.
- (3) The Ageing Ultrarunner Needs More Protein Than They Realise
Ultrarunning has an older participation profile, yet direct protein-requirement evidence in masters ultra athletes is still missing.
- (2) Polarised Training Is Useful but Incomplete for Mountain Ultras
Polarised training can raise the aerobic ceiling. Mountain ultras also demand durability, downhill tolerance and enough specific work to use it late in the race.
- (1) Your Brain Can Quit Before Your Legs
Cyclists produced three times their exhaustion workload in an immediate sprint. The result changes how runners should interpret task failure.