October marked the 30th anniversary of the Ironman World Championship
in Kailua-Kona, on Hawaii’s big island. This triathlon is considered
one of the most spectacular endurance events on the planet, not only
because of the world-class competition, but also the grueling distances
involved (2.4-mile swim, 112-mile bike, 26.2-mile run) under Kona’s
famously extreme hot, windy, and humid conditions.
The Hawaii
Ironman is always an inspiration to those who follow it every year, but
the relatively young race also teaches us how to master its challenges.
From its humble beginnings in the late ‘70s and early ‘80s, when
competitors were weighed for hydration on checkpoint scales, the sport
and science behind it have continually evolved to very sophisticated
levels. By moving their bodies 140.6 miles in opposition to the
relentless forces of heat, wind, humidity, and exhaustion, what do
trailblazing Kona triathletes have to teach us?
The Great DaneOne
standout athlete who really pushes the edge in this tropical Petri dish
is Denmark’s Torbjørn Sindballe. After several years at the elite
level, he has truly broken through in Kona in 2007 and 2008. He’s stuck
his neck out over the last two years in a bid to lessen the effects of
Kona’s heat and humidity on him, and to seek an advantage against his
fellow competitors. Last year, he finished third overall. This year, he
was first off the bike by over 4 minutes, but faded during the run due
to nutritional issues. Sindballe is a large athlete, by professional
triathlete ectomorph standards. At nearly 6 feet, 3 inches high (190
cm) and 178 pounds (81 kg), his body surface area is less than most of
his Ironman peers. This means Sindballe has a diminished ability, via
sweat and blood flow to his skin, to dissipate the heat generated by
his massive muscles as they power him to the sharp end of the race.
Sindballe’s
unprecedented strategy to manage his unique heat challenges over the
last two races in Kona has been to dress from head to toe in all white,
essentially becoming a human heat reflector. White hat, white
long-sleeved jersey, white thigh-length shorts, and white knee-high
socks. Even white gloves! For 30 years, Ironman racers have worn as
little as public decency standards have allowed, in an effort to beat
the heat. Is Sindballe onto something we can learn from? Let’s find out
what the sports scientists can tell us.
In 2007, the American
College of Sports Medicine published two separate position stands that
weigh in on these issues: External Heat Illness during Training and
Competition and Exercise and Fluid Replacement. These peer-reviewed
conclusions verify what those who have trained and competed in extreme
elements intuitively know: The Hawaii Ironman is the perfect storm of
athletic/environmental chaos. Specifically, the greatest risk of
exertional heatstroke, heat exhaustion, and exercise-related muscle
cramps occur during high-intensity exercise in hot/humid environments.
Some Don’t Like It HotAs
ambient heat increases above 68 degrees F (20 degrees C), exercise time
to exhaustion decreases, perceived exertion increases, and energy
stores diminish at a faster rate. As core body temperatures exceed 104
degrees F (40 degrees C), muscle fibers break down, blood flow to the
skin rises (stealing blood away from working muscles), and sweat
secretion skyrockets (stealing precious water from working cells).
Sindballe actively attempts to minimize the effect of ambient heat with
reflective clothing.
Nor Do They Like It HumidThe
scientific literature establishes that increasing humidity seriously
stymies our skin’s ability to cool our bodies. Moisture-saturated air
offers a tiny gradient for heat-charged perspiration to escape the
skin’s surface. Just like heat, this causes an increase in blood flow
to the skin to force heat off via radiation and convection. This is
blood flow that should be going to your working muscles, not urgently
trying to keep your body cool. To manage this, Sindballe keeps his
entire white fabric network wet with cool water, creating a steep
gradient to suck the heat out of his core.
Water WorksDehydration
is another specter creeping around the island on race day. Dehydration
raises the body’s core temperature, making the battle against the
elements exponentially tougher. Most know that even minimal dehydration
increases heart rate and perceived exertion. Dehydration exceeding 2%
of body weight degrades endurance performance, lowers time to
exhaustion, and impairs cognitive/mental performance. When fluid losses
exceed 3% of body weight, sweat production and blood flow to the skin
actually decrease to preserve the integrity of the vital organs. This
extreme scenario exacerbates a devastating and medically dangerous
domino effect where the body requires outside assistance to rehydrate
and cool down.
Preventative MeasuresIn addition to
following Sindballe’s lead by choosing reflective clothing and keeping
it covered in cool water, you do have another option. The ACSM tells
us that the best protection against exertion-related heat problems is
to acclimate to the hot and humid environment in which you will be
competing: 10–14 days of exercise training in heat has been
demonstrated to improve heat acclimatization. While this might not be
practical unless you are a heavily sponsored professional athlete
without significant domestic commitments, mimicking extreme conditions
with extra clothing is an option many temperate climate athletes such
as myself have had success with. A jacket and/or tights in the summer
can help train your body for what’s to come in a place like Kona, and
your body will begin making physiological adaptations in kind. Sure,
your long clothing may make you stand out from your training gang, but
like Sindballe, you may be rewarded for daring to be different. This
approach could prove to be the next best thing to getting a condo for
an extra week or two before your race. If you do train in the summer
with long-sleeves on, keep the heat stress sensibly small to avoid
overheating.
Lesson TakenTorbjørn Sindballe is doing
everything in his power to successfully take on Hawaii’s elements. He’s
inventing clever ways to shave seconds off his performance times. At
his level, those tiny increments in an 8+ hour race often mean the
difference between standing on the podium or not. Few of us can relate
to that level of performance, but we can all relate to pushing
ourselves to our absolute limits. His attempt to keep his body cool is
a smart strategy and his breakthrough performances suggest that we can
all learn from this pioneer.
References
Armstrong et al, American College of Sports Medicine Position Stand, Exertional heat Illness during Training and Competition, 2007, Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise
Sawka et al, American College of Sports Medicine Position Stand, Exercise and Fluid Replacement, 2007, Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise
Topics:
General, Post-Workout, Recovery, Research
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