MultiSport World Conference and Expo NYC Recap

Today was pretty awesome. I love conferences and seminars. Learning new information is one of my passions (that's probably why I am still in school). And I will never pass up a opportunity to do some shopping for new running gear. So there was no way I could pass up a day that incorporated both!

The MultiSport World Conference and Expo "gives you everything you need to prepare for the new season including seminars offering guidance on training, nutrition and injury prevention training clinics to help you improve your swim stroke and running technique workshops on strength training and completing your first triathlon... competitive events for an early season test of your endurance vendor expos featuring race directors, certified coaches, local multisport clubs and retailers and manufacturers of products, gear and apparel... and more! "

Me talking with the CEO of TryChips. Photo taken by MultiSport Conference

Even though I am not a triathlete, I thought by attending the conference I could walk away with a better understanding of endurance sport training. And I was right. The conference provided breadth and depth on numerous topics ranging from exercise and quality of life to avoiding injury during race day. The speakers were professionals in their fields holding PhD's, MD's, and RN's. Each seminar section was approximately 15 minutes (without question and answer sessions). The speakers utilized power points, videos, and even live demonstrations. 

Live demo on high to properly ride

In between each speaker the coordinator would give away awesome prizes for people who could correctly answer questions that ranged from basic history to  pop culture. Some of the prizes given away included swimming clinics, gift cards to athletic stores, signed books, etc. The grand prize was a CompuTrainer Pro valued at $1,500. Overall a great place to grab some free swag. 

The registration bags also came with some nice goodies.

And the expo provided some great take homes.

I also walked away with some purchased items.

Orange shirt says "Run like a Mother" and the Yellow says "Thirteen point freaken one". The TryChips are amazing snacks that I just couldn't get enough of! And of course some new CEP compression socks

Besides the vendors and expo, the seminars were excellent. Some of the important tips and information I took away from the conference were the following:
Exercise

• In recent research, people who could run longest on a treadmill had lower chronic disease.
• If you stay active, there is no reason you shouldn't be doing the same thing at 80 as you did at 25. 
• Exercise is the vaccine needed to prevent & treat chronic disease. Everyone needs to take it.
• Low levels of fitness are larger risk factors of mortality compared to mild/moderate obesity 
• Exercise increases the quantity and quality of life.

Nutrition

• Cut back on the crap food, it's better to be fit and fat than thin and inactive.
• Be happy with your weight by making the best of your body.  
• Not everyone is built the same. So to compare is to despair. You should not compare yourself to other runners.
• Athletes should eat evenly throughout the day this prevents the body from getting too hungry. This can be accomplished by eating carbs.
• Best way to lose the extra weight is to chip away calories at end of day
• All athletes need to take rest days to allow their body to refuel. These rest days will not cause a decrease in ability, but will allow for the body to recover from intense training.

Racing Smart and Being a Happy Athlete

• Newbies represent 50% of the field in shorter race distances, 25% of the field in longer race distances.
• Some of the down falls newbies face during racing include being disorganized, being surprised by the race course, experiencing emotional fatigue, having heighten external awareness (being hyper-aware of the people around them).
• Newbies can beat these problems by making sure that they have fun, they really get into race, focus on finishing, enjoy it enough to want to do it again, make sure to get fit for the race, know the course, learn competitive skills, set goals and achieve them.
• A runners physiology affects their emotional happiness as well. So athletes can prepare correctly by properly hydrating, consume electrolytes, intake enough calories, manage your heart rate, and being aware of the heat you are racing/training in.

Preventing Overheating While Racing

• Prevention of overheating is as simple as these few steps: slow down the pace, stay properly hydrated, be aware of environmental conditions, acclimatize, and listen to your body.
• Practice drinking fluids while training, this allows for your body to understand what it needs to stay properly hydrated as well as it allows for you to feel comfortable in-taking fluid while being active.
• Athletes should train in the heat if they are racing in the heat. This allows for the body to become accustom to the hot conditions and increases sweat glands.
• Athletes need to watch their sodium levels by utilizing electrolytes.

Injury and Injury Prevention

• Why do athletes get hurt? Two main reasons: acute injury or overuse. Overuse is the most common form of injury. And women are most likely to suffer from it.
• When is it good to say no and to stop pushing through the pain? When the mechanics of what you are doing changes. If the athlete begins to compensate for the pain they are feeling (by limping, shifting weight, etc) this is an indication of a major problem. By pushing through the pain, you run the risk of increasing the damage and being out for the season.
• Injury prevention begins with strength training, this should be done at least twice a week.

Here are some great videos taken from today (not by me).







Overall it was a wonderful day! Thank you MultiSport for putting on a wonderful conference stocked full of great information!

Keep your eyes on Happy Mother Runner because we will soon be chock full of awesome giveaways!

Until then...
Be Inspired, Stay Motivated, Run Strong!

Hyannis Half Marathon Day 1

We are finally here! It was a five hour trip with car-to-car traffic over 1/3 of the way. The weather during our drive was horrendous switching between rain and snow with steady gusts of winds.

I don't pack light!

When we arrived at Comfort Inn Cape Cod they checked us in and gave us our Welcome Runner's Bag, which included a bottle of water, granola bar, an itenary for the weekend, a map of the town, and a book of things to do. We settled into our room, ordered some dinner (delivery), and went to sleep.

Gift Bag from Comfort Inn.

Our room

Our Room

This morning we woke up late (we could sleep in since little MG stayed at home with grandma) and took our time getting ready. We headed out to breakfast and decided to stop at the famous Keltic Kitchen. An amazing choice! The atmosphere was perfect, a hopping breakfast restaurant with old wood paneling and family pictures gracing the walls. The food selection is strictly breakfast, but there were more than enough choices. The best part was the quality, the food was to die for. Hands down the best breakfast I have ever had.

After we finished breakfast the hubby and I headed over to the Expo at the Conference Center. Compared to other expos, it was relatively small. Most of the vendors were in the outside hallway. I am glad we went right when it opened because I could see it becoming extremely crowded fast. There weren't many vendors selling items. I did get a massage to help get the kink out of my back. I also did find a top and a pair of shorts for a pretty decent price (50% off all items!).

Hyannis Half Marathon shirt. Made of 100% cotton. I am only wearing it before the race so you can see what it looks like.

The coolest part of expo was exploring the new MotoActv. I will trade in my Garmin for one (pretty big deal).

It has some pretty cool features including charting what songs you workout best to, it connects your texts and phone calls to the device, it can be used for multiple activities (pilates, running, walking, biking, etc), it connects to a wireless waterproof bluetooth headset (which has a heart-rate monitor built in), GPS with map viewing features, Android software that can be updated (not a hardware update like Garmin), it is scratch proof, has the option of armband or wrist watch, and it has a built in accelerometer to use indoors. I would LOVE LOVE LOVE to get my hands on one of these little guys to test out. 

After finishing expo, hubby and I headed down to the beach to walk around. The wind was crazy! But it was fun looking for sea shells. After walking the beach we headed to Main St. with numerous quaint shops. Most were closed for the season, but I found a great jewelery shop that sold handmade items. A certain friend is going to have a great gift for her upcoming birthday :)

Crazy Wind!

That is it for Day 1! Tomorrow morning is R-Day. So we are relaxing tonight and going to head out for dinner shortly.

Be Inspired, Stay Motivated, Run Strong!

ING NYC Marathon Expo

Hal Higdon and I. Unfortunately the picture was blurry :(

Even though I am not running the NYC marathon this year, I couldn't  help myself, I took my son and we made the trek to the Jacob Javits center to go to the expo. The vendors at the expo were amazing. Right when you entered, was the Runners World booth. Sitting there signing his book was Hal Higdon. So I went up and had a chat with him. Thanked him for helping me loose my baby weight, and then asked him to sign the book to my husband, who is now working on becoming a marathon runner. I walked around and looked at all the booths that were promoting races. Had to look at the Disney medals, in person, one more time (AMAZING). Next to the Disney booth was the Ottawa Marathon, I fell in love with the Ottawa Marathon medal. It was hands down gorgeous. I think we are going to have to look into the race. After some shopping and browsing, I ended my visit at the Rock 'n' Roll booth where I registered my husband and I for the DC race (we received 15 dollars off per registration). Overall, it was a great expo. I wish the ING people would have had the expo in a bigger room because on a Friday midday it was PACKED. I wouldn't want to try to maneuver around everyone with a stroller tomorrow. YIKES! Now off to find some good sayings for signs to cheer on the ING runners as they go through Queens on Sunday.

Happy Running!