[telmadee]

I need advise please, my husband has recently started running (he is aiming to do an half marathon for charity) he has never run before but has now reached the 6 mile mark, he loves it, but has a problem, and is too embarrassed himself to join and ask, the problem is, that after every run he has to go straight to the toilet and has diarreah, I am worried that this means something is wrong, he doesnt eat before he runs, he does take the drinks with him, and also a couple of jelly babies (something he read on here himself) is this normal or is he doing something wrong? thankyou in advance

 

[Steady Edwina]

I believe they call it the runners trots and it is not uncommon. Surprisingly its not something I've suffered with myself. I have read that some sugars/sweetners can cause loose bowel movements - have a look at his drink and see if there is anything ending with ol in it. He could try experienting and excluding the jellie babies and maybe try water. He sould be ok if he has something to eat 2-3 hrs before running.

I'm currently training for my first half marathon and I've just reached the 6 mile point. I will need to start taking something out with me soon but at the moment I drink some water before I go out and have a slimfast shake when I get back.

Hopefully someone with some more experience will post shortly.

 

[telmadee]

Thank you so much Edwina, i feel better for reading that. Its the isotonic drinks he takes with him, not much though just one of htose little running bottles full. He doesnt have anything to eat before he goes out though as he goes at about 5am before work, so he gets back and has porridge, (he has to have porridge as it helps his blood pressure), but i will tell him to try now without the Jelly babies and perhaps just take water and see how he goes.

Thanks Again
Dawn

 

[Runningfox]

It could be more psychological than anything physically wrong with him. When I started running, late in life, I had the same problem and always carried toilet paper with me in case I had to dash off into the bushes. Perhaps my body, or my brain, were objecting to starting something it hadn't been used to for the past fifty years! The fear was there even when I was racing but I always managed to hold out to the finish.
Incidentally, I never carry water while training. The only times I carry water and jelly babies is when I'm doing something long, like the Three Peaks fell race. If I was training in the early morning I'd have a quick cup of tea and a couple of biscuits before setting out. When I return from a run, especially a long one or an interval session, the first thing I do is drink half a glass of water with four teaspoons of sugar and a pinch of salt.
Cheers!

 

[ed_m]

morning running never works well for me anyway.

my bowels wake up about 30minutes after i get up, and if i'm off for a morning run that corresponds to 15minutes into the run.

he should think himself lucky he makes it home before having to do the business ;-)

 

[Granty]

Hi,

I fortunately have never had that problem, I too carry water and and emergency pack of jelly babies around with me, (this has risen to 2 packs now

I don't know how he feels now he has got to 6 miles, I personally found getting from 6 - 8 ish miles the hardest part of my training when I did mine, after 8 miles I was fine again.

Anyway, wish him all the best and 2:17 to beat !!

 

[telmadee]

Thank you all so very much for your responses, what a lovely bunch of people you are.
Runningfox thank you for your input i will advise him to do as you said with the water sugar and salt (although we dont really use salt cos of his blood pressure He is only 32 and has suffered with high blood pressure since his early 20s he was into body building/ weight training at that time but had to stop as his blood pressure was dangerously high, so we cut out things like salt etc. I did have to chuckle when i read the get caught short and have to head for the bushes this happened to him yesterday at about 05:45am so luckily no cars were around, but where he was was a darkish area and he didnt realise til it was too late that they were thorn bushes *ouch*
I will show him all these replies tonight, as i said in a previous post you are an inspiration to anyone wanting to start running at any age, so thank you so much.
Ed M He unfortunately has to go early mornings as he feels embarrassed that he cant run very fast, hes a 14 stone guy (muscly not fat) and although he has now reached the 6 mile point it does bother him that he cant go sprinting fast liek other peopel do which we see out on a night, I have tried telling him it doesnt matter and at least he is running a fair distance but I suppose it will come with confidence for him
Granty I will let you know how he feels when he gets to that stage this week he went from Monday going 4 miles to yesterday going an extra 02 i personally think he is pushing himself too hard, I will forewarn him that he may find the next step hard then lol, thank you for the warning, actually going back to what runningfox said I am now wondering if I'm the cause of it, as I get up with him when he sets off and literally time him, I go over every route with him as i am so scared that he will have an heart attack so maybe im adding to the anxiety.

Kindest regards to you all
Dawn

 

[Steve]

Telmadee,

The best thing the other half can do is join a local running, not athletic, club. Size/weight/age doesn't matter...us runners are all sizes/ages and he'll soon get to know who he can run comforatbly with and will improve a lot quicker than if he continues to run alone.

I assume the planned 1/2m is the first race he will have done. If so running with others will help even more as running is psychological as well as physical. My first ever race was a 1/2m ( many moons ago) so it can be done!

Regarding the mileage..the 10% rule should be adhered to..especially by a new runner. Don't do more than 10% more than the mileage you did last week and don't increase the longest run by more than 10%.
ie 30 miles total last week..33 max this week. 10 miles longest run last week, 11 this week.

All the best.

 

[telmadee]

thanks for that Steve, we do know a couple of people who are in a running club but the guy did say to him not to join til he could do about 4 miles comfortably as it wouldnt be fair on regular runners who will be left to run slowly with him and i think it made my hubby feel a bit inferior and gave him a complex, he is from a very competetive family and i dont think he wants to feel like he is putting on anyone, personally for my own selfish reasons i wish he would join then i know he would be safe if anything was to happen, even a sprained ankle. I was really annoyed with him pushing himslef that extra (although he denies he pushed he said it didnt seem a struggle) because he had actually read on here about the 10% rule. He wont be doing it agian *puts bossy mummy's voice on* lol

 

[Runningfox]

we dont really use salt cos of his blood pressure He is only 32 and has suffered with high blood pressure since his early 20s .

Actually, I use very little salt, and never sprinkle it on food (except on a rare treat of fish and chips from the local chippy). It has no place on my table. But the tiniest bit helps my recovery after a run.
Further, the nurse despairs whenever I go for my six-monthly check-up because my blood pressure is always high. In the past she was forever referring me to the doctor and trying to get me onto medication, which I refused. Now, she accepts my two possible reasons:
(a) White coat syndrome (I tell the nurse it's her that causes it!). It's always lower when I use my own monitor in the privacy of home. Now she asks me to take my own readings for a week and give them to her. They're always OK.
(b) I have a very slow heartbeat - normally around 42 but gets as low as 36. So, if my pulse is only half the rate of the average person I reckon my heart has to beat with twice as much 'oomph' to get the same amount of blood round my body. If I've been out for a run, and raised my pulse rate, my blood pressure is lower.
So there's something for you to think about!
Cheers!

 

[telmadee]

oooh thanks for that running fox, Meg cant use that as an excuse though he has twice been fitted with the 24 hour monitors, so they know his heart is beating a bit silly all the time lol, i blame it on me and the kids and suggested he move out for a while to see if it lowers lol, but he was haivng none of that lol, (joking) its funny actually though cos when he has been running he said he feels fantastic (helath wise, although he does look pretty darn fine in his shorts) lol but at other times he can be just sat watching t.v. and his head feels liek it is going to explode he says, so to think that his running may help his blood pressure would be fantastic, so fingers crossed at his next hospital appointment, thanks again for the reassurance

 

[Karen]

Hi Dawn,

Runners trots - I get them too - fortunately always after my run, and not during the run - but I'm honestly glad I get it, because normally my body works the other way: without the running, I'm permanently constipated. So I don't really complain - I just live with it.

As for the blood pressure - Runningfox is right. My husband also has very high BP (and is on medication for it, as it runs seriously in the family). But we also find that it is far better to have a BP monitor at home, and measure for about a week beforehand, every day, at the same time of day, and take those readings to the practise nurse. Just the thought of somebody else taking his BP can send my husband's BP rocketing. Sometimes, I even go with him to the nurse/doctor just to try to keep him level-headed.

But it sounds as though you guys are being really careful, and you obviously care a great deal about your man. You already know that exercise and diet are crucial to good health. You can't molly-coddle him too much though ... Make sure he has enough space too. But no, moving out isn't the answer either

 

[telmadee]

Karen thank you so much for your lovely reply, i feel so much better knwoing that it is quite normal for him, its also nice to speak with someone whos hubby suffers with high bp, they told him that if he didnt stop training so hard (weight training) that he wouldnt live to be 25, so that scared the life out of us as you can imagine, he does take his meds daily (03 tablets) but they never seem to work so after the reply running fox gave me about lowering the bp, im hopeful now, he has said that after this marathon for Parkinsons, that he is oing to carry on running regularly so im really pleased, but i must admitt i am a worrier, im gonna have to learn to keep it under control arent I lol

 

[Steady Edwina]

I understand OH concerns re early morning running - its a male pride thing. I joined a running club long before I could run comfortably for 4 miles - my club has a run/walkers group and a walking group. I think it was a bit mean of your friend to say that to him - generally there is always someone at a club that is willing to run with a new person. He will probably find that he isn't the slowest.

Wish him luck and also for yourself.

 

[telmadee]

thank you so much Edwina, your words are very encouraging.

 

[hot foot]

Hi Telmadee.
I suffered with this same problem when I first took up running.
It was only when I started watching the portion sizes of my food as well as eating less fiberous meals the day before a long run that I started to get it under control.I never eat too late in the evening either.
Also, as you are probably well aware,caffeine can have a big part to play in this.
If I have a cup of coffee in the morning for example you can guarantee that I pay a visit with in 20 mins or so!:embarrassed:
Good luck with it and I'm sure your husband will discover a solution.

 

[telmadee]

thank you so much hot foot, he does drink decaffinated tea and coffee, but we may have to look at the meals he has the night before, we do eat healthily and small portions but maybe have to rearrange and experiment with the type of meals and see if that helps

 

[telmadee]

He has tried just taking out water instead of the isotonic drink, hes also stopped with the jelly babies, and one day he went out without a drink at all, (he was shocking when he got back form that one, hes a big guy and so he realsied that he definately needs a drink of some sort to take out. But after each trip he still had to go straight to the toilet. I even tried lingering upstairs before he set off so I wouldnt put stress on him by questioning the route and time etc, so I wouldnt panic if he were late (selfish i know) but that also didnt work, (so at least i can go back to nagging again lol) so i think its goin to be one of those things, he has to accept bless him lol

 

[Steady Edwina]

Just keep experimenting the right combinations sometimes take time to find.

 

[telmadee]

*light bulb flicks on in Dawns head* maybe i could just feed him with either boiled rice and water or dry bread and water a couple of days leading upto the each running day.................will save tons on the shoppingbill too, and i could perhaps say you lot suggested it too, so thats the law lol