Stay off the sugar

Ribose is great stuff. Yes, it's a sugar, but sugar's not always bad for you. This particular sugar has been heavily researched after early studies showed it seemed to be able to help revitailse extremely sick hearts.

AFter reading up on it, I made it a key part of the nutritional supplement program that supports me in training and racing when other men my age (present company excepted, of course) are settling down with a pipe and a cosy pair of slippers of an evening.

I'd never tried ribose right before a run; I usually add it to my post-training recovery drink (Endurox). But today I experimented with a teaspoon or two in a glass of water, plus a cup of tea, as I was still feeling a bit tired from Saturday's tempo run and thought it would give me a lift.

Bad idea. 10 minutes into a very easy run I started feeling really weak. I was faint and shaky and my vision, while not exactly blurring, was kind of juddering. After the obligatory moment of panic that every man over 50 has at the first sign of something-not-quite-right-ness (Is it a heart attack? Am I dying?), my kinesthetic memory kicked in. Ah yes, this was a drastic drop in blood sugar, that was all.

My theory: the raw sugar, on a not very full stomach, plus the kick of a bit of caffeine, triggered a blood sugar/energy spike -- and a few minutes down the road my insulin kicked in to smooth things out. And overdid it.

Should I turn back? No. it was one of those occasions when I decided to "suck it up" and finish. Even if I had to jog so slowly that I risked freezing on the spot. Amazingly, within another 5 minutes or so I felt not just good, but GREAT. I got to the turn round point and found I was flying. In fact, I had to hold myself back (got to keep the heart rate to the schedule, don't you know).

So, a lesson learned. I won't try it again. Although I am tempted to see if I can just improve the delivery or the timning, because, wow, I really did pick it up on the way back.