When it comes to breaking off a piece of chocolate, you might have that sinking feeling of guilt that it will put a dampener on your training and runner’s lifestyle, but don’t fret, because it actually relieves the stress put on your body after the hard miles. Just remember, it’s all about moderation… BY ESMÉ MARÉ, REGISTERED DIETICIAN AT CHRISTINE PETERS & ASSOCIATES

Running helps to build strong bones, strengthen muscles, improve cardiovascular fitness, burn energy and help maintain a healthy weight, but it can also place stress on your body. Some runners therefore turn to certain foods to help reduce the stress placed on their body and to help improve performance and recovery, and thus both dark chocolate and chocolate milk have become very popular amongst runners.

 

Come to the Dark Side

Chocolate contains potent antioxidants called flavanols, which may reduce exercise-induced oxidative stress. Studies have shown that consuming moderate amounts of chocolate can boost heart health, and lower blood pressure and cholesterol. Other research suggests that these flavanols can ease inflammation and lower the risk of potential blood clots. However, not just any chocolate will do!

 

The darker the chocolate, the higher the antioxidant content and more heart-healthy benefits. Dark chocolate has a lower glycaemic index, which means that eating dark chocolate won’t make your blood sugar levels peak. Choose a dark chocolate 70% or higher, which will help keep your blood sugar levels stable. Just remember to take note of the calories, as chocolate is high in fat, contains sugar, and it’s very easy to over-indulge.

 

Drink Up!

Chocolate milk may help give you more power and help you run longer if you drink it before your workout. It can also improve recovery if you take it after your workout. The chocolate milk helps replace fluids and electrolytes lost during exercise and contains calcium and vitamin D, which will help in strengthening bones. Chocolate milk also contains the perfect ratio of carbohydrates to protein to improve recovery after exercise. The carbohydrates will replenish the depleted glycogen stores and the protein will help rebuild muscle.

 

It is worth mentioning that the benefits from chocolate milk are from the milk and not from the chocolate. The chocolate only adds to the flavour of the milk and the amount of cocoa in the flavouring does not contain sufficient amounts of antioxidants to be of benefit to the athlete. Therefore, any flavour of milk can be used.

Moderation Reminder

Even though chocolate can help your running performance, you still need to consume it in moderation as part of a healthy balanced diet, because chocolate and chocolate milk are high in sugar, fat and energy, and excess consumption can still lead to weight-gain.

Some Perspective

Four Lindt 70% dark chocolate squares equal one slice of bread and two heaped tablespoons of peanut butter, or 250 calories. To burn that many calories, you would need to do one of the following sets of exercise:

·         69 minutes of walking

·         29 minutes of jogging

·         21 minutes of swimming

·         38 minutes of cycling

Vlam Pieterse is one of the most recognised Comrades runners of the last 15 years, despite always finishing with just a few minutes to spare, thanks to his heroics as a long-time driver of the sub-12:00 pacing bus, and in 2015 he will once again be part of the Modern Athlete Comrades Pacesetting crew. 

More than half of the field at the Comrades Marathon crosses the finish line in the last hour before the final 12-hour cut-off gun is fired, and as the countdown to the gun approaches, so the runners become more and more desperate to make it home on time and claim that prized medal. But one thing they have going for them is the 12-hour pacesetting buses, with hundreds upon hundreds of passengers all hanging on to that flag and the comedic comments and motivational spurring on of the volunteer bus drivers, men like Vlam Pieterse of Hartbeespoort Marathon Club.

 

Pacing Perfection

With 23 Comrades medals to his name, the 57-year-old has finished with 10 minutes or less to spare 18 times, so he is an expert on getting the pace just right at Comrades. But it all started in a half marathon, when Vlam helped some clubmates run their target time, and his pacesetting skills soon led to more requests, until eventually he found himself the designated driver of the sub-12:00 bus at Comrades, even before the buses became an official, organised part of the race. Thus the legendary ‘Vlam se Bus’ was born, and Vlam even used to bring along a huge weather balloon with his name on it, so that fellow runners would be able to spot him amongst the crowd at the start! Another part of the Vlam legend is the role his wife San plays on race day, popping up at regular intervals along the route with her marmite sandwiches – now just as famous as Vlam himself!

 

“I help runners who are hoping to reach the cut-off time, including those who are capable, but don’t believe in themselves enough,” explains the red-haired Vlam, hence his nickname. “For me, the ultra-marathon is a spiritual journey… we are fortunate to be able to run it, and knowing we can do it strengthens the mind. But sometimes we need a little bit of help to get home.” Thus Vlam breaks the distance up into smaller, more manageable segments, and keeps the group’s minds off the distance with jokes, songs and a flair for making funny comments, like “Bolyfies vorentoe, borsies uit, dames ook!” The group chants, sings, waves their hands – anything to have fun while keeping going – and every kay marker is greeted with the singing of Queen’s Another One Bites the Dust.

 

Vlam actually says that he can’t run races without a pack around him any more – he misses the camaraderie too much! But driving the 12-hour bus is also a huge responsibility, one that he doesn’t take lightly. “It’s really living life on the edge – great if you make it, heartbreaking if you don’t. I have learnt to remember that I am a pacesetter, not a nurse, and I have to keep the best interests of the group in mind. I must stick to my pacing chart to ensure that everyone in the bus gets to the finish on time, and I cannot slow down or stop for anybody who can’t keep up, even though it breaks my heart to see them drop off the bus.”

The Modern Athlete Pacesetters will once again be in action at his year’s Comrades Marathon on 31 May, but this year the volunteer pacesetters will be appointed well in advance and will be in action in some qualifying marathons or shorter ultras leading up to the Big C. This will allow runners to meet and run with the Pacesetters before the big day, to get to know their pacing style and strategies.

 

Vlam Pieterse is just one of our volunteer Pacesetters, and several others from previous years will also be returning – watch the mag for more on them in coming months – but Modern Athlete is still looking for more pacers. If you are willing to carry a flag at Comrades, please mail Sean Falconer at [email protected] and include a brief running CV. Please note that only experienced Comrades runners will be considered for this important but immensely satisfying job.

Go to most weekend races in Gauteng and you’re likely to spot Shaun ‘Horsepower’ Naidoo smiling and laughing, snapping away with his camera all along the route, and ending off his run with a few cartwheels across the finish line. He appears to be high on life, and when you hear his inspirational journey from depression and drugs to finding his true purpose on the road, you’ll understand why. 

Horsepower… that’s an interesting nickname, and Shaun explains that he picked it up at school when playing soccer. “I was a great sprinter and just kept going, but it was also because I was respected on the field. Strikers hated me because I kicked their shins and wiped them out! It was a healthier, happier, simpler time… Then you finish school, study, work, fall in love, get married. Life happens and you forget those beautiful times. Suddenly you’re miserable, you can’t have kids, and you’re depressed. I compromised myself. I got divorced at 33 and wondered if anyone would fall in love with me again. I thought everyone hated me.”

 

To say that the wheels came off is putting it mildly, and Shaun explains that he went through some very dark days. “In the Indian culture, divorce is not normal. I was disowned. I felt guilty and embarrassed, and figured people thought I was a scumbag. Also, struggling to have kids with my ex-wife hurt me. I was overeating, did drugs, had bad friends… I was in a dark space and I wanted to die. I felt no one cared. I tried to commit suicide. I had lost my faith, my mind was corrupted and I wondered what I did to get punished like this. After my lowest low, chasing deadlines and dealing with relationship issues, it was all overwhelming. I overdosed. Then I went to rehab and found God again.”

 

Social Media Saviour

Coming out of rehab, Shaun says his journey to recovery began on Facebook. “When you start a profile, you put in your name and I went back to Horsepower. I travelled back to my happiest time. I felt it was time to reinvent myself, so I got rid of the bad people in my life, and came up with simple steps to change: Find a job, eat healthy and go for a walk. Soon I was running, then I went from running in secluded areas because I was so shy, to routes where people could see me. After getting into races, I’d hang my medals on the wall and chime them when I came home. Today, there are over 350!”

 

“In that first year of running, I wanted to lose weight. There was also the intention to make new friends. I became known as the ‘Running Photographer’ and my second year was exciting because I went back to the races I had done to get PB’s. I connected with so many people through my photos, sharing them online, and I think I’ve perfected the angles, too! Taking photos and opening up to people on the road was my therapy.”

 

Big C calling…

In 2012, Shaun lined up for his first Comrades Marathon, which he describes as another life-changing experience. “A year earlier I volunteered on the route with Alberton running club, giving out crème sodas, watching the top guys go through and then later the pacing buses. The next year I ran it myself, and I think Comrades is so special, because it was my definite turning point. I still prepared myself for disappointment, because my body hadn’t done that distance before, but if you really believe you can do something, there is nothing stopping you! I also ran for The Wildlands Conservation Trust after being inspired by Brad Brown at a roadshow. I got my bronze medal that I had been aiming for, coming home in 10:58. It was the most incredible feeling. I had found my purpose.”

 

“It was after my second Comrades, coming in 11:54 after a terrible day on the route, that I got my tattoo in Clarens. At the bottom, there is a darkness that I went through, the drugs and negative aspects that grabbed me to keep me down. That disgusting self. Then the phoenix rises out of the darkness. The phoenix has the head of an eagle – something that can see everything. Every morning it reminds me where I’ve been, and where I’m going. Out of the darkness, I’ve become aware of who I am. At the top, my Comrades number is there. While I haven’t earned it permanently yet, it’s my commitment to keep running.”

 

Hooked on running

“I am an addict. Every day is a struggle, but I’m glad I have replaced a bad addiction with a good one. At Slow-Mag last year, I cut open my palm while climbing over a gate to get to the start in time. I was bleeding when the start gun went off, but I just grabbed some tissues from a lady and ran a sub-4:00. It was my last chance at a good seeding for Comrades and I got it! Four stitches later, I was being told off by the nurse but it was worth it!”

 

To date, Shaun has run 52 marathons, 34 ultras, and still more half marathons and 10km races, and earned his permanent number in the 1000km Challenge, having been involved with it for three years. “Today, I run every Saturday and Sunday, and if there is nothing on the Saturday, I’ll do a parkrun. I once ran three races in one day, the first at Tom Jenkins, followed by a parkrun at Delta Park, and then I stayed for a cross-country championship that afternoon. I also did three marathons in 30 hours, driving between three provinces: The Shaduka Coal in Mpumalanga, then the night race in Ottersdal, and Johnson Crane the next morning. I passed out under a tree by the end of it with three medals around my neck!”

 

Ambassadorial role

After two years with the Alberton club, Shaun received a surprise message from the Comrades King, Bruce Fordyce, inviting him to run as a running ambassador for the Nedbank club, and he jumped at the chance. “It was a great opportunity. We created a group called The Green Machine, and the whole concept is to inspire each other and other runners. Now, when I see a ‘newb’ on the road, I encourage them to join any club, to learn and meet new people, and I often get asked for advice, about what to eat, about race routes, and if I know about extra entries and things like that. I love inspiring people, so my main philosophy now is to spread smiles on the road, especially through my photos. One of my goals is to run two hours at one of the ladies’ 10km races, just so I can walk, photograph and enjoy myself. I’m also running my first ever Two Oceans Ultra this year.”

 

“Meanwhile, I’ve fallen in love, I’m looking for a job, and who knows, maybe there will be little coltpowers soon? Also, two years ago, I designed this action figure of me. My face with a Superman body. It’s called The Phoenix. I wanted to create this comic of a normal guy who got divorced, went through bad stuff and fell into toxic sludge, then he got superpowers. Maybe he runs around and saves things? That’s what I want to be. I used to be the villain. Now I choose to be the hero.