How do you stop the runs. 5 Effective Home Remedies for Diarrhea: Quick Relief and Recovery Tips

10.11.202002.06.2021 by alexxlab

How can you effectively treat diarrhea at home. What are the best foods to eat when experiencing diarrhea. Which over-the-counter medications can help alleviate diarrhea symptoms. When should you seek medical attention for diarrhea.

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Understanding Diarrhea: Causes and Symptoms

Diarrhea is a common digestive issue characterized by loose, watery bowel movements. While often uncomfortable, it typically resolves on its own within a few days. However, understanding its causes and symptoms can help you manage it more effectively.

Diarrhea can be caused by various factors, including:

Viral or bacterial infections
Food intolerances or allergies
Certain medications
Stress or anxiety
Underlying medical conditions

Common symptoms accompanying diarrhea include:

Abdominal cramps
Nausea
Bloating
Urgency to use the bathroom
Possible fever or dehydration

Hydration: The Key to Diarrhea Recovery

Proper hydration is crucial when dealing with diarrhea. The body loses significant amounts of water and electrolytes during frequent bowel movements, putting you at risk of dehydration. How can you effectively rehydrate your body during a bout of diarrhea?

The first step is to increase your fluid intake. Water is essential, but it’s not always enough on its own. To replenish lost electrolytes, consider these options:

Oral rehydration solutions (ORS): Mix 1 liter of water with half a teaspoon of salt and 6 teaspoons of sugar. This homemade solution helps your intestines absorb fluids more efficiently.
Sports drinks: These can help restore potassium and sodium levels in your body.
Fruit juices: They can help replenish potassium, but be cautious as some may irritate your stomach.

Are there any drinks you should avoid? Yes, steer clear of:

Caffeinated beverages
Alcohol
Carbonated drinks
Very hot beverages

These can further irritate your digestive tract and potentially worsen diarrhea symptoms.

The BRAT Diet: A Gentle Approach to Eating with Diarrhea

When experiencing diarrhea, your diet plays a crucial role in your recovery. The BRAT diet is a popular approach that many find helpful. But what exactly is the BRAT diet?

BRAT stands for:

Bananas
Rice
Applesauce
Toast

This diet combines bland, low-fiber, and high-starch foods that can help produce more solid bowel movements. It also provides essential nutrients like potassium and pectin, which can aid in recovery.

Why is the BRAT diet effective for diarrhea? These foods are easy to digest and can help firm up stools. They’re also less likely to irritate your stomach or intestines.

However, it’s important to note that the BRAT diet is highly restrictive and doesn’t provide balanced nutrition. It should only be followed for a short period, typically no longer than 48 hours, or until you start feeling better.

Foods to Eat and Avoid During Diarrhea

Beyond the BRAT diet, there are other foods that can be beneficial when you’re dealing with diarrhea. What should you eat to support your recovery?

Foods rich in pectin (e.g., apples, carrots)
Potassium-rich foods (e.g., potatoes, sweet potatoes)
Electrolyte-rich foods (e.g., miso soup)
Cooked, soft vegetables
Lean proteins

Some people find that adopting a liquid diet for the first 24 hours helps settle their digestive system. This might include clear broths, bland soups, and gentle drinks.

On the flip side, certain foods can exacerbate diarrhea symptoms. Which foods should you avoid?

High-fat or greasy foods
Spicy dishes
Foods containing artificial sweeteners
Products high in fructose

While evidence is limited, some doctors recommend avoiding dairy products during diarrhea, especially for those with lactose intolerance.

The Power of Probiotics in Managing Diarrhea

Probiotics have gained significant attention in recent years for their potential benefits in digestive health. But how can they help with diarrhea?

Probiotics are live microorganisms that can support the digestive system and help fight off infections. They’re found naturally in some foods and are also available as supplements.

A comprehensive review of 63 studies involving over 8,000 participants found that probiotics can significantly shorten the duration of diarrhea. They were also found to be safe, with no major side effects reported.

Where can you find probiotics? Natural sources include:

Yogurt with live cultures
Kefir
Sauerkraut
Kombucha

Probiotic supplements are also widely available. However, it’s important to note that the FDA doesn’t regulate these supplements. Always purchase from reputable sources and consult with a healthcare professional if you have any doubts.

Over-the-Counter Medications for Diarrhea Relief

While home remedies can be effective, sometimes over-the-counter (OTC) medications may be necessary to manage diarrhea symptoms. What are some common OTC options for diarrhea?

Antimotility drugs are a popular choice. These medications work by slowing down the movement of fluids through the intestines, which can reduce symptoms and speed up recovery time. Loperamide (Imodium) is a common example of this type of drug.

However, it’s crucial to use these medications appropriately. In what situations should you avoid antimotility drugs?

If you have bloody stools
If you have a fever
In cases of severe abdominal pain

In these instances, it’s best to consult with a healthcare provider before taking any medication.

When to Seek Medical Attention for Diarrhea

While most cases of diarrhea can be managed at home, there are situations where medical attention is necessary. How do you know when it’s time to see a doctor?

Seek medical advice if:

Diarrhea persists for more than 2 days
You notice blood or pus in your stool
You develop a high fever (over 102°F or 39°C)
You show signs of dehydration (extreme thirst, dry mouth, dark urine)
You experience severe abdominal or rectal pain
You have chronic diarrhea or diarrhea that occurs during sleep
You’ve recently traveled to a developing country and developed diarrhea

These symptoms could indicate a more serious underlying condition that requires professional medical attention.

Special Considerations for Children and Older Adults

Diarrhea can be particularly dangerous for certain groups, especially children and older adults. Why are these groups at higher risk?

Children, especially infants and toddlers, can become dehydrated more quickly than adults. Their smaller bodies lose fluids faster, and they may not be able to communicate their needs effectively.

Older adults are also at increased risk of complications from diarrhea. They may have underlying health conditions that make them more susceptible to dehydration and electrolyte imbalances.

For these groups, it’s crucial to:

Monitor fluid intake closely
Watch for signs of dehydration
Seek medical attention sooner rather than later if symptoms persist or worsen

Prevention Strategies for Diarrhea

While not all cases of diarrhea can be prevented, there are steps you can take to reduce your risk. What are some effective prevention strategies?

Practice good hand hygiene: Wash your hands thoroughly with soap and water, especially before eating and after using the bathroom.
Be cautious with food and water when traveling: In areas with poor sanitation, stick to bottled water and thoroughly cooked foods.
Store and prepare food safely: Keep perishables refrigerated and cook meats thoroughly.
Stay up-to-date on vaccinations: Some vaccines can protect against diarrhea-causing infections.
Manage stress: Chronic stress can affect your digestive health, so find healthy ways to cope with stress.

By implementing these strategies, you can significantly reduce your risk of experiencing diarrhea.

Long-Term Management of Chronic Diarrhea

For some individuals, diarrhea can be a chronic issue. How can you manage chronic diarrhea effectively?

If you experience frequent bouts of diarrhea, it’s essential to:

Work closely with a healthcare provider to identify underlying causes
Keep a food diary to identify potential trigger foods
Consider allergy or intolerance testing
Explore stress management techniques
Discuss potential long-term treatment options with your doctor

Chronic diarrhea can significantly impact quality of life, but with proper management and medical support, many people find relief and improved digestive health.

The Role of Fiber in Digestive Health

Fiber plays a crucial role in maintaining digestive health, but its relationship with diarrhea can be complex. How does fiber affect diarrhea?

There are two types of fiber:

Soluble fiber: This type can help absorb excess water in the intestines, potentially firming up loose stools.
Insoluble fiber: This type adds bulk to stool but may exacerbate diarrhea in some cases.

During acute diarrhea, it’s often recommended to limit fiber intake temporarily. However, once symptoms improve, gradually reintroducing fiber-rich foods can help promote overall digestive health.

Good sources of soluble fiber include:

Oats
Apples
Carrots
Barley

Remember to increase fiber intake slowly and drink plenty of water to avoid constipation.

The Impact of Stress on Digestive Health

The connection between stress and digestive health is well-established. But how exactly does stress affect diarrhea?

Stress can impact your digestive system in several ways:

It can alter gut motility, potentially leading to diarrhea or constipation
It can affect the balance of gut bacteria
It can increase inflammation in the digestive tract
It can make you more sensitive to abdominal pain and discomfort

Managing stress through techniques like meditation, regular exercise, and adequate sleep can help improve overall digestive health and potentially reduce the frequency of diarrhea episodes.

The Importance of Proper Handwashing in Preventing Diarrhea

One of the simplest yet most effective ways to prevent diarrhea is through proper handwashing. Why is handwashing so crucial?

Many diarrhea-causing pathogens are spread through the fecal-oral route. This means that microscopic particles of feces containing these pathogens can be transferred to your hands and then to your mouth, leading to infection.

To wash your hands effectively:

Wet your hands with clean, running water
Apply soap and lather well
Scrub all surfaces of your hands for at least 20 seconds
Rinse thoroughly under running water
Dry your hands using a clean towel or air dry

Remember to wash your hands frequently, especially before eating, after using the bathroom, and after handling raw foods.

The Role of Hydration in Overall Health

While we’ve discussed the importance of hydration during diarrhea, it’s worth emphasizing its role in overall health. How does staying hydrated benefit your body beyond just managing diarrhea?

Proper hydration:

Regulates body temperature
Aids in digestion and nutrient absorption
Supports kidney function and waste removal
Helps maintain healthy skin
Supports cognitive function

By maintaining good hydration habits in your daily life, you’ll be better prepared to handle episodes of diarrhea when they occur. Aim to drink water consistently throughout the day, not just when you feel thirsty.

Understanding the Microbiome and Its Impact on Digestive Health

The gut microbiome has become a hot topic in health research in recent years. But what exactly is the microbiome, and how does it relate to diarrhea?

Your gut microbiome consists of trillions of microorganisms, including bacteria, viruses, and fungi, that live in your digestive tract. These microorganisms play crucial roles in:

Digestion and nutrient absorption
Immune system function
Protection against harmful pathogens
Production of certain vitamins

When the balance of your gut microbiome is disrupted, it can lead to digestive issues, including diarrhea. This is one reason why probiotics can be helpful in managing diarrhea – they help restore balance to the gut microbiome.

To support a healthy gut microbiome:

Eat a diverse diet rich in fruits, vegetables, and whole grains
Include fermented foods in your diet
Limit processed foods and artificial sweeteners
Manage stress levels
Get adequate sleep

By nurturing your gut microbiome, you can potentially reduce your risk of diarrhea and improve your overall digestive health.

5 simple home remedies for diarrhea

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Diarrhea can be highly uncomfortable, but most people can effectively treat it with rest and home remedies.

Diarrhea is a digestive problem that causes loose, watery bowel movements. It can be uncomfortable for a few hours or days, after which the symptoms should improve. In some instances, they last longer.

While diarrhea often goes away on its own, several home remedies can ease symptoms and speed up recovery.

Hydrating the body is essential to recovering from diarrhea.

Diarrhea causes a deficit of fluids, including water. This causes the body to lose electrolytes such as sodium and chloride.

To support recovery, it is vital to restore fluids. Otherwise, a person may become dehydrated.

Dehydration can be dangerous in children and older adults, so it is crucial to encourage them to drink water if they are experiencing diarrhea.

Drinking water is the first step to rehydrating. A person can also to create an oral rehydration solution by mixing 1 liter of water with half a teaspoon of salt and 6 teaspoons of sugar.

Consuming sugar and salt with water helps the intestines to absorb fluids more efficiently. This solution more effectively rehydrates the body after a bout of diarrhea than water alone.

Other drinks can also be beneficial. For example, drinking sports drinks can help rehydrate the body and restore potassium and sodium. Fruit juices can also help restore potassium.

Avoid drinking anything that will further irritate the digestive tract, such as:

caffeinated drinks
alcohol
carbonated beverages
very hot drinks

A diet of small, frequent meals can be better than eating three larger meals a day when recovering from diarrhea. A good diet for someone with diarrhea may involve:

foods rich in pectin, such as fruit
foods high in potassium, such as potatoes and sweet potatoes
foods with electrolytes, such as miso soup and sports drinks
cooked, soft vegetables
adequate amounts of protein

Some people find that having a liquid diet for the first 24 hours of diarrhea helps settle the digestive system. This may include salty broths, bland soups, and drinks.

Adopting this diet for the first 24 hours may prevent the bowels from working too hard.

Another option for people with diarrhea is the BRAT diet. This consists of:

Bananas
Rice
Apple sauce
Toast

This diet combines bland foods that are low in fiber and high in starch, which may help produce more solid bowel movements. It also contains helpful nutrients, such as potassium and pectin.

It is essential to note that the BRAT diet is highly restrictive and does not provide balanced nutrition. People should only follow this diet until they are feeling better and not any longer than 2 days.

It can help to avoid foods that could irritate or put pressure on the gastrointestinal tract, such as:

high-fat foods
greasy foods
spicy foods
foods containing artificial sweeteners
foods with high levels of fructose

Some doctors recommend avoiding dairy products, as they may worsen diarrhea in some people. While general evidence for this claim is limited, people with lactose intolerance should avoid these products.

Probiotics are microorganisms that can benefit the digestive system. They can support the workings of the gut and help fight off infection.

Probiotics are live bacteria and yeasts in some yogurts and other fermented foods. People can also buy probiotic supplements in health stores or online.

In 2010, researchers conducted a large systematic review of 63 studies on probiotics, with over 8,000 participants.

They found that probiotics significantly shortened the duration of recovery from diarrhea. They also found probiotics to be safe, without any major side effects.

The United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA) do not regulate probiotic supplements, so be sure to purchase them from a reputable source and ask a doctor or pharmacist if in doubt.

Share on PinterestOver-the-counter drugs, such as Imodium, can help reduce symptoms and speed up recovery time.

Several over-the-counter medications are available for treating diarrhea.

Antimotility drugs can help reduce symptoms and speed up recovery time. A common example of this type of drug is loperamide (Imodium).

However, these medications are not always appropriate. People with bloody bowel movements or a fever should refrain from taking antimotility drugs and speak to a doctor instead.

In most cases, it is possible to treat diarrhea at home without consulting a doctor. However, if diarrhea lasts for more than 2 days, seek medical advice to avoid complications.

Other reasons to see a doctor for diarrhea include:

blood or pus in bowel movements
a fever
signs of dehydration, such as extreme thirst and dry mouth
chronic diarrhea
diarrhea during sleep
significant weight loss
severe abdominal pain

People at risk of complications, such as young children and older adults, should also see a doctor for treatment if diarrhea does not improve with time and home remedies.

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Types, Causes, Complications & Treatment

Overview

What is diarrhea?

Going to the bathroom, having a bowel movement, pooping – no matter what you call it, stool is a regular part of your life. However, sometimes this process of getting waste out of your body changes. When you have loose or watery stool, it’s called diarrhea. This is a very common condition and usually resolves without intervention.

Diarrhea can happen for a wide variety of reasons and it usually goes away on its own in one to three days. When you have diarrhea, you may need to quickly run to the bathroom with urgency and this may happen more frequently than normal. You may also feel bloated, have lower abdominal cramping and sometimes experience nausea.

Although most cases of diarrhea are self-limited (happening for a fixed amount of time and steady level of severity), sometimes diarrhea can lead to serious complications. Diarrhea can cause dehydration (when your body loses large amounts of water), electrolyte imbalance (loss of sodium, potassium and magnesium that play a key role in vital bodily functions) and kidney failure (not enough blood/fluid is supplied to the kidneys). When you have diarrhea, you lose water and electrolytes along with stool. You need to drink plenty of fluids to replace what’s lost. Dehydration can become serious if it fails to resolve (get better), worsens and is not addressed adequately.

What’s the difference between normal diarrhea and severe diarrhea?

There are actually several different ways to classify diarrhea. These types of diarrhea include:

Acute diarrhea: The most common, acute diarrhea is loose watery diarrhea that lasts one to two days. This type doesn’t need treatment and it usually goes away after a few days.
Persistent diarrhea: This type of diarrhea generally persists for several weeks – two to four weeks
Chronic diarrhea: Diarrhea that lasts for more than four weeks or comes and goes regularly over a long period of time is called chronic diarrhea.

Who can get diarrhea?

Anyone can get diarrhea. It’s not uncommon for many people to have diarrhea several times a year. It’s very common and usually not a major concern for most people.

However, diarrhea can be serious in certain groups of people, including:

Young children.
Older adults (the elderly).
Those with medical conditions.

For each of these people, diarrhea can cause other health problems.

Can diarrhea harm your health?

In general, diarrhea is self-limited and goes away (resolves) without intervention. If your diarrhea fails to improve and resolve completely, you can be at risk of complications (dehydration, electrolyte imbalance, kidney failure and organ damage).

Call your healthcare provider if you have diarrhea that fails to get better or go away, or if you experience symptoms of dehydration. These symptoms can include:

Dark urine and small amounts of urine or loss of urine production.
Rapid heart rate.
Headaches.
Flushed, dry skin.
Irritability and confusion.
Light-headedness and dizziness.
Severe nausea and vomiting, the inability to tolerate or keep anything down by mouth.

Symptoms and Causes

What causes diarrhea?

The cause of most self-limited diarrhea is generally not identified. The most common cause of diarrhea is a virus that infects your bowel (“viral gastroenteritis”). The infection usually lasts a couple of days and is sometimes called “intestinal flu.”

Other possible causes of diarrhea can include:

Infection by bacteria.
Infections by other organisms and pre-formed toxins
Eating foods that upset the digestive system.
Allergies and intolerances to certain foods (Celiac disease or lactose intolerance).
Medications.
Radiation therapy.
Malabsorption of food (poor absorption).

Can antibiotics cause diarrhea?

Most antibiotics (clindamycin, erythromycins and broad spectrum antibiotics) can cause diarrhea. Antibiotics can change the balance of bacteria normally found in the intestines, allowing certain types of bacteria like C. difficile to thrive. When this happens, your colon can become overrun by bad (pathologic) bacteria that causes colitis (inflammation of your colon lining).

Antibiotic-associated diarrhea can begin any time while you’re taking the antibiotic or shortly thereafter. If you experience this side effect, call your healthcare provider to talk about the diarrhea and discuss the best option to relieve this side effect.

What are the symptoms of diarrhea?

The symptoms you can experience when you have diarrhea can vary depending on if it’s mild or severe and what the cause of the diarrhea happens to be. There’s a link between severe cases of diarrhea and a medical condition that needs to be treated.

When you have diarrhea, you may experience all of these symptoms or only a few. The main symptom of diarrhea is loose or watery stool.

Other symptoms of mild diarrhea can include:

Bloating or cramps in the abdomen.
A strong and urgent need to have a bowel movement.
Nausea (upset stomach).

If you have severe diarrhea, you may experience symptoms like:

Fever.
Weight loss.
Dehydration.
Severe pain.
Vomiting.
Blood.

Severe diarrhea can lead to significant complications. If you have these symptoms, call your healthcare provider and seek medical attention.

Diagnosis and Tests

Is there a color of diarrhea that I should be worried about?

The color of your poop (stool) can vary. Stool color can be influenced by the color of the food you eat. Usually, this isn’t something you need to worry about. But if you ever see red (blood) in your stool or have a bowel movement that is black, that could be something more serious. Keep a record of any bowel movements that:

Are black and tarry.
Have blood or pus in them.
Are consistently greasy or oily despite non-fatty meals.
Are very foul-smelling.

How do you diagnose diarrhea?

For the majority of mild diarrhea cases, you won’t need medical attention. These cases are self-limited (only lasts for a fixed amount of time) and get better without medical intervention. The key to mild diarrhea is supportive therapy – staying hydrated and eating a bland diet.

More serious cases of diarrhea may require medical attention. In these situations, there are a few diagnostic tests that your provider may order. These tests can include:

Discussing a detailed family history, as well as physical and medical conditions, your travel history, and any sick contacts you may have.
Doing a stool test on a collected stool sample to check for blood, bacterial infections, parasite and inflammatory markers.
Doing a breath test to check for lactose or fructose intolerance, and bacterial overgrowth.
Doing blood work to rule out medical causes of diarrhea such as a thyroid disorder, celiac sprue and pancreatic disorders.
Doing endoscopic evaluations of your upper and lower digestive tract to rule out organic abnormalities (ulcers, infections, neoplastic process).

Management and Treatment

How is diarrhea treated?

In most cases, you can treat mild and uncomplicated diarrhea at home. By using an over-the-counter product like bismuth subsalicylate (Pepto-Bismol® or Kaopectate®) you’ll usually feel better very quickly.

However, over-the-counter medications aren’t always the solution. If your diarrhea is caused by an infection or parasite, you’ll need to see a healthcare provider for treatment. A general rule is not to use over-the-counter medications for diarrhea if you also have a fever or blood in your stool. In those cases, call your healthcare provider.

When diarrhea lasts for a long period of time (several weeks), your healthcare provider will base your treatment on the cause. This could involve a few different treatment options, including:

Antibiotics: Your healthcare provider might prescribe an antibiotic or other medication to treat an infection or parasite that’s causing the diarrhea.
Medication for a specific condition: Diarrhea can be a sign of several other medical conditions, including irritable bowel syndrome (IBS), inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) such as Crohn’s disease and ulcerative colitis, microscopic colitis, or bacterial overgrowth. Once the cause of the diarrhea is identified, diarrhea can usually be controlled.
Probiotics: Groupings of good bacteria, probiotics are sometimes used to re-establish a healthy biome to combat diarrhea. Introducing probiotics can be helpful in some cases and some healthcare providers feel that it’s worth a try. Always talk to your provider before starting a probiotic or any kind of supplement.

How should I take over-the-counter medications for diarrhea?

It’s important to always follow the instructions on the packaging when you take an over-the-counter medication for diarrhea. The rules for managing diarrhea in an adult are different than in children. Always call your child’s healthcare provider before giving your child any type of medication for diarrhea.

A tip for managing diarrhea in an adult with over-the-counter medication includes:

Taking two tablespoons of Kaopectate® or two tablespoons of Pepto-Bismol® after each loose stool. Do not take more than eight doses in 24 hours.

Can I manage diarrhea without taking any medication?

When you have an acute case of diarrhea, you can often take care of it without needing any medication. Several things you can do to care for diarrhea include:

Drinking plenty of water and other electrolyte balanced fluids (like diluted and pulp-free fruit juices, broths, sports drinks (Gatorade®) and caffeine-free sodas). Make sure to hydrate throughout day. Your body loses water each time you have diarrhea. By drinking plenty of extra fluids, you are protecting your body from dehydration.
Changing your diet. Instead of picking greasy, fatty or fried foods, go for the BRAT diet:
- B: Bananas.
- R: Rice (white rice).
- A: Applesauce.
- T: Toast (white bread).
Cutting back on caffeine. Foods and drinks that have caffeine can have a mild laxative effect, which can make your diarrhea worse. Foods and drinks with caffeine include coffee, diet sodas, strong tea/green tea, and even chocolate.
Avoiding foods and drinks that give you gas. If you experience cramping in your stomach with diarrhea, it could help to cut back on things that cause gas. These can include beans, cabbage, Brussels sprouts, beer and carbonated beverages.

Sometimes, diarrhea can also make you lactose intolerant. This is usually temporary and it means that you need to avoid items with lactose (dairy products) until your diarrhea is gone.

Are there any foods that can help my diarrhea go away?

You actually can help your diarrhea by changing your diet. Certain low-fiber foods can help make your stool more solid.

If you have diarrhea, try adding these foods into your diet:

Potatoes.
Rice (white).
Noodles.
Bananas.
Applesauce.
White bread.
Chicken or turkey without the skin.
Lean ground beef.
Fish.

What do I do if my baby or young child has diarrhea?

If your child has severe diarrhea, call your healthcare provider. Young children are at a higher risk of dehydration than adults. You also can’t treat a child’s diarrhea the same way you would an adult case. Over-the-counter medications can be dangerous in young children and all treatments of diarrhea in children should be guided by their healthcare provider. It’s important to keep your child hydrated. Your provider will help you determine the best way to do this, but options often include:

Breast milk.
Formula.
Electrolyte drinks (Pedialyte®) for older children – this is not recommended for babies.

The best option to keep your child hydrated might change as the child ages. Always check with your provider before giving your child a new liquid or treatment of any kind.

If you have any questions or concerns about your child’s diarrhea, don’t hesitate to call your provider.

How can I relieve discomfort in the rectal area caused by diarrhea?

Diarrhea often means frequent trips to the bathroom. This can cause discomforts like:

Itching.
Burning.
Pain during bowel movements.

If you’re experiencing any of these discomforts, there are a few things you can do to help, including:

Sitting in a few inches of lukewarm water in a bathtub.
Patting your rectal area dry with a clean soft towel after getting out of the tub or shower. Don’t rub the area dry because that will only make the irritation worse.
Applying petroleum jelly or a hemorrhoid cream to your anus.

Prevention

Can diarrhea be prevented?

There are a few ways you can decrease your chances of having diarrhea, including:

Avoiding infections with good hygiene habits: Washing your hands with soap and water after using the bathroom, as well as cooking, handling, and eating, is an important way to prevent diarrhea. Washing your hands thoroughly can really help keep you and those around you stay healthy.
Getting your vaccinations: Rotavirus, one of the causes of diarrhea, can be prevented with the rotavirus vaccine. This is given to infants in several stages during the first year of life.
Storing food properly: By keeping your food stored at the right temperatures, not eating things that have gone bad, cooking food to the recommended temperature and handling all foods safely, you can prevent diarrhea.
Watching what you drink when you travel: Traveler’s diarrhea can happen when you drink water or other drinks that haven’t been treated correctly. This is most likely to happen in developing countries. To avoid getting diarrhea there are a few tips to follow. Watch what you drink. Don’t drink tap water, use ice cubes, brush your teeth with tap water, or consume unpasteurized milk, milk products or unpasteurized juices. You should also be careful when trying local foods from street vendors, eating raw or undercooked meats (and shellfish), as well as raw fruits and vegetables. When in doubt, drink bottled water or something that’s been boiled first (coffee or tea).

Outlook / Prognosis

Is diarrhea fatal?

Diarrhea is extremely common, but that doesn’t mean it can’t be dangerous. In extreme cases of diarrhea, you can become very dehydrated and this can lead to serious complications. Dehydration is one of the most dangerous side effects of diarrhea. In the very young (infants and small children) and the very old, this can have serious consequences. It’s important to drink plenty of fluids with electrolytes when you have diarrhea. This allows your body to replace the fluid and electrolytes that are lost with the diarrhea.

In some parts of the world, diarrhea is a life-threatening condition because of dehydration and electrolyte loss.

Living With

When should I call my doctor about diarrhea?

If you have diarrhea that fails to improve or resolve completely, you should call your healthcare provider. Keep track of any other symptoms you may be experiencing – this includes fever, vomiting, rash, weakness, numbness, lightheadedness, dizziness, weight loss and blood in your stool. If you have any concerns, it’s always best to call your healthcare provider.

Why treat diarrhea? | IMODIUM™

Why treat diarrhea? | IMODIUM™
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Summary

If you suffer from acute diarrhea, it’s best to treat it straight away. By treating diarrhea, your body can start to recover so you can feel better and get on with your day as quickly as possible.

It’s best to treat it early

Our survey of sufferers of frequent acute diarrhea in 14 countries around the world, found that 84% of us feel weak and tired when suffering from acute diarrhea.

This is no surprise when you consider the resulting loss of important fluids and salts from our body.²¹

So why leave it untreated when you can relieve diarrhea along with its uncomfortable symptoms and dehydrating effects?

IMODIUM™ contains an active ingredient called Loperamide, which works in harmony with your body to help restore the digestive system to its natural pace and rhythm, which in turn works to renew the absorption of fluids in your system.

Isn’t it better to let diarrhea run its course?

Many people think diarrhea is a sign that your body is trying to get rid of something, so it’s better to let it ‘flush’ any bacteria or toxins out of the body. But diarrhea is not a defence mechanism. It’s a symptom of disruption to the finely tuned machine that is our digestive system. It’s your immune system that fights infection, so there’s no need to leave diarrhea to run its course. In fact, when left to run its course, diarrhea can cause you to lose essential fluids and salts, leaving you feeling weak and depleted. Early treatment limits this loss so you can start to feel better and your system can recover more quickly.

Will IMODIUM™ block me up?

IMODIUM™ contains no ingredients that might bind content or act as a block. Instead, IMODIUM™ works to restore the regular movement of your intestinal wall and to resume the natural rhythm of your digestive system, helping your bowel movements return to normal more quickly.

Constipation may be experienced after diarrhea has finished as a result of the bowel being emptied or by eating less during the diarrhea episode. Data from clinical studies on Imodium™ shows that only around 3% of people will experience constipation as a result of taking Imodium™ to treat the symptoms of diarrhea.

Will I become reliant on IMODIUM™?

In over 40 years of IMODIUM™ use, there’s no evidence at all to suggest that people who use IMODIUM™ regularly become reliant on it or resistant to its effects over time. In fact, you can use IMODIUM™ to treat all types of infectious and non-infectious diarrhea, no matter how frequently you get them.

Remember, you should see your doctor if:

Your symptoms last longer than 48 hours
You develop a fever over 38°C
You have blood or mucus in your stools

Isn’t it better to treat the root cause of the problem?

It’s true that it’s better to avoid trigger foods or stresses, if these are the factors that bring on diarrhea for you. But often you can’t control the cause of your diarrhea, especially if you have a sensitive system. So the best you can do is treat the effects in order to limit the extra strain on your system caused by loss of fluids and salts. Treatment will stop your diarrhea and help your body to get back to recovery more quickly than if you don’t treat at all.

What about rehydration treatments?

Oral rehydration solutions replace lost fluids and salts and help to prevent dehydration, but they don’t relieve the symptoms of diarrhea. You can use IMODIUM™ (to stop diarrhea) together with an oral rehydration solution (to rehydrate your system).

How can I best treat my diarrhea and help my recovery?

Here’s what to do if you get diarrhea:

Take IMODIUM™ straight after your first bout – it can relieve diarrhea in just one hour so your body can start to recover sooner
Stay hydrated by drinking plenty of fluids and/or taking a rehydration treatment
Avoid fizzy drinks and rich or spicy foods
As your appetite increases, eat regular meals of simple baked foods

Click here for references.

Why suffer?

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IMODIUM™ capsules have been a trusted remedy in helping to restore your body’s natural rhythm for more than 40 years.
Doctor recommended Imodium™ gives fast and effective relief; it can stop diarrhea in just one dose and in just one hour.

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Diarrhea | MedlinePlus

What is diarrhea?

Diarrhea is loose, watery stools (bowel movements). You have diarrhea if you have loose stools three or more times in one day. Acute diarrhea is diarrhea that lasts a short time. It is a common problem. It usually lasts about one or two days, but it may last longer. Then it goes away on its own.

Diarrhea lasting more than a few days may be a sign of a more serious problem. Chronic diarrhea — diarrhea that lasts at least four weeks — can be a symptom of a chronic disease. Chronic diarrhea symptoms may be continual, or they may come and go.

What causes diarrhea?

The most common causes of diarrhea include

Bacteria from contaminated food or water
Viruses such as the flu, norovirus, or rotavirus . Rotavirus is the most common cause of acute diarrhea in children.
Parasites, which are tiny organisms found in contaminated food or water
Medicines such as antibiotics, cancer drugs, and antacids that contain magnesium
Food intolerances and sensitivities, which are problems digesting certain ingredients or foods. An example is lactose intolerance.
Diseases that affect the stomach, small intestine, or colon, such as Crohn’s disease
Problems with how the colon functions, such as irritable bowel syndrome

Some people also get diarrhea after stomach surgery, because sometimes the surgeries can cause food to move through your digestive system more quickly.

Sometimes no cause can be found. If your diarrhea goes away within a few days, finding the cause is usually not necessary.

Who is at risk for diarrhea?

People of all ages can get diarrhea. On average, adults In the United States have acute diarrhea once a year. Young children have it an average of twice a year.

People who visit developing countries are at risk for traveler’s diarrhea. It is caused by consuming contaminated food or water.

What other symptoms might I have with diarrhea?

Other possible symptoms of diarrhea include

Cramps or pain in the abdomen
An urgent need to use the bathroom
Loss of bowel control

If a virus or bacteria is the cause of your diarrhea, you may also have a fever, chills, and bloody stools.

Diarrhea can cause dehydration, which means that your body does not have enough fluid to work properly. Dehydration can be serious, especially for children, older adults, and people with weakened immune systems.

When do I need to see a health care provider for diarrhea?

Although it is usually not harmful, diarrhea can become dangerous or signal a more serious problem. Contact your health care provider if you have

Signs of dehydration
Diarrhea for more than 2 days, if you are an adult. For children, contact the provider if it lasts more than 24 hours.
Severe pain in your abdomen or rectum (for adults)
A fever of 102 degrees or higher
Stools containing blood or pus
Stools that are black and tarry

If children have diarrhea, parents or caregivers should not hesitate to call a health care provider. Diarrhea can be especially dangerous in newborns and infants.

How is the cause of diarrhea diagnosed?

To find the cause of diarrhea, your health care provider may

Do a physical exam
Ask about any medicines you are taking
Test your stool or blood to look for bacteria, parasites, or other signs of disease or infection
Ask you to stop eating certain foods to see whether your diarrhea goes away

If you have chronic diarrhea, your health care provider may perform other tests to look for signs of disease.

What are the treatments for diarrhea?

Diarrhea is treated by replacing lost fluids and electrolytes to prevent dehydration. Depending on the cause of the problem, you may need medicines to stop the diarrhea or treat an infection.

Adults with diarrhea should drink water, fruit juices, sports drinks, sodas without caffeine, and salty broths. As your symptoms improve, you can eat soft, bland food.

Children with diarrhea should be given oral rehydration solutions to replace lost fluids and electrolytes.

Can diarrhea be prevented?

Two types of diarrhea can be prevented – rotavirus diarrhea and traveler’s diarrhea. There are vaccines for rotavirus. They are given to babies in two or three doses.

You can help prevent traveler’s diarrhea by being careful about what you eat and drink when you are in developing countries:

Use only bottled or purified water for drinking, making ice cubes, and brushing your teeth
If you do use tap water, boil it or use iodine tablets
Make sure that the cooked food you eat is fully cooked and served hot
Avoid unwashed or unpeeled raw fruits and vegetables

NIH: National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases

Anti-diarrheal Medicines: OTC Relief for Diarrhea

Diarrhea is when you have frequent and liquid bowel movements. Many things can cause it, including:

Viruses.
Bacteria and parasites.
Medicines such as antibiotics.
Lactose intolerance.
Fructose or artificial sweeteners.
Digestive disorders such as celiac disease or irritable bowel syndrome.

It is a common condition that most of the time doesn’t require treatment. It usually lasts only a couple of days, whether you treat it or not. But medicine can help you feel better. It especially helps if you also have cramping or stomach pain.

What types of OTC medicines treat diarrhea?

You can buy over-the-counter (OTC) medicines without a prescription from your doctor. Some OTC medicines can help you feel better if you have diarrhea. These are called antidiarrheal medicines. Antidiarrheal medicines include:

Loperamide (1 brand name: Imodium).
Bismuth subsalicylate (2 brand names: Kaopectate, Pepto-Bismol).

Bismuth subsalicylate can also be used for an upset stomach.

Path to Improved Wellness

How do OTC antidiarrheal medicines work?

Loperamide slows down how fast things move through your intestines (bowels). This allows more fluid to be absorbed into your body. This helps you have less diarrhea and more formed stools.

Bismuth subsalicylate balances the way fluid moves through your intestines. It reduces inflammation. It keeps bacteria and viruses that cause diarrhea from growing in the stomach and intestines.

How do I safely take OTC antidiarrheal medicines?

Before you take an OTC antidiarrheal medicine, read the directions on the drug facts label. This will tell you how much medicine to take and how often to take it. If you have any questions, call your family doctor or pharmacist. Keep a record of which OTC medicines you are using and when you take them. If you need to go to the doctor, take this list with you.

Follow these tips to make sure you are taking the right amount of medicine:

Take only the amount recommended on the medicine’s label. Don’t assume that more medicine will work better or quicker. Taking more than the recommended amount can be dangerous.
If you take prescription medicine, ask your doctor if it’s okay to take OTC antidiarrheal medicine.
Don’t use more than one OTC antidiarrheal medicine at a time unless your doctor says it’s okay. They may have similar active ingredients. These could add up to be too much medicine.

How can I safely store OTC antidiarrheal medicines?

Store all medicines up and away, out of reach and sight of young children. Keep medicines in a cool, dry place. This will help prevent them from becoming less effective. Do not store medicines in bathrooms or bathroom cabinets. They are often hot and humid.

Things to Consider

Healthy adults usually don’t experience side effects from antidiarrheal medicines. But side effects may be a concern if you are older or have health problems. Call your doctor if you notice any side effects.

Loperamide side effects may include:

Abdominal pain.
Constipation.
Dizziness.
Nausea or vomiting.

Bismuth subsalicylate side effects may include:

Constipation.
Blackened stools and/or tongue.
Ringing sound in the ear (called tinnitus).

Who shouldn’t take OTC antidiarrheal medicines?

Don’t take antidiarrheal medicines if bacteria or parasites are causing your diarrhea. If you have a “stomach bug,” your body needs to get rid of the bacteria or parasite that is causing the diarrhea. Stopping the diarrhea in this case can actually make your condition worse. Talk to your family doctor if you think you have a bacterial or parasitic infection.

Don’t give loperamide to children 2 years of age or younger unless your doctor says it’s okay. Check with your doctor before using loperamide for older children, as well.

You shouldn’t take loperamide if you have a fever. Don’t use it if you’ve ever had a rash or an allergic reaction after taking it. Don’t take loperamide if you have bloody or black stools. These may be signs of a more serious problem, such as a bacterial infection.

Some people are allergic to aspirin or other salicylate medicines. They should not take bismuth subsalicylate. Don’t give bismuth subsalicylate to children 12 years of age or younger. Don’t give it to children or teenagers who may have the flu or chickenpox. This increases their risk for Reye syndrome. This is a serious illness that can lead to death.

Can OTC antidiarrheal medicines cause problems with other medicines I take?

Taking certain medicines with antidiarrheal medicines can increase your risk for side effects. Bismuth subsalicylate also may affect some medicines, causing them not to work as well. Ask your doctor before taking loperamide or bismuth subsalicylate if you also take:

Antibiotics.
Antiviral medicines for human immunodeficiency virus (HIV).
Prescription pain medicines.
Blood-thinning medicines.
Medicines for gout.
Medicines for arthritis.
Medicines for diabetes.

Also ask your doctor before taking bismuth subsalicylate if you take pain relievers or cold medicines. These medicines may contain aspirin, which is a salicylate. You may get too much salicylate if you take more than one of these medicines at a time.

When should I call my doctor?

Talk to your doctor before taking an antidiarrheal medicine if:

Your diarrhea lasts longer than 2 days.
You have a fever.
You have mucus or blood in your stools.
You have a history of liver disease.
You are taking prescription medicine.

Questions to Ask Your Doctor

What is causing my diarrhea?
How long will it last if I don’t treat it?
Will taking an OTC antidiarrheal medicine shorten the length of time the diarrhea lasts?
What can I be doing to treat my diarrhea in addition to taking OTC medicines?
Will antidiarrheal medicines make me constipated?
What side effects should I watch out for if I take antidiarrheal medicine?

Resources

International Foundation for Gastrointestinal Disorders: Antidiarrheal Agents

This information provides a general overview and may not apply to everyone. Talk to your family doctor to find out if this information applies to you and to get more information on this subject.

How to Treat Diarrhea in Kids – Children’s Health

Nothing can slow down a child’s fun – or interfere with family plans – more than a case of diarrhea. Diarrhea is a common condition that occurs when stool has too much water in it.

“The colon is designed to absorb water so that the stool has form and consistency. At times, the stool absorbs too much water, resulting in diarrhea,” explains Lauren Lazar, M.D., Pediatric Gastroenterologist with Children’s Health℠ and Assistant Professor at UT Southwestern. “If your child has a loose or liquid stool at least three or more times per day, it’s probably diarrhea.”

The best treatment for your child’s diarrhea may depend on its cause, but there are ways to provide relief from diarrhea symptoms. Learn how to treat diarrhea in kids, including advice on anti-diarrheal medicines, home remedies and the best foods to give your child.

What can cause diarrhea in kids?

Usually, when children get diarrhea, it’s considered “acute,” meaning it lasts from a few days up to a week. The most common cause of acute diarrhea is some sort of infection, whether viral, bacterial or parasitic.

Beyond stomach bugs, diarrhea in kids can also be triggered by other issues, including:

Chronic diarrhea is diarrhea that lasts longer than 2-4 weeks and is less common. Like acute diarrhea, it can be caused by a bacterial, viral or parasitic infection. Chronic diarrhea might also be triggered by underlying inflammation in the body, genetic or autoimmune conditions such as celiac disease or inflammatory bowel disease, or functional GI disorders such as irritable bowel syndrome.

What can I give my child to stop diarrhea?

Usually, medicine is not necessary to treat diarrhea in kids. In most cases, acute infectious diarrhea will stop when the body clears out the infection.

“Diarrhea is like a cough when you have a cold. Your gut is trying to get the bad stuff out,” explains Dr. Lazar. “If you slow down the gut with an anti-diarrheal medicine during infectious diarrhea, you’re keeping the infection inside.”

If your child’s diarrhea lasts more than a few days, check with your pediatrician to determine the cause and best treatment. For chronic diarrhea, your doctor might suggest a change of diet, medication or other ongoing treatment.

Information about diarrhea medicine for kids

Generally, antibiotics are not used to treat infectious diarrhea in children.
Always check with your doctor before giving your child over-the-counter diarrhea medications such as Imodium and Pepto-Bismol.
For some types of infectious diarrhea, probiotics may be helpful. You can purchase probiotics over the counter in liquid and pill form. Make sure to buy the version that is “for children.” Check with your doctor before using probiotics if your child is under age 3.
Do not give any type of medication to children under age 3 without first consulting your physician.

What are home remedies for diarrhea in kids?

There is no one specific food, drink or home remedy that will stop your child’s diarrhea. The best treatment for your child’s diarrhea is supportive care. To provide relief from diarrhea symptoms, focus on:

Keeping your child hydrated
Offering a variety of nutritious foods
Identifying triggers or problem foods

“With diarrhea, the body loses salts and electrolytes, so it’s very important to help your child stay hydrated,” says Dr. Lazar. “Avoid juice and other sugary beverages.”

To keep a child with diarrhea hydrated, offer plenty of fluids, such as:

Water
Broth or soup
Pediatric electrolyte solutions in liquid or freezer pop form
Sports drinks, such as Gatorade or Powerade (choose low-sugar varieties)

What should you feed a child who has diarrhea?

If your child has diarrhea, it’s important to feed them a healthy, well-balanced diet in addition to plenty of fluids. In the past, doctors suggested the “BRAT” diet (bananas, rice, applesauce and toast) as a solution to help children with diarrhea. Now, many doctors don’t recommend it.

“The BRAT diet is restrictive and does not necessarily help stop diarrhea,” explains Dr. Lazar. “Instead, we recommend that children continue to eat a nutritious, well-rounded diet, as there is evidence that the intestine heals when the child is fed.”

For breastfed babies and children, breast milk continues to be a great option for nutrition through diarrhea. “Breast milk is easily absorbed and has more nutrients than electrolyte solutions,” says Dr. Lazar. However, parents should keep in mind that infants, especially newborns, are very susceptible to dehydration with diarrhea, so if you notice any change in a baby’s stool pattern, you should contact your pediatrician.

In certain cases of diarrhea, your child’s pediatrician might suggest a dairy-free or low-sugar diet – on a short-term basis. If your child’s diarrhea persists, try keeping a food diary. For some people, certain foods can trigger diarrhea. For example, some patients with irritable bowel syndrome notice that high-fat, high-sugar or spicy foods tend to cause problems. For some children, gluten or dairy might trigger diarrhea. If you sense that a particular food is causing a problem for your child, write it down and discuss it with your doctor.

Will fiber or certain foods stop my child’s diarrhea?

Fiber is often used to regulate bowel movements and can be used in both constipated and diarrheal states, depending on the type of fiber in the food. Pectin, a naturally occurring substance in food, can also be used to thicken stools. Certain fiber-rich foods may help slow your child’s diarrhea. High-fiber foods that may help with diarrhea include:

Apples (not the skin)
Bananas
Barley
Oats
Beans
Peas
Sweet potatoes (not the skin)

Discuss with your doctor if a fiber supplement is appropriate to give your child.

When should I take my child to the doctor for diarrhea?

Call a physician about diarrhea if your child:

Is less than 6 months of age
Has blood in the stool
Shows signs of dehydration (low urine output, no tears, no spit in the mouth, excessive sleepiness or low activity level)
Is vomiting
Has a high fever that does not improve with fever medication
Has abdominal distention (swelling or enlargement)
Has a history of abdominal surgeries
Shows symptoms lasting longer than 2-3 days

“Even if your child is staying hydrated, I would recommend going to the pediatrician if the diarrhea is not improving after two or three days – just to make sure no other evaluations are needed,” recommends Dr. Lazar.

Learn more about childhood diarrhea and gastroenterology

The Pediatric Gastroenterology Division at Children’s Health offers specialized programs to help children and their families manage a wide range of gastrointestinal conditions. Learn more about our GI program, services and support we offer children and families.

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Stay current on the health insights that make a difference to your children. Sign up for the Children’s Health newsletter and have more tips sent directly to your inbox.

How To Stop Dog Diarrhea: Simple Home Remedies

Your dog is a walking garbage disposal! He’s designed to eat some pretty gross things … but every once in a while, the digestive system meets something it can’t handle. Most of the time, diarrhea passes fairly quickly … but sometimes it can be difficult to treat or can be a sign that something serious might be going on. So if you’ve found yourself cleaning up your rugs, this quick guide will show you how to stop your dog’s diarrhea fast … and when it’s time to see the vet.

Top Causes Of Diarrhea In Dogs

There are a lot of reasons dogs get diarrhea … but here are the most common causes:

RELATED: Can too much exercise really cause diarrhea?

What Your Dog’s Poop Can Tell You

Your dog’s poop can teach you a lot about your dog’s health. A normal stool has a consistency that’s formed but malleable … like cookie dough. Crumbly or chalky poop can also be normal for dogs on a raw diet with plenty of bone. Most dogs have 1 to 2 bowel movements a day … usually around the same time of day. When your dog has diarrhea, his stools may look like pudding, they could be thin and watery, there could be diarrhea with mucus and even bloody diarrhea. The color of the stool can also tell you something about the cause of the diarrhea.

What Color Tells You About Your Dog’s Diarrhea

Your dog’s diarrhea can be a variety of different colors. The color can tell you bit about the cause and treatment:

Yellow Diarrhea

The most common causes of yellow stool are:

Green Diarrhea

The most common causes of green diarrhea are:

Gastrointestinal (GI) hypermotility
Gall bladder disease
Eating grass or greens

Blue Diarrhea

Treat blue diarrhea as an emergency. It could mean your dog has eaten rat poison (which is usually blue) or a toy. Save the stool in a baggie … then take the baggie and your dog to the vet.

Black Diarrhea

Black or very dark brown stools often mean there’s old blood in the stool. Common causes of black stools include:

Grey Diarrhea

The most common causes of grey, greasy stools are:

Bloody Diarrhea

A small streak of red is often seen with diarrhea. If blood is consistently in the stools, you might want to check with your vet … but if your dog is bright, active and acting normal, it’s probably not a cause for concern. Causes of bloody diarrhea include:

Parvovirus (especially in puppies)
Bacterial infection
Hemorrhagic gastroenteritis or colitis

What If There’s Mucus In The Poop?

Mucus can be a normal part of your dog’s stools. Mucus coats the digestive tract and allows waste to slip through the digestive tract more easily. But if there’s sudden mucus with diarrhea or there are excessive amounts, it could be caused by: Bacterial infections

Overall, if your dog is acting normally, mucus and diarrhea aren’t typically a cause for concern. But if your dog isn’t looking like himself, it’s best to make an appointment with your holistic vet. If your dog is otherwise feeling fine, it’s safe to manage most cases of diarrhea with home remedies.

How To Stop Dog Diarrhea Quickly

Managing diarrhea at home is often quite simple. Some cases of diarrhea may be more stubborn to manage, but understanding the causes of diarrhea is key to your success. Here are the simple steps you can take to manage diarrhea with home remedies.

Fast Your Dog

If your dog develops sudden diarrhea, stop feeding him for 12 to 24 hours. This may seem cruel, but it’s an important step. Young puppies should not be fasted … it’s always important to see your vet if your puppy develops diarrhea.RELATED: Did you know fasting your dog can boost her immune system? Once the diarrhea has stopped or slowed, you can offer small sips of water. If you see signs of improvement after 6 hours of water only, you can give your dog some broth.

Give Probiotics

Probiotics are beneficial microorganisms that can be used to naturally prevent and treat a wide range of health problems, including diarrhea. Probiotics provide your dog with valuable postbiotics like butyrate and lactic acid. These help regulate the immune system that lives in your dog’s gut. They help reduce inflammation, one of the core causes of diarrhea. The best probiotics for dogs with diarrhea are:

Saccharomyces boulardii: S boulardii is a beneficial yeast that has been shown to be effective in antibiotic-associated and viral diarrhea.
Bacillus subtilis: B subtilis help the colon absorb more water, which helps control diarrhea. Combined with Enterococcus faecium, it can also reduce the severity of symptoms in more chronic cases of diarrhea … including inflammatory bowel disease and colitis.
Pediococcus acidilactici: Combined with B subtilis and other probiotics, P acidilactici was shown to significantly shorten the recovery time in dogs with gastroenteritis.
Lactobacillus acidophilus: This tried and tested probiotic is another staple for treating diarrhea in dogs.

Make sure your dog’s probiotics contain at least two of these strains.S boulardii and B subtilis should be at least 1 billion CFU (colony forming units). L acidophilus and Bifidobacterium probiotics should be at least 30 billion CFU. For acute diarrhea, we recommend Bifido For Fido. For more chronic diarrhea, Gut Guard is a better choice, with anti-inflammatory herbs and proteins. Start your dog on probiotics as soon as you see symptoms and continue the probiotics for several weeks after symptoms resolve. They can also be given long-term to help prevent future episodes of diarrhea. RELATED: Probiotics can do more than help with diarrhea …

What To Feed A Dog With Diarrhea

Once the diarrhea has resolved, introduce food slowly to help prevent further tummy upset. You may have heard that white rice and boiled chicken help with sensitive stomachs … but soup or broth is a gentler way to smooth your dog’s transition back to his regular diet. You can purchase soup or bone broth at your natural supermarket, but make sure it’s low in sodium and has limited ingredients (with no onion). Here is a simple recipe you can make at home:

Place three to four chicken thighs in six cups of water.
Add chopped celery and carrot if you like.
Bring to a boil and simmer for 1½ to 2 hours.
Remove the skin and bones and set the meat aside.
Strain the broth and let it cool before serving.

Give your dog small portions of the soup … a few teaspoons for very small dogs, and ½ to one cup for larger dogs. Wait 4 to 6 hours and watch for diarrhea or vomiting before offering more. Don’t feed the soup if there’s still diarrhea present … wait until the diarrhea resolves. Don’t worry, adult dogs can easily go days without eating, as long as they can keep water down.

More Home Remedies For Diarrhea

There are many safe and effective herbs you can give your dog to speed up the healing. Diarrhea is usually the result of an inflamed and irritated intestinal lining. These herbs and foods can help solve the cause of both acute and long-standing diarrhea.

Slippery Elm

Slippery elm is a gentle herb that soothes the mucous membranes. It’s safe and effective … and gentle on your dog’s sore digestive tract. Give slippery elm with food. Give ¼ tsp powder for every 10 lbs body weight.

L-Glutamine

L-Glutamine is an amino acid that heals intestinal cells. You can give it alone or with other supplements. Give 500mg per 25 lbs of body weight daily.

Marshmallow Root

This is another useful herb for soothing the gastrointestinal tract and decreasing inflammation. Give 1/2 to 1.5 ml per 20 pounds body weight, twice daily.

Bonus Recipe: Slippery Elm Healing Mixture

Combine equal parts of:

Slippery elm powder
FOS (fructo-oligosaccharide) powder
L-Glutamine powder

Small dogs … 1 tsp twice daily Medium dogs … 2 tsp twice daily Large dogs … 3 tsp twice daily

When To See The Vet

If your dog is healthy and has a strong immune system, these natural solutions should resolve the diarrhea in 2 or 3 days. If your dog still has diarrhea and seems sick … work with your holistic vet to find out why. Your vet may:

Change your dog’s diet
Run a fecal exam to rule out parasites
Check blood work to rule out concerns with organ functions
Do X-rays or an abdominal ultrasound to rule out foreign objects, obstruction and cancer
Do an endoscopy to view the stomach and intestinal mucosa

Luckily, most cases of diarrhea are self-limiting. With a little help from you, your dog can get back to normal quickly.

“IT’S IMPORTANT JUST TO START”: ABOUT RUN WITH HEAD OF DEVOPS SERGEY SVERCHKOV

Now is the time when you want to cover your head with a blanket, take a cat under your arm, pour hot cocoa and plunge into a book. At Godel, there are people for whom snow, slush and frost are not an obstacle for active training. One of them is Head of DevOps Sergey Sverchkov, with whom we talked about how he ran his first half marathon, where to start, what to read, what applications to install and how to motivate yourself to run regularly.

How long have you been running?

– Systematically, in order to prepare for the competition, I started running in 2016. Before that I ran, but I did it irregularly. In the early 2000s, I worked a lot with Chinese contracts and went on business trips. On one of our trips to China, we visited a military unit located in the fields 100 km from Beijing. This was an open area without a strict regime. Even there, I did not miss the opportunity to run – in small villages, Chinese children pointed at the running white man ( laughs ).

In 2016, before the Minsk half marathon, I thought, why not get ready and take part? And I started to run more systematically, I even bought a training program for a half marathon. But I did not look at the materials that would help me systematize my knowledge – I just ran according to the plan that was proposed in the program. As a result, I took part in a half marathon: I ran the distance in about two hours. I think this is a good result for a person who has not worked with a coach.

During preparation – from January to September start – I ran about 700 km.At that time, I had a goal: to run a thousand kilometers in a year. I can say that I have met this figure. The second time I ran the half marathon was in 2018 – with the Godel Team. I started this activity, it was picked up – 25 people participated at different distances. Last year we also participated, a large group gathered in Minsk – 40 people.

Can a beginner who has never run before start training for a marathon?

– You can. I started watching tutorials, including on the Simple Run YouTube channel.It is led by a triathlete – a man who, at the age of 35, prepared for a full-fledged triathlon (running, swimming and cycling), it took 11 months. He tells in an accessible and understandable form about where to start, how to start. The main message is to start very slowly. The first part of the preparation consists in running short distances, constantly monitoring the pulse, thereby training the body in general and the cardiovascular system in particular.

What distances can you start with?

– Literally from one kilometer! The Simple Run channel operator, who had never run, decided to start with the beginner’s program.He trained for a half marathon and then a marathon. The guy is not an athlete at all, weighed about 110 kg. With the start of running training, he managed to lose 25 kg. He started out with very small distances and a low pace. He ran one kilometer in 10 minutes.

The point is not to run fast and run, but to run slowly and thus gradually train. Running may be slower than walking, but it is still running. When you start out, the only metric to keep track of is your heart rate.Most of the workouts should be done at a very low heart rate – 120-130 beats.

How do you control your pulse? Do you use trackers?

– Yes, there are many options. There are trackers in fitness watches – they are not very accurate, but in general they show the picture by measuring indicators using optical sensors. Better to use chest straps that connect to a smartphone or fitness watch – they are much more accurate.

Do you have any favorite running apps? What can you advise?

– I used to use the Runtastic app.Later, it was bought by Adidas, and the application was named Adidas Running. On a weekly basis, they send a report for the previous week. When it was an independent company, Runtastic, you could log in to your account and see the details. Now this is not possible, but you can use training plans. There is the popular Strava app. Many brands that produce sports gadgets also offer applications – for example, Garmin, Polar.

Have l and do you have a running plan for the rest of the year?

– Again the cherished goal – 1000 km.So far mastered 850

Unreal figure!

– At first, I also thought it was difficult. But when I realized what indicators should be guided by, I was able to overcome rather long distances in training.

Don’t you get tired of running for two hours – if we talk about participating in a half marathon? Don’t you stop, don’t you switch to walking at some point?

– Basically, yes, I run all the time.Somewhere I slow down to even out my pulse.

What time of day is it better to run?

– It’s early in the morning, when it’s dark, it’s hard to force yourself to get up and go for a run. I wondered if, in principle, it is good to do this in the morning: it is believed that the body immediately after waking up is not ready for sudden stress. I read that if you choose a calm pace, you can also practice running in the morning. In October, I ran a third of kilometers in the morning. When you run early, you feel energized all day after that.If morning jogging is fun, then you can do it. And if you force yourself, then probably not worth it.

Running in the evenings gives you the opportunity to disconnect from the stressful situations of the working day. If it’s not too late to run, for example, from 21.00 to 22.00, there are still two hours left during which you feel active. Running before bed is not a good idea: it takes an hour and a half to return to a state of calm after a run. The ideal time for me is not very early in the morning, around 9.00.

B Do you ride in any weather?

– In principle, yes. For the winter period, you need good shoes that keep your feet warm. Shoes are the hardest part of running gear in the cold season. If you are running in snow and puddles, it is important that your feet do not get wet, for this there are models of running shoes for the cold and wet season. As a last resort, you can use special socks. It is advisable to wear thermal underwear for active sports, the usual one is not suitable at all: it is not intended for active movement, it does not drain moisture well, it gets wet quickly and it becomes cold in it.Clothes must be synthetic, for a specific sports activity – cotton will not work.

Does it make sense to chase brands when buying jogging clothes?

– For me, the brand does not matter, the main thing is that the clothes are specifically for running. It seems to me that Belarus has a problem with good, inexpensive specialized items. Branded clothes are usually expensive, and there are practically no branded ones.

I once read the book “Not about running” (can be found in the electronic library Litres.ru). The author is not a professional runner, but at some point he became interested in running the world’s largest marathons Major 6 – there are six of them. First of all, elite professional athletes go there, who, obviously, earn money from this. Separately, the organizers conduct a selection among amateurs. In three years, the author of the book ran all six marathons. In the book, he talks about how he prepared, about each of these marathons and the cities where they take place. It is very inspiring and easy to read.I recommend to everyone.

The author says that in order to start running, nothing needs to be specially prepared. In the morning, you just need to get dressed and go out – this is the most important thing. You don’t have to go to the store and buy a bunch of things, and then watch how they match each other in color, how you will look in them ( laughs ). All this is not important – the motivation to start is important.

How do you feel about running to music? It is believed that properly selected tracks that are synchronized with the heart rate make jogging easier and more efficient.

– Yes, I love to run to the music – a rhythmic, energetic melody. I love listening to Deep Purple, Pink Floyd (this is from the old one), now Basta, Okean Elzy, Semantic Hallucinations, DDT – I upload a selection of the most famous tracks to the playlist. I would not say that this music is focused on running. Music services have special playlists that are designed for a specific tempo. There is a beat in the songs that helps keep it going. But they are completely optional. Running apps can count the number of steps a person takes per minute – you just need to focus on this number.It is believed that the correct pace is 170-180 steps per minute. However, the steps can be very small.

Where do you usually run? Do you have favorite places?

– Most of all I like to run in parks, one of my favorite places is the artificial canal near the National Library. There is a path sprinkled with fine construction chips. In order not to “clog” your legs, it is recommended to run on soft surfaces. In this regard, forest paths are better than asphalt. But this is not very critical if you land on a bent leg by running technique.If you stand on a straightened leg, you get a blow that harms the knee and hip joints. It is important that the movements while running are springy. It is believed that if you run a lot, the joints wear out – it completely depends on the technique. If it is correct, people can run to a ripe old age.

How to motivate yourself to go jogging?

– For me, running is a way of unloading. It is difficult to achieve high results if you have not done it professionally.Although the author of the book “Not About Running” ran his first marathon at 50 and with excellent results.

Should I get a medical examination before serious races?

– It definitely won’t hurt. To participate in the Minsk half marathon, it is advisable to have a certificate. It is worth making a cardiogram, measuring blood pressure, ultrasound – it is worth repeating the procedures every six months. But there are no serious restrictions for running: if a person, in principle, actively walks every day, then he can run slowly.

How to train in running as efficiently as possible / True Engineering Blog / Habr

At EastBanc Technologies we have conceived to run a half marathon. We hired coaches, made training plans. And, of course, everyone immediately bought gadgets and pumped up beautiful mobile applications.

But the problem is that applications only allow you to track a picture of a specific workout, well, at most, after a while, collect statistics and draw up a clumsy individual plan. Training with a coach is more effective, and already more protective against injury and overtraining, however, when you are working in a team, the coach is forced to draw up an average plan for a spherical runner in a vacuum with average heart rate zones.Therefore, it may turn out that a run at a pace of 4:00 for one team member will be restorative, and for another exhausting.

In order not to guess, “Why did I pull my ankle during training, but my teammate didn’t,” our colleagues decided to go to physiologists from the Novosibirsk Pedagogical University, donate blood analogously and measure the ECG offline, because today it is still the most reliable way draw up a truly individual training plan, taking into account all the problems of your body.

We found the laboratory of Mikhail Golovin, candidate of biological sciences, who has been working with professional athletes and “civilians” for more than 7 years, studies the effect of stress on the body and gives recommendations for training. He tested our colleagues, and the results turned out to be so interesting and useful that they definitely need to be shared with other IT people who, like us, suddenly got up from the table and ran.

What happens on the test

Test with increasing load

You come to the laboratory, do a warm-up and start a workout, during which everything that can be measured for you.It should be noted here that one day before testing, it is impossible to train and even more so compete – complete rest is laid.

The main part of the testing is you run on a treadmill or pedal on a bicycle ergometer. Runners are checked on a treadmill, cyclists on a bicycle ergometer, and rowers on a rowing machine. This is very important, because if you put a cyclist on the track, he uses the wrong muscle group, which is needed for his sport, and the result will be with large errors.

The load is increased in steps.First, a light three-minute run, after which you stop, and the specialist takes 20 microliters of capillary blood from your finger.

Then you continue to run, the speed increases and – again blood sampling. Thus, the running speed is brought to submaximal values. So as an amateur runner, your heart rate should be about 85% of your maximum heart rate. Professional athletes with experience are brought to the point where they themselves go off the track.

As a result, about 6-7 blood samples are obtained, in which the concentration of lactic acid (lactate) and glucose is analyzed.These indicators characterize the intensity of aerobic, mixed and anaerobic processes.

Here we will understand in more detail. Aerobic energy production processes take place in the body when you run comfortably, there is no shortness of breath, the heart beats evenly. The body does not experience a large oxygen debt, that is, there is enough oxygen to oxidize the energetic substances in the body (glycogen), as well as under-oxidized metabolic products (lactate). The load at which aerobic processes take place in the body can be experienced for a long time without harm to health.This process is always with you: while you work, walk, breathe, blink, speak, aerobic processes are actively going on in your body.

Mixed energy production processes begin to activate in the body when the exercise capacity increases and aerobic energy is insufficient. This usually occurs at a heart rate of about 165-175, if the subject has a maximum heart rate of 180-190. It is recommended for an amateur athlete to be in this mode once, maximum twice a week, approximately 10% of the total percentage of aerobic activity.Exaggerating this volume of mixed loads will lead to serious physiological overload and depletion of the body. For an amateur athlete, the volume of work is important, not the intensity.

But the loads that trigger anaerobic processes have a minimal effect on the stayers. In this state, the body does not have enough oxygen, muscles burn, fatigue is wild – more than a few minutes can not be endured. To achieve such a wonderful state, an amateur needs to reach a speed of 16 km / h or more. This is good for sprinters because they have a lot of muscle mass, short work intervals, long rest periods between sets of exercises, but not suitable for long distance runners.

Heart rate variability

In addition, heart rate variability is determined on testing. In fact, a simple ECG plus measuring the gaps between adjacent teeth of the cardiogram. This is done to assess the functional state of the cardiovascular system – the most sensitive marker of fatigue and overload.

Therefore, heart rate variability can be used as a criterion for overtraining. Or insufficient reserves. When you are going to train in the morning, you can quickly measure the variability within 3-5 minutes, for example, using Cardiobos or Welltory devices, compare with the previous ones (each athlete should have a database of his old data) and evaluate how much and with what intensity you should train today.

This is very important, because the variability does not always correspond to subjective feelings, you may simply not know that today it is worth holding your horses and doing 70% of the usual training. Also, this indicator is strongly influenced by the quality of sleep and the psycho-emotional state – once again during the training period, it is better not to freak out and not skimp on sleep.

Methodology for assessing the type of functional response of neuromuscular fiber

Endurance and strength are assessed, and as a result, the predisposition to sprint or stayer loads is calculated.First, you strongly squeeze the expander (dynamometer), about 75% of the force of this compression is taken, and with such an effort, you need to keep the second expander squeezed for as long as possible. The ratio of the severity of endurance and strength allows you to calculate the severity of muscle fibers and determine who you are – a sprinter, stayer or middle athlete.

Determination of maximum compressive force

Determination of endurance

Bioimpedance analysis

A technique for assessing the fat component based on conducting an electrical impulse through the subject’s body and the degree of current delay in proportion to the amount of fat.Such smart scales analyze body composition, and based on the result, you get a recommendation to lose weight or gain and how.

So why know all these details about yourself?

When you have been measured at what power of the load what processes start in your body, you can calculate the threshold of anaerobic metabolism, individual training zones and differentiate the intensity of the load. So that YOU personally do not overstrain where it is useless for you, if not harmful.

This is the graph that the subject gets, and in addition, the commentary of the expert who conducted the testing.

Clickable

What interesting things can you learn about the athlete from this graph?

In a healthy person, the glucose value should either remain at the initial level or increase towards the end of the load. The body has the ability to compensate for the energy needs of muscles and brain, releasing it from the depot (from liver and muscle glycogen, as well as from fat deposits) a very large amount of carbohydrates, and you are bingo! – you are losing weight.If the glucose value decreases, this indicates a deficiency or depletion of carbohydrate stores.

Further from this graph it is clear that the subject is an average person, gravitating towards stayers. The maximum grip force of the hands was 57 kg, the second expander held for 45 seconds. Calculate the fiber ratio, 57/45 = 1.26. Thus, it can be predicted that the subject in the future has a good potential for running at medium and long distances.

Another interesting feature that the testing revealed in this particular subject is the unusual training zones.If usually the average training zones are limited from above by the values of beats per minute: 140, 160, 180, then he has them much higher. This means that he needs to train at high heart rate values. Lactate data suggests that he will not overload in these zones, while working in generally accepted zones will not give him strong development, and he will simply waste time on ineffective training. For example, if he runs developmental workouts at the heart rate 155 (the upper limit of the developmental zone for a spherical 30-year-old person in a vacuum), then he will not even come close to the development zone and will not train, but simply have a good time in the fresh air.

Another pair of graphs

Who is interested in the topic, here are a couple of graphs made on the basis of testing by EastBanc Technologies employees.

Clickable

A woman was tested here, as can be seen from body weight and amount of fat, asthenic-thoracic constitution (rather thin), visceral fat at a minimum, low total fat, diets excluding fats and carbohydrates are not recommended. Clean stayer. Very high training zones, which allows her to run at a high heart rate.Carbohydrate depots are well developed.

Clickable

And here we have a man running. Fat is at the upper limit of the norm, which is a hindrance in long-distance running. Average, gravitating towards stayers. The optimal running distance in order to achieve the result is 3000-5000 meters. Training zones are slightly above average.

Why do we need a corporate half marathon?

Russia is obsessed with running: the increase in people who have run a marathon has been 300% over the past 6 years! No country is growing faster in terms of these indicators.

Running is cheap, relatively easy to learn, and most importantly, it introduces you to a huge community, which already includes thousands of IT people, directors, business owners, managers around the world. That is, by running, you join a very good company.

But we at EastBanc Technologies, of course, were not focused on trends, but rather just wanted to do some big business together outside of work. Running has indeed proven to be the most accessible sport for as many employees as possible.And based on the results of training and the half marathon itself, we decided to release the corporate calendar-2018, as we like to do.

There are 18 days left before the half marathon and we are almost ready!

How to run correctly? Running from scratch. Practical advice.

Do you want to be strong – run, if you want to be beautiful – run, if you want to be smart – run.

Good afternoon. I want to tell you about the wonderful sport of running and share my experience of starting classes.There is a lot of information about running on the Internet, many books have been published. This is one of the most accessible and familiar sports known to people since time immemorial. But still, when you just start practicing, a lot of questions arise, the answers to which cannot always be found. In my story there will be information from many sources on the Internet, from books, from messages on the forums that I visited in search of information. I will not make footnotes, I do not see the point in this. My running experience is average, I have been running for the last 4 years, I have not attended any sections or coaches, but I want to share the knowledge that I have accumulated myself.

What is running and why is it needed

First, a little about running itself. Why is he so wonderful and why I chose him as the main sport when I decided that sport should firmly take root in my life. I thought about sports for a reason. Sooner or later, everyone will remember about it, when the body starts to malfunction, when you begin to understand that you are not growing, not getting healthy, not developing, but slowly aging. A sedentary lifestyle, ecology, eating all sorts of rubbish did their job, and I began to notice that I was getting weaker, sick more often, slouched over and somehow did not feel very well.At the age of 25, I finally realized that I wanted to be strong and healthy. I paid attention to running. How did he attract me?

First of all, because is natural running, one of the strongest anabolic steroids . In simple terms, this means that while running, the formation and renewal of cells, tissues and muscle structures occurs. There is an opinion that intensive jogging dries muscles, hinders their growth, therefore, gym lovers neglect jogging, work on muscle mass, and as a result cannot run even 300 meters without shortness of breath, or climb steps above the 2nd floor without interruption.It’s a delusion. Running creates a strong prerequisite for muscle growth. In simple terms, it looks like this. The main factor limiting the growth of muscle mass is energy. Mitochondria are the “power stations” of cells. Protein synthesis in them is weaker than in other parts of the cell, but the ability of the cell to synthesize protein molecules directly depends on the ability of mitochondria to generate energy. I don’t want to describe in detail the process of muscle growth. I can only say that running “trains” the mitochondria, because no other exercise causes such a pronounced energy deficit in the body.Look at the lean figures of long distance runners. Runners’ muscles are very small because they don’t train them for volume. But they are well trained for “energy supply”. When a runner starts doing strength sports, the mitochondria of his muscle cells come to life and begin to provide the process of protein synthesis with the necessary amount of energy. And energy supply is the most important, key process of protein synthesis in muscle cells. Therefore, protein synthesis in muscle cells proceeds as quickly as possible.

I deliberately dwelled on this moment, because I went to the gym for a year and I know that most of the jocks who do not climb out of there do not do aerobic exercises at all, and as a result, they lose endurance, agility, and simply inhibit the growth of muscle mass.

What else is good about running? It rebuilds the entire hormonal sphere, improves the cardiovascular and nervous system, strains and develops almost all the muscles in the body. I do not want to dwell on this in detail, I will only draw attention to one fact.Any physical activity leads to the activation of nerve cells that synthesize catecholamines, but running in this respect is the “strongest” exercise. The release of catecholamines during running reaches such high levels that a kind of running euphoria appears – an increase in mood after a running workout. I immediately noticed this effect, but at first I thought it was just a walk in the woods, from running directly, which I like. Later I learned that it was no accident.The mood is really improving, and you want to return to this activity again. This is my main motivator for classes. I don’t have to force myself to run, I really enjoy it and it’s fun, so I get upset when I have to skip a workout.

What clothes are best for running in summer and winter

After a short introduction, let’s move on to the very process of running. In order to start running, you need a few simple things.Clothes, footwear, territory for running. My favorite thing is to run in shorts. Top with a T-shirt when cool with a sweatshirt or blazer. In winter, it is not necessary to wrap up much, sweatpants and a light autumn jacket are enough. You will not have time to freeze if you move all the time. So we leave the house and immediately run at an easy pace. We calculate our run so that we can run everything at an average pace and have time to return home. You cannot rest during the winter while jogging – you will freeze.

Choosing the right and comfortable running shoe

Shoes are a separate topic.There are many misconceptions on this score, and at first I succumbed to one of them. In general, most people do not know how to run, they have never seriously engaged in jogging, and they have no technique, so they run as they run. And this is very bad, since it is very important to run correctly in running, only in this case you will not injure yourself. Most people run by stepping on their heels. And this is no accident. If you go to an athletic shoe store, you will see a thickened heel above the toe of a running shoe.In such shoes, you will not be able to run differently, and the springy heel just pushes you to step on it. And this is completely wrong. When stepping on the heel, a strong blow occurs, which shakes the entire body, the joints of the legs and internal organs. With a long run in this way, joint pain appears, if you do this for a long time, then you will simply destroy all your joints. Of course, I had glueless sports sneakers at home with just such a heel. It was in them that I began to run, and it was precisely stepping on the heel.So my joints ached. They hurt me all the time. The first week I ran every day, the second week every other day, the third already 2-3 times a week. Then I had to stop classes for 2 weeks, as my legs hurt a lot and I just could not run.

Technique of safe and correct running

Then I learned that while running, you need to land not on the heel, but on the toe, cushion the landing with the muscles of the foot and calves. This is the correct run. It is necessary to softly land on the toe, cushioning the landing, and only then put the heel.When running, the legs should always be slightly bent at the knees, the run should be soft and silent, there should be no need to pound the heels on the ground, breaking the legs. Running on toes was hard at first. In ordinary life, the muscles that are involved in such a run do not work and are poorly developed. But during my classes in the gym, I myself do not know why, but I was pumping caviar. As a result, they were quite well developed for me, so that at first I was able to run 2-3 kilometers on my toes. This led to muscle pain, but over time the legs got used to it.Now I run 5-10 kilometers calmly and naturally, using the right technique. You need to run in shoes with flat soles. You don’t have to be afraid and listen to consultants in stores talk about how important it is to absorb kicks. This is nonsense and nonsense. It’s all advertising and marketing. You need the right running technique and then no cushioning shoes are needed. Running is correct, turned into a sequence of jumps with a springy landing on the forefoot, legs bent at the knee (running should be silent).When landing, the foot should be directly under the center of gravity of the body. (This is when walking, not running, the person puts the straightened leg on the heel).

I pay attention to footwear and running technique again. This is very important, this is the most important thing to focus on. The initial result will primarily depend on the technique and footwear. It is very important here not to harm yourself. Maintain healthy joints.

Best places to run

So, we have clothes, shoes, we know how to run correctly.Now we need to decide where we will run. There are several options. It can be a stadium with a running track, it can be a forest or a park, or city streets. I myself run in a large park, practically in a forest. I think this is the best option, because the forest is just great. Clean air, birds are singing, the forest makes a pleasant noise, soothes. It is convenient to run around the stadium, there may be a special coating, there you can find out exactly how much you ran and in what time. But running in a circle is not interesting and boring.The city is the worst option. There is gas pollution in the city, people, dogs. Although, if you wish, you can choose a convenient route with a minimum concentration of people and cars. Here everyone chooses for himself. I recommend a forest or a park. If not nearby, you can get there by car. I have a park near my house, I don’t have to go anywhere.

Running workout program

We have decided on the place, now we will decide on the intensity of training. Here I also badly miscalculated when I started running. I liked running so much that I immediately decided that I would run a lot every day.I started with 3 kilometers, after a couple of workouts I ran 4, after a couple more I started to run 5 km. As I already wrote, I ran incorrectly, my legs hurt, I simply could not master such a distance, as a result, after a while I stopped running, because I could not. At this time, I studied the materials and tried to understand what I was doing wrong. And I got it. First of all, it is worth understanding that constant overloads are harmful to the body . Fatigue builds up and this leads to injury and illness. This is exactly what happened to my friend and friend, with whom we began to run.The first fell ill 2 weeks later, the second suffered a leg injury, so he could hardly walk. They were treated at home, but I just couldn’t run from fatigue and pain.

How to adjust the load while running

How do you need to regulate the load? At the very beginning, you need to run as little as you can. Everyone will have their own limit, someone will run 500m, someone will run 1 km, it is no longer needed. I remember myself, in the first race I ran at a slow, slow pace and ran 2 km, after which I died and moved to a step.It was necessary to stop much earlier, when I felt that I was already tired. You need to choose the pace of running on the basis that while running you will be able to calmly talk with your partner . As soon as you start to choke and it becomes difficult to speak, the pace needs to be slowed down. The second way to determine your load is as follows: the load is considered optimal if, 20 minutes after running, you fully restore your normal heart rate.

What to eat and drink before and after running

A few more important points.Avoid eating less than 2 hours before running and drinking less than an hour. Also, do not drink water immediately after running or drink while running. If you eat or drink before running, it will be difficult to run, pain in your side will appear. I usually drink fruit drinks from red, black currant and sea buckthorn about 20-30 minutes after running.

How to breathe properly while running

A few words about breathing. There are two opinions. The first is that you need to breathe through the nose, the second – through the mouth. The arguments for the first method are as follows: the lungs are trained better, since it is harder to work to provide the body with air through narrow nasal openings, the mucous membrane of the mouth does not dry, and the loss of moisture in the body decreases.There is only one reason for breathing with the mouth – running takes place in conditions of insufficient air supply, therefore breathing through the mouth is mandatory for the full supply of oxygen to the body. At first I breathed through my nose, then I switched to breathing through my mouth. The argument in favor of this method seemed to me more convincing. How best to breathe – decide for yourself according to your condition. Many people find it difficult to breathe through the nose due to deviated septa or other diseases, and it is simply difficult for them to breathe intensively through the nose, the body does not have enough air.

Along with jogging, I quit smoking and reduced my alcohol consumption to a minimum. Nicotine and alcohol are completely incompatible with running. If the effect of cigarettes is not so noticeable, then after drinking alcohol, the state of the body deteriorates sharply. You can clearly see the full harm from alcohol by doing sports. The result drops very much. After about a week, after a little binge, I recovered and returned to the previous results.

Why you need a running heart rate monitor

I will also dwell on devices that help to run efficiently.The first and most important device that will help us run is a heart rate monitor. It helps a lot in determining the recommended running rhythm. The first thing to monitor with a heart rate monitor is the maximum heart rate. We consider it according to the formula 220 – age = maximum heart rate. Exceeding the maximum allowable heart rate is highly discouraged. If you see that your heart rate is elevated, you need to slow down. The heart rate range at which fat is burned and endurance develops is 75% of the maximum heart rate.For example, if you are 20 years old, then the best heart rate during training for you is calculated by the formula:

220 – 20 = 200 * 0.75 = 150 beats per minute

If you are a complete beginner and are just starting to run, I recommend keeping your heart rate in the region of 120-130 beats.

The second useful device is a mobile phone with a GPS receiver. You can put a program on it to track distance and running time, save tracks, compare results. There are many programs of this kind, everyone can choose what he likes best and suits his device.I myself have personally used the Nike + app for Android. Before you start running, you start the program, it turns on the timer and starts recording the track of your run, taking into account the distance. Of course, such accounting is not entirely accurate, but we are not preparing for competitions, but running for ourselves. So that such accuracy is enough for us to have an idea of the dynamics of changes.

That’s probably all I wanted to share. Run to your health and do not get sick. If you are interested, you can read my story about how I prepared and ran the 100 km marathon.

90,000 Interview with the blind runner Elena Fedoseeva

Elena Fedoseeva lost her sight at the age of 12. Today she has dozens of difficult races behind her, and right now she is preparing for a triathlon. TV presenter Maria Komandnaya spoke to Elena especially for Afisha Daily.

Belief in yourself is your main advantage when everyone around you says “never”.I would not have been able to prove that I could run on a par with everyone if I had listened to others. But I continue to do what I love, so I remain true to myself

Elena Fedoseeva

Runner

On running and perseverance

– Do you remember how you went to your first training session, ran your first kilometers?

– It was terrible! I have never done jogging before, just rollerblading and ice skating.I started running only when I was 28 years old. After the first 300 meters, I decided that I could even call an ambulance – it was so hard, unusual and difficult. It seemed to me that 10 kilometers is some kind of unattainable height, like the height of Everest. But this is all out of habit, then the process began. I think that every person who starts playing sports at a conscious age goes through this. And then, in order to come to the next workout, you also need to show stubbornness, perseverance, a certain amount of workouts, you still have to force yourself to do it.And the body after a while will take all this for granted.

– Lena, Haruki Murakami has a book What I Think When I Talk About Running. What do you think about when you talk about running? How do you feel while jogging?

– It seems to me that running and playing sports, in principle, help you learn to achieve your goals, help you become physically enduring, teach perseverance. It is in sports, running, cycling that I practice stubbornness, and this is very important to me.I get extraordinary pleasure. Every time you run, you experience an inner struggle: you want to stop, but you don’t stop, you think why you need all this, but in the end you overdo yourself, reach the end, and at this moment you get some extraordinary pleasure.

When you stop and the first minutes pass after a run – it is very difficult to compare something with this pleasure in life.

– Often people who do not have any health problems look for excuses to stay at home and do nothing, relax and enjoy life.How do you feel about them?

– It seems to me that it makes no difference whether a person has a disability or not. And among people with disabilities there is a huge percentage of those who do not strive for anything and do not want to change anything in their lives. There are people who set ambitious goals for themselves, go to them, and there are people who want a harmonious home environment, they are very comfortable and healthy at home. It’s just a person’s character and somewhere, maybe, upbringing.

About responsibility

– Lena, please tell us what happened to you at the age of 12, how did you lose your sight?

– It’s hard to say … I have a retinal detachment.There is probably no specific reason, it is difficult to talk about it. Doctors believe that during a period of active growth, some organs in a child grow faster, others more slowly. According to one version, the retina grew more slowly, and its rupture occurred. There was no trauma or event that would lead to retinal detachment.

– Do you feel a responsibility towards other people, which consists in the fact that you can no longer turn from the chosen path? Because people will not understand this, for them you are an inspiration.

– People pay attention to how I behave, how I build my life, how I look, how I position myself. Their attitude towards me is largely a perception of how they treat people with disabilities. And I feel this responsibility. As far as sports are concerned, I cannot say that I do sports and that this should motivate everyone else. I have many friends who have achieved much greater results in sports, who have chosen sports as their life’s work.

– You probably write a lot of people with various types of disabilities. They seek support, ask for advice.

– There are such moments, and now there are more of them, because my main work is related to helping people with hearing and vision disabilities. I am a rehabilitologist, now we have a grant project on the inclusive employment of people with visual and hearing impairments.And, of course, people turn to all these questions. I always try to provide some specific help.

– It turns out that you are simultaneously working on several jobs.

– Now I have somewhat reduced their number, because I have a child. I had to cool down my ardor a little. I have a nursing education, I do massage in a children’s clinic. But there I am on maternity leave, so my main job now is in a training and rehabilitation center.This is the home of the deaf-blind, I am a teacher of socio-cultural rehabilitation, I am in charge of a project for the employment of people with visual and hearing impairments. I also do journalism, publish materials in the Internet edition and the magazine of the All-Russian Society of the Blind, concerning the issues of disability, charity, and rehabilitation.

Topic details

The story of a blind man who created and headed a major radio station

– When you got pregnant, did someone tell you that caring for a child in your condition would be too difficult?

– I was very lucky because I know many stories when people with disabilities were told that they did not need to have children, that they would not be able to cope with them, that everything would be very bad.I have never heard anything like this addressed to me in my entire pregnancy. I felt only support – both from my family and from friends. I am very grateful to them for that. Kostya went with me to the first competition when he was four months old. It was a triathlon in Adler. I went through the cycle stage, and he was waiting for me at the finish line.

– How did the birth of a child change you?

– Having a child changed me, of course, like any woman. Kostya’s appearance a year ago influenced the whole routine of my life.A lot had to be eliminated. You start to figure out what matters to you and what doesn’t. Sport has remained in my life, I started doing it two months after giving birth. Now I put Kostya to bed and go to training – with a clear conscience. The child is sleeping, and I can calmly go about my business.

How to come to a tolerant society

– 2014, the project “Marathon in the Dark” appears in your life. When did you realize that this is really a very important matter?

– The project “Marathon in the Dark” was initiated and organized by Yulia Tolkacheva – trainer, master of sports of international class in karate.At some point, she realized that among people with disabilities in Russia, amateur sports are not at all developed, and she wanted to somehow change this. She started in Moscow, with running, because this is the most accessible sport – you bought sneakers, put them on and ran. You do not need any additional equipment, but this is not enough for a blind person. We need a leader who will run next to him.

Julia found volunteers who were ready to run with the blind.But the problem was that there were no blind people who wanted to run …

Therefore, I agreed to support this initiative, that is, to a greater extent, not because I wanted to run. The guys got together, and it was necessary that they did it not in vain. And I was sucked in. Of those people who came to help us then, in my opinion, no one runs or runs somewhere completely in other places, in other countries.

At first my girl Katya was the leader, she now lives in Odessa.We started running with her, and she helped me a lot not to quit sports. It was very cool to communicate with her and with the guys. Largely because of this communication, I continued to run. I realized how important it is to speak now not about professional sports for people with disabilities, because it existed, exists and will continue to exist, but about amateur sports for such people. For a person with a disability to engage and train together with healthy people – this is the realization of an inclusive society that we are talking about.When these boundaries between limited and unlimited are blurred, when people communicate, learn more and more about each other, are not afraid of each other.

– You do a lot of integrating people with disabilities into their usual society. How did you go about this integration yourself?

– More likely forced, because I studied at the institute, on a general basis. Everything happened somehow by itself. You communicate with people – you have to communicate with them, you make friends with them.Together you go to the library, to the cafe, to the cinema. All this happens very harmoniously. And it seems to me that it is very important that this is not an imposed story from the outside.

In amateur inclusive sports, when a person comes to jog, he certainly does not come to integrate into a certain society, he comes to jog. And people without disabilities meet him there. They get to know each other, come to workouts together, drink coffee after them. This is the beginning of the process of integrating a person with a disability into society.And after some time of such communication, people without disabilities begin to help naturally, harmoniously, automatically. My girlfriend loved to talk about it at the institute. We used to walk together, she always supported me by the arm, and suddenly she began to do it automatically: leaving the train or metro, she began to help the person who was standing next to her, without even thinking about it.

– Does the employer often refuse to work with blind people, people with disabilities? How to solve this problem?

– Of course this problem exists.It can be solved, and it should be solved both by the employer and by the person with a disability himself. Because often the employer does not know about his professional capabilities, personal qualities. But people with disabilities must also meet the requirements of the general labor market. They should not only receive education, but also be qualified specialists, communicative, free, independent to the maximum in their movement. We often talk about the lack of government support, and this is indeed the case in the employment of people with disabilities.There is little support, but this is not the main thing.

– Do you feel that society is becoming more inclusive?

– In general, the very concept of an inclusive society has appeared, this already indicates that a step forward has been made. We constantly hear this phrase: inclusive education, inclusive exhibition, inclusive display, inclusive performance, inclusive sport – these are the concepts that are now becoming part of everyday life in one way or another. The development of our society has reached a different stage, when people with disabilities began to be noticed: they entered the general labor market, general training, they ended up in ordinary general education schools.It is very important to form the correct attitude of society to their appearance, the correct attitude of society to their perception.

Disability is not a border that separates two worlds, it is just another person’s variation. There are people with long noses, if people are fat, there are thin people, there are people with one leg, there are people with two legs, there are people with one ear, there are people with one eye – these are all different people.

This understanding is probably now emerging, and the success of the implementation of an inclusive society depends on how we position it.

– How should we talk about this society? Which tone should you choose?

– You need to understand and accept people as they are. We have different personalities, different hair colors and different possibilities. There are people with disabilities and a very purposeful character, and there are people without disabilities who have a rather passive character. Who has more limited opportunities at the same time is a relative question. I think that people are now trying not to be ashamed of their fullness, not to be ashamed to talk about body positivity, not to be ashamed of feeding a baby in public.And I think they shouldn’t be ashamed of being in a wheelchair. All this stands in one row. We are really all different, but we live in the same society and should – not that we should, we can perceive each other as equal.

Topic details

7 great stories of love and family told by girls in wheelchairs

How sports are changing

– How has your life changed since 2014, when you started playing sports?

– When I started playing sports, I had a completely different social circle.In general, for me, sport as such was something distant. I bought sneakers only once, probably in my life, to go to the forest. Now, at least in Moscow, amateur athletes are a special subculture, where people often meet not just to run their 15 kilometers, but to communicate with each other. This is a hobby club. This is such a story when you take a step forward, and this step entails a whole series of events that change your life. Probably, sport has become just such a step for me.After him, new people appeared in my life, new events, life went in the direction in which it is moving now.

– After you started running, a bicycle appeared in your life, later a triathlon. Sport has drawn you in, and it seems as if you want more and more. As if it were an addiction, only pleasant and useful. Is it possible to “gorge” on sports?

– Yes, it seems to me that sport is, rather, a story that draws you in. Most likely, a person becomes dependent on physical activity, on sports, on achieving a result.And at first it was even funny when I watched the athletes calculate the seconds they ran then and which they ran now. Like, at these competitions I ran half a second or half a minute faster. And they get incredible pleasure from this – of course, it is addictive. And counting these seconds, and training. And at some point you realize that if you don’t go to workout on the set day, you feel out of place. And when you complete all the training plans, you feel satisfaction, joy, inner harmony.Now it is very difficult to imagine my life without sports.

– Do you remember your first competition? You ran them after a few months of running.

– I remember it was hard. Thanks to Katya, of course, who dragged me, said – come on, come on, a little more, we are waiting for the finish line. It was not a very crowded competition, because we did it as part of the Marathon in the Dark project.Although there were participants from the outside. It was hard for me on the third kilometer. But we even took, in my opinion, second place. And, of course, when they put on a medal, when they congratulate you, take pictures … it’s very nice. And I want to repeat this moment again and again.

About sports purposes

– You need to get to your next destination. How did you get on the bike?

– I have ridden a bike all my life, but I started cycling two years ago.I immediately fell into the hands of a very good trainer, who infected me with cycling, a tandem bike. He is cycling professionally, but I opted for an amateur one. In terms of physical sensations, cycling is sometimes even easier for me than running.

– Do you have a sports dream?

– I have several of them. I want to take the Tour de France route. And in the near future I really want to go through the triathlon sprint distance. This is an accessible dream, and an inaccessible one – I leave it for later, for a while, when there will be more strength and opportunities.I want to run the triathlon iron distance. She is, of course, Everest for me. Although the climb to Everest really wants to be carried out in my life.

– Triathlon is other loads, you need to constantly force yourself to endure, work to the maximum of your capabilities.

– I have not yet been involved in triathlon as such, I passed relay distances, in particular cycling distances. Just last year, we rode 180 kilometers in the full triathlon distance. This is my unconscious choice, because Julia Tolkacheva invited me to take part in this.She is currently developing an amateur triathlon for people with disabilities, including the blind. When you come to amateur competitions, it is very inspiring. They are colossally different from professional starts, professional starts are boring. Let’s say ten athletes come out and run their distances. And amateur distances are always smart people, such fan support. You are inspired by the very atmosphere of an amateur start. You come and feel: yes, I want to go the entire distance of the triathlon, I want to feel it, I want to be a member of this whole movement.It’s very nice.

– What advice would you give yourself if you could go back in time? For example, five years ago.

– Go in for sports, music, foreign language. Because a foreign language is very necessary, you need to learn it on time. In adulthood, it is harder to give. And music is wonderful. She also helps you, teaches you concentration, composure. It seems to me that music lessons should be present in the life of every person, it develops a harmonious personality.

How to get out of your comfort zone

– Each person has a path that can be called the path of least resistance. How do you feel about such people and what would you advise them to turn from this path? After all, very often happiness begins where the comfort zone ends.

– It is difficult to give advice here. Everyone has different characters, different capabilities, initial data. You can only support a person, tell him about yourself. It seems to me that the main thing is not to motivate that you need to do this and that, but to prove by your own example that you can live differently.Any sermon, any advice only in this case will be viable.

You can say nothing, just do – and that will be enough.

– You know, Lena, it seemed to me that the concept of freedom is very important for you, and freedom is rather internal. Will you try to teach her to your son?

– I really want him to be free. And so that morality is an important concept for him.That he was a decent, kind and wise person. Purposeful. In this case, he will choose the correct path, from my point of view. And which path he will choose will be his decision.

– Today we talked a lot about self-confidence. This is really a very important story, because when you are not sure of yourself, then you constantly ask yourself the question: can I? What should you do to become more self-confident, to finally believe in yourself?

– It seems to me that everyone always has doubts.I will never believe that there are no people who do not doubt at all. You still somehow doubt what you are doing. But when you do something, you have no time to doubt yourself. You have already entered this path, and there is no turning back.

The story of Elena Fedoseeva in video format can be viewed here.

90,000 Many Russians play sports incorrectly, harming themselves

Before any exercise, be sure to warm up and stretch.Warming up should take at least 7-10 minutes. Stretch out immediately after warming up. When running, if you feel pain or tightness in the lower leg area, you need to stop and stretch the lower leg, as well as the muscles of the thigh in front and behind. There is a venous pump in the lower leg – a pump that pumps blood upward through the body – so the lower leg should never be left “stone”.

Today, thousands of men and women jog, wind kilometers on bicycles and swing abs on horizontal bars. But even with the naked eye it is clear that many of them play sports incorrectly and harm themselves.How to avoid injury?

If in my youth I knew about the correct running technique, muscle pumping and other nuances of physical education, says a professional fitness trainer, Honored Master of Sports, multiple champion of Russia and European champion (1996) in triple jump, European champion in pentathlon, as well as master of sports in rugby and football Elena Lebedenko – then today I would have my menisci and knees, a healthy back and so on. Unfortunately, some things people find out too late.And this is why I train in order to teach my wards not to get injured and to increase their health ”.

According to Elena, the most traumatic amateur sport is running.

First, when running, a person receives a serious shock load on the orthopedic apparatus, knees and lower legs. The body of a 20-year-old runner will cope with this load on its own, but if you are

30 or more, the joints must be spared in order to maintain their working resource as long as possible. “I often see large men and women running in marathons (competition shoes with a thin heel.- Approx. ed.), or even not in running shoes at all, besides on asphalt, says Elena. – This is a direct path to serious knee injury. To avoid unpleasant consequences, sneakers should be chosen with the thickest and softest soles and, if possible, not save too much on them. It is also advisable to select sneakers with the correct pronation for each particular runner (pronation, or inversion, of the foot is an internal eversion of the foot while walking or running. – Ed.) And simply comfortable, for a specific foot.And you need to run along a gravel path or, even better, along a tartan, forest path or grass. This is especially true for runners weighing more than 80 kg for men and 60 kg for women. I will say more, in the gym, during workouts, I forbid running even on an automatic treadmill – only walking on it. The point is that the treadmill gives a strong kickback when the foot is positioned and the shock load on the knees increases. ”

Secondly, you need to run correctly. The expert emphasizes that the foot should be placed softly, as if it were made of papier-mâché, not jump high, but “creep” over the path so that the head always remains at the same level.It is better to run slowly, since a fast run does nothing to health, but only takes away from him. For health, it is better to run longer and slower, and it is easier to follow the technique when running slowly. Better yet, walk long and fast with sticks.

“You have to show your running technique, it’s really difficult,” continues Elena Lebedenko. – But all the same I will try in words. You need to run not with your shins – we call it “gluing your legs” – but with your thighs and buttocks. The thigh should be extended forward of the pelvis and during the push pass through the pelvis back.The leg should be lifted off the ground at the last moment, and not in the middle of the trajectory. It is necessary to put your foot under the center of gravity, and not try to bring it forward. And do not jump in any case – otherwise you will be left without a foot, knees, lower leg and lower back! The groin and chest must be in front. If a runner’s butt is “off”, this is wrong, not running anymore, but, as we say in internal slang, “pushing a wheelbarrow”.

Further – also extremely important – elbows and shoulders. We often tell clients that elbows are running.When running, the shoulders should be relaxed and lowered, the arms should be bent at the elbows at about 90 degrees. The elbows should move in parallel planes and work like pendulums – with each step, move a little forward and wind up all the way back. Improper use of the arms while running leads to neck and rib injuries. If you learn how to run correctly, you can do it even with overweight, and everything will only be a plus ”.

A separate running technique, quite complex, but minimizing the load on the legs, is toe running.Without experience, it is unlikely that you will be able to immediately run “to the tip”. It is necessary to introduce this technique into use gradually, first the first 5 minutes of jogging, after a couple of weeks 10 minutes, and so on. The point is that after the flight phase the runner should land not on the heel or even on the entire foot, but on the toe. Then the foot rolls onto the heel, or rather, the weight is transferred to the entire foot, followed by the traditional push. It should be noted that running “to the toe” is not equally physiological for all runners – it is easier for someone, harder for someone.In any case, it is necessary to start running “on the toe” at an extremely slow pace.

The main mistakes when cycling are completely different, for example, a low saddle, continues Elena. A large load on bent legs is extremely unphysiological, since the cartilage at this moment has a small area of contact with the joint. The saddle must be positioned so that the leg is straight at the bottom of the trajectory.

Further – the swing of the press. Only dry and short people can afford to lean back and sit on a special device.For heavy and even people with an average weight, this exercise will lead to lower back injuries, warns Lebedenko. “The abs should be pumped like this: lie down on the floor at home, put your outstretched legs with your heels on the sofa, relax your legs, put your hands behind your head and twist your torso into a roll until your shoulder blades are off the floor.” For a start, 30 times is enough.

The next exercise for the press is to lie on the floor, put your legs bent at a right angle on the sofa so that the buttocks are close to the sofa. Then relax your legs, put your hands behind your head and in this position do another 30 twists, trying to tear your shoulder blades off the floor.

Further, the number of twists in both positions can be increased.

Horizontal bars and parallel bars are very good for men of short stature with short arms, emphasizes Lebedenko. People whose arms are longer than average should approach strength exercises on horizontal bars and uneven bars carefully, gaining the load gradually. It is also worth remembering that excessive diligence when working on the uneven bars and horizontal bar, especially in people with a large weight and age over thirty, can lead to serious complex injuries of the elbow and (or) shoulder joints, which are difficult and long to heal.

“Alas, a person is strong in hindsight,” Elena Lebedenko repeats her main idea. – Most of my clients came to me after knee surgery, spinal disc replacement and other unpleasant operations. Now they know for sure that they need to do sports correctly. Do not bring it to this, learn everything in advance ”.

Packable – Anna KosovaAnna Kosova

I have been living for a long time in a climate with a temperature of about 18-25 degrees.Most often it is windy and sunny here.

When you run, you feel good, but as soon as you stop to do some exercises, you instantly want to put something on top.

And even after running, I often go for coffee or to the store just to walk, think and hesitate after a run.

It was in such a climate that I was acutely faced with the problem of how to take an additional layer of clothing for a run, so that it does not interfere during running, and then warms up and does not blow through.

I tried a lot of things – running with jackets in my hands, pockets, on my belt. Each of the options has a right to life. But the twist from the belt slips, the sweaters are heavy in the hands. And there are enough minuses too.

Therefore, after a couple of months of torment, I began to search for things that can be easily and quickly packed into my own pocket and at the same time lightweight. I was surprised that most brands do not make light and functional models of outerwear that can be packed compactly and taken with you.In this matter, the market leader is Nike. You can always find a good jacket from the brand that fits into your own pocket and is more or less comfortable in your hands and can be put in your pocket.

Not so long ago, I began to wonder why brands do not go further and make running clothes so functional that they would be almost perfect. After all, all runners have almost the same needs.

All we need is a handy phone pocket, preferably on the hip. Ok, Lululemon has these shorts.

Requires space for a jacket. And also for cards.

By the way, you can even make room for a 0.5 bottle in shorts. In Bali, I ran around with a bottle in my pocket and it was convenient.

I think half a year of work and the perfect shorts can be invented. Such that I could run away in them 25-30 km from home, without a backpack, and after jogging, take a walk and return to the home.

Well, besides shorts, it is also quite possible to think over things that would be convenient to tie on a belt or something else.

My imagination in this matter can go far. And I am sure that modern design allows all this to be realized.

In the meantime, I found several functional things for jogging that are interestingly packed or can be packed in them and decided to share with you.

1. Nike Shield Convertible Jacket

Ideal and simple – the jacket is packed in its own pocket and has a strap to fasten it to the belt. I have not tried it, but I am sure that running with it will be no less comfortable than putting it on after a run.The price, of course, bites.

2. Jacket The North Face FANORAK

The same idea – the jacket is packed in your pocket and can be tied to a belt, I bought this model and it is very interesting how I will run with it. It’s cheaper than Nike, but less compact.

3. Jacket Lululemon Pack Light 1/2 Zip Pullover

I can’t be sure that with such a system of packaging the jacket will be comfortable to run, but I think it’s worth a try, just wondering.Perhaps the next model will be more perfect, and perhaps with this one it will be convenient. But the step has been taken in the right direction.

4. Short Tights Nike Gyakusou

These shorts look perfect for running. There are so many pockets in the right places and most importantly, there is a place in the back where you can put something from your outerwear. Of course, it is difficult to say in reality whether it will be as convenient as it seems in the photo. After all, the pockets are sewn, which means that objects in them can dangle a lot.And the jacket can slip out of the back pocket, but it’s worth a try. This is number one in my purchases this summer.

So far, this is all that I have found interesting, not just on the topic of equipment packing in their pockets, but with additional details that allow you to fasten things on yourself.

If you have seen something, then I will always be glad for additions and your thoughts on this topic – it is convenient or not to run with such additional details in the form of a jacket or sweater.

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Review of Mi Band 4 and running test for 57 kilometers

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Mi Band 4

Smart Functional

7.0/10

Moisture protection

9.0 / 10

Autonomy

9.0 / 10

Supplement

4.0 / 10

Sport Functional

5.0 / 10

Running Programs

0.02 10 9000 0.0 / 10

Connecting external sensors

0.0 / 10

Cost

9.0 / 10

Benefits

Color AMOLED display
Protective glass with increased wear resistance
Start / Pause training from the bracelet

Adjustment of music

Notifications for all apps
Fairly accurate heart rate monitor
Can track any type of workout
Shows heart rate / pace / distance while running

Disadvantages

Can’t track interval workouts
Delay up to several minutes when searching for GPS

6 No Ukrainian language

Switching tracks while running will not work
No possibility of creating running programs in Mi Fit

Surprisingly, Mi Band 4 is one of the most anticipated gadgets this year.Surprisingly, the Chinese company Huami and its Amazfit division were able to bypass the huge market for fitness bracelets in terms of sales and popularity, in which almost everyone works: from garage craftsmen on KickStarter to Samsung. Only Apple was left out.

Mi Band – the most popular fitness bracelet in the world

Simple design, minimalistic interface, low price and good luck made it Mi Band to become the fitness tracker that everyone can afford and want today, despite the fact that measuring steps and heart rate 5 years ago – not very popular functions among people who are not related to fitness.

Progress from Mi Band 3 to Mi Band 4 is comparable to the quantum leap from Mi Band 1 to Mi Band 2. However, the headlines in which Mi Band 4 are compared with the budget version of the Apple Watch are very confusing
The closest competitor is Mi Band 4 – Honor Band 4, which was released in 2018 and now deservedly occupies the top in our rating. Alas, big problems with Huawei (and Honor is their subsidiary) overshadowed the release of the already new Honor Band 5.

What has changed in Mi Band 4, is it worth updating the fitness tracker of the last generation and what running functions still missing in the new bracelet? We ran to figure it out!

PS: and if you are interested in Mi Band 5, then here you can find its review.

Characteristics of Mi Band 4 and comparison with Mi Band 3

Mi Band 4

Boring technical characteristics

Weight: 22.1 g
Water resistance level: 5 ATM (more on this)
Display type: AMOLED
Display diagonal: 0.95 “
Resolution: 120 x 240 RGB
Color depth: 24 bits
Display brightness: Up to 400 nits (max. Brightness), dimmable
Touchscreen type: Capacitive touchscreen
Display protection: Tempered 2.5D glass with oleophobic coating
2D and 2.5D glasses
Button: One touch button (activate, back)
Strap type: Removable strap (Mi Smart Band 4 is compatible with silicone straps from Mi Band 3)
Strap material: Thermoplastic polyurethane
Adjustable strap length: 155 – 216 mm
RAM: 512 KB
Internal memory: 16 MB
Sensors: 3-axis accelerometer, 3-axis gyroscope, PPG
Wireless connection: BT5.0 BLE
Battery: Li-polymer battery, 135 mAh
Charging time: ≤ 2 hours
Usage time: Up to 20 days
Vibration motor type: Rotary
Body material: Polycarbonate
Application: Mi Fit
System Requirements: Android 4.4, iOS 9.0 and newer

Design

I have never written about the boxes in which devices are supplied, because – why? But this time I cannot remain silent: it seems that the budget of the packaging department has been given to technical specialists.The box really looks cheap compared to previous generations, but inside you will find a much more charged gadget.

Box, fitness bracelet Mi Band 4 and a new type of charging

The first in the line, this bracelet received a color AMOLED display (finally)! Diagonal – 0.95 ″; in the previous model it was slightly smaller, 0.78 ″. Radical compared to the Mi Band 3 is the use of tempered glass (not plastic) and a flatter shape, which promises to keep the appearance of the screen without scratches much longer.

The new Mi Band 4 has a flat screen covered with tempered 2.5D glass

By the way, the proprietary button in the form of an anti-stress stone (Worry Stone) is gone. Now only a small circle under the glass informs about the control area of the gadget

Unlike its predecessors, Mi Band 4 already has a rather large font and confident icons. The screen is really bright, it is possible to adjust the “night mode”, in which the brightness drops depending on the time of day.

The shell menu is simple, understandable and quite nice: all icons and colors are well drawn and correctly associated.

The Mi Band 4 capsule easily “fits” into a silicone bracelet from Mi Band 3.

Synchronization

I still have an iPhone. And alas, I have the same problems. As in other Chinese gadgets, minus one: there is no Ukrainian localization. In order to receive a gadget in an understandable language, you need to change the language of the phone interface to Russian. Otherwise, everything is extremely simple and fast, I did not observe any problems like with the previous Mi Bands (when the phone simply does not see it).

By the way, since the Mi Band 3 test, the Mi Fit application has been updated, which has a positive effect on the appearance, but, as for me, has a negative impact on usability.

Updated app Mi Fit

Water resistance

Good news for swimmers: in Mi Band 4 you can track distance, stroke count and stroke rate. In addition, it recognizes 5 different swimming styles. Your gadget will be safe up to a maximum pressure of 5 atmospheres.

The only negative I read about, and then tested, is that the bracelet reacts to water as if it were touched.That is, if you do not block it, the bracelet will live its own life while taking a shower or swimming mode. It’s good that there is a screen lock.

Autonomy and charging

As always, Mi Band is at its best: I did six workouts with a total duration of about 6 hours, constantly received notifications, played with the settings and after 9 days of use the bracelet charge was 42%. According to official data, the bracelet lasts 20 days on a single charge. Charging time is 1.5-2 hours.

In this model, Xiaomi decided to update the charger, but, as before, in order to connect it, you will need to get the capsule out of the strap.

Mi band 4 on charging

Smart functions

Xiaomi released two versions of the Mi Band 4 bracelet: with and without NFC. Despite the fact that the difference in price is small (about $ 10), I cannot recommend buying the version with NFC in our latitudes: AliPay (this particular payment system can be connected to Mi Band 4) does not work for us. The only advantage for the residents of Ukraine is the ability to open smart locks from Xiaomi (source).

An absolutely new feature in Mi Band 4 – the ability to switch music forward, backward, pause, play and adjust the sound .For me, this is not particularly important, since I listen to music in Apple Earpods: the functionality of their remote control is exactly the same. But a nice advantage for me was that I can see the name and song of the artist on the screen of my bracelet.

Messages from popular instant messengers are now much easier to read due to the larger screen and optimal font size. Hooray, notifications are coming from Pages Manager (for Facebook)!

Of course, you can see the incoming call, as well as the name of the caller, reject the call or just shut up the phone.

Caller name and new music control menu

The bracelet menu contains:

Status (information about steps, kilometers, calories, notifications)
set in the Mi Fit app.Also, the bracelet can automatically detect the workout and increase the heart rate reading)
Workouts (running on the street – more on this in more detail, treadmill, cycling, walking, custom exercise and swimming)
Weather
Notifications (the bracelet reports them with a tangible vibration)
Additionally (timer and stopwatch, alarm clock, DND mode (do not disturb), screen lock, screen brightness adjustment, phone search, music switch)

Like the rest of the family of fitness trackers, Mi Band 4 also tracks sleep.I don’t understand how to use this function, so I didn’t test it. Sleep at least 8 hours a day, this is the best advice 🙂

Running functions

If you read my reviews of earlier gadgets from the Mi Band line, you already know that I was pleased with the correctness of the heart rate monitor on the 2nd and 3rd generation. Yes, there is still no GPS in Mi Band 4, but it is obvious that its presence would greatly change the cost, size and autonomy of the gadget.

B Mi Band 4 you can track your heart rate while running in real time

What you should pay attention to if you are going to track running with Mi Band 4:

Running without a phone with this fitness bracelet will not work, you need a GPS signal ;
Important Before starting pay attention to the presence of a GPS signal.At one of the trainings, I decided not to wait for him and hoped that he would connect later himself. As a result, in Runtastic I got 22 kilometers, and in Mi Fit only 16. Without a GPS connection, the data on the distance traveled is absolutely incorrect;
You can start / stop your workout directly from the bracelet or from your phone;
While running, the bracelet shows pace / time / mileage and heart rate in real time;
Alas, you cannot switch songs while tracking a run;
The bracelet has a timer, but unfortunately there is no special functionality for tracking interval training;
Mi Fit paints a graph of pace, heart rate, ascent, cadence and stride length in kilometers.In addition, the application is able to distribute the percentage of the load for different heart rate zones, but if you read the article “Running on the pulse”, then you understand that this information is inaccurate;
As before, you can set the thresholds at which a pleasant female voice will warn about exceeding / decreasing the heart rate or pace;
Unfortunately, Mi Fit does not have the ability to create running programs;
The Mi Band 4 has a fairly accurate heart rate monitor: when my hand was not wet while running, the data from my chest sensor (Beurer PM25) converged to + -1 beat.If the hand was already sweating quite hard, the difference increased by about + -8 beats. If you’ve read the article “Chest or Wrist Heart Rate Monitor”, you know why this is a good result;
You can finally track any type of workout in Mi Band! The Exercise> Exercise function will show you how many calories have been burned and track your heart rate during exercise.

Note for mothers with small children: without a GPS connection (choice of “Walking” workout), the bracelet will not measure your steps if you are walking with a stroller and carry it with both hands.

Runtastic and Mi Band 4

If you occasionally read my blog, you know that I have been using Runtastic Premium for the entire running season of 2019 (more on this here). To connect Mi Band 4 as a heart rate monitor to Runtastic, you need to carry out a simple operation using Mi Fit (without it, synchronization will fail).

Turn on Mi Fit and start the workout, making sure that the application reads the heart rate;

Synchronization of Runtastic and Mi Band 4

2. Turn on Runtastic and go to the run settings, where we find the menu item “Heart rate monitor”, go;

3.We are looking for our “Heart rate monitor” for a few seconds, making sure that the pulse is read here as well;

4. Run and get a report on the heart rate and heart rate zones.

Synchronization of Runtastic and Mi Band 4

So, in total, I ran 6 workouts with a total length of more than 50 kilometers with the Mi Band 4 fitness bracelet and I can confidently recommend it for tracking running metrics for beginners.

Those who are preparing for serious races (top ten, half marathon, marathon) need to know that there are no ready-made programs for running in Mi Fit, alas.

Will you update your Mi Band?

Thank you store All-Ok for the provided Mi Band 4!

Put an asterisk, write a review, I will be grateful 🙂

[Total: 6 Average: 4.5 / 5]

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