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WMN Editors

A 40-something fit athlete has a heart attack

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Well there it was; blunt news of a friend’s near death. Malcolm Daly (pronounced “daily”), president of the climbing gear company Great Trango Holdings, Inc. and a well-known figure in the US climbing community, had suffered a serious heart attack while ice climbing in Colorado. The email was brief but ended with a typically upbeat assessment by Malcolm:

All I’ve had to do is relax so; I’m getting antsy. Time to think about some exercise…again.

Daly’s story is compelling, scary, and hopeful. It’s compelling because he is like many of us: relatively young (40-something), quite fit, and with no serious family or personal history of heart problems. It’s scary because he is like many of us, and he almost died. It’s hopeful because Malcolm’s recovery is progressing well, and we can all learn from his experience.

 

July/August 2004   ISSN-1059-6518   Volume 17 Number 4

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WMN Editors

The Performance Triad; The Critical Balance of Hydration, Nutrition, and Pacing

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Ever since the running boom of the seventies,

and the interest in endurance sports became part of popular culture, the search for the “magic” potion, supplement, or nutrition bar has created a dizzying number of choices for the athlete and outdoors person who is looking for a way to get the most from themselves either in competition, outdoor adventures, or both. The crossover aspect of fitness and wild pursuits is more prevalent today than ever, and as a result, the desire to blend the two activities has been expressed by a growing number of wilder competitions: wilderness-based stage races, 12- and 24-hour races in wild settings, and the like. Today, the endurance athlete and the long distance hiker, the mountain biker, mountaineer, and backcountry skier/boarder, all begin to share common goals—peak human performance in an increasingly wild environment. Success in these pursuits carries with it the necessity to balance three components: proper hydration, nutrition, and perhaps the most elusive, pacing.

 

November/December 2003     ISSN-1059-6518     Volume 16 Number 6

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