Posted: June 22, 2005

Triathlon: Philadelphia Triathlon & Crozer Sports Medicine Prepped

Hydration for athletes, preparedness for med team

PHILADELPHIA (June 21, 2005) - They're ready for cuts, sprains, dehydration, and worse, but Crozer-Keystone Health System's sports medicine doctors, the official medical team for the inaugural Philadelphia Triathlon in Fairmount Park presented by Sorbothane Insoles (www.PhillyTri.com), are hoping to prevent as many visitors to the "med tent" as possible at this coming Sunday's Olympic-distance race (1.5 km swim/40 km bike/10 km run).

The race's medical team leaders, Brian Shiple, D.O., and Steven Collina, M.D., have provided sports medicine support for events ranging from the Boston Marathon and Wachovia USPRO Cycling Championship to the Keystone State Games and Marine Corps Marathon. Getting ready for the Philadelphia Triathlon means they'll prepare for a day with 1,400 endurance junkies ready to push their bodies to the limit in water, on wheels and foot, and the potential mishaps they might sustain on the course and in the summer heat, and it means helping the athletes prepare for their day, too.

Like any good doctor, Collina believes an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure. "If an athlete has any doubts this week about their health or fitness, they should see their physician for pre-race clearance," he says.

Even if prepared for send-off into the river, some triathletes, especially first-timers, will have some anxiety about starting a .96-mile swim with a few hundred of their newest, goggled friends. And some might find the open-water experience in and of itself much more challenging than a lap lane at the YMCA. "Just remember to take your time and keep your bearing, and know that there will be plenty of lifeguards in kayaks and two EMS rescue teams in boats along the entire swim," notes Collina.

Once triathletes reach terra firma, the challenges change. "We hope everyone is very careful on race day and that they do what they can to prevent accidents, but there's always that chance, and we'll be prepared for minor road rash to anything more serious." The 10-kilometer run is where many participants might begin to melt down a bit in the heat. Collina advises participants to listen closely to their bodies, and offers a good way to avoid heat related problems.

Hydration is so important, and participants should be appropriately hydrated before the race. "On hot and/or humid days we become more concerned about dehydration, but endurance athletes can have problems simply due to their exertion level," Collina explains. "We recommend they hydrate with a sports drink like HEED that includes water, glucose and/or sucrose and electrolytes. HEED and Wissahickon water will be offered on the run course, and some athletes get extra nutrition from Hammer Gel, which will also be offered.

"Occasionally, athletes need to dilute the sports drink due to stomach upset. Hopefully they have this worked out prior to the event."

"Athletes should expect to lose some weight during the race," he says. After all, they will be burning quite a few calories and sweating quite a bit. However, warns the doctor, "if you replace all of your fluids or gain weight during the race, you are at risk of experiencing hyponatremia, which means you have low sodium levels in your blood. Athletes, particularly those who finish in the three- to four-and-a-half-hour range, should be sure to take in sodium as well as water - perhaps drink only the sports drink provided by the race - since salt is expelled from the body through sweat.

"It's a relatively new recommendation by the sports medicine community to be careful not to drink too much water," Shiple adds. "The bottom line is this rule is for the less experienced, slower contestants who are drinking, as the old adage goes, 'as much and as often as you can.' If participants stick to mostly these guidelines, they should not have any problems with hyponatremia."

The most current American College of Sports Medicine hydration recommendations suggest taking in eight to 12 ounces of fluid per hour. They recommend not exceeding 16 ounces of fluid per hour due to the risk of hyponatremia.

"There are those here to try to win, others just trying to finish their first triathlon, and a lot of folks in between. We just want everyone to have fun and race hard, but definitely pay attention to the course and their bodies," Collina. "We're prepared for anything, but we definitely won't complain if we get no visitors Sunday morning."

Beneficiaries of the independent Philadelphia Triathlon in Fairmount Park (www.PhillyTri.com) include The Children's Hospital of Philadelphia's division of oncology, Police Athletic League and Fairmount Park Commission. In addition to presenting sponsor Sorbothane Insoles, sponsors include the Crozer-Keystone Health System's Human Motion Institute, Philadelphia Inquirer, Philadelphia Insurance Companies, Cadence Performance Cycling Centers, Endless Pools, Triathlete Magazine, Wissahickon Mountain Spring Water, Penguin Sport Wash, Nathan Sports, Hammer Nutrition, New Balance, Philadelphia Runner, Tropicana, Fox Rothschild Attorneys at Law, Renaissance Marble and Granite, and Savran Benson Certified Public Accountants. For information, contact SLHCommunications, Inc., slhcomm@hotmail.com>, tel. (312) 375-9500, or visit www.PhillyTri.com.

Dr. Shiple, the race's medical director, and Dr. Collina, the race's assistant medical director, practice sports medicine at the Crozer-Keystone Health System's Healthplex® Sports Medicine Institute in Springfield, Delaware County. They have a combined 15 years experience in training doctors to be specialists in the field of sports medicine while running a comprehensive sports medicine practice. Their practice includes caring for all types of athletes, from those partaking in team and endurance sports to fitness enthusiasts, and the medical or musculoskeletal problems that can prevent any active person from attaining their fitness and competition goals. Learn much more by visiting their web site at www.sportsmed.crozer.org.

Established in 1990, the Crozer-Keystone Health System is the largest employer and provider of health care services in Delaware County, Pennsylvania. The system is comprised of five hospitals - Community Hospital (Chester, Pa.), Crozer-Chester Medical Center (Upland, Pa.), Delaware County Memorial Hospital (Drexel Hill, Pa.), Springfield Hospital (Springfield, Pa.) and Taylor Hospital (Ridley Park, Pa.) - as well as a network of primary-care and specialty practices; the Healthplex® Sports Club; and facilities for long-term care and community health. More than 2,600 doctors and nurses and 7,100 caring people provide a full spectrum of wellness, prevention, acute and long-term care, rehabilitation and restorative care to the community. Crozer-Keystone facilities house a Level II trauma center, a regional burn center, two regional cancer centers, a fertility center, a sleep disorders center, a United States Olympic Committee-designated sports science and technology center, and a 176,000-square-foot wellness center and sports club. For more information, visit www.crozer.org or call 1-800-CK-HEALTH (1-800-254-3258).