During the weeks before my most recent marathon, I tried two changes to my usual pre-race regimen:
- Drinking tart cherry juice
- Soaking in epsom salts
Neither was a far out, weird new idea. On the contrary, both were supported by solid research, particularly the cherry juice; however, I’ll add that there were also articles on both sides regarding their efficacy. For that reason, I’ve listed quite a few links below to make it easier for you to do your own research. This is not a scientific evaluation of the value of each of these protocols for improving running performance and recovery, nor could it be because I was working with two variables, making it impossible to determine the percent to which each was responsible for the outcome. Since I didn’t isolate either variable, there is no way to know, conclusively, which had more effect or even if one of them actually had no effect, which is possible. I knew that going it, but my purpose was not scientific research. My purpose was to improve running performance and maximize recovery. Listen in to learn the results and why I’ll keep both tart cherry juice and epsom salt soaks in my running training routine.
“Efficacy of Tart Cherry Juice in Reducing Muscle Pain During Running: A Randomized Controlled Trial,” National Center for Biotechnology Information, NCBI, Abstract, by Kuehl, Perrier, Elliot, Chestnutt, May 7, 2010
“Influence of Tart Cherry Juice on Indices of Recovery Following Marathon,” by Howatson, McHugh, Hill, Brouner, Jewell, van Someren, Shave, Howatson, Abstract, Dec 20, 2010
“Effect of Tart Cherry Juice on Melatonin Levels and Enhanced Sleep Quality,” National Center for Biotechnology Information, NCBI, Abstract, by Howatson, Bell, Tallent, Middleton, McHugh, and Ellis, October 30, 2011
“Tart Cherries: An Endurance Superfood?” by Matt Fitzgerald, Jan 2, 2015
“The Surprising Results of My Tart Cherry Juice Challenge” by Matt Frazier
“Training with Tart Cherries – Nature’s Ibuprofen,” by Lauren Johnston, January 11, 2011
“Beat Postrace Sniffles with This Juice: A new study reports that tart cherry juice may boost immunity and reduce inflammation of the airways.” by A. C. Shilton, June 8, 2015, Runner’s World
“Do Epsom Salts Actually work?” by Caela Fenton, July 9, 2015, Running Magazine Canada
“What Does Epsom Salt Do for Soreness?” by cherul Grace Myers, May 8, 2015, Livestrong.com
“Report on Absorption of Magnesium Sulfate (Epsom Salts) Across the Skin,” by Dr. R. H. Waring, University of Birmingham
“26 Top Ways to Recover from Workouts and Injuries with Lightning Speed,” (see #26) by Ben Greenfield, BenGreenfieldFitness.com
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