By: Lyndsy Schultz
I haven’t always been a long-distance runner. I was involved in high school track as a 400 and 800-meter runner but running anything over a mile just seemed crazy to me! It wasn’t until after my college softball career was over that I began training for marathons — and 15 years later I’m still going strong! I am also a corporate CPA and an avid mountain climber and hiker at home in Colorado.
During my high school track career, and throughout all my years of training for endurance events, I have had issues with muscle cramping. I remember my days in high school and always having to have my Gatorade and bananas “on the ready” in case painful muscle cramps made an appearance. This trend continued throughout my marathon training. More recently, muscle cramping for me has been most bothersome at night while I’m sleeping. Severe cramping in my calves and feet have rudely awakened me more times than I’d like to count. No matter how much sodium, electrolytes, or potassium I consciously tried to consume before, during, or after tough workouts, it just seemed like nothing would work. But then I found HOTSHOT!
I first discovered HOTSHOT when I traveled to watch friends compete in IRONMAN Arizona in November 2016. I saw bottles of HOTSHOT throughout race weekend and I was instantly intrigued and decided to give it a try. I began testing it out for myself as I started my training cycle for Boston 2017. I became a huge fan immediately. Not only do I love the spicy taste and the little kick it gives me before a run, but most importantly, I love that the product WORKS! I didn’t have any issues with cramping throughout this training cycle and the intermittent muscle cramps at night have subsided, as well. With the heat and humidity that we experienced on race day for this year’s Boston Marathon, I can honestly say that HOTSHOT saved me. I had one bottle of HOTSHOT 15 minutes before the start of the race and I’m so thankful I did. I didn’t experience any cramps from start to finish. With those conditions, I thought for sure that I would experience severe cramping that day, but I was pleasantly surprised. While the heat still slowed me down a bit, I have no doubt that if it weren’t for HOTSHOT, I would have had an even tougher race day. I am a true believer in this product.
Finally, I am very appreciative of the experience that Team HOTSHOT was able to provide me during race weekend. I was selected as a VIP member for the “Shakeout with Shalane Flanagan” event that HOTSHOT hosted. Not really knowing anyone else that was running that weekend, I was thankful that Team HOTSHOT made me feel like I was part of a mini team all weekend. First, the VIP experience with Shalane on Saturday morning was so unique. It’s not every day that you get to take a running class with your idol, and it’s also not every day that she calls you out as having “great running form”!
Team HOTSHOT included me all weekend, whether it was part of their Expo experience where I got to meet Shalane again, their smiling faces at mile 20 of the race where they were handing out HOTSHOT bottles, or the follow up communication, inclusive of emails and photos after the race, which recapped what Boston Marathon weekend represents. For all of that, I say thank you HOTSHOT!
MORE ON THE HOTSHOT BLOG
Train Smarter: 5 things every triathlete should incorporate into their IRONMAN training plan.
Carbs and Protein: 7 tips for proper intake for optimal fuel.
Shalane Flanagan’s Road to Marathon: Read about the Olympians transition from track star to champion marathoner.