have suffered hyponatremia, a dangerous condition caused by drinking too much fluid. The figure was surprising because Boston draws the best, fittest and most experienced marathon runners in the world. If Boston has a 13 per cent rate of hyponatremia

, an exercise physiologist and triathlete from James Madison University in the USA, completed a study that found cyclists drinking C+P products lasted 29 per cent longer (on a first ride) and 40 per cent longer (on a second ride 12 to 15 hours later) than C

, where she stopped to drink a cup of fluid. Another runner remembers hearing Lucero say that she felt dizzy and disoriented. A few steps later, Lucero staggered briefly then fell to the pavement, unconscious. She never regained consciousness, becoming

and carbohydrate replacement drinks. We decided to repeat the study to test the results.The small, independent trial by a team at the Northumbria University was co-funded by Runner's World and Masterfoods, the company behind the Mars chocolate brand. The UK study

crashed. He now believes he did too many hard 20-milers in the heat. "I was exhausted from the first step of the marathon," he says. He finished 15th in 2:14:19.HydrationEveryone knows drinking fluids is supposed to help you run faster. But you have

FRS (Free Radical Scavenger) antioxidant energy drink, with quercetin as the primary ingredient, produced impressive results in an endurance bicycling study conducted at Pepperdine University. In a randomised, double-blind, crossover study published

the final miles of a marathon, you should be able to run faster.This extract is from The Runner's World Complete Book of Running by RW USA Editor Amby Burfoot.

you run. "Exercisers shouldn't skip meals early in the day or try to run on fumes," she says. "But you don't require special foods after a workout - just a snack that offers a few carbs and a little protein." Drink water. But only when you're thirsty

, enjoyable (and effective) way to run. It’s worth a try, isn’t it? Amby Burfoot is Editor of Runner's World US.

years, by eating less pasta and rice and more fruit, vegetables, and fibre, and drinking water instead of fruit juice. I'm still heavier than my college weight, but I've narrowed the gap to 3-4kg. The result: my BMI is still above 18.5, my race times