[WWYC] 48 Hours in a contest

Mon, 08 Oct 2001 18:17:28

Heres an article that was sent to the TOEC reflector........

----- Original Message -----
From: "Cooper Stewart"

Here's a repeat of the information I gathered a few years ago when we
had a similar thread. It might be helpful to some. Apologies to those
who have seen it before (I have modified it slightly)...

There is no doubt that the human metabolism will function better over a
48 hour period of little sleep, if attention is paid to fitness and
diet. Diet seems to have the most obvious and immediate effect on the
ability to last the 48 hour period.

1. It's a proven medical fact that we should sleep in multiples of 90
minutes. Most sleep 90 mins on early Sunday morning, and some on
Saturday morning too. In general, it seems like a good idea to get 3
hours in
before the contest starts, which is easy in Europe, but difficult in
West USA. Varied feelings about whether to get a'lie in' on the Friday
morning, but certainly not good to have a very late night on Thursday.
'Adrenelin'
seems to be a big factor for some in keeping you going through the
weekend. For others, the opposite is true - relaxed and laid-back gets
them through. Whether you're wired or tired, it makes little difference
to the final result. It's the ability to sustain concentration that
matters.

2. Drink in moderation, but regularly. Drink to quench thirst. Do not
drink caffeinated beverages. Caffeine will lower the blood sugar level
thereby affecting the ability to concentrate. Coke, tea and coffee
contain
caffeine.
Milk will make talking difficult - radio and TV news readers avoid milk.
Unsweetened fruit juice, a little often, is good. It is far more
difficult to waken up if you have managed to get to sleep with a high
caffeine level.

3. When to eat? Stick to eating at regular intervals. Every 6 hours with
a small snack at 3hr intervals is good. Normal eating times are also
good. It's what your body expects.

4. What to eat? The objective is to maintain a steady blood-glucose
level of around 4-5 mmol throughout the weekend, with a slightly higher
than normal intake of protein. In normal healthy individuals, high
blood-glucose levels lead to poor concentration and drowsiness whilst
low blood-glucose levels lead to iritability, short temper and loss of
aptitude. 4-5 mmol, a moderately low level, will be achieved by avoiding
anything containing simple carbohydrates like sugar or bleached pure
white flour. So, good is wholemeal bread, bad is plain white bread. Good
is potato skins, bad is creamed potato. Good is natural fruit juices,
bad is sports drinks. Good is fruit, bad is sweets/candy. Whilst sports
drinks will give the body a big hit of energy, this hit is followed by a
very deep low in blood-glucose levels. Complex carbohydrates
(vegetables, fruits and grains) are good, in that they take a long time
to digest, help maintain a steady blood-glucose level and help avoid
surges. So what should we eat and drink?
- sandwiches of wholemeal bread, with meat or cheese
- fruit/grain/granola bars (but watch out for high sugar content)
- pure orange juice
- water
- nuts
- apples

5. How much to eat? In general, it is best to eat less food than you
would normally.

6. Avoid smoking.

7. Keep fit. This is really quite important. If you are fit your body
will react less badly to poor sleep patterns.

8. Avoid alcohol.

9. Avoid working on 'stuff' right up to the wire. Prepare well for the
contest and 'know' that you have. There is a hidden side to knowing that
you are well prepared. This will help you relax prior to and during the
event,
which is one of the keys to making it through the full 48 hours. It
feels good to feel loud, and believe that your signal is getting through
- 'I know what I'm doing'. Learn from the previous year. Immediately
after a major contest write down what was wrong, what went wrong, what
was good, and what was bad. That way, next year you will be a little
more prepared, and a little more relaxed.

10. Smile when you talk. Sound happy. Even if you feel like death, don't
let the other guy know it! People like to call happy people. Not a lot
of good on CW, of course.

Other points worth noting...

Vitimin B can help you feel less tired over a period of time, and may be
beneficial. I would not take this as a recommendation to take vitimins
though - see your doctor first!

Tablets/medication like ProPlus (in the UK) which are really just
concentrated caffeine, will keep you awake but your ability to make even
the simplest decision is diminished, and concentration is virtually
impossible.
Trouble is, I don't think you are aware of this if you have taken them!
Perhaps, useful in the last 12 hours.

Someone suggested avoiding salt, but this may not be recommended in hot
climates, as lack of salt can lead to muscle cramps. It's unlikely that
the lack or even overdose of salt over such a short time frame would
have that much effect anyway.

A number of ops mentioned feeling rough for the whole of the week
following a contest. I didn't after the CQ WW SSB, but did after the CW.
And I haven't felt bad like this before - I recover fairly quickly
normally. I don't know what this is all about.

Some ops mentioned a lack of aptitude - the inability to physically send
certain complex CW codes. This is probably due to low blood-glucose
levels and lack of sleep. The inability to receive more than 3 or 4
characters at a time seems to result from high blood-glucose levels and
lack of sleep. What to do? Sleep, I guess!

I believe a shower and shave will work wonders on Sunday morning.

I was told that pineapple juice is a lot better at refeshing you than
orange. I tried this, and it seems to be true. It's also less acidic I
think, and orange juice can be a migraine trigger.

Essential oils may have a beneficial effect, but leave the shack
smelling for weeks afterwards!

I don't want to sound like an expert. I'm not a dietition. I'm not a
top-flight operator. But I am diabetic (insulin dependent), and hence,
have a requirement to keep my blood-glucose level under control. I made
some
fundamental mistakes in the last CQ WW CW Contest (1999), and I am
passing on what I have learnt, both from personal experience and from
the experience of others. I hope others can benefit from this.

Stewart GM4AFF/GM0F<

-----------

CU in CQWW DX SSB......I will be operating M/S with the SK2KW guys and the 
call will probably be 8S2F!

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