Thesimm.ch

Medical Leaflet
Dr. med. Beat and Dr. med. Max Hintermann are physicians, both are interested in sport and have actively been involved in our event right from the beginning. In earlier days as winning competitors and then for many years The Mountain Marathon has advanced to an adventurous sports highlight not only for top athletes. Extreme weather conditions as well as rough terrain are on the one hand a particular challenge and on the other hand an extreme physical and psychical strain on your body. We as experienced KARRIMOR and MIMM freaks and physicians interested in running would like to help that this competition is becoming a positive experience for Preparation A regular training of your stamina is necessary for this 2-days-event. We recommend a run during
for several hours in the Pre-Alps, in the Jura or in a similar area. Carry a rucksack and drink while running, During the last few days before the MIMM reduce your training, make sure that you have enough relaxation and pay attention to your nutrition. Your nutrition during the last 2-3 days before the event should mainly contain carbohydrate. Besides this you must pay attention to your fluid supply; i.e. drink enough.
Take your time for preparing the material and equipment. It is very important that you test your equipment of it’s functionality; it is advisable to wear your shoes in advance in order to find out if they cause pressure sores. Furthermore we recommend you bring bivouac equipment for all kind of weather conditions, so that you have several options to choose from before you start.
In any case, we do not recommend you confine yourself to cheap and unsuitable equipment.
Conduct during the competition Do not start too fast, otherwise you’ll loose too much power and besides this, a
lot of your energy reserves and liquid! In warm weather conditions begin early (after half an hour) with a Recommended drinks: Isostar hypotonically diluted, Rivella Marathon, Ice Tea or similar. Avoid monotony! Eat easily digestible food that contains a lot of carbohydrate such as fruit bars, chocolate bars, etc. Eating them in small portions and drinking afterwards has an isotonical effect.
The dress you wear during the competition must be adjusted to the weather conditions; make sure that your clothes protect you enough from cold and wet. Wear a cap if the sun shines. You can compare the Mountain Marathon with a trekking in the mountains. It requires responsibility within the team: mutual physical and Conduct in the bivouac It is important that you pay highest attention to your regeneration; this is a point that is
often neglected by competitors. Hygiene is self-evident and guarantees also a warm night. Even if you do not feel hungry you must force yourself to supply your body with enough energy. The energy should be supplied to your body continuously and over several hours. You have certainly drunk too little if you cannot urinate normally until you go to sleep. . When going to sleep it is very advisable to put on your clothes as long as you are warm; once you begin to chill, it is too late to put on more clothes, i.e. you may not get warm for the rest of the night.
Conduct in case of an accident

4.1. Severe accident Position the patient correctly, protect him from the weather conditions and alert others
as fast as possible. Find out the correct location by means of the co-ordinates. Should you have to leave the injured person, bring him in a lateral position if you reckon with a shock. Mark the location of the injured person in order to make it easier to find him from the air. OK R’ADYS Mountain Marathon
Telefon ++41 (0)79 810 77 03 (in service from March to August) Medical Leaflet
4.2 Minor injuries In case of injuries like sprains of a foot or a knee, you should elevate and cool the injured
limb. You may have to rest the painful part of the body. In the event of an injury like a bruise you will have to act in the same way as described above.
A physician must treat external wounds within 6 hours in order to prevent from wound-healing impairments or even from infections. Because of the risk of small skin wounds we recommend you check if you had a tetanus inoculation during the past five years.
Overstraining injuries, tendovagnitis, pain in the back caused by the rucksack, blisters and the like do not 4.3 Metabolic disturbance
Hypoclycemia is the cause of the sinking of the blood sugar to a too low level. You recognise this if there is a lack of concentration, you start to stumble and tremble, you feel a general weakness you have cold sweat, you feel not well, etc. Stop immediately, eat glucose, sweets, sweet drinks and put on warm clothes. Do not carry on until you are relaxed; then proceed slowly. Continue eating to avoid a relapse.
Stomach ache could be the cause of an oversupply of concentrated sugar. This can be avoided by a varied nutrition and by a sufficient supply of hypotonic liquid.
Cramps in your legs are signs of exhausted muscles. Cramps occur especially if there is a lack of electrolyte; potassium and magnesium are the main substances. Only the substances sodium and chlorine will be supplied to your body if you eat the common salt tablets, which my cause nausea. Due to this the composition of electrolyte plays a key role in your drinks. If you have cramps stretch the muscles passively (your partner should do this), do not stop moving, but move carefully.
Blisters as soon as you start feeling them, protect them from further friction and try to prevent them from Tape can prevent your ankle from spraining, but only if it is applied correctly. The effectiveness of the tape diminishes after 1-2 hours; at this time also your body gets tired.
First Aid Kit It is compulsory to carry a small first aid kit with you. The most important items are: adhesive plaster,
disinfectant, 1-2 elastic bandages, aluminium blanket, glucose, anodyne (e.g. Aspirin, Treupel, Ponstan, Voltaren) A pair of scissors is an important item too. It is also compulsory that you carry a good torch and a Final observations The Mountain Marathon is a beautiful adventurous competition that is held in the mountains.
It demands for toughness, willpower and stamina. The competition is carried out during two days with a night in the bivouac in between. This requires much physical and psychical power, but gives the event an adventurous touch. Not only a good stamina is required, but also experience counts if you want to be successful. Our goal is to provide you with our experience from a medical point of view.
See you at the next Mountain Marathon!Dr. med. Beat & Dr. med. Max Hintermann OK R’ADYS Mountain Marathon
Telefon ++41 (0)79 810 77 03 (in service from March to August)

Source: http://www.thesimm.ch/site/docs/download/medizin_en.pdf