Night moves - the benefits to running after dark

DARKNESS falls over suburbia and while many people are settling down in front of the television, there's a group of runners pulling on their trainers and heading for the door.

For them, night is the most convenient time for exercise. The mornings are full of lunch boxes, last-minute homework or looking over work emails

It's time to put on the reflective gear, stretch the muscles and get out among the, owls, dunnarts and kangaroos

A wide variety of scientific research reveals that running at night may actually be better for you.

While detailed analysis is still patchy, the benefits appear to include everything from sleeping better at night, completing multi-kilometre circuits up to a minute faster, better lung function by up to 6 per cent and more rhythmic running.

In two recent studies at the University of South Carolina, volunteers exercised at a moderate to high intensity for between one and three hours and were able to drift off to a deep, relaxing sleep a mere half-hour later.

Athletes may benefit from evening workouts, ne contributing factor is body temperature, which tends to be higher later in the day and has been linked to increased strength and reaction time.

Another is the release of two hormones important for energy metabolism, cortisol and thyrotropin, which are at their highest levels in the evening.

"Running at night definitely alters your sensory perception. During the day your vision more strongly controls how you run," says Damian Farrow, professor of sports science at Victoria University in Melbourne

"At night you rely more on your lower level control, what we call your proprioceptive skills. Your feel for the pavement or roadway or trail is heightened."

Proprioceptive skills are the sense of the relative position of neighbouring parts of the body and the strength of effort being employed in movement. It might sound a little quirky or overly scientific, but it basically means your sense of locomotion.

"So potentially you might run more effectively in that respect because running is best when you are in a fairly automatic state rather than a controlled and conscious state," Farrow says.

"It allows your body to react quite reflexively to a pothole or some uneven concrete. You react a little more effectively than you would if you were consciously trying to control your skill.

"The other sensation you tend to experience at night is that you feel like you're moving faster."

Ahhh, the moonlight and romance that night-time runners are enjoying. Care to join the night time runners club

TIPS FOR RUNNING AFTER DARK

FOLLOW COMMON SENSE

No isolated, pitch-black, remote trails or roads, especially for women.

WEAR REFLECTIVE APPAREL

Most running shoes have strips on them but someone in a car coming over a hill or around a corner will see your upper body before your feet. There are plenty of wrist-arm bands, hats, socks and singlets from sports, outdoors and cycle stores allowing you to "glow" in the dark.

LEAVE THE iPOD AT HOME

Or at least turn it down so low you can hear your feet pounding, and a car approaching from behind

CARRY A MOBILE PHONE

Pot holes, cracked footpaths, lamp posts that jump out might injure you enough that you need help hobbling home

LET SOMEONE KNOW

When you're leaving, where you're going and what time you expect to be back.

BEFORE YOU GO RUNNING

Ø  Don't eat a big meal

As blood flows to your gut to help digestion, so your breathing and core muscles - the running muscles - are deprived. You can feel sick or get "a stitch" (cramp in the diaphragm muscle between stomach/lungs).

Ø  If you are starving when you get home from work ...

Have a sports drink or energy bar or something with some carbohydrate or protein in it, such as a banana, jam sandwich or a small bowl of porridge. Leave 45 minutes to an hour so the light snack clears your gut.

AFTER YOU RUN

Ø  Replenish

Elite athletes will often down a protein-carbohydrate shake first thing after getting home, or a handful or raisins, almonds or another banana to replenish the body.

Ø  Cool down

Make sure you cool down and shower before you have your evening meal. It's better for your digestion if you eat when your core temperature is back to normal.

Ø  Portion control

Size or volume is important. So have a small, well-balanced meal of meat, fish with vegetables, some rice, pasta or potatoes. Dessert should be fruit. And drink plenty of water.