DRAFT Magazine

I’ve written about Guinness before, but this is different.

Ian Adamson is the first (multiple time) Guinness World Record holder featured on the Beer Runner. The Director of Product Development for my favorite running shoes, Newtons, is also hands down the most decorated athlete on this blog to date.

Adamson owns six world championship adventure racing wins, 15 world championship podium finishes and is a three time and current world record holder for endurance kayaking — 262 miles in 24 hours.

Not only that, he drank with Don Johnson from “Miami Vice” during a race.

Beer Runner: What are your beer runner credentials?

Ian Adamson: I’m a perennial consumer of hoppy adult beverages and beer is my preferred post workout hydration drink.

IA: Winning a seventh adventure race world championship when I was clearly old and decrepit. I’m certain my consumption of the appropriate pre, post and in-race liquid nutrients were the key.

IA: The consumption and cultural embedment of beer is instilled in Australians from youth. We drink quantities of the amber liquid that astound visitors, and with paradoxical ease and responsibility. Like Europe, consumption of alcohol is encouraged rather than prevented at a young age, so binge drinking is rare and drunk driving is verboten. Blood alcohol limits for drivers are very low (0.02% compared to 0.05 to 0.08 in the US) and penalties are extraordinarily stiff (drunk driver deaths are treated as manslaughter.) More importantly it is socially unacceptable to drink and drive. CA is akin to the state of New South Wales, although NSW is about twice the size although it’s the third smallest state in Australia. If you saw the movie Australia, the big ranch they were talking about was bigger than Texas, which gives you an idea of the scale of things. I grew up and went to college in Sydney which is similar in climate to LA with a large waterway like San Francisco and water like Florida. Consequently the climatic impetus to drink beer is strong …

IA: Virtually every race I competed in at a professional level involved beer. We usually indulged pre-race to relax, and post race to celebrate. We also lost a world cup in 200 in Aspen by seconds because we had stopped for a drink mid race with Don Johnson (of “Miami Vice” fame). I think the story makes up for the loss and make the event all the more memorable.

IA: Beer. Joking, that’s afterward. Truthfully the lure of a cold draft at the finish is part of it. My main motivation though the 24 was to have the best paddle I could and set a record that is hard to break. So far it’s stood up, and I was pretty happy with it.

BR: Did you celebrate getting into the Guinness Book of World Records with a Guinness?

IA: The first time I set the record in 1997 I had Guinness at the end, but the final time in 2004 I wasn’t as organized on the beverage front and settled for a can of Molson.

BR: Anything else to add?

IA: I read a report of a Spanish study that found drinking a beer after exercise hydrates you better than water. The buzz is a bonus.

Sara Meaney loves Guinness.

“This is me poised to enjoy a fresh pint of Guinness in Lahinch, County Clare, Ireland this past week,” she says of the photo at right.

She even named her dog after Ireland’s favorite export.

(That means her dog’s name is officially Guinness Meaney.)

(That’s pretty awesome.)

ANYWAY, she’s climbed 14ers in Colorado, done one-handed push-ups and modeled for a bridal bootcamp book.

She’s also completed executive education programs at Harvard Business School and Kellogg School of Management. She’s now a business partner (along with Al Krueger) of Comet Branding in Milwaukee.

Ladies and gentlemen, Sara Meaney.

What kind of sports were in involved with growing up?

I grew up in Milwaukee and played soccer and volleyball in high school, usually practicing with the boys’ team after our practice ended. I liked the higher net and the harder hitting. I also played intramural volleyball at UW-Madison and on a few sand volleyball teams (mostly for the beer) in Milwaukee after college.

What kind of beers do you drink?

I’m a lover of dark beers, mainly stouts and porters, although I’m willing to try a decent wheat ale now and then. It all stems from too many days of drinking cheap, awful lagers through beer bongs in college, I guess. When I moved to Dublin in 2000, my taste in beer shifted to the local staple: Guinness. I’m a big fan. No better place to be a fan.

What did you do after living in Dublin?

I lived in Denver for about 4.5 years and was a regular on the weekend 5k and 10k fun run circuit, amassing more race t-shirts than I care to count. A friend in Denver owned a small business called Bootcamp 360, which consisted of a class-based workout studio and fitness program. She offered Bridal Bootcamp and general Bootcamp programs, mostly for women. She and I ended up becoming great friends and workout buddies.

Whoa! A Bridal Bootcamp? What did you do there?

I’m one of the “models” pictured in her program’s book. No need for anyone to see those photos. I also made a few appearances on a local Denver TV station morning show series that she organized to promote her business and exercise program. I suppose you could call me the demonstration model — I demonstrated proper form for push-ups, crunches, squats, etc. Kind of silly, really.

What were some of your favorite workouts while in Denver?

My Bootcamp 360 friend and I would often go up to Red Rocks Amphitheatre to run the steps and climb the bleachers, which was of course followed up by a buffalo burger and a beer at Ted’s Montana Grill. Great combo. We trained together for the Danskin triathlon but then we both got pregnant and running was no longer comfortable.

photo by paraflyer

What’s some of your biggest athletic accomplishments?

I’ve hiked on many continents, including some 14ers in Colorado. One-handed push-ups was probably my biggest accomplishment, but sadly, I can’t do those anymore. Maybe again some day!

What’s your current workout routine?

Running around after my 4 year old and 18-month old.

I’ve probably never been more impressed by an exercise.

This picture comes courtesy of CrossFit Milwaukee, personal training that incorporates full-body functional movement, weight lifting, gymnastics and occasionally beer.

Head trainer Ryan Atkins explains the circumstances of this photo:

Awhile back I posted a tongue-in-cheek argument supporting the bicep curl as a functional movement. One of my final summarizing contentions was that a person couldn’t drink while doing pull-ups. Our resident stud athlete, Nate S. proved me wrong. Congrats, Nate! Your mom must be so proud!

Speaking of drinking exercises, here’s how he defends the bicep curl (which is now widely seen as a rather worthless exercise):

Trainer Dina and Nate illustrate how the bicep curl is a universal motor pattern. Sure, we could do a keg stand, a multi-joining movement that uses more muscle groups and demands more fitness, but that would limit consumption only to more elite athletes. Other people might argue that its functionality is limited because the curl can’t move large loads, long distances, or move quickly relative to other movements. However, we don’t see the point of deadlifting that keg and cleaning that bag of ice if you can’t get the beer to your mouth. My staff and I will toe the party line, describe the curl as a nonfunctional movement to our clients, but we will smile/nod/wink to each other knowingly. We in Wisconsin know better. Next week - using the lateral raise to become a better bartender!

Ryan was a former mixed martial artist who started the CrossFit program about six years ago while he was a stay-at-home dad. At the time he was gaining weight and having trouble sticking to “monotonous bodybuilding routines” that he was used to.

CrossFit appealed to him for its full-body functional movements, meaning it incorporates several muscle groups at once and uses full ranges of motion rather than isolating solitary muscles.

Soon he found that he was in the best shape of his life. Now he’s a certified trainer who opened a local facility about a year ago.

“When I found out about something that’s too good NOT to share, it seemed like the natural choice,” he said. “That, and I HATE wearing a suit and tie on a daily basis!”

His favorite beers include New Glarus, Guinness and St. Pauli Girl. In beer, like in fitness, Ryan prefers a mix of the full bodied and the functional.