Abstract des Autors

On a particular Sunday in April every year, the fair city of London is festooned with 30.000 runners, a good proportion of whom are decked out in all sorts of regalia and weird costumes. With the prime intention of bringing attention to themselves to promote their individual charities, many of these put themselves through a fair degree of physical and mental stress in order to complete the 26 miles 385 yards that is the London marathon. One particular group of competitors put themselves through the most extreme conditions by wearing a 16 kg rhino suit to raise funds for the Save the Rhino charity. As part of a medical research group interested in cardiovascular loading and adaptation during exercise and activity in the active and sedentary population, we wished to ascertain what sort of physiological stresses are placed on the body during such events run in alternative attire. Verf.-Referat