A practicing physician for more than 40 years and a radio talk show host for 25, Dr. Mirkin is a graduate of Harvard University and Baylor University College of Medicine. He is one of a very few doctors board-certified in four specialties: Sports Medicine, Allergy and Immunology, Pediatrics and Pediatric Immunology.
Dr. Mirkin's latest book is The Healthy Heart Miracle, published by HarperCollins. He wrote the chapter on sports injuries for the Merck Manual (both lay and physicians' editions), the largest selling book worldwide with over one million copies in print. His daily short features on fitness have been heard on CBS Radio News stations since the 1970's. He has written 16 books including The Sportsmedicine Book, the best-selling book on the subject that has been translated into many languages.
Dr. Mirkin did his residency at the Massachusetts General Hospital and over the years he has served as a Teaching Fellow at Johns Hopkins Medical School, Assistant Professor at the University of Maryland, and Associate Clinical Professor in Pediatrics at the Georgetown University School of Medicine.
Dr. Mirkin has run more than forty marathons and is now a serious tandem bike rider with his wife, Diana, often doing 30-60 miles in an outing. 
One of the running journals had a story about a runner who grew very tired near the end of a marathon, so he stopped and drank vodka, felt rejuvenated and passed many other runners as he raced toward the finish line.
A study in Alcoholism - Clinical and Experimental Research shows that alcohol delays the body's ability to clear lactic acid from the bloodstream, making an athlete tire earlier. Furthermore, alcohol reduces the force of your heart's contractions so that it can't pump as much blood through your body. It increases the amount of oxygen that your body needs, so you tire sooner. It increases sweating so you dehydrate earlier, and it causes muscles to use up more carbohydrate so your muscles feel heavy and hurt. But what about the marathon runner's claim? Alcohol also affects the mind, so when the runner thought he was passing other runners, they really were passing him.
References
- Influence of acute alcohol load on metabolism of
skeletal muscles - Expired gas analysis during exercise. Alcoholism -
Clinical and Experimental Research, 2003, Vol 27, Iss 8, Suppl. S, pp
76S-78S. K Shiraishi, M Watanabe, S Motegi, R Nagaoka, S Matsuzaki, H
Ikemoto. Shiraishi K, Tokai Univ, Hachioji Hosp, Div Gastroenterol,
Dept Gastroenterol, 1838 Ishikawa Macho, Hachioji, Tokyo 1920032,
JAPAN.
- Mangum J S Med a Phys Fit 9/85;26:301
Dr. Gabe Mirkin has been a radio talk show host for 25
years and practicing physician for more than 40 years; he is board
certified in four specialties, including sports medicine. Read or
listen to hundreds of his fitness and health reports at http://www.DrMirkin.com
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