# So who also runs?



## bakerjw (Oct 8, 2014)

I ride a lot but a recent incident where a carpentry knife met my hand kept me off the bike for around 10 days. Rather than just sit on the trainer with Zwift, I opted to see if I could run a couple of miles. My leg muscles complained a few days later but I've been keeping at it and wondered who else also runs.

I am still planning on riding the upper 1/4 of the GDMBR route next Summer and want to be sure that my walking/bike pushing legs are as good as they can be.


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## jpa102 (Jul 26, 2014)

I started running 5 years ago to get in shape but never really enjoyed it. So I started riding because I really enjoy being in the woods. Recently started doing trail runs/races. I still don't enjoy it as much as riding but it is much better.


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## Ptor (Jan 29, 2004)

Today marks 324 days straight on which I have run at least 1 mile, but I'm averaging just over 3 miles a day. It's not "fun" the way a bike ride is fun, but damn does it help with fitness. I can't ride everyday, I can't get to the gym everyday, but I can spend 30 to 45 minutes in the morning getting the dog and myself exercised. I've run for periods of time before and completed the requisite 5K's, a half-dozen half marathons and a marathon, but it was more of a "one-and-done" type of thing -- train for an event, finish it and quit running for months. Last November I read an article by a local writer in our paper and how she'd been "streaking" for the past year. I thought about it for a bit and finally decided to have a go. The desire to keep the streak going is an important part of it for me as it's easy to find an excuse, but if I don't go out I now will lose something I have come to value. It's been tough at times -- many runs at below zero temps, running through a sprain and now through a hamstring injury. One thing that helps is that I have no illusions about speed and distance -- only a mile is required and as long as I'm at least shuffling along, that's all that matters. But I'm keeping my summer mtb fitness and can go and ride much harder on the weekends than I could at this time last year. I'll be "streaking" for as long as it is "medically possible".


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## life behind bars (May 24, 2014)

Started running again today as a matter of fact. Used to run 30 to 50 miles per week until injuries sidelined me. Trying to change to a mid foot landing, the heel strike leads to too many injuries.


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## Fuzzle (Mar 31, 2015)

I run during the months when I cant ride. I'm not a natural at it so it takes me a while to build up my tolerance and get into the zone.


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

I started running 2 years ago when I started crossfit. I had never done any form of running in the past (only cycling as my primary form of cardio). I am only commenting on my personal experience here but I've found crossfit to have had a really positive effect on my running. I document every workout and I see a positive progression in my endurance and speed, over the 2 years. My running technique has improved as well as my recovery over time 

My sprints (400-800 metres) as well as my middle distance runs 2-5 km are getting progressively faster. I am running up to a 10km in total per week while doing the cf classes. I run 5-8k on my off-days (usually on Sunday mornings).


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## homeslice (Jun 3, 2008)

Regular runner here and actually runs more than rides. Great training to enjoy the riding more.


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## Bail_Monkey (May 8, 2007)

I mix in a run about once a week. When you do not have the time for mtb or a road ride, the next best thing for working on the legs and cardio is a little run. 

Most of my runs are just between 3 and 5 miles, averaging about ~9:30 pace. I like trail runs b/c there are quite a few single tracks in the forest to run around in the bay area. Nice scenery, just need to get in a car to drive to though...

Those interested in starting to run may want to look up a technique called 'pose' running. It is much easier on your knees as you land on your forefoot where there is more impact absorbsion compared to a heel strike. (Check out youtube)


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## bakerjw (Oct 8, 2014)

Looks like a good technique to try. Thanks.


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## Guest (Oct 27, 2015)

Quit running on a weekly basis in 1981 when I fractured three vertebrae. Still have a run component to my semi-annual fitness test so I generally get spun up a month ahead of time running three times a week for about 5 weeks. Then It's back to cycling. It's worked so far. Despite a shoulder surgery and lower back fusion I've never missed, failed or been a day late for a test. Toughest one was 2008, a month and a half before fusion surgery. Leg would go numb while I was standing around waiting for the start, but once I was running it was okay. This next test will be interesting because my shoulder lost a lot of muscle mass waiting for surgery and I'm not cleared into the weight room yet. We'll see how that goes.


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## DIRTJUNKIE (Oct 18, 2000)

I'm sure here in the Fifty + Year Old forum many run. Straight to the bathroom.


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## kosmo (Oct 27, 2004)

I figure that with my knees, every year I don't run gives me around three more years on the bike.

YMMV


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## FASTFAT (Oct 22, 2015)

run? are you crazy...


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## bakerjw (Oct 8, 2014)

I've been called worse.
As a side note. I am going to ride the upper 1/4 or 1/3 of the GDMBR route next June. Some of it will be pushing a bike so focusing on my leg strength in manners other than pedaling seems prudent.


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## smithe68 (Sep 6, 2011)

For me the title of this thread could read, "so who also bikes?":lol: Well lately anyways. I started running at age 40, if you don't count struggling through my annual Air Force PT test. The last few years I have typically run 5-6 days a week with my long runs being in the 10-20 mile range. 47 now and running a little less the last few years because I got serious about triathlons and decided doing half and full Ironmans made sense so I have to fit in swimming and cycling. Now I am just running and doing some mt biking.


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## Almost_Dunn (Jul 15, 2005)

50 y/o. Tried to get into running a few years ago. But knees and ankles always hurt so stopped. I'm a heel-toe style runner and always was and doubt I'll change. Used to play lacrosse in college so I did like running but somewhere along the way, I got into mtn biking and road riding and I think my bones got weak. Bought a pair of cushy sneaks (Hoka) about a year ago and started with one lap around the complex (0.8 mile). Still not a distance runner (max I'll do is 4 miles) but it is getting easier and use these sneaks on the trail too. Also found my balance got alot better. So I'd say mix it in and get a pair of sneakers that work for you and not the expert runner. Also found weight lifting helps with my riding too. I can throw the bike around alot better, especially the singlespeed.


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## kosmo (Oct 27, 2004)

Almost_Dunn said:


> Bought a pair of cushy sneaks (Hoka) about a year ago and started with one lap around the complex (0.8 mile). Also found weight lifting helps with my riding too.


Those shoes ROCK. I'm not a runner, but they still make a huge difference for the fast hiking/occasional shuffling I do with the dog on days off.

Could not agree more about the weights/core stuff. I have a simple half-hour dumbell/pushup/core routine I do twice a week, and I think it's worth it's weight in gold (and more than makes up for the probably 2 extra pounds of upper body weight it adds).


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## smithe68 (Sep 6, 2011)

Almost_Dunn said:


> get a pair of sneakers that work for you .


You hit something so important for running that a lot of people miss, and because of it, either get injured or just don't feel good. Getting the right shoes for you (foot shape, pronation, etc) is vitally important and can make a huge difference!


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## chazpat (Sep 23, 2006)

Hate to admit it, but I guess I'm more of a runner than a mountain biker. I normally run 3 or 4 times a week and bike once. I came to realize that I don't like running on the road so I almost exclusively trail run now. Last year I was driving my daughter to school and she had to go early a couple of days so I'd drop her off and then stop at some trails to run. This year, she drives herself so I stop at some other trails that are on my way to work and run. There are also mountain bike trails and are only about two miles from my house (we moved here just over a year ago from the other side of town) and I've thought about riding in the morning but haven't. 

It's just easier equipmentwise to run rather than ride before work and my running needs more maintenance (sessions) than my riding seems to need. And I think my running really helps when I do ride. But, if I was told I had to quit one but could do the other the rest of my life, I'd give up running.


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## sleepyguy1001 (May 26, 2014)

Nope, nope, nope. I used to run when I was but a lad. Since then I've torn up my knees too much to even think about it.


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## DIRTJUNKIE (Oct 18, 2000)

sleepyguy1001 said:


> Nope, nope, nope. I used to run when I was but a lad. Since then I've torn up my knees too much to even think about it.


Probably from all that sweeping.


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## dwt (Jul 19, 2009)

sleepyguy1001 said:


> Nope, nope, nope. I used to run when I was but a lad. Since then I've torn up my knees too much to even think about it.


In my 30's my knees started hurting bad, and my orthopod told me to quit running or skiing. I chose running. He suggested the bicycle as another good aerobic activity with the advantage of less leg, knee, hip, back irritation. I chose mtb, which had another advantage: Just plain fun. Eventually I started road bike as well, and have never looked back. I have one of those short, squat bodies and carry a tad too much extra weight in the gut, not ideal for running, nor for that matter roadie hill climbing. But not so much a hindrance to mtb, except for long climbs. Powering up short steep inclines not so bad. Downhill, an advantage. I still know running friends from back in the day, 2 of whom have new fake knees, another had back surgery and is plagued by recurrent plantars fasciitis; another with new fake hip. I see 70 Y/o runners who look trim and fit; but jogging at the pace my wife power walks, and with looks of suffering and pain on their faces. Mountain bikers are too busy having fun to suffer, so long as they don't race their friends on climbs, or use Strava. Which is better for body & soul; happy biking or obsessive running?

I don't miss running, and its debilitating consequences over time, in the slightest. Worst mtb injury was a severely bruised quad which kept me off the bike for all of a week.

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


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## ElTortoise (Jul 27, 2015)

dwt said:


> In my 30's my knees started hurting bad, and my orthopod told me to quit running or skiing. I chose running. He suggested the bicycle as another good aerobic activity with the advantage of less leg, knee, hip, back irritation. I chose mtb, which had another advantage: Just plain fun. Eventually I started road bike as well, and have never looked back. I have one of those short, squat bodies and carry a tad too much extra weight in the gut, not ideal for running, nor for that matter roadie hill climbing. But not so much a hindrance to mtb, except for long climbs. Powering up short steep inclines not so bad. Downhill, an advantage. I still know running friends from back in the day, 2 of whom have new fake knees, another had back surgery and is plagued by recurrent plantars fasciitis; another with new fake hip. I see 70 Y/o runners who look trim and fit; but jogging at the pace my wife power walks, and with looks of suffering and pain on their faces. Mountain bikers are too busy having fun to suffer, so long as they don't race their friends on climbs, or use Strava. Which is better for body & soul; happy biking or obsessive running?
> 
> I don't miss running, and its debilitating consequences over time, in the slightest. Worst mtb injury was a severely bruised quad which kept me off the bike for all of a week.
> 
> Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


I've been in that same boat battling knee, shin and ankle issues from running. I used to trail run quite a bit back in my college days and was fortunate there was a nice network of dirt roads and trails around the college. After graduating, kept running but found myself running streets and sidewalks and that's when all my trouble started. I switched to biking. A few years back, I decided to start doing some trail running again and found I can do 5 - 7 miles on dirt trails/roads without any problems. It really has complemented the biking. Hills I used to ride in the granny gear or even hike-a-bike I'm now riding in the middle ring or at least pedaling up them. Running dirt vs. asphalt/concrete definitely makes a difference. Just throwing this out as an idea...


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)




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## guamjim (Jun 3, 2013)

I include running in my training. I've done a few short triathlons, but what I really want to do is Xterra. The Guam Xterra runs right by my house. Still working up to it.


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## bakerjw (Oct 8, 2014)

I feel kind of lucky. The only thing that hurts after I go for a run is my hips. Knees and ankles are a-ok.


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## 779334 (Oct 10, 2014)

cyclelicious said:


> I run 5-8k on my off-days (usually on Sunday mornings).


What's your 5K time?


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## BR46 (Nov 15, 2015)

The wife and I run 3 days a week. Some 5ks and some duathlons


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

AshevilleMtBiker said:


> What's your 5K time?


25 minutes is my current time for 5km. That would be just under 9 minutes for 1 mile. I'm progressively getting faster.


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## 779334 (Oct 10, 2014)

cyclelicious said:


> 25 minutes is my current time for 5km. That would be just under 9 minutes for 1 mile. I'm progressively getting faster.


That's good. About the same here. 

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## BADDANDY (Feb 20, 2012)

As a couch potato, I've either MTB, dirt bike, Elliptical, hike, or Jog twice a week for the last 30 years. Shopping all day with the girls counts as one event too!


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## chazpat (Sep 23, 2006)

Woo-hoo! Got first place in my age group and 11th overall in a 5K today! Had to post here as I'm not on any runners forums. I actually don't do any speed training at all, I'm a trail runner, usually on mountain bike trails. I usually ride on Sundays but rode yesterday instead so I'd have fresh legs (race started at 5:00 in the afternoon).


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## santacruzr (Aug 11, 2015)

Nope. Running is for pray.


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## targnik (Jan 11, 2014)

santacruzr said:


> Nope. Running is for pray.


A-a-a-m-e-e-n-n-!-!-!

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-=snifff!!=- What's that you say?


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## Bail_Monkey (May 8, 2007)

cyclelicious said:


> 25 minutes is my current time for 5km. That would be just under 9 minutes for 1 mile. I'm progressively getting faster.


Ran a 26:13 a few weeks ago. From the site that I uploaded it to states that is was a 8:27/mi pace. (From a moving time of 26:27) So 25' should be closer to 8' pace?


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## BADDANDY (Feb 20, 2012)

Now you got me thinking of timing my weekly 2.5 mile run.


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## OldGringo (Oct 2, 2015)

Bail_Monkey said:


> Ran a 26:13 a few weeks ago. From the site that I uploaded it to states that is was a 8:27/mi pace. (From a moving time of 26:27) So 25' should be closer to 8' pace?


Here's a handy pace chart.
Pace Chart: 8:00 - 8:59 Pace per Mile | Runner's World


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## Summit Ridge Guy (Aug 16, 2010)

I just turned 52. I'm 6'2" about 205. I have been running for 20 years and converted to trail running about 10 years ago (no more pavement). Started mountain biking about 8 years ago. Ideally, I like to get 2 runs and 2 rides in a week. Itz all good.


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## SlimL (Aug 5, 2013)

Not much into the running thing although it might be fun (_fun; I must be crazy!_ If I had more time I probably would do some crossfit. Working on my climbing after getting my butt kicked in AZ over the holiday. Started doing some squats for core and such. We will see how that works out.


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## Spinymouse (Jul 11, 2010)

52 and maxed the run on my Army PT test in October.


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## Le Duke (Mar 23, 2009)

Spinymouse said:


> 52 and maxed the run on my Army PT test in October.


At 52, don't you mean walk? 

I've run about 10 miles total since I got out. Don't miss it.

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## Barman1 (Jan 8, 2014)

Biking only these days. Too much impact running anymore.


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## Spinymouse (Jul 11, 2010)

Le Duke said:


> At 52, don't you mean walk?
> 
> I've run about 10 miles total since I got out. Don't miss it.
> 
> Sent from my XT1585 using Tapatalk


LOL! No, I do mean run. :thumbsup:

It's the pushups that I look forward to not missing once I'm out. Although, I can think of a couple of reasons to keep doing them...


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## BADDANDY (Feb 20, 2012)

Spinymouse said:


> 52 and maxed the run on my Army PT test in October.


I did it once in the AF at the age of 21(8 min 1.5 mile run), the year before 17 years of flying all over the world. Since the age of 23, I've been fighting to keep the weight off from a bad diet and sitting at my panel inflight all day or night. 
At least I've been able to do an 11+ min 1.5 mile run since to this day at 54.
For some reason my calves ache from this morns 2.5 mile run. Maybe cause it was 32 degrees out? I need to time it.


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## BADDANDY (Feb 20, 2012)

Spinymouse said:


> It's the pushups that I look forward to not missing once I'm out.


I did 50 pushups every day until a stupid motorcycle wreck 4 years ago. I'm back up to 15, but not daily yet. Still do 50 sit ups before each run though. OLD AGE SUCKS!


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## Spinymouse (Jul 11, 2010)

The key to my workouts nowadays is simply to avoid injury. Whether I'm running, biking, or working out in the gym, avoiding injury is the number one priority. That means I sometimes cut a workout short, just because I have a niggling discomfort in some tendon or joint. Sore muscles are not a problem; I actually take such soreness to be a good sign. But soreness in the joints or connective tissues are bad and to be avoided at all costs.

It wasn't always like this. Long ago, "no pain, no gain" was my mantra. Following that approach eventually led to my being unable to run, bike, or hike for a few years. Wisdom came hard. 

I actually generally feel better and healthier now than I did when I was thirty. Maybe not as strong or with as much endurance, but I _feel_ better. 

My profile is still a picket fence.


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## Tricker Joe (Dec 17, 2010)

I started running five years ago when my daughters kept saying they wanted to race. There was a local 1 miler thru downtown, so we signed up and gave it our best with no training. The girls crushed it, I survived it. Crossed running off the bucket list. Fast forward a few years and my wife signs up to do a Tri. By doing so I get enlisted as her trainer (remember that one race I did & and I can ride a bike 2 outta 3). We run our first 5K trail race in preparation for her big event, I had a blast and she made it out alive. I do not love running, I do love racing so it's usually a couch to 5k or 20K kinda day several times a year with an occasional trip to the podium. Trail running on my local trails certainly helps my riding, fitness and trail maintenance awareness greatly. Running has also brought me into contact with others that love trails and that I have been able to encouraged to pitch in on trail building days, more people more miles. I'm hoping that the 50-59 age group isn't as brutal as the 40s group.


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## BADDANDY (Feb 20, 2012)

Spinymouse said:


> I actually generally feel better and healthier now than I did when I was thirty. Maybe not as strong or with as much endurance, but I _feel_ better.


Ditto, I have to keep doing something to hold back arthritis pain from past ruptured discs, multiple whiplashes, broken leg, kneecap, bent shoulder, and twisted knee muscles/tendons. So far, so good.


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## Bail_Monkey (May 8, 2007)

Spinymouse said:


> The key to my workouts nowadays is simply to avoid injury. Whether I'm running, biking, or working out in the gym, avoiding injury is the number one priority.


I hear ya and second that. I tell myself that there are two rules to follow when I'm doing an activity/exercise. (Mtb, road, jog (trail), snowboard, light weights...)

Rule # 1: Don't get injured
Rule # 2: Follow rule # 1

As most of us know already, recovering from injury >50 takes quite a while depending on your body type, injury and conditioning. And when your injured, there is no riding and enjoying the outdoors! While on a ride with my brother in-law, we were talking about taking downhills fast and his advice was 'you want to be able to ride the next day'.


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## lhhansen (Sep 12, 2013)

I hate running so bad that last year I did the Missoula (Mt) Half Marathon in July, then the Huntsville (Ut) Half Marathon in September, along with a 10k and a 5k with my grandson. I normally do a 5.1 mile loop a couple or three times a week when the streets are not icy and the air quality is not toxic. Started running because walking is boring, started walking because I had some IT band pain after 20 miles of cycling, a couple years ago. No more IT band issues but I'm still running and I think it compliments cycling. I'm 62.


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## dwt (Jul 19, 2009)

BADDANDY said:


> I did 50 pushups every day until a stupid motorcycle wreck 4 years ago. I'm back up to 15, but not daily yet. Still do 50 sit ups before each run though. OLD AGE SUCKS!


I still do push-ups and bicycle ab workout. Need a good core for mtb but upper body gets neglected. I don't generally like the skinny man no chest no triceps no biceps upper body. I can climb just fine with a little meat on me thank you, and look a little more healthy with my shirt off. Not Channing Tatum healthy, mind you, but doing daily push-ups, no weight room at all, upped my jacket size from 42 to 44 in a little over a year, last year, my shoulders and chest grew so much. My wife said I had "man boobs". I said honey, those so called man boobs are freaking rock hard pecs, go ahead, touch 'em. She was impressed. It was the damn beer gut that ruined the picture. 

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


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## ArmySlowRdr (Dec 19, 2003)

Yah I've been running as much as mtb the last few years--since Apr 14 I guess. Just did a full marathon last month and will be doing the Austin Marathon next month. Next big cycling event is San Diego Gran Fondo in Apr where I might do a bit of mtb as well. Toward summer and fall I might try a bit of uktra trail running.

Got a nice 16 mile run in yesterday. Generally holding under 10 min miles finally which isn't bad for 22% BF, 10 years past army retirement, chained to desk project manager job, and 53 years old.


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## lhhansen (Sep 12, 2013)

ArmySlowRdr said:


> Yah I've been running as much as mtb the last few years--since Apr 14 I guess. Just did a full marathon last month and will be doing the Austin Marathon next month. Next big cycling event is San Diego Gran Fondo in Apr where I might do a bit of mtb as well. Toward summer and fall I might try a bit of uktra trail running.
> 
> Got a nice 16 mile run in yesterday. Generally holding under 10 min miles finally which isn't bad for 22% BF, 10 years past army retirement, chained to desk project manager job, and 53 years old.


Awesome! Keep it up. But at 53 you're still a kid.:thumbsup:


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## Glide the Clyde (Nov 12, 2009)

I always have at least one bike in working order so I don't have to. Run, that is.


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## EddieZ (Oct 9, 2014)

53yo guy here. Brand new to running, not because I want to, but because I'm out of options.

I'm an avid Mt Biker. 2 or 3x a week during the season, with a 1x a week road ride in there too.. But as soon as the clock changes, my Mt biking is limited to sporadic weekends (fatbiking). Despite walking and a few nights per week at the gym, my weight climbs 10lbs. This year, I tried to make some changes. I finally joined a Crossfit gym and was doing pretty well for about 2.5 months. I really drank the Kool Aide with that and found myself being strangely addicted to the Workouts of the Day (WODs). But I ended up with a Rotator Cuff injury (yes, like so many other crossfitters), which is quite a setback. So while I deal with the Shoulder, I'm trying to keep some sort of exercise program going and have started running just a few days ago. 3 short runs under my belt so far, in Northern NJ 20 degree weather. I'm easing into it, with 2-3 mile runs (with some walking breaks). 

I'm very prone to calf pulls and hamstring pulls. It's been suggested that it could be one of 4 issues: 1.) Dehydration. 2.) Inadequate Stretching. 3.) my Cholesterol meds 4.) My Tight Mt Biker legs that throw the whole chain off. I do think super hydration and stretching are helping, as I haven't experienced the painful pulls during this running upstart attempt. We'll see.


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

run like hell!


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## BADDANDY (Feb 20, 2012)

12 mile MTB ride on Sunday.
2.2 mile run on Wednesday.
4 hours of consistent skiing on Thursday.
8 inch/1lb Apple fritter on Friday.


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## gravitylover (Sep 1, 2009)

I only run if a large predator is chasing me.


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## targnik (Jan 11, 2014)

gravitylover said:


> I only run if a large predator is chasing me.


Good reason to ride w/ budz ^^

i.e. You don't have to run (ride?) faster than the beast! Just faster than your budz o_0

-----------------------------------------------------------
#1 resolution... Ride it like I stole it!!


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## BR46 (Nov 15, 2015)

The wife and I ran 3 and a half miles today


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## Fisty (Sep 19, 2005)

Run to ride. Awesome cardio. Mostly intervals . Preseason running gets me up to speed much faster .


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

Cross referencing an article describing a study posted in the Women's Lounge. The results indicate that you don't need to run alot to benefit.

http://forums.mtbr.com/womens-loung...t-fitness-exercise-941348-3.html#post12461442


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## paramount3 (Jul 13, 2014)

Running: high risk of joint injuries
mountain biking: low risk of overuse injuries, but significant risk of orthopedic injuries (back, clavicle, hand/wrist, etc)--that's why I'm currently typing with one hand 
road riding: low risk of overuse injuries,non-zero risk of orthopedic injuries,non-zero risk of death

I do all of them...


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## jtfxdli (Feb 25, 2016)

I run about 30-35 miles a week and when the weather holds up bike at least double that. I mix in some bodyweight/dumbbell work a couple of days a week as well. My dad was a big runner and warned me not to overdo it like he did. He ran 60-100 miles per week for years with little regard to stretching/massage etc. He now has zero cartilage in his knees and is stuck walking. I hope I am being a bit smarter with it and run if it feels good and stretch after each run. I also use a foam roller religiously and a lacrosse ball for trouble spots. So far so good.


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## Guest (Feb 28, 2016)

cyclelicious said:


> run like hell!
> 
> View attachment 1048163


 This is awesome. I'm doing a 1/2 marathon in May (with a backpack and boots). That's gotta be an 8 donut day.


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## BR46 (Nov 15, 2015)

Forster said:


> This is awesome. I'm doing a 1/2 marathon in May (with a backpack and boots). That's gotta be an 8 donut day.


If you eat 9 donuts will you run faster?


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## Guest (Feb 28, 2016)

BR46 said:


> If you eat 9 donuts will you run faster?


Nope, the only thing that makes me run faster is falling off cliffs. Even then I'd probably fall slower than average.


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## Glide the Clyde (Nov 12, 2009)

paramount3 said:


> road riding: low risk of overuse injuries,non-zero risk of orthopedic injuries,non-zero risk of death...other than when some distracted moron who's texting runs you over...


Fixed

You realize non-zero is a double negative so therefore the opposite?


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## dwt (Jul 19, 2009)

Quit running 25 years ago in my 40's on Dr.'s advice when knees started aching, took up mt bike, later road bike as well. Now in my 60's have never looked back. Running was more like an addiction, mt bike like skiing, having fun while staying fit, but better fitness, road bike in between running & mt bike. Good training for mt bike. Crashes at high speed risk of severe injury(Distracted driver, front tire blow out, animal in road etc). 

I see old runners my age hobbling at walking pace in pain and wonder why they still do it. Pedal Strokes don't hurt knees, feet, ankles, or hips


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

Weather is warmer and running again. Got a new pair of New Balance shoes which I'm enjoying. I've run 12km in total this week.


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## miatagal96 (Jul 5, 2005)

I want to see the equivalent doughnut chart for mountain biking.

Despite having had a bumper sticker that says 0.2 and in fine print (I only run for cyclocross), I've started running a very little bit. My main motivation is for bone density (they cycling isn't weight-bearing, but I don't think anyone who makes that claim singlespeeds). In any event, I'm now training for a triathlon (2 mile kayak, 7 mile bike, 3.5 mile run), just to give me a reason to run and work on upper body.

It turns out that so far at least, running isn't too bad (in small quantities).


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## dwt (Jul 19, 2009)

miatagal96 said:


> I want to see the equivalent doughnut chart for mountain biking.
> 
> Despite having had a bumper sticker that says 0.2 and in fine print (I only run for cyclocross), I've started running a very little bit. My main motivation is for bone density (they cycling isn't weight-bearing, but I don't think anyone who makes that claim singlespeeds). In any event, I'm now training for a triathlon (2 mile kayak, 7 mile bike, 3.5 mile run), just to give me a reason to run and work on upper body.
> 
> It turns out that so far at least, running isn't too bad (in small quantities).


That is an awesome sounding tri. Where is it held?

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


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## Fuzzle (Mar 31, 2015)

I like to run when I don't have time to get out and ride. Running is nice because I can lace up my shoes and go. Riding is my first love for sure. Doesn't matter if it's road or MTB. 

I'm not the best runner and in the beginning if I haven't ran in a while it's hard to tolerate the pain. Once I'm in the zone I can run 3 to 4 miles on trails with no issues. I have ran up to 8 miles wearing headphones and blasting my favorite tunes...lol!

Working up to 5 or 6 miles twice a week is my goal. I don't have the time or love to do more.


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## chazpat (Sep 23, 2006)

miatagal96 said:


> I want to see the equivalent doughnut chart for mountain biking.
> 
> Despite having had a bumper sticker that says 0.2 and in fine print (I only run for cyclocross), I've started running a very little bit. My main motivation is for bone density (they cycling isn't weight-bearing, but I don't think anyone who makes that claim singlespeeds). In any event, I'm now training for a triathlon (2 mile kayak, 7 mile bike, 3.5 mile run), just to give me a reason to run and work on upper body.
> 
> It turns out that so far at least, running isn't too bad (in small quantities).


Yeah, that does sound like fun, where is it?

I did an adventure race a couple of years ago but just as I was dragging my kayak to the river, they closed the paddling portion as it had been raining all day and started lightning. Unfortunately, I was busy moving the next year and they discontinued the race after that so I never did get to combine my love for biking, running and kayaking. I've done a number of triathlons but I don't really enjoy swimming and I am s l o w .

Maybe we need a "who also kayaks" thread?
chaz


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## GoldDust (Oct 24, 2013)

I have played squash for nearly 50 years, sort of running, after a ball.

Running just for its own sake bores me.


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

Running an average of 15km in total per week since March. My pace is getting faster. Today I did a personal best 1 mile (1600m) in 6:24min ... As usual, I was the oldest in the group and the young guys were way ahead of me so I focused on keeping a steady pace and breathing calmly. We did intervals of 2 one mile runs. I was slower on my first interval (6:45) and faster on my second (6:24)

Tomorrow I'm doing a longer run on my own before mtb riding. I'm hoping my pace also reflects an improvement


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## Steve in PA (Sep 29, 2008)

I started running about 1 1/2 years ago. Started out slowly, then worked my way up to doing a half-marathon. I would run 3-5 miles a day during the week, then do a longer run on Saturday (10-15 miles) and rest on Sunday. I think I was averaging 125-150 miles per month. 

Then, I started having knee issues. After an MRI, I found that I had a worn/torn meniscus in my right knee as well as a large cyst behind the knee. Had surgery and rehab for 6 weeks in February. On my last follow up visit, I asked my doc about getting back into running. I was all set to go for a nice, slow 2-3 miles run that afternoon. 

My doc looked at me and said, if I wanted a knee replacement in 1-2 years instead of maybe 10 years, to start running again. He said the wear and tear on my knee would be too great. He also said I had arthritis in my right knee, which I totally agree with. 

Well, now it seems my left knee has arthritis too. Both knee feel very stiff, etc. So, I had to give up running and start riding my mountain bike. My knees still feel stiff, but not when riding the bike. I'm hoping to lay off running for a while, maybe until next year, then slowly ease back into it.


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

Ran 7.6 km this morning for a total of 20km this week. It was a beautiful morning, and I seemed to have the local roads and trails to myself It was a nice way to end the week.


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## chazpat (Sep 23, 2006)

Did a brick this morning, about 11 miles mountain biking and then a 3 mile trail run. Haven't done that in awhile, wasn't too bad. Took about a 10 minute break between.


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

chazpat said:


> Did a brick this morning, about 11 miles mountain biking and then a 3 mile trail run. Haven't done that in awhile, wasn't too bad. Took about a 10 minute break between.


I like mixing my runs and rides as well


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## Fuzzle (Mar 31, 2015)

cyclelicious said:


> I like mixing my runs and rides as well


You both should try Duathalon.


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## ilanarama (May 20, 2010)

I was a triathlete while in grad school in the mid-80s, mostly because I had been a swimmer as a kid, (road) biked a lot with my then-boyfriend, and figured that running would be easy. I hated running and was the worst at it, but somehow in 2002, after moving to a new town and not having a decent bike, I got into it again as a way to explore and exercise.

Fast forward to now, and I have run nine marathons, set half and full marathon PRs a few years ago at age 50, frequently place in my AG in races, and still really enjoy running, both road and trail. My husband would rather mountain bike, though, so I ride with him a couple days per week in the summer. (In the winter we ski a couple days per week instead.) 

I am probably not allowed to say it on this forum but...I like running better! (Mostly because I don't fall as much...)


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## chazpat (Sep 23, 2006)

Fuzzle said:


> You both should try Duathalon.


I did one a couple of years ago, ride-run-ride. I wasn't too crazy about passing/being passed on the narrow singletrack. I've done about a half dozen sprint triathlons, swimming is definitely my weak point. I always swam as a kid but for some reason favored swimming underwater which isn't very fast for racing! But I did enjoy the bike portion. I just sold my tri bike though as I rarely rode it and I figure I'll just use my road bike if I ever do another tri (and I bought a cyclocross bike for commuting with the $). I did an adventure race a couple of years ago that was a lot of fun, despite it raining the whole time and the river portion getting cancelled just as I was dragging my kayak to the water. I was busy moving the next year (locally) and they stopped having the race after that. It was about a six hour race; it seems like most of the adventure races are a lot longer and too serious for me. I've been thinking about inquiring with a little local race promotor that puts on mountain bike and trail run races, including the duathlon I did, if she has considered putting on an off-road tri as one of the trail systems she uses is next to a slow river.

chaz


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

I did a 10km run today (before the rain) in a good time of 47 minutes. I liked that it was overcast and a little cooler which helped quicken my pace. I'm almost up to my goal of running 20 km/week. I've noticed that my cardio has improved since I started running and increased my distances and frequency of runs


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## ilanarama (May 20, 2010)

cyclelicious said:


> I did a 10km run today (before the rain) in a good time of 47 minutes. I liked that it was overcast and a little cooler which helped quicken my pace. I'm almost up to my goal of running 20 km/week. I've noticed that my cardio has improved since I started running and increased my distances and frequency of runs


That's quite fast. If you're not racing, I recommend you slow down, especially as you're not running very high volume - that's more than half what you normally run in a week. The problem with people who do a lot of other sports (such as cycling!) starting to run is that your aerobic system is probably excellent, but your tendons and ligaments in your legs aren't used to the repeated pounding of running, and you're more likely to get injured.

Most of your runs should be at an easy pace, such that you could hold a conversation while running. If you're only running 20km/week, I wouldn't do any fast running other than strides (short hard efforts within an easy run with full recovery) or hill sprints (even shorter, and uphill). Plugging your mile time from your earlier post into the calculator at https://runsmartproject.com/calculator/ suggests you should be running most of your runs in the range of around 8:55-9:30 pace.

As for me, I am pretty much alternating run days and bike days - except tomorrow I'm taking out my whitewater raft instead!


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

^ Thanks for the link ilanarama (It's a good reference) . I use MapMyRun to track my runs. According to my stats, I am getting progressively quicker since I first started running 2 years ago. The majority of my runs are short distances through the week and I do a 8 or 10k run every 4 to 6 weeks. My 10k yesterday was on flat pavement. I was faster than my normal pace but conditions seemed perfect ... the air was fresh. I was feeling strong. 

I weight lift in addition to mtb


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## chazpat (Sep 23, 2006)

Yes, that is a fast pace! I'm running the Peachtree Road Race 10K with my daughter July 4th. I don't think we'll hit that pace! Actually, even though we both won our age groups in a 5K in December (I think I bragged about that earlier), it wasn't a qualifier for the Peachtree so we'll start way in the back and probably run 15K by the time we weave around the walkers, joggers, etc. I ran it seven years ago and it is a lot of fun running 10K with the streets lined with people cheering you on. It's also really flat compared to the trails we run but the heat…

chaz


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

Continuing to do early morning or late evening runs ... still hitting a good stride and goal of 15km per week


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## rlee (Aug 22, 2015)

I would like to get back into some trail running. I say get back but I haven't really been running since high school. I think it will be a good way to mix it up with my dog, she likes to run.
I know to start slowly. I have a good store for proper foot wear. Sometimes the local coaches put on running clinics, would this be a good idea?


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## ilanarama (May 20, 2010)

rlee said:


> I would like to get back into some trail running. I say get back but I haven't really been running since high school. I think it will be a good way to mix it up with my dog, she likes to run.
> I know to start slowly. I have a good store for proper foot wear. Sometimes the local coaches put on running clinics, would this be a good idea?


I don't know that clinics are particularly useful if you're a new runner, but it depends on what they cover. Good thing about running is that it's fairly low on gear and technique! Just wear good shoes (actual running shoes, don't need actual trail running shoes unless your trails are rocky/rooty/steep), run at an easy pace, and make sure your route is one you know or that you have a map. If you'll be running on trails used by bikes, I find it best to run in the opposite direction of usual traffic. Don't wear earbuds or headphones. And be super-conscious of making sure your dog doesn't startle or get in the way of other trail users. Have fun! Trail running is great.


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

interesting article. Not only does running help improve cardio, it may also make you smarter!

https://theconversation.com/running-makes-you-smarter-heres-how-61454

I did a 3k sprint on Saturday (at the cf box) and did very well (I shaved off 12 seconds since the last 3k sprint 4 weeks ago). Sunday I did a 10k easy pace run in the morning... and actually felt good during and after. Did a late afternoon ride.


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## edubfromktown (Sep 7, 2010)

No more of that for me.I ran on soccer fields for 30 years. Stopped doing that after I shredded my ACL. 

Surgery + longgg rehab was a success. Lower impact activities seemed like the right move and it is when I got more seriously into MTB riding.


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## chazpat (Sep 23, 2006)

Ran the Peachtree Road Race with my 17 yo daughter on the fourth! It was a lot hotter than I am used to and we started so far back that we were running through mostly walkers the whole time but we still enjoyed it. Took her kayaking on Saturday and took my son on Sunday (I only have two kayaks). Alas, a rare no-bike weekend for me.


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

Did a 11.5km (about 7 mi) run on Sunday morning (when it was cooler and overcast) I'm up to 20km total/week which was the goal I set for myself. I've found that my cardio has improved and I've lost a little weight


__
Sensitive content, not recommended for those under 18
Show Content


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## Glide the Clyde (Nov 12, 2009)

I ran this year, once back in January.


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## ejh (Apr 1, 2007)

I've been since 72' and was running long before really getting into cycling. ran the Leadville100 7 times, only 1 finish, and after hitting 50 decided to give the knees a brake and do mostly cycling now. I still run but only about 15-20 miles a week.


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

ejh said:


> I've been since 72' and was running long before really getting into cycling. ran the Leadville100 7 times, only 1 finish, and after hitting 50 decided to give the knees a brake and do mostly cycling now. I still run but only about 15-20 miles a week.


15 to 20 miles per week is amazing! (24 to 32 km).

I reached my goal of 20km/ week by August and now I am starting to surpass that so I need to set a new target.


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## ejh (Apr 1, 2007)

cyclelicious said:


> 15 to 20 miles per week is amazing! (24 to 32 km).
> 
> I reached my goal of 20km/ week by August and now I am starting to surpass that so I need to set a new target.


when training for Leadville I would on some weeks put in 85-90 miles a week with a 35-40 mile run on Saturday, bike ride on sunday, and monday's were a rest day


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## Velobike (Jun 23, 2007)

I run occasionally these days. It used to be daily for an hour for a few decades - more cruising than sprinting, I was never interested in competing, it just seemed a logical way to cover ground on trails.

Last run was 10km round the local mtb course we use for the annual 24 hour. I've done slower laps using the bike - maybe that should be my new strategy, just carry the bike. 

(For me running is much faster over the technical bits than the bike)


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## carbuncle (Dec 9, 2005)

I challenged myself to complete C25K this spring, did it and have been running rlatively consistently since then. I like it because it breaks up my workouts.


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## ejh (Apr 1, 2007)

*leadville finish*

ok not 50+ yet but I was 49 when I finished Leadville 100 in 29:22:15


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## Velobike (Jun 23, 2007)

ejh said:


> ok not 50+ yet but I was 49 when I finished Leadville 100 in 29:22:15
> View attachment 1090621


Oh to be that young again


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

ejh said:


> ok not 50+ yet but I was 49 when I finished Leadville 100 in 29:22:15
> View attachment 1090621


Dude is a beast! Congrats !


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

I ran 11 km earlier this morning... I spotted this guy


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## Boomchakabowwow (Sep 8, 2015)

i ran daily for a long time. slow, not fast, not graceful. more of a jog/trudge.

but i got it done. my knees suffered and i took a break. i'm still on that break. i'll pick it back up this fall when the days are short. start over.

i ramped up saddle time to make up the difference, but it really is nice to mix it up.


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## ejh (Apr 1, 2007)

and when I'm not riding, or running I climb and hike 14ers. here is our last hike


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

^ love the 2 thumbs up at 1:03 ... what a thrill !


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## ejh (Apr 1, 2007)

I was, it was awesome



cyclelicious said:


> ^ love the 2 thumbs up at 1:03 ... what a thrill !


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## ejh (Apr 1, 2007)

it was a lot of fun


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

First time running over 25km per week. This is a big accomplishment for me. And I'm still managing a minimum 2 good mtb rides per week.

R.I.P. to the bunny (from last weekend run) who didn't make it...









This bunny is still going


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## Glide the Clyde (Nov 12, 2009)

I'm running to the store later to get TP.

Judy, you're an inspiration! It's not sinking in for me yet, but I'm sure others are better for your influence.


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## Ericmopar (Aug 23, 2003)

Canada is a nice place.


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## ejh (Apr 1, 2007)

great job, are you training for a race or just to X train.



cyclelicious said:


> First time running over 25km per week. This is a big accomplishment for me. And I'm still managing a minimum 2 good mtb rides per week.
> 
> R.I.P. to the bunny (from last weekend run) who didn't make it...
> 
> ...


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

The 36 Best Ways To Burn The Most Calories In An Hour

The big, important caveats here are that exercising on it's own actually doesn't do much to make you lose weight. If you want to slim down, altering your diet like working on cutting sugar and large portions out of your diet.

But here are some workouts from least to most intense, with approximate calories burned per hour for a 200 pound person listed for each activity.

36. Hatha yoga | 228 calories/hour Hatha yoga, a version of the exercise practice centered on holding specific poses

35. A slow walk | 255 calories/hour

34. Bowling | 273 calories/hour









33. Ballroom dancing | 273 calories/hour

32. Tai Chi | 273 calories/hour

31. Canoeing | 319 calories/hour

30. Slow, easy cycling | 364 calories/hour (under 10mi/hr)









29. Volleyball | 364calories/hour

28. Power yoga | 364 calories/hour Power yoga, or vinyasa, is a more movement-centered exercise practice than hatha

27. Golfing (and carrying your clubs) | 391 calories/hour









26. Downhill skiing | 391 calories/hour

25. A brisk walk | 391 calories/hour

24. Low-impact aerobics | 455 calories/hour

23. 'Running' on the elliptical | 455 calories/hour

22. Resistance training/weightlifting | 455 calories/hour









21. Baseball/softball | 455 calories/hour

20. Water aerobics | 501 calories/hour

19. Light or moderate lap swimming | 528 calories/hour

18. Hiking | 546 calories/hour

17. Rowing on a machine | 546 calories/hour

16. Water skiing | 546 calories/hour

15. Cross-country skiing | 619 calories/hour

14. Backpacking | 637 calories/hour

13. Ice skating | 637 calories/hour

12. Racquetball | 637 calories/hour

11. High-impact aerobics | 664 calories/hour

10. Rollerblading | 683 calories/hour (Fruit boots! Who knew?)

9. A game of basketball | 728 calories/hour

8. Flag football | 728 calories/hour

7. Tennis, singles | 728 calories/hour

6. Running 5 mph | 755 calories/hour

5. Running up stairs | 819 calories/hour

4. Vigorous swimming | 892 calories/hour

3. Taekwondo | 937 calories/hour

2. Jump rope | 1,074 calories/hour

1. Running, 8 mph | 1,074 calories/hour

sauce: The 36 best ways to burn the most calories in an hour | IFLScience


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## paramount3 (Jul 13, 2014)

21. Baseball/softball | 455 calories/hour

No way. Most people go negative in calorie burning during softball with all of the beer and snacks. OK, I'll admit there are two ways to actually burn calories playing baseball/softball, but 99% of people don't do these:

1. Pitch a baseball (I mean really pitch, like Nolan Ryan)
2. Play outfield during batting practice as one of maybe three people in the field, make a game out of it, and try to get to each and every ball that makes it to the outfield--flies, grounders, line drives, whatever. That's a hell of a work out, and a lot of fun, too.


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## Velobike (Jun 23, 2007)

cyclelicious said:


> The 36 Best Ways To Burn The Most Calories In An Hour...


I reckon riding a single speed mtb would score high on that.

I've noticed many singlespeeders have a large stomach muscle - or could that be the beer? 

But seriously, I don't think I've found anything that uses so much of my body at once or so intensely (hills needed, of course).


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## plugp7 (Oct 8, 2011)

Running? Is that for people who can't afford a bike?


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## plugp7 (Oct 8, 2011)

cyclelicious said:


> The 36 Best Ways To Burn The Most Calories In An Hour
> 
> The big, important caveats here are that exercising on it's own actually doesn't do much to make you lose weight. If you want to slim down, altering your diet like working on cutting sugar and large portions out of your diet.
> 
> ...


and how many calories did you burn compiling this list? Looked like dam hard work to me!


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## Velobike (Jun 23, 2007)

plugp7 said:


> Running? Is that for people who can't afford a bike?


No, it's how singlespeeders get around when no one is looking. Some don't even bother taking the bike with them...


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## chazpat (Sep 23, 2006)

Wait a minute, so "Slow, easy cycling | 364 calories/hour (under 10mi/hr)" makes 30th position but intense cycling or mountain biking doesn't even break the top 36??? 

They have slow/intense running and swimming but seem to have forgotten about us. I saw a list a few months ago that included us and we ranked pretty high.

I play basketball with my 14 year old son and it just about kills me, and I'm a runner. Maybe if I could actually shoot and had more than one move, I wouldn't have to run around so much.


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

I think that "mountain biking" is difficult to calculate because it's subjective and there are so many variables like ride styles (singlespeed, downhilling, trials, bmx). They could use a power meter to measure watts.

I found this site... not sure how accurate:

Calories Burned Biking / Cycling Calculator


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)




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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

It rained all night and let up by mid morning. Trails were too wet to ride so I ran instead. Temperature was mild and fall colours were vibrant


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## ejh (Apr 1, 2007)

looking good, keep it up


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

ejh said:


> looking good, keep it up


Thanks ejh, for the encouragement. You are an inspiration!


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## chazpat (Sep 23, 2006)

Starting to look like fall here in the south (Sope Creek, Atlanta, GA). It was still 64F at 8:30 this morning with a high of 84 expected but tomorrow is supposed to be 68/46.


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

Throwback Thursday... unfortunate running wear of the 1970's. In hindsight, it was rather embarrassing.:lol::lol:


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## Ericmopar (Aug 23, 2003)

cyclelicious said:


> Throwback Thursday... unfortunate running wear of the 1970's. In hindsight, it was rather embarrassing.:lol::lol:
> 
> View attachment 1102112


Not the guy's shorts, but I'm loving what the gal is wearing.

The man is rocking the Magnum PI look, sans the womb broom.

I can't help butt wonder what I'm missing on the left...


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

I did my first running race... 10 km. I did well. My training is working!


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## chazpat (Sep 23, 2006)

cyclelicious said:


> I did my first running race... 10 km. I did well. My training is working!
> 
> View attachment 1102812


Congrats!

Is that a medal?


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## TransitionSenior (Mar 21, 2011)

72 here; Summer in BC; winter in AZ; love freeride; but started real running at 60; & did my first marathon, now have done 31 and 3 1/2s. run in early AM; ride in PM---now hard to find others who want to really ride. PM if yer in the AJ, AZ area in Winter; Merritt BC in Summer.
But, my advice; get a good prescription orthodic; and use them in your run shoes; the older the shoe the better; more comfort; but use new orthodics to save yourself from injury,
Ride (and run) on!
Transition Senior


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## Ericmopar (Aug 23, 2003)

cyclelicious said:


> I did my first running race... 10 km. I did well. My training is working!
> 
> View attachment 1102812


Rocket seems to approve.


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

chazpat said:


> Congrats!
> 
> Is that a medal?


I placed 3rd in the 50+ (men and women) category. 7th place woman overall.



Ericmopar said:


> Rocket seems to approve.


Rocket likey


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

TransitionSenior said:


> 72 here; Summer in BC; winter in AZ; love freeride; but started real running at 60; & did my first marathon, now have done 31 and 3 1/2s. run in early AM; ride in PM---now hard to find others who want to really ride. PM if yer in the AJ, AZ area in Winter; Merritt BC in Summer.
> But, my advice; get a good prescription orthodic; and use them in your run shoes; the older the shoe the better; more comfort; but use new orthodics to save yourself from injury,
> Ride (and run) on!
> Transition Senior


This is very good advice. When I first started running 2 years ago (initially just short intervals as part of cardio training at crossfit), I developed plantar fasciitis. I saw a foot specialist and got custom orthotic inserts. It took a few weeks for the inflammation to subside. I wear the inserts running and riding and have not had any more issues.


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## jeffscott (May 10, 2006)

cyclelicious said:


> I think that "mountain biking" is difficult to calculate because it's subjective and there are so many variables like ride styles (singlespeed, downhilling, trials, bmx). They could use a power meter to measure watts.
> 
> I found this site... not sure how accurate:
> 
> ...


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## Albee (Jul 21, 2004)

Silver Falls (Oregon) Trail Half Marathon this Sunday...woohoo! (SILVER FALLS TRAIL RUNS - 50K Ultra, 7 miler,13.1 Half and 26.2 Full Marathon) Then visit my daughter at Oregon State University...double woohoo!


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

Gorgeous day today. I ran and my hubby rode... it was a run-ride pairing. I ran 17km (about 10 miles) which is the most distance I've done in one shot  Later in the afternoon I did a short ride to spin the legs.


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## Crankyone (Dec 8, 2014)

cyclelicious said:


> Gorgeous day today. I ran and my hubby rode... it was a run-ride pairing. I ran 17km (about 10 miles) which is the most distance I've done in one shot  Later in the afternoon I did a short ride to spin the legs.
> 
> View attachment 1104063


Looking great! Keep it up!


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## ejh (Apr 1, 2007)

that's great!!!



cyclelicious said:


> I did my first running race... 10 km. I did well. My training is working!
> 
> View attachment 1102812


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## ejh (Apr 1, 2007)

woohoo you go girl, when you start doing ultra's call me I'll pace you



cyclelicious said:


> Gorgeous day today. I ran and my hubby rode... it was a run


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

ejh said:


> woohoo you go girl, when you start doing ultra's call me I'll pace you
> 
> 
> 
> ...


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## Ptor (Jan 29, 2004)

Ptor said:


> Today marks 324 days straight on which I have run at least 1 mile, but I'm averaging just over 3 miles a day...It's been tough at times -- many runs at below zero temps, running through a sprain and now through a hamstring injury


I didn't make it through the hamstring injury -- it turned out to be an almost complete tear and the entire backside of my leg, from just under the butt to my ankle was purple. I couldn't sit in a chair for a week. I started a new running streak on January 1st of this year, so today marks 313 days straight. I'm only averaging about 2.2 miles/day -- the hamstring is still an issue and available time is even less -- but the positives are the same as before -- I'm fitter than the average weekend warrior and can hammer out a couple of good rides on the weekend due to the base running fitness. I started this second streak to finish what I couldn't with the last streak -- run each day for a year. But it's become more than that and I don't see myself stopping when January 1 rolls around again.


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## BADDANDY (Feb 20, 2012)

Eat well, bike, run, walk and no inter-building e-mails, I have a desk job and always walk over to who I need to communique = no fat, large gaps between colonoscopies, and no aches and pains. 
5k 0630 before work run this morn.


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

Good reminder for all trail users during pudding season (when there is a continuous cycle of the ground freezing at night and thawing during the day)


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## Guest (Nov 23, 2016)

Reminds me of the magnet I used to have on my tool box that said "Don't do anything irreversibly stupid today." I gave that to a good friend of mine when he graduated from medical school. It's still in his office on his bulletin board.


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## Guest (Nov 23, 2016)

cyclelicious said:


> Throwback Thursday... unfortunate running wear of the 1970's. In hindsight, it was rather embarrassing.:lol::lol:
> 
> View attachment 1102112


 Are you sure this isn't the poster from the original Charlie's Angels where one of the Angels just thinks he used to be Angie Dickenson from Police Woman?


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## ejh (Apr 1, 2007)

a good reminder, thanks cyclelicious



cyclelicious said:


> Good reminder for all trail users during pudding season (when there is a continuous cycle of the ground freezing at night and thawing during the day)
> 
> View attachment 1106788


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## jeffscott (May 10, 2006)

ejh said:


> a good reminder, thanks cyclelicious


wow is that ever a tight restriction


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

Weather is getting colder but I'm sticking with my goal of running 25km /week... for as long as I can  in addition I'm still doing 2 rides a week


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## ejh (Apr 1, 2007)

you go girl, you are awesome!! Cyclocross is almost finished so I can start running and Mt climbing again



cyclelicious said:


> Weather is getting colder but I'm sticking with my goal of running 25km /week... for as long as I can  in addition I'm still doing 2 rides a week
> 
> View attachment 1107753
> 
> ...


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

^ Ha! thanks ejh  I'm kind of digging the single digit temps. ... if I keep this up, I might have to invest in trail shoes for better grip


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## BADDANDY (Feb 20, 2012)

Still raining here everyday, but somehow still finding that 0630 dry window for my 5k run before work twice a week. New motivation was not to waste the money on me buying new running shoes and winter running shirts. Lowest run temp so far was 34°.


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## ejh (Apr 1, 2007)

well dang it, I have plenty of micro spikes and Yak track's I could let you have, that is if you lived closer, lol



cyclelicious said:


> ^ Ha! thanks ejh  I'm kind of digging the single digit temps. ... if I keep this up, I might have to invest in trail shoes for better grip


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## MtnBkrBob (Aug 15, 2007)

Lifelong runner. Not so much now. 

At 57 – basically given up on running and lifting. Still road bike and mountain bike. 

Do a 5K run every Monday evening with a local running club through Colonial Williamsburg and William and Mary campus to support my wife and her cancer survivor group. Did I mention the craft beer at the finish line?


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## chazpat (Sep 23, 2006)

I don't see how you guys manage to run 3 miles only once or twice a week. If I run that little, I really struggle on my runs just to maintain 3 miles. I really need to run 4 times a week and then I can increase my mileage to 6-7 miles. I usually get busy this time of year and only get in two runs and really don't enjoy them like I do when I run more. I am running trails with some hills so maybe if it was flat it would be easier.


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## abramj (Jul 25, 2011)

I was on the midlife slope to full time couch potato a few years back. Had mostly given up on exercise. Then started running with the kids in Cross Country. Anyone with kids in CC knows you gotta be in shape for that. It is totally a participant sport! I averaged a mile per each of the kids 3.1. Every saturday morning. Was ugly, so I started running to be able to survive. Still not making much progress, a 5k here and there, but just not losing weight or feeling great. So we hired a personal trainer, and the next thing I knew, I was running a 15K offroad race at an 11 minute pace. I road my bike one winter about 1.5 hours total, then put on some warm clothes and grabbed my trainer and two mountain bikes and rode 45 miles of gravel and blacktop. 

Basically, I went from a zero sport guy to an any sport guy by fully training my body. I don't have to run every day to do a 10K, or bike every day to ride 65 miles on the weekend. But I do need to eat right and exercise regularly, and vigorously. Weights, stretching, running, biking, all are tied to a strong core.

Do I like running... yup, when it keeps me from curling 25lb for 3 minutes, or planking for 5 minutes... And I have found that trail running on the MTB trails is a totally different view of the trails.

Don't join a gym... hire a trainer. Crossfit, Bootcamp, or whatever, just get out there!

And have fun!


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

^ good work abramj !


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

Time to upgrade. I bought a pair of trail/winter running shoes. Rocket approves. Happy Caturday


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## Ericmopar (Aug 23, 2003)

cyclelicious said:


> Time to upgrade. I bought a pair of trail/winter running shoes. Rocket approves. Happy Caturday
> 
> View attachment 1108516


Nice shade of blue. 
What brand of wool socks you guys up north like? 
I was buying smart wool, but they seem to have gone down hill the last couple of years.


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

Ericmopar said:


> Nice shade of blue.
> What brand of wool socks you guys up north like?
> I was buying smart wool, but they seem to have gone down hill the last couple of years.


Hi Eric. I'm going to do a shake down run this morning. We don't have snow but it's chilly (0C or 32F). I'm going to try out Mizuno Thermo Running Sock ... should be ok for today.

The warmest socks I've ever tried are called Sealskinz (they are not made of seals  ... thank goodness... but do contain wool, trace bit of suede  , coolmax, primaloft, and kevlar!, ) very expensive though.

https://www.sealskinz.com/US/socks

I've also tried gortex socks worn over a thin pair of wool socks... that works for biking but I'm not so sure about running


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## Ptor (Jan 29, 2004)

cyclelicious said:


> We don't have snow but it's chilly (0C or 32F).


I haven't had a run in over two weeks where it wasn't below 0°C/32°F, with the coldest run going off at 9°F (-12°C). I wear the thinnest running socks that Smart Wool makes, not so much for any thermal insulation properties, but rather I like how wool wears and (mostly) doesn't stink. Anyway, until it's well below zero Fahrenheit (below ~-18°C) my feet don't get cold while wearing my regular running shoes during my 2 to 3 mile morning constitutional. And for 4 months of the year, a good bit of it is done on snow and ice. Even at -16°F (-26°C, my coldest run last winter), it's not my feet I'm worried about. I never like getting my feet wet during a run (usually not a problem when it's hanging out below freezing), and the only time I've really had cold feet from a run is misjudging the thickness of ice covering a puddle and getting an icy bath -- thermal socks are not going to do much good then. And waterproof/gortex shoes or socks just make my feet sweat even on cold days. Cold feet on a bike -- happens all the time, even on the 20 minute commute to work after I've done my run. My theory is the running and pounding keep blood flowing to the feet in a way cycling -- even when riding hard -- just doesn't.


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## Ericmopar (Aug 23, 2003)

cyclelicious said:


> Hi Eric. I'm going to do a shake down run this morning. We don't have snow but it's chilly (0C or 32F). I'm going to try out Mizuno Thermo Running Sock ... should be ok for today.
> 
> The warmest socks I've ever tried are called Sealskinz (they are not made of seals  ... thank goodness... but do contain wool, trace bit of suede  , coolmax, primaloft, and kevlar!, ) very expensive though.
> 
> ...


Holy cow!
I thought the socks I buy were expensive at $20 U.S. a pair!
Blagodaria.


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## ejh (Apr 1, 2007)

those Salomon's are great trail running shoes. My G/F uses them when we climb 14ers. Did you get the water proof ones?



cyclelicious said:


> Time to upgrade. I bought a pair of trail/winter running shoes. Rocket approves. Happy Caturday
> 
> View attachment 1108516


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

^ Yes I got the Gortex ones. I figured they will keep my feet warmer and drier when running through slush and snow.


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## ejh (Apr 1, 2007)

so you are as smart as you are good looking ;-)


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

Ran 14km today. It was my coldest and snowiest run. I wore the right gear and stayed warm. My Salomon's were grippy in the snow


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## BADDANDY (Feb 20, 2012)

Looks like this winter is gonna be ugly, I've had to replace one run with an elliptical machine last week and bike riding doesn't look very promising either. Wet and cold at the same time is not conductive to outside workouts.


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## EB313 (Dec 16, 2016)

I rode and raced motocross until I was in my late 20's and then the years of that, baseball and construction work had taken a toll by the time I was in my late 30's. I started riding dirt bikes again when I was 39 but had carbon knee braces and I can say that between the working out and riding, my knees were in better shape than in my 30's. I had a few get-offs that were more than a 43 year old (even in good shape) really needs so I hung it up at 44 with a bad ankle. Stopped working out and running completely.

I began running again at 46 because I had become a fat slob. I hit the half century mark last month and still run.....or jog at a high pace, something like that. I usually run 2-3 miles on Saturday mornings with my wife and even put in 6 a couple of times last year. 

I have to say, though, that I run the barefoot stride, and my knees love me. For the first couple of months it shredded my calf muscles but it is so much less impact otherwise! If you are wanting to run but knees are holding you back, look into the barefoot stride, it is great.


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

8km this morning . -4c and -10c with the windchill which turned my cheeks pink. Trails weren't packed down enough to run or ride so I stuck to road and sidewalks


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## ejh (Apr 1, 2007)

well cyclelicious you're a whole lot tougher then I am, I stopped at 5K and it was a balmy 12*F


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

ejh said:


> well cyclelicious you're a whole lot tougher then I am, I stopped at 5K and it was a balmy 12*F


I had to keep moving to stay warm 

My feet and core stayed toasty. The wind stung depending on it's direction, so I adjusted the buff a couple of time. And I did run at the best time of the day... temps dropped to -13c by 4:30

Thanks for your encouragement ejh!


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## Guest (Dec 20, 2016)

cyclelicious said:


> 8km this morning . -4c and -10c with the windchill which turned my cheeks pink. Trails weren't packed down enough to run or ride so I stuck to road and sidewalks.


 Funny, I read this, did the math, and realized you just ran 4.97 miles further in one day than I'm planning on running all next year (or decade, really just a frame of reference).


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

My first Christmas day run (10km) 0c. Roads and sidewalks were clear and one trail was nicely packed









One of Santa's reindeer had a mishap

















Snow cover on the river... got me a soaker. Glad I wore my waterproof socks


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## ejh (Apr 1, 2007)

Great find cyclicious, I found an Elk antler once out on a hike, glad you didn't get hurt


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

ejh said:


> Great find cyclicious, I found an Elk antler once out on a hike, glad you didn't get hurt


I was hoping to find the matching antler but there was nothing nearby... but it was a cool discovery


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## Scott In MD (Sep 28, 2008)

1475 miles cycling this year, and just over 300 running. Does that count? Riding HELPS my sciatic back pain, but running aggravates it. But I still like running.


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## chazpat (Sep 23, 2006)

Decided it didn't make sense to drive two miles to the trails to run so I laced up my road shoes and hit the pavement for the first time since the Peachtree Road Race on the Fourth of July. Hadn't run in over a week but it wasn't too bad. Oddly enough, my family and I were down at Piedmont Park this morning, where the race ended; hadn't been there since the Fourth.


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## Guest (Dec 29, 2016)

cyclelicious said:


> I was hoping to find the matching antler but there was nothing nearby... but it was a cool discovery


 They typically shed both in a relatively small area (depending on their daily habits) but that can be anywhere within a mile. I've got a friend who collects sheds for buttons and tool handles, he made me a stitching awl from one.


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

In October 2016, Ed Whitlock at 85, set his latest distance-running record, completing the Toronto Waterfront Marathon in 3 hours 56 minutes 34 seconds and becoming the oldest person to run 26.2 miles in under four hours.

Having set dozens of age-group records from the metric mile to the marathon, Whitlock remains at the forefront among older athletes who have led scientists to reassess the possibilities of aging and performance.

Whitlock's career has been as unorthodox as it is remarkable. For starters, he trains alone in the Milton Evergreen Cemetery near his home outside Toronto. He runs laps for three or three and a half hours at a time, unbothered by traffic or the eternal inhabitants or the modern theories and gadgets of training.

At the Toronto Marathon, he raced in 15-year-old shoes and a singlet that was 20 or 30 years old. He has no coach. He follows no special diet. He does not chart his mileage. He wears no heart-rate monitor. He takes no ice baths, gets no massages. He shovels snow in the winter and gardens in the summer but lifts no weights, does no situps or push-ups. He avoids stretching, except the day of a race. He takes no medication, only a supplement that may or may not help his knees.

What he does possess is a slight build: He is 5 feet 7 inches and weighs 110 to 112 pounds. He also has an enormous oxygen-carrying capacity; an uncommon retention of muscle mass for someone his age; a floating gait; and an unwavering dedication to pit himself against the clock, both the internal one and the one at the finish line.

Read more :

Sauce:  85 Year old Marathoner Is So Fast That Even Scientists Marvel


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## Ptor (Jan 29, 2004)

*One year of running everyday...*

So today I finished off my goal of running every day (at least a mile) for a year. I totaled 872.5 miles on the year, meaning an average of ~2.3 miles a day. I ran slow, and never very far -- my longest run was 5 miles and I had a number of ~1.5 mile days due to lingering hamstring issues and cold weather (-10 F or lower) and having to posthole through snow (e.g - Old Faithful in Yellowstone a week ago). I don't really remember the conditions last January through March, but the past month I haven't had a run where the temperature was above freezing, and a half dozen where they were sub-zero Fahrenheit. My only disappointment was not becoming a more graceful runner...

This effort was the foundation for 1600 miles of "sport" cycling (75% of that legitimate mountain biking), about 750 cycling commute miles, around 100 miles of skate skiing, and 20 days of alpine skiing.

Here's the reason I got out of bed at 6 AM on subzero days. She looks pretty relaxed here, but she's all about her morning run. 







There's no reason to stop running, and I'd sure miss it if I did. I've hit my target, so I need to up the ante. I plan to keep the streak going, hit at least 1000 miles for the year, meaning I need to average right around 3 miles a day. But I'll still be running slow...


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

^ That's an awesome record for 2016 Ptor! Hope you exceed your expectations in 2017. Love your pic!


I had a good year. I started running in April 2016 and I progressed to running faster and further distances (prior to this I was doing intervals 400 to 1000 meters in cross fit class). I logged all my runs and I ran a total of 555.6 km / 345 miles.

My running highlight was doing my first race in October. My goal was not to finish last... and I surpassed that goal  

I'm planning to run New Years day. Temperature -1c, sidewalks are mostly clear of snow and trails are packed down... should be a fun start to 2017


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

Had the day off work on Monday. It was a beautiful sunny mild day so I did a 12km run.

Throwing some blue shade








on the rocks


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## OldGringo (Oct 2, 2015)

cyclelicious said:


> Had the day off work on Monday. It was a beautiful sunny mild day so I did a 12km run.


Jealous of that wonderfully groomed trail.


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

OldGringo said:


> Jealous of that wonderfully groomed trail.


You can see our tire tracks from our New Years day ride. It's a nice mulituse trail :thumbsup:


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

Worked from home today and did a nooner  12km run, sidewalks were 50/50 icy clear. Ran some trails (trails were grippier than the sidewalks)

Our temperatures have fluctuated so much that I'm still able to find opportunities to run and have been averaging 10 to 15km per week. (in addition to 2 rides per week, sweet!)









Bridge was a little slick but my Salomon shoes work like magic








River ice is melting again








Spotted a puddy tat by the river


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## Ericmopar (Aug 23, 2003)

You do know what a "nooner" is here in the U.S. ?


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

Ericmopar said:


> You do know what a "nooner" is here in the U.S. ?


Same thing here in Canada... :lol:










"Where we're going, we won't need roads."


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)




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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

cyclelicious said:


> River ice is melting again
> View attachment 1115234


Ran 12.7 km this morning. -1c. River ice is gone


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

It's been unseasonably mild so I've been able to run. I managed 12km on funday for a total of 18km this week. The roads and sidewalks are free of snow. Ground is still frozen. It is slick on packed down trails and have to tread carefully


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## paramount3 (Jul 13, 2014)

2016 stats:

3144 miles/290K vertical feet on various bikes, probably ~half on MTB. 398 miles of running, 92 runs total. I love bike riding, but running is a more quintessential human experience. Running on consecutive days doesn't feel as good as it used to. But the past year has seen me put in several 6-8 mile runs, first time hitting that sort of mileage in several years, which mostly felt good, and which gave me a feeling of accomplishment. Sometimes I'll ride my beater/commuter bike to get to a nicer place to run, then do a little hilly 6-8 mile ride to get home, and I seem to recover much better when I do that. Age 52.


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## bakerjw (Oct 8, 2014)

Well, I'm still at it when I can be. The running seems to help with a lot of the joint aches that I used to have. It also helps with pushing a bike up a hill.


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

I have a female friend who's 57 and she is an ultra marathoner. Quite remarkable. My goal is to run a marathon but 50 miles? 100 miles? Whoa! That's badass 

Received this article on FB and thought I'd share



> The Reason People Run Ridiculous Distances Has Little to Do With Physical Fitness
> 
> The ultramarathoner, as Science of Us has noted before, is a special sort of person. Generally, when people think about running and intensity, the two seem to follow a pretty correlated path: The more one runs, the more intense one must be. Running a 10K? Pretty low-key. A half? Not too bad. A marathon? Whoa, now we're getting into intense territory. And ultramarathoners - those badass runners tackling distances that exceed the 26.2 of marathons, sometimes up to or more than 50 or 100 miles? Clearly, ultramarathoners are the most intense, gritty individuals.
> 
> ...


Sauce: The Reason People Run Ridiculous Distances Has Little to Do With Physical Fitness


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

I did a 13km run in the morning, mainly trails. The trails were grippy except these dumb stairs.


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## ejh (Apr 1, 2007)

good for you Cyclelicius, I love the weather here in Colorado, Saturday did a 10K trail run in shorts and a T shirt, yesterday we went to the mountains and did some ice climbing and today went for a 2 hour mt bike ride in just bibs and jersey


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

Funday 12 km morning run. Temp was -1c and fresh dusting of snow. I stayed on the multiuse path. Spotted a hawk in the trees but I'm sure he spotted me first!


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## ejh (Apr 1, 2007)

always fun to see hawk's and eagles when out, either running or riding


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

Interesting article

Here's More Evidence That Running Doesn't Ruin Your Knees
A new study finds runners are less likely to show signs of osteoarthritis.



> Consider this my semi-annual update on the topic that non-runners stubbornly refuse to believe: The fact that running does not destroy your knees.
> 
> A new paper in Arthritis Care & Research, published by a multicenter team led by Grace Lo of Baylor College of Medicine, presents data from a long-running study called the Osteoarthritis Initiative. The findings (an earlier version of which I wrote about in 2015 when they were presented at a conference) offer some interesting new insights about the (lack of) links between running and knee osteoarthritis.
> 
> ...


Here?s More Evidence That Running Doesn?t Ruin Your Knees | Runner's World


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## chazpat (Sep 23, 2006)

^^^ Thanks, good to know! And trail running should be even better for us!


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## Ntmboy (Nov 10, 2010)

No problems with knees, but currently sidelined with hip pain. Not a problem biking. Interested in your experiences.


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

WHY LAWN MOWING IS BETTER THAN SEX
What form of exercise burns the most calories?



> Want to lose weight? Go for a run. When it comes to burning calories - or more specifically, using up more energy than you consume, a requirement for getting rid of fat - few activities are better than a brisk jog. The British Heart Foundation reckons that an adult weighing 75kg will expend 430 calories in a moderately paced half-hour run. That's roughly a fifth of the recommended daily intake: the equivalent of two small servings of McDonald's fries, or three cans of Coca-Cola.













> Boxing and canoeing are more energy-sapping, though less accessible. According to the Sports and Fitness Industry Association, 48m Americans pulled on their running shoes in 2015 (the country has a similar proportion of joggers to Australia, with Britain trailing). By contrast, just 5m Americans strapped on a pair of boxing gloves.
> 
> Of course, the body uses energy even when stationary, and some people, particularly heavier ones, burn more calories than others. But regardless of your particular metabolism, an arduous session on a bike or in the pool will do more for you than hopping on a rowing machine. Ball sports vary. Football requires two-thirds more calories than volleyball, tennis and basketball are equally exhausting, while golf and baseball are hardly more strenuous than walking.













> Losing fat is not the only reason for keeping active. Regular, moderate exercise also reduces the risk of heart disease. Those motivated enough to try high-intensity interval training - short bursts of frenetic activity rather than long periods of exertion - will improve their aerobic capacity. Weightlifters might not care that they use less energy than badminton players, providing they end up with bigger biceps. And America's 25m yogi will certainly be more flexible than its 45m bowlers.
> 
> For people reluctant to put on their sports kit, household activities are always an option. National surveys show that around 60% of adult Americans have sex each year; no official participation data exist for chores, but estimates are in the same range. An hour of mowing the lawn or 100 minutes of strenuous vacuuming will burn as many calories as a half-hour run. Sex? Not so much. You'd need three hours of it.


Sauce: https://www.1843magazine.com/data-graphic/what-the-numbers-say/why-lawn-mowing-is-better-than-sex


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## Guest (Feb 16, 2017)

I understand the calories/hour issue they discuss, but I would argue that it's tougher to run for long periods (say an hour or two per day) than it is to cycle. Also, running tends to get your heart rate higher, which is beneficial to your cardiovascular system, but for strictly weight loss, I would argue that lower intensity exercise for longer periods is ultimately more effective. Once you're at weight, running is a great way to maintain though. When I raced and didn't know any better, my typical week was 500-600 miles on a road bike with a 5 mile run on my rest day. The change of routine didn't help the bizarre over training schedule I'd fallen into, but it sure helped my body to get into a different position and use different muscles.


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## chazpat (Sep 23, 2006)

Strenuous vacuuming?

I would have thought swimming would be higher and football lower. I don't see how football can be so high when so much of the time is resetting; though I guess the intensity of the motion in play makes up for that. I wonder how much it varies by position.


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

I ran my longest loop ever... 20km (almost a half marathon  ). Road and paths were mostly clear and dry, with some slushy sections.


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## ejh (Apr 1, 2007)

looking good cyclelicious. you are getting me motivated to race again. found this race and think I might sign up. Tushars ? The Grand Circle Trail Series


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

ejh said:


> looking good cyclelicious. you are getting me motivated to race again. found this race and think I might sign up. Tushars ? The Grand Circle Trail Series


Much respect, ejh! Looks epic!


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

Ran 16km (mainly road) followed by an afternoon ride (mainly trail). The rain has help rid the most of snow. Trails are muddy where the sun hits. Overall it was a glorious funday 

Spotted a hawk flying overhead


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

This video made my day  Never give up!


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## mattyice (Dec 31, 2015)

cyclelicious said:


> This video made my day  Never give up!


I think that's one of the cool things about any sport, meeting guys in their 60's that still mountain bike,

All the people you meet at road running races are cool. Me and my buddy were talking to a guy at a 5k we did in town this past fall. He referred to himself as the 'juice'. He has one lung And he runs 25-30 miles a week. Crushed the 5k at 24 and change. Not too bad for having half the goods.


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

^ that's awesome!

I ran 15km this morning. It was a cold windy run (I had to keep it on-road) ... my reward was that I did a fun afternoon ride in the forest


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## bachman1961 (Oct 9, 2013)

Been a non-runner all my days until 54. I was talked into the BolderBoulder 10k by some family members. I thought it was a silly time to start running but figured I could ramp up to it with the expectation I could walk some if needed. I was able to jog the 10k and finish mid -pack for my age group. I didn't do a bang up job 'training' either. The following December, I did the ColderBoulder 5k run and then one more BB 10k last May. I did beat my first BB time and did very little training that second round. I've decided I'm not committed enough (no want) to train as I should to be smart and healthy about it so I'll back off signing up for them and see if the incentive for running as a quick healthy workout is enough to get me out for some short runs a few times a month. I like the idea of the health benefit but running as I had with little build up to it seems a bad idea at my age.


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

I ran 16 km this morning ... it was cold but no snow. Spotted ducks paddling in the freezing river (they didn't seem to mind) and noticed some sneakers in a tree.  Later joined my hubby for a ride. I love Funday


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## binrat (May 25, 2005)

I used to run, a lot  when I was in the Army. Towards the end I started to run smart, with a heart rate monitor. Got a lot more out of my runs with that thing.


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

cyclelicious said:


> View attachment 1112987
> 
> 
> In October 2016, Ed Whitlock at 85, set his latest distance-running record, completing the Toronto Waterfront Marathon in 3 hours 56 minutes 34 seconds and becoming the oldest person to run 26.2 miles in under four hours.
> ...


Sad update: Ed Whitlock, 1st septuagenarian to run marathon in under 3 hours, dead at 86 - CBC Sports - Track and Field

Ed broke 3hrs in the marathon when he was 70 (only person to do that to my knowledge). He broke 4hrs (3hrs 55 min) for the marathon when he was 85.

He died of prostate cancer in a Toronto hospital. He was an inspiration to many older runners.


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## paramount3 (Jul 13, 2014)

Ed Whitlock--sorry to hear of his passing, but to be able to run a 4 hr marathon at age 85, and then to die a year later--sad, but also a triumph. A long life, and strong until nearly the end.


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

I ended winter with my longest run ever... 21km! Beautiful day, warmer days ahead.


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

I did a 11 km run today. I spotted my first spring robin. It started drizzling at 6km then pouring and sleeting... I was soaked but stoked 

The run started cool but dry








River level is high








Found a dry area under a bridge. Deciding whether to wait to keep running.... 








I kept running. This cyclist rode up behind me during the heaviest part of the downpour. He seemed to be having a bad day








The rain started to let up closer to home.... I couldn't sink any lower


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## John Kuhl (Dec 10, 2007)

^ good show. I'm glad a little rain didn't stop you.


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

I don't put in the mileage that runners schedule during their training. Over the winter I was running between 10 to 20 km/week. Really not much in comparison to those that only run. As the weather gets warmer and there is more hours of daylight, I'm running a bit more (but I'm also riding more too.)

This article is a suggested guide for more avid runners which I found interesting



> Whether your goal is to increase your fitness, stay injury-free or train to complete a specific race distance, the amount you should run will vary. Knowing how much to run, how often, for how long, and how hard requires a mostly individual approach but here we share some insight to help you determine how much mileage is right for you.
> 
> *25-50K over 3-4 days*
> 
> ...


sauce How much should you run? A beginner's guide to appropriate mileage - Canadian Running Magazine


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## brncr6 (May 15, 2014)

So did running improve your riding cardio? That's what I lack the most at 50 is cardio.


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## OldGringo (Oct 2, 2015)

brncr6 said:


> So did running improve your riding cardio? That's what I lack the most at 50 is cardio.


Whether running or riding, HR training is your key to improving cardio. It takes some discipline re: monitoring and maintaining effort, and isn't always the most fun, but it works. This article explains the concept and their are loads of training plans to be found for free online.

How to Get a Better Workout With Heart Rate Training


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## crossracer (Jun 27, 2004)

brncr6 said:


> So did running improve your riding cardio? That's what I lack the most at 50 is cardio.


Yes. It's been over a year since I started my dedicated hr training and the benifits are everywhere.

But at age 49 I'm more interested in what my body can do endurance wise and not so interested in speed. My runs and fat bike rides are all about mental health and heart health.

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

Trails are spongy and I'm running a little further distances (it's a good thing) Yesterday morning I ran 22km (mostly pavement) to the trail head and back home. There were only roadies out, and a lost shoe.


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

Some helpful info to pass on

Runners: Here's How Not To Get Injured



> Knee pain, tight hamstrings...every runner knows the pain. 5 tips for avoiding injury
> 
> Amongst other day-to-day sporting endeavours, running results in a comparatively high incidence of injuries. Some may disagree and offer simple reasons for common run injuries, but the fact remains that compared to other common daily fitness sports such as swimming and riding, runners wind up getting more injuries, more often.
> 
> ...


Sauce: Get Out There : Runners: Here's How Not To Get Injured!


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## bakerjw (Oct 8, 2014)

Wow. I didn't expect to see this thread still alive and kicking. 

I can now run 10K with ease. Not terribly fast, but certainly not going anaerobic. I'm in the best cardio condition in at least 30 years now and it feels great.

I saw my doctor a few weeks back and was advised to put some weight back on. LOL... who'd have thought.


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## chazpat (Sep 23, 2006)

Ran five miles this morning, signed up for a 5 mile trail race this weekend so trying to get ready.

For some reason, I'd been really hurting on the run since the middle of last summer. I was struggling to get three miles, often needing to take a break to accomplish that. I thought maybe I had an iron deficiency but reading up on it, though a pescatarian, it sounded like I was getting plenty of iron (I did take note of your posting a few weeks back, Judy, thanks). And my riding seemed fine, didn't feel like I was dropping off at all. I usually do drop off my run distance over the winter, it is my busiest time of year at work. And then I have an annual 12 day trip to Vegas and don't run and I end up coming into the Spring short on running fitness. And all the trail races around here seem to be in the Spring and I usually don't feel ready. But this year, after Vegas I've been pushing the mileage and feeling a lot better.

I only run three, rarely four times a week and I don't get injuries. I do drop weight when I increase my distance which can be a problem. Last year I came up pre-diabetic but if I really cut carbs, I struggle to get enough calories. My approach now is to try to cut sugar and bad carbs and not worry about good carbs. I have a doc appointment in a few weeks so I'll see how that is working.

Bakerjw, saw your post on AAA, glad to hear you're looking ok.


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## rockerc (Nov 22, 2010)

Hmmm... I was overtaken going up the mountain the other day by a guy who must have been over 60 trail running. I am over 60 myself, but thought I was in pretty good shape! (I was on my bike, and it was pretty steep!)
I might try a bit of gentle running just to see  I used to be a long distance runner when I was a kid, but my knees and feet are not the best after some pounding on the roads or trails.


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

Why shoelaces become untied










Why do shoelaces suddenly become untied? Mechanical engineer Oliver O'Reilly and his UC Berkeley colleagues have just published a scientific paper exploring this mystery of the ages. According to O'Reilly, understanding how simple knots work, and then don't, could lead to better knots for surgery, protect undersea optical networking cables from breaking, and enable more realistic animations of hair in computer graphics. From Nature:



> The scientists expected that the knots would come undone slowly. But their slow-motion footage - focused on the shoelaces of a runner on a treadmill - showed that the knots rapidly failed within one or two strides. To figure out why, O'Reilly and his colleagues used an accelerometer on the tongue of a shoe to measure the forces acting on a knot. They found that when walking, the combined impact and acceleration on a shoelace totals a whopping 7 gs - about as much as an Apollo spacecraft on reentry to Earth's atmosphere.
> 
> Further experiments demonstrated that simply stomping up and down wasn't enough for a knot to fail; neither was swinging it back and forth. It took the interlaced effects of the two forces to undo the knot: the repeated impacts loosened it while the changes of direction pulled on the laces.











sauce: The roles of impact and inertia in the failure of a shoelace knot | Proceedings of the Royal Society of London A: Mathematical, Physical and Engineering Sciences


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## Ptor (Jan 29, 2004)

I love the video of the lace coming untied! I habitually tuck mine under a crossing lace so the bow doesn't flop around -- hate that feeling -- and it never comes untied.

Continuing with the tradition of linking fun articles, here's one from the New York Times that reports on research that running an hour gets you (on average) 7 more hours of life, up to ~3 years additional added (so it's not a ticket to immortality). This is for people who regularly spend 2 hours a week running. Running more than 2 hours a week doesn't do harm, but it doesn't get you any additional time. Interestingly, running is the most effective form of exercise, surpassing walking and cycling in terms of adding years to your life. Cross fit actually takes years off (okay, I made that last one up).

I'm coming up on 500 days of running at least a mile without missing any days. Since the first of the year I've been averaging just over 3.5 miles a day. For me (and I'm actually knocking on wood as I say this) if I don't go too hard -- so no running intervals -- I don't get injured (unless I trip and fall down, which I've done). If I go hard, I get injured. So I don't do running races and leave my desire for intervals and races for the bicycling part of my life.


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## mattyice (Dec 31, 2015)

Ptor said:


> I love the video of the lace coming untied! I habitually tuck mine under a crossing lace so the bow doesn't flop around -- hate that feeling -- and it never comes untied.
> 
> Continuing with the tradition of linking fun articles, here's one from the New York Times that reports on research that running an hour gets you (on average) 7 more hours of life, up to ~3 years additional added (so it's not a ticket to immortality). This is for people who regularly spend 2 hours a week running. Running more than 2 hours a week doesn't do harm, but it doesn't get you any additional time. Interestingly, running is the most effective form of exercise, surpassing walking and cycling in terms of adding years to your life. Cross fit actually takes years off (okay, I made that last one up).
> 
> I'm coming up on 500 days of running at least a mile without missing any days. Since the first of the year I've been averaging just over 3.5 miles a day. For me (and I'm actually knocking on wood as I say this) if I don't go too hard -- so no running intervals -- I don't get injured (unless I trip and fall down, which I've done). If I go hard, I get injured. So I don't do running races and leave my desire for intervals and races for the bicycling part of my life.


Very interesting on all counts.

My running flats came untied (which usually never do) in the last 5k race of the season I was trying to PR on. Totally bull crap.

Being a multi sport person (and I know exerted effort is different for everyone) But I feel like riding long distance or racing on a bike pails in comparison to trying to hog out a 10k at your best (or even sprinting a 5k with 300' of gain). I feel like your body can be pushed to its absolute maximum because everything is familiar, if there's one activity we are truly built to do, it's run.

I actually do a ton of intervals and hill repeats in the road sneaks and injured myself going long distances at speed. I was trying to build up to a half marathon at 8:30's and I shin splinted myself into couch time. Been in a couple of grinds this spring, but looking to get back into the swing of things.

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-G920A using Tapatalk


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## Guest (Apr 15, 2017)

A little advice needed. Back of both heels and my Achilles tendons rub on the back of my boots when I do longer hikes (prepping for a half marathon with a ruck sack). I’m using Darn Tough socks and those help, but I’m still pretty close to blistering by mile 7. Is there some type of tape that will slip inside the sock but stay put for 3 hours in sweaty boots?


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## binrat (May 25, 2005)

Forster said:


> A little advice needed. Back of both heels and my Achilles tendons rub on the back of my boots when I do longer hikes (prepping for a half marathon with a ruck sack). I'm using Darn Tough socks and those help, but I'm still pretty close to blistering by mile 7. Is there some type of tape that will slip inside the sock but stay put for 3 hours in sweaty boots?


From my old Army days... Duct tape is your friend. Make sure your skin is clean and very dry before putting it on.
Or go with a nylon liner sock that is tight, it will wick the moisture away the layer up with a wool / nylon blend type of sock.


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## chazpat (Sep 23, 2006)

Ran the 5 mile trail race this morning, the one I mentioned in post 226.

Though I've only run the trail a couple of times and not in the last few years, I'm very familiar with it as I bike it often, in fact met up with some guys from this site and rode it yesterday. My plan was to try not to go out too fast, as there is a pretty long climbing section in the middle third that I didn't want to tackle already tired. I figured if I could just save enough to make it up that section, I would be ok. And that worked. Passed a good number of people that blew up, on the climb and through the rest of the course. I stayed behind a couple of guys the last couple of miles hoping to catch them at the end. I faded back a bit in the last half mile or so but tried to up the pace a little and got close and then kicked it in pretty good and passed them. I figured they would then kick it up but they didn't. I ended up getting 35th out of 171 and 4th out of 15 in my age group (ended up one of the guys I passed was in my age group). 

Happy with my performance, especially considering I just upped my distance from about 3 miles to 5 miles the last couple of weeks, probably only 5 runs at 4.5-5 miles. But I knew where I normally run has greater elevation change so that would help.

Funny, before the start of the race I started thinking about the laces video above; decided to double knot my laces.


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

Congratulations Chazpat! What an impressive finish!


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## chazpat (Sep 23, 2006)

cyclelicious said:


> Congratulations Chazpat! What an impressive finish!


Thanks, Cyclelicious. I'm sure you would have torn up the trail. It's fun seeing the trails you bike from the perspective of being on foot.


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

I did a nice 15km run this morning and ran into a bus load of hikers near the trail head! I love their hiking kits


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

The first woman to run the Boston Marathon did it again 50 years later at age 70








In this pic the man in the suit is trying to stop her, and the male runners are trying to prevent him from stopping her... incredible story!

https://www.nytimes.com/2017/04/17/...e-switzer.html?smid=fb-nytimes&smtyp=cur&_r=0


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## chazpat (Sep 23, 2006)

Funny, I read that headline, even saw it the other day, but it didn't sink in until I read the caption on the link: "during the race in 1967", wow, that was during my lifetime. And then I read "Women were finally officially allowed to enter the race in 1972." I had no idea.


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## Ptor (Jan 29, 2004)

*HR monitor fun*

I don't do any real training anymore -- just run or ride as I feel like it. But I love to map my outings and occasionally wear a HR monitor for the entertainment value. Pasted in below is a plot of my HR and pace against time from a run a few days ago. I was astounded to see that while running (not fast mind you) my hear rate plunged 40 beats per minute (165 to 125, yellow trace) in just 20 seconds. I wasn't stopped or hadn't changed my pace (white trace). It dropped like that twice, but the first coincided with a stop to "police the dog", so that might make some sense. I wore the monitor again this morning and the same thing happened -- somewhere around 9 minutes into my run my HR dropped precipitously to a rate that I maintained for the rest of the run. I guess that's called "getting your second wind"! My heart rate doesn't respond that way on a regular bike ride. There it typically builds and remains relatively steady, varying some on climbs and descents -- but no changes this dramatic occur while riding (unless I were to do intervals).


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## DIRTJUNKIE (Oct 18, 2000)

I run to hop on my bike.


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## DIRTJUNKIE (Oct 18, 2000)

cyclelicious said:


> The first woman to run the Boston Marathon did it again 50 years later at age 70
> 
> View attachment 1132358
> 
> ...


Yeah I saw that in the news the other night. Great story and quite eye opening to the times we live in.


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

Had a good run on Sunday morning : 22km. (lots of hills). My highlight was getting a wave from the train engineer and low point spotting more garbage on the side of the road


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## Albee (Jul 21, 2004)

It's been a crappy winter/spring for riding in Oregon, so it hasn't been too hard to stay off the bike. Training for Eugene Marathon in a couple weeks, and hoping to qualify for Boston! (3:30 for my age -- 54 -- this year, but I'm gunning for 2018, when I'm 55 and I get an extra 10 minutes in the new age group). Otherwise, it's running for the adventure, like a couple weeks ago when a few friends and I did the 40-mile Rogue River Trail (on foot) in two days. 27 miles on day one with a 20-pound pack on my back. Running is a sickness! (But I'm glad I have it...)


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

I did a brisk 20km run this morning. Temp was 0c! Brrrrr! My highlight was being chased by an angry Canada goose. It eyeballed me as I approached on the sidewalk, then it opened it's wings and ran flapping toward me, and hissing. I hissed back, caught it by surprise... I showed that goose who was in charge (and snapped a few pics) Then I ran like stink..


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

I did a 21km (my own private half marathon ) this morning. It was sunny but cool and windy. I checked out some trails but they were wet and spongy from all the rain we've gotten this week.

River was high from all the rain
View attachment 1136050


Ran a couple km on some trails 
View attachment 1136051


Found this poor critter... R.I.P. Wile E Coyote
View attachment 1136052


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## bakerjw (Oct 8, 2014)

Love the stories.

Back before I really started running, I was a pretty fast rider. I realized though that in cycling, there are a lot of times that we coast or just don't give it a strong effort. I started running and would be gasping after a tenth of a mile and realized that my cardio sucked.

Now with running, my cardio is better than my legs on most days. It is a great feeling to not have to stop and catch my breath.

The only down side is that my cycling muscles get neglected a bit.


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## MozFat (Dec 16, 2016)

Walk an hour 4 or 5 mornings a week with a mate (he won't even consider running). Cover about 6.5km/day. Ride in the weekends and a couple of evening jaunts mid week (though they​ been known to end up in the pub)


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

I ran 22.55 km on funday morning (followed by a ride)

Again it was sunny, cool and windy.... making the climbs a little tougher. I was able to run more trail, but it was still muddy in spots from last week's rain

A few pics:


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## crossracer (Jun 27, 2004)

Running has been a great addition to my mountain biking and my life. First it allows me to get onto trails that are closed to Mtn bikes. Secondly running slowly and with enjoyment as my ONLY goal, running is a huge mental stress relief. 



Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

Joan Benoit Samuelson Is 60 Today, And She Has an Audacious Goal
No woman older than 60 has ever broken 3 hours in the marathon.



> Joan Benoit Samuelson celebrates her 60th birthday on May 16, which puts her in a new age group and gives her another milestone to aim for: She wants to be the first woman in her sixties to run sub-three hours in the marathon.
> 
> Her past decade hasn't been quiet. She ran 2:47:50 at age 53, still the single-age world best. At 55, she nailed the 55-59 age-group world record, and her 2:50:33 still stands.
> 
> ...











sauce
Joan Benoit Samuelson Is 60 Today, And She Has an Audacious Goal | Runner's World


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## chazpat (Sep 23, 2006)

Ran about 5 mile the last two mornings. Low 70s F at 9:00, upper 70s by 10:00. High of 90 later in the day and it's just May. 

Time to start carrying water.


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

chazpat said:


> Ran about 5 mile the last two mornings. Low 70s F at 9:00, upper 70s by 10:00. High of 90 later in the day and it's just May.
> 
> Time to start carrying water.


I don't carry water with me but since I've increased my distances (and the weather is warmer) I'm thinking of carrying water too. What do you use?

On a happy note I pr'd my 5 km at 22:50. I didn't feel like I was moving very fast so I was surprised by my time


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## chazpat (Sep 23, 2006)

cyclelicious said:


> I don't carry water with me but since I've increased my distances (and the weather is warmer) I'm thinking of carrying water too. What do you use?
> 
> On a happy note I pr'd my 5 km at 22:50. I didn't feel like I was moving very fast so I was surprised by my time


I have two water belts. The first one carries a 20oz Camelbak Podium bottle. It bounces a little but if I rotate it to the right position it is ok. The other one carries two 10 oz bottles, the kind of flattened ones. I like it better. I'll have to dig it out of the back of my car to see what brand it is, it wasn't expensive.

That is a great time! I think I hit right around that time once in a race a few years ago. I've wondered if I did actual speed training how much faster I could be but I prefer running hilly trails in the woods and just running. I almost always "sprint the finish" and I may sometimes purposely up the pace at times during a run, but that is about it. Do you do intervals or any type of speed work?


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

chazpat said:


> I have two water belts. The first one carries a 20oz Camelbak Podium bottle. It bounces a little but if I rotate it to the right position it is ok. The other one carries two 10 oz bottles, the kind of flattened ones. I like it better. I'll have to dig it out of the back of my car to see what brand it is, it wasn't expensive.
> 
> That is a great time! I think I hit right around that time once in a race a few years ago. I've wondered if I did actual speed training how much faster I could be but I prefer running hilly trails in the woods and just running. I almost always "sprint the finish" and I may sometimes purposely up the pace at times during a run, but that is about it. Do you do intervals or any type of speed work?


Thanks for the info to get started. I'm going to shop for a water belt this weekend

The intervals I do for crossfit are on the flat pavement. My road runs, typically are very hilly and I've been told by more seasoned runners that it's beneficial. When possible I try to mix road and trail (but trail is different). I've made steady improvement with road running (both speed and endurance) and I'm growing and progressing. I am interested in more trail running. I have a friend who only runs trail, however she is an ultra marathoner. She has invited me to join her on one of her training days. Her focus (from what I understand ) is time... so she does these 3 to 4 hour trail runs or sometimes longer! Sounds challenging and when I am ready I would like to join her one of these days 

The interval work eg 400m, 800m, 1600m sprints, we do at crossfit has also helped my speed because it's friendly competition and a different running style.


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

I did a 22km run this morning. There were many roadies training for a charity ride. And I helped a little snake across the road. Beautiful day


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

Good article on long run training. My challenge this spring is to run a total of 30km /week and hope to increase the distance to 35km/week. . My long run typically has been on Sunday morning (20-23km) and I run short distances (1-5km) after work , usually at crossfit. It doesn't seem like much but I also fit in at least 2 rides, crossfit and a full time job  ) My ultimate goal would be doing a half or full marathon, one day , and learn how to prepare. This article has some good tips.



> Are you training for a marathon, half marathon or ultra, but having a tough time fitting in your weekly long runs? Are you working on weekends, struggling to find someone to watch the kids, or just plain uncomfortable with running in the dark? A group of runners and coaches facing similar challenges have come up with the perfect solution to this conundrum: Splitting up the long run. They complete a chunk of it in the morning, for as long as time and other commitments allow, and then finish it up in the evening or afternoon of the same day. Voila! But is this really effective, you ask? Does splitting up a long run really produce the same results as completing it in one go? The answer might surprise you.
> 
> *The Benefits of Splitting a Long Run*
> 
> ...


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

^ Sauce : Splitting up Your Long Run: Is It Effective? | RunnerClick


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## rockerc (Nov 22, 2010)

I tried a little of this running thing yesterday. My derailleur and chain were trashed on a climb and I had to push home. There's a 2 mile fairly gentle climb along the road to get more quickly back to my house, so I took that. I had been held up so I started jogging while pushing the bike. I got into quite the rhythm, but with a 20lb pack and pushing the bike, it was hard work uphill! I may have to rethink the accoutrements if I want to continue... my feet hurt today as well 
The rather amazing thing was that no one stopped to offer help as I was pushing the bike, even on the parts when I was sat on it pushing along with my feet... I even had a couple of road bikes blow by without even a glance...


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## chazpat (Sep 23, 2006)

rockerc said:


> I tried a little of this running thing yesterday. My derailleur and chain were trashed on a climb and I had to push home. There's a 2 mile fairly gentle climb along the road to get more quickly back to my house, so I took that. I had been held up so I started jogging while pushing the bike. I got into quite the rhythm, but with a 20lb pack and pushing the bike, it was hard work uphill! I may have to rethink the accoutrements if I want to continue... my feet hurt today as well
> The rather amazing thing was that no one stopped to offer help as I was pushing the bike, even on the parts when I was sat on it pushing along with my feet... I even had a couple of road bikes blow by without even a glance...


That's disappointing. I destroyed a headset and had to push out a few months ago. A lot of bikers went by without a word. I was disappointed as I always offer help, but I kind of decided maybe they weren't mechanically inclined/prepared. A few offered help and one guy really went out of his way, offering to let me use his cell phone. Someone else made sure that I was not pushing due to being injured. I've offered riders help when trail running (guess that may have seemed a bit strange) and a roadie help when on my mountain bike.


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## Big Jim Mac (Sep 29, 2005)

Might be the exception here but I run as much as I ride. My pattern is to ride like crazy in the summer months and switch to ultra marathon training in the winter. I'll do a 50K or 50 tie race in the spring and won't run a step until it's cool again. Kind of crazy because it always seems like I am starting from scratch, but I have a pretty good base built up. I don't think the running helps me on the bike and the riding doesn't help much on the runs. But I do like to mix things up. My problem is I don't handle heat real well so even getting up super early it's too hot for me to run. Don't seem to have any problem on the bike even when it's 100 degrees, go figure!


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

I had a good 22km run on Sunday morning (mainly road) and a 15km run today (mostly trail). Trail was less km but it was tough in the hill climbs and mud.

Road run









I still see wildlife along the road








These 2 lambs barked at me 








Buttercups on the side








Trail run

I found a fuzzy duck on the trail








My trail shoes are the cat's meow (kept my feet dry and grippy)









I would prefer riding these stairs than run them








It was misty and cool but a good run


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## slohr (May 22, 2008)

Good luck with 4x2s

I used to do a good bit of running. I actually enjoy races, and I wouldn't mind doing some of those again. Running has fallen off over the years; however, I have a bad shoulder, so I've been trying to get some time off the bike (only really do three days as it is), and not get my back and hips out of wack. Been doing sets of 4:00 run interval x 2:00 walk. I try to make the 4:00 a "spirited pace" and loosen up and shake out on the 2:00 walking part. Seems to work well. When I can do 8 sets, I'm going to try to do 2) 12:00 runs x 2:00 walks and see how that goes. Soon to be 54 and hanging in....


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

Five nutrition secrets for masters runners



> As we runners age, staying fit and eating well becomes even more important - and a greater challenge. Selecting healthy options during breakfast, lunch and dinner in order to fuel for or recovery from a workout is a no-brainer. And for good reason. "Eating clean," one of the most overused buzzwords when talking about a healthy lifestyle, has earned its cliche status because, well, the concept has significance.
> 
> But for those 40 and up, there are some lesser repeated secrets about your nutritional needs. Keep the body strong enough to tackle rugged routes this summer. If you're a fast and fit masters athlete ready to build upon that solid base, we have some golden advice that will keep your menu pristine.
> 
> ...


Sauce: Five nutrition secrets for masters runners - Canadian Running Magazine


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

Started my run earlier than usual. Temp reached 33C ... Funday's run was a hot one! I tested my new hydration belt. 2 thumbs up. It took only a short distance to get used to it.

It was a good week for putting in extra miles ...


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## Shibumiseeker (Jun 8, 2017)

I'm peeking at 50, but only started running this year. I have ridden bikes all of my life and got serious about it about ten years ago averaging about 80-100 miles a week weather dependent. I am an avid hiker and backpacker and can hike a heavy load all day with 25 mile days routine. When I started running in January I could barely do a quarter mile without stopping to walk and now I can run 5k. This with 1-2 runs a week. Would have been more but biking takes precedence. All indoors on a track so far but this fall I plan on going outdoors.


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## Big Jim Mac (Sep 29, 2005)

This thread reminds me one of my goals was to put together a "Trailathlon" where you swim, bike and run on a trail. I'm sure there are places where these are held but not in my neck of the woods (Missouri). We have a great spot for something like this at Council Bluff Lake. It's got 14 miles of trail, could be more if you did an out and back on the Ozark Trail. THere's also a nice swimming beach. I was thinking the swim would be a quick one, just a few 100 yards and then on to the bike. I've pitched this to both the trail running group and the mountain bikers but there doesn't seem to be many who do both. Maybe just me...


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## chazpat (Sep 23, 2006)

Big Jim Mac said:


> This thread reminds me one of my goals was to put together a "Trailathlon" where you swim, bike and run on a trail. I'm sure there are places where these are held but not in my neck of the woods (Missouri). We have a great spot for something like this at Council Bluff Lake. It's got 14 miles of trail, could be more if you did an out and back on the Ozark Trail. THere's also a nice swimming beach. I was thinking the swim would be a quick one, just a few 100 yards and then on to the bike. I've pitched this to both the trail running group and the mountain bikers but there doesn't seem to be many who do both. Maybe just me...


We have some off road duathlons around where I am, I did one a few years ago. Where it is held is along a flat water river so I've thought about contacting the race director and asking if she has considered an off road tri, with kayaks. You can even kayak down a ways and reach another set of trails so it could be kayak, run, kayak back and ride. That would be cool (and tiring).

I did an adventure race about 3 years ago that had running, biking and kayaking. Unfortunately, just as I was dragging my kayak to the river, they stopped allowing anyone on the water as it had rained the whole day and there was some lightning starting. The race was also supposed to end with a swim across the river. The race director retired after that year and the guy who took over didn't promote it much the next year. I was in the middle of moving and couldn't participate and that was the last year it was held.


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

Interesting article from a cyclist who began cross training with running (The article refers to road cycling but some aspects can apply to mtb as well)



> Serious runners tend to imagine that a divide separates them from avid bicyclists. After all, we runners seem like a rangier species than the helmeted, spandex-clad folks who roll past us on the trails or paths. Runners fight for each mile. As cyclists coast downhill, they carp about traffic and road conditions.
> 
> That's the unfortunate assumption, at least. It turns out, however, that bicyclists have plenty to teach us. I came to running through cycling. I had moved to a place that was not conducive to bicycles and decided to get my exercise in other ways. Five years later, as I train for my first marathon, I've begun to depend on bicycling again as a way to build endurance and speed and avoid the problems of overtraining.
> 
> ...


sauce: Cycling to Build Strength and Endurance for Your Running


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## mattyice (Dec 31, 2015)

cyclelicious: From someone who does both, I've never felt better on the bike or running when I get in a good routine of both.

I think the cross training synergizes almost perfectly with each other.

This year I'm experimenting with almost all bike road x mtn. My quads and calves are stronger. My lungs are good, but I don't feel 'good' on my MTB.

When I'm running I habe tight hammies, a tight core, am used to suffering for every inch, so when you jump on the bike you feel more relaxed. Your body engages every nuance of the trail (because it's used to doing it in sneakers anyways). Everything just feels better.

Good read, thank you!

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-G920A using Tapatalk


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

I did a 22.5km run yesterday. Trails are still soggy and slippery so I stayed on the road. It thundered and rained a tiny bit. I kept an eye on the beautiful cloud formations and the storm bypassed me.









































Don't worry


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## life behind bars (May 24, 2014)

You all have inspired me enough to actually use the treadmill for it's intended use instead of a clothes rack. 30 mins. yesterday, easing back into it.


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## Velobike (Jun 23, 2007)

cyclelicious said:


> WHY LAWN MOWING IS BETTER THAN SEX...


I was really taken with this fact, and so to spare my wife from my manly demands, I took to religiously mowing the lawn.

It is now 6 months later and I have yet to achieve that nirvana.

Before I give up on lawn mowing entirely and go back to bothering my wife, I thought I'd better check in case I'm doing it wrong. Most athletic activities benefit from a warm up, so are there any preparatory activities recommended, eg maybe raking the lawn or trimming back the overhanging bushes before mowing?

After all when it's dry enough to mow, it's dry enough to ride the bike, and I'd sooner do that.


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## chazpat (Sep 23, 2006)

life behind bars said:


> You all have inspired me enough to actually use the treadmill for it's intended use instead of a clothes rack. 30 mins. yesterday, easing back into it.


Ugh, you're doing it wrong! Do you ride your bike on a trainer or on trails? The treadmill is a torture device.


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## life behind bars (May 24, 2014)

chazpat said:


> Ugh, you're doing it wrong! Do you ride your bike on a trainer or on trails? The treadmill is a torture device.


It's 110 degrees outside, I'll stick to the treadmill. I used to run on it for 2/3 hours sometimes.


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## Mike123456 (May 14, 2013)

cyclelicious said:


> I did a 22.5km run yesterday. Trails are still soggy and slippery so I stayed on the road. It thundered and rained a tiny bit. I kept an eye on the beautiful cloud formations and the storm bypassed me.
> 
> View attachment 1144693
> 
> ...


Beautiful!

Sent from my SM-G930F using Tapatalk


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

I didn't know nude races were a thing. I don't think this is a good idea this season.. skeeters are really bad this year

Runners bare all at Ontario's Bare Oaks clothes-free 5K - Canadian Running Magazine


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## life behind bars (May 24, 2014)

One hour on the treadmill on a slight incline. No nudity involved.


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## chazpat (Sep 23, 2006)

life behind bars said:


> It's 110 degrees outside, I'll stick to the treadmill. I used to run on it for 2/3 hours sometimes.


I just got back from New Orleans and was wondering how the runners I saw survived the 95 degree temperature, though it wasn't as humid as I'm used to.


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

This article was directed to runners and the benefits of Epsom salts to relieve sore muscles... but it's definitely for cyclists and anyone who works hard

I take magnesium orally but apparently the magnesium is absorbed better through the skin

sauce: Epsom Salt Baths for Runners | RunnerClick 2017


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

I did a 21km run Sunday morning. Met a man walking his dog on the trail... dog found his ride


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## life behind bars (May 24, 2014)

I'm up to 4 miles (6.4 K) a day on the treadmill, starting to hit my stride so to speak. Starting to feel pretty good while doing it so must not be too far gone fitness wise.


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

life behind bars said:


> I'm up to 4 miles (6.4 K) a day on the treadmill, starting to hit my stride so to speak. Starting to feel pretty good while doing it so must not be too far gone fitness wise.


Way to go LBB!


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

The Fascinating Science Behind Performance and Color: Do certain colors make us perform better or is it all in our heads?

sauce: The Fascinating Science Behind Performance and Colors | RunnerClick 2017


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

Sunshine and raindrops 20km run. Headed out after the last storm cell passed; weather was stable for 10km then clouds got heavier . 5km from home... it started to rain. It was a warm, monsoon rain  Just happy I reached my goal.


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

I wasn't sure whether to post this article in the strength training thread or this one.

The article is about the benefits of combining running and crossfit.... but it also applies to mtb and cross training. I started crossfit 3 years ago to help strengthen muscles and bones; I started running in the WODs (short distances like 400m and 800m intervals). The high intensity workouts really pushed me to improve my endurance. As a result I'm running much greater distances. The weight lifting built my strength and improved my flexibility... the results are also evident. I saw the biggest improvements following my crash (++ injuries) and I rehab-ed back smoothly.

It's a good read :http://runnerclick.com/crossfit-and-running/


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## chazpat (Sep 23, 2006)

^lol, went to that link and before I even read the article, I clicked on another link on that page, Why Do Runners Run? 8 Things Every Runner Hates.

Fourth sentence in the article: "Runners spend ungodly amounts of money on equipment and gear".

I guess Heather K. doesn't know much about other sports, such as, I don't know, say… mountain biking!


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

I agree that running is a bargain compared to mtb! But the costs can add up (replacing shoes, having weather appropriate clothes, extra gear, race fees, extra training, odds and ends etc. ).

Running shoes wear out quick for runners getting into the range of 30-50 miles per week. The average life for a pair of shoes is around 250-500 miles depending on the brand/model.


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## chazpat (Sep 23, 2006)

Like anything, you certainly can spend a lot of money. I get WAY more mileage out of my shoes than that, I think a good bit of the "replace your shoes every XXX miles/kms" is marketing (though I'm not running 30-50 miles per week). The shoes companies talk about the shoes breaking down and being less supportive but then they try to sell you that you need to buy minimal shoes, or at least they did a few years ago. My last pair were going on eight years and really, they are still pretty good, just not much tread left. I mostly wear race swag shirts since most are dry-tec now-a-days so that offsets the cost of race entry some and my clothes seem to last a really long time; I'm sure you are more fashionable than I am, though, plus have to deal with colder weather!

If you travel to races and/or get into expensive gps units, it can get expensive. But compared to most sports that require a lot more equipment…

Funny, I know I've seen articles that were about how great running is because there is so little equipment and low cost!


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

I hear ya! Stuff eventually wears out, colours and brands go in and out of style but the hype is to have new stuff. I've had perfect fitting gear and go to replace it and find out the brand no longer exists or the replacement is altered.

Kind of reminds me of a Frank Costanza bit:


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

This woman is a machine!



> Florence Barron was competing in the women's 75-79 age category for the final time this year at the Tely 10-Miler. She turned it into a race to remember too.
> 
> In setting a new age group record, Barron beat more than 3,000 runners at the Paradise, N.L. to St. John's, N.L. point-to-point race, going sub 90-minutes on Sunday. The local St. John's resident ran a rather incredible 1:27:19 (chip time) for 16K.
> 
> ...


Sauce: 79-year-old Florence Barron beats 89 per cent of Tely 10-Miler women's field - Canadian Running Magazine


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

5 KEYS TO BETTER RUNNING FORM



> 1) Posture
> 
> The same posture that's good in your everyday life is good for your running. Remember when your mother frequently told you to sit up straight? Well, if I'm working with you on our form, you'll hear me telling you to "run tall." This cue, run tall, helps get you in an upright, non-slouching posture, which is best for running. As McMillan Coach and resident Olympian Andrew "Lemon" Lemoncello shows in the photo below, head above shoulders, shoulders above hips, hips above knees and ankles. Modern life encourages us to slouch so fight that in running and run tall. Your mom would be proud.













> 2) Arm swing
> 
> When running, your arms should be bent at roughly 90 degrees (slightly more or less is also okay). Your hands should be lightly clasped and when your arm swings, your hands should brush between your lowest rib and your waistband. The swinging action itself is front to back and relaxed. Any abnormal swinging (crossing the body, elbows wide, shoulders high) will have consequences in your mechanics. Race photos often illuminate any arm swing issues and you can have someone video you while running from the front and back to evaluate your arm action. Again, as Lemon demonstrates, imagine there is a box or picture frame from your shoulders to your hips. Your arm swing should be within this box and your hands should not cross the midline of the body. Don't be rigid but just make sure your arms stay within the box.













> 3) Foot plant
> 
> There is a lot of chatter about foot plant. In my opinion, it matters less whether you land toward the front of the foot or the rear. What matters most is that you land under your body (or at least close to under the body). Overstriding is more of an issue than where you land on your foot. Runners can overstride with a forefoot plant as well as a heel plant. The key is to focus on landing under you and pushing behind you. (In the photo below, note that Lemon isn't reaching out but is landing under his body.) I find if runners think not about reaching out in front to go faster but instead think about pushing harder down and behind, they cure their overstriding. Again, have someone video you from the side while you are running and you'll see if you are landing far in front of your body (overstriding) or nearly under your body (correct landing).













> 4) Cadence
> 
> A few years ago, researchers suggested a cadence (or stride frequency) of 180 steps per minute was optimal. I would suggest anything from 170-190 works depending on the runner. If you look at most runners, regardless of speed, that look really good, they usually have around this cadence.
> 
> You can count your steps in one minute to get your cadence or most GPS monitors now do this for you as well. If you do find you need to increase your cadence, just make sure you aren't sacrificing stride length by shortening your stride too much. Understriding to achieve an optimal cadence will slow you down. We want an optimal stride rate (cadence) and an optimal stride length. They both go together to create our speed.





> 5) Rhythm
> 
> Running is like dancing and the runners who look the best, again regardless of speed, are the ones that have great rhythm when they run. There is a certain flow to their stride. They are relaxed and rhythmic. Think of this when you run. We like to say, "Run tall. Run relaxed." This simple cue usually cures most form issues and results in a great running rhythm.


sauce https://www.mcmillanrunning.com/5-k...um=cpc&utm_campaign=facebook_cpc_top_articles


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## chazpat (Sep 23, 2006)

Went for a swim, I mean run, again this morning:









Decided it was a good day to take it easy and not run too far. I haven't been down to the ruins in a good while, they are off a loop I run but it is an out and back so I don't normally run that trail. There are actually ruins in two areas, this one is down stream.

















This one is right beside the road, you can see it pretty good in the winter when driving by but you can't see much this time of year.


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

We did a trip to Timmins to visit family. I did an early Sunday morning run with Chris. It was 7C (glad I brought my tights) but I warmed up quickly and had a beautiful run around the lake and on the local trails.

There's gold in them thar hills.... love Canadian Shield rock


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

Did my funday 22km run . Weather was perfect and there were many friendly bipeds and quadruped out and about 

































* the lady riding the scooter was interesting. That's her husband in the background riding alongside on his bike. They (and their doggy) go riding together


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

Funday 21km run.

























There wasn't much shade and I'm glad I brought enough water


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## rmac (Oct 26, 2004)

I did a stupid running thing.

I have run a lot over the years (several off-road tris many years ago) but over the last year just ran the office stairs (34 floors, three or four times) a couple of times per week. Foolishly I just ran up and not down (thinking I was protecting my knees) but after several months of only doing this type of running I went for a trail run and had intense muscle pain running downhill (felt great on the climbs!).

I assume that I have running muscle imbalance and have stopped the stair running and have just started doing three treadmill runs per week with the hope that I will fix the muscle imbalance.

Any one else had a similar experience? Advice?

FWIW, like many of you I am a chronic over-exerciser: 80 - 130 miles of mostly mtbr riding per week, 8,000 - 13,000 feet of climbing per week. 3 days of weights per week, occasional basketball at lunch, gym class once a week and 3 runs per week.


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## chazpat (Sep 23, 2006)

So… I think we all know not to wear underwear under our bike shorts (or over them for that matter). But… what about running shorts, are we supposed to be swinging free (with apologies to cyclelicious) when we run? 

Now if I am wearing tights in the winter, I don't wear anything under them but just wearing shorts, I do. I read once where a runner guy was saying he just wears his running shorts as underwear; that way, he's always ready to go run, just strip off the pants. But this leads me to believe he's not wearing anything under those shorts.

Well, does anyone know the answer? Somehow I envision snagging my shorts on a branch just as I'm passing the senior citizen hiking club and getting beaten with a bunch of walking sticks and those ski pole things.


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## Ptor (Jan 29, 2004)

chazpat said:


> So&#8230; what about running shorts ... ?


I don't know about your running shorts, but all of mine have integral briefs. If the temp is cool (say 40° F), I might wear compression shorts under the running shorts, but for the most part running shorts (with the brief) do it for me.



chazpat said:


> Now if I am wearing tights in the winter, I don't wear anything under them but just wearing shorts, I do.


From about 20°F to 40°F I wear knickers, below that tights, but always with compression shorts underneath. If it's really cold (I've run at -20°F), then I use compression shorts, tights, and XC ski pants.

As for a running report, day number 599 for my "running at least 1 mile every day" streak coincided with the total eclipse. I did my run that morning in the Shirley Basin (south of Casper, WY) where we experienced totality. Here's the view before the main event:


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## life behind bars (May 24, 2014)

chazpat said:


> So&#8230; I think we all know not to wear underwear under our bike shorts (or over them for that matter). But&#8230; what about running shorts, are we supposed to be swinging free (with apologies to cyclelicious) when we run?
> 
> Now if I am wearing tights in the winter, I don't wear anything under them but just wearing shorts, I do. I read once where a runner guy was saying he just wears his running shorts as underwear; that way, he's always ready to go run, just strip off the pants. But this leads me to believe he's not wearing anything under those shorts.
> 
> Well, does anyone know the answer? Somehow I envision snagging my shorts on a branch just as I'm passing the senior citizen hiking club and getting beaten with a bunch of walking sticks and those ski pole things.


I wear compression shorts under running shorts.


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

It should feel like running naked.  

I'm a big fan of lululemon (pricey but functional and comfy). My hubby doesn't run as much as I do, but he too likes lulumemon ( T.H.E. Shorts shorts are great for running, riding, gym ... no liner so add your own compression shorts )


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## BADDANDY (Feb 20, 2012)

I did two 2.5 mile runs this week. Haven't ran in months as I've been biking a few times a week either 25 mile MTB or 40 mile paved trail on the Hybrid. Now I'm waiting for my calves to loosen up for a bike ride this weekend. 
BTW, I wear bikini briefs under no-liner basketball shorts for running to keep the boys constrained.


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

Benefits of Training in Nature 

Applies to running and riding :thumbsup:

Cliff Notes:

1) Trail running may improve mental well-being

2) Running in nature may boost self-esteem

3) Running outdoors may lead to improved exercise consistency in post-menopausal women

4) Outdoor exercise may cause older individuals to exercise longer and more often

5) Green exercise may alter your perception of effort

Sauce: https://runnerclick.com/additional-benefits-of-training-in-nature/


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## ddoh (Jan 11, 2017)

Mountain biking is listed as a top activity for avoiding the onset of Alzheimers. I assume trail running would have the same effects.


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## BADDANDY (Feb 20, 2012)

The only issue I have at 56 is I find my eyeballs rattling around too much to see them rocks until the last second on the trail at 30mph on tight single track.


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## life behind bars (May 24, 2014)

9 miles this morning. Running that is.


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## chazpat (Sep 23, 2006)

life behind bars said:


> 9 miles this morning. Running that is.


Still on the treadmill?

Good job either way!


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## life behind bars (May 24, 2014)

chazpat said:


> Still on the treadmill?
> 
> Good job either way!


Yes, thanks. Probably stuck on the treadmill for two or three more weeks depending.


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

I did a good 21 km run this morning (road and trail combo) . And my hubby met up with me for the final 8km. Fall is approaching, plants are changing colour... and we have a good crop of ragweed this year {achoo}


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

I don't complain about running in the rain, because I know it could be worse.

Severe weather creates chaos at Copenhagen Half-Marathon

Start of the race









Finish line









Sauce: https://runningmagazine.ca/2017-copenhagen-half-marathon/


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## Guest (Sep 20, 2017)

That's pretty good rain. I rode home in a howler earlier this year (some intersections and sections of roadway had 9" deep water) I felt a little like Forrest Gump. I had pinging rain, rain coming up and even tidal wave from a semi-truck rain. 

Right there with you on complaining. I flew a medical evacuation mission in 2006 out of Afghanistan, it was our forth 22-24 hour day in a week (we'd fly 22 hours get 28 hours off and start over). My job required me to stand most of the flight and after 4 missions I was feeling a little worn out. I was thinking about my tired legs when (coincidentally) I found myself standing next to a Canadian Soldier with both legs gone and both arms in really bad shape. I remember promising myself I'd never gripe about having tired legs again (either to myself or out loud). I'll bet that guy would give everything he owns for the luxury of tired legs.


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

^ Awesome story. Thank you for sharing


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

Cooler temps but sunny. I ran 20 km mostly trails. Chris joined me on his bike


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

> A professional runner let it all out during a marathon in Slovakia - sprinting the last leg of the race with his penis fully exposed in front of cheering fans, in a viral video.
> 
> Jozef Urban, 31, was nearing the end of the Kosice Peace Marathon on Sunday when his running shorts failed him - leaving him completely in the wind as he wrapped a 10th-place finish with a time of 2:21:51, Canadian Running reports.
> 
> ...


Sauce: Runner's penis snatches defeat from jaws of victory | New York Post


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## RonSonic (Jan 8, 2005)

I don't run.
Anything big enough to make me want to run from it could catch me.

Oh, yeah, rotten knees and ankles.


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## chazpat (Sep 23, 2006)

Yeah, ran after work since it's finally starting to cool down a bit. 13.5 miles in 45 minutes! Let's see that's a pace of 3:30 minute miles and&#8230;uh&#8230;hmm, something doesn't seem quite right&#8230;


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

^ that's a crazy route! lot's of hills

I took the day off work yesterday and did a 15km in the morning. I also picked up a hitch hiker and hung out with my little buddy down by the river


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)




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## chazpat (Sep 23, 2006)

^ Looks like its belly is full of hummingbird brain!

(see the bird thread for anyone not understanding this)


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## mholeshot (Oct 1, 2017)

I did run into my 50's. Multiple low back injections and two knee surgeries later I was told by my Ortho that i was a "recovering runner", I'll always want to run but had better not unless i wanted new knees before 60. Swim, mountain and road riding. No more back or knee issues... God knows I still want to run!


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

Does compression gear benefit your workout?

Compression gear has become a favourite among amateur and professional athletes alike, and anecdotally improves performance, enhances recovery and provides support to help prevent injury.

The results of studies however have not been conclusive enough to convince everyone that the expensive pricetag - a pair of tights costs around $140 - is worth it.

A study in the 2016 Journal of Sports Medicine Is There Evidence that Runners can Benefit from Wearing Compression Clothing?found that compression wear had no statistical effect on running performance, as measured by race times in the half marathon, 15K trail run, 5K and 1oK runs, and 400-meter sprint. The report concluded that wearing lower leg compression does not significantly change running mechanics or oxygen consumption while running at a speed less than a full-on sprint. These findings were based on the compilation of research and studies that found a lack of significant differences in VO2 and running mechanics at any speed between the control and experimental groups.

However the study did find some value in compression wear. Because individual metabolic and gait response to wearing lower leg compression varies greatly, runners may see improvements in endurance performance, measured by "time to exhaustion, better running economy, biomechanics, perceived performance, and muscle temperature." Further, the report found that runners may benefit from reduced muscle pain, damage, and inflammation. They even found that compression exerted a large positive effect on post-exercise leg soreness and delay in the onset of muscle fatigue.

sauce:

Does-compression-gear-really-work/


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## Albee (Jul 21, 2004)

mholeshot said:


> I did run into my 50's. Multiple low back injections and two knee surgeries later I was told by my Ortho that i was a "recovering runner", I'll always want to run but had better not unless i wanted new knees before 60. Swim, mountain and road riding. No more back or knee issues... God knows I still want to run!


This could save your running! Injured Runners - Chi Running


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

I did a morning 21km run. Beautiful fall day 

Along the way, I interrupted a turkey vulture roadkill dinner. There were about 6-8 vultures in the trees along the road. They were making weird gagging sounds... probably irritated that I delayed their feast. When I returned later there was only a blood stain left


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## Mike123456 (May 14, 2013)

cyclelicious said:


> I did a morning 21km run. Beautiful fall day
> 
> Along the way, I interrupted a turkey vulture roadkill dinner. There were about 6-8 vultures in the trees along the road. They were making weird gagging sounds... probably irritated that I delayed their feast. When I returned later there was only a blood stain left
> 
> ...


Beautiful pics! I'm nursing a sprained ankle but have a tester marathon in a few weeks!

Sent from my SM-G930F using Tapatalk


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

I did a 10km race this morning... it was a mix of road and trail. Later did a ride ... great day


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

The weather forecast for funday was rain. I did a 15km morning run that was 30% trail (It was slippery and muddy). The only creatures out were birds and worms. By the time I got home it was too late and too wet to ride. Oh well next weekend looks promising


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## chazpat (Sep 23, 2006)

Ran two weeks ago on a much-colder-than-we've-been-having morning. Got to work and hit the shower only to discover I couldn't, shower floor was partially torn up with a "sorry for the inconvenience" sign. So fortunately I wasn't too sweaty and just changed clothes. Checked out the shower every couple of days with no change, finally yesterday went in the management office and asked when the shower was expected to be fixed. Nice lady told me it was a leak under the floor so they would have to tear it all up and they don't know when it will be finished. So… after missing two weeks of runs, I realized this could easily be a "stop running" time if I'm not careful; too dark to run after work with the time change. So I slipped into my road shoes this morning for the first time since the fourth of July of last year and ran around the neighborhood and shower at home. I guess that will be my routine until they get the showers fixed and I can return to trail running. 

One nice thing about my old routine is I would stop a couple of miles from my house, run, and then drive in the rest of the way, around a 20 minute drive. That gave my body time to cool down, ready to hit the shower once I got to work. Running around the neighborhood, I have to then take a break to cool down, otherwise I'm continuing to sweat while in the shower and afterwards. So that's lost time and I'll need to get out a little earlier so I can still get to work before the morning is too far gone.


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

*Why Are There So Many Random Shoes On The Road?*



> It is one of the enduring mysteries of modern times: a lone shoe on the highway, abandoned and without its sole mate (pun intended).
> 
> So how did it get there? It is a question that has seemingly been asked since the times of lone sandals on the streets of Rome.
> 
> ...


https://www.simplemost.com/shoes-hi...r&tse_id=INF_bd2410c0cb0211e7b926579f881108d6

I found this shoe on my first snow run last December


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

^ One year later, that same shoe is still near my run path. Quite a solid sneaker









Couple more pics from my Funday morning run


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

> R*UNNING: THE PERFECT SPORT FOR LATE BLOOMERS*
> 
> Did you dream of becoming a sports star while growing up? Envisioning, in your minds eye how you'd break records, rack up trophies, and dazzle your fans? And then when you hit 50, stuck in a desk job, realized it probably wasn't meant to be? Same here.
> 
> ...


Sauce: https://runnerclick.com/running-the-perfect-sport-for-late-bloomers/


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## Ptor (Jan 29, 2004)

*So I got bit yesterday...*

Yesterday was day 702 of my streak of at least a mile run every day. I'm averaging 3.3 miles/day for 2017. I've had various self-induced injuries during this streak -- tweaked hamstrings and twisted ankles -- but have been going pretty well as of late. But yesterday, on a route I run at least once a week, an unknown dog bolted out of a yard and went after my running companion, a 9 year-old labradoodle. She's pretty wise and no whimp, so did the right amount of posturing and ignoring and the dog left her alone after a few tense seconds. But then it turned on me and did the border collie/Australian shepherd/cow dog stare down thing as I backed away and told it to go home. Then just like that it let loose and bit me on the ankle -- definitely not normal town dog behavior. Yes, there was blood and lots of cursing from me. When I have a dog encounter (weekly) they're only interested in my dog or they're after affection from me. The owner came running out and was all apologetic about the assault, but failed to deliver the promised rabies vaccination records. My daughter and wife convinced me it needed to be reported, so I did the whole talk to the police/file a complaint and now the dog is quarantined for 10 days to see if it become rabid and the owner was cited for having a vicious dog. Over the years I've had more trouble with dogs coming after me when I'm on a bike rather than on foot. But I can usually outrun them on a bike or (in the old days) had a frame pump to swing at them and I've also found squirting water at them is effective. But unless the bite becomes infected, my streak shouldn't be threatened as I got 3.5 miles in on a windy day --30 mph sustained winds!


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## chazpat (Sep 23, 2006)

Ptor said:


> Yesterday was day 702 of my streak of at least a mile run every day. I'm averaging 3.3 miles/day for 2017. I've had various self-induced injuries during this streak -- tweaked hamstrings and twisted ankles -- but have been going pretty well as of late. But yesterday, on a route I run at least once a week, an unknown dog bolted out of a yard and went after my running companion, a 9 year-old labradoodle. She's pretty wise and no whimp, so did the right amount of posturing and ignoring and the dog left her alone after a few tense seconds. But then it turned on me and did the border collie/Australian shepherd/cow dog stare down thing as I backed away and told it to go home. Then just like that it let loose and bit me on the ankle -- definitely not normal town dog behavior. Yes, there was blood and lots of cursing from me. When I have a dog encounter (weekly) they're only interested in my dog or they're after affection from me. The owner came running out and was all apologetic about the assault, but failed to deliver the promised rabies vaccination records. My daughter and wife convinced me it needed to be reported, so I did the whole talk to the police/file a complaint and now the dog is quarantined for 10 days to see if it become rabid and the owner was cited for having a vicious dog. Over the years I've had more trouble with dogs coming after me when I'm on a bike rather than on foot. But I can usually outrun them on a bike or (in the old days) had a frame pump to swing at them and I've also found squirting water at them is effective. But unless the bite becomes infected, my streak shouldn't be threatened as I got 3.5 miles in on a windy day --30 mph sustained winds!


Glad to hear this won't break your streak, that is a great achievement, keep at it!


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## paramount3 (Jul 13, 2014)

Take rabies seriously--100% fatal if you were infected and don't get vaccinated. Low probability, but that's why the dog has to be quarantined and observed. Here's an interesting story about the first known (?) unvaccinated survivor of a rabies infection:

Rodney Versus Death - Radiolab


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

^^ Excellent running cross training average Ptor (I'm averaging 23km/wk ie 14mi/wk)

^interesting stuff re rabies paramount3


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

My morning funday run started in thick fog and ended in sunshine (15km) I did an afternoon ride with hubby.


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## Tribble Me (Aug 27, 2012)

Alright, you convinced me that I need to start running some (should really be called a slog, not even a jog). How many days a week do you think you really need to run to make progress? Is two to three days a week enough?

I'm trying to either bike (1-1.5 hours or longer when I can), walk (~4-5 miles), run (~4-5 miles) or get on the rowing machine (~11,000 meters, 1 hour) pretty much every day. Physically I could bike or walk every day. I feel like when I run I need more recovery time. Knees aren't bad but I definitely feel them more than from any of the other options. 

I know need to add some weight training but work is getting in the way of my workouts.


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## chazpat (Sep 23, 2006)

Tribble Me said:


> Alright, you convinced me that I need to start running some (should really be called a slog, not even a jog). How many days a week do you think you really need to run to make progress? Is two to three days a week enough?
> 
> I'm trying to either bike (1-1.5 hours or longer when I can), walk (~4-5 miles), run (~4-5 miles) or get on the rowing machine (~11,000 meters, 1 hour) pretty much every day. Physically I could bike or walk every day. I feel like when I run I need more recovery time. Knees aren't bad but I definitely feel them more than from any of the other options.
> 
> I know need to add some weight training but work is getting in the way of my workouts.


To make progress, I'd say 3 or 4, at least for me. It seems like if I am only doing 2 days I am just maintaining, and that is what usually happens to me in the winter, not due to the cold (I'm in Atlanta with you) but due to being busy at work. And now the showers are busted at work and closed; our building was just taken over by new management so repairs may not be at the top of their list. I ran this morning around the neighborhood so I could shower at home, but I normally run at Sope Creek. Trail running should be a lot easier on your knees and is a whole lot more enjoyable for me. I have a treadmill but I pretty much consider it a torture device.


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

Funday morning run. Light dusting of snow -6c (21f). Wore my gortex trail runners (better traction in snow). It was cold for the first few km, then I was fine. ... except for my fingers. I need to find me some good gloves.

I squeezed in 15km. Then did a nice ride... the weekend is too short 

Snowflakes that stay on my nose and eyelashes...








Not a clear pic but those ducks didn't mind the cold water.
































One other runner on the trail.








Final snapshot... looks like a twister came through... hope the kids are alright


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## chazpat (Sep 23, 2006)

Great pics, cyclelicious! I ran Sunday after we got about 8 inches of snow on Friday/Saturday morning. Most of it was gone from the trail surface and it was just very slushy; it was 40 degrees.

I don't know if you are like me, I need gloves when I start running or my hands become ice-cold. But then after a couple of miles, I have to remove the gloves as my hands really heat up and sweat a lot. I normally just run in regular full fingered bike gloves down to about freezing or they heat up way too fast/much.


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

Thanks chaz. Keeping my hands warm in winter has always been an issue both for biking and now for running. I have a pair of light wool gloves which I wore last winter but I think I'll look for a combo of windstoppper and wool liner.


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## DIRTJUNKIE (Oct 18, 2000)

cyclelicious said:


> Final snapshot... looks like a twister came through... hope the kids are alright
> View attachment 1171950


Hey now. . . did you move any debris to check?


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

DIRTJUNKIE said:


> Hey now. . . did you move any debris to check?


Ha! It's a trap!


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## jombagimbley (Dec 13, 2017)

Jumping in here - I runner and cyclist. Ran a lot in my teens and into my early 20s. A car wreck took me out of running (back injury). I discovered that cycling didn't hurt my back and let me keep moving. About 10 years ago (I'm 54 now), my youngest daughter got me into running. I still run about 3 days a week and ride as often as possible. Love doing both.


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

Sunday was like this: -8c and good conditions for ice biking on the river

























Tuesday was like this; +6c and most of the river ice melted (I ran 10.4km after work)


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## ddoh (Jan 11, 2017)

Nice!!!


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## cluffy1966 (Dec 20, 2017)

took up sports last year for the 1st time and now bike run and swim. All good


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## BADDANDY (Feb 20, 2012)

Ran my weekly 2.6 miles before work this morning. I plan on bumping it up to two times a week, but weather and train wrecks are messing that up.


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## Velobike (Jun 23, 2007)

I'm not sure this running lark is all it's made out to be. A sad story follows.

Every year we have the StrathPuffer 24 Hour race in January just on the edge of the Ben Wyvis range. The weather is often epic, I've seen 80mph winds, -20ºC, blizzards etc. The race runs regardless. The track varies in length from year to year as bits are added or subtracted, but it's about 8 miles.

The last few years though the weather has been relatively kind, just sleet at the worst and the odd bit of frost at stupid o'clock.

This year is looking a bit more promising, and we might get some proper weather. (We're somewhat to the north of Moscow, and about level with Juneau).

During the year I generally don't take my bike anywhere near the course because after a 24 hour you really don't want to see it again for another year.

However a few weeks after the race this year I had a leg injury from overdoing it on my singlespeed and then exacerbated it by going out too soon, so I started running more regularly, partly inspired by this thread and cyclelicious. 

(I probably shouldn't call it running, it's more like speedy shambling, fast zombie style).

Anyhow, this post is to boast that thanks to running I have been able to emulate Claude Van Damm's famous splits.

It happened like this:

I decided to do a running lap of the course to take a few pics to post up for the other competitors to show what to expect.

First of all there is the 3km climb on this, nice slick ice melting in the unusual sunshine. (That's my wolfhound at the side, cooling off)



No problem, I had a set of slip on studs on my shoes.

Then on the higher ground, the sun was out and the melt had started, and so had the mud.



Again, no problem, I had waterproof socks, although the suction was high. Good training though.

But then, my judgement failed me, and what I thought was hard turned out to be an illusion.



It was even deeper by the top so it was a bit of a slog and probably would not have been regarded as running by any onlooker.

So by now I was about 6 miles in and getting fed up with mud, so imagine my joy when I spotted a section that was still shaded by the trees and was nice solid slick ice. Frabjous joy! A hard surface! Woo hoo! Just a rather large pool of deep icy melt water to cross.

I was going to say unbounded joy, but it was with a mighty leap that I cleared the water. When my right foot hit the ice, it didn't grip but just kept sliding, and sliding, and sliding.

Meanwhile for some reason my left foot did grip and that foot stayed right where it landed.

As my legs approached the full Van Damm I realised that my future prospects of procreation were about to be abruptly and coldly terminated, but fortunately I pivoted about my hips, legs still fully extended, and managed to support myself with my forehead, having failed to do so with my nose.

Once I'd regained my composure, a quick check ensured that I hadn't damaged the track, and a further check revealed that somewhere in the mud I had managed to lose the studs for the right foot - which explained my sudden and unexpected gift of flexibility.

A later attempt to demonstrate this to my wife was terminated when my hip made a loud clonk which somewhat alarmed her and reminded me not all gifts are forever.


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## chazpat (Sep 23, 2006)

^ Thanks for sharing, Velobike, the mental aspect of running is huge so meeting challenges mentality definitely counts even if you aren't physically running.

There is a gentleman I pass very frequently walking on the sidewalk when I drive to work, he seems to have a bit of a limp. He must come from a nearly neighborhood and he is walking toward/from a park area where I frequently run but I never have seen him actually at the park. I see him all the time. This morning it was pouring rain, I mean really coming down. I passed him headed back, he had an umbrella but it was really pouring. I turned around, at the entrance to the park and went back and rolled down my window and asked if he wanted a ride. He said no, he was fine. I was disappointed not to get the chance to talk to him about his daily walks but also admired his steadfastness.


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

The Van Dayummmmmmm! Not only can you run, but you can glide. 

Such a good story Velobike. Beautiful pics too!
You can really paint a picture with words.


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

I did a 15km run Christmas eve. -10c but no wind. River is refreezing again. I found some discarded skis


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

Boxing day morning 11km run. A few people out walking, one fatbike rider on the path and there was snowshoe tracks on the Humber River. The windchill was -23c ...but felt warmer in valley along the river 


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

How to change your habits

"There is a thrill to seeing your stomach getting flatter': why I run"



> Since I started trudging up hills and around parks four years ago, I have become healthier, slimmer and sunnier - and sometimes I even enjoy it


Full article is a nice story: https://www.theguardian.com/lifeand...seeing-your-stomach-getting-flatter-why-i-run


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## Velobike (Jun 23, 2007)

Went out for a bike ride yesterday, and managed less than 2 miles before doing a comedy crash on slick ice and banging the back of my head on the ground.

That shook loose some wisdom so as all my Xmas excess was weighing me down, it was on with the running shoes, pulled on the spikes, and off for a 5km through the local singletrack with the werehound loping along for company. (Wolfhound/Great Dane X).

The surfaces were all hard ice. There had been a slight thaw and refreeze and it was like running on concrete. Fast too (that is a relative term).

But a day later my feet are incredibly tender - the hard ground meant the studs were compressing into the shoe, and now I have bruised soles. Shouldn't have used my summer shoes - obviously not enough wisdom was imparted by the smack on the back of my head.

Great day for a run though.


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## Albee (Jul 21, 2004)

Today made day 38 of the Runner's World 40-day challenge, running every day from Thanksgiving to New Years. They say a mile minimum keeps the streak going, but I'm going for a bit more. I'm at 244 miles during the streak...4 more in the two days left will make my daily average a 10k. Always looking for motivation to stay in shape during the off-season. This has been a great way to do it!


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

That is so awesome Albee! Big shoutout to Velobike, chazpat, Baddandy, lifebehindbars, tribbleme, DJ, forster.... and all the other runners. Have a happy, hippy hoppy new year!

I'm doing my last run of 2017. 2017 was my first year running through the winter. I reached a few PRs this year; benefitted from the results and that will keep me motivated in the year ahead  Cheers!


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## Velobike (Jun 23, 2007)

Last run of the year today. The other day's hard ice mainly ankle deep mushy slush on a thin layer of crunchy ice, or in the forest, soft mud.

Still had to wear spikes, but it was hard slow work in sleet for 10km. Was never cold though - one benefit of it being hard work. 

The werehound was grabbing the opportunity to roll in the snow to cool down every so often, and there was steam coming off her - but then she runs further, faster, and jumps over much more stuff than me. She's lying comatose on our carpet now though.


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## Ptor (Jan 29, 2004)

Today was day 731 in a row of running at least 1 mile (so, for two years). For 2017 I ran an average of 3.3 miles a day, or 1208 miles. I'll go out again tomorrow...

Every mile has been outside -- most run out of my backdoor, at temperatures over 90°F and some at under -20°F. Today it was about 20°F, with slick and icy paths. I've sprained an ankle several times, been bitten by a dog, strained hamstrings, fought through plantar fasciitis and a Morton's neuroma -- but mostly it's been good. I've been healthier during the streak than I was in the decade's before starting it and I certainly have more oomph on my mtb rides (1800 miles of authentic mtb miles, another 900 on the tarmac). The increased base fitness due to running has me going faster on bikes. Despite the obvious benefits I see from my running, I really need the motivation from keeping the "streak" alive to keep running -- I just don't enjoy it enough on it's own to not have some sort of "hook" to keep running on a regular basis. 

Happy New Year to everyone!


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## chazpat (Sep 23, 2006)

I haven't been running much the last couple of months due to the showers at work being closed for repairs. But just before the holiday break, I checked and they are good to go so I'm planning on hitting the trails. I did get in a run with my daughter last week.

With Ptor's post, can't really find any excuses not to run! Happy trails to all.


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

I did an 11km run this morning (last run for 2017!) It was also my coldest run ever -17c/-23c windchill. I spotted a hawk along the way. Chris joined me on the bike and rode the Humber River.

My grand total run mileage for 2017 is 1208 km. That's like running from Toronto to Nashville. I doubled my mileage from 2016. I'll set some new goals for 2018.









































We later did a ride on the river to finish off the year


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## ravewoofer (Dec 24, 2008)

cyclelicious said:


> I did an 11km run this morning (last run for 2017!) It was also my coldest run ever -17c/-23c windchill. I spotted a hawk along the way. Chris joined me on the bike and rode the Humber River.
> 
> My grand total run mileage for 2017 is 1208 km. That's like running from Toronto to Nashville. I doubled my mileage from 2016. I'll set some new goals for 2018.
> 
> ...


Nice job on the mileage, Cyclelicious! Set the new goal now as it's a new year now! 

Many moons ago, I used to run competitively so I do like reading about others and running.

Between biking and spinning, I rode 1890 miles in 2017. Gotta have a goal, so I will aim for 2000 miles in 2018.

Easy to say on Day 1. 

Have a great New Year!

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

Thank you Ravewoofer!

First run for 2018! -11c (-22c windchill) I found the remnants of new years eve on my run this morning.  11.5km done!


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

I did a 13.5 km run this morning and then a ride in the afternoon. I checked out the river before my ride... confirming that it's still really frozen


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## Nat (Dec 30, 2003)

I did a 45 minute run on a new trail this morning and it felt great for being mid-winter. Checking out new terrain is so cool. Biking is more fun but there's nothing quite like that feeling you get when floating through the woods with your legs disappearing beneath you on a good run.


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

Some interesting tips when planning for a long race



> *Go the Distance: How To Fuel for Marathons and 10Ks!*
> 
> Smart food choices in the right quantities and at key times can make all the difference during races. Learn the essentials from a marathon winner to fuel your personal best!
> 
> ...


The longest training runs I do are 20 to 23km. My goal this year is to aim do at least one half marathon. I found this article helpful

sauce: https://www.bodybuilding.com/conten...-marathons-and-10ks.html?mcid=SM_FB_Nutrition


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## paramount3 (Jul 13, 2014)

That's a mind-blowing amount of stuff to worry about when it's all written out. But it definitely makes sense to plan nutrition and hydration for a marathon. I think the keys are 1) intake of electrolytes as well as water, in balance 2) figure out what foods you can take while running without barfing, and then take in enough calories during the run to avoid bonking. Bandaids on the nipples are very important.

Cycleicious, if you're doing 20-23 km training runs, then you've already done your half-marathon, no?


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

^ Maybe I'm underestimating my abilities to do a marathon 









Ludivine the bloodhound runs Alabama half-marathon - CNN

I am building up my weekly mileage (short fast runs ( 1-5km) during the week and my long run on Sunday. In warmer temps I was running 20-23km but currently with temps around -4c to -20c, I can only tolerate 10-13km.

Last year I found that when I'm doing a 20km+ training run my pace is slower than 5 or 10km. I conserve my energy because my route is quite hilly. The only stress I feel is around 15 km, and I begin to question my existence. My lower back gets sore, my legs feel heavy and I slow down. I have to push myself mentally for the final 1-2 km. There may be some challenges, but it's nothing that can't be easily overcome with time and dedication.

There are a couple of spring half and full marathons and as I get closer to those dates I'll make a decision.


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

Milder temps on funday. I did a 15km run. Road and trail (trails were ice covered). The Salomon trail shoes helped a bit.

















I found an interesting "deer shed"...









I coincidently I found one a year ago


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

Weather took a brief mild turn. The temperature remained at 0c until evening. (then it plunged to -18c) I took the opportunity for a funday run (mix of road and trail) Dog walkers and hikers packed some of the trails. The river was snow covered. We need a long period of deep freeze before it's safe to ride on the river again

I ran 12km in snow with a mix of hills, making the run a little more challenging


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## BADDANDY (Feb 20, 2012)

Finally, got a 2.6 mile before work run in after being sick for 1 week, and congested this last week. Still congested, but it didn't affect the run.


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

I wasn't able to ride this week, the snow was just to soft and deep. I ran 12km on funday


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## chazpat (Sep 23, 2006)

A smile will improve your run, research finds


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

^ good article chaz!

This made me smile during my funday run. A man and his dog is colour matching outfits


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

Mild funday temps. My initial goal was to run 10km... I ended up doing 21km. The trails were a combo of too soft, icy and muddy so I kept to the paths and road.


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

RIP Sir Roger Bannister

Today we all need to run one mile for Sir Roger. I ran 13.5 km. I'll never be able to run a mile (1.6km) in 4 minutes 

It was a cold (-6c) but sunny day


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## chazpat (Sep 23, 2006)

Wondering if any of you ever run for transportation? I occasionally do. I'm in Vegas and need to return my rental car tomorrow morning. I'll drop it off and then run back to my hotel, same as I've done the last few years. It's only about 3 miles. 

A few weeks ago, I needed some work done on my Forester so I drove it up the road to the garage and ran home, just 1.65 miles. I would have taken a bike but it was wet and misty raining and I was a bit worried about riding in traffic; I did ride a bike back up when my car was ready.


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## paramount3 (Jul 13, 2014)

chazpat said:


> Wondering if any of you ever run for transportation? I occasionally do. I'm in Vegas and need to return my rental car tomorrow morning. I'll drop it off and then run back to my hotel, same as I've done the last few years. It's only about 3 miles.
> 
> A few weeks ago, I needed some work done on my Forester so I drove it up the road to the garage and ran home, just 1.65 miles. I would have taken a bike but it was wet and misty raining and I was a bit worried about riding in traffic; I did ride a bike back up when my car was ready.


I routinely use a bike when getting the car serviced. Drop it off early in the morning, ride bike to work, then ride back to pick it up in the evening. Nissan service allows a mountain bike ride to work, whereas Honda service is a road ride. Depending on distance and circumstances, I'll sometimes run or walk home, or use a razor scooter (6" wheels) or a skateboard--the scooter and skateboard are good for catching a bus or train, since they're easy to store onboard.


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## paramount3 (Jul 13, 2014)

cyclelicious said:


> RIP Sir Roger Bannister
> 
> Today we all need to run one mile for Sir Roger. I ran 13.5 km. I'll never be able to run a mile (1.6km) in 4 minutes


I ran today: 4.2 miles at a 10:46 average pace. It's hilly--I let myself walk the steep parts. I'll say it was in honor of Roger Bannister. At my peak I could hold Roger Bannister's 4 minute mile pace for about 300 meters. Never got much below 70 seconds for the 400 meters, and my best mile was around 5:30 I think, maybe a little better. Not built like a distance runner, or even a middle distance runner.


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

I did a 15 km run this morning. -6c sunny and windy. Trails were frozen, except where the sun hits.









Cool perspective under the Humber bridge.









Some patches of snow.









Found a single crutch at the trailhead... lame... half a miracle happened here!


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

I did an early morning run on Sunday while the ground was still frozen. Ran some trails along the local river. The trails started to get soft and muddy by afternoon when I did a ride. The frost is starting to leave the ground. Goodbye winter 

























Early sign of spring... a little woolly bear


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

The next sure sign that it's Spring... Canada Geese are pairing up. Mr Angry Goose paused a second to hisssss at me during my CF class warm-up run.


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

T.G.I. good Friday run  12km along the river. Chilly but fun. Signs of spring: I spotted some robins and my daffodils are sprouting!


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)




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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

I was back to wearing my winter running gear. Temperatures are slowly rising but it hasn't been as warm this time of year, as last year . I ran 13km on the trails and pathway along the river


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)




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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

I did a 11km run today, despite the inclement weather. Ice Ice Baby! The ice pellets turned to freezing rain , by the time I got home, I was ice glazed!


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

The full-time nurse with no sponsors, 2nd marathon ever, cold, wet and windy weather conditions who was runner-up in Boston marathon... if only she was over 50 . Still very inspiring

https://www.nytimes.com/2018/04/17/...kwp_0=770609&dclid=CL3Wt4fpyNoCFcdvAQodzcgN6g


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## TheBaldBlur (Jan 13, 2014)

I took up biking to get away from running. I ran competitively and for fun/exercise since ~6th grade and about the time I finished college my knees were getting tired of it. I met with a orthopedic sports specialist who said that sooner or later I'd probably need to get my knees worked on. I switched to road biking, then road and mountain, and ultimately mountain only. I've never missed running for a second.


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

^ Thank for sharing your story TBB. Did you ever find out if your knee problems were ligament, bone, or cartilage? It's good that you don't have issues with riding but I just wonder if the knee issue was something that could have been diagnosed and treated?

When I started lifting 4 years ago I experienced knee pain. One of the coaches pointed out a few things I needed to work on: my ankle flexibility and to correct my knee position during my squats ( I had a habit of turning my knees inward, causing strain) once I made those adjustments I was able to increase my loads and was pain free.

When I started running 3 years ago, I developed plantar fasciitis. This was corrected with orthotics and I've been pain free and my running speed and endurance has improved. 

If I start feeling discomfort in my knees or feet or sometimes lower back, I check the mileage on my shoes and I do some stretching.


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## TheBaldBlur (Jan 13, 2014)

cyclelicious said:


> ^ Thank for sharing your story TBB. Did you ever find out if your knee problems were ligament, bone, or cartilage? It's good that you don't have issues with riding but I just wonder if the knee issue was something that could have been diagnosed and treated?


Bear with my limited recall, that was from the mid-80s. It was cartilage damage from the repetitive impact of being a long distance runner. I remember them saying that I could start with cortisone injections into the joint but that the dosage and frequency would increase until after a while those would no longer be effective. The injections themselves were reputed to be quite painful in and of themselves. The only real "fix" was total knee replacement which, at the time, was a LOT more invasive than it is now (from what I gather). So I gave up running to avoid that procedure becoming a necessity.

Since it was the impact on my knees causing the problems, I had zero issues when I switched to bikes. Now at 55 I've got a touch of osteoarthritis beginning to crop up here and there, mostly in my knees. After trying the usual joint compound supplements with no benefit, I've found that 1,000mg of turmeric works wonders for me like flipping a switch. At first I wasn't convinced that it was the turmeric so I went off of it - knee pain came back. So I resumed taking it - knee pain gone. I'm convinced, though YMMV since I have a friend with similar joint issues and he can't tolerate the turmeric as it gives him GI distress.


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

What a difference a week makes! Last Sunday was cold, windy and snowing ice pellets. The weekend, the sun was bright, warm and dry. I put on sunscreen and a tank top! I ran 22km and saw many bikes on the road and a wee cat.


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## 2sharp7 (Aug 29, 2013)

cyclelicious said:


> ^ Thank for sharing your story TBB. Did you ever find out if your knee problems were ligament, bone, or cartilage? It's good that you don't have issues with riding but I just wonder if the knee issue was something that could have been diagnosed and treated?
> 
> When I started lifting 4 years ago I experienced knee pain. One of the coaches pointed out a few things I needed to work on: my ankle flexibility and to correct my knee position during my squats ( I had a habit of turning my knees inward, causing strain) once I made those adjustments I was able to increase my loads and was pain free.
> 
> ...


I've been enjoying all your pics. Where do you live? I also Crossfit, and I'm pretty sure all the squats are beneficial to my knees! I think my mountain biking is as well! I haven't run too much, in the past few years, other than when the WOD calls for running. I am currently also suffering with some plantar fascitis! Sucks.


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## ddoh (Jan 11, 2017)

"I am currently also suffering with some plantar fascitis! Sucks."

Orthotics.


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## 2sharp7 (Aug 29, 2013)

ddoh said:


> "I am currently also suffering with some plantar fascitis! Sucks."
> 
> Orthotics.


Have tried them. Paid big $ for custom orthotics. They suck.


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

*The Boerne 0.5K Run is for "Underachievers" Who Like Smoke Breaks and Beer*









Hey losers: this race is for you. Forget that sweaty Fitbit, peanutbutter-sandwiches-in-a-fanny-pack, mileage-logging, selfie-taking run lifestyle. The Boerne 0.5K (that's just a hair under a third of a mile-or five football fields) offers beer, donuts, coffee, and a smoking rest stop. Yes, your time has come.

SB Nation dug up this nice little niche "athletic" event, which takes place in Boerne, Texas on May 5. It is also officially being sanctioned by SLACR, the Society for Lazy and Carefree Runners. Moreover, your lethargy and vice will reward the charity Blessings in a Backpack, a non-profit that provides food on the weekends for school kids who are in need.

The run itself is bookended by a free beer, and just to make sure you're not exerting too much effort, there's even a halfway marker (two and a half football fields) where you can refuel:

"Coffee and donut station at the halfway point for carb-loading and energy. This will also be where the designated smoking area is."

Other amenities include a costume contest, a medical tent, a bagpipe player, T-shirts, and "a pretentious oval Euro-style 0.5K sticker that you can attach to your rear windshield to show everyone what a badass you are."

If you don't want to run, and have a little extra cash, there will be a 1963 VW bus to take you from the beginning of the race to the end. And they promise that you'll still get your beer.

Similar to how you might feel after doing the event, the event is-sadly-full. But for those lucky few who are already in-in case you think all your efforts will go to waste-don't worry: they will be providing participation medals for all.

sauce https://sports.vice.com/en_us/artic...ho-like-smoke-breaks-and-beer?utm_source=dmfb


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

How Strenuous Exercise Affects Our Immune System



> If you have ever run a marathon, you know that the effort can cause elation, exhaustion, achy legs, blackened toenails and an overwhelming urge to eat.
> 
> But it is unlikely to have made you vulnerable to colds or other illnesses afterward, according to a myth-busting new review of the latest science about immunity and endurance exercise.
> 
> ...


I am very active year round although haven't run any marathons but I am ill less than my more inactive co-workers.

sauce https://www.nytimes.com/2018/04/25/...&subid1=TAFI&dclid=CPD4puHP49oCFRVCDAodaxUKYQ


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

I did a brisk 22km run today which I'm calling the Sink Hole de Mayo Half Marathon . Spotted a curious red-wing blackbird. I made it home safe ?and joined Chris on the trail.


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## Velobike (Jun 23, 2007)

cyclelicious said:


> How Strenuous Exercise Affects Our Immune System


Thanks for that.

It affects me because after any long event I have been careful to rest even if I'm bursting to get out and do more, and all because of the myth.

I'm resting right now after accidentally riding 125 miles. I only intended to do 20 - I was accompanying a friend on the first leg of an audax ride, but it was such a nice day I kept going a wee bit further until it was simpler to do the whole ride. Only problem is I did it on my town bike - a heavy 3 speed hubgear job with a sit up riding position and we had winds of up to 35mph the whole ride.

Despite the winds we completed the ride well under the time allocated for a 125mile (200km) audax, so we were happy chappies. 

I should probably post it up on the forum even though it was a road ride.

So that's the end of unnecessary resting for me!


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

Mastering proper trail running technique








> In the third episode of an ongoing trail running video series in partnership with MEC, we speak to MEC ambassador Jim Willet, a cancer-survivor, ultra-runner and current owner of the fastest-known-time (FKT) on the Bruce Trail.
> 
> Joined by Canadian Running's Dan Way, Jim presents some essential tips and suggestions for mastering trail running technique. Whether it's conquering hills, staying safe on single track or just starting out on the trails, this video will help you make the most of your trail running.
> 
> ...


sauce: https://runningmagazine.ca/mec-trail-video-series-mastering-proper-trail-running-technique/


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

I did a 21km run this morning. Progress made to the Sink Hole De Mayo... I never felt so safe  Other fun events: I interrupted a little barn cat stalking something


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## chazpat (Sep 23, 2006)

Not having a good running week.

Stopped at the trails to run Monday morning. When I pulled into the parking lot, I saw someone laying at the far end of the lot near the trailhead. I figured they were stretching or resting after a run and proceeded to sit in my car listening to something on the radio and change into my running shoes. A few minutes later, I started my run and as I ran down the parking lot, I saw the person was still laying there and decided I should check on them.

It was a young male, maybe 18-20. There was a backpack and water bottle sitting maybe 10 feet from where he was laying. I asked if he was ok and got a no. I asked if he needed help and if he was injured. He replied that the planet was injured. I asked some more questions and got various simple replies. At one point he said his spine hurt. I asked if he had family nearby and he said he had no family. A lot of my questions were answered with "I'm sorry". I decided he needed more help then I could give him and I told him I was going to get something from my car. Back in the car, I called a park ranger that I know and told him what was going on. He said he'd need to call a law enforcement ranger and that he'd call me back. A bit later, he called and said that they were all up north and he would call emergency services and asked if I could wait there. I told him I would.

Other people were coming into the park and I told a couple with a dog what was going on. I walked up toward the entrance of the parking lot to wait for help and looking back, I could see the couple talking with him. Several other people came around and were gathered around him. A couple of ladies came up to talk with me and said he had told someone he had taken LSD. Someone found his cell phone in his backpack; it had no service but they found a phone number for "mom" and called it but she was in Greenville, a couple of hours away. They said his father was just a couple miles away, though later someone said they were unable to reach him, not sure if the mom had provided that info. They also said he had thrown up and, that the couple with the dog were trying to get him to get in their truck and leave with them, but he was saying something to the effect of "I don't know you".

After more waiting, I see the lady from the couple get in their truck and drive it down to where he was laying. Her and her husband get him up and into the truck. Just as they are backing up, a NPS truck pulls in and asks me where he is. I tell the ranger and he pulls down, blocking the truck. I hung around a few more minutes but decided there wasn't anything more I could do and I needed to get to work so I left. I emailed my ranger friend when I got to the office telling them what had happened. I got an email back thanking me.



So Tuesday morning and I stop again to run. I'd gone a little more than a mile and saw a gentleman walking his dog who I see on the trails a lot. He said something to me as I passed so I stopped to talk with him. I filled him in on Monday's event and he told me how ten years ago, he had been attacked by a rabid coyote in the park. He fought it and finally, after getting bitten several times, was able to hold it down and wait for help. Fortunately, he was in a location that is pretty well traveled. We agreed that taking hallucinogens and wandering around in the forest was not a good idea. I mentioned that I used to run in a less travelled section of the park on more remote trails and realized that I needed to be careful as when I run in the winter, I underdress for warmth and at that time, my cell service was spotty in the area. 

I continued my run and about a half mile further, I was descending down a hill and landed a foot on a pointy rock poking up from the trail tread. I have excellent ankles; I'll often turn one, hobble along the next 4 or 5 strides and then it is fine. But I immediately knew this time was different. I came to a stop, then took a few steps hoping it would "heal". Finally decided I was going to have to hike out and did. I made a couple of attempts to run but quickly decided that was not going to work. I limped through the day, not real bad but I'll be out from running at least a few days; just hope it won't keep me off the bike, though rain is predicted everyday the next week plus. I can't really complain, it has been many, many years since an injury has kept me from running or riding.


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

On Funday I did a 19km run ride pairing with Chris... he found the road crater (which now has 2 safety cones)

Just to recap: Evolution of a pothole


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

This morning's run was for the birds. I ran 15k, road and trail combo. Turkey vultures basking in the sun on Duffy's barn. Ironic bridge messages


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## chazpat (Sep 23, 2006)

I tried to run yesterday morning but after a few steps, I realized my ankle isn't healed up enough. I thought about continuing for a very short loop but decided that was a bad idea. Fortunately, it is healed enough to bike, got out for a ride Sunday.


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

Funday 23km run. I tested out my new shoes. (I felt fast ) Eureka! Who did I see? My dirtbike hubby at Albion Hills and he gave me an extra water. So grateful... it was a hot one!


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## chazpat (Sep 23, 2006)

After a few more days healing, decided I was ready to run yesterday. My son is taking an online fitness class (yes, that does sound odd) this summer and needed to get a 15 minute workout in. He's not a runner, he's a swimmer so that's what he'll mostly do. But he wasn't going to have time to get to the pool so my wife suggested I go run with him. We just went out around the neighborhood, which was probably best for my ankle at this point. He moaned about having to run before we left but he did ok. I did have to tell him "RUN!" a couple of times but he made it up a pretty steep hill where I expected him to stop. We only did 1.66 miles but then we walked a ways and then ran probably another quarter mile back to the house.

Then today when I got home he "discovered" that he had to do an assessment and turn it in today. It was to run a timed mile. It had rained but I drove us down to the river where there is a flat trail with quarter mile markers. He did a 7:42 mile with me a couple of seconds behind him (damn kids). That's just a few seconds faster than my best 5K race pace but that was a few years ago. But maybe I'll see if we can do some speed workouts together, I've never really done those but I am naturally pretty fast and I've wondered how much I could improve. I suggested he could run a 5K race with me at the end of summer but he didn't seem very interested. But maybe he'll learn to like it. It would be fun if I could get him to join his sister and me in a race.


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

^ Typically I run alone. My evaluation is that my pace has gotten progressively better so I am getting faster and my distances increasing. (I log every run)

Recently on a training run, I met a woman who was going the same direction. We chatted along the way. I learned that she runs marathons and half marathons (a couple times per year) and that running is her only exercise. Her pace was a little quicker than mine but I managed to keep up. I enjoyed the challenge of setting a quicker pace. I did notice however she did not like hills and had to walk the steeper ones. When she reached the top, she would start running again. I think my weight training and mtb biking has benefitted.

There are some local running groups that meet regularly and organize runs based on "pace and distance" etc. It was ok to run with someone for the company and compare notes and share information and tips but I think my preference is solo for now.


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## chazpat (Sep 23, 2006)

I also normally run alone. I occasionally will run with my daughter when she's home from school. I'm usually more concerned about distance than speed, though I always try to sprint the finish. During the winter, I get really busy at work and my distance will drop and then I have to build back up. I was doing really good getting it back up this spring until I twisted my ankle. Now I've got a business trip next week, hopefully I can find room to include my running shoes in my carry-on.


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

i did a 22km run Sunday morning. Beautiful day, overcast and cool. Enroute I met 3 familiar riders heading to and from trails. I caught the attention of the train engineer at the crossing. Also found a snake and ladder... great day!


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

11km trail run ... explored some local trails and found a hobo camp


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

cyclelicious said:


> On Funday I did a 19km run ride pairing with Chris... he found the road crater (which now has 2 safety cones)
> 
> Just to recap: Evolution of a pothole
> 
> ...


Update!

Workers have started to repair the glory hole


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

Had a good 22km run Sunday morning... followed by a equally good trail ride


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## tjkm (Jun 9, 2007)

Nice pics cycleicious!I also run in addition to mountain biking. I am training for a 35k trail race at the end of summer, so I am riding less and running 3 to 4 times per week. 

Right now I am running about 17-22 miles per week and getting about 3k of vertical in on those runs. I am being smart about bumping miles up, and will start adding more vertical as the race gets closer (course has 5k of vert in 2 big climbs)


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

My 22km run was a sizzler at 32c. I enjoyed every breeze and bit of shade along the way. I especially loved meeting up with Chris at the halfway point. Thank you for the extra water! Some highlights include seeing buttercups and getting a friendly horn and wave from the 11:30 train.


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

I did 18km after the rain stopped. I encountered a young bird (I think a woodpecker) that fell?, jumped? or was pushed? out of the nest. I got it to move off the road and into some tall grass. When I ran back, I didn't hear or see it. Hope the little guy is ok 

I also met Chris at the halfway point and on the last 2km I met a sweet little pupper


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## paramount3 (Jul 13, 2014)

Nicely camouflaged bird-


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

paramount3 said:


> Nicely camouflaged bird-


It also had a unique chirp. (It was in distress) Once I got it to move to the grass it blended well and was less chirpy.


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

2 good runs over the weekend. Sunday (Canada Day) I did an early morning 20km. It was very hot. 40c+ and humid. I met a little milksnake on the road . I had to shoo it off so it wouldn't get squashed

























Monday morning 15km a mix of road and trail. It was a little cooler in the forest.


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

Short fast runs in the evening (when it's cooler) and continue my long Sunday morning runs (when it's cooler). 30 to 45 km /week. I still manage to squeeze in 2 to 3 rides /week. It's been a good summer so far


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

Funday morning run. (18km... 40C with humidity) Met up with Chris on his way to the trails. Later we did a nice local mtb ride. Great weekend 

Queen Anne's lace fields








10km done... 8km to go!








This little monach would not stay still... I'm lucky this pic turned out!


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## Ericmopar (Aug 23, 2003)

Ooooo a Canadian Pacific train. Someone here knows just what I like. LOL
Hey there guys. Nice pics.


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

When I time my run right, I can catch the 11:30 train as it passes


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

This is handy

*Age grading: how masters runners level the playing field*



> If you're a masters runner who can't shake a creeping sense of disappointment with your running performance as you age, take heart: the science of age grading allows you to see your results corrected for your age and gender, as if you were still in your prime running years.
> 
> Seeing that 3:40 marathon suddenly turn into a 3:10 will definitely put a spring in your step. So how does it work, exactly?
> 
> ...


My 10 km run yesterday (it was fast but not my race pace); I did it in 1:05. With the conversion for my age my time should be 51.3 minutes OMG that's awesome!

Sauce https://runningmagazine.ca/age-grading-how-masters-runners-level-the-playing-field/


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

*5 Reasons Long-Distance Runners Should Race Short Distances Too*

The phrase '5 Kilometers' for most marathoners and ultra marathoners is commonly used to describe how far they have left in a race. Rarely does it describe the entirety of the event they plan to race. But you should consider the big benefits you can reap from racing short distance races, even if your ambitions have you going long this fall.

*Aerobic Capacity*
Training for short distance races has big benefits for your aerobic capacity. Most endurance athletes are rockstars at low to moderate intensity exercise. However when you tap into high end work you can see big results in a relatively short amount of time. Consider that training for a 5km-10km race will require you to do structured speed work, and in the process, develop your body to utilize more oxygen (aerobic capacity). The more oxygen that can be consumed, the more physical work you'll be able to do.

*Density is everything*
Short distance running and the training it requires can improve the flow of oxygenated blood to muscle tissue, and in turn can improve mitochondrial density. Mitochondria are muscle cells that help produce Adenosine Triphosphate (ATP), which is the actual fuel that supplies muscle contractions. If you improve a muscle's ability to use oxygen for shorter distances - you can see big benefits for a long race. Think of this as a major physiological benefit of short distance training for long distance runners.

*Endurance won't just disappear*
Long distance runners fear that if they exchange some long slow running for a few short days - they'll lose the ability to be strong over time. You might consider that athletes who train for a mix of events tend to have better running economy, and ultimately have the ability to change gears and tackle technical sections in longer races. Integrating speed work into your training cycle and preparing for a 5K or 10k race increases your efficiency, and can increase your baseline aerobic running pace.

*Leg speed and efficiency are boosted*
It's good to change speed and increase turn over. Using high aerobic workouts will increase your leg speed and help you become a more efficient runner. Turn over at your top end brings big benefits to your easy aerobic running pace. The same applies for lactate mitigation. By putting your body in a high lactate state, and allowing it to recover teaches your body to mitigate larger amounts of lactate over time. This ultimately helps your baseline easy running to help your body more efficiently handle the smaller amount of lactate produced at low to moderate aerobic intensities.

*Balance in integration*
Adding in high aerobic workouts in preparation for a short distance race should be integrated with caution, and with a goal of building your time at a high heart rate over time. Keep to the 10% rule for new runners who are integrating this into their training regimen. If you did 12:00 of high intensity continuous work in week 2, you should complete 13.5 up to 15 minutes of work in the following week.

High aerobic work requires a significant amount of energy to complete so if you're looking to keep a mileage number you might want to pad your work with warm up and cool down miles or utilize a second run on the day of a focused session at a very low heart rate to help flush out any waste produced from your high aerobic session.

*Give it a try*
Training for and racing 5km and 10km races and taking time to integrate the training into your build up for a long distance race will absolutely provide a benefit. It will help you not only increase your baseline running pace, but will help direct the rest of your long distance racing for your season. These types of events can fit anywhere in your training if there is a goal and intent to the training or race. You may find a big benefit in doing this work early and using these races as building blocks early on, or even using them to test your fitness acumen in later stages of sharpening for a half, full, or ultra.

sauce https://www.trainingpeaks.com/blog/5-reasons-long-distance-runners-should-race-short-distances-too/


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## JDTorr (Jul 26, 2018)

I love running, it goes pretty well with cycling. 


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


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## smithe68 (Sep 6, 2011)

I run, turned 50 yesterday! This is from this morning! 3:08:36 which is a 25:37 PR. The race is trail, slight downhill, 2.5 mile pitch black tunnel, amazing temps!


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

Happy belated birthday and congrats Smithe on your success!

I did a 22km run on Sunday. Mainly road (the deerflies in the forest are hostile right now)

I crossed paths with Chris who was on his way to do some trailwork. I rescued a toad from getting squished and I met some friendly roadies. Excellent morning


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## smithe68 (Sep 6, 2011)

Thank you cyclelicious!


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

10km run in Timmins ... mainly trails


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## smithe68 (Sep 6, 2011)

Looks nice out there, I need more trails in my running!


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

Does running fast make you smarter? Many of North America's best runners have also been recipients of major academic awards. What's the link between top athletics and academics?



> NCAA 10,000m champion, Ben Flanagan, was recently awarded the NCAA Outdoor Division I's Scholar Athlete of the Year award for men's outdoor track and field. Flanagan is pursuing a degree in Interpersonal Practice/Mental Health MSW and achieved a cumulative GPA of 3.90.
> 
> The award is based on a combination of success in the classroom and success on the track. Academically, a successful candidate will have achieved a minimum cumulative GPA of 3.25. Athletically, they will have either finished in the top 96 in the national indoor rankings, or competed in any round at the NCAA Division I Outdoor Championships.
> 
> ...


sauce https://runningmagazine.ca/does-running-fast-make-you-smarter/


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

I had a good run this morning. 22km. It was overcast which helped. I met Chris at the 9 km point. He was heading out on his KTM for some offroading. Every run is a new adventure. Today I spotted lots of Monach butterflies, a guy rollin with his dog, and a random roll of t.p. for the bridge vandals .


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## defdes (Aug 21, 2018)

When MTB riding blew up in Southern California in the mid 90's I stopped riding all together as I couldn't stand seeing the trails that I had been riding virtually alone (with a few good friends) turn into something that looked like a ski resort. I then started trail running all of the trails that were now cut off to bike riders due to the "new" influx. after 8 years of that I blew out one knee and then broke the other motorcycle riding. No more running for me. I did however, just buy my first bike in 25 years, which lead me here. I climbed and skied Tuckerman's Ravine this year and after that experience, realized I need to get in better shape so I can actually enjoy it next year.


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

As someone who loves running and hates cellphones this story made me grin from ear to ear this morning 

Social media lights up after intern sprints to deliver Manafort verdict









Even on a fast-paced day of breaking news, the sprinting intern in the blue dress stood out.

Photos and video going viral on social media captured NBC News intern Cassie Semyon's mad dash from a Virginia courthouse to deliver the news of Paul Manafort's conviction on Tuesday.

In a tweet punctuated by a "GoBlueDressGo" hashtag, Semyon thanked Associated Press photographer Jacquelyn Martin for capturing the image. NBC News reporter Andrea Mitchell tweeted that she's "so proud."

Runner's World saluted her sprint under the headline, "Give that woman a job."

Electronic devices are prohibited in the federal courthouse where jurors convicted President Donald Trump's former campaign manager of tax evasion and bank fraud, so Semyon dashed out in her flats, carrying her pen and notebook like batons to break the news.

sauce https://toronto.citynews.ca/2018/08/24/sprinting-intern-manafort-verdict/


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

Squeezed in a few good runs this week: some sprints and intervals (at the gym); a long run 21km (yesterday) and a medium run today. It was a good week


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## smithe68 (Sep 6, 2011)

Super excited to receive my entry confirmation to the Boston Marathon yesterday afternoon.


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

smithe68 said:


> Super excited to receive my entry confirmation to the Boston Marathon yesterday afternoon.


OMG! that's fantastic!

I looked at the website and see that there are qualifying times for gender and age group.

Did you need to submit a qualifying time for just one race?

https://www.baa.org/races/boston-marathon/enter/qualify


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## smithe68 (Sep 6, 2011)

cyclelicious said:


> OMG! that's fantastic!
> 
> I looked at the website and see that there are qualifying times for gender and age group.
> 
> ...


Thanks!

You have to submit a qualifying time from any certified marathon course for the year you want to race.

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


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## Ptor (Jan 29, 2004)

So what race did you use for qualifying and (if you're willing) what time did you run to qualify? I've run only one official marathon, now some 15 years ago, and at the time thought the only reason to run another was if it was Boston. I'm unlikely to get into Boston by being famous or raising lots of donations, so maybe I'll need to revisit the qualifying route...


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## chazpat (Sep 23, 2006)

Received an email this morning telling me the fitness center will be closed until sometime in November for renovations. That's going to put a halt to my stop-on-the-way-to-work trail runs in the mornings, as I won't be able to shower. I'll see about some after work runs but we're still very much in summer mode, into the '90s next week, plus I haven't been leaving work until way after dark. But the week after is predicted to cool down into the low/mid 80s as a high and mid 60s at night. I need to just throw my running shorts/shirt in the car so I'll be ready whenever the opportunity arises, I already leave my running shoes in there. And get up early and do a run on the weekend.


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## oldcolonial (Aug 28, 2018)

I started running about 36 years ago. Initially, I did it because there was someone I wanted to get to know who asked me to go for a run with her. 6 months later I was running 6 days a week and a year later I was on my college cross country team ( D III ). I still know her, relationship never panned out (for those who are interested). Since that time I have probably run 40K miles and done races from 800M to the marathon as well as trail runs of marathons + distance. I love the flow of running in the woods and mountain biking allows for that same feeling. These days I generally run 3 to 4 days a week at a variety of paces. Due to a serious injury about 8 years ago I no longer train to compete, just run for fun.


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

^ inspiring story oldcolonial 

^^ Hope you can still find some running options chazpat

I took Friday off this week and went for a nice long morning run. I met a praying mantis on the multiuse path and became a human bridge... it was a little awkward posing for a selfie


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

I did a 22km funday morning run, trying to beat the heat. I've ran 995km since January... I'll be able to pass the 1000km mark this week with my short runs 

Met up with Chris at the halfway point


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## smithe68 (Sep 6, 2011)

Ptor said:


> So what race did you use for qualifying and (if you're willing) what time did you run to qualify? I've run only one official marathon, now some 15 years ago, and at the time thought the only reason to run another was if it was Boston. I'm unlikely to get into Boston by being famous or raising lots of donations, so maybe I'll need to revisit the qualifying route...


Sorry for late reply, I was out of town backpacking with no signal. I ran the Jack & Jill Marathon that is in the Snoqualmie/North Bend are of Washington state. I ran it in 3:08:36. It is a gradual downhill on trail, only pavement was a couple of bridges, and a real quad buster! I have never suffered so much from a run like I did this one, not even a 50k trail run or Ironman triathlon did as much damage to my legs but it was worth it.


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

Seven tips to make the most of this fall running season

Here are some tips for running in the fall:

1) Test your shoes: After you have logged many kilometers during the summer your shoes may need to be changed. Have a look and see how warn the tread is, if you have ran over 500 km in them, it's usually time for a new pair.

2) Sleep in: You no longer have to battle the heat. So sleep in, forget about starting your run at 6 AM. Get some extra zzzz's and let your body rest.

3) Remember to hydrate: While you are not sweating as much you are still working up a sweat and loosing hydration. Water packs are needed. Sunscreen too, the UV rays are not as extreme but can still do damage.

4)Watch the weather: As the season changes we need to watch for new elements in the forecast. The fall often brings in strong winds which can really make for a challenging run. Rain can be cold and heavy especially when tracking Nor'easters. And temperatures are quickly falling, your morning run can be a little slippery as shallow puddles may freeze.

5) Test new gear: Your running wardrobe is changing quick, from shorts to tights, tanks to long sleeves. Make sure you are getting used to the new clothing - maybe you are even opting for gloves. You never want to be using something for the first time on race day.

6) Enjoy the colours: Find a new route in your area where the colours are just bursting with fall foliage. Your 5, 10, 15 km run will be done in no time as you enjoy the beauty of the route.

7) Sign up for a race: Put your training to the test. One of the best rewards is completing a race and there are so many happening in the fall. Now is the time to participate in "marathon season." Many runs offer your full 42.2 km marathon. If you are not ready for this yet; half marathon (21.1 km), 10 km, and 5 km are great options.

sauce https://www.theweathernetwork.com/n...e-the-most-of-this-fall-running-season/72797/


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

Today I ran 17km both road and trail. Trail running is different that road. I found this article about transitioning from road to trail



> HOW TO START TRAIL RUNNING: TIPS FOR ROAD RUNNERS
> 
> So you've been pounding the pavement for some time, and have started thinking more and more about trading traffic lights for trailheads. We say go for it! Here are some beginner-friendly tips to help you feel as comfortable running on singletrack trails as you do spotting your favourite characters on sidewalks.
> 
> ...


sauce https://www.mec.ca/en/article/how-t...tm_term=advice&utm_content=trail_running_tips


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## oldcolonial (Aug 28, 2018)

cyclelicious said:


> I ran 11 km earlier this morning... I spotted this guy
> 
> View attachment 1090729


Spotted a guy who looked similar running around my neighborhood. Pulled up along side him and chatted him up a bit. Turns out that in his day he had run Boston in close to 2:30. Back in the day, his times were competitive with those of the great Johnny Kelly.


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## chazpat (Sep 23, 2006)

cyclelicious said:


> ^^ Hope you can still find some running options chazpat


Thanks, Judy!

I'm not doing too bad, getting in two runs a week. I've been getting out Saturday mornings to some trails I haven't run in awhile. The one this morning, I've recommended to a number of runners I've met on other trails recently. I used to run there 2 or 3 times a week when I took my daughter to school but I hadn't run there in over a year or maybe two. It's even nicer than I remembered, lots of really good technical running with roots, rocks, off cambers, and hills. And really pretty.









































I had to jump over a copperhead a couple of weeks ago. Spotted him in the trail at the last moment as I landed and the only thing I could do was take a long stride over him.


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

^ Awesome trails and stories! I'm looking forward to running trails tomorrow


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

I'm going to do a 20km race in 2 weeks on mostly gravel roads (and small sections of paved road and dirt trail). I've been researching the best type of shoe. I've worn down the tread on my current training shoes so I've been considering some options. I have a dedicated trail shoe but now I'm considering something more versatile. I found this article which helped guide my decision ... my conclusion is comme ci comme ça... but I am leaning to a sturdy road shoe.

The Best Shoes for Running on Gravel Roads

Choosing shoes for running on gravel roads can be tricky. Most companies market their shoes for either road running or trail running. Running on gravel can be a bit like either of these. To make the choice easier, focus on the type of gravel you'll encounter, the conditions in which you run and other activities in which you participate.

Types of Gravel Roads
Not all gravel roads are considered equal. Some are relatively flat and level, with just a bit of fine gravel over a hard surface. Other gravel roads may be covered with thick, larger gravel. If the roads you'll be running on consist of mostly finer gravel on a hard surface, you might consider using a sturdy road running shoe. You'll likely need less tread on a road like this, and your chances of spraining an ankle will be lower. On the other hand, if you think you'll encounter mostly thick or large gravel, a trail shoe may be your best bet. Trail shoes typically have more tread to keep you from slipping on the loose terrain and they also tend to provide more ankle stability, which you might need with the larger rocks.

Conditions
If you're a fair weather runner, a road shoe is more likely to work for you on a gravel road than if you're the type to run in any conditions. The upper material on a road shoe tends to be less durable and thinner so if you run in the rain, you may find your feet end up muddy and wet much more quickly than they would with a trail shoe. Many trail shoes are available in waterproof or water-resistant styles, which can be especially useful if you know you're going to be running in a lot of muck or rain.

Other Activities
If you're going to need your shoes for other activities, consider whether a road or trail running shoe would work better in these situations. For instance, if you're going to run on gravel but need to wear the shoes to the gym, a road shoe may work better for you. The heavy tread of a trail shoe can be uncomfortable when doing some exercises in the gym. If you think you might need your shoes for hiking during a camping trip, the heavier, more durable trail shoe might be the best choice for you.

Precautions
Running shoes come in many different varieties, such as stability and motion control versions. Running in the wrong shoe for your feet can cause problems. Whenever possible, buy your shoes in a store that provides staff who can help you choose the best shoe for you. This will help you avoid injuries and make your runs a lot more fun!

sauce https://woman.thenest.com/shoes-running-gravel-roads-21772.html


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

I got my shoes. Saucony Iso Rides. I did a 15km (trail and road) shake down run yesterday and I'll give them:thumbsup::thumbsup:


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## Ptor (Jan 29, 2004)

cyclelicious said:


> I'm going to do a 20km race in 2 weeks on mostly gravel roads (and small sections of paved road and dirt trail). I've been researching the best type of shoe.


I do about half my miles on dirt/gravel/trail. Virtually any shoe will work for me on varied terrain, living in the usually dry high plains and mountains of Wyoming. But what I can't stand is a outer sole that picks up rocks. My newest pair of shoes (I always have two pairs in the rotation, alternating days) are some model of "On Cloud" that are nice and smooth on the road but if you even cross a scattering of gravel at the end of an alley they're almost certain to pick up stones in the grooves in the sole. Then you clack along on with a lump under your foot, hoping it will come out on it's own, but invariably you have to lean against a post or wall or sit down and pry out rocks ranging from walnut sized to pea sized. So...no deep grooves for me ever again, even for something that's ostensibly only a road shoe. I think the Saucony Iso Rides picked up by cyclelicious looked great.

I run through the winter on ice and snow and any old small knobby tread will work (deep and/or tightly space lugs just pack in the snow), but how the out rubber hardens up in the cold seems to matter greatly, and it's not something I can judge without being out in conditions. I've had maybe 4 pairs of Topo branded shoes of various models and they've all been great in snow and ice. I also had a Hoka that also did well. In contrast, my Innov-8 and Altra shoes in the cold firmed up and were slippery -- I've not tried more than one model of each brand as they were dangerous 6 months of the year.

Did my first slick run of the new winter yesterday -- lots of them to come. I'm somewhere just north of 1000 days straight of running at least a mile everyday, averaging 2.7 miles/day over that time, and it will be 3 years on December 31st.


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

I ran the 20km route for a gravel grinder race as part of my routine training (There was no running category) . My husband was the moto leader and sweeper for the 20, 40 and 80Km race. I started out ahead of the racers and ran a very hilly route in 2 hours... finishing before the first racers.

Chris getting the dirt bike ready








There was a light dusting of snow when I headed out at 10:00








This was a long 10km straight hilly stretch of gravel 








Long climb out of the valley








My only fans








First one to cross the finishline... hehehe


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

I competed in a local race 10km category. This was my 3rd year participating. Combo road and some trail... and lots of hills. I prepared with regular run training in all running conditions. Regular Crossfit strength training also made a huge difference. As a result I placed first in my class. And I bettered my time from last year by over 3 minutes. Thanks singlesprocket for your support and chasing me on the mountain bike.


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## chazpat (Sep 23, 2006)

Wow, cyclelicious, knocking three minutes off is huge! congratulations on your win.

I had a great run on Saturday. I just returned from a 9 day business trip; although I took my running gear, I got zero runs in. I took my son to take the ACT and then was trying to decide where to run that wouldn't be too wet after days of rain. I almost opted for a paved multiuse trail but then decided to run a trail through a National Battlefield Park (Kennesaw Mountain) that I hadn't run it 5 or 6 years. It's mostly an old road so I figured it would be ok. It was.

I got almost to the end before it crossed a road, about 2 miles in and decided to turn back. But then I decided to take a side spur that connected up to another trail with the intent to just run the spur and then turn around. But when I got to the other trail, a trail sign said it was only a couple of miles back to the parking lot taking that trail so I decided to just do a big loop. I had hiked this trail before but I never ran it; it is very steep and rocky.

And it was a lot of fun. I eventually wore myself out and hiked up to the top of the mountain. There I was greeted by a foggy view and civil war cannons.

On the backside, the trail is shorter and drops down to the parking lot. I was making my way down and a shirtless guy came blowing by me. My competitive nature kicked in and I picked up my speed, letting gravity do its thing. I didn't really expect to catch up with him, he was running through some rocky areas that I wasn't as brave to blast through. But then I got to a smoother section and saw he was walking. Just as I was catching up to him, I think I inspired him to run again. I'm not used to long descents, it's a mile from the top to the bottom and running down was like hitting a big downhill on the bike. When we were almost to the bottom, he stopped and walked again (I have no idea why) and I continued on past him and into the parking lot.

I plan to run this loop again sometime.


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## JDTorr (Jul 26, 2018)

chazpat said:


> Wow, cyclelicious, knocking three minutes off is huge! congratulations on your win.
> 
> I had a great run on Saturday. I just returned from a 9 day business trip; although I took my running gear, I got zero runs in. I took my son to take the ACT and then was trying to decide where to run that wouldn't be too wet after days of rain. I almost opted for a paved multiuse trail but then decided to run a trail through a National Battlefield Park (Kennesaw Mountain) that I hadn't run it 5 or 6 years. It's mostly an old road so I figured it would be ok. It was.
> 
> ...


Nice pics

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Pro


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## Miker J (Nov 4, 2003)

cyclelicious said:


> View attachment 1199383


Towards the end of every run I find it odd birds just like this are always circling just above me ???


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

It was a beautiful day for a run. It's been a rainy November so far so I'm trying to get as much riding and running in as possible 

I did a 22km funday run. Gorgeous sunshine (in the morning); some leaves still on the trees. I spotted an interesting plane formation, realizing that it was probably 2 planes towing gliders.


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

What a difference a week makes! Sunday's run was in colder temps. -4c. Late afternoon so I was chasing the sun. Still managed 13km.


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

I run and mtb, and haven't noticed anything but improvement from each.

Running has certainly helped my leg strength and cardio, as well as my core. Biking has helped improve my strength and endurance, as well as all those extra muscles you need for balance.

*Is Running Good for a Cyclist?*

When winter's bad weather comes, each and every cyclist in Poland begins their countdown to when they can attend a training camp somewhere warm. After the recovery cycle and the period of rest from a bike begins the nagging question: To run or not to run? The answer will vary depending on whether you are a road, mountain or a cyclo-cross cyclist. But before analyzing any particular group of cyclists, it is important to know that, from the physiological perspective, we may perform aerobic work during both cycling and running, yet for our muscles these will be completely different stimuli. When you are running, concentric-eccentric contractions occur (concentric ones during propulsion and eccentric ones during braking). Whereas when you are cycling, only concentric contractions occur (muscle shortening). Therefore, the mechanical cost of your muscle work will vary considerably. When you are running, the muscle fiber damage that occurs is significantly greater than the damage occurring when you are riding a bike. Thus, a two-hour aerobic run session will be a much greater strain to your body than a two-hour aerobic training session on a bike. Another issue is that when you are running, you do not develop the neuromuscular connections specific for cycling. In other words, running will not enhance your threshold power, nor will it give you the sense of "feeling the crank" better. Thus, is running good for a cyclist?

*Running For a Road Cyclist*
The first group encompasses road cyclists who have already finished the recovery cycle and are currently in the phase of total body conditioning. If you belong to this group, you may begin with run-walk intervals. This can for example be a four-minute run with a two-minute walk, alternating for a total of 20 to 30 minutes. In the period of adaptation of the skeletal system, it is essential for you to focus on the frequency of running rather than on its volume, meaning three, 30-minute interval workouts a week will be a better solution than a continuous run of 1.5 hours once a week. At this stage, running will enable you to maintain the condition of your cardiovascular system and will bring variety into your cycling training. When you move into more advanced training sessions, you should consider stopping your running due to its high risk of injury.

*Running for a Mountain Cyclist*
With regard to mountain cyclists, total body condition is of greater significance, thus, if you belong to this group of cyclists, you may treat running as an alternative form of aerobic endurance training in the pre-base training period. Frequently, after your first season's peak race, running can also bring variety to your training, and it can also be a good idea for training during holidays to maintain fitness when perhaps cycling is not an option. What is more, when you are running, you improve your body balance and the neuromuscular coordination, which is necessary for mountain biking. An enhanced body stability and total body condition may reduce the risk of injury in mountain biking. From my experience as a coach, I have found that running has a good psychological influence as it breaks the monotony of cycling training sessions and may "rebuild" an athlete suffering from overtraining or performance burnout.

*Running For a Cyclocross Cyclist*
Last but not least, there is the group of cyclocross cyclists for whom running is much more frequently applied in their pre-base training period. A remarkable cyclocross cyclist, Niels Albert, performs 30-minute run sessions once a week for most of his season. During such a training session, he repeats some sprints, uphills and downhills, but his sessions never last more than 30 minutes. Moreover, he never uses a bike during these run sessions. A regular and relatively short running session should then be treated as a part of one's regular training cycle in cyclocross.

To sum up, depending on your main discipline and the preparation period, run training will perform different roles. Nevertheless, in order to avoid training injury, such training should always be implemented into the training plan under the supervision of an experienced coach.

sauce https://www.trainingpeaks.com/blog/is-running-good-for-a-cyclist/


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

17km run. Milder temps attracted a cute little muskrat on the melting river ice (not sure if it was Muskrat Susie or Muskrat Sam... but it was singin' and jingin' the jango ) ; also spotted a group of roadies; and the remains of last weeks snowman. Chalk up another fun training run ... always an adventure









































From last weekend


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

*On average, runners drink more beer than cyclists, according to Strava*

Strava released its 2018 year end review this morning, and the results show that based on activity title, runners are more into beer than cyclists. Strava has 36 million users in 195 countries who have collectively completed 6.67 billion miles, and the infographic below details how those users document their activity based on food.









On the whole, more cyclists posted about beer, but there are more cyclists on Strava than runners. Percentage-wise, 66 per cent of runners included beer in their activity titles, whereas 34 per cent of cyclists included it in theirs. Overall, cyclists preferred coffee to beer, and coffee was referenced in 50 per cent of their activity titles.

Runners have also made an event out of beer and running in the beer mile. Canadian Corey Bellemore is the world record-holder, and historically, Canadians have been some of the best in the business at the event.

sauce; https://runningmagazine.ca/the-scen...l9OrePC1N7dwN7E7PtOZ-cC-VfVNMCAG_2p9f7bajur6k

What if you do both?:eekster:


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

Temps are up to 10c. Trails are soft and mucky, so I did a run instead of mtb.

19km mild and foggy


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## ddoh (Jan 11, 2017)

Break out MTBers from general cyclists and I think you'll get a very different result.


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

Me and my shadow did a frisky funday 16km run ( 1c and -6c windchill). I didn't mind the cold because I knew Chris was working outdoors today. The trails were solid; ice is forming again on the river. I spotted a fox crossing the trail... Fox on the Run :band:.

Good day


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

*Is Running Good for a Cyclist?*









When winter's bad weather comes, each and every cyclist in Poland begins their countdown to when they can attend a training camp somewhere warm. After the recovery cycle and the period of rest from a bike begins the nagging question: To run or not to run? The answer will vary depending on whether you are a road, mountain or a cyclo-cross cyclist. But before analyzing any particular group of cyclists, it is important to know that, from the physiological perspective, we may perform aerobic work during both cycling and running, yet for our muscles these will be completely different stimuli. When you are running, concentric-eccentric contractions occur (concentric ones during propulsion and eccentric ones during braking). Whereas when you are cycling, only concentric contractions occur (muscle shortening). Therefore, the mechanical cost of your muscle work will vary considerably. When you are running, the muscle fiber damage that occurs is significantly greater than the damage occurring when you are riding a bike. Thus, a two-hour aerobic run session will be a much greater strain to your body than a two-hour aerobic training session on a bike. Another issue is that when you are running, you do not develop the neuromuscular connections specific for cycling. In other words, running will not enhance your threshold power, nor will it give you the sense of "feeling the crank" better. Thus, is running good for a cyclist?

*Running For a Road Cyclist*
The first group encompasses road cyclists who have already finished the recovery cycle and are currently in the phase of total body conditioning. If you belong to this group, you may begin with run-walk intervals. This can for example be a four-minute run with a two-minute walk, alternating for a total of 20 to 30 minutes. In the period of adaptation of the skeletal system, it is essential for you to focus on the frequency of running rather than on its volume, meaning three, 30-minute interval workouts a week will be a better solution than a continuous run of 1.5 hours once a week. At this stage, running will enable you to maintain the condition of your cardiovascular system and will bring variety into your cycling training. When you move into more advanced training sessions, you should consider stopping your running due to its high risk of injury.

*Running for a Mountain Cyclist*
With regard to mountain cyclists, total body condition is of greater significance, thus, if you belong to this group of cyclists, you may treat running as an alternative form of aerobic endurance training in the pre-base training period. Frequently, after your first season's peak race, running can also bring variety to your training, and it can also be a good idea for training during holidays to maintain fitness when perhaps cycling is not an option. What is more, when you are running, you improve your body balance and the neuromuscular coordination, which is necessary for mountain biking. An enhanced body stability and total body condition may reduce the risk of injury in mountain biking. From my experience as a coach, I have found that running has a good psychological influence as it breaks the monotony of cycling training sessions and may "rebuild" an athlete suffering from overtraining or performance burnout.

*Running For a Cyclocross Cyclists*
Last but not least, there is the group of cyclocross cyclists for whom running is much more frequently applied in their pre-base training period. A remarkable cyclocross cyclist, Niels Albert, performs 30-minute run sessions once a week for most of his season. During such a training session, he repeats some sprints, uphills and downhills, but his sessions never last more than 30 minutes. Moreover, he never uses a bike during these run sessions. A regular and relatively short running session should then be treated as a part of one's regular training cycle in cyclocross.

To sum up, depending on your main discipline and the preparation period, run training will perform different roles. Nevertheless, in order to avoid training injury, such training should always be implemented into the training plan under the supervision of an experienced coach.

sauce https://www.trainingpeaks.com/blog/is-running-good-for-a-cyclist/


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

Kickass day for a run (Funday). Balmy 3c. Much to see along the way. I met a wee frenchie Canadian; I was scrutinized from a safe distance by a barn cat; an empty nest caught my eye. and I stumbled upon an eyesore of empty booze bottles. Another 18km completed for the books!


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

I have not experienced a stitch but from what I've read, concentrating on breathing patterns helps, an empty stomach (or eat light before a run) and having a strong core is also helpful to some.

When you get a stitch in your side, what's really going on?



> Before the mile run each year in middle school, on the dreaded walk down from the classroom to the course, my classmates would argue over the best way to prevent a side stitch. More so than turning an ankle or coming in last, that repetitive stabbing pain is what the majority of us dreaded most. Our cures ranged across the map from taught techniques, like breathing in through the nose and out through the mouth and not eating for three hours prior, to my favorite: Punching yourself in the stomach at the slightest hint of pain (don't try it, it doesn't work).
> 
> There's a medical term for that stabbing side cramp: exercise-related transient abdominal pain, or ETAP. And it's far from rare. Around two-thirds of runners experience them every year. But unfortunately for middle schoolers, elite athletes, and weekend joggers everywhere, this medical term does not come with a medical solution. There's no standard advice for how to prevent a side stitch, says sports chiropractor Brad Muir, because we don't know the mechanism that produces the pain in the first place. "It's still up in the air."
> 
> ...


sauce https://www.popsci.com/what-is-side...-cw-B53-WzcYXEtL0cL1C4CvPVBZAKwgtlnydm7zJl_iI


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

Happy Solstice! May your happiness grow greater as the days grow longer. I took the day off work and did one final run for the fall season. 18 km and always something interesting along the way. I found my #1 fan at the Humber trailhead; and discovered a loooong hose going down to the ravine.. I wonder if Ginger the missing cat followed that hose???  Hope she didn't use up all her 9 lives and returns home soon.


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## chazpat (Sep 23, 2006)

cyclelicious said:


> Happy Solstice! May your happiness grow greater as the days grow longer. I took the day off work and did one final run for the fall season. 18 km and always something interesting along the way. I found my #1 fan at the Humber trailhead; and discovered a loooong hose going down to the ravine.. I wonder if Ginger the missing cat followed that hose???  Hope she didn't use up all her 9 lives and returns home soon.


They filled the creek up using the fire hydrant? 

Gym/showers at work finally reopened so I gotta get back to running.


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

chazpat said:


> They filled the creek up using the fire hydrant?
> 
> Gym/showers at work finally reopened so I gotta get back to running.


That hose went on forever...


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

We did a 15km funday morning run-ride pairing


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## Pelon (Dec 7, 2004)

*56 year old truck driver*

I have a dedicated run that keeps me on the road 5 days a week so I only get 2 to 3 rides i a week so i try to run at least twice usuly only about 1 to 2 miles but it keeps me moving and that keeps me in shape to to ride


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## chazpat (Sep 23, 2006)

Noticed as I put my suit on for Christmas Eve service, it was a bit tighter around the waist getting the pants on. I gotta get back to running! I also seem to feel my rides a bit more afterwards than when I'm running regularly.


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

Christmas Day 13km run-ride pairing along the river. We saw a couple of runners and dog walkers this morning; Chris was the only rider and a big hawk watched us. The best and happiest times spent are with those you love and doing the things you love


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

Christmas Day 13km run-ride pairing along the river. We saw a couple of runners and dog walkers this morning; Chris was the only rider and a big hawk watched us. The best and happiest times spent are with those you love and doing the things you love


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

On Friday, I took advantage of the fall-like 12C temp. and did a quick 17km run after work! There were other outdoor enthusiasts besides me: other runner, a cyclist on the path, a motorcyclist and a trucker having a mechanical. As the sun was setting, fog was rolling in and the temps sadly, began to drop again


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## Forest Rider (Oct 29, 2018)

I ran a 3 mile trail run. I was shooting for the 6 mile loop, but honestly didn't want to spend that much time on the run as I may have needed to walk it off a time or two. These days, 4 miles are my typical. And by typical I mean once every few weeks.

I've got a (non running related) knee injury that is aging so less miles are better miles.
I love trail running. It's so quiet in contrast to mountain bike riding. It's peaceful. I get a great workout. It's great head space. It requires far less focus on the trail. And it is easier preparation (just throw on a pair of shorts and off ya go!

I should try for a new years eve, or new years morning run. Either finish off the year with a run, or start the year off with a run.
Aside from Christmas, I did run the 6 mile loop Thanksgiving day. Garmin records confirmed it had been a year since running 6 miles (same loop, Thanksgiving the year before).

I miss half marathons. I enjoyed the training for the short, fast races. I miss the self-discipline that came with running.

Looking forward to the next run!


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

My grand total distance running for 2018 is 1554 km. That's like running from Toronto to Winterpeg, Manitoba!!!. I gained 346 km from last year. Not too shabby stats, since I started running in 2015. I am stoked to train more and to set new running goals which include fitness (strength and endurance) and health goals for 2019. I'm still riding twice a week and getting stronger too. A few memories from this year.


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## Forest Rider (Oct 29, 2018)

Congratulations on the mileage increase.
It's such a good feeling for such an accomplishment.

Good job!


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

Thank you forest rider! I started all over again Jan 1! Our weather has been affecting the trails. A combo of ice in the shade and mud in the sunny sections. So I've been running more this week than riding

It was cold and we got some snowfall yesterday








Someone declares their one love...








you had one job








Ice doillies on the river


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## Forest Rider (Oct 29, 2018)

It definitely takes a certain level of dedication, and desire, to get out for a run in those conditions.

I've run a few races at 30 degrees or so at the start. Definitely takes a bit to warm up.

I thought it was cold on NYE when I ran in the 40's. haha It only took a mile to get comfortable though.

I was happy to run my 6 mile loop. haha

It was breezy that day but otherwise very peaceful. There were a few areas sheltered from the breeze making it dead silent.


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## tworst (Dec 16, 2018)

I started running a couple years ago at 53. But only run 3 or 4 hundred miles a year. Just bought a mountain bike a little while ago and did my first ride yesterday. Haven't ridden in 10 years. Started running to loose wight, stress and just for some exercise. Just thought I would get back into MB to change things up some. At least I am in average shape and weight from running before getting back on a bike. First ride was only for an hour, and I thought I was up for it, but man, it works different muscles and I am a bit sore today. It was fun though. Running is good because I can just put on a pair of shoes and head out my front door. Adding MB to the mix means I have to drive some place and sure does cost a lot more but the change up should be good.


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## chazpat (Sep 23, 2006)

As some of you may remember, the office building I work at closed the gym and thus the showers for renovations, putting an end to my before work runs. This was back the beginning of October. The rest of the month, I managed to get a run in on a couple of weekends but my last run of 2018 was Oct. 27th.

Well, they reopened the gym right before Christmas but then I was on vacation and it mostly rained here so I didn't run. I even briefly thought about stopping for good, but then remembered that I enjoy trail running so why quit? I was apprehensive about how discouraging it was going to be, I figured I'd want to quit on the first hill. But I went out Saturday and ran 3.25 miles nonstop. I'm planning on running tomorrow before work.

A few observations. I think I gained 5-10 pounds, though I usually gain some in the winter. After bike rides, I felt more stiff than I have in the past; I once rode with a friend and he mentioned how he would feel it the next day (he's younger than me) and I was really puzzled as I don't normally feel any different after riding. I'm sure that's from going from 3-4 physical activities a week down to just one. I've definitely lost fitness on the bike, probably a combination of not running and going from twice a week riding to once a week riding (due to the shorter days and really busy at work) and with all the rain we've had the last couple of moths pushing me to road biking without a lot of climbing, climbing on the mtb today wore me out quick.


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

^ You'll get back into a routine !


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

*5 Reasons Long-Distance Runners Should Race Short Distances Too*









The phrase '5 Kilometers' for most marathoners and ultra marathoners is commonly used to describe how far they have left in a race. Rarely does it describe the entirety of the event they plan to race. But you should consider the big benefits you can reap from racing short distance races, even if your ambitions have you going long this fall

*Aerobic Capacity*
Training for short distance races has big benefits for your aerobic capacity. Most endurance athletes are rockstars at low to moderate intensity exercise. However when you tap into high end work you can see big results in a relatively short amount of time. Consider that training for a 5km-10km race will require you to do structured speed work, and in the process, develop your body to utilize more oxygen (aerobic capacity). The more oxygen that can be consumed, the more physical work you'll be able to do.

*Density is everything*
Short distance running and the training it requires can improve the flow of oxygenated blood to muscle tissue, and in turn can improve mitochondrial density. Mitochondria are muscle cells that help produce Adenosine Triphosphate (ATP), which is the actual fuel that supplies muscle contractions. If you improve a muscle's ability to use oxygen for shorter distances - you can see big benefits for a long race. Think of this as a major physiological benefit of short distance training for long distance runners.

*Endurance won't just disappear*
Long distance runners fear that if they exchange some long slow running for a few short days - they'll lose the ability to be strong over time. You might consider that athletes who train for a mix of events tend to have better running economy, and ultimately have the ability to change gears and tackle technical sections in longer races. Integrating speed work into your training cycle and preparing for a 5K or 10k race increases your efficiency, and can increase your baseline aerobic running pace.

*Leg speed and efficiency are boosted*
It's good to change speed and increase turn over. Using high aerobic workouts will increase your leg speed and help you become a more efficient runner. Turn over at your top end brings big benefits to your easy aerobic running pace. The same applies for lactate mitigation. By putting your body in a high lactate state, and allowing it to recover teaches your body to mitigate larger amounts of lactate over time. This ultimately helps your baseline easy running to help your body more efficiently handle the smaller amount of lactate produced at low to moderate aerobic intensities.

*Balance in integration*
Adding in high aerobic workouts in preparation for a short distance race should be integrated with caution, and with a goal of building your time at a high heart rate over time. Keep to the 10% rule for new runners who are integrating this into their training regimen. If you did 12:00 of high intensity continuous work in week 2, you should complete 13.5 up to 15 minutes of work in the following week.

High aerobic work requires a significant amount of energy to complete so if you're looking to keep a mileage number you might want to pad your work with warm up and cool down miles or utilize a second run on the day of a focused session at a very low heart rate to help flush out any waste produced from your high aerobic session.

*Give it a try*
Training for and racing 5km and 10km races and taking time to integrate the training into your build up for a long distance race will absolutely provide a benefit. It will help you not only increase your baseline running pace, but will help direct the rest of your long distance racing for your season. These types of events can fit anywhere in your training if there is a goal and intent to the training or race. You may find a big benefit in doing this work early and using these races as building blocks early on, or even using them to test your fitness acumen in later stages of sharpening for a half, full, or ultra.

sauce https://www.trainingpeaks.com/blog/5-reasons-long-distance-runners-should-race-short-distances-too/


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## chazpat (Sep 23, 2006)

cyclelicious said:


> ^ You'll get back into a routine !


You must spread some Reputation around before giving it to cyclelicious again.

Still???

Thanks! I ran again yesterday morning. One of the two new showers already has an "Out of Order" sign on it. Fortunately, there's not a big demand for them, especially since I come in a little late. Also no more free soap.


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

I would not be able to adopt his running strategy. Just 'mirin' He was in a league of his own! Not just ran, but a full-fledged marathon! Dude was in extraordinary shape. He was Vegan too! R.I.P.









The Clash's Joe Strummer once ran the Paris Marathon after drinking 10 pints of beer


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

Cold run today -14c. 18km. Chris joined me on the bike at the halfway mark. River still isn't frozen but he found a sliver of ice for the studs


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

*Dog Accidentally Runs Half-Marathon After Being Let Out For Pee, Finishes 7th*









Imagine training for months and months for a gruelling, 13.5 mile marathon to be beaten by Ludivine, the two-and-a-half year old Bloodhound.

Well that's what happened in the Elkmont Trackless Train Half Marathon in Canada, when a hound decided to join in the fun after being let out for a wee-wee.

He crawled under the garden fence, ran towards the start-line and well, the rest is history.

Ludivine, who eventually finished seventh in the race, even stopped at the two-mile point to sniff a dead rabbit.

It is also believed that the dog went off track on a number of occasions, including the moment he played with a herd of cows. THIS ACTUALLY HAPPENED..

That didn't stop him from securing a respectable position, though, crossing the line in just over an hour-and-a-half.

Elkmont's Hound Dog Half's official Facebook page posted a number of pictures of Ludivine participating in the half-marathon and well, it might be the greatest album of all time.

The dog was given a medal for her efforts, as owner April Hamlin, 41, described the moment following her impressive finish.

"All I did was open the door, and she ran the race on her own accord," she told Runner's World.

"My first reaction was that I was embarrassed and worried that she had possibly gotten in the way of the other runners."

"She's laid back and friendly, so I can't believe she ran the whole half marathon because she's actually really lazy,"









Jim Clemens, who finished fourth in the half marathon said: "Every time I thought she had dropped off to go back home, I would hear her coming back up to me and she would race past me up to the two leaders.

"She would run off to romp through the streams and into yards to sniff around for a while."

This might just be my favourite story of all-time, ever.

Congratulations to Ludivine the Bloodhound. Enjoy your success.









sauce Dog Accidentally Runs Half-Marathon After Being Let Out For Pee, Finishes 7th - SPORTbible


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## chazpat (Sep 23, 2006)

^ I remember reading about that when it happened; great story! I always laugh when I see a person running with their dog, the person is working really hard for some speed while the dog is just casually trotting along.


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

*3 Key Elements of Base Training for Runners*









Although "long slow distance" (LSD) has become synonymous with base training for runners, this comprises only part of what you need to do to prepare for higher intensity training and racing later in the season. A well-rounded base training program should integrate those staple LSD runs at "conversational pace," along with short sprints to develop neuromuscular speed and drills to develop good form.

*Long Slow Distance (LSD)*
Regardless of your training phase, the bulk of your training should be comprised of endurance runs in your aerobic zones. However, during base training, you'll want to really emphasize building the distance or duration of these endurance runs. Depending upon your starting fitness level, an 'endurance run' can be anywhere from 20 minutes up to a few hours or longer-the point is that you remain in an aerobic zone.

In other words, do these runs at a pace that is conversational. The effort should be comfortable enough that you could hold an ongoing conversation with a training partner. To stay relaxed and keep it conversational, focus on breathing through your nose. If you use a heart rate monitor, this intensity will correspond to Zone 2 in the seven-zone system.

The purpose of these workouts is to develop the ability to better metabolize fat and spare glycogen as a long duration energy source (glycogen is the stored form of carbohydrate in the muscles and liver). Designate one of these runs each week as your "long run." As your base training progresses, gradually increase the distance or duration of this long run. Shorter runs at this conversational pace can incorporate the two additional elements of base training described below.

*Acceleration Striders*
Acceleration striders are short bursts of speed less than 10 seconds in duration. You can do these in the middle of any of your endurance runs. Start off with four per run, once or twice a week as you begin base training. You can eventually build up to 12 or more.

Although these speed bursts, often called "alactics," do utilize anaerobic energy pathways, they are not long enough in duration to tap the lactic acid system. Short alactic striders therefore allow you to develop your muscles, ligaments and tendons without taxing the body the way longer lactic intervals do. Developing these supporting structures provides a solid base upon which you can add higher intensity aerobic and anaerobic work as your training progresses. Alactics also condition the fast-twitch and intermediate fast-twitch muscle fibers-even long-distance runners use these fibers during prolonged activity.

I like to do acceleration striders on the infield of a track, but you can also do them on the track itself, on a non-technical dirt trail or on a grassy field at a park (avoid pavement when possible). Start off easy and gradually pick up your pace until you're at full speed. Hold that top speed for up to 10 seconds; then wind it back down. Think of these striders as "feel good speed"-you want to feel good going fast. Focus on good form. Don't worry about your time or heart rate during the accelerations, and allow yourself full recovery in between (about 2-3 minutes of easy running).

*Running Drills*
The final piece of base training involves drills to instantiate good movement patterns and to work on any weaknesses in your form. You can incorporate 5-10 minutes of drills into an endurance run (along with your acceleration striders) or an easy recovery run. Do this once or twice per week during base training. Here are my top-three must-do drills (for more drills and video demonstrations see my previous article, Drills for Proper Running Form).

*CARIOCA OR GRAPEVINE*
As you move sideways, cross one leg over the other in front and then behind. Hold your arms out to the side to begin. Once you get the hang of the drill, use the same arm motion as you use while running and do a high knee crossover. This drill targets the stabilizing muscles that play a secondary but nevertheless important role in running.
*
A-SKIP*
For the A-skip, skip with high knees. As you bring your leg down, pull backwards. Focus on initiating that pull from the glutes and pulling through with the hamstrings. This will engrain the essential backward-pulling motion into muscle memory. Use the same arm motion during this drill as you use while running.

*BUTT KICK*
This drill also trains that backward pulling motion, which is central to running propulsion. Start the butt kick drill as you would the A-skip drill-that is, by pulling backwards with your glutes and hamstrings. Follow through by kicking your heel up to your butt. As you recover and drive forward, keep your knees high and use the same arm motion as you do while running.

Consistent implementation of these three base training components early in the season will help you develop a solid aerobic and neuromuscular running base, which you can build upon as the season progresses

sauce https://www.trainingpeaks.com/blog/3-key-elements-of-base-training-for-runners/


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

*THE SCIENCE OF COLD-WEATHER RUNNING*



> Cold temperatures are on the way for runners all over the country. While humans are very good at acclimating to hot weather (we increase our sweat rate and skin blood flow), we are relatively poor at acclimating to cold weather. Because of this, cold weather poses a unique challenge for runners. Here, I'll tell you why the cold slows you down and what you can do about it.
> 
> One way the cold temperatures can negatively influence your running performance is by decreasing muscle force production. Cold muscles contract with less force than warm muscles. The cold also changes the neural recruitment pattern of muscle fibers (basically, the brain changes the way it signals muscles to contract), which results in less efficient contractions and further reduces muscle force. This means you'll have to increase your effort to maintain the same pace, which isn't ideal for performance-oriented runners. How can you counteract this? First, do a dynamic warm-up (lunges, squats, clamshells, donkey kicks, etc.) indoors before going out and running in the cold; this will increase muscle temperature and blood flow. Second, wear running pants or tights when the temperature drops to near- or below-freezing levels. Sure, it might look tough to run in shorts when it is zero degrees out, but you don't get a bonus in races for being a dumbass.
> 
> ...


sauce https://www.neelyruns.com/blog/2018/10/19/the-science-of-cold-weather-running


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)




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## DIRTJUNKIE (Oct 18, 2000)

chazpat said:


> ^ I remember reading about that when it happened; great story! I always laugh when I see a person running with their dog, the person is working really hard for some speed while the dog is just casually trotting along.


Hilarious! Dogs are awesome.


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

Another runner-dog pairing story

This woman ran 19 miles of a marathon carrying a lost puppy









Runner Khemjira Klongsanun was seven miles into the Chombueng marathon in Ratchaburi, Western Thailand, when she saw runners dodging a puppy. Stopping at the side of the road, Klongsanun attempted to coax the trembling puppy over to her.

With no houses nearby, Klongsanun concluded that the pup must have been abandoned. Rather than leaving it behind, she carried it for the next 19-miles, crossing the finish line with the pup in her arms.

She later shared an adorable photo of the puppy, evidently exhausted after being a passenger on the marathon, curled up on her race number with her medal.

Fortunately for the pup, this isn't where his story ends. Klongsanun appealed for the owner of the puppy to come forward, and when nobody did, she adopted the pup, naming him Chombueng. He now lives with her and her other two dogs.

Telling press, "'It seemed to me that this little guy was lost. There were no houses, no other dogs, or no people around. So, I picked up the puppy, if only to take him out of the unsafe environment.

"Running almost 20 miles carrying dog was truly a challenge. It was two times tiring than a normal marathon but I did it anyway just because he is adorable."

"It took a lot of time to take the new dog for checkups, vaccinations, and treatments but I'm glad to save him and willing to have him with other dog members in the family.

"It might take a while for him to adapt himself. But Chombueng is a very smart boy. I'm sure he is going to be happy living with us."

sauce https://www.runnersworld.com/uk/new...l&utm_source=facebook.com&utm_campaign=buffer


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

Superb owl day 20km run-ride pairing. A little of everything: pavement, packed trails and river ice! Spotted a young palliated woodpecker chipping trees. Kickass sno daze.


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

Runner kills mountain lion that attacked him on Colorado trail

A trail runner fought off and killed a mountain lion in self-defense in northern Colorado on Monday, state officials said.

The runner, who wasn't identified, was attacked on the West Ridge Trail at Horsetooth Mountain Open Space in Larimer County near Fort Collins, Colorado Parks and Wildlife, or CPW, said in a statement.

Authorities didn't say how the runner managed to kill the mountain lion, which they described as a "juvenile." They said the lion lunged at the runner, biting his face and wrist and causing serious but non-life-threatening injuries.

Wildlife officers found the mountain lion's body within a few feet of some of the man's possessions, authorities said.

"The runner did everything he could to save his life," said Mark Leslie, CPW's Northeast region manager. "In the event of a lion attack you need to do anything in your power to fight back, just as this gentleman did."

Mountain lion attacks on people are rare, with fewer than 20 people having been killed by one in North America in more than 100 years, state officials said. The last attack in Colorado was reported in June 2016, when a 5-year-old boy was seriously injured outside his home in Pitkin County, west of Denver. The boy survived.

sauce https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-new...hAWn90WSBcwaNo0Mesc-RM-UaB5GYHRqN-HhOG-SmBiMY


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## ddoh (Jan 11, 2017)

I find this amazing (borderline unbelievable). My arms would be scratched down to the bone if I tried to strangle my 8 pound domestic cat.


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)




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## Forest Rider (Oct 29, 2018)

cyclelicious said:


> View attachment 1237365


lol


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

The race where everyone's a winner


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## Forest Rider (Oct 29, 2018)

cyclelicious said:


> The race where everyone's a winner
> 
> View attachment 1238458


That's great!


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

I did a brisk 16km run on funday. The sidewalks and paths were dry and mainly icy or crusty snow covered and choppy. Good training and good mileage. I survived without falling 

The sun came out for 10 seconds








Crusty and choppy pathways








Ice starting to form again on the river ... surface is too thin. Even the animals are walking along the edge








Cold and white


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## Forest Rider (Oct 29, 2018)

Running on the icy surfaces is GREAT training, using muscles you don't usually use.

Good job on the distance.


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

I had pretty good traction and changed my stride and weight distribution when I encountered ice patches or the choppy sections.

I have my clothing and shoes dialled in. In my experience, it's my face and fingers that are hardest to keep warm. The rest stays warm so long as you keep moving.


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

I live in a hilly area and most of my routes (running or riding) hills are almost unavoidable. I found this article helpful.

*The 5 Different Types of Hill Work You Should Be Doing Now*

Frank Shorter is known for saying, "Hills are speed work in disguise." His quote is true whether you're going up the hill or down it. You just need to make sure you don't avoid doing it. Hills are massively beneficial for athletes. Running them regularly not only provides technical skills so you can run up them better in races, but they also provide strength gains from fighting the grade and gravity. These strength gains evoke physical adaptations not seen anywhere else in training.

*Mechanical Benefits of Hill Work*
When we think about strength we often think about weight training and repetition. Hills are approached in much the same manner in terms of sets and repetitions. What you gain mechanically from hills that you can't gain from weight training lies in the mechanical benefits of proper foot strike, lean and form practice. Anything you do repetitively induces a neuromuscular response. So if you continually do something wrong, you will do it more often.

The beautiful part of uphill running is that it is very difficult to run hills with poor form. The increased grade of a hill requires a forward lean, forefoot strike, and an efficient arm swing. Practicing hills is form practice with a massive aerobic benefit.

Uphill running also provides a large neuromuscular benefit as you are engaging a large number of muscle groups, which work together to create a more powerful and active neural network. When you awaken parts of your body or challenge it through stimulus, you can expect a response. It is not uncommon for an athlete to be extremely mentally taxed after a strenuous hill workout.

Hills aren't just a one-way option. Downhill running can have big benefits for athletes but should be approached with caution due to the risk of injury. Short, steep downhills can be a great place for sprint- and short-distance runners to practice overspeed training. This requires you to have excellent form and the ability to match leg speed to the ground. This is truly only recommended for experienced runners on smooth dirt roads or grassy hills.

Technical descending is also a huge part of trail running that requires practice and mastery. Hand and foot coordination can be aided through ladder and speed drills commonly done by power sports athletes. The more technical trail the more mentally taxing it can be as speed and technicality mean your brain has to plan further (and farther!) ahead.

*Physiological Advantage of Hill Running*
Hill workouts can be manipulated in many ways through five variables: grade, intensity, volume, length, and time. Any of these variables can be combined to create results in a specific stimulus. A few examples below show how you can tweak workouts to achieve certain results; it's up to you or your coach to define how to use hills to gain an advantage. Hills require eccentric and concentric movement patterns, which are the basic building blocks of any athlete's development. You will see that both power athletes and endurance athletes use hills to start off a cycle, or touch on it throughout training to increase efficiency.

*SHORT STEEP HILLS (<12 SEC, 10+ PERCENT GRADE)*
Short and steep requires a huge neuromuscular response and raw power requirement. If kept truly anaerobic, no lactate is produced so the higher rep version can be used as a pre-workout (day before) neuromuscular stimulus-similar to strides.

Low reps/ high intensity: neuromuscular development, anaerobic development, and raw power
High reps/ moderate intensity: neuromuscular development, mechanical practice and speed development

*SHORT STEEP HILLS (>12 SEC, 10+ PERCENT GRADE)*
Slightly longer reps can work on extending a response from the last category. Athletes can take burst speed and extend it to lasting power. Most athletes should approach this with max effort, slower running will not provide the mechanical or neuromuscular advantage these are designed for.

Low rep/ high intensity: neuromuscular development, high aerobic development, burst strength and power
High rep/ moderate intensity: neuromuscular development, high aerobic development, fatigue resistance and mechanical speed

*MODERATE HILLS (12 TO 30 SECONDS, 6-PERCENT TO 10-PERCENT GRADE)*
Longer hills provide more time to marinate in lactate. Changing rest between reps has the same effect as extended or shortened rest between interval reps on a track. Most athletes should approach these efforts with one-mile to sprint-type efforts.

Low rep/ high intensity: neuromuscular development, mechanical speed and high aerobic development
High rep/ moderate intensity: Neuromuscular development, high aerobic development, fatigue resistance and mechanical speed

*LONG HILLS (30 SECONDS TO ONE MINUTE, 4-PERCENT TO 10-PERCENT GRADE)*
The longer you make the hill, the less maximal intensity you can apply. However, long hills can provide a fatigue-resistance benefit where you are working at the critical zone sooner than flat interval running. Basic athletes will approach efforts of this length at one mile to 5K-type effort.

Low rep/ high intensity: neuromuscular development, increased mechanical recruitment and increased fatigue resistance
High rep/ moderate intensity: neuromuscular development, high-to-moderate aerobic development, fatigue resistance and mechanical repetition

*EXTENDED HILLS AND HILL CLIMBS (1 MINUTE AND LONGER, 4-PERCENT TO 10-PERCENT GRADE)*
Hills in the one to three-minute range are considered extended hills and are normally utilized extensively for longer-distance athletes as fatigue resistance and lactate buffering workouts. The hill climb is used as a major tool for fatigue resistance, and can provide positive neuromuscular benefits due to the extended time utilizing proper form. Extended hills are done at 5K to half marathon effort as anything more intense would likely result in a large pace disparity for more than three repetitions.

Low rep/ high intensity: neuromuscular development, fatigue resistance, lactate buffering, mechanical repetition and muscular recruitment

High rep/ moderate intensity: neuromuscular development, high-to-moderate aerobic development, fatigue resistance, lactate buffering, muscular recruitment and mechanical repetition

Long climbs: fatigue resistance, neuromuscular recruitment, lactate buffering and mental stamina

*When Should You Run Hills?*
There is no bad time to add in hill work as it can be used at the beginning of a cycle to recruit fast-twitch muscles for a sprinter or middle-distance athlete. It can be used early on as intro speed work and is a great tool for injury-prone athletes as it builds form and strength simultaneously. It is also good for newer runners to practice hills to learn good running form habits.

Hills can also be used in the middle of a cycle and touched on throughout a season. Extended climbs can be a good replacement for athletes mentally burned out on track repetitions. You can also mix-and-match intervals with hills to create a workout that has a sting at the end with hills to work on lactate buffering, and mental resistance teaching athletes good form and intensity once they're already tired.

Hills are many coaches' secret weapon to creating a powerful aerobic machine that is both strong and resistant to large loads of lactate. Don't be afraid when you see a hill in your next workout, use it as an opportunity to focus on form!

sauce https://www.trainingpeaks.com/blog/the-5-different-types-of-hill-work-you-should-be-doing-now/


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

15 km run-ride. Very mild temps in the morning, with weather turning to very high winds and rain/sleet/snow at the end of the run. We lucked out during a window of opportunity.

Contributing to packing down the path








Took the elevated (and slightly drier) route








Chris dug a trench 








Found a random heart, just as the rain\sleet\snow started... 2km left before home


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

I have not run a marathon. I liked this article because it has some good tips and insights for anyone planning to run longer distances

*Science helped me run my first marathon in 3 hours and 21 minutes*

UNTIL JUNE 2018, I HAD NEVER RUN more than 14 miles at once. I jogged often, and had completed a couple of half-marathons, but nothing more. As such, doubling that distance seemed far out of my reach.

But shortly after, I was given the opportunity to gain a spot reserved for media to run the 2018 Chicago Marathon in October (through Nike, one of the marathon's official sponsors). With access to top-level coaching and gear, I had an opportunity to see how elite athletes set themselves up for success-and I wanted to find out what the average human can learn from their tricks. I set out to understand how evolution, technology, and know-how can come together to propel the human body across 26.2 miles. Here's what I learned, and how it can help you run a marathon of your own.

*00.00 miles*
Marathons have become far more popular in the past few decades than they had been at any other time in the past-and especially among women. After a sharp rise starting in 1990, a peak in 2013, followed by a slight decline in the following years, marathon participation has leveled off, but remains a popular event for amateur and elite runners alike. In 2000, some 299,000 Americans ran one, 37.5 percent of whom were women. In 2016, more than half a million folks crossed the finish line, 44 percent of them women. Alongside this popularity, scientists-and shoe companies-have advanced research into the physiology and technology that make athletes speedier.

At first glance, nothing in my background suggested I could run such a long course. I participated in a few sports in high school, but not track or cross country. My dad jogs strictly for health reasons, my mother abhors the suggestion, and I don't have any sprinters hiding up my family tree. But many scientists and anthropologists maintain that you don't need to be from a long line of elites; the skill is in our DNA. Christopher McDougall argues in the runner's cult classic Born to Run that evolution hard-wired the human body for jogging. The hypothesis goes that back when **** sapiens and Neanderthals shared hunting territory, our super power as a species was our ability to chase down prey by steadily trotting behind it until the animal collapsed from exhaustion-what anthropologists call persistence hunting. Small pockets of modern hunter-gatherer societies, such as the Kalahari Bushman of southern Africa and the Tarahumara (or Rarámuri) people of Mexico's Chihuahua region, still use this method, albeit far more infrequently.

While humans aren't as fast as some sprinters in the animal kingdom, we rule at endurance because of a key physiological difference. To cool off, other mammals expel extra heat by panting. It's a great method-until they start running and all of a sudden their bodies need deep breaths of oxygen to keep going. Unable to pant and breathe at the same time, they ultimately overheat and collapse. Humans have a marvelous workaround: Because we sweat through pores in our skin, we're able to keep our respiration steady as we trot. Our species' history means that most healthy humans should be able to jog a marathon.

*03.10 miles*
Like running a marathon itself, training for one is most fun at the start. But fMRI studies show that our brains react to novel experiences by releasing the feel-good neurotransmitter dopamine. Surprised by the resulting happiness, we seek out the reward again and again. That scientific insight certainly applied to me: I had never trained rigorously for a race before this one, so each workout was an entirely new experience. That's my first takeaway: You shouldn't assume the process will be miserable or grueling. It's going to be difficult, but the fact that it's new will make it kind of addictive.

The exact amount of time it takes for someone to train varies. Elite or professional runners who already have a high level of conditioning, or physical strength, might need as little as 12 weeks, whereas someone with little or no experience might require 6 months or more. I had recently run a half-marathon, and hadn't lost much of my conditioning. My heart, lungs, and muscles still worked together efficiently as I ran. My coach, a Nike-affiliated trainer named Jes Woods, decided to give me a 14-week training plan.

Getting your body ready for a marathon means ensuring your muscles will be able to perform for 26.2 miles. That ability, and how fast you can complete the distance in, depends on a multitude of factors including weight, sex, genetics (to a certain extend), and the energy efficiency of our form. Even tiny things that are almost unnoticeable can make a difference. For instance, Woods pointed out that I tend to cross my arms in front of me, which is inefficient. Some runners tend to strike the ground heel first, also not optimal. Your performance also depends on what shape or condition you are in, what many people colloquially call fitness. That's where proper training comes in-which enables you to run faster and for longer before your muscles fail you.

Ambitiously, I told Woods that I wanted to run the race somewhere in the range of three hours and 40 minutes-fast but not crazy-fast. For reference, qualifying times for the Boston Marathon are, as of 2020, three hours and thirty minutes for women in my age group (18-34) and three hours flat for men of my same cohort. The Boston Marathon is unique in that you must qualify to compete, whereas others, like my race, the Chicago Marathon, is lottery-based. I chose my goal time based on how I did in my most recent half-marathon. Running at about an 8-minute-mile pace, I remembered being tired but not exhausted, and I recovered quickly; there was definitely room for improvement. Woods conservatively said we'd start with that goal and see how I did. Fitness builds up slowly. It's hard to predict how someone without years of experience will react to an increase in mileage.

Luckily for me, Woods is an expert. Whatever query I had, she always had the answer. And I had many: How long is the break between these two sets? What actually is a progression run? Should I get one of those belt things that holds your hydration gels?

Her quick, detailed, and accurate answers were vital, but even more valuable was the security I gained from them. A runner's coach erects an athlete's confidence like a brick wall: Each tailored workout, question answered, and shared training session slowly builds a sturdy base of self-assurance and a barrier between the runner and any misgivings. A coach is by no means necessary. But if you've got the resources to hire one, it's definitely helpful.

My curated plan included four different phases (or "blocks") of workouts: base (with paces that matched my current fitness state), initial, transition, and final (with paces that were a bit faster than my goal for the marathon). The first three phases lasted a month each, and the last one two weeks.

I followed the same workout pattern throughout: Mondays I cross-trained (almost exclusively by swimming, a sport I'd competed in through high school). Tuesdays I usually did some type of track workout focused on speed rather than endurance. On Wednesdays I always did a recovery run, a less-demanding pace that encourage muscle growth. Thursdays meant either hill repeats (just as it sounds: You run up a hill and then back down, just so you can tackle the beast again) or a sustained speed run. These runs are faster than a marathon pace but are performed for a shorter period of time. An ideal example is a tempo run, which is a steady clip that's just below your maximum effort. Woods explained it to me as a speed you could handle for an hour (if necessary). Fridays were a rest day. Saturdays were reserved for crucial long runs, and on Sundays I could choose between a recovery run and a rest day, though I almost always chose to run.









With each new phase, my marathon pace (the time per mile that I could run steadily) would improve, and as Woods slowly increased my mileage and the speed, the times within the phases increased as well. For both long runs and total weekly mileage, the number of miles ebbed and flowed, with "down" weeks with less miles and "up" weeks with more. This allows your body to further recover throughout the process. Woods also tried to keep my longest runs slow, but, as it turns out, I hate a good slow jog, so she set a limit of no faster than an 8:30 minute per mile pace for any recovery, easy, or long run-no exceptions. For ideal training, though, long runs should be at a pace that is about 60 to 90 seconds slower than your goal speed for the marathon.

*13.1 miles*
Somewhat counterintuitively, the hardest workouts for me to nail were the Wednesday recovery runs. Running slowly-knowing you are physically capable of going much faster-is a mental struggle. However, as Woods routinely pointed out, recovery runs are crucial. Prior to this training, I'd prepared for all road races the same way: Run at the same pace for an increasing number of miles. Sadly, I was way behind on the evidence-based best practices. Seriously: If you want to get faster, sometimes you gotta go slow.

Recovery runs, which indeed sound like an oxymoron, are an important counterpart to speed workouts. The latter ever so slightly breaks down the muscles, causing tiny tears that heal over with more muscle cells: a net gain. But this can happen only if you give the muscles a chance to recover. You have to have rest days if you want to put on muscle, and if you're training for a marathon, you have to spend some days running at a maddeningly slow pace.

You also have to get used to running for long periods of time. Each week, I logged more miles, starting at 8 and culminating with two 20-mile runs six weeks and four weeks before the race. This is crucial for training the mind to handle marathon day. The more runs you do, the more familiar you become with them. And though they don't actually get shorter, you'll get better at tuning out the passage of time and focusing on your body's machinations.









*18 miles*
As I was puffing up the same slope for the fifth time one morning-my last hill workout, just a few weeks before the race-I found myself falling off pace by a second or two with each additional climb. I remember wondering if a fancier shoe might give me the boost I needed to keep up my speed. That wasn't total fantasy: What you put on your body-and especially your feet-makes a difference. Items such as a properly fitting bra, for example, can make all the difference.

The brunt of running research has gone into sneaker tech, and running shoes have come a long way. Designers have modified for better comfort, support, grip, and tread. The focus these days is on the shoe's energy return and weight: More of the former and the less of the latter means a faster performance. With each stride, muscles generate energy. Some of that power transfers down to the shoes. Energy return, then, is the percent of that energy a shoe gives back as a runner lifts up the foot-and it comes largely from the foam inside the midsole. It should be both compliant (to stretch and hold that energy) and resilient (to give it back). Researchers started experimenting with this concept in the 1980s, but it was Adidas' 2013 launch of its Energy Boost shoes that reignited the trend. Since then, companies including Brooks, Nike, Reebok, and Saucony have followed suit with their own models.

The Vaporfly 4 percent, so named because they're meant to make the average runner 4 percent more efficient, are Nike's fastest racing shoes (kicks meant for race day as opposed to training) and the ones I used for my race. They're ultralight: Biomechanical studies show that, on average, every 100 grams of added mass per shoe increases the metabolic cost of running by 1 percent. They have a new proprietary foam called ZoomX, and boast a somewhat-controversial carbon-fiber plate that propels a runner forward. In a marathon, researchers say, a 4 percent improvement could make a huge difference.

Tests at the University of Colorado Boulder and at Grand Valley State University came to the same conclusion: The shoes have got speed. So much so that some coaches and exercise scientists have questioned whether they should be banned. But not every runner who toes the line in the racing shoes consistently experiences the same improvement. In fact, some study participants got more than a 4 percent boost while others saw far less. That inconsistency makes sense, because no one is quite sure how the shoes provide such a good return. Some think it's all about the notorious carbon-fiber plate, while others suspect the boost is all in the super-responsive ZoomX foam.

We need more data-and more varieties of foam and carbon-fiber plates to test-to know for sure. They might be on the way. Professional distance runner Des Linden, who's sponsored by Brooks Running, ran the 2018 Boston and New York City marathons in a Brooks' prototype shoe believed to have a plate-and other companies are rumored to be developing similar tech.

But it's not merely tech that makes us faster. Another runner with me on my hill workout day told me he's "old-school" and thinks high-tech-shoe claims miss a big point: For most non-elite runners, anyone can run a faster marathon on any given day, regardless of what's on their feet, given they put in the proper training. And studies back him up, as there are so many variables that affect performance. According to Wouter Hoogkamer and Rodger Kram, physiologists and biomechanics who study running economy and shoe technology at the University of Colorado Boulder, the bulk of the work still comes from the runner. Even if a shoe were to give 100 percent energy return, that's paltry compared with the power that muscles provide with each stride. Training status, Hoogkamer told me, is by far the most important parameter.

*The bottom line:* Some shoes will give you a shot at running faster, but you still need to be in damn good shape to run your fastest marathon. For me, that meant finishing those hills.

24 miles
I ran the Chicago Marathon as if riding a train fueled by adrenaline-until I was just about to hit mile 24. Suddenly I had an extreme desire to stop. All runners experience this at some point late in the race, I'd been told. And while there are a million and one tactics you can use to get yourself through, working out my mind helped the most.

Paces, mileage, and physiological numbers such as VO2 max (the upper limit of oxygen consumption used during exertion) or lactate threshold can dictate how well someone will do. But it's nearly impossible to crunch those numbers into a perfect prediction of someone's finish time, which I found fascinating. *No matter how well you prepare physically, your brain can still do a lot to help or hurt you on race day.*

In his latest book, Endure, Alex Hutchinson defines endurance as "the struggle to continue against a mounting desire to stop." Because the body wants to conserve energy, and distance running uses so much, your mind is going to tell you to stop moving far sooner than your body will actually break of exhaustion. You can usually keep going for a bit after you begin to feel certain that you can't.

Scientists have done multiple studies of this phenomenon, but perhaps my favorite involved the tactic I remember as the swish and spit. To prevent themselves from running out of available energy, marathoners swallow gels-single-portion packets of easy-to-digest carbohydrates-throughout the race. Once I'd hit 16 miles in my training, I knew I had to start practicing with them to make it through the length of a marathon. I'd been dreading this. Not to get too much into the details, but every time I'd tried to use them in the past, I'd throw them right back up. I blame a super sensitive stomach, not enough blood flow to the gut while running, and the strange texture of the products themselves (you'll know once you try 'em).

Searching for a workaround sent me down a PubMed-fueled research spiral on how to take in carbohydrates, and I came across a 2010 paper entitled "Mouth rinse but not ingestion of a carbohydrate solution improves 1-h cycle time trial performance." Boom. Exactly what I was looking for: I don't need to actually swallow the stuff, I can just rinse and spit.

The study found that during a 60-minute cycling session, participants who swished a sports drink containing carbohydrates and spat it out performed better than those who did the same with a non-carbohydrate containing placebo (meant to taste like a sports drink). That's because our mouths contain carbohydrate sensors linked to the brain-detectors that tell our bodies it's okay to keep going because fuel is on the way. With just the knowledge of energy coming, sans any actual food, participants in the study cycled faster than those who swished the placebo, which didn't trigger the same brain signals.

Unfortunately, in a race that would take me more than three hours to complete, I'd definitely have to do more than swish, but the idea that you can ignore what your brain tells you stuck with me. Your mind tells you to stop even when you are physically capable of powering through. In other words, I could probably push harder than instinct advised.

*26.2 miles*
I crossed the finish line of the Chicago Marathon in 3 hours, 21 minutes, 55 seconds-about eight minutes faster than the qualifying standard for the Boston Marathon, and almost 20 minutes faster than the time I initially had planned.

It's hard to pinpoint exactly what made me surpass my initial goals. I imagine a battery of tests would help: looking at genes related to running economy, gait analysis, even a breakdown of my gut microbiome. But I bet that we'll never be able to predict anyone's marathon time with 100 percent accuracy, which, to me, is the fun of it all.

Perhaps the best takeaway I can share is that as soon as it was over, I forgot almost instantly both the mental and muscular struggle I'd just endured. Some psychological studies have shown this to be a common phenomenon in distance runners. In one study, runners were asked how painful the marathon was directly after the race and then three and six months later. On average, all subjects remembered less pain overall in the months following the marathon compared to the day of the event.

Forcing yourself to the finish line takes time, support, and patience. But the end result is worth the effort. Ask anyone who's run a marathon how many they've completed. Chances are, it's more than one. *If you're ready to run a marathon, trust that your body is designed to go the distance, and consider using the latest technology for a slight speed boost. *Just remember: You have to put in the work. But my end result surprised me-and yours could, too. We're all runners, after all.

sauce https://www.popsci.com/tips-first-m...jsvlTSl4HN3U2k1O5s_gcKhb4VN11uT0AqH0wQ#page-5


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

15km on funday morning (before my ride) The sun was out but still cold -9c. Mix of road/trail. Despite the weather I'm still getting in some mileage









Seen from the bridge... !


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## Radium (Jan 11, 2019)

Yer a hardy soul, 'Licious!


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## DIRTJUNKIE (Oct 18, 2000)

Radium said:


> Yer a hardy soul, 'Licious!


I agree, most see temperatures like that and...



http://imgur.com/t


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

DIRTJUNKIE said:


> I agree, most see temperatures like that and...
> 
> 
> 
> http://imgur.com/t


LOL! I resemble that kid when I start out! After a km in, I don't feel my face anymore... then I'm on autopilot


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

It rained last night (trails too soft and wet to ride) and I only had a 2 hour window of time today between rain showers. Today's 17km run had it's challenges and interesting things along the way. Sidewalks were a mix of puddles and ice; trails were soft and slushy. The Humber River is staring to thaw and I found the remains of a deer, killed by coyotes on the ice. I also found the remains of the indestructible sneaker peaking up through the snow... a sure sign that spring is around the corner.


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

17 km on March 17! The river has flooded it's banks and I stumbled upon the remains of the deer that was attacked on (the now melted ice). I also spotted some balloons. R.I.P Mr Deer


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

15km funday morning run. Early signs of spring... the eternal sneaker has sprouted again and urban toilets are popping up. Singlesprocket joined me on the bike on my way back. He tested the ice and found a solid piece cake .


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## chazpat (Sep 23, 2006)

^ You sure that's Singlesprocket, that guy has both wheels on the ground?

Still getting back into running. But it is going well. Had a two week trip to Vegas for work but managed to hit the dreaded treadmill twice for a little bit of running and walked a whole lot, like really a lot. I think it really helped as the runs I've got in since then I've been happy with, though not very far and certainly not very fast. The weather here is too nice not to be out in the woods either on a bike or running; best time of year here in Atlanta is now!


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

^Glad you are getting back to your running routine. The weather is a bit warmer and the snow is melting here so I hope too to put in km during the week.

PS singlesprocket was lucky to get both wheels on this patch of ice cake.... I'll bet it's all gone today!


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

It snowed last night! We're experiencing second winter I did a 16km run and singlesprocket joined me on the bike.


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

Snow has melted since last weekend. Trails are too spongy and mucky. I did a 21km funday run


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

> *I HATE RUNNING*
> 
> I hate running, three to four times a week if I have time. I hated it yesterday for a little over an hour.
> 
> ...


sauce https://semi-rad.com/2017/01/i-hate...WXEAMxqmQOSaudYR6KmbnytwYlfANHqEH5g6orjVNrU6w


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## jpa102 (Jul 26, 2014)

Funny, I went out and ran 5 miles Sunday. My first thought when I finished was "Yep, I still hate running"


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

Wet n wild 15 km run Sunday morning. I started the run with drizzly rain and then it turned into carwash level. Good for day robins looking for worms and sea gulls making a splash in the pizzle. The river still has icebergs which is ironic since April 14 is the anniversary of the Titanic hitting an iceberg


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

*How to Increase Your Marathon Training Mileage*

In the lead-up to the 2017 Chicago Marathon, I completed fewer runs of 20 or more miles (just one) than I had before any of my preceding 40 marathons.

Recipe for disaster, right?

Not so. When race day came I cruised my way to a finish time of 2:39:30, breaking a personal best that had stood for eight years.

The lesson of this story is not that running less leads to better marathon outcomes-quite the opposite, in fact. Although I covered less distance in my longest individual runs before Chicago than I had before prior marathons, I ran more total miles, and that's why I ran my best at age 46 in my 41st attempt at the distance.

The typical runner in marathon training focuses more on long-run mileage than on weekly mileage, but it's better to do the opposite-and science proves it. A 1982 study by Ron Maughan of Scotland's Aberdeen University, for example, found that average weekly training mileage was a much better predictor of performance in a marathon than the longest distance of a single training run.

More recent research has yielded similar conclusions. In a 2011 study, Giovanna Tanda reported that recreational runners who ran more weekly miles produced better marathon times than runners who covered more average distance per run in training.

Let's be clear: This evidence isn't telling us it's "bad" to do long runs over 20 miles. What it's telling us is that these sessions have relatively little value by themselves, and what matters more is what you do the rest of the week. Simply put, you're better off as a marathoner running 60 miles per week, including 18 miles on Sunday, than running 50 miles per week with 22 on Sunday.

Convinced? Good. Now let's talk about how to increase your running mileage during marathon training. There are three basic ways to do so, and they should be adopted in a carefully-ordered sequence, beginning with the measure that offers the best risk/reward ratio and moving on from there.

*Run more frequently.*
If you ran less than six times per week in your last marathon cycle, work your way toward running at least six times per week for the next one. Each run you add to your weekly routine will yield a little more fitness. True, the returns are diminishing, such that going from, say, three to four runs per week will give you less of a boost than going from two to three runs. But even going from five to six or six to seven runs per week could shave minutes off your marathon time.

As with most things in running, it's important to make these changes gradually. Don't jump straight from three or four runs per week to six or seven runs. Add one at a time, and make that added run very short initially-perhaps only two or three miles. To make the transition even gentler, consider doing the extra run every other week and a nonimpact cross-training session in alternate weeks for the first month or so.

*Do a second long(er) run each week. *
Once you're running more or less every day (and you don't necessarily have to stop there-I ran 10 times per week in my Chicago Marathon build-up), the next most impactful way to increase your weekly running mileage without undue risk is to add a second long run to your weekly routine. In most instances, this workout should come a few days before the long run you're already doing.

Your second long run of the week need not be as long as the first, and it should often include some faster running. Examples are long runs with surges (e.g., 12 miles with the first 2:00 of the middle 8 miles run at 10K race pace) and long progression runs (e.g., 13 miles with miles 10, 11, and 12 each run 15 seconds faster than the preceding). Like your other key workout types, your second long run should follow a general pattern of becoming gradually more challenging as you draw closer to your marathon.

*Make every run a little longer. *
Too often, runners who are seeking to increase their weekly mileage in marathon training do so by increasing the distance of most or all of the runs in their existing weekly routine. However, this measure offers a less favorable risk-reward ratio than those already discussed. It's a proven principle of marathon training that easy days should be a lot easier than hard days, as this allows the athlete to attain higher workloads without failing to get adequate recovery. Adding distance to all of your runs goes against this principle.

Nevertheless, as you gain fitness and experience, and as your overall training tolerance increases, you can safely lengthen all of your runs and gain some benefit.

Avoid deploying this measure within a single marathon cycle. In other words, don't try to go from four miles to eight miles on easy days between Week 1 and Week 14 of your present marathon build-up. Instead, go from four-mile easy runs in this cycle to six-mile easy runs in the next, to eight-mile easy runs in the one after that.

*But First: Slow Down!*
If you're doubtful you can increase your weekly running mileage in any of these ways without wearing yourself out or breaking down, it might be because you're running too fast. Research by Stephen Seiler of the University of Agder in Norway and others has shown that runners of all ability levels improve most when they spent about 80 percent of their total training time at low intensity-specifically, below what's known as the ventilatory threshold (VT), which falls around 78 percent of maximum heart rate.

The average recreationally competitive runner does half of his or her training just above this threshold, at moderate intensity, which is significantly more stressful to the nervous system. As a consequence, runners caught in the "moderate-intensity" rut never fully process the fatigue they accrue from any amount of running they choose to do, causing them to feel as if they're always near their limit and unable to handle more.

Even if you have no intention of increasing your running mileage, you should determine where your VT lies (which is easy if you already know your lactate threshold heart rate, as VTHR equals approximately 96 percent of LTHR) and redistribute your training intensities to ensure you're consistently doing 80 percent of your running (measured in time, not distance) at low intensity.

When you do, you're likely to find that you generally feel fresher and perform better in runs that are meant to be done at higher intensities. And, as a side benefit, you just might find that you actually want to run more miles when you train for your next marathon.

Sauce: https://www.trainingpeaks.com/blog/...vbmbr7SJtpx01m9v_djdp-C1ikKMqd7fMyyJcb3waaxR0


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

Nurse denied marathon world record -- because she wasn't wearing a skirt









A woman who wanted to break the Guinness World Record for running a marathon dressed as a nurse has been told her successful attempt does not count -- because she was wearing scrubs and pants, rather than a skirt.

Jessica Anderson, a nurse at the Royal London Hospital, ran the city's marathon last Sunday in the outfit she wears at work.
But she was told beforehand by Guinness World Records that she would need to wear a blue and white dress, apron and a traditional nurse's cap for her effort to be valid, Britain's Press Association reported.

Full-body scrubs are too close to the organization's definition of a doctor's costume, officials added.

"Their definition is just so outdated," Anderson told the magazine Runner's World. "Some of the nurses I work with do wear dresses but mostly we wear scrubs or a tunic and trousers. I've certainly never seen a male nurse wearing a dress to work."
"I'm sure Guinness World Records don't intend to cause offence but it would be nice if they decided to revise their criteria instead of reinforcing old gender stereotypes," she added.

Anderson had asked the organization to reconsider, but her request was denied. They have since said they would review their rules.

"Inclusiveness and respect are values that Guinness World Records holds extremely dear, and while we always need to ensure we can differentiate between categories, it is quite clear that this record title is long overdue a review, which we will conduct as a priority in the coming days," the body said in a statement. CNN has contacted Anderson for comment.

Anderson would have claimed the record had her costume been accepted; *her time was 3 hours, 8 minutes and 22 seconds, beating the previous record by 32 seconds.*

The run is one of the world's most famous events and receives hundreds of thousands of applicants each year. More than 400,000 applied to join this year's marathon, setting a new record, organizers said.

But last Sunday's race was not free from controversy, with organizers investigating claims that runners towards the end of the pack were called "fat," "slow" and told to hurry up by contractors.

Anderson, who was worked at the London hospital for seven years, set a fundraising target of £500 ($660) for her race but smashed the target, with many contributors donating money after the race, having heard about the decision. By Sunday morning, her fundraising page showed contributors had pledged £2,400.

"We have previously used the charity fund to buy equipment for the ward such as dementia friendly clocks and signage, a bladder scanner and some furnishings for the staff room and day rooms," she wrote on her page.


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## sunnybear (Jan 24, 2018)

In the day (25 years ago) I was running 35-40 miles a week. I cycled, but not much. Pretty much with no cycle/saddle time I did the following:
rode Cycle Across Maryland (when it was the full week ride ) twice
Cycled North Carolina
Cycled the OUter Banks
rode Mnt Mitchell

I don't think I could run a marathon now, but I could ride a century!


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)




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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

Interesting article for those who lift and run or contemplating adding either lifting or running to their workout regime.

*What Every Bodybuilder Needs To Know About Running*

Many athletes act like running and bodybuilding are mutually exclusive. Do one, and not only is it unlikely that you do the other, but it may be downright impossible. You'll run away your gains, one side will tell you. The other side will swear that a muscular man on the road is like a fish out of water-and he'll be gasping just like one in a matter of miles.

At the beginning of this year, I set out to disprove both arguments. While training for my first Ironman triathlon, which I've documented in the Man of Iron video series, I've continued to train like a bodybuilder. What's more, I've continued to succeed with my bodybuilding goals.

This wasn't by accident, though. Like most bodybuilders, I'm a lot heavier than the average endurance athlete, and I've had to adjust my training accordingly. In this article, I'm going to share everything I've learned about running alongside my bodybuilding lifestyle.

*Lesson 1: Muscle Doesn't Melt Away!*
I'm living, lifting, running proof that with the right diet and supplement regimen, "having it all" is possible. Sure, if somebody does nothing but high-volume endurance running, neglects weight training, and follows a low-protein diet, it will cause muscle loss. However, my diet is as it's always been: high in protein, high in complex carbohydrates, and moderate in fat. More than ever, I've paid attention to inflammation and gut health, reducing stress on my body, and heightening my state of recovery. And it's paid off.

My meal frequency remains high with six solid meals per day, along with my Kaged Muscle Re-Kaged after every workout and supplementing with Kasein before bed. The former gives me a fast-digesting protein with added amino acids, making it the perfect post-workout recovery choice. The latter gives me the opposite: a blend of slow release amino acids, gradually feeding my muscles through the night.

The takeaway for you: If your nutrition is locked down, your body can thrive during all types of challenges.

*Lesson 2: Running Is Great For Gym Performance*
Most bodybuilders I've trained with are strong, but they seriously lack endurance. This usually has a significant impact on their ability to break through the intensity barrier that I always chase. Endurance running has heightened my lung capacity and the efficiency of my heart significantly, and I find that it shows in the weight room!

The boost from my running-and cycling-is particularly helpful for recovery between sets while using higher rep ranges on larger body parts, such as legs and back. Arnold himself noted in the "Encyclopedia of Modern Bodybuilding" that doing heavy squats is "like running a mini-marathon." And after I walk out of the weight room, I find my recovery is also improved. My heart can pump blood to the damaged muscle fibers more easily, helping remove toxins and lactic acid while constantly transporting nutrients to the localized areas of damage.

*Lesson 3: Running Is Healthy*
My goal is to live to 100, which requires more than aesthetics. On a regular basis, I get my blood work done, as well as food allergy tests, to assess how my current habits are affecting my health. I'm very pleased to say that since doing more endurance training in preparation for my Ironman, my health markers are better than ever.

Endurance running has imparted demonstrable health benefits to my heart, lungs, blood pressure, cholesterol, and even gut function. As someone who believes that health should always be the number-one priority, this got my attention.

*Lesson 4: Running Has To Be Done Right!*
To me, the benefits of running are obvious. However, as somebody who is around 60 pounds heavier than a typical endurance runner, I've had to learn how to help my body cope with the stress-and specifically, my joints. It's not enough to run, I must run correctly.

This means using a forefoot or mid-foot strike, rather than landing on my heels with each step, to avoid excessive stress on my Achilles tendons, knees, and calves. Since my thighs are bigger than the average guy, they are prone to fatiguing more quickly. This makes focusing on the correct foot strike even more important.

I have also added a lot of focus to building the strength of my hip flexors. The goal here has been to keep my legs moving forward as I run longer distances, instead of bouncing up and down through plantar-flexion of the calf. Every distance runner can probably benefit from having stronger hip flexors, but for me, it's non-negotiable. I also complete most of my runs on trails and softer surfaces to lessen the impact.

But that's only my bottom half. What happens above the belt matters when running, too. First and foremost, I avoid excessive arm movement. Instead, I like to pivot my upper body with my lower body in opposite directions with each stride. To ensure my posture remains upright, I visualize having a sphere in my stomach, which will fall out if I tilt forward or to either side. This means I simply can't let my posture drop.

*Don't Run Away From Good Health!*
There are so many benefits to endurance running that it's a shame so many of my iron brethren don't experience them. Let my journey enlighten you as to what's possible, and become an all-around athlete who can move as well as turn heads in the gym. It's better for your health, it's mentally stimulating, and the challenge builds character!

sauce https://www.bodybuilding.com/conten...ZViewTte2Wz2fC98ZfeyApmXYdvNTaJYBTmhBkq7FLRDA


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

I did a good 18km run this morning. Weather was perfect. Saw lots of cyclists, runners and hotrods. It is also a good season for dandelions


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

My last long run (21km) before my race. I plan to do my first half marathon race on my birthday... looking forward to it 









































Many cyclists out. Pretty farms and stupid people dumping their trash... weather was perfect


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## chazpat (Sep 23, 2006)

cyclelicious said:


> My last long run (21km) before my race. I plan to do my first half marathon race on my birthday... looking forward to it


Is that next weekend? Good luck and Happy Birthday!


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

chazpat said:


> Is that next weekend? Good luck and Happy Birthday!


Thank you! Sunday June 2... I'm going to give it my all


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

I ran my first a half marathon on my birthday. My time was 2:12:49. I placed 2nd in my category so I'm doubly thrilled. 325 runners started the half marathon and only 255 finished. I've been running for 3 years and gradually built up the distances and frequency over time. In addition I weight train (crossfit) x5 years and continue to mountain bike 10yrs ++. I know alot of people say that running is bad for the knees but I've never experienced this. I believe weight training ... strengthening my quads, hamstrings (and butt) has helped tremendously.

















The race started at 8:00 and it was cold (12c), overcast, and windy. I started to warm up by the 3km mark  The race ended cool (15c), sunny and windy


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## Rev Bubba (Jan 16, 2004)

Congratulations. 

I have no knee issues but my wife does so we compromise and power walk together. Works for us. 

Back in the old days, when people didn't count past 20 because that was all the toes and fingers we had, I used to run about 15 miles just for fun. Never raced that distance and would have finished so far back they would have had to measure my time with a calendar.

It's all good if you're having fun.


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

Thank you! It's all good fun and we work within our limits. 


My race prize for making the podium was a t-shirt and free bananas  but my personal award was setting a goal and working to achieve it.


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## Forest Rider (Oct 29, 2018)

cyclelicious said:


> I ran my first a half marathon on my birthday. My time was 2:12:49. I placed 2nd in my category so I'm doubly thrilled. 325 runners started the half marathon and only 255 finished. I've been running for 3 years and gradually built up the distances and frequency over time. In addition I weight train (crossfit) x5 years and continue to mountain bike 10yrs ++. I know alot of people say that running is bad for the knees but I've never experienced this. I believe weight training ... strengthening my quads, hamstrings (and butt) has helped tremendously.
> 
> View attachment 1254863
> 
> ...


Congratulations. So happy for you, and proud of your accomplishment. Sounds like you had an impressive first showing with a great lead-in of a couple years of confidence inducing training.
Knees are a touchy subject -especially with non-runners casting judgement. 



cyclelicious said:


> Thank you! It's all good fun and we work within our limits.
> 
> My race prize for making the podium was a t-shirt and free bananas  but my personal award was setting a goal and working to achieve it.


You got the prizes. LOL
Don't forget about that finisher medal!

You are right -the achievement of your own goals are superior to bananas and a medal.


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

I did a 19 km run today. Great day to be out. I happened to spot a huge convoy of exotic cars heading to a supercar meet 
Also an unusual large farm vehicle


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## Ptor (Jan 29, 2004)

As I've noted a few times in this thread, I've run at least a mile a day for the past 3.5 years -- averaging around 3 miles a day over that time, but 1 mile is the daily minimum. Lately I've been doing between 2 and 3 miles a day, usually first thing in the morning and been pleased with how it helps my general health and fitness. But I got cocky and decided on the spur of the moment to run a local 15 mile trail race with 1800 feet of climbing (starting at 7200 feet), much of it on horribly rocky or sandy terrain. The race has been run annually for over 30 years and I've run it three times previously, the most recent 7 years ago. But I figured my daily run and two to three taxing bike rides a week would allow me to cruise through it -- no aspirations of being competitive but figured I could roll to a sub-3 hour finish without much trouble. I was wrong. It's been years since I had to put in an effort like that in any event, trying to just finish. I did stagger in at 2hr 52min, but it was not pretty and it was over 40 minutes slower than my best time, albeit that was 17 years ago. And I've paid a price, being massively sore and I've been very uncomfortable on my daily constitutionals with sore feet and a bad hamstring -- I'd be convalescing on the couch if not for my strong desire to maintain my streak. Lesson learned - 2 to 3 miles a day on sidewalks and streets and reasonable mtb fitness doesn't translate to knocking of a hard, long trail run.


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

^Congrats on your effort Ptor. It isn't easy


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

That's ok Mr Wolf, I don't understand either


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

Was that wrong? Should I not have done that?..... Seinfeld

*L.A. Marathon disqualifies senior runner Frank Meza for alleged cheating*









The Los Angeles Marathon disqualified 70-year-old runner Frank Meza, saying that video cameras show he left the course for a portion of his record-setting performance in March and that his time during one stretch was so fast as to be "impossible."

Though Meza has repeatedly denied cheating, he has come under scrutiny with the long-distance community questioning his finish in 2 hours 53 minutes 10 seconds - the fastest ever for a man his age.

Amid the accusations, officials with Conqur Endurance Group, which operates the marathon, began reviewing video from race cameras and security cameras at retail stores along the 26.2 miles from Dodger Stadium to Santa Monica.

The footage showed Meza, a retired physician, stepped off the course and reentered at another point, officials said.

"The video evidence is confirmed by a credible eyewitness report and our calculation that Dr. Meza's actual running time for at least one 5K course segment would have had to have been faster than the current 70-74 age-group 5K world record," they stated, adding that his pace would have been "an impossible feat during a marathon."

It might seem unlikely that an elderly, recreational runner could become the topic of national debate, but the marathon community takes its ethics seriously and has been left distrustful by a history of fraud.

The Meza story has sparked thousands of online posts, followed by a series of articles on the website marathoninvestigation.com, which cited video and statistical evidence suggesting he cheated in more than one event.

On Monday, Meza reiterated his previous assertion that, during last spring's race, he left the course in search of a restroom and continued along the sidewalk for some distance before finding one.

"I didn't cut the course," he said.

Officials also cited him for wearing his numbered bib on his hip instead of pinning it to his shirt, which has raised concerns that he passed the bib to another runner for a portion of the marathon.

Unlike many serious runners, Meza said he has never carried a GPS device that might confirm his location at all times. Asked about the unusually fast 5K pace cited by officials, he could not offer an explanation.

"I don't know," he said. "I wish I did."

Before this spring, Meza was better known for devoting his free time to low-cost health care and mentoring Latino students. He is a lifelong runner who has served as an assistant coach for track and cross country at Los Angeles Loyola High.

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It wasn't until age 60 that he began entering marathons and, after a few years, showing significant progress.

As his results improved, the California International Marathon twice questioned his irregular splits, the times recorded at various points along its Sacramento course.

Officials disqualified him in both instances and ultimately banned him from the event.

The L.A. Marathon initially voiced concerns about Meza in 2015, asking him to run the following year with an official observer. He chose instead to enter a Northern California marathon in 2016.

With this latest disqualification, L.A. officials have again asked Meza to run with an observer. He said he plans to enter in 2020 to prove he can finish the marathon in less than three hours.

"That's my only silver lining," he said.

sauce https://www.latimes.com/sports/la-sp-la-marathon-dq-frank-meza-20190701-story.html


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## chazpat (Sep 23, 2006)

^ Sad


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

It is sad that this man is fixated on these races just for the bragging rights and also perhaps the satisfaction of getting away with it.


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## Daydreamer (Aug 27, 2018)

Makes you wonder what his ethics as a medical practitioner were like.


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

What a terrible outcome to this story! I hoped that this man could have redeemed himself, this was not what anyone wanted.

https://abc7.com/amp/sports/70-year-old-disqualified-la-marathon-runner-found-dead/5379340/


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

All my training is paying off! Found a 20 bucks! ... and brought it home. Time to start saving up for a vacation  Woo hoo! Completed 18 km (road-trail) on this beautiful morning. Humber River was calm, skies were blue. Hot rods and monster trucks were seen


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

> Thabang Madiba somehow found his way into the world of trail running and in the last few years has become everyone's favourite in the South African trail scene. He lives in Ga-Rankuwa township, without a mountain in sight&#8230; or a physio, chiro or dietician for that matter. But through hard work, dedication and passion, he has won the South African Trail Running Championships multiple times and was the first black South African to represent the country in Trail Running. He has become a hero in his community and is hoping to inspire a new generation of youth through the sport of trail running.


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

I did a 18km run on funday. Started early because of the heat and humidity. To my surprise, I became a butterfly whisperer. A monarch butterfly followed and then landed on me. I checked him out, told him I couldn't take any passengers then I gently returned the little guy back to nature. I carried on and spotted another bug... a beetle bug... punch buggy! What a great day.


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## Radium (Jan 11, 2019)

cyclelicious said:


> It is sad that this man is fixated on these races just for the bragging rights and also perhaps the satisfaction of getting away with it.


I feel badly for all of the people who saw him as an inspiration. And for him too. His death just has to be connected to this.

I only hope that nobody else will suffer from this.


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

15km funday run before noon. Stopped to 'mire a beautiful Monarch butterfly darting among the thistles in the Humber River Valley. I've been seeing more of these incredible insects this year than previous years


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## bakerjw (Oct 8, 2014)

I love to see this thread still going. I need to get back on the road on 2 feet again soon. I've been focusing on the tandems with my wife a lot lately.


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## chazpat (Sep 23, 2006)

bakerjw said:


> I love to see this thread still going. I need to get back on the road on 2 feet again soon. I've been focusing on the tandems with my wife a lot lately.


Me too, Cyclelicious is an inspiration! Let's see, can I rep her again now? yes!


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## Forest Rider (Oct 29, 2018)

cyclelicious said:


> 15km funday run before noon. Stopped to 'mire a beautiful Monarch butterfly darting among the thistles in the Humber River Valley. I've been seeing more of these incredible insects this year than previous years


Thanks for sharing all the stories over the past few months.
It's been good following your long runs and your first half-marathon.

Best of luck in your future races and training.


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## ddoh (Jan 11, 2017)

I've been noticing the increase is Monarch sightings also. That's so good to see. Also, are you near Albion Hills? I know the Humber River runs through the area. I was just there for a MTB race. real nice area.


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

It's not our imagination that Monarch population has increased! This is hot off the press:

Big increase forecast in monarch butterflies

Oh Wow! Small world! Yes I live in Caledon . Albion Hills, Palgrave etc. are nice places to ride. So may alternatives too like the rail trail, gravel biking and piecing together a little bit of everything makes nice ride.

I usually do a big loop and run to Albion hills (on my long run day) ... training on those rolling hills have helped my overall fitness. It's good to mix it up . When I'm running I have a different perspective and greater appreciation for everything 

Thanks bakerjw, Chazpat, Forest Rider! It's great to share our experiences


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## chazpat (Sep 23, 2006)

As I ran this morning, I got to thinking that I had not seen any snakes this summer. Then thought that I hadn't seen any turtles either, then remembered I did see a box turtle last month. Five minutes later I came around a tree and had to jump over this little lady.









Oh yeah, just remembered, I also flipped back over a very large turtle I came across last month as well.


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## paramount3 (Jul 13, 2014)

I'm finding running difficult these days, possibly because I don't do enough of it. I'm on the bike typically 5-6 days a week. I'm planning to try to get back to at least two days a week running, maybe three. I find that riding the bike after the run helps work out the sore legs and back that I get from running. So I will do the run days as bike-run-bike workouts, essentially commuting by bike to go to my running spots. I'm also considering setting a goal like a 5K race or a half marathon or something, but no plans yet. Watching the US track and field championships is inspirational, but I can't move like that no mo.


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

^ I enjoy spinning out the legs after a run too


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

We did a 16 km run-ride pairing this morning. It is a high five day that I have logged just over 1000 km of running this year. I hope to reach my target goal by December 31. Fingers and toes crossed


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)




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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

*60 years ago, the first woman to complete a U.S. marathon ran to the top of Pikes Peak and back down again*









Arlene Pieper Stine got into the Pikes Peak Marathon in 1959 as a stunt to market her Colorado Springs health club. When she finished, the 29-year-old mother of three was in the record books as the first woman to finish a sanctioned marathon. Unlike the Boston Marathon, the Pikes Peak race never had a prohibition on women participating.

n white shorts, sleeveless blouse and dime-store tennis shoes, Arlene Pieper Stine, 29, stood on the start line of the 1959 Pikes Peak Marathon looking more like Marilyn Monroe than a mountaineer.

But Pieper Stine, then a Colorado Springs health club owner, not only finished the 26-mile race, with its grueling 8,000 feet of vertical gain to the 14,115 summit, she became the first woman to complete a sanctioned marathon in the United States.

Eight years later, Kathrine Switzer would be the first woman to cross the finish line at the Boston Marathon in a dramatic act of gender defiance.

This weekend, 60 years after Arlene Pieper Stine conquered Pikes Peak in 9 hours and 16 minutes, hundreds of women will line up at the Pikes Peak Ascent and Marathon start, following her path on one of the country's toughest and highest altitude race courses.

In 2009, after a long search, a Pikes Peak Ascent and Marathon historian tracked down Pieper Stine, who had long ago moved away and was living near Fresno, California.

She had no idea of her place in running history.

"I still remember it like it was yesterday," she said in a 2014 interview. "You can be a wonderful wife and mother, but doing the race showed me that if there's something you really want to do, you should go for it."

A black-and-white photo of that race start shows Pieper Stine along with her 9-year-old daughter, Kathy, and her husband, who ran with her to offer moral support.

Pieper Stine said she got the idea to do the race as a way to promote Arlene's Health Studio. The Pikes Peak Marathon never prohibited women from participating.

"In those days, we had no aid stations like there are now, and my running shoes were actually just those sneakers you get from the five and dime," she said. "And about a week after the race, all 10 of my toenails fell off!"

Pieper Stine, now 89, sometimes returns to Manitou Springs to mark the official start of the race. "What a thrill to look out and see all these people getting ready to run."

She was inducted into the Colorado Springs Sports Hall of Fame in 2016 and has became a cult figure in the local racing community, inspiring a group of women runners to dress as Pieper Stine did in 1959 in the inaugural "She Moves Mountains" run up the peak last weekend, race organizer Alicia Pino said.
*
Running for a multitude of reasons*
The Ascent, 13.1 miles up Pikes Peak, and the Marathon, known by many runners as "the round trip," was once a mostly local race of die-hard trail runners from across the state, with the occasional out-of-staters joining the Colorado contingent even as they did "the Double," the Ascent on Saturday, followed by the Marathon on Sunday.

Now the run is popular with out-of-state so-called flatlanders as far away as Batavia, New York, and Hermitage, Tennessee. Whether runners are taking on the peak for the first time - Peak Newbies as they're called - or back for their fifth, or 15th, or even 36th time, like Arkansas's 60-year-old Bill Coffelt - the race can become a bucket-list habit.

"The race has captured the imagination of so many runners," race director Ron Ilgin said of Pikes Peak's skyrocketing popularity over the last few years. Runners must use a qualifying half-marathon or marathon time for the limited spots in each race: 1,500 in the Ascent and 750 in the Marathon. Racers range from age 16 to the oldest runner registered, Bill Moyle, 80, of Lone Tree, a 30-time finisher.

Though the race still has a local, welcoming feel-"Welcome, Pikes Peak Runners"- a banner reads as you drive into Manitou Springs, it also includes some of the world's best high-altitude trail runners. This year it's the fifth race of the 2019 Salomon Golden Trail World Series where one of the world's fastest trail racers, Spain's Kilian Jornet, will try to set a new men's course record for the marathon.

Runners start on Manitou's main drag through town, hanging a left up steep Ruxton Avenue past the Cog Railway, and to the trailhead. If you make it to there, it's straight up as "the Ws" zigzag along narrow dirt trails to the enchanted forest of aspens on the way to Barr Camp, to the rocky outcroppings on the way to the moonscape above the A-Frame, to El Paso County Search and Rescue's kazoo band at the Cirque, and finally, on to the final switchbacks known as the Golden Stairs to the top.

Susan Cogswell, 70, of Colorado Springs, first ran Pikes Peak 1983. On Saturday, she's making her 21st Ascent with her family. The running tribe this year includes her son and his family and her daughter, Meghan, 40, an ultra runner who first did the race in 2008.

"My family has kept me going and inspired my running," Cogswell said. "Back when I started, I of course had my family and I worked. But running is what I gave to myself. It became how I identified myself.

"Getting sweaty, dirty, and taking on the challenge of the trail is what I love most about the peak," she said of her years racing. "It's where I feel I belong."

Cogswell, who has a 20-year streak on the (literally) breathtaking 17.1 mile Imogene Pass Run from Ouray to Telluride, will run Saturday's Ascent with her daughter, who will do the Double, winding down her weekend with the Pikes Peak Marathon.

"My daughter really inspires me and keeps me going," Cogswell said of Meghan, who in 2017 reached the top in the Ascent and then came back down 3 miles to the A-Frame, elevation 11,950 feet, to meet her mother and join her as she made her way up to the finish line.

Although runners like Ascent record-holder Kim Dobson, 35, of Eagle, who holds six Ascent first-places with a course record set in 2012 of 2:24:58 are looking for their best times, they also consider the Pikes Peak race to be one of the most special that they take part in because of the race's camaraderie.

"When you're in Manitou looking up and seeing the peak and you see how far you have to go, it's surreal," Dobson said. "But you're surrounded by hundreds of other people of all ages and they're just trying to get to the top, too. It's one of the reasons I love the race."

sauce https://coloradosun.com/2019/08/23/first-female-marathoner-arlene-pieper-stine-pikes-peak/


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

23km run. Same route but there is always new perspectives and changes along the way

There was a smattering of maple trees along the way that seem to want to get a jump on fall 








Neighbours are pro level canners 








Tossing out the old plastic Christmas tree at the roadside in August. Ho Ho Horrible!








I got burrred








Bumped into a friend along the way








At the 10km point








Turnaround point


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## OzarkFathom (Jul 2, 2019)

Wow.
How ‘bout a big ole Frown!


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## AbnInf (Dec 1, 2010)

I was an airborne infantryman for 24 years. Ran probably thousands of miles and I was a 6 minute mile guy. I was a natural runner. Retired almost nine years ago and haven't run since. I do ride my road bike 150-200 miles a week.


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

My 15km run on Sunday was cooler temps

Signs of summer's end... weeds are dying and spotted the rotting sneaker next to the trail.








It will be a banner year for ragweed... my condolences to allergy sufferers


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

Nice idea 

*High School Running Team Invites Shelter Dogs On Their Morning Run, And They Have A Great Time Together*









Exercising with dogs makes the training funnier, and having a furry companion while you exercise will make it less tiring.
A bunch of adoptable dogs from the Santa Barbara County Animal Shelter had a great day with the Cross-Country Team from St. Joseph High School. The team thought it would be fun to invite them on their morning workout routine. Before starting a miles-long run, each one of the runners got paired up with a dog, and this big group of students and dogs running together warmed the heart of all the people they met along the way.

"I am not sure who was more excited and having the most fun, the dogs or the kids," team coach Luis Escobar wrote on his Facebook, "Either way, it was a great time and I am sure we will do it again sometime soon."

sauce High School Running Team Invites Shelter Dogs On Their Morning Run, And They Have A Great Time Together


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## OzarkFathom (Jul 2, 2019)

Does Mushing count?


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

I did a 10km charity run to raise money towards cancer research : Terry Fox Run in Timmins, Ontario.

2.2 km around the lake x5 (ended up 11km)


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

We did a 15km run-ride pairing this morning. Along the way: Rescued acute baby snapping turtle from the path. Further along we also assisted a praying mantis from the path.


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

Another radical 20km funday funrun. Cool stuff seen: demolition car "rust in pieces"; the DeLorean time machine; some diabolical graffiti; friendly roadies; and relocating a pair of praying mantis back to the forest. My motto today was "Roads? Where we going we don't need roads".


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## OzarkFathom (Jul 2, 2019)

Praying Mantis.
Right up there sharing my interest with the Honey Bee as favorite insect.
Had one hanging around where I was working for a couple of hours yesterday.
Watching that head rotate, picking up on movement, is fascinating.


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

^ I find praying mantis' fascinating too.

10 Fascinating Praying Mantis Facts


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## chazpat (Sep 23, 2006)

2. The Mantids We See Most Often in the U.S. Are Exotic Species

I did not know this. Walking Sticks are pretty cool as well.


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

What a wild story! Japanese marathon runner Shizo Kanakuri lost consciousness while taking a break during the 1912 Olympic marathon in Stockholm. In 1967 the Swedes invited him to return and finish the race. His final time was 54 years, 8 months, 6 days, 5 hours, 32 minutes and 20.3 seconds.



> Kanakuri was a native of Tamana, Kumamoto, Japan and attended the Tokyo Higher Normal School. During the November 1911 domestic qualifying trials for the 1912 Stockholm Olympics, although the length of the course was probably only 40 km (25 mi), Kanakuri was reported to have set a marathon world record at 2 hours, 32 minutes and 45 seconds. He was thus selected as one of the only two athletes that Japan could afford to send to the event.
> 
> However, Kanakuri is best known for disappearing during the marathon race in the 1912 Stockholm Olympics. Kanakuri had a rough 18-day-long trip to Stockholm, first by ship and then by train all through the Trans-Siberian Railway, and needed five days to recover for the race. The race was held in Sollentuna Municipality, in Sweden, in - for this time - unexpected 25 °C (77 °F) heat, and over half of the runners in the event had hyperthermia. Kanakuri, weakened by the long journey from Japan, and having problems with the local food, lost consciousness midway through the race, and was cared for by a farming family. Being embarrassed from his "failure" he silently returned to Japan without notifying race officials. Swedish authorities considered him missing for 50 years before discovering that he was living in Japan and had competed in subsequent Olympic marathons. In 1967, he was contacted by Swedish Television and offered the opportunity to complete his run. He accepted and completed the marathon in 54 years, 8 months, 6 days, 5 hours, 32 minutes and 20.3 seconds, remarking, *"It was a long trip. Along the way, I got married, had six children and 10 grandchildren."
> *
> ...


sauce https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shizo_Kanakuri


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

Eliud Kipchoge, (34yrs old) the Kenyan world record holder in the marathon, just completed a special marathon event in Vienna in 1:59:40. This is not a record eligible time, but it may be one of the greatest runs ever.









Eliud Kipchoge ran a marathon in less than 2 hours. Human potential is undefeated

Incredible pace! 21 km /hr (13 miles per hr) I wouldn't even be able to keep up as one of his pacers.


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## chazpat (Sep 23, 2006)

Good grief, so he sprinted a marathon!


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

*103-year-old nicknamed the 'Hurricane' wins yet another gold in 100-meter dash*

At 103, Julia Hawkins might have fallen short of the record-setting 100-meter dash she completed two years ago, but she is still living up to her nickname the "Hurricane."

At the 2019 Senior Games in Albuquerque, New Mexico, Hawkins won gold medals in both the 50-meter dash and the 100-meter dash in the women's 100-plus division.

At the 2017 games, Hawkins, of Louisiana, set a world record with her 100-meter dash. She finished slightly slower at the race on Tuesday.









"I'm thrilled I did as well as I did but I didn't do as well as I have done," Hawkins told "Good Morning America." "I don't know if it's because I'm older, or maybe it was the atmosphere."

*Hawkins is a mother of four, grandmother of three and great-grandmother of three who **picked up competitive cycling later in life, winning multiple national titles.*

*She turned to running at age 100 when biking on mountainous courses became too challenging.
*
She is the oldest woman to compete on an American track, according to the National Senior Games Association, the non-profit organization that runs the Senior Games.

I just keep busy. I keep moving," Hawkins said of her longevity. "I don't do any exercises particularly. I used to, but I don't think I need to anymore."

"I've always been careful how I eat, eat healthy and keep my weight at a certain point," she added.

Hawkins gets most of her activity working in her garden at her home in Louisiana. Inside her home are all the gold medals she's accumulated over the years.

"[I keep them] here and there. I've got a good many," she said of her medals. "My husband made a box for me to keep them."

When it comes to planning ahead for her next race, Hawkins said, "You never know."

"When you're 103, every day is a miracle," she said. "I just keep getting up and I'm here again."

sauce https://abcnews.go.com/GMA/Wellness...twz6sM-lWJi0TuZMu3nYyKO539Pyw2oyReZAEnKNiSqnM


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## paramount3 (Jul 13, 2014)

I'm about half her age, and every run I do feels like a miracle now. On the bike, I don't really feel I've lost much. But running, wow. A normal pace is now about 10 minute miles, when it used to be 7:30-8:00. At age 34 I ran a timed 400 meters around 69 seconds (meaning that when I was younger, I could run one lap around the track at Eliud Kipchoge's marathon pace). Last week, inspired by World Champion moms Allyson Felix and Shelly Anne Fraser Price, I hit the track and managed to run 400 m in about 95 seconds. Holy crap, that's slow! Allyson Felix ran a sub-50 second 400m relay split less than 10 months after having a baby. Impressive, but I now think it will be even more impressive to run sub-50 10 months after having a grandchild.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_world_records_in_masters_athletics#400_metres


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)




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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

*14 Guinness World Records broken at Scotia Toronto Waterfront Marathon October 20, 2019
*
The successful records at a glance

*Melvin Nyairo

Fastest half marathon dressed as a fruit	
01:15:35*








*Melissa Chen

Fastest half marathon dressed as a vegetable (female)	
01:53:09*









For the full list:

https://runningmagazine.ca/sections/runs-races/14-guinness-world-records-broken-at-stwm-2019/


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

I ran a 10km race today. Less than ideal conditions: pouring rain from start and tapered slightly at finish. I finished strong and I'm happy with my results


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## chazpat (Sep 23, 2006)

I rode my bike through the finish of a full and half marathon on Saturday. Does that count?

The race was far enough along that the rails-to-trails path was open. I got a few cheers.


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

chazpat said:


> I rode my bike through the finish of a full and half marathon on Saturday. Does that count?
> 
> The race was far enough along that the rails-to-trails path was open. I got a few cheers.


LOL! We take our applause where and when we can. 

When heard my name announced and got up to receive my first place award, I thought I heard people clapping and cheering but they were probably just enjoying the free lunch :lol:


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

Informative documentary putting Eliud's record in perspective. Breaking barriers!


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## chazpat (Sep 23, 2006)

cyclelicious said:


> LOL! We take our applause where and when we can.
> 
> When heard my name announced and got up to receive my first place award, I thought I heard people clapping and cheering but they were probably just enjoying the free lunch :lol:
> 
> View attachment 1289463


Congrats on first!

I've not had a good year running. I was out of town last week and I've been sick this week, so missing a lot of runs and I think the summer heat/humidity really got to me. But I'm not stopping, looking forward to the cold weather (ok, cold for the South, in the 30s F) runs coming up.


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## jcolby (Dec 11, 2011)

I'm friends with Melvin (the half marathon dressed as a banana world record holder). He and I will be pacing together next month at Cal international Marathon, we are both shooting for 2:39 (I'm trying to run a faster marathon at 37 than what I ran at 23!) For me, I started mountain and road bike racing after growing up running Cross Country and Track in high school and college so mixing running and cycling is a no brainer. I find that I get excited about something such as a mid summer MTB race like Downieville and train hard on the bike through spring and early summer then I pick something like a fall marathon and do a lot more running leading into that. I am also a physical therapist and coach specializing in running and cycling so I pretty much eat and breathe both year round.


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

^ that is so cool jcolby!


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

Every single run 









1. Congratulations, you've decided to go for a run. Today. As you probably know, that's the first step towards going for a run, so pat yourself on the back for that. But hold on-there are a few more things you need to do before you head out the door and take that real first stride of your run, however long it may be.

2. First things first: Get dressed for your run. What's the weather like out there? Sure, you could open a window or a door and get a feel for the temperature, but for the most reliable, up-to-the-minute forecast, you should probably check a weather app on your phone.

3. After you've seen the weather forecast, you might as well cycle through all the apps you usually check eight to 40 times every day, just to make sure you won't be missing anything while you're out there running: email, text messages, Instagram, Twitter, Strava, Zillow, PetFinder, your bank account, Nest, Tinder.

4. Now you're ready to get dressed appropriately for the weather. Find your stuff and put it on. Except where's your favorite running hat? Not where you usually put it. Find that hat. Sure, you could go for a run without it, but why would you?

5. While looking for your hat, which could take two to 25 minutes, have a snack just to make sure you don't bonk out there. You don't have to prepare anything elaborate, just something quick. But, also, you could prepare something a little more elaborate. Either way, get some calories in you.

6. While ingesting said calories, pick up a magazine and read an article. Or two. Doesn't have to be about running.

7. Do you need to carry a water bottle on today's run? Find the bottle, but not the lid.

8. Dig around in the cupboard until you find the lid to your water bottle.

9. The nozzle looks a little funky, doesn't it? Might as well scrub it clean now, because you know you won't feel like doing it after your run.

10. Fill up your now-clean water bottle.

11. Find your hat. Or don't find it. Decide to do some stretches.

12. Actually, before you do those stretches, do a little warm up. Get those hips loosened up, maybe a couple squats, lunges, a couple pushups, just so you're not stretching cold muscles.

13. Do some stretches. You really should have a more strategic stretch routine, don't you think? Grab your phone and google "stretches for runners." Check out four or five different ones before deciding on one. Also read a few news articles before you start stretching.

14. Do all the stretches. Feels good, doesn't it? Now you're ready.

15. Actually, better use the bathroom one more time before you head out. You never know.

16. Check your phone apps one more time, just in case you've missed anything while getting dressed, eating, reading that magazine article, warming up and stretching.

17. You're ready for your run! Head out the door!

18. Now that you're actually outside, it feels a lot cooler or warmer than your weather app said it was supposed to be. Head back inside to shed a layer or add a layer.

19. OK, now you're ready. Put in your earbuds so you'll have some music to run to.

20. But all these playlists and albums are getting boring. Create a new playlist that will be the perfect length for today's run. Walk back inside so your phone will connect to wifi.

21. OK, now you're really ready for your run! Except wow, it seems like it's going to get dark soon. Maybe you should take a headlamp or a small flashlight? Yeah, head back inside and grab one, just in case.

22. Press play on that playlist, and begin running. Think about how running is great because it's so simple and easy, because all you need to do is lace up your shoes and head out the door, just like that.

https://semi-rad.com/2019/11/how-to...FLWD9GokdWjmJlYpgcUoK8PdPJ2vwRQJ6eu2fMju_90T4


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

An oldie but a goodie... some days the couch is so warm  I'm killing some time in hopes that the temps are a little higher before noon


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## OzarkFathom (Jul 2, 2019)

You make me smile....


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

^ Thank you Ozzy!


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

The temp climbed to -3c and I did a 15km run. Beautiful sunny day although the crosswinds were cold (-5c) in exposed areas. Cool things seen: Humber River ice starting to form along the banks; first snowman of the season and some "winter parrots"


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

Runners Who Get on Your Nerves

























































sauce https://www.newyorker.com/humor/dai...uUqusK9910rqI87itxSzxl8qqBx6IY0dVhcLUt6ftMlmA


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## turfnsurf (Nov 24, 2007)

Thank you for that!


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

We did a 15km run ride pairing today


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## beastmaster (Sep 19, 2012)

First run in 9 months today! I had ACL reconstruction at the end of February. Nice to be able to run again. I had a nice little 3 mile (5K) jaunt.


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

^ Way to go on your recovery. The ability to run again is a huge sign success!


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

Run!!!!


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

*Ice is forming again on the Humber River; sharing the road with a solo rider; spied a*

Ice storm run today. I did 13km

Ice is forming again on the Humber River; sharing the road with a solo rider; spied a comfy couch (snow brush not included). I did not see the missing cat  Good run despite the ice pellets stinging my face


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

I did a 10 km race today. Nice event. 750 runners. I finished in 57:01. and I was in the top third overall (7th place in my division)


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

Having my victory (vegan) cookie with Chris  Powered by plants


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)




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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

I really enjoyed my Christmas Day run (16km) this morning. I saw a few other runners out, dog walkers, and one cyclist (Steve) and I gave them all enthusiastic hello-waves and Christmas cheer, which were mostly reciprocated in kind. Checked out the Humber River; the rotting sneaker and spotted a small feral cat in the Humber ravine who hates having it's photo taken  My oddity find of the day was seeing newspapers still being delivered to an abandoned property


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

*Running surface and injuries: The role of leg stiffness in running injuries*

This week, we'll be looking at one of the funny ways the body adjusts to a variety of running surfaces and conditions, motivated by a basic question: "Where should I go running?"

Hitting the trails, or at least getting off of paved roads, is one of the most common recommendations to runners who can't seem to shake a streak of injuries.

However, large-scale scientific studies haven't found any connection between how much of your running is on hard vs. soft surfaces and injury rates.

One of the possible explanations for why that is comes from an understanding of leg stiffness, a way in which biomechanics researchers model how the leg interacts with different surfaces encountered while running.

*What is leg stiffness*
At its core, running is based around propelling the body forward in more or less a straight line. To this end, the body does its best to keep its center of gravity level during the running gait. During impact with the ground, the muscles and tendons of the leg act much like a spring, absorbing energy and releasing it later in the gait cycle. But that's not the only factor in the equation.

Your shoes and the surface you run on also function as springs, absorbing and releasing energy. And each of these components has its own unique stiffness-much like a bungee cord is a stiffer spring than a rubber band, so too is a concrete road a stiffer "spring" than a soccer field. So, given that we'll be running over a variety of surfaces in the same pair of shoes, it's easy to see that our body is going to have to change the stiffness of our legs to keep our body level.
*
How does leg stiffness change based on running surface*
Fascinatingly, the leg's stiffness is "pre-tuned" before impact for each individual footstride. Combining feedback from the previous stride and information stored in the brain, the body anticipates the stiffness of the surface you're running on and adjusts how strongly the leg muscles contract before impact. If you put your hand on your quads while running, you can actually feel them tighten up before your foot hits the ground.

And perhaps the neatest tidbit about this phenomenon is that the body changes the stiffness of the legs before the first impact on a new surface! So your body pre-tunes the legs differently in mid-air as you step from concrete onto grass.

But here's the odd part: if you are running on a hard surface, your legs are less stiff than they are on a soft surface. It's a consequence of the necessity of keeping the stiffness of the surface/shoe/leg system constant, and this has some surprising implications when we consider injury prevention.

*What role does leg stiffness play in running injuries*
The role of impact in running injuries is not clear-while work by Irene Davis at the University of Delaware has linked high impacts (or more properly, high impact loading rates) with plantar fasciitis3 and tibial stress fractures,4 two common running injuries, other research done by Benno Nigg at the University of Calgary has found that overall injury rates are slightly lower among runners with high impact loading rates!5

This apparent paradox has no clear resolution in sight, as both Davis and Nigg are highly respected biomechanics researchers with good data to back up their claims. It's possible, though, that they could both be right. Some injuries may be linked to stress from high leg stiffness and others may be linked to stress from low leg stiffness.6 However, right now there's only evidence for half of this puzzle.

*Leg stiffness and stress fractures*
Davis' research has fairly convincingly linked leg stiffness, impact, and stress on the tibia. On average, runners who have suffered a tibial stress fracture have higher impact forces, stiffer legs, and greater forces traveling up their shins.

If, then, we propose that runners with a history of tibial stress fractures take steps to lower their leg stiffness (which is a big leap-we cannot yet say for sure that stiffer legs cause tibial stress fractures), we arrive at a surprising conclusion: they should wear thinner shoes with a firmer midsole, and run on harder surfaces.

Again, since the overall stiffness of the entire surface/shoe/leg system must remain constant, if we make the shoes and surface stiffer, the leg is forced to be more compliant! The logic is that the muscles and tendons of the leg will absorb more of the impact, taking some strain off the bones; the trade off being that the risk of tendon/muscle injury may increase.

*Leg stiffness and muscle injuries*
Using that logic, we might propose that runners who have suffered from soft tissue injuries wear more cushioned shoes or train on softer surfaces, again to move stresses away from injury-prone areas.

As of yet, the only solid research linking higher leg stiffness to reduced injury risk is Benno Nigg's work, which links higher impact loading rates with lower injury risk overall. If my theory is right, and some injuries are aggravated by higher leg stiffness/impact loading rates and others are aggravated by lower leg stiffness/impact loading, there's a lot of work to be done to classify which injuries belong in which category.

*What surface should you run on*
Until then, we'll have to return to the tired but reliable mainstay of moderation: try to do some running on softer surfaces and some running on harder surfaces. It's unrealistic for most people to do all of their running on grass and dirt anyways, and if anything, I think most runners are "underexposed" to softer surfaces like trails, grass, and gravel roads.

But if you have a history of plantar fasciitis or tibial stress fracture and are willing to go out on a limb, you might think about switching to a firmer shoe and sticking to the roads. Likewise, if you've had a lot of muscle and tendon injuries, you might think about hitting the trails.

Finally, there's one more boon to running on softer surfaces, and that is that they tend to be more irregular. If you run ten miles on an asphalt road, every step is about the same as the last. But if you run the same distance on a trail, or even on a golf course or gravel country road, there are small variations in each step. Intuition suggests that this might alleviate some injury problems by switching up where the forces are going inside your body. While I doubt that the benefits of this would be large enough to be deemed statistically significant in a scientific study (not to mention the practical difficulties of determining how "irregular" a particular running route is!) I still think it's a small help. My college team, which had access to a large system of trails and gravel roads in the fall and spring, but had to run on paved roads during the winter, seemed to suffer a few more injuries when we were out on the roads in the winter than when we were hitting the trails in warmer weather.

sauce https://runnersconnect.net/running-surface/


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

We did a 15km run ride pairing for funday (before the weather changed and we got +++rain and ice)


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

Run -ride pairing . January 1, 2020  We did 20km in -7c windchill


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## Radium (Jan 11, 2019)

I know a gal who also runs....maybe too much. on New Years' Day, she ran a half- marathon and ended up with a stress fracture of her 4th metatarsal. I take her at her word, since she's a PT by profession.


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

^ yikes stress fractures. I've never experienced them. Last year around this time my plantar fascitis flared up which I attribute to my choice of shoes. I switched from my summer, plusher shoes to stiffer trail running shoes for winter conditions because they were gortex (to keep my feet dry) and had a better grip (on icy/snow surfaces) However because those shoes were stiffer, my arch and heel paid the price. It took months (I did my PT ++ interventions) for the inflamation to subside... ok I still continued to run and ride and strength train in the gym... but it healed 

This year I am wearing my regular "fair weather" shoes. Good support, a little plush and winter wool running socks. So far so good. I've logged 57km since January 1


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

My sunday/funday 18km run... I found a full can of beer, unopened. On my loop back... it was gone


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

Found this on a runner's forum but it applies to other sports too


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

15km funday runday. We got a 20cm (7") snowfall on Saturday. Shovelled in the evening. And rode the tire ruts  Sunday morning, I went for a run. Most sidewalks and roads were cleared. -14c (6f) windchill


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## Tim_Ky (Jun 16, 2014)

I ran consistently through my 30's. In my 40's I developed foot and hip pain that made it difficult to even walk. My left foot hurts to this day. Even walking hurts at times. I miss running but biking has become my love. I hope I'm able to bike for many more years. I still enjoy a hike and walk but often it results in pain for days. I can't imagine what running would do.


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

^ Do you know what is causing your pain? Can it be treated? It must be terrible to feel this way. I am glad you are able to do some enjoyable activities. But I hope you can manage and not feel worse


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## Tim_Ky (Jun 16, 2014)

I've been to the podiatrist a few times and he gave me shoe inserts. X-ray's didn't show anything abnormal. Even the top on my foot hurts and I have to loosen my shoe throughout the day. It's weird that only my left foot hurts. I honestly thought it would get better if I stayed off of it for a few weeks or months. Here I am 5 years later and it still hurts everyday. I've rolled and stretched it many times. Most days it isn't bad but I"m always aware of it. It's usually after activities that it's the worst. I'm getting old and lots of body parts hurt these days, but I still get out there exercise almost everyday. I feel like a kid again when I'm on my bicycle and forget about the pain for a bit. Thanks for your concern.


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## Tim_Ky (Jun 16, 2014)

I love your images. My neighbors probably think I'm crazy cycling around in the dark on my mountain bike. I don't see many bikes in my area. Especially after dark. I get so excited when I see a bicycle on my street but they never stop to chat. We hosted a cyclist this past summer.


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

I had a vacation day on Friday. Trails were snow covered and not yet packed down so I did a 16km run. I was also on the lookout for a missing doggie. Received good news that Katie was found today


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

I also did a run-ride pairing today. 17km. Trails were a bit slushy but not slippery. Many bridges crossed and hills were climbed. Sunday + runday = funday


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## paramount3 (Jul 13, 2014)

Katie looks a little thin skinned to be out on her own in the Canadian winter. Glad she was found.

Cyclelicious, have you tried snowshoeing?


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

^ I have a pair of running snowshoes, which I tried a few times. We haven't had enough snowfall the past 2 winter seasons to get good use of them. I'm hanging on to them because they are light and should the opportunity arise I'm ready.

A few years ago we got backcountry crosscountry skis. These were a very cool concept and we got much use out of them.


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

paramount3 said:


> Katie looks a little thin skinned to be out on her own in the Canadian winter. Glad she was found.
> 
> Cyclelicious, have you tried snowshoeing?


It's true I worried that the coyotes would get her!


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

02/02/2020 run. It was snowing so I had no exact plan of how far I would or could go. Sidewalks and trails were snow covered, crunchy but grippy. I just kept going and noticed some interesting patterns along the way. I ended up doing an even 20 km which is a cool superfecta for the day


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

I don't know if this runner is over 50 but ... that's dedication !

*Runner trapped by coronavirus runs 31 miles (50km) in his apartment*









Marathon runner Pan Shancu has reportedly run 31 miles in his apartment in Hangzhou, China, where he remains trapped due to the coronavirus quarantine. Shancu, who is used to running regularly, has been clocking up miles in his tiny apartment in order to stay fit.

During the quarantine, citizens are being advised to stay inside as much as possible to avoid contracting the coronavirus. Shancu has been running in his tiny apartment, by running around two tables and down the length of his hall. He has so far clocked up 31 miles.

According to news reports, Shancu, who has a marathon PB of two hours and 59 minutes, recently ran 6,250 circuits in one of the rooms in his flat.

Taking to social media, Shancu wrote, "I have not been outside for many days, but today I could not bear sitting around anymore. Let's run laps around the two massage tables in the room then! Yes, one lap is about eight metres (26 feet) and I ran 50 kilometres (31 miles), I did it in 4:48:44. I am sweating all over, feels great!"


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## chazpat (Sep 23, 2006)

Well, after having not run for the last three months due to my crash, I got out for a run this morning! I thought about it last night and then this morning I was watching a Ted Talk about running while doing my PT exercises and it got me excited and I checked the temperature (42F) and decided to get out there. Only 1-1/2 miles but it's a start.


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

^ That's awesome chaz!


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

Despite the weather and not ideal conditions, I pushed myself and did a few runs on the long weekend (for a total 29km)

Always adventures on every training run


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## Happybill68 (Feb 4, 2020)

Still love running, working my miles back up again. Some days it’s hard to decide what I’d rather do, go biking or go running. 


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)




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## ddoh (Jan 11, 2017)

You are the Queen of motivation!


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)




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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

Paging Chazpat...

*Trail Runner Rescued After Crawling for More Than 10 Hours in Sub-Freezing Temperatures*

(He tied his shoes to his knees after his skin scraped off)









.A trail runner in Washington near Olympic National Park was rescued early Saturday morning after breaking his ankle and crawling for hours until he was able to get cell reception to call 911.

Joseph Oldendorf, 26, was nine to 10 miles out on the Duckabush Trail-about two hours and 45 minutes into his run-on Friday evening when he slipped on a patch of ice and broke his ankle around 5 p.m., he told dispatchers. Unable to walk and without cell reception, he began crawling back toward the trailhead.

Oldendorf estimated that he crawled five to six miles on his hands and knees in sub-freezing temperatures while wearing only running clothes-shorts, a shirt, and a light running jacket. The skin on his knees scraped off as he made his way long the groomed but messy trail with many downed trees. At one point, he tied his shoes around his knees to ease the pain and abrasions.

"The guy went through hell," Matt Stewart, president of the Jefferson Search and Rescue and one of the rescuers, told Runner's World. "That trail is filled with downed trees. One close to him was a foot in diameter and a foot off the ground. He probably encountered that over most of the trail."

Around 12:45 a.m., after eight hours of crawling, Oldendorf finally got a signal on his phone and was able to call for help. The Jefferson County Search and Rescue, local firefighters, and local sheriff's office made their way up the trail with a wheel litter, medical supplies, and hot packs. Oldendorf continued to crawl toward the trailhead for about two more hours to stay warm and to meet the rescue crew sooner.

EMTs found Oldendorf about three and a half miles from the trailhead, and they immediately began tending to him, using hot packs, foil, and extra jackets for warmth. They also splinted his leg until a U.S. Coast Guard helicopter was able to come around 7 a.m. and transport him to Harborview Medical Center in Seattle.

"We had to move him a quarter of a mile up the trail to where the helicopter could drop a basket," Stewart said. "We put him in the wheel litter, wrapped up like a burrito with foot warmers, fresh socks, hot packs and a cap, and we got him to where the 250-foot trees wouldn't impede the lift."

Oldendorf was reportedly admitted to the hospital Saturday and later released on Sunday.

"We like to train for high-altitude rescues because of the mountainous region we operate in," U.S. Coast Guard Lt. Cmdr. Sam Hill said in a press release. "Because of that training, we were able to overcome numerous environmental challenges to rescue the hiker from a dangerous situation. We thank Jefferson County Search and Rescue for their help locating the hiker and assisting with the hoist."

Stewart added that Oldendorf should be applauded for his efforts to save his own life. By staying on the trail, carrying a fully-charged cell phone, crawling toward the trailhead for a quicker rescue, moving to stay warm even after notifying rescue, and knowing where he was and alerting rescuers of his location assisted in getting him help sooner rather than later.

These are all things Stewart recommends should this happen to anyone on a trail.

"The reality is most trail runs happen around here and everywhere safely," Stewart said. "But occasionally, you get a freak incident like this, and it's best to be prepared. Like tying his shoes to his knees. That was the right thing to do. I probably wouldn't have thought of that, but I will now if it ever happens to me."

sauce https://www.runnersworld.com/news/a...LksTGT0_7q1zISmahJIHeVQcotfxRM-cI63iyXkC6hMmk


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

March roars in like a lion: 15km run-ride pairing. A little bit of everything: hills, pavement, snow covered trails, pileated woodpeck hydro worker, and contrails (or chemtrail depending on the perspective) Awesome training run and ride... and only 18 days til Spring!

2020 I've logged 317 km. Training for a big race in May that I'm now committed to do


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## Happybill68 (Feb 4, 2020)

I’ve found my passion for running again. After it going missing for two years I rediscovered my love for long slow miles. 

Not training for anything, just set some goals this year I want to meet. 


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


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## Outhouse (Jul 26, 2019)

I used to run, most of my life im 56 now. last year I was only up to 5 miles. now im riding mtb's and im 280 miles for the year with 32000' climbed. My health is great and low blood pressure, no aches or pains. Tried cross training by starting to run again, but with my bike legs, they are not having this whole running thing again. I cant get but a 1/4 mile in and my thighs are cramping up. Ive done the 1/4 mile about 3 times now giving a day or two, between runs, and stretching well. Im guessing if I keep at it I will run through it. ideas?


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

I'm not sure what could cause the leg cramping. I can only guess....Maybe try warm up exercises before running? stretch beforehand? better shoes? Not sure what you are using now but shoes make a big difference. Could your running style be the cause? When running don't let your heels touch the ground. The ball of your foot should be the only part that connects with the ground. If your heel makes contact while running it sends shock waves up your shins that result in shin splints. Dehydration?

Other than that...remove your legs?


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## Outhouse (Jul 26, 2019)

Yes my heels always touch first, im jogging really. The pain isnt as bad as cramping, it just gets so sore its close. Ill run through it, and its probably just new running legs i need to break in. your advise is all good


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

Beautiful funday morning run. The countryside is still snow covered but it's melting! Road cyclists were out. Odds and ends: a jeep stuck in the snow. The rotting sneaker was peaking out again.... but now it looks like it's being swallowed up by the earth 17km at a good pace and testing my new training shoes.


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)




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## chazpat (Sep 23, 2006)

cyclelicious said:


> Paging Chazpat...
> 
> *Trail Runner Rescued After Crawling for More Than 10 Hours in Sub-Freezing Temperatures*


Me? You're the one out running in the snow! 

I've done that a couple of times (running in snow, not crawling thru it). A few years ago I went up to Mount Charleston outside of Las Vegas for a run. There was a good coating of snow on the ground as I started. I quickly was tired from the high altitude and just started hiking. I was wearing shorts but I was warm enough. I got to a section that crossed a steep off-camber and had to really punch my feet through the snow to try to find good footing. It occurred to me that if I slipped and got injured, there was no one around and nobody even knew where I was, other than a photo I had taken at the lodge up the road that I had sent to a coworker and a rental car left in the parking lot.

And I used to run in the mornings on some more out of the way trails and for some reason, no cell service on my phone, so it occurred to me that I'd better be careful. The trails I mostly run now usually have some dog walkers and hikers around, within yelling distance at least.


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

Sunshine on my shoulders and cold wind in my face 17km run this morning. Chris wheelied to greet me on my final 5km. Patches of snow and ice in the forest and trails but paths were dry. I spotted a hawk that was surveying the fields... it took flight when I approached. Maintaining good training mileage will pay off


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

We've been doing a warm up run prior to doing our home gym workout in the evening after work. As the weather gets a little warmer and days a little longer we will be able to include some mid week rides. Keeping our social distance and staying fit


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

Dr. Fauci, the immunologist in charge the coronavirus task force, is a runner! Science-based and fit, Fauci has advised six presidents on AIDS, Ebola, Zika, MERS, SARS, malaria, tuberculosis, and many other domestic and global health issues. When he was in midst of the fight against HIV/AIDS, Dr. Fauci was known to run 7 miles daily. Recently he was asked if still keeps to that exercise regimen. No, he says, noting that he is working 19 hour days to fight the coronavirus. He is down to 3.5 miles at the age of 79

*Anthony Fauci Is an Avid Runner, Even When He Works 19-Hour Days*









Anthony Fauci, M.D., the 79-year-old longtime director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) at the National Institutes of Health (NIH), is reportedly working 19 hours a day in the fight against the coronavirus. You've seen him: He's the slight, bespectacled, plain-dealing Brooklynite at President Donald Trump's elbow during most recent press conferences, providing a voice of sound, science-backed reason.

Yet, while many Americans are hoarding toilet paper and cans of baked beans and contemplating whether or not a Mad Men marathon on Netflix counts as a workout, Fauci still finds time to hit the pavement.

With his increased age and workload, Fauci has reportedly cut back his daily runs to 3.5 miles per day, as he told Yahoo! White House correspondent Alexander Nasaryan. But back when a younger Fauci was working a lighter, 15-hour day to contain the AIDS epidemic in the '80s and '90s, he would build a lunchtime seven-miler into his schedule, five or six days a week, to keep his weight down, get outside, and relieve stress. His daily runs helped him cross the finish line at the 1984 Marine Corps Marathon in 3:37-a personal best.

"I think the benefit for me is as a stress-reliever," Fauci said in a 2016 interview. "I have a pretty high-stress job, so getting outside during the day and hearing the birds and smelling the grass is a very pleasing thing for me."

Fauci has advised six presidents on AIDS, Ebola, Zika, MERS, SARS, malaria, tuberculosis, and many other domestic and global health issues. However, it's a good bet his cortisol level has never been higher as he struggles to diplomatically disseminate hard facts without undercutting President Trump.

When you're dealing with the White House, sometimes you have to say things one, two, three, four times, and then it happens," he said in a recent interview with Science Magazine. "So, I'm going to keep pushing."

At work, and on the road.

sauce https://www.runnersworld.com/news/a31932829/anthony-fauci-running-during-coronavirus/


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## Ptor (Jan 29, 2004)

cyclelicious said:


> Dr. Fauci, the immunologist in charge the coronavirus task force, is a runner!


This is the septuagenarian that needs to be on the US presidential ballot come November. We need individuals with technical and ethical competence in positions of leadership -- and runners (or cyclists)!


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

*What's the best way to exercise to maintain a strong immune system?*

Before and after the 1901 Boston Marathon, a Harvard doctor named Ralph Larrabee took blood samples from four of the runners. Their white blood cell counts, a key measure of immune function, were way out of whack, indicating that "the exertion had gone far beyond physiological limits."

Scientists have been debating the link between hard exercise and the risk of catching passing infections ever since, and the question has never been more salient than now, thanks to the rapidly spreading coronavirus pandemic. For some, self-isolation is severely curtailing their usual exercise habits; for others, a sudden and unwanted excess of free time is allowing them to train harder than ever before. Neither approach, it turns out, is ideal.

Exercise immunologists usually describe the relationship between infection risk and exercise dose (which is a combination of duration and intensity) as a J-curve. Doing regular moderate exercise lowers your risk compared to doing nothing; studies typically find that near-daily moderate exercisers report about half the typical number of upper-respiratory tract infections. That's an important message or anyone who's tempted to slack off their fitness routine until life returns to normal.

But according to the J-curve theory, if you ramp the dose up too high, your risk climbs steadily until you're more vulnerable than if you'd done nothing at all. For that reason, Oregon-based elite track coach Jonathan Marcus recently argued on Twitter that athletes should avoid the type of gut-busting workouts that might put them at higher risk. "To train hard now is irresponsible," he wrote.

Figuring out what counts as "too hard" is tricky, though. Neil Walsh, an exercise immunologist at Liverpool John Moores University in Britain, compared the effects of two hours of low-intensity running with 30 minutes of high-intensity running. The longer bout disrupted immune response more than the shorter one, suggesting that duration is a bigger risk factor than intensity.

That may be because prolonged exercise depletes the fuel stores that your immune cells rely on - an effect that seems to kick in after about an hour and get even worse after 90 minutes, according to research from Appalachian State University immunologist David Nieman.

Not everyone agrees with this take, though. In a 2018 paper in Frontiers in Immunology, University of Bath researchers John Campbell and James Turner questioned the idea that hard exercise, on its own, suppresses immune function, even in an extreme challenge such as running a marathon.

"If people do get an infection, it's probably due to their attendance at a mass-participation event, where lots of people, and their bugs, are gathered," Campbell argued.

Travel and big crowds aren't an issue for self-isolating solo exercisers. But other external factors such as stress and disrupted sleep - not exactly rare in the midst of a pandemic - also wreak havoc on immune function, says Walsh. He and his colleagues found that anxiety and psychological stress, as measured by a simple questionnaire, had just as much influence on the immune system's response to exercise as the length and intensity of the workout.

All of this makes it difficult to issue a one-size-fits-all prescription for how to work out. Nieman offers a simple rule of thumb: stick to 60 minutes or less at an average heart rate of 60 per cent of your maximum. Inserting some more intense surges is fine; it's sustained intensity that seems to tax the body the most.most.

The details, though, will differ depending on your fitness, your usual habits and perhaps also your psychological needs. Running for an hour might be unfamiliar, stressful and physically exhausting for someone who's looking for an alternative to their cancelled weekly hockey game. But it might be relatively easy for a habitual runner, and an important source of stress relief, which, in turn, will have positive immune benefits.

The bottom line? Find a way to keep exercising and don't be afraid to push hard now and then. But if you're planning to run a hard solo marathon around and around your block, make sure to rest up and stay well away from other people for a few days afterward - you know, like you're supposed to be doing anyway.

sauce https://www.theglobeandmail.com/lif...nrJntgPzLvr1iU2AZdeCQ3BzQdIpNsVNMAu3xDkJR5GCA


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## Stonerider (Feb 25, 2008)

Since I've started working from home because of Coronavirus, I've started doing a 1.2 mile loop run at lunch that takes me 10 minutes at moderate intensity. This helps to get the blood flowing after sitting in my study all morning on the computer and breaks up my work day. I'm primarily a cyclist but don't have time to cycle any meaningful time at lunch. I find the mid-day short run refreshing. Too bad my official workplace doesn't have a shower facility so I could do this all the time.


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

We did a run-ride pairing for my long distance 16km run on Funday. I 16km but could have done more if it weren't for the intermittent rain showers followed by bursts of sun. The temps climbed to 18c and this is my first run of the year in shorts  Friendly cyclists keeping our social distance


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

16km funday run. Parking lots to local trails are locked down but trails are still open. MUPs and sidewalks weren't too busy this morning


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

*Rest Days and Recovery Runs: What You Need to Know*

Take planned rest days when you are healthy, or you will be taking forced rest days when you are injured.

Injuries are the Trojan Horses of trail running. Like in the city of Troy, everything in your body can seem fine, until things suddenly become very, very bad. And in both scenarios, without vigilance, things will not end well for any Achilles involved.

As a coach, my main goal is to keep motivated runners healthy. While hard training is a prerequisite to create elite athletes, adequate recovery is essential to keep them from destroying themselves through injury and physiological breakdown.

The dilemma is palpable. Miles make the runner; miles injure the runner; injuries unmake the runner. My solution for the trail runners I coach (from professionals to those just getting started) is to use both full rest days and recovery-run days to structure training. Here is how to think about rest and recovery.

*Breakdown and Recovery*

First, the basics: Running training causes breakdown all the way from the cellular level to physiological systems that involve muscles, organs and even the brain. Train hard more than a few days in a row and (barring freakish recovery powers) the breakdown will build until performance falls off a cliff and training becomes actively counterproductive. Overtraining and overuse injuries are the result.

That same stress that breaks you down, however, is also what builds you up. Adequate rest and recovery allows the body to adapt to minor breakdown to come back stronger than before-that's what leads to fitness gains. Recover smart and you'll be like a real-life Million Dollar Woman or Man, but in much shorter shorts.

*The Role of Impact Forces*

Why is running different? Unlike endurance sports like cycling or swimming, running involves impact forces. These impact forces increase breakdown, thus decreasing the total amount of work you can do before getting injured. That is why top runners train at most 14 hours per week, while the top cyclists and swimmers can train twice as much. (Don't even get me started on how much triathletes can train.)

Impact forces are the reason rest days are important for most runners. Most impact-related injuries develop over time, but once they reach a tipping point, they often manifest themselves rather quickly. Rest days-when used strategically over the course of a training cycle-can heal budding injuries before you even know they exist.

*Recovery Runs vs. Rest Days*

Some serious runners prefer to rely solely on "recovery" days, substituting slower runs at anywhere from 50 to 75 percent of maximum heart rate for true days off.

Recovery runs can actually accelerate the recovery process by increasing blood flow, plus they have some aerobic benefit. (A general guideline for recovery is to run at around marathon pace plus one minute, though closer to marathon pace if you are newer to running. These runs are not necessarily slow-when you are fit, they can even become somewhat fast, especially near the end.)

However, while they are mostly positive, recovery runs still involve impact forces to stressed bones, joints, tendons and ligaments. Even the slowest recovery pace can exacerbate a stress fracture. So while rest days may be worse from a pure performance perspective (and from a how-much-pizza-you-can eat-for-lunch perspective), any gains from recovery runs can be rendered moot by being injured for weeks or months.

*Using Rest and Recovery Days*

Recovery Run Frequency: The frequency of recovery runs depends on how much you are running to begin with. I recommend doing at least four or five total runs a week no matter what your level. Spreading out your total distance over the course of a week decreases injury risk and allows your body to stay adapted to the impact forces.

In addition, you should never do harder efforts two days in a row unless you are an experienced runner working from a smart plan. So, if you are running five days a week, three should be recovery runs. If you are running six days a week, three or four should be recovery runs. And if you are running seven days a week, three to five should be recovery runs.

Rest Day Frequency: Here things go from a science to an art. Some runners can get by without ever taking a rest day. However, if you are reading this article for training advice, then you are unlikely to fall into the never-rest, never-injured category. These folks are freaks, and I mean that in the most awestruck way possible.

For all of the experienced runners I coach, there is a complete rest day every seven to 10 days. In general, Mondays work best, as they follow longer, harder trail runs on the weekend. (That also allows you to catch up on all the work you will miss for the remainder of the week while you're updating your Instagram with photos from your morning trail run.)

For less experienced or injury-prone runners, two rest days a week might be needed. Another option is to replace one of those rest days with a "shuffle"-a run that minimizes impact forces by being deliberately slow (at least two minutes per mile slower than marathon pace).

Finally, any more than two rest days per week is generally not advisable unless you are new to running, a multi-sport athlete or over 50 years old-packing too much mileage into too few runs can increase injury risk. Focus on frequency and consistency for long-term success.

On rest days, don't vegetate like a human eggplant. Instead, walk around, foam roll, do some strength and mobility work (though no leg weight-lifting), and spin on the bike if you want. Just be sure to avoid impact forces (that includes things like CrossFit, tennis and jumping up and down on the bed).

Remember the importance of rest days, and you can make recovery (and your running performance) great again.

sauce https://trailrunnermag.com/training...Dv3dcouCVxMxD3derIbTOShg-nxoBeK_BnYPxvJ5IZrp4


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## ddoh (Jan 11, 2017)

Good stuff! Easily applicable to cycling.


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

Who would think that training to run a marathon could be applied to building resilience to deal with a pandemic! I found this article presenting the 2 entities and articulating some of the principles that have helped me set goals over the years and accomplish the "impossible". We are all stronger than we know 

*Resilience Under Fire: 5 Pathways to be Marathon Strong*

We are now living and leading in an invisible firestorm that surrounds us. Some of us have been socially distanced or isolated and are fairly protected. Others of us less so, and many others are in the direct line of fire. All of us need to pull on what is the best in ourselves. Right now.

A recent survey in the Boston Globe reveals that about 20% of us are more frightened than we have ever been in our lives. Another 20% report they are extremely fearful. The virus has a contagion of around 50%. Fear is nearly 100% contagious. But it is also something we can manage. Don't think, however, that you can just make it go away. You begin by aiming to reduce your fear five percent. Then another five percent.

As we seek to work with our fear, we might draw inspiration from an unexpected source - the marathon runner. Marathon runners in cities across the globe have shown us the art of endurance.

Boston is famous for its marathon and for becoming "Boston Strong" after the horrific experience with the bombing April 15, 2013. How can we all be Marathon Strong now? It's a journey we can take together.

Who finishes a marathon? It isn't the most physically fit. Research shows us there are two key ingredients to completing and winning a race. You know the first one-"Will Power." The second ingredient is lesser known and is called "Way Power." Way Power is having a goal, the commitment to reach it, and an ability to think through multiple pathways to that goal. When Plan A fails, if you have Plans B, C, D & E, you are far more likely to win.

What does this have to do with managing our fear? When we are afraid, we need multiple pathways to take us toward mastering our fear that first five percent. One path works better for one person; find the one that appeals to you the most. Then the one that appeals to you second, then third.

We are all stronger than we know. Here are five possible paths to help manage and master fear in any order that works for you.

We are facing an overwhelming challenge or task: what do marathoners do that we can do?

*Control breathing and physiology*
Slow your breath, pulling the air deeper inside increases the oxygen levels in your blood.
This helps counter the cortisol and other anxiety driven physiological reactions.
If you are out flat: Rapid rest recovery cycles. 10 second breaks help. 3 slowed breaths in a row helps you downshift.
At times, fear can feel overwhelming. How can we help ourselves when it just feels too big?

*Manage fear*
Emotions hit us in waves, when you can't stop it, ride it out, don't thrash in the water. Water can hold us up, let the wave pass.
Fear is uncomfortable but can't kill you. Try not to be contagious to others.
See it, name it. Co-exist with it if it won't recede right now. Imagine driving a car. Put it in the passenger seat, present, but not driving your decisions and actions.
How can we manage to be "bigger" than our fear?

*Win the inner game*
Parts of you are in distress and in a high fear state. But is it 100%? Find a deeper part of you that can be compassionate to the parts of you that are afraid.
Be aware of your inner dialogue. Talk to yourself as you would a friend or your child, if you are being nasty or mean to yourself, please stop. It's not fair.
Find a "Mantra" a phrase or sentence you can repeat over and over. It might be as simple as, "I'll be okay," or, "we're tough," or "we're going to make it through." Find the part of you that is strong.
We are in this for the long haul. How do we keep going and going?

*Pace yourself through the race to finish and win*
Do not go all out. Keep your reserves. There are times you must move at 80% speed.
Learn to expend only the energy you need; you can recover by relaxing while running.
"Draft" on another. When you are tired, let someone else lead and reduce the stress.
We will be stronger at the end.

*Connect with deeper values and purpose.*
We are in this race together and can be more connected.
Extreme effort brings out the best or the worst in us. Appreciate when you are at your best. Accept and then challenge yourself when you slip. And when you slip again.
Remember what really matters. Live it. If it's family, get off the computer.
We have never faced anything like this before. Now is the time to grow the seeds of our courage and strength. Find your feet and your second wind, then your third and we will come out stronger and more deeply connected to those we love, and our community. I recently saw a poster that speaks to us now. It was an action shot of a runner, racing toward us flat out, with two titanium prosthetic lower legs. The message is perfect. "Don't think about what you cannot do. Think about what you can."

Be strong. Be well. Be careful. We will win together. We are tough.
My best wishes for you,

sauce : https://instituteofcoaching.org/blogs/resilience-under-fire-5-pathways-be-marathon-strong


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

My race prize for making the podium for my first half marathon (June 2019) was a t-shirt and free bananas


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

Over the past 6 weeks I've added a 2km run as a warm up to my home gym workout. Those km are adding up and I'm averaging 40 to 45km per week (that's not including my 2-3 rides!) I'm still able to do my long run on Sundays (15-20km) and a midweek mini fast run (5-8km) Lot's of cardio and endurance 

I plan my routes carefully to ensure physical distancing a bale out if the sidewalk/MUPs or road shoulder is crowded. Parking lot to local hiking trails is shut down so that reduces the number of walkers significantly. Additionally, I've never seen the parking lot so clean!


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

*Counting your cadence*

180 is the magic number... supposedly. More than a few of my clients ask me what their stride rate or frequency should be in their long runs. And the answer is never as clear cut as: "run at 180". So here is a guide to increasing your stride rate (cadence) and why it is worth spending time on increasing it to your personal optimum in the first place.

*Blocks or wheels*
The optimum cadence (steps per minute) of professional long-distance runners lies around 180. Running coach Jack Daniels noticed that at the 1984 Olympics, nearly all long-distance athletes had a cadence of 180. However, what is often ignored in his observations is that he also mentioned that when the distances get shorter, the stride rate of the athletes goes up. Sometimes closer to 200 than 180 in for instance the 1500m.

180 or 200 is typically not the cadence that casual runners use. They tend to have a lower cadence. The problem with a cadence that is too low, is that you get a bigger impact force on the body with every step. The best comparison to explain why a higher cadence is better involves cubes and octagons!









If you have a cube lying on the table in front of you and you want to push it over so that the bottom side faces up, you have to push it over a corner point twice. Those are two 'big pushes' with lots of impact on the cube as it lands on the table again. It also requires quite a lot of vertical oscillation (the centre of mass of the cube goes up and down quite a bit).

Now imagine you could shave off the corners of the cube, turning it into an octagon. Getting the bottom part of the octagon to be on top would require you to push it four times instead of two. In doing so, the impact force of the cube-turned-octagon on the table is far less as you now spread it out over four contact points. The vertical oscillation of the centre of mass in the octagon is much less than in the cube shape. This is why a high turnover of the legs tends to be a better, less impactful way of running.

*How to improve stride rate*
There are several ways to improve your stride rate to your optimum cadence. Some will be comfortable running at 174 strides per minute, some will be able to get to 185 strides per minute, depending on the distance you are running.

As a general rule, long-distance runners (5k and up), should aim for a stride rate of 170 or higher. Any lower and you are at risk of taking steps that are too big and lead to overstriding and probably heel-striking.

A good way to train cadence is to count your steps over a similar stretch (say a 100m section of a track) multiple times. Trying to increase the number of steps by two every time you run the section until you max out. Most watches have a cadence setting nowadays so that makes it even easier.

Another great way to improve cadence is to run downhill repeats. No counting involved here but this will get your legs moving! After an easy run, do five strides (or pick-ups, progression runs) where you accelerate throughout the rep down a gentle grade of 100 to 200 meters, reaching the highest turnover of the legs near the bottom of the hill. Then walk back up for a recovery to repeat this four times over.

*Cadence focussed workout*
Here is a workout that I plan for my clients who want to increase their cadence. Enjoy!









Warm-up: Easy jog for 1k to loosen up the body.

Activation drills:

- 4 x 20m Heel walk / Toe Walk

- 4 x (10 left, 10 right): Pull and place

- 4 x 15m Sweep and Skip

4 x 15m Quick leg isolation

Main set:

Set your watch to display your cadence /stride rate. Now run 5 x 400m at 80% of Functional Threshold Pace (FTP). So it is a comfortable pace but not too slow. The focus is on the leg turnover.

Every 400m rep, you increase your stride rate by 2. So if the first 200m is at a cadence of 170 steps per minute, your 2nd you will aim for 172, the third 174 and so on and so forth.

The pace remains the same for all 5 reps. Rest interval is one minute walking between reps.

Then cool down by running 1k at an easy pace (HR 110 - 130 max).

sauce https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/coun...uKWWUdewJrVWZqjm0uEqTaQIFGD27ODvkMPaspa0Un2fg


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

*Why you're unlikely to get the coronavirus from runners or cyclists*

Under social distancing, we're all doing our best to stay sane, and one of the best ways to maintain sanity is to go out for some nice fresh air. But venturing outside can be stressful if you're worried that the very air is full of virus particles just waiting to infect you.









So, how worried should you be that any time you go outside, you'll contract coronavirus from a fellow pedestrian, runner, or cyclist who happens to exhale as they pass by?

The answer is, you probably don't need to freak out about it. As long as you're maintaining at least 6 feet of distance from other people and you're not in a high-risk group, you're engaged in a very low-risk activity, particularly if you and others are wearing masks.

Earlier this month, Belgian-Dutch engineers publicized some findings that went viral online and gave people the opposite impression. The engineers used a spray nozzle particle generator to simulate the spread of droplets we generate as we walk, run, or bike. Since the particles hit a trailing athlete who was farther than 6 feet away, the engineers concluded we need to maintain more distance than that to avoid the risk of contracting Covid-19.

They recommended staying 16 feet behind someone who's walking, 33 feet behind someone who's running or biking slowly, and 65 feet behind someone who's biking hard. Those sorts of distances are almost impossible to maintain in big cities. So, as the findings made the rounds online, lots of people panicked.

But this research - despite being branded as a "study" in a much-shared Medium post aiming to summarize it - contained no input from epidemiologists or virologists and was not peer-reviewed. Its logic is deeply flawed.

"I think we should be very careful with making assumptions about transmission based on that 'study,' since it didn't account for any variables related to transmissibility," said Angela Rasmussen, a virologist at Columbia University, adding, "It's important to understand that infections are started with a minimum infectious dose of virus."

In other words, the "study" failed to consider two key questions: How easy is it for particles traveling in the air outdoors to infect you? And how many particles containing infectious virus would you have to inhale to become infected?

The engineers simply concluded that any exposure was too much. But that's not the case; the truth is more reassuring. Let's break down each of the two questions in turn.

*How easy is it for particles traveling in the air outdoors to infect you?*
To start with, we should get clear on something that has proven confusing to lots of people: Is the coronavirus "airborne"?









The confusion stems from the fact that there's an everyday meaning of the word "airborne" - carried in the air - and a technical scientific meaning, which is based on the size of the virus particles and how long the virus can linger in the air before losing its infectivity.

Public-health experts like to refer to bigger particles that are heavy and thus fall down fast as "droplets," and tiny particles that evaporate faster than they can fall as "aerosols." When a virus is transmissible as aerosols, they say it's "airborne."

We know for sure that the coronavirus moves as droplets. But what about aerosols?

"There's no debate at all as to whether or not aerosols are generated (they are [at least in hospitals where medically invasive procedures are performed]), whether or not they contain virus (they do [at least at first]), and whether or not a particularly violent sneeze can propel them across a room (it can)," said Jennifer Kasten, a pathologist with training in infectious disease epidemiology and global health.

Research by MIT's Lydia Bourouiba has shown that coughs and sneezes can release turbulent clouds of particles in droplet and aerosol form alike. The particles from a cough can travel as far as 16 feet and particles from a sneeze can travel as far as 26 feet.

That, and a handful of other studies, have left some people wondering if maybe we do need to stay much farther apart from one another than the recommended 6 feet.

But if we focus solely on the aerodynamics of particle dispersion, we obscure more crucial unanswered questions: How hardy is the virus when it's in aerosol form? How long can it linger in the air before its protective coat of moisture dries up and it falls apart, ceasing to be infectious?

We've seen Covid-19 case clusters, like the one originating in a choir practice in Washington state, that seem to indicate that asymptomatic people can generate aerosols that make other people sick - at least when they're closely packed together in an enclosed space, for a few hours, singing, which generates higher pressures than does breathing or speech.

Fortunately, increasing your distance, decreasing the duration of your exposure, and improving the ventilation of the air around you can all lower your risk. And being outdoors generally helps you do all three.

"The risks of virus transmissibility in the air outdoors is likely quite low in those contexts, although this risk hasn't been definitively measured," Rasmussen said. "Outside, things like sunlight, wind, rain, ambient temperature, and humidity can affect virus infectivity and transmissibility, so while we can't say there's zero risk, it's likely low unless you are engaging in activities as part of a large crowd (such as a protest). Solitary outdoor exercise is likely low-risk."

Rasmussen and Kasten both noted that a perfect sequence of events has to happen for a virus to jump from an infected passerby outdoors to you. The particles - enough of them to be able to kickstart an infection - have to spray out of the passerby with enough force to make their way over to you. The virus inside the particles has to survive while sunlight, humidity, wind, and other forces work to decay and disperse them. The particles have to land right in your upper throat or respiratory tract - or on your hands, which you then use to touch your eyes, nose, or mouth - and they have to get past all the barriers to infection in the respiratory system, like nose hairs and mucus. Then they have to dock up with your cells' ACE-2 receptors and use them to enter the cells.

This is a pretty arduous sequence to execute properly, and it's even more difficult for the virus if everyone involved - say, both you and the runner in front of you - is wearing a mask. You can see why, if you're standing outdoors several feet away from an infected person, the virus might have a hard time making its way over to you at a high enough dose to actually infect you.

*How many particles do you have to inhale to launch an infection?*
One thing we'd all love to know about Covid-19 is what constitutes the infectious dose - that is, how many live virus particles you need to inhale at once before they kickstart an infection. Unfortunately, scientists just don't have the answer yet.

"As animal model data continues to come out, we'll have a much better idea about estimated ranges of infectious dose," Rasmussen said.

In the meantime, some experts are estimating the infectious dose for Covid-19 from previous coronaviruses that have infected humans, like Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (MERS).

To develop a MERS infection, the number of virus particles you need to inhale is somewhere in the thousands, perhaps as high as 10,000. Willem van Schaik, a professor of microbiology at the University of Birmingham, estimates that to develop Covid-19, that number is lower, perhaps in the high hundreds or low thousands.

That's just an educated guess, but it's reasonable to assume that it takes fewer particles to launch an infection in the case of Covid-19 than MERS because Covid-19 is much more transmissible. Each person with Covid-19 infects two or three others on average, while for MERS that number is less than one.

Although we don't know exactly how many particles it takes - 900? 1,500? - the point to bear in mind here is that you're not going to contract Covid-19 if a single particle falls on you. One of the problems with the Belgian-Dutch exercise "study" is that its recommendations seem to be based on the idea that any exposure is too much.

Obviously, you don't want to walk through someone's fresh sneeze or cough cloud, and if this accidentally happens you should go home, change, and shower. But if you're worrying about how many particles a passerby is generating with their exhalations, it may help to know that a recent study managed to quantify how many virus particles were detectable after patients who had Covid-19 and who were not wearing masks coughed five times into a petri dish at a distance of roughly 8 inches.

The scientists detected 363 virus particles on average per 1 mL of petri dish. That seems like a lot, but again, that was at a distance of 8 inches. If you're 6 feet away (72 inches), much of that will disperse before you can inhale it - particularly if you're outdoors, where factors like increased distance, decreased duration of exposure, and improved air ventilation are all working in your favor.

An understanding of infectious dose, combined with an understanding of transmissibility as laid out above, should also help calm excessive levels of worry about picking up the virus from objects like mail or groceries. Remember that to kickstart an illness, you have to have enough virus particles to get an infection going, and it's got to be live, infectious virus, not just dead RNA (genetic material that won't harm you). The latter will simply fall apart after enough time on inert objects - up to 24 hours on cardboard and up to three days on plastic and stainless steel.

"Viral RNA does not imply the presence of infectious virus," Kasten explained. "The virus, without host cells and a bit of moisture to keep it temporarily going, can fall apart, leaving bits of its RNA lying around like bleached bones in the sun. A researcher can come along with PCR [polymerase chain reaction, a common method in molecular biology] and detect the RNA, but that doesn't necessarily mean they detected infectious virus."

So, when you see a headline that seems frightening - for example, one saying that researchers found coronavirus on a cruise ship 17 days after passengers disembarked - just remember that doesn't necessarily mean it was live, infectious virus.

"The good news is that we do know that while the virus can persist in the environment on different surfaces and in different environments, it does lose infectivity over time," Rasmussen said. "So if you inhale a large number of total [virus particles] but only a small number of them are infectious, you are at much lower risk of actually getting infected."









None of this is to say you should be cavalier when you venture into the outside world. Washing your hands, avoiding touching your face, being diligent about physical distancing, wearing masks in public, and disinfecting communal surfaces - all these things likely reduce transmission risk, and we should keep doing them, Rasmussen said. But she also said she feels fine about taking a walk with her husband outdoors.

Psychologically, different people have different levels of tolerance for risk. For some people, any risk that can be minimized, should be, no matter how small. For others, the recommended 6-foot distance, with masks, and the known decay of both the amount and the infectiousness of the virus - that's good enough.

"The people who are 26-footers should know, though, that the 6-footers are not being foolhardy or endangering others unnecessarily," Kasten said.

Asked if she could offer a way to assess the risk of various activities in terms we can easily wrap our minds around, Kasten said to consider the difference in the risk between taking a stroll through the park on an even path versus climbing up a steep cliff face.

"Sure, you could slip, fall, strike your head, and die on that path in the park. Likewise, you could free-solo successfully to the top of El Capitan. But most of us would accept the risk of the stroll and not accept [the risk of] dangling from the cliff," she said. "Breathing in someone's sneeze cloud, close by, without a mask - that's the cliff face. Jogging several feet away, or getting the mail - that's the park."








saucehttps://www.msn.com/en-us/lifestyle/lifestyle-buzz/why-youre-unlikely-to-get-the-coronavirus-from-runners-or-cyclists/ar-BB138KC2?ocid=sf2#image=2


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## paramount3 (Jul 13, 2014)

The discussion of infectious dose, ACE2 receptors, etc is OK. But much of that cancels out in the calculation. What you really need to assess is the comparison between conditions that we know can transmit the virus, and the conditions of runnning/cycling outdoors. We know that people have been infected by attending a dinner party or a restaurant lunch with another asymptomatic carrier (interviews and news reports from Washington state from March--not able to look those up now). These might be the exception, but this is fairly casual contact--probably less than 6 ft at times, maybe a hug, but not kissing and not for more than a couple of hours. Clearly, when you run or ride by somebody, the time of exposure is much lower than the dinner party. My concern is that both I and the guy running by me are breathing very deeply. Most runners and cyclists aren't wearing masks where I am. I wear one when possible, but it's simply not feasible to climb hills and wear a mask. So there are sometimes situations where I am climbing in the same direction as a runner or cyclist, the speed of overtaking (deltaV) is only a couple mph maybe, we're panting like dogs, and maybe the wind direction is just right so that I take a direct hit of the other guy's exhale. This is still probably less of an exposure than the dinner party scenario, but...maybe not? Very hard to quantify.

I'm still going to ride, walk, and sometimes run outside. But I give way more than 6 feet of space whenever possible even for simple passes (I ride by a pedestrian). I ride like I'm playing pacman, taking the lane, riding on the other side of the street, sidewalk--whatever it takes (trails are another story). Fortunately there's not too much traffic these days. I have taken to descending the "nice" popular hills to ensure short contact times, then I climb the uglier, higher car traffic hills (which actually have very little traffic now) to avoid cyclists and pedestrians during climbs. When a close pass is unavoidable, I try to gauge the wind and make sure I'm not in the direct slipstream of the other person, i.e. get out of the zone where I would draft if I wanted to draft the other rider. And I hold my breath and slow exhale for as long as I can, even when climbing. Avoiding those ten seconds of closest contact is probably good enough. I pretend I've been dumped by a big wave at Maverick's--can't be any worse than being held down for 90 seconds!


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## DrDon (Sep 25, 2004)

cyclelicious said:


> *Why you're unlikely to get the coronavirus from runners or cyclists*
> 
> Under social distancing, we're all doing our best to stay sane, and one of the best ways to maintain sanity is to go out for some nice fresh air. But venturing outside can be stressful if you're worried that the very air is full of virus particles just waiting to infect you.
> 
> ...


Damn Canadians. Stop using high quality data and science . As an Merican I rely on common sense, Facebook and Google.

Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk Pro


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## matt4x4 (Dec 21, 2013)

I run on the treadmill at the gym so I can see all the ladies running the circle track that encompasses the gym. I also use the rowing machine as a pre-workout regimen. Then I crush the weights.


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

Caturday 15 km safe distance run  The weather is improving and more people are getting out... including house bound cats


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

I'm finding it easier to keep a social distance running on the road... I initate moving well to side and keeping my distance when walkers/hikers approach and that the further from urban areas I go... the less chance I have encountering anyone 

Closer to home though I am finding rocks planted by serial rock painters :lol:


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)




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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

I took advantage of our first warm, sunny dry day of the year and did a 23km run. Seems like many walkers/hikers were out too, but I avoided those areas. many interesting sights along the way

























Free flippers!








ATV on the MUP


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

66 years ago today (May 6, 1954) Roger Bannister Breaks the 4 Minute Mile Barrier - "Feeling tremendously full of lov...--full of running."


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

Throwback Thursday: This photo shows three men running in the first Olympics marathon of the modern era. It was taken in 1896 in Athens. The competition was the first successful attempt to to bring back the game after Roman Emperor Theodosius 1 banned it.


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

Caturday morning Spring of Deception 11 km run... holy snappers cold and windy. Mother nature presented us with one more Polar vortex. A few interesting observations along the way. Whenever the temps dip below 0 there is always "that guy in shorts" . Also saw a deer near the river and a cool car. I can never tell if it's an El Camino or Ranchero


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

Today's 15km run was for the birds. It was good weather for pond ducks, paddling in formation. In a farm field, a pair of blackbirds kept a social distance while chirping about the third winter. Cool and overcast but less windy than yesterday. I had the trails and streets to myself! Woohoo!

Went for an afternoon ride


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

Rainy days, even when it's Victoria Day (holiday) always turn out to be the best days. We did a home gym workout to get the juices flowing and followed with a 11km run-ride pairing (not much but it included a couple of big hills) The run-ride started with a drizzle, turned into a sprinkle and ended with a shower... was just bananas


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

I'm planning on running my first marathon soon (It was a goal for 2020) I need to do it virtually by GPX and have my route planned. Now I have hope that I can complete it and perhaps run more in the future... and my times might improve!

*Why you can still run your fastest marathon after 50*

Back in 2014, in a bid to identify the best age for marathon running, a team of Spanish researchers analysed the finishing times of 45,000 athletes at the New York City Marathon.

The results found that for men the golden age was 27 and for women 29. More surprising, perhaps, was the discovery that 18-year-old marathon runners had similar times to 60-year-old athletes. While that result can be partly explained by 60-year-old runners' experience at the distance, there's also some science to suggest why masters runners can still post some incredible times over the marathon.

Take Tommy Hughes. The 59-year-old Northern Irishman ran a time of 2:27:52 at last year's Valencia Marathon, finishing just under four minutes faster than his son, Eoin, 34, who posted a time of 2:31:30. (Their combined time of 4:59:22 was a Guinness World Record for fastest father-and-son duo.)

Following the result, the Hugheses took part in various physiological tests. Among other things, this tested their respective VO2 max (the amount of oxygen you can use while exercising). While Tommy and Eoin had very similar VO2 max scores - 65.4ml/kg/min for Tommy and 66.9ml/kg/min for Eoin - Tommy was seemingly able to run entire marathons at close to his VO2 max. Interestingly, the same is seemingly true of Gene *****, who ran a 2:54:23 marathon at the age of 70. The data would seem to suggest he ran the entirety of that race at 95 per cent of his VO2 max - an unbelievably high percentage.

So, one reason why it may be possible to run a blistering marathon in your fifties and beyond is some older runners' ability to run close to their VO2 max for longer periods than some of their more youthful competitors.

But there's more: another study showed that lifelong exercise can counteract the age-related decline in VO2 max. In other words, if you've been running consistently for decades, your VO2 max will not decline at the same rate as your more sedentary peers.

That's an interesting development, as there has previously been a belief that at a certain age - approximately around 70 - people's VO2 max falls off a cliff. By contrast, the study suggests that the steepest declines occur as a result of exercising less, not simply of adding another candle to your birthday cake.

































sauce : https://www.runnersworld.com/uk/tra...1x1jtEcm0Yxf2Cj4DJezL-P7Wj86DAyHf3thJfF2OaA_I


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## paramount3 (Jul 13, 2014)

cyclelicious said:


> I'm planning on running my first marathon soon (It was a goal for 2020) I need to do it virtually by GPX and have my route planned. Now I have hope that I can complete it and perhaps run more in the future... and my times might improve!
> 
> *Why you can still run your fastest marathon after 50*
> 
> ...


I have found that it's not a question of VO2max, but a question of increasingly sore knees and a sore back when I run now. Lifelong runner, marathon at age 35, even had some good (though slow) 7-8 mile runs 3-4 years ago, but now at near age 56, I am about done running. I'll still try an occasional 3-5 mile jog/walk, but basically I'm an obligate cyclist and hiker from here on out. I don't think the running caused the sore back, but somehow trying to baby the knees and the back at the same time just doesn't work running, whereas on a bike I'm still pretty strong. Cyclelicious, I admire your enthusiasm in attacking both running and strength training--hope it continues to work out for you--but listen to your body if you start hearing little warning cries!


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

^ Thanks kindly paramount. Listening to the body is very important. 

Over the years I tried new things, challenged myself a little and it led me to where I am today.


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

One of my 2020 new years goals was to run my first marathon. In January, I registered to run the Ottawa Tamarak Marathon on May 24. I trained hard all winter (30-40km of running /wk; 2 mtb rides (on the weekend); plus 6d/wk strength training at home).

The event was cancelled March 30 because of the growing pandemic. Despite the lockdown... I trained harder (running 50km+/wk and continued strength training) and to my good fortune... the event was offered as a virtual event. I chose the date to run my marathon mainly based on readiness and the weather. I measured my distance last week; Chris set up a re-fuel station; and I set out early funday morning in perfect weather, keeping my social distance, greeting a few friends and neighbours along the way.

When I surpassed my previous personal longest distance (23km) I knew I could finish 42.2km with energy to spare  I tracked my run on a GPS and with Chris' assistance, I can submit my GPX file to the race promoters. It was a good experience and hope that one day I can do another 








Starting out. It was cool, breezy and sunny








One lap to go 









Mission accomplished!


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## paramount3 (Jul 13, 2014)

Awesome achievement! It's hard to do it alone--especially those last 10K or so. And you did laps, which I think would be especially hard mentally. Bravo!


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

^ Thank you paramount! Yes by 30km I was feeling a little loopy! I was singing songs in my head, kept repeating to myself why I was doing this and trying to keep focused on the finish. The hardest part was all the training and preparation but I finished and that was the best feeling


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

I did a 24km training run on caturday. I ran further, just for the joy of running.I crossed multiple train tracks, greeted many cyclists and introduced myself to the horses Gangnam style


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## Velobike (Jun 23, 2007)

A marathon distance is not a trivial achievement. Well done.


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

Velobike said:


> A marathon distance is not a trivial achievement. Well done.


Thank you! I prepared and trained very hard for this event. The timing was right. Perfect weather, good shoes, good hydration, and my body was practically pain-free  etc.

I'm currently in 4th place in my age category... I'm not sure if this is a first marathon for any of the other female runners. It is not an easy event for anyone 50+ or 60+ !


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## Happybill68 (Feb 4, 2020)

That’s awesome, congrats. I’m
Up to a whopping 5-7 miles at a time. But honestly it’s all about fun and being out on the trails, the distance is secondary since I’m not competing with anyone but my self. 


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

^ Thank you Happybill


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)




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## 940TXYC (May 17, 2020)

cyclelicious said:


> View attachment 1342279


Ha! That made my day. Reminds me of some of the older "Far Side" cartoon sketches.


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## 940TXYC (May 17, 2020)

Have not done any competitive running in several years. 52 years young here, but have had Achilles issues probably last 4 years. Riding and elliptical workouts have been better, but I still get out and run some....just not as much, and much shorter distances.


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

I spotted Wile E. Coyote on yesterday's evening run. 15km beep beep!


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## ddoh (Jan 11, 2017)

Its pretty cool to spot a coyote. They are pretty wily, so spotting one is a rel bonus.


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## Ptor (Jan 29, 2004)

ddoh said:


> Its pretty cool to spot a coyote. They are pretty wily, so spotting one is a rel bonus.


For as many of them as there are around, they do manage to stay hidden. But a couple of years ago I was staying in Yellowstone National Park at Old Faithful and had a (for me) once in the life time sighting. I had just started on my early morning run and saw the last moments of a coyote stalking a marmot, not a stone's throw from the Old Faithful Geyser. Just like that the coyote was on the marmot, gave it a good death shake, then trotted off with its trophy, ignoring me even though I was but 10 yards away. While I'm still a cyclist first, I sure notice more cool things running (or hiking) than I do busting down the trail on a bike.


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## creektrails (Mar 22, 2016)

53 years old, didn't read the whole thread but I've been running since 08.. I did run in high school though. I run minimalist shoes and have for 10 years. I have zero knee issues. some minor aches for the first mile then smooth sailing. I only run 2 to 3 miles every other day and it is 100% steep trails.
I've found that running helps my cardio immensely but not so much my quads. So I have been mixing in hill riding 2 or three days a week. Looking forward to the whole enchilada this September in Moab hoping to be in decent shape. I ride with my similar aged bro in law and my 21 yr old son. Minimalist shoes I think have saved my legs over the years.


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## Happybill68 (Feb 4, 2020)

One of the things I’m finding I love about running us how easy it is to get going in the morning. No bike to load, no making sure I have all this gear. Just shoes/shorts/shirt and off to the trail. 

I rode for 30 years before I rediscovered running again. Maybe I’ll rediscover biking again in the future. Who knows. 

Right now my favorite thing is to trail run my old Mtn bike trails. Been doing this for over 6 years now and it just doesn’t get old to me. 

Of course running I don’t cover a quarter of what I used to ride. But the shorter distance helps keep the trails fresher. IMHO 


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


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## paramount3 (Jul 13, 2014)

Cyclicious, that coyote is lighter in color and looks heftier than the coyotes where I live (Southern California). Eastern Coyotes are a mix of coyote, wolf, and dog--yours looks a lot more wolf-like than what I'm used to seeing!

https://theconversation.com/yes-eastern-coyotes-are-hybrids-but-the-coywolf-is-not-a-thing-50368


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

Yes! It's was probably a coy-wolf. It kept it's distance and totally aware that I was on the other side of the fence


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)




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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

*How Much More Water Do Runners Need in the Heat?*

You've probably heard you need to drink eight glasses of water a day. Or you've heard you should drink half your weight in ounces per day. Or you should just let thirst be your guide. With so many different guidelines floating around about proper hydration, which one is the right one - and do you need to change your habits depending on the time of year and the heat index?

We talked to some experts to find out why daily water intake is such a debated topic and what you need to know about staying hydrated during the summer.

In 2004, the Institute of Medicine of the National Academies released a report stating women need about 91 ounces of water per day and men need about 125 ounces of water per day, from both food and beverages. Rather than giving a specific guideline, however, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention simply states that by drinking when thirsty and with meals, most people are adequately hydrated. Amidst all of this, there are studies saying a large percentage of Americans are chronically dehydrated.

"You may have heard the general recommendation to drink 64 ounces, 2 liters or eight 8-ounce glasses of water per day," notes Claire Shorenstein, RD, CDN, owner of Eat For Endurance. "That's a great goal, however you have to keep in mind that everyone has different sweat rates, varying levels of physical activity, and of course differs in height and weight, all of which affects how many ounces of fluid you need per day."

Because of this, Shorenstein says the better approach is to take your weight in pounds and divide it by two, giving you the number of ounces of water you should aim to drink per day. Stephen Pribut, a sports podiatrist in Washington, D.C., and past president of the American Academy of Podiatric Sports Medicine - a runner himself - admits there is no great way to measure small amounts of dehydration. He agrees water needs vary by person and change based on health and activity level.

*"Thirst is one of the signals of dehydration," Pribut adds. "Some do not pay attention or have a strong enough response to thirst. [For example,] those over 50 - and especially over 65 - have a diminished thirst response."
*
Shorenstein reminds us water is an essential nutrient and confusion between hunger and thirst are possible when we don't have enough. So not only does it affect performance, but also other behaviors

Summer brings higher temperatures, humidity and sweatier runners. This is the simplest explanation as to why you should up your water intake (and not just when you are running). Pribut notes that due to sedentary office jobs - many with air conditioning - you may not substantially need more, but even with this benefit those office jobs do come with a downside, as well.

"With minimal water available in many offices and yet a coffee bar on many urban corners combined with an increase in consumption of caffeine-based drinks, we are increasingly susceptible to some amount of dehydration," Pribut notes. "Although some note that coffee is not purely a water-losing proposition since it is fluid, plain water is best for replacement (or a sports drink while exercising)."

Shorenstein echoes this, noting that many of her clients say they are either too busy and forget to drink water or, if running, don't want to have to make too many bathroom stops. However, monitoring the color of your urine is one of the simplest ways to measure hydration. As you sweat, remember you are not only losing fluid but also salt, so while you do want to drink water, runners also want to replace electrolytes on the run (either in the form of a sports drink or in a tablet/powder added to water) and post-run (with food and water).

"Hydration in the complete sense of the term thus means consuming both fluids and electrolytes to replace these losses," shares Shorenstein. "When recovering post exercise, consuming a normal, balanced meal along with plain water should allow you to consume adequate electrolytes without having to turn to sports products, since many foods naturally contain electrolytes."

Remembering the vital fact that many foods contain water can help you up your hydration, especially during the summer months. Pribut advises turning to juicy foods such as salads and fruit, which have absorbable fluid in them. The important thing is to find a balance and remember there is a reason coaches advise runners to take it slow once temperatures rise; it takes our bodies a few weeks to adjust to higher temperatures. This adjustment doesn't just affect our performance; it's also for our overall health.

"Those days when you are out more, exercising more, it is warmer and humid and you are perspiring more are certainly days when you need to increase your fluid intake," adds Pribut. "The recommendation is approximately 2-3 cups of fluid per hour. Be careful not to overdo it; adapt to the conditions slowly."

Should you want to make it more of an exact science, you can do a sweat test to determine how much sweat you produce during a run. Shorenstein does this with her clients, letting them know exactly how many ounces they need to replenish to be adequately hydrated.

"On average, people lose 24-32 ounces of sweat per hour," she shares. "You can determine your own sweat rate by weighing yourself before and after an hour of exercise, while keeping track of how many fluid ounces you consumed during that hour. For every pound you lose, that equates to 16 ounces of fluid that you lost."

With this equation, if a runner lost a pound and drank 16 ounces of water during an hour of running, the sweat rate is 32 ounces per hour; meaning 32 ounces of water is what needs to be replaced. Knowing this number can help prevent overhydration - which is also possible - and can lead to low blood sodium.

It's vital to understand hydration is important to our overall health and can impact more than just performance. Pribut notes that even when you aren't exercising, you still need to think about your fluid needs. He urges runners to remember hydration it is one piece of our overall health, however, and like nutrition and sleep, shouldn't be our only focus but one piece of the larger puzzle.

sauce https://blog.mapmyrun.com/how-much-...jRKEZIgPwZfkr2U5T9TZDswcsHxbkBQHmRd617eYlwVjg


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## ghood (Dec 26, 2011)

About 1 out of every 10 runs I get a horrific urge to **** mid-run. It never happens otherwise. I have done over 1100 rides since I started Strava in 2013 and never once has that happened on a ride. I have not **** myself yet, but it makes the run miserable. It's kind of funny but I'd really like to avoid it. It has happened at all times of day, all weather, all types of run. The only thing I know of to prevent it is to only run right after a dump, but this is not always possible. I'm 46 y.o. but I thought I'd try out the wisdom of the 50+ forum for tips.


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

I make sure to clear the pipes before a long and very hard run. Being vegan ... I'm never constipated but I can understand that it can happen.  It's kind of like some power lifters poop themselves when dead-lifting. It could be the prolonged restriction in blood flow and mechanical trauma from the forces endured while running. Maybe it has to do with the pre run diet? Avoid dairy? Some runners take wet wipes with them if they are not sure of the cause.


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## LanceWeaklegs (Dec 24, 2019)

ghood said:


> About 1 out of every 10 runs I get a horrific urge to **** mid-run. It never happens otherwise. I have done over 1100 rides since I started Strava in 2013 and never once has that happened on a ride. I have not **** myself yet, but it makes the run miserable. It's kind of funny but I'd really like to avoid it. It has happened at all times of day, all weather, all types of run. The only thing I know of to prevent it is to only run right after a dump, but this is not always possible. I'm 46 y.o. but I thought I'd try out the wisdom of the 50+ forum for tips.


way too much information. but I hope everything comes out ok


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## LanceWeaklegs (Dec 24, 2019)

cyclelicious said:


> Thank you! I prepared and trained very hard for this event. The timing was right. Perfect weather, good shoes, good hydration, and my body was practically pain-free  etc.
> 
> I'm currently in 4th place in my age category... I'm not sure if this is a first marathon for any of the other female runners. It is not an easy event for anyone 50+ or 60+ !


not an easy event for anyone at any age. take away that mechanical advantage of the bike and making your body go that far is a tall order. awesome!


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

^ Thank you Lance


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

*Runner thankful to be alive after being swatted by bear in Riding Mountain National Park*

A Dauphin woman is warning other outdoorsy Manitobans to be careful after she was hit in the face by a startled black bear while running in Riding Mountain National Park on Monday afternoon.

Erin McKenzie and her dogs were on the Moon Lake Trail in the park, about 250 kilometres northwest of Winnipeg, running a 10-kilometre loop she does regularly.

She was climbing up a steep hill with her four dogs a few feet ahead, without leashes.

All of a sudden a black bear just came ripping out of the bush right in front of me, maybe about a foot away," she said.

"It was clearly spooked, as was I."

The bear took a swing at her face, cutting her deeply, and then swiped at her back before taking off, she said.

It was all over in a matter of seconds.

"I really thought I was going to die when the bear was hitting me. That was extremely terrifying. I've never been that close to a bear or any kind of predatory animal like that," McKenzie said.

"All I could see was blood pouring down on my shirt and my body and my legs."

Her dogs weren't injured

McKenzie had to hike about five kilometres back to her car, where her boyfriend met her in the parking lot and drove her to the hospital.

The cuts on her back are fairly superficial, but the one on her face is quite deep and there's a risk of infection, she said.

"I think what I'll just be left with is a pretty ugly-looking scar."

Other than that, McKenzie says she's lucky to be alive.

The trail is closed following the attack, according to Jodi Duhard of Parks Canada.

"Human and wildlife safety is of the utmost importance to Parks Canada. The agency takes action to promote coexistence between people and wildlife, to ensure the well-being and safety of both," she said in an email.

Before it was closed, restrictions on the trail in place since July 10 prohibited dogs, bikes or groups smaller than three because the area is a natural feeding and travelling corridor, she said.

Human and bear interactions have been higher than normal this year, according to Manitoba Conservation and Climate, a government agency that, among other tasks, oversees wildlife.

Last week, three bear cubs were orphaned after their mother was shot trying to get into a house in Pinawa, northeast of Winnipeg.

Part of the problem is things that attract bears, such as bird feeders, Manitoba Conservation said.

"Bird seed can attract bears as well as birds, and with other food sources plentiful for birds in the summer months, people are asked to put feeders away until later in the fall," the department said in a June bulletin.

McKenzie has hiked and backpacked thousands of kilometres in her life and has seen a lot of wildlife, but she says she got complacent.

"Just be aware of your surroundings and don't get too comfortable. I think that's part of the problem, is you get relaxed hiking &#8230; and running so often out there without ever having an incident," she said.

How to be bear safe

Duhard offers a similar caution.

"Riding Mountain National Park is home to many black bears, and visitors can encounter a bear at any time or any place, whether it be on a busy trail close to town or in the remote backcountry," she wrote.

"Bears generally prefer to avoid people. However, encounters between bears and people do occur."

To reduce the risk of a bear encounter while hiking, Parks Canada says visitors should make noise to let the animals know people are in the area.

"Call out, clap, sing or talk loudly, especially near streams, dense vegetation and berry patches, on windy days, and in areas of low visibility," Duhard said.

Other suggestions for hikers include:
•Always carry bear spray, ensure it is accessible, and know how to use it before you head out on the trails. Bear spray can also help deter other big animals.
•Watch for fresh bear signs. Tracks, droppings, diggings, torn-up logs and turned-over rocks are all signs that a bear has been in the area. Leave the area if the signs are fresh.
•Keep dogs leashed at all times or leave them at home. Dogs can provoke defensive behaviour in bears.
•Larger groups are less likely to have a serious bear encounter.
•Respect all restrictions, warnings and closures.
•Stay on trails and only travel during daylight hours.
•If you come across a large dead animal, leave the area and report it.

McKenzie says she's going to be more careful and wear a bear bell from now on. She also said she made a mistake by wearing headphones while she was running.

https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/manitoba/riding-mountain-national-park-bear-punch-1.5650518


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

Thursday run ride pairing. 12 Km training run and an active rest day for singlesprocket. Others were out enjoying the slightly cooler temps and long shadows. I spotted a hawk perched on a lamp post and a cyclist in sandals riding a recumbent bike.


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

Testing my new trail running shoes. Asics (on sale ...bonus!) Good grip and better arch support than my Salomons

I did a 18km run and an 8km this week: 2 thumbs up!


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## Velobike (Jun 23, 2007)

Last night I put myself on the outside of a bottle of wine, something I haven't done for years. I was sparkling witty and intelligent. 

My wife has informed me that I was none of those things, but that's maybe because she needed more wine. In the enthusiasm of the moment I said I was going to start running again

I haven't run since about October because my dog's getting past it. Now she's even past the stage of coming out for a walk, so today I left her behind.

I put on my ancient running shoes with minimal padding and went for a run round part of the rough local 24 hour mtb course.

I thought I'd be paying for it, but so far so good. Only 7km, it was going to be further, but I got a phone call from one of my cycling mates with the offer of cake and coffee at a nearby cafe so I shortened the run.

Priorities are priorities...


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

I did a 21km run on caturday.

































Passed this hiker carrying kettlebells on the MUP.


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## ddoh (Jan 11, 2017)

The wildflowers are out in force this year throughout the midwest. Beautiful!


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## ElTortoise (Jul 27, 2015)

June and July, did the Garmin Connect 100 mile running challenges for each month and dropped 13 pounds. I'm noticing a good difference when I hop on the bike.


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

I did a 20km run on Caturday. It was a beauty of a day. The highlight of my run was stopping at the skate park and watching the BMX riders do tricks


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

I did another 20km run on caturday. Different route same distance, more hills this week 459 ft of elevation gained this week compared to last week 183 ft. And I was 10 minutes faster woohoo!

I also found my first red maple leaf... first sign of fall. So sad


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## Radium (Jan 11, 2019)

Lookin' good, Judy. Hard to believe that autumn is around the corner.


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## Velobike (Jun 23, 2007)

Been doing a bit of crosscountry running to build endurance for our annual 24 hour mtb race in winter.

I'm too slow on the technical narrow single track although I can ride it ok. The problem is not really mine, but I have no desire to get in the way of the fast riders who can be travelling twice my speed, so I often end up pushing my bike at the side of the track. I could try to improve my speed through those sections, but realistically a 10% improvement wouldn't make much difference and a 20% is unlikely and still not much difference.

This year I tried riding off piste to let faster riders through but that cost me a broken rib and put me out of the race even though I didn't fall off.

What I can do though is improve my speed while on foot. So I'm aiming to up my running distance to 50 km crosscountry on rough ground. Once I've done that, I'm going to then start doing it carrying a weight equivalent to my bike and build up to 50 km doing that. And once I can do that, I'll repeat the process, but this time actually carrying a bike.

It's going to look daft to anyone seeing me

Luckily the scenery is good.



On the left, more climbing, blocked track with windfallen trees, thorns and Gorse (also thorny); on the right a nice slightly rocky descent. Both come out at the same point.

What would a wise person do? Yup, went left...



The path was cunningly disguised as somewhere nice, with heather in bloom.



And then it turns into this for about a mile.





It turned out to be not as much fun as I anticipated, but the cruelest blow was getting a strand of thorns up my shorts and hooked in my gentleman's parts. I know you folk won't be disappointed about the lack of photos of the damage.  To compensate, here's a picture of the thorns once they were removed.

As Queen Victoria might have said, "We was not amused."



It was so bad I expected to see Sleeping Beauty's castle any moment.

In the end I climbed the embankment at the side of the track, to sidle along the edge of that because there was about 4" of clear space. Somehow I managed to put my foot on a bit that was undercut and went plummeting down. I luckily managed to grab a clump of heather with my right hand and that brought me to a sharp stop at the expense of a nasty pain in my chest muscles. I still had about 12 feet to drop, but it didn't look too bad so I let go and landed ok.

But like all good things, bad things come to an end too, and this is the track I should have taken if I had any brains. Nice and smooth, isn't it?



Oh, that wasn't the only blood on me. When I stripped off for a shower later I looked like a demented acupuncturist"s training dummy. Thin nylon isn't much protection, it appears.

This is my approximate route, but I made several diversion to get more climbing in. I ran up all the downhill tracks because it's fun, and also it's good practise for running off piste.



The signpost reckons the distance was 12 km, I probably added 4 to 5 km in diversions.

I was pretty sore by the time I got home.

As an aside, I added to my tally of weekend pain the next day. I'd forgotten I'd agreed to go a retro bike ride, about 80km all up, and a quarter of that offroad. I managed to clout a gatepost with my arm at speed while trying to read the little CoVid notice and ended up with a 6" long bruise down my arm and more blood.

Ain't life good.


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## Happybill68 (Feb 4, 2020)

I’m
Back running just a mile to two miles a day thru the hot summer months. I’m not liking the hot humid weather so I’m just doing the base minimum to keep my legs moving. 

Looking forward to the fall/winter better weather and longer runs 


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

I prefer the cooler temps too


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

Cool things seen on my Funday run

3 generations jarring fresh tomato sauce








Great Scott!
























Road side repair








Prefect tree landing








20km done!


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## Radium (Jan 11, 2019)

Great job, Judy! and, you must live in the DeLorean collectors' central distribution point!


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## Scott O (Aug 5, 2004)

After partying at the lake at day we then hit the Mexican buffet and I showed off by covering everything in ****** sauce. Let me tell you, the next day was not pretty. 

Oh wait, I thought this thread was, 'So who also has the runs?"

Sent from my SM-G970U using Tapatalk


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

*17 Training Myths, Addressed by a Running Coach*


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

Sometimes the best efforts really are when you don't even try. Your mind is in the zone and you just let your body carry you. I started slow and got faster... and I still took brief moments to take a few pics along the way. 21km in 2 hr 34 mins (not race pace but I train a hilly route) Had some time at the end of the day to do a local ride to stretch out the legs


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

So in my calculation he's running a kilometer in 3 minutes! He's a rocket!

*61-Year-Old Sets Blazing Fast Age-Group World Record in the Mile*









Dan King never knew he was a miler, but he found a silver lining during the coronavirus pandemic. With most races canceled, he focused his attention on the event, and now he has an age-group world record to show for it.

King, 61, of Boulder, Colorado, ran 4:49.08 on August 29 at South Carolina TrackFest in Columbia, bettering the previous world record for the 60-64 age group, 4:51.85, set by Tony McManus of New Zealand in 2012. The previous American record was 4:53.01, run by Nolan Shaheed, also in 2012.

Behind two pacers-Jackson Neff and John Minen, who earlier in the meet had run the open mile-King clicked off 72-second laps, going hard from the gun.

"I felt fantastic at that pace," he told Runner's World. "I'd lose to all sorts of people if it was a slower race with a kick. But if I go all out at a pace I can sustain for one mile, and run evenly, I'm fast at that distance."

The key for King, as it is for many masters athletes, was figuring out how to keep injuries at bay. He suffered with plantar fasciitis from age 40 until he had a Tenex procedure when he was 58. Once his plantar felt better, everything else started to hurt-especially his calves and hamstrings.

For the better part of two decades, King could rarely string together more than two months of high-level training. He had flashes of brilliance-he won his age group at World Masters Athletics cross country in 2011 and the U.S. Club Cross Country Championships in 2015-but only recently has he found a training regimen that keeps him consistently healthy.

King, who retired in 2017 after selling a video and phone conferencing company he founded with his brother, doesn't have to fit his training around a typical workweek. So he runs on an eight-day schedule, every other day, with vigorous cross-training on the in-between days. Every fourth day is a hard run. So it's cross-train/easy run/cross train/hard run. Repeat.

For cross-training, King relies on a rotation of elliptical, road bike, or deep-water running, depending on what the weather is doing in Boulder. Days off are not part of his regular routine.

"I just love being fit," he said. "It just makes me feel so good psychologically to have trained."

On hard days, he'll do either a strength/endurance workout or shorter, faster intervals. On the track, 300s at mile pace-54 seconds-are a staple. Between reps, he walks the first 50 meters and jogs the second before rolling into the start.

"I roll into everything I do fast," he said. "I'm worried something will break."

On easier runs, he goes between 5.5 and 7 miles, stopping after about 4 miles to do a set of 8- to 10-second all-out sprints on a soccer field or up a gentle hill. He feels the short sprints are good for his form and his core, forcing him to run on his midfoot. He fully recovers between each rep-he's not trying to make an interval workout out of it.

In all, he averages about 25 miles per week, skipping the long run. "I don't like them," he said. "I don't know how useful they are [for me]."

The routine seems to have worked. His only remaining problem area is arthritis in his big toes, but training in Hoka's Carbon X-with a carbon fiber plate-takes the pressure off. He supplements his aerobic training with strength-training exercises, including weighted squats and eccentric calf exercises for his lower legs. He also adopted a vegan diet when he turned 50.

When all of King's goal races started to be canceled during the pandemic, he focused on a series of mile time trials. In March, on a local track, he ran 5:10 (at altitude). A few weeks later, he lowered that to 5:03. On August 14, he ran in Nashville at the Music City Distance Carnival. In 89-degree heat on a windy day, he ran 4:57.27, and he felt he could take a lot more time off under more favorable conditions.

For TrackFest, King turned to eBay to find a pair of Nike's latest spikes, the Dragonfly ZoomX, size 12. It's the same version of spike Joshua Cheptegei ran for his recent 5,000-meter world record. The masters mile was the last event of the evening, when the sun had set over the Columbia International University track. All the competitors from earlier in the evening-including open mile winner, Ollie Hoare, who had run 3:53.35-stuck around to watch King.

Meet director Dave Milner worked the mic, keeping the roughly 100 spectators informed about the record attempt. When King broke the record, Milner had him take a victory lap.

When he got home to Boulder, his neighbors gathered outside, at a distance, for Champagne.

[Crush all your goals in your 40s, 50s, and 60s with our new, comprehensive Run Strong Training Guides.]

It's a sweet victory for a man who had struggled so much with various aches and pains. Every calf pull, he said, was a minimum of three weeks off. He wants to save others from his frustration.

"My one piece of advice is expand your thinking about what it means to be a masters athlete as opposed to a masters runner," he said. "You have to train really hard, but you don't have to run a ton of miles each week. Don't lose sight of your own capacity to run at a high level even if you're not willing or interested in being a 60 mile per week runner."

*The Logbook*
Winning reads
King has found three books hugely influential since he became a masters runner: The China Study about diet, Younger Next Year about aging, and Built to Last, about business culture.

*An easy fix*
To solve his calf and Achilles problems, King turned to the Alfredson protocol on YouTube.

*With age comes wisdom*
King was a successful college runner at the University of Colorado-Boulder, with a 5,000-meter PR of 14:34. But he also studied engineering and had a work study job for 20 hours per week, which cut into his training time.

For years when he was young, he operated under the assumption that running talent was a fixed quantity within each person. "I thought you were really limited in terms of what you could accomplish by what I'll call your 'talent ceiling,'" he said. "I under-appreciated how much you can continue to develop as an endurance athlete through persistence, continuous application of insights, and understanding of the sport."


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## chazpat (Sep 23, 2006)

*I'm baaaaack! (in a Steven Tyler howl)*

After not running due to recovering from my bike crash in November, I had just started back in late February. Then Covid. My run routine had been stop at a NPS National Recreation Area on my way into work for a trail run, so, since I wasn't driving to work, I wasn't running. I drove once to a trail and ran but too many people on the trails made me uncomfortable and then it got hot and humid, which has taken more of a toll on me the last few years.

I asked myself several times, "am I through running?" but quickly answered, "no, I'll be back, I'm a runner".

The temperature has really dropped here the last few weeks. I had decided lower temps would be better for running and would chase a lot of people off the trails (though it's not chilly enough to do that yet), it was time to lace up the running shoes for a run around the neighborhood.

I told myself not to expect to go far, figured I'd run a bit and then walk, maybe run some more. I used my normal carrot and stick motivation. I held off checking my distance for awhile then gave in: 0.8 miles. I'll go for a full mile. Came to a hill that i figured would do me in but it wasn't so bad; kept going. Gave in to checking again: 1.6; I was getting close to circling back to my house so hopefully that would put me at 2. It put me a little over. I built some little trails on my property for riding; might as well take one of them rather than running up the driveway. Let's hit the one in back as well. Let's repeat the loop that goes back down toward the road, and include the little side trail. Back up and done; 2.4 miles.

I'm happy with that; I feel great and&#8230; I'm back!


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## DIRTJUNKIE (Oct 18, 2000)

The last time I ran was to the bathroom.


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## chazpat (Sep 23, 2006)

DIRTJUNKIE said:


> The last time I ran was to the bathroom.


So ten minutes ago?


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

Welcome back to running chaz!

Welcome to running D.J.... everyone has to start somewhere.  BTW you may find a curbside toilet!

Today's run: 11km


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

More run fun on funday! 15km


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## Happybill68 (Feb 4, 2020)

I'm trying something different. Due to medicines I can't run like I used to. However I found I can run/hike pretty well. Run the flat and downhills, walk the uphills.

Put some good music on and I'm happy









From today's run in Maryland

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

Way to go Bill!

And remember it's never too late to start! I only started running 5 years ago because I wanted to improve my cardio (that was my goal). This is a good article about setting goals and sticking with it

*The six-pack can wait: how to set fitness goals you will actually keep*

Most of us have, at some point in our lives, looked in the mirror and decided we need a radical image overhaul - especially in January. Then, when we don't achieve the desired six-pack within a month, we tumble off the fitness bandwagon. But is there a way to set realistic, useful fitness goals that will keep you motivated as the nights draw in and the prospect of an extra hour in bed trumps a workout?

First of all, think about the goals not to make - keep in mind that exercise alone won't change your body shape. If you are looking for major fat loss, you will have to look at diet, too. "People underestimate the amount of effort physical transformations take," says Hannah Lewin, a personal trainer. She advises clients to focus on positive fitness goals instead - running 5km or deadlifting 30kg - rather than aesthetic goals that will require drastic lifestyle overhauls.

Next, consider what is important to you. "A lot of people come to me and say: 'I want to look like this,'" says Lewin. "That's where a lot of goals go wrong from the outset, because you're choosing a goal based on someone else."

The personal trainer Ruby Tuttlebee advises starting small and building up. Something straightforward, such as a press-up, is a better bet than aiming for a triathlon right off the bat. She also suggests having a series of goals. When you have mastered a perfect press-up, set a new goal of five press-ups in a row, then 10, then 20.

Lewin agrees: "The first goal should be easy. In terms of a scale of how likely you are to achieve that goal, it should be a 9/10. Progress it from there." The main reason people fail is that they focus on the thing they want to achieve and become dispirited when it takes longer than they expected. "Focusing on that end goal can be problematic."

Choosing something you enjoy will help. "If you don't like something, you won't give 100%," says Tuttlebee. Training with a friend or a personal trainer can also keep you on track, when your motivation slips.

Keeping score is also a good idea. "When I set goals with athletes, I look at three types of goal," says the chartered sports psychologist Helen Davis. Outcome goals are big-ticket achievements, such as running a marathon. A performance goal sits below that and helps you assess whether you are on your way to your outcome goal. Progress goals are day-to-day activities, such as training three times a week or optimising your nutrition. "Monitoring these goals gives people tangible things they can work on and helps direct their focus to keep them on track day to day," Davis says.

Always reward yourself for achieving your goals, however small. "Even if just walking through the door of your gym is your first goal, you've achieved it - so well done," says Tuttlebee. Above all, remember that your goals are yours alone, she says. "Make it your own. Tailor it to you."

sauce https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2020/jan/02/how-to-set-fitness-goals-you-will-actually-keep


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## chazpat (Sep 23, 2006)

Happybill68 said:


> I'm trying something different. Due to medicines I can't run like I used to. However I found I can run/hike pretty well. Run the flat and downhills, walk the uphills.
> 
> Put some good music on and I'm happy
> 
> ...


I raced in a mtb / trail run / mtb duathlon many years ago and had met a gentleman training for it a few weeks before the race. During the race, I was running the trail leg and passed him walking up a hill. I shuffled on up and down the backside and as I did, he came flying past me. This continued on throughout the run. He was doing just like yourself and keeping up with me.


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

Funday 8 km run loop on the Bruce Trail... this was the first trail run that Chris and I did together. And it was a beauty! Lots of hills, forest, grazing cows, shrooms and views. Can't wait to do it again


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## ddoh (Jan 11, 2017)

Bruce Trail = Happiness!


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

*81-year-old ultramarathon runner on what keeps him going*

Hans Maier has run more than 300 marathons in his lifetime, and at 81 he has no plans of slowing down. The Stouffville athlete tells the reporter what keeps him going.

https://toronto.citynews.ca/video/2...Le9zZs0h5NjNynMi-UzHVhyIHIlj2PkB9paQs8mu5GBSM


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

My hubby and I did a Sunday trail run. It was wet and wild ... we ran on trails that were too slippery to ride  It rained the entire time but we got out and completed 10 km


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)




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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

Another funtastic run along a familiar 20km route and yet there are new adventures along the way! I met a chainsaw artist putting the final touches to his owl sculptures; I rescued a wayward praying mantis on the MUP; and spotted a road trekker. Perfect weather and on another positive note have surpassed my mileage compared to my total from last year.


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

*How to Achieve a Runner's High*
Science reveals how you can produce more feel-good chemicals while running.

Sometimes we get it, sometimes we don't. But we always want it-and more of it. It's the runner's high, and when we are lucky enough to tap into it our runs feel easy, exhilarating, even euphoric. But we aren't always that lucky, are we?

Recently, researchers studied how the brain responds to running and found that the ability to get "high" while logging miles might be hard-wired within us. Years ago, our ancestors' survival likely depended on chasing down food.

The desire to live was possibly their motivation to run and run fast, and the feel-good brain chemicals released when they did so may have helped them achieve the speed and distances required, says David A. Raichlen, Ph.D., a professor of biological sciences at the University of Southern California. The runner's high may have served (and serves today) as a natural painkiller, masking tired legs and blistered feet, he says.

Even though you no longer have to chase down dinner, learning how happy brain reactions are sparked may help you achieve the runner's high more often.

*The Trigger: Endorphins*
Nature's home-brewed opiates, endorphins are chemicals that act a lot like their medically engineered counterpart, morphine. Runners have credited them for their feel-good effects for decades, but it wasn't until 2008 that German researchers used brain scans on runners and were able to identify exactly where they originated. The scientists found that during two-hour-long runs, subjects' prefrontal and limbic regions (which light up in response to emotions like love) spewed out endorphins. The greater the endorphin surge in these brain areas, the more euphoric the runners reported feeling.

Get It: Push yourself hard, but not too hard. Endorphins are painkillers produced in response to physical discomfort, says Matthew Hill, Ph.D., an associate professor at the University of Calgary's Hotchkiss Brain Institute. But that doesn't mean your runs should be excruciating; you need to find a sweet spot where they are comfortably challenging (think tempo run).

In the German study, for example, the subjects were experienced runners for whom a two-hour run at a six-to seven-mile-an-hour pace wasn't easy nor was it gut-busting. "Most runners I have worked with experience endorphins when they are pushing their bodies, but not usually at max effort," says Cindra S. Kamphoff, Ph.D., director of the Center for Sport and Performance Psychology at Minnesota State University. A short, casual run likely won't produce enough discomfort to trigger a rush. Attempt a pace or distance that's too aggressive, and you'll possibly be too overwhelmed by the effort to feel good. As powerful as they are, endorphins can't override an injury or lack of training (which is why newbies aren't likely to feel elated when they are just starting out).

Hooking up with others could also help: An Oxford University study reported that rowers who exercised together significantly increased their endorphin release compared with solo rowers.

When you are on your own, consider wearing headphones: Research shows that listening to your favorite music may spike endorphins.

*The Trigger: Endocannabinoids*
Endorphins get all the attention, but your body also pumps out endocannabinoids, which are a naturally synthesized version of THC, the chemical responsible for the buzz that marijuana produces. The most examined endocannabinoid produced in the body, anandamide, is believed to create a feeling of calmness, Hill says. Endorphins can be created only by specialized neurons, but pretty much any cell in the body is capable of making endocannabinoids, which means they have the potential to make a bigger impact on your brain.

*Get It:* Endocannabinoid production is believed to react more strongly in response to stress as opposed to pain (the stronger endorphin activator). Differentiating between physical stress and discomfort during a run is nearly impossible. Which means the same mechanism that triggers endorphins can also trigger endocannabinoids: a challenging (not killer) workout. Raichlen says that running at 70 to 85 percent of your age-adjusted maximum heart rate is optimal in spiking the primary stress hormone cortisol, and producing endocannabinoids. (If you're 30, you'd aim for between 142 and 161 beats per minute.)

Hill's research suggests that, in small doses, mental stress may also increase endocannabinoid production. So prerace jitters could have a payoff. However, chronic stress can dull this effect.

That may be one reason why Cecilia J. Hillard, Ph.D., director of the Neuroscience Research Center at the Medical College of Wisconsin, has found that people need eight hours of sleep a night for optimal endocannabinoid production. What's more, her research shows that endocannabinoid levels are three times greater first thing in the morning compared with when you hit the hay. Though there's no scientific proof, this could suggest that a morning run is more likely to produce a high than an afternoon or evening run. Set your alarm; it's worth experimenting!

We mentioned before that working with a partner may help you out. But just because your running buddy gets that coveted runner's high doesn't necessarily mean you will. Or at least, you may have to keep tinkering.

In 2019, researchers looked at 25 collegiate runners, both male and female, and tested their saliva before and after a long-distance run. (They focused on saliva because it contained information on RNA, which is what your DNA uses to make feel-good proteins like natural opioids and cannabinoids.) But not everyone's processes hit at the same degree, meaning you might having a runner's high, while your running partners are still in slog mode.

Lead author, Steven Hicks, Ph.D., of the Penn State College of Medicine, suggest playing around with different conditions-like longer runs or more sprinting, for example-to turn the proper pathways on.

sauce https://www.runnersworld.com/training/a20851505/how-to-achieve-a-runners-high/


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

Funday runday. 10km trail run on the Bruce Trail up and down the escarpment at Devil's Glen. It was a mix of leaves mud and dry patches. Mild, and fresh! Great day!


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)




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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

*Why Running Won't Ruin Your Knees*









Could running actually be good for your knees?

That idea is at the heart of a fascinating new study of the differing effects of running and walking on the knee joint. Using motion capture and sophisticated computer modeling, the study confirms that running pummels knees more than walking does. But in the process, the authors conclude, running likely also fortifies and bulks up the cartilage, the rubbery tissue that cushions the ends of bones. The findings raise the beguiling possibility that, instead of harming knees, running might fortify them and help to stave off knee arthritis.

Of course, the notion that running wrecks knees is widespread and entrenched. Almost anyone who runs is familiar with warnings from well-meaning, nonrunning family members, friends and strangers that their knees are doomed.

This concern is not unwarranted. Running involves substantial joint bending and pounding, which can fray the cushioning cartilage inside the knee. Cartilage, which does not have its own blood supply, generally is thought to have little ability to repair itself when damaged or to change much at all after childhood. So, repeated running conceivably wears away fragile cartilage and almost inevitably should lead to crippling knee arthritis.

But in real life, it does not. Some runners develop knee arthritis, but not all. As a group, in fact, runners may be statistically less likely to become arthritic than nonrunners.

The question of why running spares so many runners' knees has long intrigued Ross Miller, an associate professor of kinesiology at the University of Maryland in College Park. In earlier research, he and his colleagues had looked into whether running mechanics matter, by asking volunteers to walk and run along a track outfitted with plates to measure the forces generated with each step.

The resulting data showed that people hit the ground harder while running, clobbering their knees far more with each stride. But they also spent more time aloft between strides, meaning they took fewer strides while covering the same distance as when walking. So, the cumulative forces moving through their knees over time should be about the same, the researchers concluded, whether someone walked or ran.

But, recently, Dr. Miller had begun to doubt whether this finding really explained why running wasn't wrecking more knees. He knew that some recent studies with animals intimated that cartilage might be more resilient than researchers previously had believed. In those studies, animals that ran tended to have thicker, healthier knee cartilage than comparable tissues from sedentary animals, suggesting that the active animals' cartilage had changed in response to their running.

Perhaps, Dr. Miller speculated, cartilage in human runners' knees likewise might alter and adapt.

To find out, he again asked a group of healthy young men and women to walk and run along a track containing force plates, while he and his colleagues filmed them. The researchers then computed the forces the volunteers had generated while strolling and running. Finally, they modeled what the future might hold for the volunteers' knees.

More specifically, they used the force-plate numbers, plus extensive additional data from past studies of biopsied cartilage pulled and pummeled in the lab until it fell apart and other sources to create computer simulations. They wanted to see what, theoretically, would happen to healthy knee cartilage if an adult walked for six kilometers (about 3.7 miles) every day for years, compared to if they walked for three kilometers and ran for another three kilometers each of those days.

They also tested two additional theoretical situations. For one, the researchers programmed in the possibility that people's knee cartilage would slightly repair itself after repeated small damage from walking or running - but not otherwise change. And for the last scenario, they presumed that the cartilage would actively remodel itself and adapt to the demands of moving, growing thicker and stronger, much as muscle does when we exercise.

The models' final results were eye-opening. According to the simulations, daily walkers faced about a 36 percent chance of developing arthritis by the age of 55, if the model did not include the possibility of the knee cartilage adapting or repairing itself. That risk dropped to about 13 percent if cartilage were assumed to be able to repair or adapt, which is about what studies predict to be the real-world arthritis risk for otherwise healthy people.

The numbers for running were more worrisome. When the model assumed cartilage cannot change, the runners' risk of eventual arthritis was a whopping 98 percent, declining only to 95 percent if the model factored in the possibility of cartilage repair. In effect, according to this scenario, the damage to cartilage from frequent running would overwhelm any ability of the tissue to fix itself.

But if the model included the likelihood of the cartilage actively adapting - growing thicker and cushier - when people ran, the odds of runners developing arthritis fell to about 13 percent, the same as for healthy walkers.

What these results suggest is that cartilage is malleable, Dr. Ross says. It must be able to sense the strains and slight damage from running and rebuild itself, becoming stronger. In this scenario, running bolsters cartilage health.

Modeled results like these are theoretical, though, and limited. They do not explain how cartilage remodels itself without a blood supply or if genetics, nutrition, body weight, knee injuries and other factors affect individual arthritis risks. Such models also do not tell us if different distances, speeds or running forms would alter the outcomes. To learn more, we will need direct measures of molecular and other changes in living human cartilage after running, Dr. Miller says, but such tests are difficult.

Still, this study may quiet some runners' qualms - and those of their families and friends. "It looks like running is unlikely to cause knee arthritis by wearing out cartilage," Dr. Ross says.

sauce

https://www.nytimes.com/2020/10/21/...te=1&user_id=c57a238e515a775a5a2886440eb9cf77


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## Happybill68 (Feb 4, 2020)

No running for me right now, recovering from the flu (not Covid test was negative). Flu knocked me on my butt and I’m still dealing with the after effect.

Can’t wait to get back out there though 


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

It's best to rest!

Expending TOO much energy while you are sick is not good and can make your illness worse/ last longer.

I find that a little bit of light exercise can help with symptoms, but probably doesn’t help ‘fight’ anything.

Also, very long workouts can actually leave your immune system weakened in the short run and more susceptible to getting sick.

Anecdotally again, but I've had significantly less colds and illnesses since I began running.


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## Happybill68 (Feb 4, 2020)

cyclelicious said:


> It's best to rest!
> 
> Expending TOO much energy while you are sick is not good and can make your illness worse/ last longer.
> 
> ...


Same here on being sick, even Covid was a couple days of not feeling great. This flu I got hit with was brutal. It wiped me out.

Another 7 days I should be back out there

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


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## Ptor (Jan 29, 2004)

cyclelicious said:


> Anecdotally again, but I've had significantly less colds and illnesses since I began running.


That's certainly been my experience during my ~5 year running-every-day streak. The absence of cold and fevers also coincides with the last child leaving home for college, so it's hard to say if all of the generally better health I've experienced is because of my daily run or because of less illness coming into the house.

Two weeks ago, Wyoming's 2nd largest-ever wildfire was burning 30 miles to the west and Colorado's largest ever wildfire burning 30 miles to the south. There were days our Air Quality Index never got below 150, spending much of the time in the "dangerous for everyone category", north of 300. Every one of my runs over the past 5 years has been outside and there's been some fierce weather during that time, meaning I've run through raging blizzards at -20°F, dodged falling branches in howling windstorms, been bruised by hailstorms. But running four consecutive days for 3 to 4 miles each in an N95 mask in 70°F weather with an AQI of 150 -- that was the worst. But doable -- so no excuses about wearing masks when headed out to grocery shop, etc. Yesterday and today I ran my miles through 8 inches of snow at 5°F -- pretty abrupt change. And a welcomed one as it will help tremendously with the fires.


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

Trail running and scrambling for 13.5km was a feast for the eyes and happiness for the mind and body. Running up and down the slopes we checked out the cliffs, crossed bridges, jumped, spotted a car wreck and faced a few snow squalls. Another stoked-full day


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

We got a head start on Friday to this amazing fall weekend. We did a trail run and scramble up and down the Niagara Escarpment. Found some artifacts and a little garter snake sun bathing in what could be one of the warmest November 6th (that I can remember). 18c


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

Interesting findings related to endurance athletes

*Study Finds What Sets Ultra-Runners Apart From Other Athletes, And It's Not Muscles*

For most of us mere mortals, tackling even a typical marathon would be a major achievement. So what kind of mindset are ultra-runners tapping into when they complete gruelling races that can go way beyond the 100 kilometre mark?

Researchers surveyed 56 elite runners taking part in the 2019 Hawaiian Ultra Running Team's Trail 100-mile (HURT100; that's 160 km) endurance race, asking a series of questions designed to measure mental toughness and self-efficacy (our innate belief in our ability to succeed).

While the results of these questionnaires didn't show any links with where the runners finished in the HURT100, they did show that ultramarathon runners seem to have a greater mental toughness than athletes in other sports, based on previous studies.

"Our interpretation is that these results taken in conjunction, suggest a threshold of mental toughness that performers require to be of the standard needed to be able to prepare for and compete in elite ultramarathon events such as the HURT100," the researchers write in their paper.

"Once this mental toughness threshold is met, other factors are likely to be more influential in determining elite level ultramarathon performance."

The researchers found that mental toughness and self-efficacy were closely linked - as you would probably expect, as they both contribute to a positive mental outlook.

But the finding they didn't link to ultramarathon performance was a surprise. The researchers suggest there might be a certain mental attitude and strength required to get involved in these kinds of endurance events - but then physical qualities and other factors take over when it comes to the actual finishing positions.

As the same set surveys have been used in the past with other sports, the researchers were able to show that ultramarathon competitors had significantly greater mental resilience than athletes who took part in hockey, tennis, football, martial arts and athletics.

However, the sample size was relatively small, and self-reported indicators aren't always the most accurate. In addition, HURT100 is considered to be a particularly difficult race, and many other ultra-running events exist. Samples of larger groups, as well as questionnaires tailored specifically towards ultramarathon running, could provide more detailed results.

Considering the length of ultramarathon events and the associated toil they can start to have on the body - nausea, blisters, muscle pain and more - this necessity for a tough mindset would make sense. Intense fatigue and negative thoughts are also widely reported by runners.

Previous studies have shown that there is a limit to what our bodies can take, and once we start pushing up against that limit, the physical and mental cost can rise quickly.

As well as shining some light on a sport that we don't have a lot of research on, the team behind the new study is hoping it'll be helpful for athletes and their coaches too - giving them a better idea of the state of mind required to be an ultramarathon runner.

"Our research has practical implications for athletes, whether they want to increase their own mental toughness, or know what it takes to run in an ultramarathon event," one of the study authors, Kendall George from the University of the Sunshine Coast in Australia, writes in The Conversation.

"Having advanced knowledge of the mechanisms underpinning mental toughness (such as self-efficacy) could also help sport psychologists and coaches create more effective and targeted training programmes."

sauce https://www.sciencealert.com/ultram...qdo7zInKqkvpJkUYST616JTOdZVx07Q2VHJ86F-f7aZho


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

Movin' n groovin' 20km run along the rollin' hills. Spotted a some groups of roadies and one roadside mechanical on this sunny and cool caturday. Best moment was seeing the neighbourhood nativity scene with baby Jeebus visited by an angel, 3 wisemen, Santa and Frosty the Snowman. Afterwards I chilled with Rocket and told her all about my adventures


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

I ran further than planned. I must have had the right head space, air quality, that certain pace, and everything felt locked in! Along the way I saw hikers, bikers, and another runner. Odd stuff: polite graffiti, a weedy rest spot and a lemon tree  Cooler temps than yesterday. I love that every run is a new adventure. I completed another 20km long run and realized that I'm stronger than I initially thought... as the crow flies

















































Après run. Chillin with Rocket


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## Fleas (Jan 19, 2006)

I recalled seeing this thread right after I "crashed" doing a trail race.

I only run when the trails are closed - like late Fall and Spring - so yesterday's 5 mi. trail run race (goaded into by so-called "friends"  ) was one of those rude awakenings, which was not unexpected.

Anyway, as I approached a creek crossing, I forgot that I was not on a bike. No, really. :madman:
A runner in front of me was slowing down to find a good line and I sped up. Unfortunately, when I hit the first stepping stone I was going too fast and suddenly realized there was NO WHERE to put my next step. The next stepping stone was 10 ft away! On the bike, I wouldn't even have braked. On foot... I jumped as far as I could and actually landed clear across the creek, square on that 10 ft-away stone! Of course, it was slick as snot with wet moss, and I piled up on the bank, then quickly rolled to my feet and kept racing. I'm sure the lady behind me thought I was an idiot.

It wasn't until after the race that it dawned on me that I had approached the crossing as a MTBer, not as a runner. :???::lol:

Today my left hip and my left knee are reminding me to pay attention a little better.

-F


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

^ Good story Fleas


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

My run on Friday vs my run on Sunday... the meme sums it up


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## Radium (Jan 11, 2019)

Awesome AND funny, Judy. thanks for the AM LOL!


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

*At 58, a Masters Marathoner Is Running Her Fastest Times Yet-And Helping Others Run Theirs*

She averaged a 6:40 per mile pace at the Trials of Miles half marathon. Is a sub-3:00 marathon next?









Heather Knight Pech takes her running seriously, and to keep getting faster as she approaches 60, she devotes a lot of time to the extras.

She sleeps nine hours a night, works with a nutritionist, sees her physical therapist once a week, and is religious about her mobility and strength work. A long car ride? She'll sit with a lacrosse ball under a hamstring. While waiting for service at the Whole Foods fish counter, she's stretching her hip flexors.

"People look at me like I'm nuts," she said.

Of course, those are the little things. The big things are the 80 to 85 miles per week she runs during marathon training, with grueling workouts midweek-for example, 15 x 1K repeats. Weekends are for tough, long efforts. During the peak of marathon training, a long run might be 10-13 miles at a steady pace (she calls it a "warmup") before finishing the last 6-8 miles at marathon pace, on tired legs.

And it's working-Knight Pech, 58, won her 55-59 age group at the Boston Marathon three years in a row, in 2017 (3:10:30), 2018 (3:10:15), and 2019 (3:11:31). A year ago, she ran her PR, 3:00:44, at the Indianapolis Monumental Marathon. The conditions were not ideal, and left her believing that on a better day, she could break the three-hour barrier-not that she was disappointed about her performance.

"I couldn't be happier to have an over 10-minute PR on a 25-degree day, with 20- to 30-mile-per-hour winds," she said. "I rode the edge."

She met her coach, James McKirdy, at the finish line, and jumped into his arms-and then vomited all over him.

Knight Pech grew up in a family of elite athletes. Her brother, Chip Knight, made three U.S. Olympic teams in downhill skiing, and two others siblings made U.S. national teams in skiing. A first cousin, Hilary Knight, is one of the best women's ice hockey players in history.

But in her teen years, Knight Pech rebelled against the family devotion to athletics. "I sort of went the other way," she said, "set myself up to fail, quit, whatever, because I couldn't see my way to being my brother or sister, who were just larger than life."

She began running in 2003, after her father died suddenly, while running, of a heart attack at age 60. "I was trying desperately to find him," she said.

In 2009, at age 47, she ran her first marathon (New York) in 3:58-and she quickly improved from there. In 2011, she ran Boston in 3:26. By 2012, she decided to leave her work in fashion, where she had a 28-year career, and dedicate herself to her family (she has three daughters who are now in their 20s) and see how much she could improve her running.

In 2014, Knight Pech started coaching. Now, she works with several high-school athletes in the area around Darien, Connecticut, where she lives. She'll train them in the summer, before the cross-country season starts, and in the late winter to get them ready for outdoor track. Her aim, she says, is to hand them back to their high school coaches fitter and stronger than they were for the upcoming season.

She also works with a number of masters runners, people she knows locally in southern Connecticut and others she was matched with as a coach for McKirdy Trained. And that's where she might be the most inspiring.

She encourages older runners to love their running and give it the time and attention it deserves. For her, that's three to four hours a day. "Running rewards consistency," she said, pointing out that many of her coaching clients will run faster in their 50s than they did in their 40s because they have time to train properly and do the ancillary work.

Common mistakes among the masters runners she sees: Not getting enough sleep. Running every day at the same pace, what she calls "the grey zone." Easy days aren't really easy, and hard days aren't hard enough. Neglecting resistance training.

"People talk about it but don't do it," she said.

Last weekend, Knight Pech got a rare chance to race, the Trials of Miles half marathon in Rockland State Park, in New York. She ran 1:27:24, by herself, in an event that had only 25 men and 25 women. Although she had hoped to be faster, it was a PR by more than a minute, and she averaged 6:40 pace for the distance.

The time equates to a 3:02:27 marathon. The American record in the marathon in the 60-64 age group is held by Joan Benoit Samuelson (3:02:21). In the 55-59 age group, the world record is held by American Jenny Hitchings, who ran 2:50:36 in 2019 in New York when she was 56.

Will Knight Pech continue her improvement? Sometimes she has doubts-she jokes frequently with her coach about the hourglass, and how her "sands of time" are falling so fast. He tells her that it's nonsense, at least for now, when she keeps setting PRs. It's an attitude she tries to impart to the masters she coaches.

"So much is mental," she said. "I try to message that your potential increases with age."

https://www.runnersworld.com/runner...x__5Ak9MQTyEIb7-ZfNOIUYF2p0WgIJS2s9H2fWK-snxY


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## ravewoofer (Dec 24, 2008)

That's pretty amazing. When I was 17, I ran a marathon while in good shape, but not peak shape.

3:10:24 and I was walk/jogging the last 6-7 miles.

No way at my age now (58) could I come anywhere near her times.

These days I'm in the best form ever on a bike, but that does not compute on running.

Good for her. 

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## Happybill68 (Feb 4, 2020)

This is starting my favorite time to be out in the woods. Winter. No ticks so no Lyme desease to worry about. Trails are generally empty and with no green on the trees you can really see the contours of the land . 

Today I knocked out 3.5 miles. It was great out there 


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

^ I agree with you Bill! I love the cooler temps. I'm faster and less tired after a long run


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

*How to Feed a Runner*

For runners, food is more than simple nutrition - food is fuel. What and when should you eat before, during and after your runs? What should you drink and how much? When you are training for a long race - 10K or more - you are going to have to change how you eat; we'll show you how to make those changes.

*Three Simple Food Rules*
If you are starting to train for a long-distance race, these tips should help guide your eating habits.

*1. Eat More*
During marathon training you are burning many more calories than you were before, and you need to replace them. First, use this calculator {sorry but the link has a paywall} to help you get an idea of how much you are burning. Keep in mind, however, that your calorie burn will depend on your gender, size and the intensity of your workout. Then replace those calories with nutrient-rich food - the rest of this guide will show you how.

Looking to lose weight? It may surprise you, but long-distance running is not an effective weight-loss plan. One mile of running burns about 100 calories, but that doesn't mean you'll lose a pound for every 35 miles you log. Many studies show that running increases appetites, especially in new runners. The body seems to want to maintain its weight homeostasis and will pump out hormones that prompt runners to want to eat. If you are not trying to lose weight, by all means respond to those signals by eating more, but if you wish to lose weight, you have to be aware of how many calories you burn and how many you consume.

One tip? Running on an empty stomach pushes the body to use your fat stores as fuel and can help to fight weight gain.

If you do find the scale creeping higher as you train, watch your calorie intake and make sure to read rule #2.

*2. Fight the Hunger*
You will feel hungry when you are training for a marathon, a feeling commonly called "runger" within running circles. However, if you feel hungry all the time, it's time for a dietary change to make sure you can go longer without feeling hungry between meals.

If hunger is an issue, ask yourself these questions:

• Are you getting enough protein? Carbs have long been seen as the holy grail to fast running, but protein is important because it stabilizes your blood sugar and helps you feel fuller longer.

• Are you eating enough before a run? Running on an empty stomach can often lead to sluggish workouts and clawing hunger later in the day.

• Are you eating often enough? If you are hungry after eating three meals, try spacing out the same amount of food into five smaller portions instead. The steadier input of food will help your body maintain stable blood sugar levels and stave off hunger. Also, have a variety of healthy snacks on hand so you don't turn to calorie-laden food when you are hungry. Think a handful of nuts, a cup of applesauce or a banana.

*3. Try and Try Again*
Sure, food is fuel, but we're not built on an assembly line. Your months spent training for a race are there to help you develop your form, your endurance and also your optimal diet. Throughout your training, try eating different types of foods and alter their timing little by little to see what works best. Then use that combination on race day.

Most runners can figure out their ideal diet through trial and error "but with guidance, the time from trial and error to success can be greatly decreased," says Lauren Antonucci, a registered dietitian.

sauce https://www.nytimes.com/guides/well...57a238e515a775a5a2886440eb9cf77&redirect=true


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## Happybill68 (Feb 4, 2020)

Ran today, speed workout. Accepting that my distance won’t be what it used to be. Still good day out on the trails. 


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

My runs during the week are after work and hence in the cold and in the dark. Still fine lots of neat stuff that catch my eye 









Local police R.I D.E. check








Curbside urban toilet, one snowfall away from being buried


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

Something as simple as walking will improve your health

*The Benefits of Walking for the Immune System*

The COVID-19 pandemic has sparked widespread interest in improving immune function. In addition to practicing social distancing and good hygiene, many people are searching for ways to build a stronger immune system.

Exercise plays a vital role in maintaining a healthy immune system. Since many gyms and parks have been temporarily closed in an effort to slow the spread of the virus, it can be challenging to find ways to get enough exercise.

Thankfully, one of the best researched forms of exercise doesn't require a gym membership or additional equipment. That form of exercise is walking.

*Active Individuals Have Fewer Upper Respiratory Symptoms*

Researchers have found that people who exercise regularly are less likely to experience upper respiratory symptoms such as coughing, sore throat, or runny nose. Adults who engaged in aerobic exercise at least five days per week had 43% fewer days with upper respiratory symptoms over a 12-week period than those who exercised no more than once per week. Another study found that adults who exercised at least three days per week were 26% less likely to have the common cold during a yearlong period.

These immune system benefits aren't exclusive to people engaged in formal exercise. Two studies have found an approximately 20% lower risk of upper respiratory symptoms in people who are the most physically active. Another study found similar results in a group of older adults at an average age of 70.

*Walking Programs Lead to Fewer Upper Respiratory Symptoms*
When researchers decided to test the cause-and-effect relationship between exercise and immune function, they selected brisk walking as the exercise of choice. Brisk walking is generally defined as walking at a pace of 2.5 to 4.0 miles per hour.

Most studies have found that a program of brisk walking for 30-45 minutes per day, 5 days per week, leads to fewer respiratory symptoms. These programs have ranged from 8 weeks to 15 weeks in duration and have included a variety of age groups, including those 65 and older.

A Single Exercise Session Can Positively Impact the Immune System
We've learned that walking programs lasting at least 8 weeks can lead to fewer upper respiratory symptoms, but an important question remains: Can we strengthen our immune system in less than 8 weeks?

It appears that the answer is "yes."

A single session of brisk walking or moderate-intensity cycling for 20-30 minutes leads to increased activation of several different types of immune cells (Nieman 2005, Campbell 2009, Bigley 2014). With regular exercise, these positive responses are thought to contribute to a stronger immune system.

*Next Steps (Literally)*
Start a walking program today by using the following research-based guidelines:

Walk for 30-45 minutes per day.
Walk at a pace of 2.5 to 4.0 miles per hour, which equates to walking one mile in 15 to 24 minutes.
Aim to perform this walking routine five times per week

Sauce https://nutritionstudies.org/the-be...kqBbo7kv8HKwo3B6kALMq-sENosBDLIpmlZPgCCJB76C4


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

Santa is coming! We saw Kris Kringle on our 5km warm up run. Ho Ho Ho!


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

What a pace!

*61-year-old Irishman Tommy Hughes runs 2:30:02 marathon world record*

Tommy Hughes, age 61, bettered the world marathon record by over six minutes in the 60-65 age-group on Sunday - he finished in the time of 2:30:02.

Hughes ran a one-off marathon event at Down Royal Racecourse. The event was restricted to five runners.

Hughes ran the first 10-miles (16.1K) in 56:44, which had him on sub-2:29 pace.

The Irishman broke the half-marathon world record on September 12 at the Antrim Coast Half Marathon finishing in the time of 1:11:09. In that event, he took 22 seconds off the previous record. He won the 1991 Dublin Marathon in 2:14:46. At age 48, he ran a 2:28:38. This world record is no surprise as he also took the over 55s record in Rotterdam with a 2:27:52 performance.

He trains around 100-miles per week (161K).

Upon finishing the 2:30:02 performance, the Irishman declared, "I could have run faster," which is a lot considering, he missed going sub-2:30:00 by just two seconds.

The previous record was 2.36.30 by Japanese runner Yoshinisa Hosaka.

sauce https://athleticsillustrated.com/61...ZsW3ZnvkSHTWRvaRsxb2NRj8DA1ZuUDOclyL4e15RwQwQ


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## rod9301 (Oct 30, 2004)

cyclelicious said:


> Santa is coming! We saw Kris Kringle on our 5km warm up run. Ho Ho Ho!
> 
> View attachment 1381367


You need new glasses, these don't look too good on you.

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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

Après ride I did a (5.8km) late funday run

Black and white snowbanks... dirty winter


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

Trail running, trail building and doing a GPS of a local regional tract. Mild temps felt like spring. We ran about 10km and had time to play on some features along the way. Friday-vacay-yay


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

My running stats are better this year than ever! This could be the reasons why 

*5 Ways Running Saved Us in 2020*

Let's get one thing straight: whether you lace up to meditate, socialize, train, or just blow off steam, running is always good for you-and often for more reasons than many people realize. But this year, through the stress of both a global pandemic and a historic reckoning for social justice, those benefits have never been more clear or important. Here are just a few of the ways running kept us clearheaded this year.

*1. It Helped Our Frontline Workers Cope* _{This is me!}_

In addition to battling the coronavirus every day, healthcare workers and first responders faced round-the-clock changes, with new protocols, new symptoms in patients, and new research as the pandemic unfolded. For Sam Roecker, a competitive runner and a nurse with an ear, nose, and throat specialty in Philadelphia, running provided stability when everything else felt volatile. "It's been the only thing I can rely on to do every day in a world where everything is constantly changing," Roecker says. A daily run gave her the time to decompress and focus on something besides treating patients.

*2. It Gave Us a New Routine and Reason to Get Out* _{My husband joined me this year for pre workout warm up runs and trail runs}_

However motivated you normally are, let's face it: Lockdowns were-and still can be-a tempting excuse to sleep late and generally hunker down. But eventually, you have to get out. And because many of us were forced to work from home and therefore no longer commute, we had more space in our schedules to lose track of time on runs.

Gavin Smith, a Boston public school principal, took full advantage of his newfound flexibility, dedicating an hour at least five days a week to the meditative practice. Since an Achilles tendon tear in 2017 knocked down his semi-competitive status and thwarted his long-distance goals, he struggled for several years to log 1,000 miles in a year. But on a Friday this November, months into his new routine, he celebrated the milestone. "Running became fun again this year," Smith says. "It became something of pride for me."

*3. It Kept Our Bodies and Minds Strong* _{My cardio is the best ever. My training runs are getting faster. I am so glad I invested in a Garmin GPS watch}_

With gyms closed, the sidewalks and parks became our training grounds. People new to running laced up their shoes, not only for their physical well-being but also to stimulate their minds. Like many other forms of exercise, running increases concentrations of norepinephrine, a chemical that helps our brains modulate our stress responses. And during this unprecedented time, stress was abundant. Professional runner Mary Cain returned to the sport after recovering from health issues and appreciated syncing her mind with her body again. "This has been the year of recognizing what it means to have running as a gift," says Cain, a community manager for Tracksmith.

*4. It Became an Act of Solidarity* _{Running is an activity for any gender, ethnicity, athlete at any level and socio economic status... we are all runners and share a common bond}_

The running community is a tight one. So when one of its own, Ahmaud Arbery, was killed while out on a run in Georgia, it came together to protest his death and celebrate his life. Both runners and non-runners, wherever they were around the country, ran either 2.23 miles or 2.23 hours to commemorate February 23, the day he died. Plus, the powerful Black Lives Matter movement amplified the voices of Black runners everywhere. Smith, of Boston, said it gave him the courage to open up about his experiences as a Black athlete as well as an affirmation that he belongs in the community. "It's a place where I can be me and I can run," Smith says.

*5. It Helped Us Stay Connected with the World* _{I love my weekly solo runs... my biweekly long runs are 20-25km. On these runs I surprisingly have met people along the way who give me kudos because see me running year round }_

With fewer regularly scheduled gatherings and necessarily smaller social groups, this year could have been lonely. But as we have in so many ways, we adapted-and running helped big-time. It reminded us to appreciate small yet positive interactions with strangers-a wave, a nod, or a smile as we jogged by.

Smith greeted a bank security guard every morning. Roecker was no longer the only one frequenting the river trail on cold and rainy March mornings as more people discovered the sport. And Cain witnessed New York City's energetic reaction to the election results as she ran through Central Park. "It was the New York City Marathon moment we weren't able to have this year," Cain says.

sauce How to Pull Off Your First Virtual Race


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## Happybill68 (Feb 4, 2020)

Got In 3 miles today on a favorite trail named drunken sailor. Beautiful 63 degree day here. Tomorrow supposed to be rain and sleet. 

Looking forward to wed, snow in the afternoon. Might try and time my run for when the snow starts. Snow runs are amazing imho 


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

20km run on Sunday. Had a -7c wind in my face for 10km and the wind at my back for the run home. On my last kilometre I spotted creepy Santa... watching who's naughty and who's nice in the neighbourhood  . My pace was much slower than last week's long run. But my annual mileage is adding up nicely and is ahead of last year's total.


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

This is a stimulating article summarizing the benefits of cardio health and maintaining healthy blood vessels  I relate to it because my goal in January was to run my first marathon. I set a training plan, the pandemic happened and my race got cancelled. However I stuck to my training goals and did a virtual marathon in May. I continue to accumulate mileage and now my arteries (and body) can thank me 

*Run a First Marathon, and Your Arteries May Look 4 Years Younger*
Complete a first marathon and rejuvenate a major artery. That is the message of an inspiring new study of novice runners and their aortas.

The study finds that training for and finishing a marathon can spruce up arteries, leaving them more flexible, healthy and biologically younger than before, even if runners are older or slow.

But the study also raises some pointed questions about whether a lone marathon is the ideal goal for people hoping to improve their arterial health over the long term.

Inside most of us who are middle-aged or older, arteries are hardening. Our arteries, of course, carry oxygenated blood from our hearts and, when healthy and pliable, expand and contract like bellows as blood pulses through them, keeping the flow smooth and steady.

But with age, our arteries' elasticity declines and they stiffen. Blood begins to jostle and crowd against the vessels' inflexible walls, blood pressure rises, and organs that require an even, gentle stream of blood, like the kidneys and brain, can be affected.

Helpfully, some past research hints that exercise might alter this age-related arterial stiffening. Longtime older athletes, for instance, tend to have relatively supple, responsive arteries.

But most people are not longtime, competitive athletes, and it has not been clear if sedentary people can start to exercise and still improve the state of their arteries.

So, for the new study, which was published this month in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology, researchers at University College London and other institutions decided to track the arteries of a group of people who were new to exercise, targeting first-time entrants in an upcoming London Marathon.

The researchers zeroed in on race participants who had reported on entry forms that they were newcomers to the sport and to exercise in general, rarely working out before signing up. The scientists found more than 200 of these men and women, most of them middle-aged and all sedentary, and contacted them six months before race time.

These soon-to-be marathoners agreed to visit the university's lab, completing health and fitness tests and a sophisticated scan of their aorta, designed to measure its flexibility. None of the group showed signs of heart disease or other serious health problems.

Each runner then began his or her preferred marathon-training program, with most jogging a few times a week. This training continued for six months, although some developed injuries or other concerns and dropped out. Ultimately, 136 men and women completed the race, in an average finishing time of 4.5 hours for the men and 5.5 hours for the women. A week or two later, they returned to the lab to repeat the tests.

Their aortas proved to be more flexible now. In fact, their arteries seemed to have shed the equivalent of about four years, in functional terms. The aorta of a 60-year-old marathoner in the study now expanded and contracted about as lithely as that of a 56-year-old participant did at the study's start, and the 56-year-old's arteries worked like those of a pre-race 52-year-old, and so on.

These improvements were most marked in older male runners and those whose finishing times had been slowest. They did not depend on changes in runners' fitness or weight, which, in most cases, had been negligible. All that had mattered was that people had kept up with their training and raced.

These findings gratified the researchers, says Dr. Charlotte Manisty, a consulting cardiologist at University College London and the Barts Heart Center, who oversaw the new study. "We had not really known" whether the arteries of sedentary people "could or would benefit" from exercise training, she says, especially if the people were older or notably out of shape. "We just didn't know how much plasticity their arteries still had."

The answer seems to have been plenty, however, she says. "Almost everyone benefited," she says, "and those people whose arteries needed the most help benefited the most."

But these results do not consider the large number of would-be marathon racers in the study who did not make it to the start line. It is also unknown whether the rejuvenation of runners' aortas is likely to last or if the benefits will be lost if they do not continue to run.

"Exercise is great for the entire body, including the arteries," says Dr. Julio Chirinos, an associate professor at the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania, who wrote an editorial accompanying the new study.

It's also uncertain whether someone must go the full 26.2 miles to improve arterial health, Dr. Chirinos says. "Is this the best dose" of exercise to produce healthier, more-youthful arteries, he asks. Perhaps less training would be sufficient, or different exercises of varying intensities, or any routine people will continue for the long haul.

Dr. Manisty agrees. "We really do not know the threshold amount of exercise needed" to gain the benefits seen in her study, she says.

But she and her colleagues expect in the future to study the impacts of training for other, shorter events and also include people who have existing heart disease, high blood pressure and other health concerns.

sauce Run a First Marathon, and Your Arteries May Look 4 Years Younger


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## WHALENARD (Feb 21, 2010)

Ha!...really dig your run reports cyclelicious!

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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

^ Thank you Whalenard


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

We did a caturday snowy 10.2km trail run. Lots of hills, river crossings and beautiful forest transitions. Along the way we met some picnicking hikers; spotted a holiday yarn tree; jumped for joy and scouted new frontiers


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## ElTortoise (Jul 27, 2015)

bakerjw said:


> I ride a lot but a recent incident where a carpentry knife met my hand kept me off the bike for around 10 days. Rather than just sit on the trainer with Zwift, I opted to see if I could run a couple of miles. My leg muscles complained a few days later but I've been keeping at it and wondered who else also runs.
> 
> I am still planning on riding the upper 1/4 of the GDMBR route next Summer and want to be sure that my walking/bike pushing legs are as good as they can be.


I jog the trails at least 3 - 4 days a week mainly to cross train. At one point I was doing over 6 miles a day but have cut back to 4 - 5 miles because of the shorter days. Initially, I had issues with pain in my knees, ankles and shins. Running trails (dirt) instead of sidewalks and asphalt helped along with taking glucosamine. Investing in some good running shoes helps too.


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## Happybill68 (Feb 4, 2020)

Four miles today, beautiful out there and had most the park to myself









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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

Beginning Christmas morning with a 5km run. Checking out some snow covered trails along the way.


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

*I'm a Runner: Dr. Jill Biden








*

*It was a charity race that got you started running, wasn't it?*
I started running after Joe and I were asked to kick off a Komen Race for the Cure in the early '90s. After sounding the horn, we ran to get out of everyone's way, and I got so winded that I said, "I'm going to start running." My first run was around my neighborhood in Delaware-about a third of a mile. I kept increasing the distance until I got the bug.

*What did you like about it?*
It was such a feeling of freedom. I love running outside. It was a good feeling. I mean, I felt good about myself, and so that's why I continued. I started when I was, what, 40, so I've been running almost 20 years. And I've been pretty consistent with it. I mean, I've had things in my life happen where I've had to slow down a little bit, but I've always gone back to it.

*How many Susan G. Komen races have you participated in?*
Oh, I'm not sure about the exact number-probably a handful or so. Over the years I've also completed several 5K, 10K, and half-marathon races for other cancer charities.

*Why are you participating in the Komen race this year?*
This year, I am serving as the Honorary Chair for the Washington D.C. Race for the Cure along with Joe. It's the second year in a row we've done this, and we are honored to continue the tradition. On the eve of race day, Joe and I will host breast-cancer survivors for a special reception at our home. It's a really special event and gives us a chance to spend time with survivors and their loved ones before the race. We're really looking forward to it.

*In addition to your work with Susan G. Komen Race for a Cure, you've been very involved in breast-cancer awareness. Why is it such an important issue for you?*
Back in the early '90s, I had several friends who got breast cancer. One died. I felt like I had to do something, and I couldn't just sit by. Being an educator, I thought, _Well, maybe there's something I could do in education_. So I started the Biden Breast Health Initiative, and I have health-care professionals go to high schools in Delaware, and we talk to them about good health practices, breast self-examination, and early detection. So not only is that awareness created for them, but they take that message home to their moms and grandmoms, and they start a dialogue. We've reached more than 10,000 young women.
*What's typical for a daily workout? Where do you usually run and how many miles?*
Well, you know, my goal is five miles at a nine- to 10-minute pace five days a week. But between teaching and administration responsibilities, I barely make that any more. Like, for instance, this morning I had a breast-cancer event here [at the house, the Vice President's Residence at the United States Naval Observatory in Washington, D.C.] at breakfast. I knew I was limited for time, so I did a little over four miles on the treadmill. I try to adapt my workout to where I am-I could be in another city or country-so it often depends on what I'm doing. I also try to incorporate a little bit of weight training, because I think that's really good for your bones. That's my basic workout.

*How do you change your training when you're preparing for a race, as you are now?*
When I've done races, I've been pretty disciplined about setting up a plan for myself and then following that plan on a daily basis. That's how I got ready for the 1998 Marine Corps Marathon, which is the only one I've done. I've done several half-marathons and 10-mile races. In the next couple months, I would love to train for the Army 10-Miler [in Washington, D.C.], and so I feel like I could work up to that.

*You're pretty close to the race in the beginning of June, so what are you aiming for now? Are you still doing five miles or are you trying to ramp it up?*
Usually because of time, I can't go over five miles-sometimes maybe I could do six or seven, and sometimes I could just do three. Because, you know, my days are pretty filled, so I have to run in the morning or whenever I have time, and then I've got to build in that time to get back and showered and changed and read my briefing for an event. I have to factor all of those things in.

*So what's your best time?*
My best time was my only time [the Marine Corps Marathon]. I finished in 4:30:32. My goal was 4:30, so I feel like I met that goal and I was ecstatic. I have to say it was one of the highlights of my life. I saw my family at several spots along the way. And I tell you, at the end of that race, I felt like I could run five more miles. My adrenaline was through the roof.

*Would you consider running another marathon?*
I always said I only wanted to do one marathon, but I've also learned to never say never!

*So now do you run with the Secret Service?*
Oh, yeah. That's another big change in my life now-I usually have someone ahead of me and someone behind me. But they've been great. I just say to them, "I need to pretend you're not here," because I love to run by myself, and they're pretty respectful of that.

*Are the Secret Service in cars or are they actually running?*
No, these guys are runners. I mean, these guys are fit, and they're good runners.

*You said you love to run by yourself. Why is that? Is it because you use that time to think or is it meditative for you?*
I think that running creates a sense of balance in my life. And it really calms me down. It's a great feeling to just get out and lose myself in a run. I think that's why I continue to run because, as you know, once you get that, you kind of crave that time for yourself.

*So I guess you don't exercise with your husband?*
Sometimes Joe runs with me, but he's not a runner. He's an athlete, and he does a lot of exercise. Like last night, he was playing football out on the front lawn with our granddaughter who loves to play football. So he likes to do a lot of sports, but I think once you're a runner, you really stick with it.

*But I have heard you do run with some of your staff.*
A lot of people on my staff run, so that's nice. If we get time and we're in a different city, we'll go out and do a run.

*Obviously this is a very fit administration. Is it motivating? The President and First Lady are known for it. Do you ever run with either the President or First Lady?*
You know, I really love what Michelle is doing with Let's Move! Let's face it, we really did need something like this in this country to fight childhood obesity. I see Michelle at events or we pass one another on the way to meetings, but life is a little too hectic. I mean, that would be great, but it just isn't reality that we would have time to do that.

*So do you feel more pressure to perform well as a runner now that everyone knows you?*
Well, when I'm out running, people don't recognize me, which is great. I don't feel pressure; I'm not out to beat anybody or hit a certain time. I just do it for the enjoyment of it. I'm doing it for myself.

*How do you make the time to run? How do you carve that time out?*
Well, I definitely make it a priority. That's not always possible, but my office knows that it goes first on the list. It's really an important part of my life, and I try to be pretty true to it.

*Do you have a preferred workout outfit?*
I don't have a workout outfit. The usual, you know, black pants and a T-shirt.

*Do you listen to music when you run?*
Oh, yeah, I do.

*Can I ask what's on your iPod?*
What's on my iPod? Well, certainly Bruce Springsteen. [Biden was born in New Jersey.] I don't know what else. My kids are runners, by the way. I have two sons and a daughter and two daughters-in-law, and they're triathletes, my two sons and their wives. So if they hear something good, they'll say, "Oh, Mom, let me put this on your iPod."

sauce I'm a Runner: Dr. Jill Biden


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

This advice can apply to almost any athletic activity. It's funny but I do most of these mind games... prior to reading this article. It's good to know that the tricks I can play on my mind can help me

*Six Mental Secrets to Push Harder During Grueling Workouts*
A good runner is not made of strong legs alone. The best of the best in this sport also have strong minds-and that's because running is as much a mental challenge as it is physical. "Running is constant negotiation with yourself," Amanda Shannon Verrengia, a certified run coach, says.

Whether it's a motivational "Push a little harder for the next mile!" or a defeatist "I'm so tired, I should probably slow down," the loop that plays between our ears while we run can make or break us, encouraging us to push ourselves just a little bit more-or telling ourselves to throw in the towel when the going gets tough.

The catch: using said mental techniques to improve your performance is more nuanced than simply telling yourself to "go faster." Here, two experts break it down.

*1. Visualize Your Success*
Taking the time to mentally walk through a tough workout before you actually tackle it can help you handle the real deal with more confidence and ease, Dr. Ariane Machín, a sports psychologist and former competitive runner, says. Before lacing up, close your eyes and use all five of your senses to understand what those especially hard moments will be like and then envision yourself pushing through them, she says. Imagine your muscles burning, the sound of your breath, the road or track stretching on in front of you, the air against your skin, the smell of sweat, and so on.

Just by visualizing an experience like this, you can activate the same motor neurons that fire in the real-life moment, explains Machín. And because of this, when you do experience said real-life moment, it doesn't feel as foreign, she says.

"Visualizing is about getting comfortable with being uncomfortable," adds Verrengia. "People get nervous about the uncomfortableness of an anticipated situation." But if you intentionally visualize yourself being uncomfortable, you'll be better prepared to calmly and confidently handle that discomfort when it does arise, she explains.

The one caveat with visualization: it should be limited to things that you can control, says Verrengia. You can't control the weather, for example, so don't spend your time visualizing yourself running on a sunny, cloudless day. But you can control how you react to the most challenge portion of a workout, like the beastly hill at mile 12 of your long run, or the last 10 minutes of your tempo run-and that's exactly what you should concentrate on.

*2. Check Your Progress*
Getting live feedback on your progress-whether it's in the form of mile splits, distance, elevation, or minutes-can be an incredible motivation tool, Machín says. For instance, you may feel like utter garbage, but looking at your watch and seeing that you only have 0.7 miles to go? Instant energy boost. Or, you may realize that even though you feel like utter garbage and your pace is way off, you've still managed to run three miles.
The most valuable and motivating data will come from a GPS watch like the Garmin Forerunner 645 Music. It gives you accurate pace, distance, and heartbeat metrics to gauge and adjust your effort. As an added mental boost, this model allows you sync bluetooth headphones to the watch so you can listen to music, which research shows can increase your pain tolerance during a workout.

The right watch can be like "a little coach on your wrist," adds Verrengia. "It can help you stay motivated and on track." What's more, having the data later on can provide an extra sense of satisfaction when you realize exactly how much you actually achieved. "It can provide a confidence boost," says Verrengia that can spillover into your next run.

*3. Reframe Your Pain*
Running hard isn't exactly an enjoyable experience. When your lungs are burning, your quads are on fire, and your body is screaming at you to stop, it's only natural to connect these unpleasant sensations with equally unpleasant thoughts, like "I'm out of shape" or "this hurts too much," Machín says.

But this type of negative self-talk isn't productive, and focusing on the pain in this way will likely just make it seem that much worse. Instead, attribute the pain to positive gains-like my quads are burning because my legs are getting stronger; or I'm breathing heavy because I'm building my cardio. This simple mental shift provides much-needed purpose to your pain. "It's the difference between saying to yourself, 'This is me working so hard,' versus 'This is me so fatigued,'" Machín says.

*4. Break it Down*
Divide your workout into smaller chunks. Instead of stressing over the fact that you still have eight miles left in your long run and your quads are already shaking, think of it as four two-mile runs, or even eight one-mile runs, Verrengia says. "Just run the mile that you're in," she says. This means focusing on holding your pace and form together for one micro-chunk at a time. "These mini goals make it easier," she explains, and they transform an overwhelming workout into an I-totally-got-this experience.

You can also do this with visual landmarks. If you feel like calling it quits early, pick a not-so-distant landmark, like a lamppost or a mailbox, and tell yourself that you just need to run to that point. If you're still feeling really crappy once you get there, you can stop. "But more often than not, you will be able to just keep going," says Verrengia, and landmark by landmark, "you'll get out of your funk."

*5. Repeat a Mantra*
Have an inspirational cue word or phrase on hand to repeat yourself during the especially brutal moments, says Machín. Something as simple as "push" or "I am strong" or "I can do hard things" can provide potent motivation when you need to dig deep. The point of these cues is to "induce a certain state and cue you into action," explains Machín. Repeating the mantra over and over in your head can also drown out the doubts that tend to creep in during times of trial, adds Verrengia.

*6. Recall Prior Wins*
Looking back at your past triumphs can give you the mid-run confidence boost you need to keep going, says Verrengia. Whether it was an especially grueling hill set that you tackled with ease or that time you powered through a tempo run despite serious stomach cramps, "look at the things you have already hit and remind yourself that you can probably overcome this too," she says.

sauce Six Mental Secrets to Push Harder During Grueling Workouts


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

*The 25 Golden Rules of Long Distance Running*

In most cases, these rules started out as a lightbulb over one runner's head. After a while, that runner told a few running buddies (probably during a long run), word spread, and before you know it, coaches were testing it, sports scientists were studying it, and it evolved from idea to theory to accepted wisdom.

Along with each of the rules we present, however, we list the exception. Why? Because, as you also learned in grade school, there's an exception to every rule.

*1) The Specificity Rule

The Rule:* The most effective training mimics the event for which you're training. 
This is the cardinal rule of training for any activity. If you want to run a 10K at 7:00 pace, you need to do some running at that pace. "Runners are best served by running at goal pace and in the expected environment of that race," says Ann Snyder, Ph.D., director of the human performance lab at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee. 
*The Exception: *It's impractical to wholly mimic a race-particularly longer distances-in training because it would require extended recovery. So, when doing race-specific training, keep the total distance covered shorter than the goal race, or run at your race pace during intervals, or shorter segments with rest breaks.

*2) The Ten Percent Rule

The Rule: *Increase weekly training mileage by no more than 10 percent per week.

Joe Henderson, the first editor of _Runner's World_, and Joan Ullyot, M.D., author of several running books, first popularized the 10-percent prescription in the 1980s. "I noticed that runners who increased their training load too quickly were incurring injuries," says Dr. Ullyot.

If you want to increase your weekly mileage to a certain number-say, 60 miles per week-you can increase your mileage each week by 10 percent of that goal number. So if you're aiming for 60 miles per week, you should up each week's volume by no more than six miles. After three weeks of increasing mileage, be sure to take a down week, where you run less than you did on the previous week.

*The Exception: *If you're starting at single-digit weekly mileage after a layoff, you can add more than 10 percent per week until you're close to your normal training load.

*3) The 2 Hour Rule

The Rule: *Wait for about two hours after a meal before running.

"For most people, two hours is enough time for food to empty from the stomach, especially if it's high in carbohydrate," says Colorado sports dietitian and marathoner Cindy Dallow, Ph.D. "If you don't wait long enough, food will not be properly digested, raising the risk of abdominal cramps, bloating, and even vomiting."

As anyone who has tried to run on a full stomach knows, the up-and-down movement of running can cause food to move faster through your digestive tract, which can make you feel like you have to puke or poop, pronto. To make matters worse, the blood that normally flows to your intestines is rerouted toward your legs as you run, thus impairing digestion. By eating early, you can be certain that the food won't still be sitting in your stomach by the time you lace up.

*The Exception: *All runners-and their stomachs-are different, and some can head out the door sooner than later after eating. What you're eating matters, too. You can probably run 90 minutes after a light, high-carb meal, while you may need up to three hours after a heavy meal that's high in protein and fat. You can also grab a small snack that's low in fat and protein but high in quick carbs 15 to 60 minutes before a run. (Check out more rules for prerun snacks for runners.)

*4) The 10 Minute Rule

The Rule: *Start every run with 10 minutes of walking and slow running, and do the same to cool down.

"A warmup prepares your body for exercise by gradually increasing blood flow and raising core muscle temperature," says Jerry Napp, a Tampa Bay running coach. "The cooldown may be even more important. Stopping abruptly can cause leg cramps, nausea, dizziness, or fainting."

*The Exception:* It takes less than 10 minutes to rev up on warm days.

*5) The 2 Day Rule

The Rule:* If something hurts for two straight days while running, take two (or more) days off.

Two straight days of pain may signal the beginning of an injury, so it's best to nip it in the bud sooner rather than later. "Even taking five days of complete rest from running will have little impact on your fitness level," says Troy Smurawa, M.D.

*The Exception: *If something hurts for two weeks, even if you've taken your rest days, see a doctor.

*6) The Familiar Food Rule

The Rule:* Don't eat or drink anything new before or during a race or hard workout.

Stick to what works for you, especially when you're planning to go hard. They don't call it "tempo tummy" for nothing-fast running is more likely to mess with your stomach than an easy jog. "Your gastrointestinal tract becomes accustomed to a certain mix of nutrients," says Dallow. "You can normally vary this mix without trouble, but you risk indigestion when prerace jitters are added."

*The Exception: *If you're about to bonk, eating something new-such as an energy gel or sports drink served mid-marathon-is probably better than eating nothing at all.

*7) The Race Recovery Rule

The Rule:* For each mile that you race, allow one day of recovery before returning to hard training or racing.

That means no speed workouts or racing for six days after a 10K or 26 days after a marathon. The rule's originator was the late Jack Foster, the masters marathon world record holder (2:11:18) from 1974 to 1990. Foster wrote in his book, _Tale of the Ancient Marathoner_, "My method is roughly to have a day off racing for every mile I raced."

*The Exception: *If your race effort wasn't all-out, taking fewer recovery days is okay. You can also do light cross-training sessions (such as swimming, spinning, or practicing yoga) during your off-days from running.

*8) The Heads Beats Tails Rule

The Rule:* A headwind always slows you down more than a tailwind speeds you up.

So expect to run slower on windy days. "I disregard the watch on really windy days because headwinds cost me 15 to 25 seconds a mile, and I only get a portion of that back after I turn around," says Monte Wells, a longtime runner in Amarillo, Texas, America's windiest city. "The key is to monitor your effort, not your pace. Start against the wind, so it's at your back in the second half."

*The Exception: *On point-to-point runs with the wind at your back, you'll fly along faster than usual. For a confidence-and sanity-boost, plan your run into the wind on the way out, so you can ride the tail wind on the way back.

*9) The Conversation Rule

The Rule:* You should be able to talk in complete sentences while running.

One study found that runners whose heart and breathing rates were within their target aerobic zones could comfortably recite the Pledge of Allegiance. Those who couldn't were running faster than optimal.

*The Exception: *Talking should not be easy during hard runs, speedwork, or races. That said, you should be able to say a few words, such as "great job" or "keep pushing," during tempo (not all-out) efforts

*10) The 20 Mile Rule

The Rule:* Build up to and run at least one 20-miler before a marathon.

"Long runs simulate the marathon, which requires lots of time on your feet," says running coach Gina Simmering-Lanterman. "And knowing that you can run 20 miles helps you wrap your head around running 26.2."

*The Exception: *Some coaches believe experienced marathoners can get by with a longest run of 16 to 18 miles, while other coaches suggest runs up to 24 miles. Before starting any marathon training plan, be sure to brush up on these training basics.

*11) The Carbs Rule

The Rule:* For a few days before a long race, emphasize carbohydrates in your diet. 
"Carbo-loading" became the marathoner's mantra after Scandinavian studies in 1967 suggested cramming down carbs following a period of carb depletion produced super-charged athletes. Experts now say simply emphasizing carbs a few days before a race over two hours works just as well. You'll want to refuel regularly on the run before your muscles become fully depleted. Try to consume 30 to 60 grams every hour, depending on your intensity and also body size.

*The Exception: *During regular training or before a short race, don't stress about consuming extra carbs. Just be sure to regularly top your energy stores during the day with good-for-you carb sources, such as whole grains, fruits, and starchy vegetables.

*12) The Seven Year Rule

The Rule:* Runners improve for about seven years.

Mike Tymn noticed this in the early 1980s and wrote about it in his _National Masters News_ column. "My seven-year adaptation theory was based on the fact that so many runners I talked to ran their best times an average of seven years after they started," he recalls.

*The Exception: *By training consistently, recovering smartly, and avoiding injuries, runners can stretch their competitive streak to much longer than seven years before plateauing.

*13) The Left Side of The Road Rule

The Rule:* To be safe, run facing traffic.

"While running, it's better to watch the traffic than to have it come up from behind you," says Adam Cuevas, a marathoner and chief of the Enforcement Services Division of the California Highway Patrol. It's the law in California and many other states to run on the left side unless you're on the sidewalk.

*The Exception: *The right side of the road is safer when running into leftward blind curves where there's a narrow shoulder. The right side can also be safer if there's construction on the left side.

*14) The Up Beats Down Rule

The Rule:* Running uphill slows you down more than running downhill speeds you up.

So, you can expect hilly runs to be slower than flat runs. "You don't get all of the energy that you expend going uphill back when you run downhill," explains Nimbus Couzin, Ph.D., a marathon-running physics instructor. "That's because when your feet strike the ground on a descent, a lot of energy is lost."

*The Exception: *When you run point-to-point with a net elevation drop, your average pace should be faster than on a flat course.

*15) The Sleep Rule

The Rule:* Sleep one extra minute per night for each mile per week that you train.

So if you run 30 miles a week, sleep an extra half hour each night. "Sleep deprivation has a negative impact on training," says David Claman, M.D., director of the University of California-San Francisco Sleep Disorders Center. "The average person needs seven and a half to eight hours of sleep, so increase that amount when you're training."

*The Exception: *Different amounts of sleep work for different runners. For some, six hours is enough shut-eye; others need closer to nine hours per night. If you find yourself restless and unable to fall asleep before a big race, don't worry-the rest you got the week before will carry over on race day.

*16) The Refueling Rule

The Rule:* Consume a combination carbohydrate-protein food or beverage within 30 to 60 minutes after any race, speed workout, or long run.

"You need an infusion of carbs to replace depleted muscle glycogen, plus some protein to repair and build muscle," says Nancy Clark, R.D., author of _Food Guide for Marathoners_. "Some examples would be 150 to 300 calories of low-fat chocolate milk, a recovery-sports drink, flavored yogurt, or a bagel and peanut butter." After long or hard runs, you should increase your protein intake.

*The Exception: *On easy days, you still need a postrun snack, but you don't need as many calories or as much protein.

*17) The Don't Just Run Rule

The Rule:* Runners who only run are prone to injury.

"Cross-training and weight training will make you a stronger and healthier runner," says FinalK.com coach Kris Swarthout. "Low- and nonimpact sports like biking and swimming will help build supporting muscles used in running, while also giving your primary running muscles a rest."

*The Exception: *The surest way to run better is to run. So if your time is limited, devote most of it to running, but be sure to carve out a few minutes each week for core work and strength training.

*18) The Even Pace Rule 
The Rule:* The best way to race to a personal best is to maintain an even pace from start to finish.

Most of the 10,000-meter and marathon world records set in the last decade have featured almost metronome-like pacing. "If you run too fast early in the race, you almost always pay for it later," warns Jon Sinclair, the former U.S. 12K record holder and now an online coach.

*The Exception: *This doesn't apply on hilly courses or on windy days, when the objective is to run an even effort.

*19) The New Shoes Rules

The Rule:* Replace running shoes once they've covered 400 to 500 miles.

"But even before they have that much wear," says Warren Greene, former _Runner's World_ shoe guru, "buy a new pair and rotate them for a while. Don't wait until your only pair is trashed." Consider shoes trashed when the spring is gone and the treads have worn out.

*The Exception: *A shoe's wear rate can vary, depending on the type of shoe, your weight, your footstrike pattern, and the surfaces you run on.

*20) The Hard/Easy Rule

The Rule: *Take at least one easy day after every hard day of training.
"Easy" means a short, slow run, a cross-training day, or no exercise at all. "Hard" means a long run, tempo run, or speed workout. "Give your body the rest it needs to be effective for the next hard run," says Todd Williams, a two-time U.S. Olympian. Apply the hard/easy rule to your monthly and yearly training cycles by treating yourself to one easy week each month, and one easy month each year.

*The Exception: *After the most exhausting long runs and speed workouts, especially if you're 40 or older, wait for two or even three days before your next tough one.

*21) The Ten Degree Rule

The Rule:* Dress for runs as if it's 10 degrees warmer than the thermometer actually reads.

To put it another way, dress for how warm you'll feel at mid-run-not the first mile, when your body is still heating up. If you would normally wear a short sleeve shirt on a 60-degree day, but on a short sleeve, rather than a long sleeve, on a 50-degree day.

*The Exception: *There's a limit to how many clothes you can take off without getting arrested, so if it's in the 70s or warmer, wear minimal lightweight, light-colored apparel. (See our What to Wear tool for a more comprehensive guide.)

*22) The Speedwork-Pace Rule

The Rule:* The most effective pace for VO2 max interval training is about 20 seconds faster per mile than your 5K race pace.

A pioneer of VO2 max training is the legendary Jack Daniels, Ph.D. "By stressing your aerobic system," he says, "this pace optimizes the volume of blood that's pumped and the amount of oxygen that your muscle fibers can use." VO2 max is the measurement of how efficiently your body uses oxygen during exercise. Generally, the fitter you are, the higher your VO2 max, as it takes less effort for fitter people to run a certain pace compared to their less-fit counterparts.
*The Exception: *The exact pace is closer to 10 seconds faster per mile than 5K race pace for fast runners, and 30 seconds faster per mile for slower runners.

*23) The Tempo Pace Rule

The Rule:* Lactate-threshold or tempo-run pace is about the pace you can maintain when running all-out for one hour.

This pace is about 20 seconds slower per mile than your 10K race pace, or 30 seconds slower per mile than 5K race pace. "The key benefit of this pace is that it's fast enough to improve your threshold for hard endurance running, yet slow enough that you don't overload your muscles," says Daniels. The ideal duration of a tempo run is 20 to 25 minutes.

*The Exception: *The exact pace is less than 20 seconds slower per mile than 10K race pace for faster runners and slightly more than 30 seconds slower per mile than 10K race pace for slower runners.

*24) The Long Run Pace Rule

The Rule:* Do your longest training runs at least three minutes per mile slower than your 5K race pace.

"You really can't go too slow on long runs," says legendary runner and coach Jeff Galloway, "because there are no drawbacks to running them slowly. Running them too fast, however, can compromise your recovery time and raise your injury risk."

*The Exception: *Galloway says you should run even slower on hot days.

*25) The Finishing Time Rule

The Rule: *The longer the race, the slower your pace.

How much slower? Jack Daniels and J.R. Gilbert spent years compiling numbers that show how much you should expect to slow down from one race distance to the next. "We did some curve-fitting to come up with a formula that generates a pseudo-VO2 max for each race time," says Daniels. They sweated the math; now you just need to sweat the race.

*The Exception: *Terrain, weather, or how you feel on race day could all throw off the table's accuracy. (Predict your performance with our race predictor tool.)

sauce Golden Rules of Running That Every Runner Can Follow


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## Happybill68 (Feb 4, 2020)

Decided to start 5k racing again. Need to change up my training to focus more on speed. 

It will be a good change as my training now has grown stale. 


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

We did a 8km run ride pairing on Dec28


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

11km New Years eve final run-ride pairing
After 5 years of training, I was able to achieve two milestones: 1) completing my first marathon and 2) running a total 3108 km for the year. (That's like running from Toronto to Penticton BC... "as the crow flies") Making the best of a pandemic & lockdown is something I think many of us had to do in some way or another ... I believe if you set your mind to it, visualize an objective and the weather cooperates, you can definitely reach a goal... like running a marathon. Who knows, maybe it'll be the first of several more? I hope so. Happy 2021!


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## Ptor (Jan 29, 2004)

cyclelicious said:


> After 5 years of training, I was able to achieve two milestones: 1) completing my first marathon and 2) running a total 3108 km for the year.


Wow! That's an awesome year of running. I was pleased with my 1035 running miles for the year. I've been running every day now for 5 years (and went out again this morning to start year 6) and have only barely topped 1200 miles in one of those years. I also got in just over 2500 authentic mtb miles, so everything considered on the "athletic/exercise" front, 2020 was a nice enough year. I'm hoping my 2021 and your 2021 is better than 2020!


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

Thank you Ptor! Your running and mtb mileage is not too shabby either! Very impressive. I planned my goals for the year as well and have an carrot to chase each week. Hope you finish 2021 strong


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

There's never a dull run (or ride). We did 10.3km run-ride pairing with plenty of action. I finished with a respectable time despite all the action along the way! Bungy cord urban snowboarding; stuck at the drive-thru ATM; rat rod pickup truck; chased by an ambulance; go home you're drunk Frosty... all makes a training run so exciting (plus gets January mileage off to a great start)


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## Velobike (Jun 23, 2007)

Did 8 km on Sunday. All offroad, but sheet ice in a lot of places. I had studs on my shoes, but they're getting worn so there were some "interesting" bits.

Had to get out though because I haven't been able to run for a couple of months after a leg problem. I figure start the year off properly and the momentum will keep me going. .


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

Happy Caturday (and run day )


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

I've been running since 2015 and ran my first winter a year later. (it's not bad especially if you are prepared). Each year I try something new. So this year I bought a pair of traction spikes which are fabulous for snow packed or icy trails)

*10 Reasons to Get Out and Run, Even When It's Dark and Cold*
One of the hardest parts of winter running is simply getting out of bed and out the door. As soon as the alarm clock goes off in the morning, the mental discussion begins: Get up or sleep in? Run or day off? Likewise, it is also difficult for those who run in the evenings to get out the door after work in the dark and cold.

Winter running is the time to develop your mental toughness and up your game. Finishing a run under miserable weather circumstances is an incredible confidence booster, and it will help get you out there next time.

The winter- and dark-running season calls for a shift in your workout perspective. Rather than focusing on the physical, like distance and pace, the winter can be a great time to focus on the mental aspects of running. Clearly defining your primary goal for your running will help you determine your winter training plan. Then, you can apply some of the tips listed below to help you achieve that goal.

*1. Consider using a three-day-a-week training plan*
Run outside just three days per week to minimize time outdoors. You can opt to supplement this running with cross-training indoors two or three times a week.

*2. Register for races*
Use local, shorter races for short-term motivational goals. You can use the low-key races as your speedwork. Sign up for as many races as you can to keep yourself busy. For a longer-term goal, consider registering for a longer destination race at the end of your winter training cycle. (Think of this race as a reward.)

*3. Recruit a running partner, whether a friend or your dog*
Or, join a running group for support. Knowing you are meeting someone gets you out of bed and out the door. (Note: This only works if your running partner is just as committed as you are!) Joining a running group gives you multiple running partners in the event someone doesn't show.

*4. Remind yourself daily of your goal*
Whether your goal is running longer or faster, improving fitness, or losing weight, remind yourself of this often. Stick reminders on the bathroom mirror, the refrigerator, your car, or your workout bag.

*5. Commit to be fit*
When the alarm goes off and the mental argument of whether to sleep in or run begins, which one will win? Every time you get up and run, you reinforce that behavior. Every time you bag it and sleep in, you reinforce that behavior. So, reinforce the behavior you want to win.

*6. Make a "bad weather plan"*
It's okay to give yourself an alternative in the event of ice, sleet, or other dangerous conditions. Decide now what that plan will be: swap run days, get up and do a workout at home, or go to the gym and try some yoga.

*7. Always prepare your clothing and workout bag the night before*
Have everything ready to go so you do not need to spend any time preparing or even thinking about what you need in the morning. If you are a coffee drinker, have the coffee pot set to brew so it's ready when you are.

*8. Run in the morning*
Some studies show that morning exercisers have a higher success rate than evening exercisers. They believe this is because of a lack of interference of responsibilities in the early morning hours. Late meetings after work, kid responsibilities, and other commitments are more likely to come up in the afternoon than early in the morning.

*9. Plan rewards*
Prepare some rewards for yourself, both short-term and long-term. Consider including massages, pedicures, manicures, lunches or dinners out, or buying new running clothing as a reward system for completing your running plans. 

*10. Invest in the right running clothes*
Having the right gear for any sport is essential, so invest in the appropriate running gear you need for your weather. (You can find a good starter list right here.) It will make getting out in cold weather much more tolerable.

10 Reasons to Get Out and Run, Even When It's Dark and Cold


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## WHALENARD (Feb 21, 2010)

Always having fun cyclelicious, love it!

Sent from my moto g(6) forge using Tapatalk


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## nOOky (May 13, 2008)

Last year I had 1,977.22 miles running, 1,768.63 biking, 274.98 hiking, 4,057.86 total miles for the year of activities. Lower totals due to covid, I run more when I'm training for races. I did run 2 50k's and one half marathon, but no biking races. Usually I do 5-6 ultras and at least one mtb race.

12-31-2020 I ran a marathon with my girl dog, it gave us something to train for. I might make her an ultra dog by running a 50k this winter yet.

Finish of her first marathon. If you look closely you can also see my fat bike tires in the snow. Multiple activites and learning to love the seasons makes you a more well-rounded person imho.


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

I don't often see runners , running with their dogs!


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## paramount3 (Jul 13, 2014)

Looks as if I logged 92 miles running in 2020. A fair bit of this was actually walking/hiking. Probably only about 60 miles of actual running spread out over about 20 attempts. I continue to log about 3000-4500 miles a year on bikes, and supplemented that with 3-400 miles of actual running per year as recently as 2017. I'm keeping up with the cycling, but running is really unrewarding now, and I tend to go for more walks now. I'm 56. I'll keep trying to run, but there's no flow, just the feeling of pounding my back and my knees. It's OK--I can walk and hike and ride, that's enough. But it fell off pretty quickly, and I don't look forward to losing other little bits of my existence as I age. There is a distant precedent for this feeling. I played baseball and soccer when I was younger. I was a base stealer and sliding into second base was second nature, either feet first or head first. After a couple of years off, I joined the company softball team in my early 20s and the instinct was still there--in fact the first day back out on the field I slid into second base wearing shorts and scraped up my legs. I didn't think, just reacted. Playing soccer in my late 20s, slide tackling was still second nature. But then something happened. I came back to pick up soccer and company softball around age 40, and the concept of sliding was unimaginable. It wasn't simply that I feared getting hurt if I tried to slide--I couldn't even envision how I would fold a leg to slide, couldn't imagine how the biomechanics could possibly work. Just gone! On a similar note, I was a sure-handed outfielder into my late 20s, loved chasing fly balls--but when I came back to softball at age 40, I couldn't judge anything, I couldn't keep my eyes on the ball while running. Very humbling. I can still run for now, but the feeling sure is gone. It is probably no coincidence that I really try to savor my mountain bike rides these days, to enjoy the feelings of strength on a climb, of flow on a nice descent. It won't last forever--appreciate it now.


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

^ You are doing amazing paramount! It's certainly not as easy as when we were younger  We work with what we have. The main thing is you are moving your body. I am a lot slower in winter and some days are better than others. The cold air, the darkness, the slippery or slushy surfaces... all make my legs feel heavy. I don't want to start from scratch in the spring so I do what I can, when I can.

Keep going. You are stronger than you think


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## Velobike (Jun 23, 2007)

I'm training my granddaughter for her military physical test so we ran 8km on sheet ice except where it was broken ice with icy water below. Our feet were soaked within minutes. (It was -6ºC when we started)

She did complain about that, but I told how lucky she was to be a Scottish Highlander, we have a genetic advantage and it wouldn't be bothering her soon. 

Sure enough within minutes she could no longer feel her feet. 

I figure it's never to early to learn military humour.


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

*Betty White Says She Runs 'A Mile Each Morning' As She Reveals How She'll Celebrate 99th Birthday*
*Betty White* is quite literally a living legend - and the Emmy Award winner is all set to turn another year older! The _Golden Girls _icon celebrates her 99th birthday on Sunday, Jan. 17 and - despite being in quarantine - she's got some plans. "You probably didn't ask, but I'll tell you anyway," the Capricorn said to _Entertainment Tonight_ on Wednesday, Jan. 13.

*"What am I doing for my birthday? Running a mile each morning has been curtailed by COVID, so I am working on getting The Pet Set re-released," she revealed, referencing the 1970s series she hosted. "And feeding the two ducks who come to visit me every day," Betty also shared, adding "The Pet Set is one of my favorite shows. I'm thrilled it's going to be seen again after all these years." It sounds like she's set for her big day!*

_The Pet Set _focused on Betty's life long love for animals and included many memorable celebrity guests including legends *Mary Tyler Moore*, *Doris Day*, *Burt Reynolds* and more. While there were plenty of dogs and cats, more exotic animals like tigers, elephants, lions, gorillas, cougars, zebras and bears also would appear in-studio. Betty's late husband *Allen Ludden*, who passed away in 1981, served as a producer and announcer for show. _The Pet Set_ is being released on streaming platforms and DVD on Feb. 23 to mark its 50th anniversary.

The actress regularly posts about her love of animals on her social media accounts - including a snuggle with a _bear _in 2018. "Friends forever," she captioned the photo, which is posted alongside a video of elephants as well as Betty and a gorilla named Koko. "I treasure every minute we spent together," she wrote alongside that image.

Betty - who is a Guinness World Record holder for the longest running career television career for any woman in history - has previously shared her tips for living into your 90s. While she confessed to still indulging in hot dogs and vodka (her drink of choice is a vodka tonic), she cites a positive attitude as the most important. "I know it sounds corny, but I try to see the funny side and the upside, not the downside," she said to _Parade_ magazine in 2017, ahead of turning 96. "I get bored with people who complain about this or that. It's such a waste of time&#8230;Accentuate the positive, not the negative," she told encouraged.

At the time, the Oak Park, Illinois native also shared here number one birthday wish: celebrity crush *Robert Redford*, 84! "But it never works. I try every year," she hilariously confessed, adding that the two haven't even met.









Betty White Says She Runs ‘A Mile Each Morning’ As She Reveals How She’ll Celebrate 99th Birthday - Washington Dailies


Betty White is quite literally a living legend — and the Emmy Award winner is all set to turn another year older! The Golden Girls icon celebrates her 99th




washingtondailies.com













Betty White Says She Runs ‘A Mile Each Morning’ As She Reveals How She’ll Celebrate 99th Birthday - Washington Dailies


Betty White is quite literally a living legend — and the Emmy Award winner is all set to turn another year older! The Golden Girls icon celebrates her 99th




washingtondailies.com


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)




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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

Back to back Caturday and funday Run Ride pairings. Same distance (11km) different routes


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

Curbside alert! Spotted on last evening's warm up run ... anyone need a (used) massage table?


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)




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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)




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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

We did a 10.5km run ride pairing @ -9c/-12c windchill on frigid Friday


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

Spotted on our 3km run pre-homegym workout: The wolf moon

















It was a cold -12/-16c windchill


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

10km -16c run ride pairing. I spotted a VW Thing and a warning sign


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

Lots of good tips not just for marathon training but for anyone that runs

*How to Run a Faster Marathon*

*1) How to Pick a Time Goal*
Once you pick the time you want to beat, you'll need to map out a plan to get there.

*How to Set a Goal*
*Do you want to set a personal record or just finish?* If your goal is to beat your previous time, qualify for the Boston Marathon, or hit some set time goal, picking the right plan is crucial, and the sections below are for you. But if you're simply looking to finish the race with your head held high no matter what the time or you're doing this specific marathon more for the experience (a lot of runners do the New York City Marathon for just this reason), then you don't need a plan loaded with speedwork and hill repeats or fartleks. That doesn't mean you can't do them, but the plan you choose is less important than if you were setting out to conquer your previous time.
*What was your last marathon pace?* Before committing to a time goal, calculate your average mile pace during your last marathon. Also consider your pace at the various stages of the marathon. Were you cruising until the 20-mile marker until you smashed into the Wall? Did a mid-race port-a-potty break add too many minutes to your time? Pick a reasonable pace that is better than your previous race and do the math to generate a new time goal.
*What is your 5K and 10K race pace?* Analyze your previous race performances, but don't assume you can just multiply previous race times to predict your full marathon time. A marathon may look like it's two half-marathons or just over four 10Ks, but that's not how running math works. Previous race results can give you an idea for a goal, however, especially if you use the McMillan Running prediction calculator. If you ran a 28 minute 5K (roughly a 9 minute mile pace) you probably can run a 4 hour 33 minutes marathon (which is roughly a 10 minute 25 seconds per mile pace.
*If you haven't run a race before and are planning to run a marathon, good for you.* You are brave and bold, but sign up for a few 5K or 10K races before the main event. It'll get you used to a big race event and allow you to set a more realistic goal. Check out our How to Start Running guide to get you going.

*Pick Your Training Plan*
*The most important question to ask yourself as you begin to train for a marathon is: "How much time do I have?"* 
Be honest. Training for a marathon takes a lot of dedication.
There are training plans for those who can run four, five or six days a week. How to choose? If you're time-pinched, a four or five-day plan is likely to be more appealing. These shorter plans allow for some cross-training if you don't want to run all the time. A six-day plan is a big commitment, but it can also be very effective.

*2) What Makes You Faster*
Simply churning out mile after mile won't help you run a faster marathon. These training techniques will.

Most people think training for a marathon is just about building up the miles so you've got the stamina to run 26.2 miles on race day. That's important, but if you want to run a FASTER marathon, you'll need to incorporate speed training into your routine. The good news is that speed training can be fun and different - and it helps break up the monotony of marathon training all while helping you achieve your time goal. Here are some of the common terms used to describe various speed-training workouts.

*Fartleks:* During a fartlek, you speed up and slow down at varying, nonuniform intervals. For example, run hard for two minutes, then run easy for three minutes, then run hard for four minutes and so on. You can also improvise fartleks. Run hard to that tree in the distance, jog to the next trash can, then sprint to the next tree, etc.
*Tempo Runs:* Different runners, and different training plans will define a tempo run in different ways. In general, it is a run done at a slightly uncomfortable pace. Sometimes they are runs done at the pace of a previous 5K or 10K. They can also sometimes be done at your projected marathon pace.
*Intervals:* Interval training is a proven way to increase endurance by adding intensity at set points in your run. Run a set distance at top speed, then a set distance at a slower pace to recover and repeat. Common intervals for marathon training are 800 meters, 1200 meters or 1 mile.
*Hills:* Improve your speed by running locals hills. Run up and down the same hill over and over again. This can be done on a treadmill using incline settings.
*Pace Runs:* Pace runs are workouts done at the pace you hope to use to complete the marathon.

*3) Strength Training*
Strength training is an essential part of training for a time-based marathon. You will run faster and reduce risk of injury with just a few basic exercises.

*Build Muscle Efficiently*
It can be hard to find the time to lift weights when you are already running four (or six) days a week. However, by targeting the muscles that you use for running, *strength training can help you run faster.* Also, strengthening the parts of your body that support your running can help keep injuries at bay.
Here are five exercises recommended by Jeff Horowitz, author of "Quick Strength for Runners," that you can do at home. Completing the whole circuit of five exercises won't take much time, says Horowitz - about 15 to 20 minutes. Try to fit them in twice a week at home while you're watching your favorite TV show.
For the exercises that require a dumbbell or medicine ball, use a weight that provides "moderate resistance" - heavy enough that the exercises are challenging, but not light enough that you're just going through the motions.
Horowitz suggests working with a fitness trainer once or twice to make sure that you're doing the moves correctly. "This isn't trying to find a fresh, different way to hurt ourselves," he said. "You want to have proper form to challenge yourself, but do it in a way that's still safe."

*One-Legged Hip Raise*
This exercise strengthens the gluteus medius muscle around your hips to increase your lateral stability, preventing hip injuries from the constant pounding of the road.
*Deadlift and Front Raise*
This is a great all-in-one exercise that engages your lower back, hips, shoulders and upper back. It will strengthen your upper back and shoulders to help you run "taller," which prevents back pain and gives more power to your running motion.
*Knee Tucks*
The previous exercises strengthen the muscles that support running, but this one directly works the muscles used when you run. This exercise will give you an extra burst of power with every stride.
*Dumbbell Swings*
This exercise works the obliques and transversus abdominis, muscles in your abdomen which "lock things down anytime you move," says Horowitz. Strengthening your core with this exercise will stabilize your body and keep your body upright as you run.
Try it:
1. Hold the dumbbell with both hands and let it hang between your legs. Keep your back straight and your head up.
2. Straighten up to a standing position, pulling the dumbbell up over your head.
3. Use the dumbbell's momentum to return to the starting position.
4. Repeat 10-20 times. 
*Lateral Lunges*
Lunges strengthen the gluteus medius, the muscle along the outside of your hip. When you strengthen this region, you keep your hips strong and, hopefully, uninjured.
Try it:
1. Stand with your feet shoulder width apart, with your hands on your hips.
2. Step out to the right with your right foot and shift your body weight over the right leg. Squat down until your knee makes a 90 degree angle. Keep your back straight.
3. Bring your right leg back to the center and repeat on left side.
4. Repeat 10-20 times.

*4) Train Your Brain*

It's not just your body that will get you across the finish line in time. You need your brain to get you there too.
*Mental preparation can help you run better,* says Matt Fitzgerald, author of "How Bad Do You Want It: Mastering the Psychology of Mind Over Muscle." "Running performance is limited by your perception of effort," he says. Doing mental exercises while training and racing can increase a runner's tolerance for perceived effort and reduce the level of effort that is actually felt while running.
There are three mental exercises you should try during your training. Try them all. Then you can figure out which works best to help you get your mind off your pain and the distance you still have to run.
First, *brace yourself.* Embrace the fact that you will probably feel uncomfortable, perhaps even suffer a bit. You want to expect your body to struggle to perform well.
Next, *think positive.* It may sound easy, but when you're hurting during a workout, it's easy to go negative. Instead, replace those thoughts with positive ones like, "just keep swimming," or "been there, done that, you'll do it again."
Last, don't forget to *focus externally.* Focus on what you're doing instead of what you're feeling, says Fitzgerald. As you run, try to catch or stay in contact with a runner ahead of you or maintain a specific pace. "Train your mind to concentrate more on what you're doing than on how you're feeling in the process of preparing for your marathon so that it comes naturally on race day," he says

*5) How to Eat*
Training for a marathon is indeed a license to eat more, but be sure to be smart about how you fuel yourself.

*Fight the Hunger*
Fact: You will feel hungry when you are training for a marathon, a feeling commonly called "runger" within running circles. However, feeling hungry _all the time_ signals the need for a dietary change. Most runners can figure out their ideal diet through trial and error "but with some direction, the time from trial and error to success can be greatly decreased," says Lauren Antonucci, a registered dietitian and member of the New York City Marathon nutrition team.
No matter what, *you'll have to eat more.* You're burning many more calories than you were before, and you need to replace them if you're going to stay healthy and injury free.It's helpful to have a wide variety of healthy snacks on hand to squash hunger. Some favorites? Clementines, homemade applesauce, dates covered in dark chocolate, pickles, feta cheese and dry-roasted, salted peanuts.
It is not uncommon to gain weight while training for a marathon. If you do, but you're still feeling fit and hitting your time goals, it's fine. You want to run fast and strong on race day, and you shouldn't worry about what the scale says.

*Eat Whole*
When you are training for a marathon, *you need high-quality nutrition.*Eating too much and eating the wrong foods can lead to bloat and weight gain.
"Runners, especially long distance runners, need some sustainable nourishment to be able to heal their hard working bodies," says Elyse Kopecky, a chef and co-author of "Run Fast Eat Slow," which she wrote along with the Olympic marathoner Shalane Flanagan. "Your muscles are being broken down, and your body just needs more in order to recover faster and stay healthy."
Kopecky suggests that you focus on eating whole, instead of processed foods, and eating what you feel you need versus tracking your food down to the calorie.
This means eating fats, such as butter, red meat, dark meat chicken with the skin, coconut oil and olive oil, which will help you feel full. Processed foods that strip out fat typically replace them with things like sugar, which leave you hungry for more
.
*Drink the Right Amount*
Want to know if you're drinking enough? *Check your sweat rate.* Weigh yourself before and after a long run and calculate the difference to determine how much weight you lost in fluid. Then, make sure to take in that many ounces of fluids during the next run.
As the weather changes, so too does your sweat rate, so adjust your fluids appropriately as the weather gets hotter or cooler.
Quick tip: If you didn't pee during your long run, you should feel the need to use the bathroom within the first 30 minutes after finishing. If you haven't, you are dehydrated and need to take in more fluids during your runs.

*6) What to Eat*
The foods you eat should help - not hurt - your training runs.

*Before a Run*
For shorter runs, don't worry too much about what you'll eat, especially if you'll be running regularly paced miles, says Antonucci. Before a long run, you'll want to consume a mix of easily digestible carbohydrates and a little bit of protein. Stay away from foods that are high in fiber (especially cereals with fiber added to them) and raw vegetables in the 24 to 48 hours leading up to a long run or you may be forced to hunt down a port-a-potty.
If you normally have gastrointestinal distress, figure out why before you start running seriously, says Antonucci. Running will only exacerbate the problem.
In the weeks leading up to marathon day, do at least one long run starting at your marathon's start time. This will help you figure out how to shift your normal pre-race meal for race day. The New York City Marathon has a notoriously late start, for example - it also always corresponds with the end of Daylight Saving Time, meaning that a lot of runners are starting to run when it's really their lunch time. They will most likely eat a different kind of breakfast than they would for a race with a 9 a.m. start.

*During a Run*
During a long run, you'll want three things with you: carbohydrates, fluids and salt. Most sports drinks have all three of those.
Try eating and drinking something every four miles (or more often if the course is difficult and hilly). If this leaves you feeling sapped, sick or both, test something new - whether it's a new food, drink or timing - for race day.
Pre-packaged sports gels or energy chews can provide your in-race carbohydrate intake. If you prefer these, Antonucci suggests drinking water with them to ensure that your body absorbs it quickly. She also recommends carrying salt pills, especially in hot and humid races, because most energy foods don't have the sodium you'll need.
When race day approaches, bring the drink, gels and food you like best. Race organizers may not provide exactly what you prefer and often they use powder-based mixes for sports drinks that may not be mixed to the right consistency.

*After a Run*
What you eat after a short run doesn't matter much, but after long runs, Antonucci suggests *eating a mix of carbohydrates and proteins within 60 minutes after your finish,* even if it's just enough to hold you over until you can eat a full meal.
Chocolate milk is a great post-run snack, but granola, especially when combined with fruit and whole-fat yogurt, can provide a quick hunger fix before you hop into the shower.

*7) Prevent and Recover From Injury*
If you run enough, injuries will happen. How you manage those injuries will determine if you get back on the road tomorrow or six months from now.

*Stretch it Out*
Dynamic stretching, a technique that allows you to stretch your muscles while your body is in motion, can be very valuable to runners. As opposed to stretching while remaining still - think old-school toe-touches - *stretching while in motion has been shown to increase power, flexibility and range of motion.* The dynamic stretch called the straight-leg march is especially good for your hamstrings and gluteous muscles.
*Roll it Out*
Your muscles are going to ache during training. *Foam rollers are effective in helping you roll out these sore spots.* Using your body weight to lean into a roller in a particular spot can relieve pain and ease muscle tightness in a way that stretching cannot, especially in your hips, quads and calves. Another popular tool to roll out sore muscles is The Stick. With this tool, you exert pressure through the apparatus, while rolling it up and down against a sore muscle. For tough-to-reach areas, like your feet or back, rolling them against a golf ball or tennis ball can do the trick.
*Massage it Out*
While you can accomplish pain relief with a foam roller at home, a massage therapist can often push your muscles further than you would on your own. *A sports massage is not a relaxing massage, but it is designed to break up knots.* It may hurt a little bit in the process, so communicate with your massage therapist if something hurts too much. Look for a professional who has earned a certificate in sports massage therapy, but if you find yourself sore or bruised three days after a massage, find another practitioner.

*When You Are Sick*
*If you are sick above your neck* - a head cold, sinus infection or allergies - you can most likely run and be fine.
*If you are sick below your neck* - like a chest cold - you'll want to give your lungs a rest.
*lf you are sick to your stomach,* especially if you are depleted and dehydrated, don't run. Get better first, then be on your way.
*If it's something contagious,* keep your run outside. You don't want to spread your illness throughout the gym.
*Not sure if you feel up to it?* Run a half mile. If you're fine, keep going. If not, turn home (and you'll at least have gotten a mile in).

*When to See a Doctor*
When training for a marathon, you are certain to have your days of soreness and fatigue. A lot of small pains and soreness can be resolved with rest, ice, compression and elevation. (Use the acronym R.I.C.E. to help you remember.)
Taking time off may make you anxious and worried about hitting your goals, but your top priority should be to get to the starting line healthy. If that means taking two or three days off to rest a sore hip or a turned ankle, so be it.
But when is rest not enough? *You should see a doctor if:
•* You are in acute pain.
*•* You can't put weight on the injured area.
*•* After 10 to 14 days of rest, the pain hasn't lessened or gone away.

*Common Running Injuries*
*Tendonitis and Tendonosis*
Tendonitis is the inflammation of a tendon, which is what attaches bone to muscle. Tendonosis is more extensive damage to that tendon. These injuries can happen almost anywhere in the lower body for runners, but common spots are hips and feet. If you have either of these you will feel a dull ache, especially when you try to move the affected joint.
*The Fix:* Since these injuries are caused by overuse, rest can help. So can strengthening the muscles in the affected area so they place less stress on the tendon. Tendonosis typically requires longer periods of rest (and may end your training). If you try to run through it, tendonosis can often lead to a stress fracture.

*Stress Fractures*
Stress fractures occur when a muscle is so fatigued it stops absorbing the stress that running puts on your body. Instead, that job is sent to the bones. With too much stress, the bone fractures a little. For runners, stress fractures can happen anywhere along the lower body, from your pelvis down to your feet. They are much more common in women, especially if they are not menstruating, said Dr. Kathleen Weber, director of primary care/sports medicine and women's sports medicine at Rush University Medical Center. (Women who aren't menstruating often have decreased levels of estrogen, which can impact bone strength.) Stress fractures will cause localized pain when you run and sometimes when you walk. They are often caused by running too much without sufficient rest, increasing intensity too quickly or running on a hard surface, like concrete.
*The Fix:* Rest. No way around it, said Weber. Stress fractures require significant time off and will end your training.

*Runner's Knee*
Patellofemoral pain syndrome, also known as runner's knee, is irritation where your knee cap hits the thigh bone. It will cause pain under your knee that is difficult to pinpoint and can feel worse after sitting for a prolonged period of time. Sometimes runner's knee is a result of your body structure, if your feet pronate or if you have fallen arches. It can also be caused by weak muscles in your thighs or tightness in the hamstring or calves.
*The Fix:* Stretching can help lengthen your hamstrings and calves. Strength training exercises for the quads and hamstrings can also help. If your runner's knee is caused by your feet, buying specialized shoes for your foot problem can help.

*Iliotibial Band Syndrome*
Sometimes called IT-band syndrome for short, iliotibial band syndrome is an inflammation of the ligament that runs from your thigh to your shin. It's a very common injury that causes pain on the outside of the knee or in your hips, caused by overuse.
*The Fix:* Rest, along with stretching or strengthening the hips, quadriceps and gluteous muscles can help. (Try the one-legged hip raise!) If you tend to run on the side of the road, check if it's angled down to the sidewalk. Running on an angled street can create an imbalance between your legs that causes your IT band to stretch, causing this syndrome. Take your runs to flatter ground.

*Plantar fasciitis*
Plantar fasciitis is a common foot pain caused by inflammation in the band of tissue that connects your heel to your toes. If the underside of your foot screams when you take your first morning steps, you have most likely developed plantar fasciitis.
*The Fix:* Stretching your feet will usually help. You can also wear a splint at night to keep your foot stretched as you sleep.

*Thick or Black Toenails*
The onset of ugly toenails in runners is caused by shoes that don't fit correctly. Compression socks can also contribute when they add too much pressure to your toes. "If you were to do the same activity with your hands day after day, you'd get calluses. Same thing with your toenails," said Dr. Tracey Vlahovic, associate professor at the Temple University School of Podiatric Medicine. Thick toenails happen most often in a second toe that's longer than a big toe.
*The Fix:* Affected toenails eventually fall off, so be patient. In the meantime, find better-fitting shoes. If your toenail doesn't start to grow back, you most likely damaged the nail matrix. See a podiatrist or physician for advice.

*Blisters*
Blisters can happen as a result of poorly fitting shoes. They can also occur when you start to increase your speed or distance.
*The Fix:* You can drain blisters, but make sure you apply rubbing alcohol to your skin and what you're piercing it with. Vlahovic says to leave the outer skin of the blister on because it protects the raw skin underneath.
If blisters keep occurring, figure out what's causing that friction: Look at your shoe fit, and your socks. If you're wearing cotton socks, stop. If you're wearing socks with sweat-wicking material and are still having problems (especially if you sweat a lot), Vlahovic suggests trying socks with silver or copper fiber, which is best at wicking sweat. You can also apply lubricant like Body Glide to your feet before running. Medical tape can also help.

sauce How to Run a Faster Marathon


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## nOOky (May 13, 2008)

Found out today I got into the UTMB CCC which is a 101k trail race with just over 20,000 feet of climbing. Guess I'll have to start running a bit more as the weather gets better, and less fat biking. Booo! Do they even ride bikes in France/Italy?!


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## JAL67 (Aug 28, 2005)

Friend of mine(?) challenged me to run 30 days straight, that was a year and a half ago, I haven't stopped since. Used to run a lot, then retired from the AF and was only doing charity runs and events. Gained a little weight, he called me fat...so I started and dont plan on stopping anytime soon.


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

nOOky that is amaze-balls! I had to wiki the race because I'm newish (5 yrs) to running and even newer to marathon and now ultras!









Ultra-Trail du Mont-Blanc - Wikipedia







en.wikipedia.org


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

JAL67 said:


> Friend of mine(?) challenged me to run 30 days straight, that was a year and a half ago, I haven't stopped since. Used to run a lot, then retired from the AF and was only doing charity runs and events. Gained a little weight, he called me fat...so I started and dont plan on stopping anytime soon.


What a great challenge! Motivation becomes a habit


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## JAL67 (Aug 28, 2005)

cyclelicious said:


> What a great challenge! Motivation becomes a habit


Yeah...I hate that guy! 

He has a 7+ year every day streak going, at least 1 mile per day. He ran after having shoulder surgery (He admits to being really slow that day...) and does ultras habitually. I am still working my way to a half marathon, then???


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

I noticed that the unusually mild evening temperatures enticed more runners out. Tonight there was the added bonus spotting my first urban potty for 2021. 0c +1 curbside urban toilet +10km = good run...


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

Some interesting insights and ideas from Daniel Lieberman about human physical endurance, our anatomy, and our evolutionary past (A long read but good stuff)



> DANIEL LIEBERMAN is Professor of Human Evolutionary Biology at Harvard University. His research combines experimental biology and paleontology to ask why and how the human body looks and functions the way it does. He is especially interested in the origin of bipedal walking, the biology and evolution of endurance running, and the evolution of the human head. He also loves to run.


*BRAINS PLUS BRAWN*

I've been thinking a lot about the concept of whether or not human evolution is a story of brains over brawn. I study the evolution of the human body and how and why the human body is the way it is, and I've worked a lot on both ends of the body. I'm very interested in feet and barefoot running and how our feet function, but I've also written and thought a lot about how and why our heads are the way they are. The more I study feet and heads, the more I realize that what's in the middle also matters, and that we have this very strange idea -it goes back to mythology-that human evolution is primarily a story about brains, about intelligence, about technology triumphing over brawn. 

Think about Greek myths, like the myth of Prometheus and Epimetheus. Epimetheus, which means "hindsight," is the Titan who gave out all the gifts to the animals, and when he finished, he hadn't given any gift to humans. Prometheus took pity on these poor humans who didn't have claws and fangs and speed and power, so he gave humans fire. Of course, he got tortured by the rest of the gods for this. I think that this idea, that humans are essentially weak creatures, is actually deeply woven into a lot of the ways in which humans think about our bodies.

Another good example of this would be the Piltdown hoax. The Piltdown forgery was a fossil that was discovered in the early 1900s, in a pit in southern England. This fossil consisted of a modern human skull that had been stained and made to look really old, and an orangutan jaw whose teeth had been filed it down and broken up, all thrown into a pit with a bunch of fake stone tools. It was exactly what Edwardian scientists were looking for, because it was an ape-like face with a big human brain, and also it evolved in England, so it proved that humans evolved in England, which of course made sense to any Victorian or Edwardian. It also fit with the prevailing idea at the time of Elliot Smith, that brains led the way in human evolution because, if you think about what makes us so different from other creatures, people always thought it's our brains. We have these big, enormous, large, fantastic brains that enable us to invent railways and income tax and insurance companies and all those other wonderful inventions that made the Industrial Revolution work.

It turned out that the Piltdown Man was a fraud, and it turns out also that the idea that brains got large early on in human evolution is incorrect as well. We now know that humans and chimpanzees split maybe around six to seven million years ago, and the very earliest hominins, those are creatures that are more closely related to humans than to chimpanzees, had really small brains. In fact, early _Australopithecus, _like Lucy, also had quite small brains. Even the early members of the genus _**** _had small brains.

Some tools first started appearing around 2.6 million years ago, and those hominins have slightly larger brains than_ Australopithecus_. But if you actually factor out the effects of body size, what's called their encephalization quotient (the ratio of brain size to body size for what you expect for a mammal of a body size versus what you actually got) it was actually not that much bigger than chimpanzees or early Australopiths. To put it into perspective, an EQ of one means that your brain size is exactly the size of a brain you predict for your body size. Chimpanzees have an EQ of 2.1, and humans have an EQ of about f5.1. Australopiths have EQ's of about 2.5, and the earliest members of the genus _****_ have EQ's of about 3.0 to 3.3.

Their brains are a little bit bigger than a chimpanzee's, but not hugely so, and it wasn't until long after the genus _****_ evolved that brains actually started getting really, really large. So increases in brain size were not really an early event in human evolution, and in fact, they didn't occur until after hunting and after the invention of hunting and gathering, and not even until cooking and various other technological inventions, which gave us the energy necessary to have really large brains.

Brains are very costly. Right now, just sitting here, my brain (even though I'm not doing much other than talking) is consuming about 20- 25 percent of my resting metabolic rate. That's an enormous amount of energy, and to pay for that, I need to eat quite a lot of calories a day, maybe about 600 calories a day, which back in the Paleolithic was quite a difficult amount of energy to acquire. So having a brain of 1,400 cubic centimeters, about the size of my brain, is a fairly recent event and very costly.

The idea then is at what point did our brains become so important that we got the idea that brain size and intelligence really mattered more than our bodies? I contend that the answer was never, and certainly not until the Industrial Revolution.

Why did brains get so big? There are a number of obvious reasons. One of them, of course, is for culture and for cooperation and language and various other means by which we can interact with each other, and certainly those are enormous advantages. If you think about other early humans like Neanderthals, their brains are as large or even larger than the typical brain size of human beings today. Surely those brains are so costly that there would have had to be a strong benefit to outweigh the costs. So cognition and intelligence and language and all of those important tasks that we do must have been very important.

We mustn't forget that those individuals were also hunter-gatherers. They worked extremely hard every day to get a living. A typical hunter-gatherer has to walk between nine and 15 kilometers a day. A typical female might walk 9 kilometers a day, a typical male hunter-gatherer might walk 15 kilometers a day, and that's every single day. That's day-in, day-out, there's no weekend, there's no retirement, and you do that for your whole life. It's about the distance if you walk from Washington, DC to LA every year. That's how much walking hunter-gatherers did every single year.

In addition, they're constantly digging, they're climbing trees, and they're using their bodies intensely. I would argue that cognition was an extremely important factor in human evolution, along with language, theory of mind - all those cognitive developments that make us so sophisticated. But they weren't a triumph of cognition over brute force; it was a combination. It was not brains over brawn, it was brains plus brawn, and that made possible the hunter-gatherer way of life.

What hunter-gatherers really do is they use division of labor, they have intense cooperation, they have intense social interactions, and they have group memory. All of those behaviors enable hunter-gatherers to interact in ways such that they can increase the rate at which they can acquire energy and have offspring at a higher rate than chimpanzees. It's a very energetically intensive way of life that's made possible by a combination of extraordinary intelligence, inventiveness, creativity, language, but also daily physical exercise.

The other reason we often discount the importance of brawn in our lives is that we have a very strange idea of what constitutes athleticism. Think about the events that we care about most in the Olympics. They're the power sports. They're the 100-meter dash, the 100-meter freestyle events. Most athletes, the ones we really value the most, are physically very powerful. But if you think about it this way, most humans are wimps.

Usain Bolt, who is the world's fastest human being today, can run about 10.4 meters a second, and he can do so for about ten or 20 seconds. My dog, any goat, any sheep I can study in my lab, can run about twice as fast as Usain Bolt without any training, without any practice, any special technology, any drugs or whatever. Humans, the very fastest human beings, are incredibly slow compared to most mammals. Not only in terms of brute speed, but also in terms of how long they can go at a given speed. Usain Bolt can go 10.4 meters a second for about ten to 20 seconds. My dog or a goat or a lion or a gazelle or some antelope in Africa can run 20 meters a second for about four minutes. So there's no way Usain Bolt could ever outrun any lion or for that matter run down any animal.

A typical chimpanzee is between about two and five times more powerful than a human being. A chimpanzee, who weighs less than a human, can just rip somebody's arm off or rip their face off (as recently happened in Connecticut). It's not that the chimpanzee is remarkably strong, it's that we are remarkably weak. We have this notion that humans are terrible natural athletes. But we've been looking at the wrong kind of athleticism. What we're really good at is not power, what we're really phenomenal at is endurance. We're the tortoises of the animal world, not the hares of the animal world. Humans can actually outrun most animals over very, very long distances.

The marathon, of course, is a very interesting example. A lot of people think marathons are extraordinary, and they wonder how many people can run marathons. At least a million people run a marathon every year. If you watch any major marathon, you realize that most of those folks aren't extraordinary athletes, they're just average moms and dads. A lot of them are charity runners who decided to raise money for some cancer cause or diabetes or something. I think that proves that really your average human being can run 26.2 miles without that much training, or much ability to be a great athlete. Of course, to run a marathon at really fast speeds is remarkable, but again, it just takes some practice and training. It's not something that's really extraordinary.

We're actually remarkable endurance athletes, and that endurance athleticism is deeply woven into our bodies, literally from our heads to our toes. We have adaptations in our feet and our legs and our hips and pelvises and our heads and our brains and our respiratory systems. We even have neurobiological adaptations that give us a runner's high, all of which help make us extraordinary endurance athletes. We've lost sight at just how good we are at endurance athleticism, and that's led to a perverse idea that humans really aren't very good athletes.

A good example is that every year they have races where they actually compare humans and horses. In Wales, this started a few years ago, I guess it started out as a typical sort of drunken pub bet, where some guy bet that a human couldn't beat a horse in a marathon. They've been running a marathon in Wales for the last, I think 15-20 years. To be fair, most years, the horses beat the humans, but the humans often come very close. Whenever it's hot, the humans actually beat the horses. They also have now ultramarathons in Arizona, where humans race horses. Again, most years, the horses beat the humans, but every once in a while, the humans do beat the horses. The point is not that humans are poor athletes, because the horses occasionally beat us, but humans can actually compete with and often beat horses at endurance races. Most people are surprised at that.

These are horses with riders on them. One of the interesting things about these races also is that they're so worried about the horses getting injured, that the horses have mandatory veterinary check-ups every 20 kilometers, but not the humans, because humans can easily run 40 kilometers without injury. But if you make a horse gallop for more than 20 kilometers, you seriously risk doing long-term permanent musculoskeletal damage to the horse.

Until extremely recently, you couldn't live, you couldn't survive as a human being without being an endurance athlete. Not just hunting and gathering requires athleticism but also being a farmer. Subsistence farmers have to work extremely hard. Until the invention of industrialized machinery, farmers had to work even harder than hunter-gatherers, often spending many thousands of calories a day. They have to dig ditches and throw vast quantities of hay into bales and they have to schlepp stuff all over the place. Farmers had to work brutally difficult, hard, exhausting lives. It wasn't until, again, the invention of new technologies such as domesticating animals or even more recently machinery such as the internal combustion engine, that farmers were able to live non-grueling lives.

It's only in the last 100 years, in fact maybe for many people the last 20, 30, 40, 50 years, that human beings have been able to lead extremely sedentary lives without any physical activity. A typical American today living in a post-industrial information technology world can get up in the morning, reach to the cabinet, get breakfast cereal that's in a box, pour it, reach to the refrigerator, pour some milk in there. He or she can spend his or her entire day without ever elevating his heart rate or her heart rate. You can sit in wheelie chairs all day long, take an elevator to your floor, sit in a chair all day long staring into a computer, and drive home from work. Dinner basically involves pressing a few buttons, or if you have to go to the supermarket, wheeling around a cart. Human beings today don't have to engage in physical activity anymore. It's natural and normal for us to think that the world around us is normal. But our world, our lives today are profoundly abnormal, especially in the case of no longer having to use physical activity as part of our daily routine.

We've also got this bizarre notion that finally came true, that our bodies don't really matter. Think about St. Thomas Aquinas, who believed that the flesh was irrelevant and that all that really mattered was your soul. But only monks and rich clerics in Europe could get away with that kind of opinion in the Middle Ages, because everybody else had to work like a dog. But now, your average human being can live a life of ease and luxury, much more physically inactive than even kings and queens of Europe in the old days. We've finally been able to realize St. Thomas Aquinas's dream of basically ignoring the flesh, ignoring the body. The result is an epidemic of obesity and heart disease and various kinds of cancers such as colon cancer and breast cancer that largely come from physical inactivity combined with a really loathsome diet.

What's interesting is that there's a reversal of class today. Now, it's only the very wealthy who can afford to be physically active and to eat a good diet, and it's the lower classes, the people in the working classes that cannot afford to actually be physically active. People who are well-off, the one-percenters or maybe the five-percenters of our country, can afford to go to health clubs and take yoga classes and buy organic food. But most Americans today, particularly those who are in the working class, have to work all day long, they have to commute long hours. They don't have time to exercise; they can't afford to buy food that's very healthy. The result is that there's now an interesting reversal that never occurred before in human evolution, which is that the wealthier you are, the healthier you are. It used to be that it was only the very wealthy who could afford to get heart disease.

The first example we know of heart disease is actually from a CT scan of an Egyptian princess from her sarcophagus. She was mummified, and a CT showed that she's the oldest case of heart disease. It's not coincidental that this was a pharaoh's daughter. She clearly was able to hang around in the palace all day long and eat too much and not have to exercise. But that was a luxury until recently of only the wealthy, and now it's completely flipped.

I'm a professor of human evolutionary biology, and I've long been fascinated by heads, because our heads are actually really unusual. If you were to meet a Neanderthal or _**** erectus_ on the street in New York City, for example, you'd probably stare mostly at their heads. Their bodies would be very similar to yours and mine, but they'd be really different from the neck up. If there's really one important part of the human body that we need to understand to understand why we are the way we are, it's our heads.

In addition, heads are really complicated. If you think about your head, almost every particle that enters your body goes through your head. Everything you breathe, everything you eat, and everything you smell. Almost everything goes through your head, and a lot of really major functions also go on in your head. You speak in your head, you smell, you taste, you chew, you think, your sense of balance is in your head, I could go on. And yet all of that is packaged into a tiny space about the size of a soccer ball, and if anything goes wrong with anything, you're dead. If you can't breathe, speak, swallow, smell, taste, hear properly, until recently, you were immediately selected out of the gene pool.

Heads are also fascinating. On the one hand, you'd think because of all that complexity that they'd have to be the most constrained part of the body, right? You can't let anything go wrong in a head or you're dead. But on the other hand, it turns out that heads are pretty much the most evolvable parts of our body. They're the parts of our bodies that seem to have changed the most. As I said, if you met a Neanderthal or a _**** erectus _you'd be mostly different from the neck up, not from the neck down.

I've long been interested in how heads can be so evolvable and what the story of the head tells us about human evolution. Part of that is about the brain. Human brains got bigger and that's a major effect on their heads, but your brain is actually the same size as a brain of a Neanderthal. Actually, it's a little bit smaller than a Neanderthal's, and our brains are only a little bit larger than a late _**** erectus_. So what's really different about our heads is not the size of our brains, it's really other aspects of our heads.

The most important difference is the size of our face. Humans are profoundly different from every other hominin, which is a species more closely related to humans than to chimps. Our difference from other hominins is primarily the size and position of our face. What we've done in our recent evolution is we've shrunk our face and we've retracted it. Our face is now underneath our brains rather than sticking in front of our brains. That's why we don't have big brow ridges, and that's why our tongues and mouths are small, which causes our larynx to be low and changes the shape of the vocal tract.

In working on heads, I came to the conclusion that although brains are really important in human evolution, there's so much else about the head that's really unique, that doesn't actually have that much to do with the brain.

I'll give you an example related to running. When we run, humans can't control our heads the way any other animal can. If you ever watch a dog or a horse run, its head is like a missile on a body. The body is moving and the head stays stock-still. That's for a very important reason - because of gaze. You need to stabilize your gaze in order to see where you're going. If the world is very jiggly, if this camera now were jiggling around, it would be sickening to watch me or any other video. We need to have a stable image in order for us to evaluate it, to use that information.

If you're running across a landscape, and the world is jiggling really horribly, you won't be able to see where rocks are, you won't be able to see where other obstructions are, you won't be able to see where your prey is. You won't be able to function effectively. For example, if you were to trip over a rock in the Ice Age, that's a huge selective problem. Today, if we trip and sprain our ankle or break our leg, okay, it's a big pain, but you can go see a doctor and they'll set it straight, and you can use crutches. But imagine you sprained your ankle 15 miles from home in the Pleistocene. You'd be easy pickings for a saber-toothed tiger or a lion or some other animal. Injuries, damage to your body, was a far greater selective problem in human evolution than it is today.

It turns out that humans have special features in our heads, we've discovered, that enable us to keep our head still. The reason a dog or a horse or any other quadruped can keep its head still is because its neck is cantilevered off its thorax, or its body, so it sticks out horizontally, and then the head attaches to the neck from the back, and it's also sticking out horizontally. The three units: the head, the neck and the body, can all rotate independently, thereby keeping the head still. That's what an animal does when it runs.

When a human being runs, we have a tiny, little neck that emerges from the center of the base of our skull, and it's very short in the middle. We're basically like pogo sticks. We've lost, by becoming bipeds, all those mechanisms available to quadrupeds to keep their heads still. It turns out that we've evolved other special mechanisms to keep our heads still. One of them, the semicircular canals (the vestibular system in our heads) are especially enlarged, and give us enormous sensitivity to pitching forces, to pitching motions. The semicircular canals, the vestibular system are organs of balance that essentially function as an accelerometer. As your head pitches forward, as it does every time you hit the ground when you run, your head wants to pitch forward. As it pitches forward, the enlarged semicircular canals - these are the anterior and posterior ones, for anybody who actually cares - are especially large. That gives them greater gain in their sensitivity to angular accelerations. Which then, through a three-neuron circuit to our brain activates, without any conscious effort, the eye muscles that actually then stabilize the gaze. So even when your eyes are closed and you move your head, your eyes, the semicircular canals, through that three-neuron system operates those muscles, keeping your gaze stabilized. It's that fundamental a system.

We've upped the gain for that system, but even more interesting is that we've harnessed our arms and our butts to stabilize the head. When you run, and your head wants to pitch forward, which explains why we've lost a lot of the musculature of the upper body. If you look at a chimpanzee, it has this huge set of muscles that connect the head to the shoulder; the trapezius muscle is gigantic in a chimpanzee. They have muscles that we don't have, like the atlanto-clavicularis. There's another muscle called the rhomboid, which in humans is a little muscle that goes from the scapula to the spine. In a chimpanzee, it actually inserts on the head. The reason the chimpanzee has all those muscles that go from the shoulder to the head is that it enables the animal to climb effectively.

We gave up climbing. We're the worst tree climbers in the primate world. We're actually bizarre to be primates that aren't very good in trees. I guarantee that probably almost none of us, anybody watching this video has been in a tree today, which is bizarre for a primate. The reason we gave up climbing was not because of walking but because of running. It turns out that we use our arms to stabilize our heads. So when you run, and you pump your hands opposite your legs, that arm has a mass that's about the same as your head. And the inertial force that causes your head to pitch forward also causes your arm to fall (the trailing arm, the arm on the side that hits the ground).

We have a special muscle called the cleidocranial trapezius, which is a very slip of a muscle. It's about the thickness of a pencil. It goes from the clavicle and inserts on a midline structure in the head, which is in the sagittal plane, the midline structure. It turns on just before your foot hits the ground; that muscle then acts as a mechanical strut between the mass of the arm, which is falling down, and the head, which is falling forward. And it brings that mass of the arm, connects it to a spring-like structure called the nuchal ligament that is aligned in the midline of the head. And so the arm essentially pulls back your head just as it wants to pitch forward. We thus have what's called a passive mass damper system. It's totally cool. It works without you even ever having to know it operates. All you have to do is have a pattern generator, a muscle that turns on automatically before your foot hits the ground, and the body automatically corrects for a problem that we evolved because we're bipeds. It's evidence that humans evolved for running, that we started running maybe two million years ago. It's evidence that running is a fundamentally important part of our biology. It's evidence that athleticism is a fundamentally important part of our biology.

I started looking at other features in the head, which also relate to endurance. For example, we have these enlarged noses. There's no other primate that can pick its nose. We have this large proboscis, with this extra vestibule in the front. Why do we have that? It turns out that that vestibule, that extra enlarged portion up there, is a turbulence generator. Air has to go upwards, goes through a little valve, which is called a venturi throat, which creates turbulence as the air then goes into the nose. Then it has to turn a right angle, which creates more turbulence. Then it goes through another little venturi valve to get into the middle part of the nose, where all the business of the nose is, where all the mucous membranes are that exchange heat and exchange moisture.

By having turbulent airflow inside the nose, there's no longer what's called laminar flow in the nose. Air doesn't just stream into our noses. It's highly vorticial, and by being vorticial, it slows the flow rate down, and it means that there's no longer a boundary between the air running through the nose, and the mucous membranes of the epithelium in there. That means that there's intimate, prolonged extra contact between air from the outside world entering the nose and the mucous membranes. This enables us to be extremely efficient at humidifying and warming air as it comes in, and also extremely efficient at capturing that humidity on the way out so that we don't dehydrate.

There are many other features in the head that help us become exceptional long-distance walkers and runners. I became obsessed with the idea that humans evolved to run long distances, evolved to walk long distances, basically evolved to use our bodies as athletes. These traces are there in our heads along with those brains.

I also became interested in the relationship between heads and feet and running and athleticism and human evolution because of my research, but also because of that kind of interaction between research and life. I love to run. I started running when I was a teenager. I was never good at anything. I was never picked for any team, I was never a track athlete, I never ran for anybody. I just did it because it made me feel good. I figured out in high school that if I didn't run a few times a week, I would go nuts. I started becoming just a jogger, basically. I ran in college, and I ran in graduate school and I ran when I was a junior faculty. Just a few times a week, a few miles just to kind of keep sane.

As I started studying the evolution of running, and features in our heads that made us good at running, I started thinking more about my own running. Before I knew it, it led to an interesting feedback relationship between my research and my pastime. We were doing some experiments trying to figure out how the arm stabilizes the head, and I remember in the lab we were trying to figure out ways to take the arm out of the equation. We would put people in straitjackets while running on treadmills or have them hold cups of water, whatever we could do. We were trying to keep the arm from jiggling about, keep it stable. I remember I was running through some park in Cambridge, Massachusetts, and I was probably doing something weird with my arms, holding them above my head, and I remember hearing some guy saying, "Oh that guy clearly has no idea how to run properly," which I thought was funny, but I also realized it was probably true. Although I was really interested in running, I loved running, I was doing more of it, I actually wasn't probably a very good runner.

That's when we started studying barefoot running. I published a paper in the journal _Nature_ with a colleague of mine, Dennis Bramble, in 2004 on the evolution of running. We made the case, which started with this work on the head, that humans evolved to run long distances and that the traces of our evolutionary history as runners started about two million years ago. Running was very important for the evolution of hunting. It enabled early humans to hunt, and that helped release a constraint on brain size, and it wasn't until after hunting and after running that human brain sizes started to increase.

It was before the Boston marathon, it was 2005, which was a year that a nor'easter came into town right before the Boston marathon. It was unbelievable. The rain was coming horizontally and people were worried about how they were going to run the marathon in this kind of weather. (By the way, I have now run a marathon in a nor'easter, so I can tell you how horrible it is.)

I gave a big public lecture about the evolution of running and why we run the Boston marathon. There was a guy sitting in the front row. I remember he had a big beard and he had on suspenders. But what was most interesting about him was that he was wearing socks wrapped in duct tape.

I remember thinking it was some homeless guy from Harvard Square who had just come in out of the storm, he would just do anything to get out of the rain. But it turns out he was a Harvard grad who lives in Jamaica Plain here, runs a bicycle shop. He came up to me afterwards and he said, "You know, I love running and I hate wearing shoes, and I'm a barefoot runner. In fact, I just don't like shoes. Humans obviously evolved to run barefoot. Am I weird or am I normal?" I thought what a great question.

Obviously humans did run barefoot for millions of years, and we know almost nothing about barefoot running and obviously he must be normal, from an evolutionary perspective, and people like me who wear shoes, are abnormal. At that time, I was struggling with plantar fasciitis. You get up in the morning and you have this pain in your foot, in the first few steps because the plantar fascia, a sheath of connective tissue, gets really stretched and it gets inflamed and it's poorly vascularized, and it really has a hard time healing. I was buying new running shoes every 250 miles, which is very expensive. I thought we should study this guy.

I got his e-mail, brought him to the lab, and he ran in the lab. When we ran him across the force plate, he ran in this perfectly beautiful, light and gentle way. Most Americans, when we run, we land on our heels. We wear these big, thick, cushioned running shoes with lots of support and lots of cushioning, and those make it really comfortable, and let people slam onto the ground on their heels, but we have all of this stuff in the shoe that makes it really comfortable to land on your heels. But this guy didn't land on his heels. He landed with what's called a forefoot strike. He landed on the ball of his foot and then his heel touched down. He had no impact peak.

An impact peak is a collision force when you have an exchange of momentum between two bodies. Momentum is mass times velocity and the period over which the body comes to a dead stop is when you exchange that momentum. When you drop anything really heavy onto the ground, there's a big peak of force. You just hear it when you drop something onto the ground. It had long been known that when people forefoot strike, there's no big peak of force. It's a gentle landing. But nobody bothered paying much attention to it, because most people land on their heels, not on their forefoot.

In fact when we were doing experiments on head stabilization, I used to hate the forefoot strikers who came in the lab, and there were just a few of them, because their heads didn't jiggle as much since they were landing lightly and gently. It suddenly occurred to me when this guy, barefoot Jeffrey, ran across our force plate, that he must be normal and that I must be abnormal in the way I'm running in my stupid running shoes.

We started getting other barefoot runners into the lab and found that all of them ran that way. If you were to take your shoes off and run down Fifth Avenue or Mass Avenue or wherever you live, you will quickly stop landing on your heels because it's profoundly painful. You can't slam into the ground with each step. You quickly transition into landing on the forefoot, because it doesn't have an impact peak. So we did some research figuring out what's the mechanics of that and what's the physics and it turned out to be a really interesting story.

We also went to Africa and looked at people who have never worn shoes in their lives. It made me realize that running is a skill, and that we blunt that skill with technology. We wear these fancy running shoes, we get Gatorade, we do all this stuff and we no longer really pay attention to how our bodies are functioning. We don't really run very well. Actually, the world's best runners all grew up barefoot and they all are phenomenal runners.

Recently, over the last five, ten years, I've been paying much more attention to not just my own running and how I use my body, but how other people outside the Western world use their bodies, and what those skills are and what that can teach us about how we can use our bodies so that we don't get injured.

What I'm doing is part of a slow, gradual, very barely growing movement in biology and evolutionary biology, which we hope will become part of a larger movement in science in general. And that is using evolution to give us insights into how we use our bodies and medicine. There's a growing field of evolutionary medicine, which really started through George C. Williams in the 1980s. He and Randy Nesse wrote a really important book called _Why We Get Sick_, which helped launch the field of evolutionary medicine.

Like many evolutionary biologists, I was inspired by the book, _Why We Get Sick_, by Nesse and Williams. In fact, when I was working on a previous book, I got fascinated by the question of how does the study of the evolution of the human head and the study of the evolution of running and the evolution of athleticism matter to human health today? To a large extent, I think there is a disconnect between evolutionary biology and not just the general public, but also people in other branches of biology, especially medicine, who should be interested in evolution but aren't. They still think evolution is irrelevant to medicine, and they think evolution is irrelevant to much of biology. In fact, if you put the word "evolution" in an NIH grant, it's probably the fastest way to not get funded. It's just not considered important.

The work that we did on the evolution of running just touched a nerve. I got more than 1,000 e-mails after the first "Born to Run" paper in 2004, and recently with the barefoot running paper, I can't even tell you how many e-mails I've gotten. I still get five to ten e-mails a day from barefoot runners and shod runners all over the world. They're really interested in the evolution of running. Not just because it explains why they love to run, but also because understanding the evolution of running and understanding the evolution of walking helps explain why it's so important to human health. Even more importantly, from my perspective, it also tells us something about how we should be using our bodies.

By studying barefoot running it occurred to me that it helps us to understand how the body was actually evolved to run. We didn't evolve to wear high-heeled cushioned shoes and crash into the ground. We actually evolved to run lightly and gently, because it hurts to land on the ground the way people do in shoes. Those adaptations, those sensory proprioceptive adaptations in the foot that cause pain are probably just that: adaptations.

It also occurred to me that so much that's been done in evolutionary medicine has been primarily in infectious disease and in reproduction. We think a lot about the evolution of diseases like tuberculosis and swine flu and avian flu. Those are all evolutionary problems that have direct, immediate relevance to human beings. We spend a lot of time in evolutionary medicine thinking about reproduction and the conflict between parents and offspring, and the placenta, and energy, and nutrition. But evolutionary medicine is also relevant to many other aspects of our body, including obesity, cancer, knee problems, flat feet, shin splints and lower back pain. And that suddenly touched a raw nerve with me because I realized that by studying the evolution of the human body, we can address problems that seem to have been intractable.

For example, many people are afraid of running because between 30 to 70 percent (depending on how you measure it) of runners get injured every year. The most common injury in the world is lower back pain. Something like 70 or 80 percent of people today get lower back pain and almost all of it is what's called non-specific. That is, we don't know what causes it.

We often say the reason people get lower back pain is because we became bipeds and being a biped is a stupid way to use your back. But actually that doesn't make any sense, because if back pain is so difficult, such a challenge, natural selection surely would have acted to lessen the prevalence and severity of back pain. In fact, if you start asking people who work with hunter-gatherers, most people say yes, actually come to think of it, I don't really recall anybody saying that they had back pain. I've never seen anybody have back pain in the hunter-gatherer context.

Our lives are filled with problems like insomnia and constipation that are extremely recent. They're novel, and they're caused by the way in which we misuse our bodies. The research that I'm doing now is really about how we can use our bodies better, particularly in terms of the musculoskeletal system, to avoid injury, to avoid pain, to avoid debilitating disabilities that then prevent people from exercising and staying fit.

I would argue that many of the ways in which we get sick today have a corporate, almost capitalist origin. If you think about the obesity crisis, so much of the way in which people are getting sick today is because we've now created industrial food that makes sugar unbelievably cheap, that makes low-quality fats unbelievably cheap. We evolved profound, deep and serious cravings for fat and sugar because those used to be limited and important resources in our evolutionary history.

It's also true for something as simple as shoes, or sofas or elevators. We like to take it easy. Typical hunter-gatherers were always at the edge of energy balance. They barely can get enough food to satisfy their needs and their family's needs so it makes sense when you're a hunter-gatherer, when you don't have to work, to take it easy. We're programmed to take the elevator or the escalator whenever we see it. In fact, there are experiments that show if you have a stairway next to an escalator, only about three percent of people will take the stairway instead of the escalator. If you put a sign up, that'll double to about six percent. People love to take the escalator. It's just hard-wired into our brains, I believe. That makes sense in a context in which you had to work very hard and you had to struggle to maintain energy balance.

Shoes are another interesting example. We love comfort. We have this idea that things that are comfortable must be good for us. So people buy shoes that are comfortable. Well, since when was there a relationship between comfort and health? I would argue that a lot of shoes actually cause people to become injured because they're comfortable. An arch support in a shoe is comfortable because that arch support means that the muscles in your foot no longer have to work anymore to support your arch. It's like taking the elevator all day long. Those muscles then atrophy, or they never even develop properly if you give kids arch supports. Their arches don't even develop properly, or they collapse pretty quickly. Twenty-five percent of Americans have fallen arches, which is an amazing statistic.

In the Kenyan villages where I work, where people don't wear shoes, I have yet to find a single person with a fallen arch. They just don't exist. Maybe we'll find one eventually, like a black swan. But they're obviously extremely rare, those kinds of foot problems. They may have all kinds of crud in their feet and they have other shoe problems and foot problems, but collapsed arches don't seem to exist in barefoot populations.

We have been marketed and sold all kinds of products that we'll willingly buy because they're comfortable. Air conditioning makes us comfortable, but is it good for us? Probably not. The list goes on. Comfortable chairs, for example. Just think about how bad chairs are for us today. Paper after paper, study after study, have shown that chairs give us back problems because they shorten our hip flexors, give us weak backs, of course it make us sedentary. We take years off our lives probably by sitting in chairs, but we like them because they're comfortable. You go to an African village, you find me a chair with a back. That's a rare thing out there. We love comfort, and people make a lot of money selling us comfort, but I would challenge the notion that comfort is usually good for us.

One important question is can we test is the idea that a more evolutionarily informed way of using our bodies is actually relevant to helping people. One is the idea that a more barefoot style of running is less injurious. If you study barefoot runners, not only do they tend to land on their forefoot, but they tend to take shorter strides, they have better posture, and there are a number of other things that are different between typical barefoot runners and typical shod runners.

As a way of testing that, we actually measured the Harvard track team. We looked at all the people who run middle and long distance on the Harvard track team. Some of these kids are running 40, 50, some of them are even running 100 miles a week, really fast. It turns out about a third of them are forefoot strikers. They run with more or less what I would say is a good barefoot style. It turns out also that the Harvard track team has a great doctor and a trainer that have recorded every single injury. When they get scratched or even just get a shin splint or a muscle tic, anything that happens to these kids gets written down and is diagnosed by a professional. The track team coach also requires them to log their mileage every single day, how far they ran and at what speed.

For some of these kids we had four years of data. So we took a high-speed camera, measured how they ran, and then compared the ones who ran with a forefoot kind of barefoot style versus those who landed on their heel. We found that we could assess how severe each injury was because we could measure how much effect each injury had on how many days they had to take off, and come up with a quantified injury severity score. When you quantify injury in a sensible way like that, the runners who were forefoot strikers had 2.6-fold lower injury rates than the heel strikers.

In other words, if you landed on your heel, you had a 2.6-times greater chance of having a severe injury than if you landed on your forefoot. It's a huge difference. As far as I know, it's the biggest effect ever shown on running injury, and it's a perfect example of how taking an evolutionary approach to the body gives us insights about how to better use our bodies.





__





 BRAINS PLUS BRAWN | Edge.org







www.edge.org


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

The cold & frosty temperatures (-17c) created awesome conditions for a 10.5km run-ride pairing on our local river. The river was snow covered with some open areas but the ice was solid. Under bridges the ice was exposed and we could see schools of fish swimming under the ice.


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## nOOky (May 13, 2008)

That's a long read, I'll have to do while I'm supposed to be working. Kudos for riding on that frozen river. The last time I did that my dog went in, and I had to pull her out. The time I fell through the ice by a beaver house, she just stared at me.


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

nOOky said:


> That's a long read, I'll have to do while I'm supposed to be working. Kudos for riding on that frozen river. The last time I did that my dog went in, and I had to pull her out. The time I fell through the ice by a beaver house, she just stared at me.


There were rides in the past where someone got a soaker!


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

(a couple years ago) I got a foot soak in a soft part of the river bank, trying to hold on to my deer shed that i found earlier on the run


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

+18km run ride pairing for Valentine's Day on the river ice. Sunny -4c ensured we got our Vitamin D


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

*Running Is a Total Body Affair*

We can thank early human evolution that many of us can enjoy running as much as we do. Watch anyone with a ponytail run, and you can see their hair repeatedly describe a figure-eight in the air, responding to the forces generated by the running. But their heads stay still, their eyes and gaze level.

If it weren't for some unique evolutionary advances, our heads would do the same as that ponytail, flopping like a swim noodle when we run, according to a clever new study of how - and why - our upper bodies seem to work the way they do when we run, but not when we walk. The study, which involved treadmills, motion capture, hand weights and an eon's worth of back story, finds that an unusual coordination between certain muscles in runners' shoulders and arms helps to keep heads stable and runners upright.

The new findings may answer lingering questions about the role of our upper bodies in running and why we, unthinkingly, bend and swing our arms with each stride. They also add to the mounting evidence that, long ago, distance running began shaping human bodies and lives in ways that still reverberate today.

The possibility that we humans are born to run has inspired many studies, books, lectures and debates in recent years, including the journalist Christopher McDougall's 2009 best seller, "Born to Run." The idea is based on fossil research indicating that early humans evolved to have distinctive leg bones and other characteristics that would have aided distance running. The findings suggest that those of our ancestors who could run well dominated in the procuring-food and procreating sweepstakes, so that natural selection started favoring physical characteristics associated with running.

Much of this research came from the mind and laboratory of Daniel Lieberman, a professor of human evolutionary anatomy at Harvard University and author of the new book "Exercised," which delves into exercise and evolution. At first, most of his and other scientists' work related to evolution and running centered on lower bodies, since legs play such an obvious part in how we get from one place to another.

But Dr. Lieberman also was interested in runners' upper bodies and, especially, their heads. As a longtime marathon runner himself, he knew that a stable head is critical for successful running, but not necessarily a simple thing to achieve. Running is propulsive. You push off, rise and then brake forcefully against the ground with every stride, placing forces on your head that could make it flop uncontrollably, like that bobbing ponytail.

How we manage to keep our heads stable, however, has not been altogether clear. Like most cursorial species, or animals that run, including dogs and horses, we have a well-developed nuchal ligament, a tissue that connects the skull and neck. That is not the case in species that aren't natural runners, like apes or swine.

When he was a young scientist, Dr. Lieberman recalled, he enticed pigs - who are inelegant runners - onto treadmills to study their biomechanics. Their heads jiggled like bobbleheads when they were forced to run, prompting Dr. Lieberman and his colleagues to conclude they lacked a nuchal ligament, a finding borne out by anatomical studies.

But we humans also have the challenge of being upright, on two legs. Presumably to balance ourselves while running, we began, at some point, to swing our arms. Dr. Lieberman guessed that the arm swing helped to stabilize our heads. But, if so, there would have to be coordination between the muscles in our forearms and shoulders, he thought, even though these muscles do not physically connect. They would need to fire together and with comparable force during running, if they were to be successful in stabilizing our heads.

He was uncertain about how to test that theory, though, until his colleague Andrew Yegian, a college fellow in the department of human evolutionary biology at Harvard, suggested weighting runners' arms and heads. Add mass there, he said, watch how the muscles respond, and you would be able to tell if the arms and shoulders were working together to steady the head or not.

So, for the new study, which was published last month in the American Journal of Physical Anthropology, Dr. Lieberman, Dr. Yegian and their colleagues fitted 13 men and women with sensors on their upper bodies that track muscle activity and asked them to, first, walk and then run on a treadmill while the researchers filmed them with motion-capture technology. Then the scientists handed the volunteers light hand weights and asked them to run again. Finally, they strapped weighted masks to the volunteers' faces and had them run once more, before comparing how everyone's muscles had responded to each of these interventions.

It turned out that not much of interest happened while the study volunteers walked; the muscles in their forearms and shoulders showed no evidence of coordinated activity. But those same muscles snapped into synchronized action when the volunteers started to run; the muscles began firing at the same time and with about the same amount of force.

That synchrony grew during the weighted runs. When the volunteers carried weights and their forearm muscles fired with extra force to compensate, the muscles in their shoulders did the same. Similarly, when their weighted faces prompted the runners' shoulder muscles to fire more forcefully, their arm muscles did likewise.

The study does not explain how these widely separate muscles communicate with one another, though. Nor can the findings pinpoint when, in our existence as a species, they may have started to work together in this way. It also does not prove that all of us are natural born runners; plenty of people do not enjoy the sport.

Still, the results do tell us more than we knew before about our bodies, Dr. Lieberman says, and underscore that running molded us as a species. "If we didn't have to run" in our early days as humans, he says, "we wouldn't have this system" of muscular interplay today.

sauce Running Is a Total Body Affair


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

11 km run ride pairing. We checked out the frozen river . The warmer temps made the surface slushy so we stuck to roads and paths


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

"Keep your face always toward the sunshine - and the shadows will fall behind you" Another 13km training run (getting good mileage for February!) and chasing my hubby on the mtb. Trails were nicely packed. -4c Great day!


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## DIRTJUNKIE (Oct 18, 2000)

DIRTJUNKIE said:


> I'm sure here in the Fifty + Year Old forum many run. Straight to the bathroom.


I almost just said this then remembered I said it in this thread six years ago. At least I've still got a good memory but I've never been a runner.


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## chazpat (Sep 23, 2006)

cyclelicious said:


> *Running Is a Total Body Affair*
> 
> We can thank early human evolution that many of us can enjoy running as much as we do. Watch anyone with a ponytail run, and you can see their hair repeatedly describe a figure-eight in the air, responding to the forces generated by the running. But their heads stay still, their eyes and gaze level.
> 
> ...


I guess this explains why I used to get sore shoulders when I ran longer distances many years ago. I think part of it was my posture and tensing up a little and I learned to correct that. Interesting about the head control, maybe it's my experience as a trail runner that allows me to comfortably ride rigid.


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

^That's interesting to know Chaz! I found the article very interesting and made me think about my pace and stride


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

10km run-ride pairing. It was a beautiful February day!


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## Sanchofula (Dec 30, 2007)

I’m contemplating going back to running.

I started running in 6th grade, my best friend’s family got into it around the time Jim Fix was popular.

As an adult I mostly ran trails, over time my distances increased, by my forties I got into ultras, longest run was 78 miles. This run was a preparatory for my first hundred miler ... I never made it. After the race I tore my calf muscle twice, took this as a sign, and stopped running.

In the past ten years I mostly rode mountain bikes and hiked, a few big hikes like Whitney, but I didn’t run.

I’d had back problems since my teens; MVA’s, sports injuries, so about every month or so I’d have spasm that would twist my body. I never associated running with the back issues until I stopped running.

In the past ten years my back problems have resolved ninety percent, down from once a month back spasms to once or twice a year.

... and yet, I still want to go running.

My best memories of running were all-day runs in the Smokies, thirty plus mile loops, 5k + climbing, just me and my water pack. Sometimes I’d bring a dog on my runs, though they tend to fade after ten to fifteen miles.

I think I’ll keep it toned down a bit this time, maybe limit my runs to three to four hours ... and of course I’ll still ride 😆


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## nOOky (May 13, 2008)

Our snow is disappearing way too fast. I had planned on at least another month of fat biking in the snow, xc skiing, snowshoeing, etc. Winter is actually my favorite time of the year, provided there is snow. It's also when I reduce my running and do other things I love. I had a 50 miler in May cancelled already, so my first running race is the Tahoe 50 miler in July. Right now I'm consistently over 14 hours a week of mixed training. All of the trails are turning to mud, no biking or riding on them.


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## Sanchofula (Dec 30, 2007)

I bought some Altara Lone Peak 5, I got the 12.5, normally I wear a sz 13 but it was huge!

First run in years, quick loop on my backyard trails with a couple dogs, so easy and quick to get ready, no e alternative to riding when time is tight.

Nice time of year to run, getting close to Spring, shoulder season, running packed snow trails till they melt enough for riding.


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

I ran 21km faster than I planned. I set out under blue skies, and maintained a steady pace. With 7km left I had to kick it into high gear as the sky darkened, the winds picked up and a cold rain hit. I had enough juice left in the tank to finish strong. It was an exciting goodbye to February!


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

*The Ultimate Guide to One of Our Best Training Tools: Long Runs*
Ah, long runs: We love to hate 'em. Or maybe we love to love 'em-depends on who you ask. Either way, the long run is the cornerstone of any half marathon or marathon training plan, but it can be equally important to your 5K and 10K training. No races on your calendar? No problem. A long run can still be beneficial for your overall fitness and mental health.

But if you don't understand the long run, you may miss out on all of the magic it has to offer. So we put together this ultimate guide to one of the best training tools you have in your arsenal.

*What's the point of the long run?*
The benefit of running long-regardless of the distance you're training for-is the aerobic gain you'll make during those miles. "Long runs force the body to become more and more efficient," says Ben Rosario, head coach and founder of the Hoka NAZ Elite team in Flagstaff, Arizona. "The heart learns to pump higher amounts of blood with each stroke, which then carries more oxygen to the body."

Aerobic (or endurance) running also strengthens your slow-twitch muscle fibers, which can fire repeatedly with minimal fatigue (compared to fast-twitch fibers, which are used during short, explosive efforts but fatigue more quickly). These fibers are also important because they're full of capillaries, mitochondria, and myoglobin (an iron- and oxygen-binding protein), all of which are crucial to getting a steady supply of oxygen and energy to the muscles.

"Long runs force the body to create new capillaries, giving the oxygen a smoother and faster path to the mitochondria-a.k.a. the 'power plant' of the cells-where energy is produced and stored. And when we run for long periods of time, the size of those mitochondria increases, allowing them to produce and store more energy," explains Rosario.

One of the other major benefits of the long run is how it teaches your body to use fat as fuel over carbs, says Joe McConkey, a Boston-based exercise physiologist and USATF-certified running coach. "That allows you to be more efficient with your different forms of energy, so you can run faster without depleting your reserves."

Translation: The long run prepares your body to run more efficiently no matter the distance-even in a short race, when you need energy to be produced and oxygen sent throughout the body _fast_.

And you can't overlook the mental angle: To prepare for the psychological challenge of racing for hours, you have to train for hours. Even if you're not racing, a long run offers your mind the chance to tap into the ever-elusive runner's high, and research shows running can boost your mood and improve your mental health.

*What to Watch Out for On a Long Run*
A long run is, inherently, long. And the more time you spend on your feet, the more stress you put on your body. "The long run does ask a lot of our muscles, tendons, and ligaments due to the duration of exercise required for a run to be considered 'long'," says Rosario.

Generally, your cardiovascular system adapts to changes more quickly than your musculoskeletal system. So if you start running long before your body is prepared to run long, you could put yourself at an increased risk for injury, including overuse injuries like plantar fasciitis, Achilles tendonitis, runners' knee, iliotibial band (ITB) syndrome, and shin splints.

"If you're experiencing any little niggles or asymmetries _before _the long run, the long run will only make those worse with the thousands and thousands of steps you're putting on your body," says McConkey. It's super important to listen to your body and, if you feel like something is off _during _the long run, acknowledge that it may be more major than you think. "The only sensations you should feel during a long run are a slight challenge aerobically as it gets longer, and general fatigue or a sort of bilateral soreness," he adds.

*Gear You Need for a Long Run*
Running is a pretty simple sport in terms of gear, but when you start clocking over 60 minutes, there are some important things you'll want with you beyond a good pair of shoes.

The most important addition is a way to carry fuel and hydration, whether that's a running belt, a handheld water carrier, or a pack.

"If your long run is longer than 90 minutes in duration, you'll want to make sure you're carrying electrolytes in the form of a drink or gel," says Rosario.

Here's why that 90-minute cutoff is so important: "If you don't fuel properly, after 90 minutes-and especially after two hours or more-you'll start depleting your glycogen stores," explains Rosario. "Glycogen equals energy. If you're not replacing what you're losing through prolonged exercise, you could run out of energy." That's what runners call bonking or hitting the wall.

In general, runners should take in 30 to 60 grams of carbohydrates per hour during a long run. McConkey recommends consuming some kind of fuel every 15 minutes or so, alternating between a liquid and
Speaking of liquids, even minor dehydration leads to a reduction in endurance performance, as well as a higher rate of perceived exertion. If you're training for longer than an hour, you should be drinking anywhere from 24 to 32 ounces per hour of your run (sipping sporadically, not chugging in one go). You can actually calculate how much fluid you need per hour by weighing yourself before and after an hour of running sans water; each pound of weight loss is approximately equal to 16 ounces of fluid deficit. (Or simply use our handy hydration calculator here.)

If you're running long, you also may want to wear headphones to play music or a podcast to keep you from getting bored and carry a phone and credit card or cash in case of an emergency.

*How Long Should Your Long Run Be?*
There's a _huge _amount of variation in how long a long run should be, depending on the type of runner you are.
Some coaches suggest long runs cover one-and-a-half to two times the distance of what you consider a normal-length run. Most experts, like Jack Daniels, agree that a long run be about 20 to 25 percent of your overall weekly mileage. So if you're running 40 miles per week, your long run will be 8 to 10 miles.

"I typically don't like the long run to be more than twice the length of a regular recovery run," says McConkey (in general, recovery runs last about 25 to 40 minutes). According to the Road Runners Club of America, a long run _technically_ isn't a "long run" unless it's over 90 minutes, so the exact distance depends on your running pace.

But your long-run distance becomes more specific if you're training for a certain distance. Remember: You need to go further (and slower) in order to run faster at shorter distances. Most experts recommend working up to the below peak long run for each distance:

5K: 5 to 6 miles for beginners; 10 to 12 miles for intermediate/advanced
8K/10K: 6 to 10 miles for beginners; 12 to 14 for intermediate/advanced
Half marathon: 12 to 13 for beginners; 16 to 18 for intermediate/advanced
Marathon: 18 to 22 for beginners; 18 to 30 for intermediate/advanced 


Yes, some of those distances are longer than the race itself. "But logging those miles shows you've spent enough time at sub-max speeds to allow the necessary aerobic adaptations to happen," he explains.

*How Fast Should Your Long Run Be?*
No matter the distance, your long run should be run at an easy pace, says McConkey. We will repeat: easy pace! What does that translate to? It'll be different for every runner, but an easy pace should fall on the lower end of the rate of perceived exertion scale. Your heart rate should be 50 to 70 percent of your maximum heart rate, and you should be breathing naturally and able to hold a conversation effortlessly.

"I advise people to run as slow as possible, as long as it's mechanically comfortable," McConkey explains. "I challenge people to not look at pace until they're done, but just focus on something comfortable. You shouldn't feel like you're doing slow-motion single-leg squats; there should still be some spring to your step."

That pace is going to change as your fitness changes. "When you develop more strength and running efficiency, you'll be able to run faster at the same RPE or heart rate," says McConkey.

For shorter distances, long runs can generally be slow and enjoyable, says Rosario. But half marathoners and marathoners should approach their long runs with a little more structure. "Half marathoners and marathoners, in my opinion, should be adding faster-paced running into most of their long runs: things like alternating fast-pace and medium-pace miles, surging for two minutes at the beginning of each mile, or simply running the last 5K of their long run really fast," says Rosario. This is important, because it helps train your legs to get used to running fast even with lots of miles on them-and that will help at the end of races.

*How to Recover From a Long Run*
You may run your long run at an easier pace, but the sheer amount of time you're spending on your feet warrants more rest and recovery.

For starters, "the quicker an athlete can replenish after a long run, the sooner they will recover," says Rosario. "Shoot for a mix of carbs and protein, preferably at a 4:1 carbs to protein ratio-that particular ratio has been shown in labs to be the most effective at replenishing muscle glycogen stores and thus limiting muscle damage."

McConkey recommends taking the day off after a long run. "Instead of running, just walk around for 20 to 30 minutes and spend 10 minutes on a foam roller to open up your body," he says. "Those two things can really expedite recovery." In fact, foam rolling was shown to reduce delayed-onset muscle soreness while enhancing muscle recovery in a study published in the _Journal of Athletic Training_.

As for other trendy recovery modalities, do what feels good to you. Compression boots can also lead to recovery benefits, a study in the _Journal of Applied Physiology_ found. Ice baths were shown to reduce delayed onset muscle soreness in a scientific review by researchers at the Cochrane Library. And massage helped reduce pain intensity in runners' quads in a study from the _Journal of Physiotherapy_.

Most importantly, prioritize a good night's sleep-new research from the _International Journal of Sports Medicine _argues it may be the single most important factor in exercise recovery. After all, that's where the real recovery magic happens, when your body truly has time to rest and rebuild.









The Long Run Prepares Your Body to Run More Efficiently No Matter the Distance


Going the extra mile(s) can help you run more efficiently at every distance—even if you dread it sometimes.




www.runnersworld.com


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

*Pam Reed Becomes the 17th Person to Finish 100 100-Mile Races. And She Has Some Advice*










Ultrarunning legend Pam Reed just celebrated her 60th birthday as part of one of the most exclusive clubs in running: the group of runners who have finished 100 official races of at least 100 miles.

According to ultrarunning historian Davy Crockett, Reed is the 17th person in recorded history to have completed 100 100-milers in their lifetime (it was recently discovered that Frederick Davis III also reached this mark in December 2019, making him the 18th member of this group). Reed achieved the impressive mark at the Grandmaster Ultras in Littlefield, Arizona, on February 6, where she finished the 100-miler in 25:02:54-first woman, and third overall.

To clarify, this honor is the completion of 100 official races that were at least 100 miles. This means that even if Reed completed 491 miles at an event, like she did at the 2009 Self-Transcendence Six-Day Race, she was only credited with a single 100-miler. Though you may think Reed wishes that the extra mileage had added up to reaching her title sooner, she wouldn't trade away any parts of her storied career.

Reed has run ultras, ranging from 50K to multi-day races, for three decades. Among her many accolades, she was the first woman to outright win the Badwater 135-a feat she achieved in 2002 and repeated in 2003.

In 2019, Crockett mentioned to Reed that she was at 89 total 100-mile finishes. That surprised her, because she assumed she had already hit that mark.

"In my mind, the way I counted, I thought I had done it," Reed told _Runner's World_. "But I counted 220 miles that I ran at a 48-hour race as two [100-milers] or my six-day race as four. But they didn't count, and when I found out I was 11 away from something only a handful of people had done before, I decided to go for it."

So Reed set the goal of reaching the 100 mark before her 60th birthday in February 2021, and decided to do 10 100-milers in 2020. In addition to a handful of 50Ks, a 60K, a 100K, and a half Ironman, this was going to be her biggest year ever. Previously, the most she had done five or six in a year, with other distances sprinkled in as well.

As you can imagine, Reed's year was turned upside-down as the pandemic wiped away many of the races she wanted to do. Having to adapt, she signed up for virtual races, running courses she and her friends mapped out near in Jackson, Wyoming, where she's based. She ran from her home to the Grand Tetons for races like Hardrock Hundred and Wasatch 100. She also did 100-mile races, such as Bryce Canyon Ultras and the Javelina Jundred, in-person when she could.

"I don't really plan that much," Reed said. "I'm not a great planner. It just kind of happens, and if a race happens, I go for it. I made courses if I had to, calling my friend who made a five-loop course climbing up a mountain five times. I don't want to do this five times. I can be a whiner, but I did it and 100-milers are hard no matter what way you do them."

For her century race, she planned to do Arrowhead 135, a challenging winter race in northern Minnesota in February. However, that was canceled because of the pandemic, so she opted for the Grandmasters Ultra for her 100 crown.

And Reed had a chance to win the race-she was leading after 39 miles, but a few runners took a wrong turn on a 5.5-mile loop, and the course was adjusted after Reed had already completed the section. She was passed and took third overall, but that didn't spoil her big day. When she came across the line, she received not only her belt buckle, but also a plaque and a cake commemorating her 100th 100-miler.

"I'm so blessed to have the body that can keep doing this," Reed said. "It's cool that only so many people have ever done this. I'm really proud of it. My goal in life is to be able to run until I die and I am 100-percent serious when I say that. I just want to live my life to the absolute fullest, and, in my opinion, that is being able to run, skate ski, swim, bike, and get outside as long as I can."
As the 60-year-old looks back on fondly on her race resume and the different challenges that each race presented, we also asked her what wisdom she might have for budding or experienced ultrarunners who dream of reaching the heights that Reed has in her career.

Here is what she had to say.

*Energy powers her:* I'm Finnish, a quarter Swedish, and a quarter Norwegian-I think there's something to that. I know a lot of Finnish people, and they are hardcore. Living in Jackson, I'm surrounded by hardcore people. I just have a lot of energy, so I always want to be doing things. That really helps me do what I do.

*Do a lot of modalities*: I do a lot of hot yoga, often twice a day. I do acupuncture, I get massages regularly, and when things are hurting, I work on them immediately. I used to be a gymnast, and I could put my chest on the floor between my legs. Now, I don't need to do that. I adjust my yoga to fit what I want to do as a runner. I'm intuitive about what I do and do not do.

*Don't wear so many clothes*: I can't tell you how many times I start with more clothes than I needed. I've learned from winter races that you can't sweat or you'll get colder, and I needed to find a happy place. Turns out in the summer, that's a cotton shirt, arm sleeves, and men's nylon socks.

*Learn to fuel properly:* I learned that I'm best running with Tailwind, nut butter, and Justin's Almond Butter. I use GU gels when I race Ironmans, but I usually can't get those down in a 100-miler. Except for one time at Leadville, I started throwing up eight hours into the race, and I didn't stop until I took a GU with about 13 miles to go.

*Listen to your body above anything else*: Okay, don't necessarily try this at home, but I don't always listen to what experts tell me. I listen to my body. That's not to say I ignore experts. But it's also okay, in my opinion, to investigate. You should do that. Everyone is different, and you have to figure out what works for you. Don't hurt yourself, but try things like massages or hyperbaric chambers. Do your research first, of course.

*Fail and learn*: Failing _is_ learning. No one race is the same and not all races will be perfect. We all have to learn again and again.









Pam Reed Is the 17th Person to Finish 100 100-Mile Races — and She Has Some Advice for You


Don’t wear so many clothes. Really.




www.runnersworld.com


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## nOOky (May 13, 2008)

I'm 5 of 6 for 100 milers, and I only plan on doing one more this fall. I only try one a year, so her doing that many is simply amazing. I saw Susan Donnelly finish her 100th at the Superior 100, a really tough race. I think people like that are a different breed and just more suited to it than wimps like me lol.


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

*What Helps Your Body Recover After Running?*
You return home from your long run for the week. You sit down to take your shoes off. You were feeling good on your run but now that you've stopped moving, stiffness in your legs and feet starts to set in. All you want to do is crash on the couch, but you decide to do the right thing and start your running recovery routine.

You make your way upstairs, and start to run yourself an ice bath. _"This will all be worth it&#8230;"_ you say to yourself through gritted teeth as that first toe hits the frigid water. This is your least favorite part of long run days, but you know it'll benefit your recovery&#8230; _but will it?_

TV and movies are filled with pro athletes sinking their bodies into ice baths after a big game or an especially hard practice. Growing up, your coaches always told you to go home and put an ice pack on your sore muscles so you could recover before tomorrow's practice.

But what if I told you that cold therapy doesn't actually help your muscles recover? That ice baths and cold packs may make your muscles feel better _temporarily, _but they don't actually help your muscles to rebuild and recover any quicker. In fact, some studies are starting to suggest that cold therapy may _delay_ recovery!

_"Hold up! So I've been suffering all these years in ice baths just to *slow down my recovery*??"_

Yep&#8230; sorry about that!

_"What else have I been lied to about? And what should I have been doing instead??"_

Don't worry. I've done the research, and I'm here to share it with you. Sit down, get out of your ice bath, and let's talk about some running recovery myths and what the science says you should be doing instead.

*Running Recovery Myths*

*Cold Therapy*

Yep, this includes both ice baths _and_ localized ice packs.

_But why are these methods of recovery so popular? _Because immediately following the ice bath, your muscles will actually feel better!

Muscle recovery isn't just about feeling better, though. It's about _getting better_. It's about repairing and rebuilding your muscles. It's about showing up to your next run feeling better _and_ feeling stronger.

After an intense workout, your muscles have little microtears in them. During recovery, your body heals these microtears. This healing process is what makes your muscles bigger and stronger.

*Inflammation is not always bad!*

Part of that healing process is inflammation. Temporary inflammation in your muscles signals to your body that it's time to repair and rebuild your muscles [1]. If you take away that inflammation, you also take away that signal to your body&#8230; and your body won't know to repair your muscles!

On a side note, it's important to mention that this repair and recovery only occurs with _temporary inflammation. _If you're not allowing your body proper rest and you're overtraining, your body is going to end up in a state of _chronic inflammation_. Your body's signaling systems become dull to this constant request to repair and rebuild[1]. That's why when you're overtraining, you have chronic sore muscles. For more information about Overtraining Symptoms, check out this blog post.

*Cold therapy reduces inflammation.*

Cold therapy reduces inflammation. It drops the temperature of your muscles, constricts your blood vessels, and reduces _inflammation and pain_. It therefore stops the signals your body needs to repair your muscles and can actually _*slow down the recovery process!*_

So if pain relief is what you're after, cold therapy does actually work. But if you're really looking to recover your muscles. To be able to show up to your next workout fitter and stronger. To not have to take as many rest days. _Then skip the cold therapy and try something else._

It should also be noted that we're talking strictly about muscle recovery here. Not the potential overall health benefits of cold therapy paired with breathwork like in the Wim Hof method. That's an entire blog post in itself!

*Epsom Salt baths*

The theory behind Epsom salt baths is that when the salts are soaked in water, magnesium sulfate is dissolved into the water. When you sink down into that bath, you close your eyes, relax, and the magnesium sulfate permeates through your skin and enters your bloodstream. Your muscles begin to repair&#8230; _or do they?_

*Maybe.* It's true that nutrients can be absorbed through your skin. And Epsom salt baths _may_ be effective in aiding muscle recovery&#8230;_ but only if you have a magnesium deficiency! _Magnesium is an important mineral that your body needs to repair and rebuild your muscles[2].

So if you're lacking magnesium overall in your body, an Epsom salt bath may be one method of increasing your magnesium levels. Or you could take a supplement. Or you could eat more foods rich in magnesium like pumpkin seeds, almonds, and spinach. It should be noted I'm not dietician, though.

A quick side note&#8230; when your body experiences stress, it uses up magnesium stores in your body to try to deal with that stress. If you're chronically stressed, or if you're overtraining, you likely have low magnesium levels. Your body is going to struggle to recover your muscles properly. The solution is _not_ to just pop a few supplements, though. Please... rest, recover, and get your body in optimal health if you really want to have optimal performance.

_If you aren't deficient in magnesium, the recovery benefits of Epsom salt baths are likely all in your head. _That's right. In studies where some _healthy_ subjects were either given a regular bath or an Epsom salt bath, _both groups _reported a decrease in perceived pain following their baths[3].

One reason for this _may _be that water immersion in general has some promising results _(though still inconclusive)_ for muscle recovery. This includes a possible increase in blood flow, which could help to bring more of the right nutrients to the "recovery zone"[4].

*Pain Killers*

Ibuprofen, Aspirin, Acetaminophen&#8230; Most households keep at least one of these handy in the medicine cabinet. But is after a run really the best time to be reaching for that Tylenol bottle? Not if you're looking to actually repair your muscles.

Much like an ice bath, the whole point of these drugs is that they're meant to _reduce inflammation_ which therefore reduces pain. It's right in the name. Advil, Nurofen, Motrin, Bayer&#8230; they're all known as _Non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs _(NSAID).

It's actually been shown that NSAIDs _slow_ the healing process&#8230; of muscles, bones, _and_ tendons[5]. If you ask me, that sounds like a recipe for injury.

Okay, so ice baths are out. Epsom salt baths are out. Pain meds are out&#8230; What _can _you do to help your muscles recover and repair? Let's get into it...

*Running Recovery Tips Backed by Science*

*Passive Rest*

That's right. Good, old fashioned rest. It turns out that _one of the best tools for muscle recovery is your own body!_ Don't stress it out more. Give it the nutrients it needs. Let it rest. Let it recover. Let it do its thing.

The amount of time you need to rest can greatly depend on how much you actually stressed your body out. How much your muscles are damaged. And how much you depleted your glycogen stores.

When it comes to glycogen stores (i.e. stored energy for your muscles to work), _passive rest replenishes the glycogen stores more quickly than active rest_[6]. Which makes sense. Even if you're just going for a walk, you're still using up some of your glycogen for your muscles to take every step

*Active Recovery*

That being said, active rest can still benefit your recovery&#8230; especially if you're itching to move your body. It's definitely better to go for a walk or do some gentle yoga than it is to go out and crush another run.

The idea behind active recovery is that it increases the blood flow to your muscles. This increased blood flow helps to bring the right proteins into the muscles for the repair and rebuilding of muscle tissue[7]. It's important to remember not to stress your body further during active recovery, though!

Active recovery also helps to clear lactate more quickly[11]. For every lactate molecule produced, a hydrogen ion is also produced. A buildup of hydrogen is what actually makes you "feel the burn" and for your muscles to start to fail.

Lactate is actually used for fuel, so it certainly has benefits during exercise. For every lactate molecule that is used for fuel, it takes with it a hydrogen ion. The taking away of hydrogen ions delays "the burn". In intense exercise, though, there comes a point where your body can no longer use the lactate for fuel. Lactate begins to build. Hydrogen also begins to build. You feel the burn.

Active recovery to clear lactate seems to be especially effective immediately following repeated intense exercise, like a sprint workout[7]. As a general guideline, shoot for 65% of your aerobic capacity, and for no longer than 20 minutes[12][13].

*Sleep*

Ahh&#8230; sleep. Everyone knows we need it. Most people wish they could get more. But few of us actually prioritize it. But here's the thing. If you want to rebuild and restore your muscles, you need to start prioritizing sleep.

During Non-REM sleep (aka slow wave or deep sleep), your brain is resting and the blood flow to your muscles increases. The blood flow brings with it some much needed oxygen and nutrients your muscles need to recover.

And if you want to actually _grow_ your muscles and become _stronger, _non-REM sleep is also when your body secretes growth hormones[8].

How much sleep you need can vary greatly depending on how intensely you're exercising. General guidelines tend to recommend 7-9 hours every night, though. In one study, college basketball players increased their sleep by nearly 2 hours every night. After a bit over a month, they all had a significantly increased sprint time and had greater accuracy on the court[9].

*Compression*

The jury's still out a bit on this one. One study shows that marathon runners that wore compression socks below the knee for 48 hours following their race recovered significantly faster than non compression sock wearers[10].

Other resources suggest that compression socks decrease blood flow to your legs, suggesting they inhibit recovery. Other resources suggest that the compression socks increase blood flow.

Devices that provide pulsing pressure have been shown to increase blood flow but haven't shown any improvement in overall muscle strength or running performance [7].

So what's a runner to think?

In general, everyone seems to agree that compression socks will do no harm. So if you're really looking for that "magic pill" other than rest and sleep, it could be worth a shot!

*Foam Rolling*

The scientific support behind foam rolling is still lacking. But the little research that's out there all tends to indicate that foam rolling is an effective technique for improving muscle recovery.

One study recommends 20 minute sessions on a high-density roller following intense exercise [10]. You should apply light to medium pressure. More pain does not always mean more gain! In fact, if you apply too much pressure, you could end up worse off than if you didn't foam roll at all.

It's important to note that you should _not_ roll a sore IT band! For more information on how to foam roll properly for runners, I found this article from Run To the Finish helpful.

So next time you walk in the door from a long run, you can skip the ice bath and head for your bed&#8230; assuming your family, work, and personal life allows, ha!

In case you hadn't figured it out yet, rest is important! If you don't rest enough, you could find yourself overtraining.

Not sure how to work rest and recovery into your training plan? I can help you. Check out my Coaching Page to see how we could work together.

Happy Recovery leads to&#8230; Happy Running









Running Recovery Myths: Do You Do Any of These?


Post Run Recovery Myths, Truths, and Tips. Running Recovery Tips that are backed by science and lies you’ve been told about recovering after a long run.




www.brentsrunabout.com


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

*Getting to the Bottom of the Runner's High*
For years we've been crediting endorphins, but it's really about the endocannabinoids.

We can stop crediting endorphins, the natural opioid painkillers produced by our bodies, for the floaty euphoria we often feel during aerobic exercise, according to a nifty new study of men, women and treadmills. In the study, runners developed a gentle intoxication, known as a runner's high, even if researchers had blocked their bodies' ability to respond to endorphins, suggesting that those substances could not be behind the buzz. Instead, the study suggests, a different set of biochemicals resembling internally homegrown versions of cannabis, better known as marijuana, are likely to be responsible.

The findings expand our understanding of how running affects our bodies and minds, and also raise interesting questions about why we might need to be slightly stoned in order to want to keep running.

In surveys and studies of experienced distance runners, most report developing a mellow runner's high at least sometimes. The experience typically is characterized by loose-limbed blissfulness and a shedding of anxiety and unease after half an hour or so of striding. In the 1980s, exercise scientists started attributing this buzz to endorphins, after noticing that blood levels of the natural painkillers rise in people's bloodstreams when they run.

More recently, though, other scientists grew skeptical. Endorphins cannot cross the blood-brain barrier, because of their molecular structure. So, even if runners' blood contains extra endorphins, they will not reach the brain and alter mental states. It also is unlikely that the brain itself produces more endorphins during exercise, according to animal studies.

Endocannabinoids are a likelier intoxicant, these scientists believed. Similar in chemical structure to cannabis, the cannabinoids made by our bodies surge in number during pleasant activities, such as orgasms, and also when we run, studies show. They can cross the blood-brain barrier, too, making them viable candidates to cause any runner's high.
A few past experiments had strengthened that possibility. In one notable 2012 study, researchers coaxed dogs, people and ferrets to run on treadmills, while measuring their blood levels of endocannabinoids. Dogs and humans are cursorial, meaning possessed of bones and muscles well adapted to distance running. Ferrets are not; they slink and sprint but rarely cover loping miles, and they did not produce extra cannabinoids while treadmill running. The dogs and people did, though, indicating that they most likely were experiencing a runner's high and it could be traced to their internal cannabinoids.

That study did not rule out a role for endorphins, however, as Dr. Johannes Fuss realized. The director of the Human Behavior Laboratory at the University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf in Germany, he and his colleagues had long been interested in how various activities affect the inner workings of the brain, and after reading the ferret study and others, thought they might look more closely into the runner's high.

They began with mice, which are eager runners. For a 2015 study, they chemically blocked the uptake of endorphins in the animals' brains and let them run, then did the same with the uptake of endocannabinoids. When their endocannabinoid system was turned off, the animals ended their runs just as anxious and twitchy as they had been at the start, suggesting that they had felt no runner's high. But when their endorphins were blocked, their behavior after running was calmer, relatively more blissed-out. They seemed to have developed that familiar, mild buzz, even though their endorphin systems had been inactivated.

Mice emphatically are not people, though. So, for the new study, which was published in February in Psychoneuroendocrinology, Dr. Fuss and his colleagues set out to replicate the experiment, to the extent possible, in humans. Recruiting 63 experienced runners, male and female, they invited them to the lab, tested their fitness and current emotional states, drew blood and randomly assigned half to receive naloxone, a drug that blocks the uptake of opioids, and the rest, a placebo. (The drug they had used to block endocannabinoids in mice is not legal in people, so they could not repeat that portion of the experiment.)

The volunteers then ran for 45 minutes and, on a separate day, walked for the same amount of time. After each session, the scientists drew blood and repeated the psychological tests. They also asked the volunteers whether they thought they had experienced a runner's high.

Most said yes, they had felt buzzed during the run, but not the walk, with no differences between the naloxone and placebo groups. All showed increases, too, in their blood levels of endocannabinoids after running and equivalent changes in their emotional states. Their euphoria after running was greater and their anxiety less, even if their endorphin system had been inactivated.

Taken as a whole, these findings are a blow to endorphins' image. "In combination with our research in mice," Dr. Fuss says, "these new data rule out a major role for endorphins" in the runner's high.

The study does not explain, though, why a runner's high exists at all. There was no walker's high among the volunteers. But Dr. Fuss suspects the answer lies in our evolutionary past. "When the open savannas stretched and forests retreated," he says, "it became necessary for humans to hunt wild animals by long-distance running. Under such circumstances, it is beneficial to be euphoric during running," a sensation that persists among many runners today, but with no thanks due, it would seem, to endorphins.

















Getting to the Bottom of the Runner’s High (Published 2021)


For years we’ve been crediting endorphins, but it’s really about the endocannabinoids.




www.nytimes.com


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

Today's 12km run ride pairing. Spotted some interesting things along the way










forest peppers!



















Never too early for Christmas









new Rogue cardio machine










first Robins


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

The Barkley Marathons are underway!









Multiple runners are on Loop 2 of the Barkley Marathons - Canadian Running Magazine


Three-time fininsher Jared Campbell was in the lead going into the second loop




runningmagazine.ca





I first learned about the Barkley Marathons listening to an segment on CBC The Current. An ultra marathoner named Stephanie Case talked about her experiences getting through many ultras including the Barkley. I was naturally intrigued! I follow Stephanie now on IG. I love this piece she wrote ... it is quite amazing what the mind and body can endure.









The Barkley Marathons: How I Became a Loser, Quitter and a Failure in Under 24 hours


The Barkley Marathons: a race officially consisting of 100 miles (likely a gross underestimation) set out in five 20 mile loops that runners must complete in clockwise and counterclockwise directio…




ultrarunnergirl.com


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## ddoh (Jan 11, 2017)

cyclelicious said:


> The Barkley Marathons are underway!
> 
> 
> 
> ...


A couple of my MTB buddies have run the Barkley a number of times. One of them actually won it, I think. Based on their descriptions, it sounds pretty idiotic. Nothing but up and down the whole time.


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

There were no finishers for the Barkley this year! Fog, rain, sleet... Mother Nature conquered all


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

The Barkley Marathons (100+ miles), "the race that eats its young" in Tennessee. Of the starters, only Jared Campbell and Luke Nelson continue on Loop 3. Campbell is the only 3-time finisher in history. Together, Campbell of Utah and Nelson of Idaho set the fastest known time linking Utah's 13,000-foot peaks in 2017.

The Barkley started in 1986. Thirteen unlucky runners ran that year with no finishers. Cantrell, its founder, said it was "a rousing success all around." Mark Williams of the U.K. was the first finisher in 1996. Learn the History of the first 10 years of Barkley.






The three ladies were running together and missed the cutoff to continue on Loop 2. Perhaps she would have been faster on her own, but with three navigation is easier. The night was miserable because it had rained all afternoon and into the night. Muddy, slick, foggy, very tough. Courtney Dauwalter missed the cut off for loop 3 by 12 minutes.


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## nOOky (May 13, 2008)

Monday I got to fat bike after work in 5" of fresh snow. Today is a 2 1/2 hour run followed by a gravel bike ride later in the day on dry roads. Welcome to spring in WI.


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

nOOky said:


> Monday I got to fat bike after work in 5" of fresh snow. Today is a 2 1/2 hour run followed by a gravel bike ride later in the day on dry roads. Welcome to spring in WI.


Our roads are dry so I saw the first groups of road cyclists. There is still snow in the forest and ice on the trails but any trail exposed to sun, the trail is like pudding. It's a good time to run or road cycle in our neck of the woods too


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

Sad news this week. Dick Hoyt, who pushed his son, Rick Hoyt, through nearly every Boston Marathon from 1980 to 2014, six Ironman triathlons and more than a thousand road races died on Wednesday. He was 80 years old.
Dick Hoyt first pushed Rick, who is quadriplegic with cerebral palsy, in a 5 mile road race in 1977.

In an emailed statement, Dave McGillivray, the Boston Marathon race director, wrote that "Dick was one of the very first to participate in the Boston Marathon for a greater purpose, not just for himself. He was one of the first to introduce this into our industry and pave the way for thousands to believe in themselves and participate by giving back. He helped crumble the walls of intimidation."

The full obituary : Dick Hoyt, Who Ran Marathons While Pushing His Son, Dies at 80


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

I just purchased a new pair of runners because I knew I had too

*You Probably Need New Running Shoes. Here's How to Upgrade.*
If you run, you're a runner. And if you're a runner, especially one who has hit the pavement more in the past year, there's a good chance you need to upgrade your running shoes.

"The most important thing for us is that you're moving, that's great," said Kate Reese, a manager at Brooklyn Running Company, a running shop in New York City. "But if you're starting to feel beat up, a footwear change can help."

The good news? Even if you haven't changed your sneakers in years, you most likely do not need the latest carbon-fiber technology or the coolest new shoe. You just need guidance to find your best fit.

*Start with the bottom of your current shoes.*
To begin, look at what you've been working with. Have you been running with an old pair of trainers? A pair of shoes you bought years ago, or ones you purchased on a whim a few months back? How many miles do you think you've run in the past few months? And do you have any aches or pains?

When a shoe begins to wear down, the support and cushioning becomes less effective. The bottom of your shoes will give you some guidance as well. If you notice the tread is worn out, or even "balding" in some places, it's a sign that you are due for a new pair of sneakers. The patterns of wear and tear will also provide clues as to how you load your weight as you run, and these markers could be helpful when you look for your next pair of shoes.

*Next, head to a local running store.*
A specialty shoe store should be staffed by local runners who know the sport and have had their own aches and pains.

Ideally, a staff member will take a look at your feet and watch you walk or run to evaluate your stride. You want a conversation, where you have the opportunity to run or walk (on a treadmill or outside) in a handful of shoes and discuss goals and concerns, such as specific pain points or training plans.

You may try on a variety of shoes with different levels of arch support and cushioning. Make sure you have about a thumbnail-width of space between your toes and the end of the shoe, and pay attention to what feels most comfortable.

Finding expert advice has become easier during the pandemic, thanks to the emergence of virtual running-shoe appointments. Many running stores now have the option of making a video appointment and will ship a selection of shoes to you. Expect all of the same service you would get in person, including some walking tests and discussions around any specific physical concerns and running goals. Make sure to read the fine print before taking any shoes out for a test drive, as some retailers take returns with minimal hassle while others may have more restrictive return policies.

Regardless of where you try your new shoes, you should have a Goldilocks moment when you find the right fit, something only you - and not the experts - can identify.

"It should feel very intuitive, very natural, like an extension of your foot," Ms. Reese said. "I encourage people to walk around or jog around or even get on a treadmill. It should feel as if it's moving with you, it should be aligned with where your foot wants to move."

Expect to spend around $130 on a good pair of running shoes, and focus on function and fit over fashion. That new sleek shoe you saw a photo of in a health magazine may not be the one that works for you. Ms. Reese urges runners to think of their shoes as a tool being purchased for a purpose, not as a fashion statement being made in the park.

*Know when it's time to move on.*
Shoes should be replaced, on average, after every 350 miles run, running experts say. But runners wear through their shoes much differently based on their routines; trail runners may wear through shoes differently than a former college linebacker. You can safely assume that if you continue running, you will need to invest in new pairs of shoes pretty regularly.

Take note of what you like and you don't like - considering cushioning, stability and the weight of the shoe. Then make sure to mentally note how supportive your shoes feel as the miles and minutes tick on.









You Probably Need New Running Shoes. Here’s How to Upgrade. (Published 2021)


Look at the bottom of your sneakers for clues as to when you need a new pair. And trust your local running store to help you find the right fit.




www.nytimes.com


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## nOOky (May 13, 2008)

I track my shoes mileage on Garmin Connect. I still have too many shoes laying around, they still look new even when they are technically worn out.


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

Our trails now are a combination of ice and mud. It was a good time to do a trail run along a logging road (My new bike is being built and Chris' bike is being upgraded) The ice was grippy and didn't need the micro spikes.


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

What a great story! 81 year old survives Covid and runs a marathon!









Senior who survived COVID-19 to run marathon


An 81-year-old man has survived COVID-19. Now he is determined to run a marathon this spring to raise money for the nurses who cared for him




vancouverisland.ctvnews.ca


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

I met a giant bunny on my after work run... his name is Harecules


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## nOOky (May 13, 2008)

I had 184 miles running, 185 miles biking, and 34.43 hiking miles in March. Going for a run this morning, then fat biking later in the day. Gotta love spring!


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

nOOky said:


> I had 184 miles running, 185 miles biking, and 34.43 hiking miles in March. Going for a run this morning, then fat biking later in the day. Gotta love spring!


Way to go nOOky! I like to mix it up as well. And yes I love spring too


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

Good guide if anyone is contemplating new shoes

*You Probably Need New Running Shoes. Here's How to Upgrade.








*

If you run, you're a runner. And if you're a runner, especially one who has hit the pavement more in the past year, there's a good chance you need to upgrade your running shoes.
"The most important thing for us is that you're moving, that's great," said Kate Reese, a manager at Brooklyn Running Company, a running shop in New York City. "But if you're starting to feel beat up, a footwear change can help."
The good news? Even if you haven't changed your sneakers in years, you most likely do not need the latest carbon-fiber technology or the coolest new shoe. You just need guidance to find your best fit.

*Start with the bottom of your current shoes.*
To begin, look at what you've been working with. Have you been running with an old pair of trainers? A pair of shoes you bought years ago, or ones you purchased on a whim a few months back? How many miles do you think you've run in the past few months? And do you have any aches or pains?

When a shoe begins to wear down, the support and cushioning becomes less effective. The bottom of your shoes will give you some guidance as well. If you notice the tread is worn out, or even "balding" in some places, it's a sign that you are due for a new pair of sneakers. The patterns of wear and tear will also provide clues as to how you load your weight as you run, and these markers could be helpful when you look for your next pair of shoes.

*Next, head to a local running store.*
A specialty shoe store should be staffed by local runners who know the sport and have had their own aches and pains.
Ideally, a staff member will take a look at your feet and watch you walk or run to evaluate your stride. You want a conversation, where you have the opportunity to run or walk (on a treadmill or outside) in a handful of shoes and discuss goals and concerns, such as specific pain points or training plans.
You may try on a variety of shoes with different levels of arch support and cushioning. Make sure you have about a thumbnail-width of space between your toes and the end of the shoe, and pay attention to what feels most comfortable.
Finding expert advice has become easier during the pandemic, thanks to the emergence of virtual running-shoe appointments. Many running stores now have the option of making a video appointment and will ship a selection of shoes to you. Expect all of the same service you would get in person, including some walking tests and discussions around any specific physical concerns and running goals. Make sure to read the fine print before taking any shoes out for a test drive, as some retailers take returns with minimal hassle while others may have more restrictive return policies.

Regardless of where you try your new shoes, you should have a Goldilocks moment when you find the right fit, something only you - and not the experts - can identify.
"It should feel very intuitive, very natural, like an extension of your foot," Ms. Reese said. "I encourage people to walk around or jog around or even get on a treadmill. It should feel as if it's moving with you, it should be aligned with where your foot wants to move."
Expect to spend around $130 on a good pair of running shoes, and focus on function and fit over fashion. That new sleek shoe you saw a photo of in a health magazine may not be the one that works for you. Ms. Reese urges runners to think of their shoes as a tool being purchased for a purpose, not as a fashion statement being made in the park.

*Know when it's time to move on.*
Shoes should be replaced, on average, after every 350 miles run, running experts say. But runners wear through their shoes much differently based on their routines; trail runners may wear through shoes differently than a former college linebacker. You can safely assume that if you continue running, you will need to invest in new pairs of shoes pretty regularly.
Take note of what you like and you don't like - considering cushioning, stability and the weight of the shoe. Then make sure to mentally note how supportive your shoes feel as the miles and minutes tick on.









You Probably Need New Running Shoes. Here’s How to Upgrade. (Published 2021)


Look at the bottom of your sneakers for clues as to when you need a new pair. And trust your local running store to help you find the right fit.




www.nytimes.com




campaign_id=35&emc=edit_ru_20210403&instance_id=28804&nl=running&regi_id=78430320&segment_id=54820&te=1&user_id=c57a238e515a775a5a2886440eb9cf77


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

Waiting for my bike build... running in the meantime

Thursday April 1. I spotted the Easter Bunny 10km









Friday April 2. Run ride pairing and some heavy metal climbing  10km



















Caturday April 3 run ride pairing 16km



















Sunday April 4, run ride pairing 10km (we found ramps!)
















Monday April 5. I took a vaycay and did my 20km long run. Evening home gym workout was upper body focused


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## paramount3 (Jul 13, 2014)

Heavy metal pole dancing--nice.


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

Beth Potter is "only" 29 years old... but this is an incredible achievement. My fastest time for 5km was 28.32min. pace was 5:42/km. Beth ran the 5km in 2:56/km. That woman was on fire!

*Scotland's Beth Potter breaks 5K world record with 14:41 run in Great Britain*

Scottish runner-turned-triathlete *Beth Potter* beat the 5K road world record on Saturday at a race in Barrowford, U.K., about an hour north of Manchester, where she ran an amazing 14:41. Organizers of the race, which is called the Podium 5K, say their course is the fastest in Great Britain, and Potter's run certainly bolsters that claim. Potter bettered the previous world record of 14:43 (which Kenya's *Beatrice Chepkoech* set in Monaco in February) by two seconds.

*Potter's record *
According to fastrunning.com, Potter missed the start of the women's race, but she was luckily permitted to run in the 'B' wave of the men's event. While missing the start of a race is a nightmare that haunts all runners, this actually might have helped Potter, as she had other 14:40-range athletes to run with who could push her right to the finish.
She very well could have beaten the record had she run with the women's field, but having constant competition no doubt helped her mentally. When Potter crossed the finish line, she was visibly surprised to see the clock.

Potter's time beat Chepkoech's world record by two seconds and *Paula Radcliffe*'s British 5K record of 14:51 by 10 seconds. She also smashed her own 5K PB of 15:24 - a time she ran at the same race in Barrowford last year.

It is important to note that, while Potter bettered the world record (a result that World Athletics reported is unlikely to be ratified), one woman has run a road 5K faster. In September 2017, Kenya's *Joyciline Jepkosgei *ran a 14:32 5K split en route to the 10K world record at a race in Prague. At the time, though, World Athletics (then IAAF) did not recognize the 5K as a world record event, and even though Jepkosgei's run is the fastest in history, it's not the official world record.

In no way does this diminish Potter's result, and regardless of whether her run is ratified as the world record, she officially owns one of the fastest 5K runs in history.

*ASICS Metaspeed *
Not only did Potter's record support the claim made by race organizers that their course is the fastest in the U.K., but it is also great for ASICS, her main sponsor, as she wore the company's new shoe - the Metaspeed Sky - in her win.

The Metaspeed is the latest carbon-plated shoe from ASICS, and it's the company's response to Nike in the "super shoe" race. ASICS only just released the Metaspeed at the end of March, but Potter has already delivered the shoe's first world record.

*Turning to triathlon *
Potter represented Great Britain at the 2016 Olympics and 2017 world championships in the 10,000m. She is also a former 10,000m British champion. According to _Athletics Weekly_, when she struggled to find sponsors in running, Potter decided to switch sports and focus her attention on triathlon instead of the track.

Her move to triathlon worked out quite well. In 2018, she represented Great Britain at the Commonwealth Games, a year later she won the European triathlon championships and in 2020, she grabbed her first win on the ITU World Cup circuit. While Potter has proven to be an exceptional triathlete, she doesn't appear to have lost much in the running game since the move, and it will be exciting to see what she can do in future races.









Scotland's Beth Potter breaks 5K world record with 14:41 run in Great Britain - Canadian Running Magazine


The 2016 Olympian shocked everyone with her record-breaking run on Saturday in the U.K.




runningmagazine.ca


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

Trains and training! I had a most excellent 21km run... my fastest according to Garmin







I waited for the train to pass at the level crossing near my turnaround point. I spotted some cool graffiti on the boxcar of a second train near town.


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## Happybill68 (Feb 4, 2020)

cyclelicious said:


> Trains and training! I had a most excellent 21km run... my fastest according to Garmin
> 
> 
> 
> ...


Way to go, that's excellent work.

Keep it up

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

^ Thank You Happybill68!


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

Her time is incredible!

*Japanese woman lowers W60 world record with 2:52:01 run in Tokyo*










Japanese masters running sensation *Mariko Yugeta* broke the W60 marathon world record on Saturday, posting a blazing-fast time of 2:52:01 at the Itabashi Trial Marathon in Tokyo. The result improved on her previous world record of 2:52:13, a time that she ran in January at the Osaka Women's Marathon.

Coming into 2021, the 62-year-old Yugeta already owned the W60 world record in the marathon. The record stood at an amazing 2:56:54, which she ran in 2019. Yugeta has raced three times so far in 2021, and she has shattered that time on each occasion.

She kicked off her season at the Osaka Women's Marathon on January 31, when she ran to what was then a world record of 2:52:13, earning her a 48th-place finish in a field of some of Japan's best runners. On March 14, Yugeta lined up for another race, this time at the Nagoya Women's Marathon. She failed to beat her world record that day, but her 2:54:31 result (which was good enough for 70th place) still smashed her pre-2021 PB.

Finally, on Saturday in Tokyo, she ran her new world record, lowering the mark by 12 seconds and just barely missing a sub-2:52 result. The race results from the Itabashi Trial Marathon are not yet public, and her final placing in the race is unknown. According to _Japan Running News_, Yugeta also set two Japanese W60 records earlier in April, running 2:43.00 in the 800m and 10:54.05 in the 3,000m to add to her already impressive resume.

Yugeta has had a phenomenal couple of years competing in the W60 age category, and her result on Saturday is the fourth time she has broken the marathon world record since turning 60. She kicked off her record-breaking campaign in November 2019 at the Shimonoseki Kaikyo Marathon, where she ran 2:59:15 to become the first W60 athlete to run a sub-three-hour marathon. Her result at the Shimonoseki Kaikyo Marathon crushed the previous world record of 3:02:50, which had belonged to a French athlete named *Claudine Marchadier*.

Just a few weeks after her sub-three performance in November 2019, Yugeta broke her own world record, this time at the Saitama International Marathon in Japan. There, she finished in 18th place, running the previously mentioned 2:56:54. It took her a little over a year to beat that time, but she eventually succeeded, lowering the record significantly on multiple occasions this year.

What's even more amazing is the fact that Yugeta's 2:52 run is her new PB in the marathon. She's 62 years old, but she's running faster than she ever has in her life. She doesn't seem to be slowing down, either, so the running world could be treated to a few more world records from her in the coming years.

Link Japanese woman lowers W60 world record with 2:52:01 run in Tokyo - Canadian Running Magazine


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## nOOky (May 13, 2008)

Damn that's fast for 30 much less 60!


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

Here's another recent record set by a female athlete (not a master's but still incredible) Incredible effort and she expanded her specialty. For those who are following ultra marathons, this is a specific niche of running (I registered for my first ultra for May. My goal is to finish  If I can double this runner's time I'll be happy)

*Des Linden Sets the 50K World Record*
Des Linden has raced 20 marathons, but she's never gone longer than the 26.2-mile distance in a competition.
That changed today, when she ran a 50K (31.06 miles) on a deserted bike path outside of Eugene, Oregon.
Linden, 37, finished in 2:59:54, a world record for the distance, more than seven minutes ahead of the existing record of 3:07:20, set by British ultrarunner Aly Dixon on September 1, 2019. She averaged 5:47 per mile pace.

"As we got in there, I was like, 'I feel pretty good, let's err on the other side of 5:45 [per mile pace].' We probably banked a little bit too much time," Linden told _Runner's World._ "It got hard the last five [miles], but I knew we had that time."

She's accustomed to performing in front of large crowds-at marathons in Boston, New York, and at the Olympic Games. But the pandemic has upended the typical calendar of large-scale races, leaving elite runners to develop their own opportunities for competition, against the clock or a limited number of other athletes.

Linden ran evenly, hitting the 19.6-mile mark (31.6K) in about 1:53:35, 2:31:12 for 26.2, and covering the final roughly five-mile out-and-back loop in just under 30 minutes.

"I knew [we were going to be close to three hours]. We were crunching the numbers out there. [I was thinking] I've gotta break three or else I'm going to have to do this again, like, soon.

Coming into the day, Linden felt confident about her chances at getting the record

"I thought it would take a disaster for [the record] not to happen. But you get to the marathon distance, and disasters are pretty common," she said. "You extend that, and it's like, well, you just don't know. As confident as I was, it's unknown territory. I was trying to respect [the distance] as much as possible."

Linden's career highlight came in 2018, when she won the Boston Marathon in 2:39:54 amid driving rain and gale-force winds. She has made two Olympic teams, and she finished seventh at the Games in Rio in 2:26:08. Her personal best comes from Boston in 2011, when she ran 2:22:38.

At the most recent Olympic Trials, in 2020 in Atlanta, Linden finished in fourth place, just missing a spot on Team USA heading for Tokyo. She's the alternate for the team, should any of the top three finishers-Aliphine Tuliamuk, Molly Seidel, and Sally Kipyego-be unable to compete. Linden said on April 12 that she's not expecting to be pressed into service and not dwelling on the possibility.

I'll be ready if they need me," she said.
In recent years, Linden has made no secret of her interest in running ultras and unusual distance challenges. In 2020, before the pandemic canceled Boston, she planned to run both the Trials and Boston, seven weeks apart.

In October, she undertook a "calendar club" challenge, running one mile to correspond with every date on the calendar: one on October 1, two mile on October 2, and so on. By the end of the month, she had amassed 496 miles, with 196 in the final week.

Five weeks ago, she told _Runner's World_ she was "super fit" and was balancing her desire for the record with caution as she races into the unknown.

*"I feel like I just want to crush this record, because I think it's so attainable, but also, you have to absolutely respect the distance," Linden said. "It's like when you do your first marathon. You have no idea what it's going to feel like after 20 miles. It's managing what I think is the right pace and also respecting what's been done in the past and finding the sweet spot."*

She next plans to run a fall marathon, although she didn't specify which one. All of the World Marathon Majors races are being held this fall. Chicago and Boston are scheduled on back-to-back days, October 10 and 11. The New York City Marathon is November 7.









Success! Des Linden Goes the Distance and Sets the 50K World Record


In her first race longer than a marathon, she averaged 5:47 pace for more than 31 miles.




www.runnersworld.com





"I will hit reset, preserve some of this fitness, make sure I'm ready as the [Olympic] alternate," Linden said. "And then figure out the fall."


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

Running is not everyone's cup of tea but thought I'd share this story about a "nonrunner"

*How I Tricked Myself Into Liking Running*

Until last week, the only time I'd finished a race was during Track and Field Day in fifth grade. By middle school, I was trying to figure out how to get out of gym class because it was too hard for me to run a mile. Sports, in general, were not my thing. Running, less so.

As an adult, I have gone to the gyms, taken exercise classes and worked with trainers. But none of it ever brought me joy, or made me want to keep doing such things. The most sustained exercise I did in the past decade was a regimen of deep knee bends with a colicky baby in my arms after my first kid was born.

Then lockdowns came along, and I surprised everyone in my house, especially myself, by signing up to join a local running group which had moved from holding local meetups to checking in with each other virtually. Because it was exercise I could do alone, the conditions were ideal.

But for a newcomer to running, the notion that you can just throw on a pair of sneakers and hit the road turns out to be a big, fat lie, I assume created by people who started running after giving up soccer or basketball.

Every time, I have to push myself to run that horrible first minute. I get breathless. Muscles I didn't know I had now ache like I never thought possible. I feel self-conscious when a neighbor spots me bouncing down the street. And yet, I stick with it. I can now run 20 minutes in a row, and they are not all horrible.

Here were a few of the things I learned that have helped me to get out the door - and keep going even when I would much rather stop for an infusion of iced coffee.

*Let cynicism go.*
If you are the type who smirks at inspirational quotations on Instagram, set aside that part of your brain for the entirety of a run. I now understand why fitness instructors are so often relentlessly earnest. You need positive messages to get through the hard parts of working out.

Try a simple thought exercise recommended by Coffey, a filmmaker and the founder of DeFine New York Run Club. Ask yourself, "What's my why?" and "What's my purpose?" Coffey's "why" was to get in shape; his purpose was to be able to keep up with his three young children. "I want to be energized when they want to play," he said. "I don't want to be the parent who says 'I can't.'"

*Get a voice in your head.*
To invite such positivity into my own cold dark heart, I take the outdoor running classes in the Peloton app, which is less expensive than their stationary bikes or treadmills. For 20 to 60 minutes I get an instructor in my ear keeping me going, playing his or her favorite music and sharing running tips or suggesting when to walk.

"I let people lean on me as the coach," said Becs Gentry, one of Peloton's running instructors. Since she records classes while running herself, Ms. Gentry uses her own internal battles as motivators. If she feels exhausted she'll say: "I know this sucks, guys, but we are gonna do this together. Don't let me down." Or: "You can do this for three minutes. Think of all the things that take longer than three minutes."

For a less chatty virtual trainer, you can use the Couch to 5K app, a beginner-friendly program that lets you choose characters like Johnny Dead, a brain-chasing zombie, or Runicorn, the running unicorn, to tell you when to run or walk.

*Re-wear your dirty clothes.*
Experts will advise sleeping in your running gear - compression tights and all - so there is nothing between you and starting your morning run. The idea is that you're putting friction between you and getting out the door. And, as Tara Parker-Pope explained in our 7-Day Well Challenge, removing obstacles like this makes it more likely you'll achieve a new health goal. But there was no way I was sleeping in a sports bra or getting myself out of bed before 7 a.m. to run.
The light bulb moment came when the woman who leads my running group, Helen McCaffrey Birney, told us over Zoom that she just doesn't always wear clean clothes to run. She re-wears her cute leggings with pockets, and no one is the wiser. Since the one thing I need less of during the pandemic is laundry (a close second to dirty dishes), this has been the perfect way to cut down on friction and housework.
If you're also OK re-wearing gear, just be sure to keep those dirty clothes in one spot in your room, perhaps on a hook so the sweat dries in time for the next workout. Eventually, you should wash them before they start announcing themselves as they enter a room - my experience is probably after three wearings.

*Don't run fast.*
You may not think of yourself as speedy, but you are probably running faster than you need to. Think you're moving slower than if you were walking? Slow down more. Feeling like a turtle? Put the turtle in slow-motion.
You will be able to run longer this way, and the slower you go the more you can pay attention to your body. That ache in your shins is telling you something, but not necessarily that you need to stop running. Maybe you need to put your foot down differently or try a different recovery stretch.

As a bonus, you will also learn your way around when you run slowly. "Running was my GPS," Coffey told me. When he takes out groups in New York City, the goal is never to get fast; it is to see the city. As someone who is extremely directionally challenged, exploring my small suburb by foot has meant finally knowing which street to take to get to my kids' art classes.

*Find your fellow slowpokes.*
Finding a chill community like Coffey's "run crew" near you can be a godsend. They'll hold you accountable without getting competitive. And for some, having that group to run with in person is motivating simply because it's social.
But if you are like me, and running with other humans creates more pressure to perform, join up virtually. Lurk in an online running group to see if you become inspired reading about others' experiences. Ms. Birney, who is the chief executive of Cultivate Health Coaching, said people have been in her Facebook group for two years before actually deciding to start running.

Through Run Across America, a site that launched last year, you can join virtual races with a buddy or a team that raises money for nonprofit organizations and track your progress toward a goal. You can even take a "sweaty selfie" with their app each time you finish a run.

For Ms. Birney, taking that picture is key. When she moved her program online, she started asking everyone to share photos after finishing a run. Now, the group's feed fills up with messy pictures from women like me. We post our pictures proudly and the likes and congratulatory comments roll in. That camaraderie may be the biggest motivator I've found yet.

Ready to get started? Find someone who will hold you accountable, listen to upbeat trainers, think positively and snap a photo in your dirty clothes. Then we can all go right back to being our snarkiest non-sporty selves.









How I Tricked Myself Into Liking Running (Published 2021)


It’s good for your mental and physical health, and doesn’t require any equipment. So why does it seem so hard to get started?




www.nytimes.com


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

Sunday is Runday! 16km Run Ride pairing


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

I'm training for my first 50k and aiming for half this pace!... always mind boggling for me the true next-levelness of these runners

*A Bored Des Linden Broke a World Record. Boston Is Next.*









Des Linden missed the adrenaline of the starting line. So she created her own challenges, and set a world record


Des Linden was antsy. So she decided to go after a 50-kilometer (31 miles) world record - a distance she had never raced before. (Professional runners, they're just like us!)

That goal came into view last year, when, like the rest of us, her world was turned upside down and she was hunting for new challenges.

She noticed the 50-kilometer world record was a breakable (for her, anyway) 3 hours, 7 minutes and started training. Last week, she crushed it, not only breaking the record but also reaching her ultimate goal of finishing in under three hours. Her time, a new world record, was 2 hours, 59 minutes and 54 seconds

"It felt like a very small taste of racing," Linden told one of my colleagues, Matthew Futterman, an avid runner himself. Futterman first caught wind of Linden's plan to go for the 50K record last October when he shared some 28 miles with Linden in New York City. Linden was finishing her calendar challenge - running as many miles as the date on the calender every day during October.

Like so many of us, Linden has sorely missed the adrenaline of the starting line during the past 14 months.
Linden described these challenges - racing against the clock, piling up miles during that 196-mile final week of October - as "necessary evils until we can do the thing that I like to do, which is race against other people, on tough courses against great competition."

She finished fourth at the U.S. Olympic marathon trials last year, so she will not get the chance to race in Tokyo, but she announced this week that she will be racing in the rescheduled Boston Marathon in October, a race she won in a frozen deluge in 2018.

The 50K record came in an event with about a dozen other runners, several of them pacers, chasing personal goals. Nick Thompson, the chief executive of The Atlantic, who also happens to be one of the fastest 40-something male marathoners in the country, broke the U.S. record for the 45- to 49-year-old age group. He ran in a blistering 3 hours, 4 minutes, and 36 seconds, just under a 6-minute-per-mile pace (Way to make the rest of us running reporters look lazy, Thompson.)


New York times editorial


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

I know this athlete is under 50 however his story is truely inspirational and he has some good tips for training (applicable to many forms of sports but especially running)

*How 45-year-old Nicholas Thompson Trained to Run 5:56 per mile for 50K*
_The former Wired editor, now CEO of The Atlantic, Nicholas Thompson is busier - and faster - than ever at 45. Here's how the new age-group American 50K record-holder does it.








_

In the last several years, Nicholas Thompson has emerged as one of America's more interesting runners. While holding down major magazine jobs - first as editor in chief at Wired, now (since December) as CEO of The Atlantic - Thompson has gotten older, busier, and substantially faster in the marathon.

On a brisk Tuesday morning this week in Oregon, Thompson entered the American record books. He raced 50K in 3:04:36 (just under 6:00 pace) to break the age 45-49 record previously held by ultramarathon legend Michael Wardian. See Thompson's Strava record of his 50K.

Less than five minutes ahead of him, Des Linden established a new world record with her 2:59:54. Afterwards, they celebrated by drinking champagne from their running shoes.

The closed, private race, named the Brooks Row River 50K, was run on a flat 6.55-mile out-and-back asphalt bicycle path through forest near Cottage Grove, OR, 20 miles south of Eugene.

"I'm stoked that Nicholas set a new record, and couldn't be happier for him," said Wardian. "But I would definitely like to better the time."

As his running has improved, Thompson has also been writing more about it. A year-ago piece in Wired ranks among the best-ever running essays. In it, he recalls how he first ran a mile at age five with his father, who grew up in Bacone, Oklahoma. The next year, he watched his dad run 3:01:19 at New York City shortly before his father came out as gay. A self-described "nerdy, pimply" prep schooler, Thompson tried track at 15, performing well before he flopped at Stanford.










Thompson (left) celebrating a day of records with Des Linden (right)

In 2005 Thompson ran 2:43 at New York City. The following year he endured several thyroid cancer surgeries, and then recorded another 2:43 in 2007. Over the next decade, he ran many 2:42s to 2:46s. Then came a breakthrough to 2:38 in 2018, and an even more impressive 2:29:13 at the 2019 Chicago Marathon. He was 44, getting faster, and setting big personal bests - with ever-bigger, more stress-filled jobs, and three young children.

We talked with Thompson about his record-breaking 50K race, how he achieved it, and how he fits running into his life.

*Podium Runner:* How did the race go for you?

*Nicholas Thompson:* The weather and course were almost ideal. It was about 40 degrees at the start, and we were running through trees to block the wind. I only had one goal - to break the age-group record, 3:06:10, or just under 6:00 minutes per mile. The race was really small with a couple of pace groups, but none for me. I thought I could maybe hang with the 2:35:30 group, but when I hit the mile in 5:51, it felt quick, and my heart rate was too high. I shifted back a little, especially the fourth mile, and then I felt remarkably good through 19 miles or so.
I hit the marathon in 2:35:20, and then just told myself to say close to 6:00s the rest of the way. It didn't make any difference if I ran 3:03 or 3:04. I was first in the masters division - and last in the division. I just didn't want to slow down and end up with a 3:07 or something.

*PR:* What gave you the confidence to redline your pace for 31.1 miles?

*NT:* My heart rate monitor, and my heart rate. In my last four or five marathons, and on my tempo runs, I've come to rely heavily on monitoring heart rate. As long as I was seeing something in the 130s early on, I thought I could hold that pace for three hours. I expected it to creep into the 140s the second half, and maybe to 150 near the end.
Before the race, I was talking with a friend about how hard it was going to get at some point. He said, "When that happens, just think of something harder." So I spent some time thinking about the 2:29 I ran in 2019, which was harder than the pace I was running in the 50K.

*PR:* Did you ever in your wildest dreams imagine yourself as an American record holder?

*NT:* No. It's surreal. I don't think I ever had a moment in life where I imagined I could get an American Record. I wasn't even the best runner in my high school, and I was the worst recruit on a college team I promptly failed off of. And though I, of course, know the 50k for men over 45 is a soft record (it's a weird distance, and a weird age), I still can't believe my name is on any chart right below Bill Rodgers and Bernard Lagat.

*PR:* You were a consistent, veteran marathoner in the low 2:40-range for quite a few years. That's something very hard to break out of, especially as you're getting older. But you managed it. How?

*NT:* I've spent a lot of time thinking about that. There may be several primary reasons. First, I got much more focused on getting real coaching advice. Before Steve Finley of the Brooklyn Track Club became my coach, I'd never had anyone who checked on every workout I did.

Second, I think that maybe a key part of aging successfully is doing something new. A new stimulus. I did long runs and tempos and speedwork with Steve, but it was the shorter intervals in particular that opened things up for me. And of course I changed jobs.

Third, psychology has to be a key part of anyone's running. I had been a good runner in high school, a failure in college, and a 2:43 marathoner at age 30. After that, I think I was mostly content to just maintain my running at that level. Steve taught me a new way of looking at things. When I ran 2:38, I thought, "Wow, I can't believe I did that." But he said, "I think you can run faster." Once I accepted that, it wasn't so hard to progress to 2:34 and 2:29.
Lastly, I've been lucky enough to not get injured. I sleep well, I eat well, and I do an incredible amount of sports with my three kids (ages 12, 10, and 7). We play soccer, we skateboard, we do other stuff, I toss them around a lot. Maybe I found the sweet spot for cross-training and achieving a balanced core.

*PR:* What are the key workouts in your weekly or monthly rotation?

*NT:* Every week, I do a long run, a speed workout, and a tempo run, but only one of the three is really hard. If I do a hard long run, for example, my speed and tempo workouts won't be too hard. I did a range or runs to get ready for the 50K. I had one 30-miler in Brooklyn, about 7:30 pace, mainly to get used to the pounding and taking gels.
I ran a 5K in March in 16:08, which beat my PR of 16:12 from 1992. I'm wondering if anyone else has had that many years between 5K bests. And I did a 1-mile-repeats workout starting at 5:30, and then running 3 seconds faster for each of the following miles for as long as I could keep getting faster. I ended up doing 7 x 1-mile.

*PR:* At Wired, you had early access to the Nike super shoes, you obviously like your heart rate monitor, you probably use a special-gel &#8230; which of these and other newer devices have been the most important for you?

*NT:* First, heart rate. Second, the shoes. Third, Maurten, which I did use in the 50K. Then compression socks and a Kipchoge shirt, they maybe add a little. The heart rate monitor taught me how to run my tempo workouts and race marathons. The shoes are an immense help. Everything else has just a minor effect.

*PR:* You had a big job at Wired and then switched to a maybe bigger one at The Atlantic, where you became CEO - the person in charge of the business. How did you keep your running on track, and even build to this first ultramarathon effort?

*NT:* Running simply doesn't take that much time. It's such a great sport that way. At Wired, I was running to and from work as my commute, and it didn't take much longer than the subway. The pandemic ended that routine of course, but I'd get out to run at 8 a.m. or so before my business day got crazy. Running is much easier to fit in than other sports.

*PR:* Why do you run?

*NT:* I just love it. It's a form of meditation. It's one of the few times during the day when I can just concentrate on my breathing and my thoughts. It's very useful to have that kind of meditative time during a work day that can be stressful. I think that the time I spend running helps me do all the other things I love









*How 45-year-old Nicholas Thompson Trained to Run 5:56 per mile for 50K - PodiumRunner*
The former Wired editor, now CEO of The Atlantic, Nicholas Thompson is busier - and faster - than ever at 45. Here's how the new age-group American 50K record-holder does it.







www.podiumrunner.com


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## nOOky (May 13, 2008)

That's pretty quick indeed!


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

*How to Fall on a Trail Run Without Hurting Yourself*

Elite trail and ultrarunner Max King says he's no stranger to falling while running. "It's my background," he says. "I didn't just grow up running, but I was always running through the woods, rollerblading, mountain biking. As a kid, I think I spent half the time on the ground."

These days, King says he falls less, but still tends to take a tumble on a rugged trail run now and then. Thankfully, he rarely injures himself during these spills. "I've learned how to do it to minimize getting hurt," he says.

We caught up with King, who's racing the Canyons 100K Saturday, April 24 in an attempt to earn a golden ticket into June's Western States 100-Mile Endurance Run. He's also gearing up to race May's Expedition Oregon Adventure Race, where he and three teammates will traipse around the Southern Oregon woods and rivers for three to six days straight. With sleep deprivation and sheer exhaustion surely coming into play, it's a good thing King has mastered the "safe" fall.

Here are the Salomon-sponsored athlete's tips on how to fall during a trail run to minimize injury:


*Channel your inner kid.* "If you had a rough and tumble childhood, and especially if you have a background in gravity sports like biking, trampoline, skateboarding, rollerblading&#8230;tapping into those experiences helps," he says. "Knowing that, 'Hey, falling hurts,' remembering what it's going to feel like and that you're likely going to be okay can prepare you and keep you loose. When you're tense and afraid to fall, you don't do it as gracefully." King acknowledges that, as adults, falling hurts increasingly more as we age. "Still, if you do it right, a fall might hurt for days afterward, but you're usually generally okay."
*Build strength to build durability.* There's a strength component that helps, says King. "Having a stronger core, and stronger skeletal structure can help reduce the injury risk," he says. "Your strength going into a fall will determine how much that fall hurts after the fact." Being strong and consistently doing strength work keeps a falling injury minor, instead of jarring everything out of place when you do fall. King points out the importance of oblique/rotational exercises, but adds that routines that incorporate whole-body functionality - like deadlifts or overhead squats - can be key.
*If you can slide, slide. If you can roll, roll.* Sliding on loose dirt, rock or snow can slow your impact force, even if the slide ends in a fall. "Go with your momentum," says King. And if you can roll through your fall, and use the momentum in your favor, you'll be better off than trying to stop yourself. "It's those abrupt stops that can really mess you up," he says.
*Change your course, even mid-air.* It is possible, says King, to change your course as you fall. "Seek soft landings, and do your best to land on them," he advises. Shifting your balance - even mid-air - in a different direction to avoid sharp pointy objects, sticks, and rocks is key. "Be prepared to sacrifice yourself onto a soft surface rather than being impaled on a sharp stick or rock."
*Protect the goods.* Whether you slide, roll, or hit the deck abruptly, try to protect what needs to be protected. Sliding and rolling mentioned above helps ease the harsh impact of your falling body, but even when landing abruptly, King advises trying to get your hands down in front of your face. "Protect the vital parts. Try to land on something that can take some impact, like a shoulder, arm, or hand, rather than your chest, head or hips."









How to Fall on a Trail Run Without Hurting Yourself


Pro runner Max King offers tips, tricks, and helpful perspective.




www.podiumrunner.com


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

I did a 20km training run on caturday. Hilly, sunny and lots of interesting views along the way. I chilled with Rocket afterwards


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

I ran the first in a series of races on Sunday. 5Peaks is a virtual unsupported series of increasingly progressive runs. The weather was overcast and it rained intermittently and I pushed myself. I took a few pics along the way


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

http://imgur.com/8HYsaoe


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

Sports Illustrated takes on the annual challenge to rank the world's best athletes. This year, its top 50 fittest athletes (defined as "the best-conditioned athletes in the world") includes plenty of runners, such as marathoner Sara Hall, 400-meter runner Dalilah Muhammad, sprinter Noah Lyles, ultra runner Courtney Dauwalter, sprinter Tianna Bartoletta, steeplechaser Emma Coburn, track athlete Shaunae Miller-Uibo, ultra marathoner Jim Walmsley and, of course, marathoner Eliud Kipchoge. Also noteworthy is that all there is not one cyclist in the top 50. I'm not sure if that was an oversight but there are representatives from a wide variety of sports including golf, surfing, crossfit... hockey, baseball! gymnastics, skiing, etc and not one cyclist.









Sports Illustrated's Fittest 50 2021


What happens when you level the playing field and compare athletes of all shapes and sizes in disparate sports? Presenting SI's 2021 Fittest 50 rankings.




www.si.com


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## Velobike (Jun 23, 2007)

You'd think the riders in the like of the Tour de France would have to be among the fittest. Day after day turning out high performance over long distances and mountains.

Imagine a marathon runner if they had to do twice the distance each day and keep it up for 3 weeks at a competitive pace...


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## nOOky (May 13, 2008)

Velobike said:


> You'd think the riders in the like of the Tour de France would have to be among the fittest. Day after day turning out high performance over long distances and mountains.
> 
> Imagine a marathon runner if they had to do twice the distance each day and keep it up for 3 weeks at a competitive pace...


World Cup mountain bikers have to be right up there also, right with xc skiers. I guess their list includes more diverse athletes, not just endurance athletes.


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)




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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

Sharing a survey if you wish to partake 

Endurance runners needed for a UniSA "Mindfulness & Running Experiences" Study

The University of South Australia is looking for adult distance runners (run 10km or greater during some running sessions) to complete a study exploring mindfulness and positive running experiences. The survey will take <10 minutes of your time to complete!

The online survey can be accessed at Mindfulness, attention use and endurance running

This project has been approved by the University of South Australia's Human Research Ethics Committee Ethics Protocol 203723


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

This is very sad... the runners were not prepared for the extreme change in weather. The weather can change drastically in high altitudes and I'm surprised the possibility of inclement weather wasn't considered. I'm prepping for my first ultra (virtual) but I watch the forecasts closely and I'm putting it off until next weekend when the weather forecast should be cooler

*21 dead after extreme cold weather hits cross-country race in China*
Twenty-one people running a mountain ultramarathon have died in northwestern China after hail, freezing rain and gale winds hit the high-altitude race, state media reported Sunday.

After an all-night rescue operation in freezing temperatures involving more than 700 personnel, rescuers were able to confirm that 151 people were safe out of a total of 172 participants. Twenty-one had died, according to the official Xinhua News Agency, which said the runners suffered from physical discomfort and the sudden drop in temperature.

The runners were racing on an extremely narrow mountain path at an altitude reaching 2,000-3,000 metres. The 100-kilometre race was held Saturday in the Yellow River Stone Forest tourist site in Baiyin city in Gansu province.

Participants were not rookies. One of the deceased was well-known runner Liang Jing, who had won a 100-km race in Ningbo, reported the Paper, a state-backed newspaper based in Shanghai.

*Weather caught runners off guard*
It was a relatively established course, having been held four times, according to an account posted online by a participant in the race who quit and managed to make his way to safety.

But the weather had caught them off guard, and on the morning of the race on Saturday, he already sensed things were not normal. The runners were not dressed for winter-like conditions, many wearing short-sleeved tops.

"I ran 2 kilometers before the starting gun fired to warm up ... but the troublesome thing was, after running these 2 kilometers, my body still had not heated up," the competitor said in a first-person account that had been viewed more than 100,000 times on his WeChat account "Wandering about the South."

He later told the Paper that the forecast the day prior to the race did not predict the extreme weather they encountered.

The most difficult section, from kilometre 24 to kilometre 36, climbed 1,000 metres. There, he said, the path was just a mix of stones and sand, and his fingers grew numb from the cold.

When he finally decided to turn back, he already felt dazed. He said he was able to make it to safety and met a rescue crew. He did not respond to a request for comment left on his social media account.

*Mayor apologizes*
Those farther along the path, who needed rescue, had fallen off deep into mountain crevices, according to a reporter for state broadcaster CCTV.

Video footage showed rescuers in winter jackets in the pitch dark night searching with flashlights along steep hills and narrow paths.

Baiyin city Mayor Zhang Xuchen held a news conference later Sunday and profoundly apologized as the organizer of the event.

"We express deep condolences and sympathy to the families of the victims and the injured," the mayor said.



https://www.cbc.ca/news/world/cross-country-race-deaths-extreme-weather-china-1.6037910?fbclid=IwAR277rZioed6S0dA7VMGRdFxcprqIL-3ppKbHAtHNW84_6bJ_xoAGuSXeMU


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## Velobike (Jun 23, 2007)

I know it was a foot race, but for winter events I always tell anyone who will listen to me 'dress for the mountain', not the race or the bike.


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

I ran my first Ultra (50km) race. I am super stoked to have finished just 4 days shy of my birthday. The 50km ultra was an option offered when I registered in January for the Tamarack-Ottawa Virtual Marathon. I hesitantly decided to try this new challenge as a progression to my first marathon (42.2km) last year. I trained hard, followed my strict vegan diet (7years going strong), did my daily basement gym workouts with Chris and my efforts paid off! It was tough. But it was beautiful. I hit 4:41:32 at the 42.2km point which was (approx 44 min) faster than my marathon time last year (5:25:44). My Ultra time was 5:17:14. I want to thank Chris who, accompanied me on his bike for a couple laps, cheered me on and kept me grounded. As a race charity option I donated to the Ottawa Humane Society (I ran for the animals) and kept my family in mind in addition to chanting a few mantras along the way. I had good positive vibes


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## chazpat (Sep 23, 2006)

Wow! Congrats!


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

I remain 49/149 participants for the 50km
I'm 15/ 60 for women's place overall
I'm 1/12 age group place
I'm 1/7 age group gender place

Hanging in there


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

Today is Global Run Day!

*AGE IS NO BARRIER FOR 'JOE CRAZY LEGS'*

Joseph Camilleri (known within the running community as Joe Crazy Legs) was born in Malta but has lived much of his life in Canada. The retired photographer has now put roots down on the west coast in Victoria, British Columbia and lives there with his wife Dorothy.
Running for Joe began at school in Malta where he ran for fun and then became more serious during his college years where he was part of an athletics club. When he emigrated to England in 1969, and then onto Canada in 1972 his career made it impossible to stay focused on running so he hit pause on pounding the pavements for four decades.
Forty years later, Joe's return to the sport was inspired by a statue of Canadian hero Terry Fox that caught his eye while out walking one day. He started with some shorter distance races in 2010 but felt he needed a bigger challenge and this is where the marathon entered his life, at the age of 67.
He completed his first 26.2-mile endeavour at the 2017 Vancouver Marathon in 3:30:45 topping his age category and giving him a place in the 2018 Boston Marathon.
"Boston 2018 has to be one of my most memorable races which I finished in 4:30 despite the storm; and after crossing the finish line I ended up in the medical tent for over an hour suffering from hypothermia. What an experience."










Joe is in a happy place with his life and running, but it wasn't always an easy road. Like so many, he has experienced mental health challenges along the way.
"My mental health issues started surfacing around the time I closed my photography business in 2004. However, they did not manifest themselves fully until 2005 when I moved back to Malta. I started suffering from depression which culminated in a mental breakdown with suicidal thoughts. I was on heavy medication and on suicide watch.
"My loving wife Dorothy nursed me back from that dark place but it was not until I moved back to Canada in 2007 that I really started healing. I am happy to say that since I re-discovered running I have never looked back and running has provided me with the best form of positive healing."
Once back in Canada, Joe not only worked on his mental health, but also changed his diet as part of his health regime. He became vegetarian in 2013 and then just before his first marathon he switched to a fully vegan diet.
"I truly believe that this has helped me recover much faster and stay injury free for the last four years."
The global pandemic didn't stop Joe from continuing his marathon achievements. Joe registered for the AbbottWMM Global Marathon and trained as he would any other marathon.
His efforts on May 2 earned him a new personal best of 3:23:02 and he finished in contention for one of 100 invites to the 2022 AbbottWMM Wanda Age Group World Championships.









"To get a personal best at the Global Marathon was really gratifying. I had some friends helping with the hydration stations and cheering me on, so I really got into the racing atmosphere. To achieve a place in the World Championships would be something amazing and would really prove that age is no barrier."
Joe hopes to inspire others to get into running whatever their age, but a sensible approach is needed.
"For those who start running, especially later in life like I did, I recommend that they look at the bigger picture and build-up slowly to avoid injuries. Rest and recovery days should be taken seriously. Initially I was guilty of going too hard on my recovery days which often led to injury.
He continues to set himself challenges including ultra-marathons and earning his Six Star medal over the next few years, but credits his wife and her support as being a continuing driving force.
"I am totally committed and passionate about my running. I like to say 'If you want to stay young, do what the young ones do'.
"Running has given me an outlet to keep striving to do my best in something that I love. Dorothy has helped me achieve so much already and she is my biggest supporter come rain, hail or shine."









Age is no barrier for ‘Joe Crazy Legs’


This runner began marathon running later in life but is not slowing down




www.worldmarathonmajors.com


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

Today is Global Run Day! And It's my birthday... guess what I'm doing


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## chazpat (Sep 23, 2006)

cyclelicious said:


> Today is Global Run Day! And It's my birthday... guess what I'm doing


Eating (vegan) birthday cake?

Happy birthday, cyclelicious!


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

chazpat said:


> Eating (vegan) birthday cake?
> 
> Happy birthday, cyclelicious!


Thank you


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## nOOky (May 13, 2008)

Congrats on your 50k! That's a great time for your first!


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

They may not make the Tokyo Olympics, but the Japanese track athletes Matashiro Suruga, 91, Yuzo Kudo, 92, Kozo Mitsuya, 90, and Hiro Tanaka, 90, set a world record by running the 4x400 meter relay in 8:49:01. 
Their time breaks the previous world record by almost four minutes (yes, minutes). Tanaka ran the last leg in 1 minute 40 seconds.


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## paramount3 (Jul 13, 2014)

She's not over 50, but check out Shelly Ann Fraser Price:




Age 34 after having a baby four years ago, 10.63 for the 100m.


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

*Gene Dy kes breaks M70 50K world record*









On a sunny Sunday in East Islip, NY, #ultrageezer *Gene Dy kes *broke the M70 50K world record at the USATF National 50K road championships, crossing the finish line in 3:56:43. He beat the previous record of 4:15:55, set by Germany's *Wilhelm Hofmann* in 1997, by nearly 19 minutes.










This is the third world record Dy kes can add to his resume, along with his M70 100-mile and 24-hour records. While his time has yet to be ratified, this is an incredible accomplishment for the already-decorated ultra runner. To make his run even more impressive, he completed another 50K trail race only two weeks prior to his record-breaking run, and it's been barely one month since he ran 152 miles (245 kilometres) at the Cocodona 250 in Arizona.

According to Dy kes, the weather for Sunday's race in Caumsett State Park was sunny, moderately windy, and not too hot, with temperatures hovering in the low 20s for most of the event. In a brief conversation with him after the race, he told Canadian Running (in a half-joking, half-serious manner) that he credits Canada's late *Ed Whitlock, *one of the most decorated masters runners who ever lived, with his new 50K record.

"Thank you, Ed Whitlock, for never running a 50K," he says.

***** is still aiming to take down Whitlock's M70 marathon world record of 2:54:48, which he will attempt to do at this year's London Marathon on October 3.

https://runningmagazine.ca/sections/runs-races/gene-*****-breaks-m70-50k-world-record/


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

Follow up (pushed, fell or jumped?)

*China Accuses 32 in Ultramarathon Disaster, but Main Suspect Is Dead








*

BEIJING - Less than three weeks after 21 people died amid freezing rain and high winds during a 62-mile footrace in northwestern China, officials said on Friday that 31 people would be held responsible and that the leader of the county in which the ultramarathon was held had died in a fall from a high-rise building.

Officials said that the county's Communist Party chief, Li Zuobi, was primarily responsible for the race's high death toll. Officials confirmed on Friday that Mr. Li had fallen to his death on Wednesday, but the circumstances were not immediately clear.

Five employees of the company that organized the May 22 ultramarathon in Yellow River Stone Forest Park in Jingtai County, Gansu Province, will face criminal charges, the authorities said. Twenty-six local party officials have been disciplined, with measures including administrative warnings, loss of their jobs, detention and criminal investigations.

The swiftness of the investigation and the speed with which disciplinary measures were meted out and criminal complaints were prepared underline a consistent theme in Chinese politics in recent years: Local leaders are quickly blamed when disasters occur.

When the central authorities in Beijing want to show that they are taking swift action during a crisis, they often blame those on the ground. In the aftermaths of coronavirus outbreaks, coal mine explosions and other incidents, local leaders often lose their jobs or are subject to Communist Party disciplinary measures.

Jingtai County is on the northern outskirts of Baiyin, a desert copper mining town that has fallen on hard times in recent years after once rich veins of copper were exhausted. Baiyin has a national reputation for chronic unemployment and high rates of crime, including grisly murders of women and girls by a serial killer who eluded the police for 28 years.

Jingtai County and Baiyin tried to improve their grim images by hosting the ultramarathon, with runners navigating shepherd's paths through a dramatic terrain of golden mountains and sharp stone pillars.

But when freezing rain and hail fell on the race, 21 of the 172 elite runners died, including two of China's top marathoners. Another runner is still in the hospital after being seriously injured. Runners were wearing little more than T-shirts and shorts.

China's central government and its state-owned news media have suggested that local officials put profits over safety. But provincial government investigators were less harsh on Friday, describing a lack of planning.

The police in Baiyin received a call on Wednesday that a man had fallen from a building and later confirmed that it was Mr. Li, the county official. Li Ming, the deputy director of the Gansu Provincial Public Security Department, said that Mr. Li's death was not being handled as a criminal case, but he did not label it a suicide.

It is common for officials to be placed under surveillance or detained during initial investigations of disasters. Provincial officials did not say whether Mr. Li was being watched by the authorities at the time of his fatal fall, which reportedly happened at his home.

Beijing last week suspended ultramarathons and other long-distance races nationwide. The heavy loss of life in last month's race has also prompted concern around the world about whether participants in ultramarathons should be required to carry additional clothing and other gear in case of inclement weather.









China Accuses 32 in Ultramarathon Disaster, but Main Suspect Is Dead (Published 2021)


Organizers of the May race, which claimed 21 lives, face criminal charges and disciplinary action. The man said to bear primary responsibility died in a fall from a high-rise this week.




www.nytimes.com


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

l should try some of these. In retrospect I was running in shoes that were too small for me.


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)




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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)




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## Ptor (Jan 29, 2004)

*2001: A Running Odyssey*
I've run at least 1 mile every day for 2001 days straight (just shy of five and a half years). Longest run was 15 miles (a mountain trail race), shortest was 1.01 miles (day after the mountain trail race). Top 3 runs during the streak -- cruising a mountain trail with my dog when the aspen leaves were golden, post-holing through 8 inches of fresh snow at -20F around Old Faithful in Yellowstone, trotting the lower slopes of the North Kaibab Trail at the bottom of the Grand Canyon.
Things I've learned:
1. I'm not a natural runner
2. I need to run short (average ~2.7 miles/day), slow (I mean REALLY slow) and alternate shoes daily to avoid injury
3. It's more fun to run with a dog than not (miss you Leila -- and I'm expecting big things of you Ida!)
4. The daily outing is a great stress reliever and maintainer of base fitness and health.


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## nOOky (May 13, 2008)

I've signed up for a 50k July 2nd, it will be hot and buggy and muggy. That will be a long training run for the Tahoe 50 miler 2 weeks later. Tahoe looks to be more climbing than I thought, over 11,000 feet of gain, with a 4,400 foot climb to warm the legs up. Then 6 weeks until UTMB CCC. It's going to be a long summer with Mountain Lakes 100 miler only 3 weeks after that.


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## coachal (Jun 24, 2021)

Running is where I started and I'm still doing it at 61. It began with a goal to get to and qualify for Boston, and became one of my passions. It's been a lot of years since the 2:39 Boston PR and my 9x IM finishes, but it is still what I enjoy the most. Riding off-road is a close second!


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

I have taken ibuprofen during a run when I had some tendonitis in my ankle... it helped immensely but now discovered this article. I will think twice before reaching for that pain reliever. "It's ironic to preach moderation in extreme sports, but moderation is probably a safe approach".The recommendation is to switch to Tylenol (acetaminophen) and post run treatments

*Pain reliever linked to kidney injury in endurance runners*
The common practice of taking ibuprofen for pain relief while competing in ultramarathons causes an increased risk of acute kidney injury, a Stanford study says.

People who take the painkiller ibuprofen while running very long distances double their risk of acute kidney injury, according to a study by researchers at the Stanford University School of Medicine and several other institutions.

As many as 75 percent of ultramarathoners use the nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drug, or NSAID, in this fashion, according to Grant Lipman, MD, clinical associate professor of

emergency medicine at Stanford and director of Stanford Wilderness Medicine. And while most cases of acute kidney injury appear to resolve spontaneously, the condition has the potential to progress to renal failure, he said.

Lipman is lead author of the study, which was published online July 5 in _Emergency Medical Journal_. Brian Krabak, MD, a sports and rehabilitation medicine specialist at the University of Washington-Seattle, is the senior author.

"Running these races tends to hurt," said Lipman, who has served as the medical director of RacingThePlanet ultramarathon events, which are held in various parts of the world, including China, Antarctica and Chile. Lipman said he has seen firsthand how common it is for runners to take ibuprofen both before, during and after these races to relieve pain and reduce joint swelling.

*Decreasing blood flow to kidneys*
"In medical school, we were all taught to be careful of ibuprofen because it decreases blood flow to the kidneys," he said. However, almost all previous studies looking at the effect of the drug on the kidneys in running events have shown no negative effects, he said.

Lipman and his colleagues conducted the first randomized, placebo-controlled, double-blinded study to test the use of ibuprofen in ultramarathoners. They hypothesized that ibuprofen would not result in an increased rate of acute kidney injury compared to placebo.

The 89 participants who completed the trial were randomized to take either ibuprofen or a placebo during a 50-mile section of one of four different seven-day, 155-mile ultramarathons. They were required to refrain from taking ibuprofen at least 12 hours prior to the 50-mile section. They ran in ultramarathons either in China, Chile, Ecuador or Sri Lanka. They ran through wilderness terrain with few roads and varying topography, and they carried all their personal items for the duration of the race, including all their gear, food and clothing.

The morning of the 50-mile section, the participants were weighed, and each was given a baggie of either sugar pills or 400-milligram ibuprofen pills. They were told to take one pill every four hours.

Twelve- to 36-hours later, depending on the speed of the runners, the participants were met by the researchers at the medical tent. There, they were weighed and their electrolyte levels and renal functioning were measured.

*Rates of kidney injury*
Forty-seven percent of the participants took ibuprofen, and 53 percent took the placebo. Results showed that about 39 of the 89 participants had acute kidney injury at the end of the 50-mile section of the race. There was an 18 percent higher rate of kidney injury among those who took the drug compared to those who didn't, the study found.

Lipman called this an impressive difference.

"Basically, for every five runners who took ibuprofen, there was one additional case of acute kidney injury. That's a pretty high rate," he said.

Ultramarathon races have increased in popularity in recent years. The number of races worldwide reached 1,357 in 2015, with over 70,000 runners finishing these races every year, the study said.

"With ultramarathon running increasing in popularity, it is important to study how commonly used medications may affect physiology and performance in this population," said Brandee Waite, MD, associate professor of sports medicine at UC-Davis, who was not connected with the study. "This information can help runners make an informed choice about whether or not to use an NSAID for pain management during an ultramarathon and is a step toward helping physicians establish evidence-based recommendations for their ultra-running patients."

This study should cause endurance athletes and distance runners pause before taking ibuprofen while competing, but does not infer that the average athlete would necessarily face similar effects from taking the drug, Lipman said.

"I would generalize to say, yes, caution should be warranted taking ibuprofen during long distance runs or other endurance sports events," he said. "But I would not push that caution to the general lay population. This study's conclusions are for endurance athletes."

*Risks for distance runners*
Acute kidney injury is common in these athletes due to the high rates of dehydration that cause reduced blood flow and rhabdomyolsis - a breakdown of muscle tissue that leads to the release of muscle fiber contents into the blood, which is harmful to the kidney and often causes kidney damage, Lipman said. In fact, acute kidney injury has been recorded in 34 to 85 percent of all ultramarathoners, the study said.

This study shows that adding ibuprofen into this mix further increases the danger of kidney damage, Lipman said.

"Studies show that for most people, this acute kidney injury is usually resolved within a day or two after the race," he said. "However, numbers of runners have ended up being hospitalized from renal failure."

Two years ago, an athlete participating in the Boulder Ironman triathlon died three days later due to kidney failure caused by dehydration and rhabdomyolysis associated with excessive exercise. He was 40 years old.

"We hypothesized that we were going to say ibuprofen is safe," said Lipman, an endurance runner himself who regularly used the pain reliever during races. "We thought we'd be able to say 'Go forth and run and have no pain.'

*"I felt surprised and a little shocked that it really is as bad for you as we found," said Lipman, who has now switched to using acetaminophen, such as Tylenol, for pain relief and taking ice baths after racing. "I feel it's ironic to preach moderation in extreme sports, but moderation is probably a safe approach. If something hurts, these athletes might want to consider taking acetaminophen instead."*

Other Stanford co-authors were wilderness medicine fellows Kate Shea, MD, clinical instructor of emergency medicine and Mark Christensen, DO, clinical instructor of emergency medicine; and Rebecca Higbee, MD, Stanford-Kaiser emergency medicine resident.

Researchers at the University of Colorado, Harvard University and Washington University in St. Louis, also contributed to the study.

The study was funded by a research grant from RacingThePlanet; diagnostic equipment was donated by Abbott, which was returned at the end of the study.









Pain reliever linked to kidney injury in endurance runners


The common practice of taking ibuprofen for pain relief while competing in ultramarathons causes an increased risk of acute kidney injury, a Stanford study says.




med.stanford.edu


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)




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## quite.right (Sep 29, 2016)

> running helmet


👑


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## paramount3 (Jul 13, 2014)

cyclelicious said:


> I have taken ibuprofen during a run when I had some tendonitis in my ankle... it helped immensely but now discovered this article. I will think twice before reaching for that pain reliever. "It's ironic to preach moderation in extreme sports, but moderation is probably a safe approach".The recommendation is to switch to Tylenol (acetaminophen) and post run treatments
> 
> *Pain reliever linked to kidney injury in endurance runners*
> The common practice of taking ibuprofen for pain relief while competing in ultramarathons causes an increased risk of acute kidney injury, a Stanford study says.
> ...


I think the bigger lesson is that running ultra marathons is bad for you. We athletes like to think we're training to make ourselves more fit, but there's a limit beyond which exercise is harmful.


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

Funday 11km run-ride pairing along the Humber River. We found a Habs flag enroute and I got a beep and shoutout from passing motorist. Cool restored Ford pickup along the way. Glad to get the morning run done before the mercury rose higher.


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

Phew! I seemed to have missed this event


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

*Gene Dy kes Runs an Age Group World Record in the 50K








*
The 73-year-old averaged a 7:37/mile pace for more than 31 miles.

Gene Dy kes, the 73-year-old masters champion from Bala Cynwyd, Pennsylvania, set an age group world record in the 50K (31.06 miles) on June 13 at the USATF 50K Road Championships in East Islip, New York.

Dy kes finished in 3:56:43, averaging 7:37 per mile for the distance. He bettered the previous age group world record (4:15:55, run by Wilhelm Hofmann of Germany in 1997), by more than 19 minutes.

"It was the first time I've run a 3:20 marathon and still had five miles to go," Dy kes told _Runner's World_ after the race.

"It's good to see I haven't gotten old," he quipped.

The race was run on a 5K loop in Heckscher State Park, and Dy kes saved something for his 10th and final lap, running 22:27 (7:14 pace) for that 5K. He said several spectators recognized him and yelled encouragement throughout the event.

Dyk es regularly runs ultramarathons, and then he crams a few weeks of marathon-type training in before he attempts records. Five weeks ago, he ran the Cocodona 250, which bills itself as "250ish" miles, in Arizona.

Then he went home to Pennsylvania and his coach gave him a series of long workouts, like an 8-mile progression run, starting at 7:50/mile pace and getting down to 7:10 pace, as part of a 13-mile day. Another was 22 miles with 20 x 2 minutes at 6:40./mile pace.

In 2019, at age 70, Dy kes ran the Jacksonville Marathon in 2:54:23. It appeared he had broken the world age group record, 2:54:48, run by famed Canadian masters runner Ed Whitlock. But the course in Jacksonville was certified, but not sanctioned, so Dy kes's record was not recognized.

He took no such chances with the 50K record. Because he ran it in an official USATF event, the record will stand.

But Dy kes said there's one good reason he's the record-holder now.

"Ed Whitlock never ran a 50K," he said.

Next up: Dy kes will run the Mohican 100-miler in Ohio on June 19. He's hoping to run well enough to be able to enter the lottery for next year's Western States 100-Mile Endurance Run.

https://www.runnersworld.com/news/a...cjnxPK_tMx_EeiZ73DKas8MRw1PI4dELmgFBtFsHe4jVk


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## chazpat (Sep 23, 2006)

Today is the fortieth anniversary of the death of Terry Fox. Cycleicious, maybe you are familiar with him? I wasn't until I came across an article mentioning him and looked him up.

*Terrance Stanley Fox*_ CC OD (July 28, 1958 - June 28, 1981) was a Canadian athlete, humanitarian, and cancer research activist. In 1980, with one leg having been amputated due to cancer, he embarked on an east to west cross-Canada run to raise money and awareness for cancer research. Although the spread of his cancer eventually forced him to end his quest after 143 days and 5,373 kilometres (3,339 mi), and ultimately cost him his life, his efforts resulted in a lasting, worldwide legacy. The annual Terry Fox Run, first held in 1981, has grown to involve millions of participants in over 60 countries and is now the world's largest one-day fundraiser for cancer research; over C$800 million has been raised in his name as of April 2020.__[1]_









Terry Fox - Wikipedia







en.wikipedia.org


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

chazpat said:


> Today is the fortieth anniversary of the death of Terry Fox. Cycleicious, maybe you are familiar with him? I wasn't until I came across an article mentioning him and looked him up.
> 
> *Terrance Stanley Fox*_ CC OD (July 28, 1958 - June 28, 1981) was a Canadian athlete, humanitarian, and cancer research activist. In 1980, with one leg having been amputated due to cancer, he embarked on an east to west cross-Canada run to raise money and awareness for cancer research. Although the spread of his cancer eventually forced him to end his quest after 143 days and 5,373 kilometres (3,339 mi), and ultimately cost him his life, his efforts resulted in a lasting, worldwide legacy. The annual Terry Fox Run, first held in 1981, has grown to involve millions of participants in over 60 countries and is now the world's largest one-day fundraiser for cancer research; over C$800 million has been raised in his name as of April 2020.__[1]_
> 
> ...


He ran an avg of 37 km a day. Thats almost a marathon, every day for 143 days. Not for money, not for fame, but to save lives. Easily Canada's greatest athlete, hands down. He deserves to be on our currency

Terry Fox is a household name in Canada and his legacy has made a huge impact in cancer research here. For example, most grade schools hold a "Terry Fox run" every year where all the students fundraise and run a short designated route in the neighbourhood. .There are also community events and 60 countries do Terry Fox runs.

It's also worth noting for anyone who doesn't know that Terry Fox was never able to fully complete the cross country journey that he set out for. It was ultimately cut short because he was hospitalized due to his cancer spreading to his lungs, which is perhaps one of the saddest parts of his story.


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

I participate in Terry Fox Runs and have raised a little money for cancer research


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

Canada D'eh morning 12km run ride pairing easy pace. Mostly trails... bugs weren't too bad


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## nOOky (May 13, 2008)

50k trail race today, very warm, 4300 feet of gain, and just a titch over 6 hours. Supposedly a 3 hour fat bike ride tomorrow with the wife and friends, we'll see


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

^ hope you made out ok nOOky!

*Why Marijuana Can Disqualify a Runner From the Olympics







*

The American sprinter Sha'Carri Richardson, a gold-medal favorite in the women's 100 meters, is facing disqualification from the Olympics after testing positive for marijuana.
The United States Anti-Doping Agency announced the positive test result on Friday morning. The result invalidates Richardson's 100-meter win at the U.S. track and field Olympic trials in Eugene, Ore., last month.
The news quickly drew an outsize reaction across the country. "You can be kicked out of the Olympics for pot?" 
Here's what we know.

*Isn't marijuana legal in Oregon, where Richardson qualified for the Olympics?*

Yes. 
Marijuana is legal for recreational use in more than a dozen states, including Oregon, where the trials were held. It is legal for medicinal use in many more. But it is on the World Anti-Doping Agency's list of prohibited substances. The drug is banned on race days, but not outside of competition. 
"All natural and synthetic cannabinoids are prohibited," the agency says, including "hashish, marijuana and cannabis products." The United States Olympic and Paralympic Committee follows WADA's rules.

*If the legal use of marijuana is spreading, at least in the United States, why is it banned in global sports?*

Drugs are banned if they meet two of three criteria, WADA says: If they enhance performance, pose a health risk or violate "the spirit of sport." 
WADA reported in a 2011 paper that "based on current animal and human studies as well as on interviews with athletes and information from the field, cannabis can be performance enhancing for some athletes and sports disciplines. 
There is not a large number of rigorous studies of marijuana as a performance enhancer, but there is evidence that it can help some athletes relax and focus. On the other hand, it can negatively affect hand-eye coordination, concentration and endurance.

*Why do WADA rules apply to American track athletes?*

The American track federation, like other Olympic sports federations, abides by the WADA drug rules because it is part of the Games, although critics have faulted that one-size-fits-all approach.

Other major sports organizations like the N.B.A. and N.F.L. that are not directly involved with the Games are free to modify their own antidrug rules, and many have reduced penalties or abandoned bans for marijuana entirely.

*Have other Olympic athletes faced similar suspensions?*

The Canadian snowboarder Ross Rebagliati tested positive for marijuana after winning a gold medal at the 1998 Winter Olympics in Nagano, Japan. He was initially stripped of his medal, but the ruling was quickly overturned because marijuana wasn't actually on the list of banned substances; it was added soon afterward.

The swimmer Michael Phelps was suspended for three months in 2009 after a picture of him smoking from a bong emerged. That ban did not coincide with any major competitions.

*Has Richardson responded to her disqualification?*

Yes. In an interview with NBC on Friday morning, Richardson blamed the positive test on her use of marijuana as a way to cope with the unexpected death of her biological mother (she was raised by a grandmother) while she was in Oregon for the Olympic trials.

"It sent me into a state of emotional panic," she said, adding, "I didn't know how to control my emotions or deal with my emotions during that time." 
She apologized to her fans, her family and her sponsors, saying, "I greatly apologize if I let you guys down, and I did."

*What now? Does Richardson have a path forward?*
Possibly. Her monthlong suspension began on June 28, which means she could be cleared in time to run the 4x100-meter race for the United States, if she is selected.

NYT editorial... more of the story below


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

*Sha'Carri Richardson and Her Now Uncertain Path to the Olympics*
When Sha'Carri Richardson starts talking, the declarations are grand.

"I am it."

"I am who I say I am."

"Talent is talent. If you got it, you go fast."

Her performances have been just as bold. Richardson, 21, could claim to be America's fastest woman after winning the 100 meters at the U.S. track and field Olympic trials last month in Oregon, drawing attention for her speed, outspoken nature and billowing orange hair in homage to her athletic hero. Her time of 10.86 seconds instantly made her a gold medal favorite at the Tokyo Olympics that begin this month, mostly because it was not even the fastest she has run this year.

Yet her place on the team is in jeopardy because of her marijuana use, putting her at the center of debate and discussion about the drug and the fairness of the rules of the sport as it searches for its next big track star in the United States.

U.S. antidoping officials and Richardson confirmed Friday that she tested positive for marijuana at the trials, disqualifying her from her signature event.

Although many states and countries are loosening restrictions on marijuana, it is categorized as a performance-enhancing drug in track in some cases and its use is banned within 24 hours of an event. The primary reason for its prohibition is that it can be used to relax athletes ahead of competition, which can in turn enhance performance.
On the "Today" show on NBC Friday morning, Richardson apologized. She said she had used the drug to deal with the pressure of competing on the biggest stage of her career and to cope with the news that her biological mother had died, which she said she had learned from a reporter during an interview just days before her event on June 20.










"I apologize for the fact that I didn't know how to control my emotions or deal with my emotions during that time," Richardson said.
She is the latest American track and field star to have their Olympics jeopardized by a drug ruling - violations that have put American athletes and officials in an awkward position, because they have spent years calling for harsher penalties against Russia for doping offenses.

Christian Coleman, the men's world champion in the 100 meters, is serving an 18-month suspension for missing multiple drug tests. Shelby Houlihan, the American record-holder in the 1,500 meters, was suspended for four years last month after testing positive for nandrolone, an anabolic steroid.

On Friday, the Court of Arbitration for Sport, the Swiss-based highest arbiter of such cases, upheld a five-year suspension for Brianna McNeal, the 2016 Olympic champion in the 100-meter hurdles, for tampering with paperwork related to her explanations for missing a drug test.

In their appeals, each of those athletes put forward expansive explanations that doping officials have not accepted. Houlihan claimed she tested positive after eating a pork burrito. McNeal told The New York Times she was recovering from an abortion procedure and did not hear an antidoping official knocking at her front door. McNeal then altered the date on paperwork she used to substantiate the procedure following the missed test.

Richardson indicated she would not appeal her suspension, which invalidated her win at the U.S. trials and lasts until July 30. She could still make the team as part of the 4 x 100 relay, which takes place after the suspension is up. Unlike in individual events, U.S. track officials do not solely rely on qualifying times to determine the relay teams.

Richardson, who pronounces her first name sha-KERRY, had already made a mark as she rose through track and had big expectations.

Her relatively small height, at 5 feet 1 inch, had already forced experts in the sport to rethink their obsession with tall sprinters.

"I always told her she was a small person with big feet," said Lauren Cross, who coached Richardson at Carter High School in Dallas three years ago. She was speaking both literally and figuratively about her star pupil, who despite her diminutive stature, wears a size eight shoe.










She also has taken to making bold statements about what she expects from herself, and has the talent to back them up.

"The attention comes with the big personality, and I have no problem with it," Richardson said in an interview earlier this year. "It makes me work so I don't end up looking crazy."

Richardson blows dramatic kisses to the crowd and points at herself when a stadium announcer introduces her before a race.

"Sha'Carri just has got a lot of self-confidence, and the great sprinters have that," said Dennis Shaver, who coached Richardson during her one season of college track at Louisiana State University. "You talk a certain talk, but then you back it up."

Richardson came into the trials having run 10.72, the sixth-fastest time in history, at a meet in April. At the trials she ran a wind-aided 10.64 in the semifinals, and won the final in 10.84, more than a tenth of a second faster than her closest competitor.

After, she announced that she had been grieving her biological mother, who had died just days before. On NBC on Friday, she said she learned the news from a reporter during an interview.

After the race, she ran into the stands to embrace her grandmother Betty Harp, who raised Richardson along with Richardson's aunt Shayaria. Richardson collapsed into her grandmother's lap and buried her head in her chest.
"Without my grandmother, there would be no Sha'Carri Richardson, so my family's my everything," she said to the prime time television audience. "My everything until the day I'm done."

Running has tantalized Richardson since she stumbled upon some old track medals in her aunt's closet when she was 9 years old. She tried basketball, dancing and flag football, but kept coming back to those medals. She wanted some of her own.

Cross, the high school coach, who still speaks to Richardson every week, first saw her when she was in middle school running for a local club, Desoto Nitro. Richardson was already faster than everyone in her age group. She struggled with an injury during her first year in high school, but by her sophomore year she was the fastest girl in Texas.
Richardson's family had little money when she was growing up. On bus rides to meets, Cross would talk to Richardson about the future she could have - college, maybe a professional career - if she kept working hard and stayed focused. When college recruiters showed up, Richardson would unapologetically tell them how fast she was: faster than anyone else.
At L.S.U. she cut her time in the 100 meters by a half-second in nine months. She won the N.C.A.A. championship, setting a 100-meter record for women under 20, and turned professional.

Mitchell declined to comment for this article. In her "Today" show appearance Friday, Richardson made sure to point out she was not suspended for steroid use.

"There will never be a steroid attached to the name of Sha'Carri Richardson," she said.

Shaver said time in the weight room has allowed Richardson to compete against more mature women at such a young age. Sprinting is all about reaching maximum velocity quickly, requiring the power to explode out of the starting blocks and through the first 40 meters. That requires intense strength, which contributes to the efficiency of each step, an essential ingredient for any sprinter who does not possess the long strides of a tall sprinter

This training and her dynamic stride frequency have left her rivals in the United States unable to keep up. Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce of Jamaica, who ran 10.62, the fastest time in the world this year, was considered the only one standing between Richardson and the Olympic gold medal.

Richardson said she knows her bravado and her appearance can turn some people off. People around track have told her to cut her hair and her nails and get rid of her eyelashes, saying they slow her down.

Yet Richardson has said embracing who she is makes her faster. And her words remained big as ever.

"This is the last time the Olympics don't see Sha'Carri Richardson," she said Friday. "And this the last time the U.S. doesn't come home with the gold medal in the 100 meters."









Sha’Carri Richardson and Her Now Uncertain Path to the Olympics


Richardson has a magnetic combination of speed and charisma. But her use of marijuana before an event has jeopardized her chance to compete in Tokyo.




www.nytimes.com


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

*What It Takes to Run a Fast Mile







*

I won't pretend to be impartial here: I love the mile. It demands the legs of a sprinter, the lungs of a marathoner, and the tactical cunning of a chess grandmaster. Lasting roughly four minutes, it's long enough for a narrative arc to unspool, and for the personalities of the various players to be revealed in their thrusts and counterthrusts, but too short for all but the very worst TV coverage to cut away for commercials or gauzy profiles. It's the perfect distance.

But the very elements that make the mile so much fun to watch also make it tricky for physiologists to study. Long-distance running is a maximization challenge: almost anything you can do to boost your VO2 max, lactate threshold, or running economy will make you better. Sprinting is also a maximation challenge, focused instead on the ability to generate the most powerful forces and release large amounts of anaerobic energy as quickly as possible. It's relatively straightforward to study how to maximize these parameters.

In contrast, middle-distance events-800 meters, 1,500 meters, and the mile-require a compromise between these two extremes. Increasing the force you transmit to the ground with each step, for example, might worsen your efficiency, and vice versa. Instead of a maximization challenge, middle-distance training is all about making the best trade-offs possible between the conflicting demands of speed and endurance. In other words, as an ambitious new paper in _Sports Medicine_ argues, it's an art

The authors of the new paper are all sports scientists, hailing from four different universities in Norway, led by Thomas Haugen of Oslo's Kristiania University College. But they admit that our knowledge about middle-distance training is mostly derived from "the practical experience and intuition of world-leading athletes and coaches." Their goal is to lay out the current state-of-the-art in order to identify gaps that scientists can begin to fill-and the result is a handy (and free-to-read) guide to what it takes to run a great mile. Here are some of the highlights.

*The Fuel Mix*
There are two main ways your body can convert food into the energy you need to run. Aerobic energy relies on chemical reactions involving oxygen. You've got a nearly inexhaustible supply, but it can only be delivered in a trickle, so it's ideal for long endurance races. Anaerobic energy, which relies on a different set of chemical reactions, can deliver big surges but is quickly exhausted, so it's ideal for sprinting.

Whether you're running a 5K or a marathon, you're relying almost entirely on aerobic energy, so the training for these events is remarkably similar despite the fact that one is more than eight times farther than the other. The middle-distance events, on the other hand, require a fuel mix that depends very sensitively on the distance. In an 800-meter race, which lasts about two minutes, you get 60 to 75 percent of your energy from aerobic sources. In the 1,500 meters and the mile, it's more like 75 to 85 percent aerobic. That means 800 runners and milers are more different, metabolically speaking, than 5K runners and marathoners.

How sharp is that knife's edge? Elite female 800-meter runners are about 15 seconds slower than elite males. That tiny difference seems to be enough to change the optimal physiological requirements of the event: female 800 runners are more like milers than male 800 runners. Sure enough, if you look at the top 200 performers of all time, there are 55 women who appear on both the 800 and 1,500 lists, but only 38 men.

*The Subspecialists*
A few years ago, I wrote about British researcher Gareth Sandford's work on a concept called speed reserve, which compares your maximum aerobic speed to your maximum sprint speed. Sandford used this ratio to distinguish between different kinds of 800-meter competitors, each with different characteristics and different training needs: 400/800 runners, pure 800 specialists, and 800/1,500 runners. Haugen and his colleagues extend this taxonomy to include pure milers and 1,500/5,000 runners.

What's the difference between all these flavors of middle-distance runner? For one thing, they train differently. According to the various training logs, books, and interviews synthesized in the new paper, 800-meter runners tend to cover about 30 to 75 miles per week. Milers cover 75 to 105; 5K and 10K runners hit up to 125. (These ranges are mostly based on reports from male runners, so the authors hypothesize that female runners probably spend a similar amount of time training but rack up slightly less mileage on average, since their running speeds are typically about 11 percent slower.) Sandford's point is that where you sit in these ranges isn't just a function of maturity or competitive level; it's a function of what physiological type of 800 runner or miler you are.

The same differences show up in other training variables. Of the roughly 500 to 600 training hours that milers rack up annually, 90 percent of them are running, with the rest focused on strength and power, drills, plyometrics, and stretching. For 800-meter runners, it can be as little as 400 hours, with just 70 to 80 percent of those hours spent running.

Stephen Seiler, one of the co-authors of the new paper, was one of the pioneers of analyzing the "intensity distribution" of how real-world athletes train. One of his key insights: across endurance sports, elite athletes tend to do about 80 percent of their training sessions at low intensity and just 20 percent at high intensity. Milers seem to follow that rule, but 800 runners do just 60 to 70 percent of their sessions at low intensity. (That said, their high-intensity sessions include lots of jogging, so if you look at the total time spent in different zones rather than the total number of workouts, even 800 runners spend 90 percent of their training time at low intensity.)

*The Training Zones*
The usual training zones for endurance athletes don't translate well for milers. Instead, they need the training equivalent of Spinal Tap's amplifiers: zones that go above the usual max. Haugen and his colleagues propose two scales: a detailed nine-zone scale for when you need that extra push over the cliff, and a simplified five-zone scale. You can read the full details here, but the basic five-zone structure is as follows:


*Low-intensity training*: Long runs and recovery runs at marathon pace or slower 
*Moderate-intensity training*: Fartleks, threshold runs, progression runs around half-marathon pace
*High-intensity training*: Intervals or hill reps lasting one to seven minutes, typically at 3K to 10K race pace
*Very-high-intensity training*: Intervals or hill reps lasting 15 to 90 seconds at mile race pace or faster
*Short-sprint training*: Accelerations or maximal sprints lasting less than 15 seconds 
How you put these ingredients together in a coherent training plan is where things get really tricky. The paper has a nice table defining the various workout types you might use, to help clarify the characteristics and purpose of things like anaerobic threshold intervals and lactate tolerance training; another nice table outlining the historical progression of concepts like interval training, periodization, and polarized training; and some sample training weeks from champion athletes. There's a lot to chew on.

What none of the theory can tell you, though, is what it _feels_ like to race a mile. Going from the 5K to the half-marathon is a different distance; going from 5K to the mile is, as the physiology suggests, almost a different sport. Because of the road-race scene, there are a lot of people out there who took up running as adults who were probably born to run middle-distance but have never tried it-like _Outside_ contributor Charles Bethea, whose quest to run a five-minute mile a few years ago revealed some hidden talent that had never emerged in his attempts at longer distances. I'm not saying it's easy or fun; it's _exhilarating_. But hey, don't take my word for it.









What It Takes to Run a Fast Mile


The mile isn’t just another race distance. It’s almost its own sport.




www.outsideonline.com


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

One more interesting article I found this morning:

*To Avoid Running Injuries, Don't Shake Up Your Routine Too Much*
Runners who made eight or more changes to their running routines were at high risk of injury, especially if they were feeling stressed.

According to a new study of how runners hurt themselves during last year's Covid-related lockdowns, to avoid injuries, runners should try not to change their running routines too much or too quickly.

And as we emerge from pandemic restrictions, sticking with your regular exercise habits may be especially important if you are still feeling lonely, anxious or otherwise discombobulated. Stress, isolation and other common psychological reactions to the pandemic compounded the risks of injury, the study showed, suggesting that our mental states and emotions, and not just our training, may affect whether we wind up sidelined.

Most runners are regrettably familiar with the aches, strains and orthopedic consults that accompany frequent running. More so than in many other recreational sports, including cycling and swimming, runners get hurt. By some estimates, up to two-thirds of runners annually sustain an injury serious enough to lame them for a week or longer.

Why runners are so fragile remains uncertain. Some studies point to sudden and substantial increases in mileage. Others find little or no correlation between mileage and injury and instead implicate intensity; ramp up your interval sessions, this science suggests, and you get hurt. Or, as other research indicates, concrete paths could be to blame, or thick-soled running shoes, or minimalist models, or possibly treadmills, group runs, oddball running form or simple bad luck.

But a group of exercise scientists at Auburn University in Alabama and other institutions felt skeptical of the focus of much past research, which often aimed to isolate a single, likely cause for running-related damage. As runners themselves, the researchers suspected that most injuries involve a complex network of triggers, some obvious, others subtle, with elusive interactions between them. They also recognized that until we better understand why running injuries happen, we cannot hope to forestall them.

Then came the pandemic, which abruptly and profoundly changed so much about our lives, including, for many of us, how we run. In the face of lockdowns, anxiety and remote work and schooling, we began running more or less than before. Or harder or more gently, perhaps without our usual partners, and on unfamiliar ground.

Sensing that such a wide-ranging array of hasty and intermingled shifts in people's running patterns might provide a natural experiment in how we hurt ourselves, the researchers decided to ask runners what had happened to them during lockdown.

So, for the new study, which was published in June in the journal Frontiers in Sports and Active Living, they set up a series of extensive online questionnaires delving into people's lifestyles, occupations, moods, running habits and running injuries, before and during local pandemic-related lockdowns. They then invited adults with any running experience to respond, whether they were recreational joggers or competitive racers.

More than 1,000 men and women replied, and their responses were illuminating to the researchers. About 10 percent of the 1,035 runners reported having injured themselves during lockdown, with a few individual risk factors popping out from the data. Runners who increased the frequency of their intense workouts tended to hurt themselves, for example, as did those who moved to trails from other surfaces, presumably because they were unfamiliar with or tentative on the trails' uneven terrain.

Runners who reported less time to exercise during the lockdown also faced heightened risks for injury, perhaps because they traded long, gentle workouts for briefer, harsher ones, or because their lives, in general, felt stressful and worrisome, affecting their health and running.

But by far the greatest contributor to injury risk was modifying an established running schedule in multiple, simultaneous ways, whether that meant increasing - or reducing - weekly mileage or intensity, moving to or from a treadmill, or joining or leaving a running group. The study found that runners who made eight or more alterations to their normal workouts, no matter how big or small those changes, greatly increased their likelihood of injury.

And interestingly, people's moods during the pandemic influenced how much they switched up their running. Runners who reported feeling lonely, sad, anxious or generally unhappy during the lockdown tended to rejigger their routines and increase their risk for injury, notably more than those who reported feeling relatively calm.

Taken as a whole, the data suggests that "we should look at social components and other aspects of people's lives" when considering why runners - and probably people who engage in other sports as well - get hurt, says Jaimie Roper, a professor of kinesiology at Auburn University and the new study's senior author. Moods and mental health likely play a greater role in injury risk than most of us might expect, she said.

This study relies, though, on the memories and honesty of a self-selected group of runners, who were willing to sit in front of a computer answering intrusive questions. They may not be representative of many of us. The study was also observational, meaning it tells us that runners who changed their workouts also happened often to be runners with injuries, but not that the changes necessarily directly caused those injuries.

Perhaps most important, the results do not insinuate that we should always try to avoid tweaking our running routines. Rather, "be intentional in what you change," Dr. Roper says. "Focus on one thing at a time," and thread in changes gradually. Up mileage, for instance, by only 10 or 20 percent a week and add a single, new interval session, not three. And if you are feeling particularly stressed, perhaps hold steady on your exercise for now, sticking with whatever familiar workouts feel tolerable and fun.









To Avoid Running Injuries, Don’t Shake Up Your Routine Too Much


Runners who made eight or more changes to their running routines were at high risk of injury, especially if they were feeling stressed.




www.nytimes.com


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

*How to Stand Running in the Heat*
Because of the heat and humidity, most people wouldn't pick summer as their favorite season for outdoor exercise-walking and running included.

Spring or fall normally wins that honor. But summer _does_ have a lot going for it. More daylight before and after work means more time to get outside. What's more, with all the swimming, lawn mowing, gardening, hiking, and vacations, it's easier to be more active in the summer, so your fitness level is higher.

Here are 10 quick tips you need to know to help you optimize your hot-weather workouts, along with ways to prevent some common heat-related illnesses and ailments.

*Make adjustments:* Don't do long or higher-intensity workouts during the heat of the day. If you must run at midday, pick routes with some shade. As a general rule, start your workout slower than you usually do. If you're feeling good halfway through, it's okay to speed up a little bit.
*Wear as little as possible: *Wear apparel that's light in color, lightweight, and has vents or mesh. Microfiber polyesters and cotton blends are good fabric choices. Also, be sure to wear a hat, shades, and sunscreen with an SPF of 30 or higher.

*Watch your alcohol and meds: *Alcohol, antihistamines, and antidepressants can all have a dehydrating effect. Using them just before a run can make you have to pee, compounding your risk of dehydration.

*Drink early and often: *Top off your fluid stores with 16 ounces of sports drink an hour before you head out. Then toss down five to eight ounces of sports drink about every 20 minutes while working out. Sports drinks beat water because they contain electrolytes, which increase your water-absorption rate, replace the electrolytes you lose in sweat, and taste good, making it easy to drink more.
*Be patient:* Give yourself eight to 14 days to acclimatize to hot weather, gradually increasing the length and intensity of your training. In that time, your body will learn to decrease your heart rate, decrease your core body temperature, and increase your sweat rate.

*Seek grass and shade:* It's always hotter in cities than in surrounding areas because asphalt and concrete retain heat. If you must run in an urban or even a suburban area, look for shade-any park will do-and try to go in the early morning or late evening.

*Check the breeze:* If possible, start your run going with the wind and then run back with a headwind. Running into the wind has a cooling effect, and you'll need that in the second half of a run.

*Head out early or late:* Even in the worst heat wave, it cools off significantly by dawn. Get your run done then, and you'll feel good about it all day. Can't fit it in? Wait until evening, when the sun's rays aren't as strong-just don't do it so late that it keeps you from getting to sleep.

*Slow down: *Every 5°F rise in temperature above 60°F can slow your pace by as much as 20 to 30 seconds per mile. So don't fight it-just slow down

*Run in water: *Substitute one weekly outdoor walk or run with a pool-running session of the same duration. If you're new to pool running, use a flotation device and simply move your legs as if you were running on land, with a slightly exaggerated forward lean and vigorous arm pump

*How to Prevent Heat-Related Illnesses*
_*Heat Cramps*_
*Cause: *Dehydration leads to an electrolyte imbalance
*Symptoms: *Severe abdominal or large-muscle cramps
*Treatment: *Restore salt balance with foods or drinks that contain sodium
*Prevention: *Don't run hard in the heat till acclimatized, and stay well hydrated with sports drink

_*Heat Fainting*_
*Cause: *Often brought on by a sudden stop that interrupts bloodflow from the legs to the brain
*Symptoms: *Fainting
*Treatment: *After the fall, elevate legs and pelvis to help restore bloodflow to the brain
*Prevention: *Cool down gradually after a workout with at least five minutes of easy jogging and walking

_*Heat Exhaustion*_
*Cause: *Dehydration leads to an electrolyte imbalance
*Symptoms: *Core body temperature of 102° to 104°F, headache, fatigue, profuse sweating, nausea, clammy skin
*Treatment: *Rest and apply a cold pack on head/neck; also restore salt balance with foods and drinks with sodium
*Prevention: *Don't run hard in the heat till acclimatized, and stay well hydrated with sports drink

_*Hyponatremia*_
*Cause: *Excessive water intake dilutes blood-sodium levels; usually occurs after running for four or more hours
*Symptoms: *Headache, disorientation, muscle twitching
*Treatment: *Emergency medical treatment is necessary; hydration in any form can be fatal
*Prevention: *When running, don't drink more than about 32 ounces per hour; choose sports drink over water

_*Heat Stroke*_
*Cause: *Extreme exertion and dehydration impair your body's ability to maintain an optimal temperature
*Symptoms: *Core body temp of 104° or more, headache, nausea, vomiting, rapid pulse, disorientation
*Treatment: *Emergency medical treatment is necessary for immediate ice-water immersion and IV-fluids
*Prevention: *Don't run hard in the heat until acclimatized, and stay well hydrated with sports drink

*How to Prevent Common Heat-Related Ailments*
Blisters, chafing, and sunburn can strike anytime, but they're more common in hot weather. Here's how to treat these problems and to prevent them from occurring in the first place.

_*Black toenails*_
Lots of downhill running and too-small shoes can bring these on, as both cause your toes to slam into the front of your shoe. Wear properly fitted shoes and trim your nails regularly. Once you have a black toenail, there's not much you can do. It'll usually heal on its own within a few months. If it's really painful, see a podiatrist, who may drain the fluid from under the nail.

_*Blisters*_
These are caused by friction, excessive moisture (sweaty feet, wet weather), or shoes that are too small, too big, or tied too tight. So be sure to buy properly fitted shoes. Because your feet can expand a half size over a day, shop in the late afternoon or evening. Putting Vaseline, sports lube, and bandages over blister-prone spots may also help. Ignore blisters smaller than five millimeters (the size of a pencil eraser), since they're usually not painful. But pop the big ones. With a sterile needle, prick the side of the blister and drain it. Don't remove the top of the blister; instead, cover it with an antibiotic ointment and moleskin or a bandage.

_*Chafing*_
Skin-to-skin and skin-to-clothing rubbing can cause a red, raw rash that can bleed, sting, and make you yelp during your postrun shower. Moisture and salt on the body make it worse. Underarms, inner thighs, along the bra line (women), and nipples (men) are vulnerable spots.  To help prevent it, wear moisture-wicking, seamless, tagless gear. Fit is important-a baggy shirt has excess material that can cause irritation; a too-snug sports bra can dig into skin. Apply Vaseline, sports lube, Band-Aids, or NipGuards before you run. To treat chafing, wash the area with soap and water, apply an antibacterial ointment, and cover with a bandage.

_*Muscle cramps*_
The best way to prevent these is to be well trained, because fatigue seems to be the main reason for cramping in races and hard workouts. Plyometric training (bounding, hopping) may lower your risk as well, and so may keeping well hydrated with a salty drink. If a cramp hits, stretch immediately. If your calf cramps, for instance, stop running, straighten out your leg, pull back on your toe, and hold the stretch for several seconds. You may need to continue this for 2 to 3 minutes. Then massage the muscle to help ease the pain and get you ready to run again.

_*Sunburn*_
To lower your risk, avoid the sun between 10 a.m. and 4 p.m., wear a hat, run in the shade, and wear sunscreen. Because sunscreen can't withstand prolonged exercise, stash some in your pocket or circle back to your car so you can reapply every hour. You can also wear technical apparel that blocks UV rays. If you get sunburned, taking an anti-inflammatory and applying aloe vera a few times per day will take the edge off the pain.









Hate Running When It’s Hot? It Doesn't Have to Be a Miserable Experience


Everything you need to know about running in hot, humid conditions this summer.




www.runnersworld.com


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

http://imgur.com/Ido0qkC


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## nOOky (May 13, 2008)

Last week's 50k in the heat took a bit out of me. After that the heat went away here, which is a bummer. Garmin says I'm losing my heat acclimation, because I'm hardly running out in it. Next Saturday is the Tahoe 50 mile race, which is supposed to be very hot, mid 90's at the finish. It will definitely be a slog for me, especially as it starts with a huge 4,200 foot climb. And our flight that Sunday morning is very early, so I'm not looking forward to that!


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

I regularly take the stairs at work (6-8 flights; 3 to 6 x/day) and it's often faster than waiting and taking an elevator. . Occasionally I "jog" up (or down) but mostly walk without using the hand rail... and I find that tough 

*Could Running Stairs Be the Secret to More Speed and Power?*
Stairs are a part of everyday life; you probably don't think much of them as you're hauling laundry up a flight or carrying the trash down. But if you've ever found yourself wheezing at the top of a set of steps (who hasn't?), you should think about incorporating stairs into your running regimen.

*The Benefits of Stair Workouts for Runners*
Stairs, like hills, up the intensity of a running workout. But the intensity of the stairs' elevation is often harder than a gradual hill, which increases the load. Physiologically, that intensity "makes you breathe harder and faster so you can take in more oxygen, which spikes your heart rate," says Meghan Kennihan, a USATF- and RRCA-certified running coach. Doing stair workouts consistently eventually leads to an improved VO2max, she adds, because your body learns to use oxygen more efficiently-which means faster paces will feel easier on flat ground.

Research proves this: When scientists had sedentary people vigorously climb 60 steps of stairs three times a day (with one to four hours between climbs for recovery) for six weeks, those people showed improvements in their peak oxygen uptake _and _peak power output in a cycling test, according to a 2019 study published in _Applied Physiology, Nutrition, and Metabolism_.

Speaking of power output, stairs work some of the biggest muscles in your body (think: glutes, quads, and calves. Plus, you're working against gravity to propel yourself up the stairs, which adds resistance-a great way to build strength, says Brady Irwin, owner of and head coach at Science of Speed.

"When you push off each stair, it's a form of explosive or plyometric training," adds Kennihan. This kind of training builds strength and power, increasing the ability of your muscles and joints to react upon landing. It also trains your body to recruit muscle fibers more efficiently, which "means you don't need to work as hard to hit a particular pace," she explains. "That keeps your energy expenditure lower, so you can go faster longer without fatigue or pick up the pace mid-run without getting as winded." (In one study published in the _Journal of Sport and Health Science_, two plyometrics training sessions per week over six weeks led to improved 10K times, despite a reduction in training mileage.)

Stairs can also help you dial in your running technique. "Like running uphill, stairs are a great teacher of running efficiency," says Irwin. "They naturally require you to shorten your stride and emphasize lean angle. It's easy to understand if you try running uphill or on stairs while landing on your heels or if you try going upstairs without leaning forward-it may be one of the most awkward things you've tried in some time!"

And, in an era where gym access is still limited, stairs become a playground of workout opportunities beyond just sprinting up and down. You can use them to add in other plyometric exercises, as well as variations of standard bodyweight moves, like push-ups, squats, and lunges. Considering how many runners skip strength training, this is an easy way to knock out strength and cardio in one.

*How to Incorporate Stair Workouts into Your Routine*
An easy way to add stair workouts is to sub them in for hill workouts. But you can also do them in place of a strength training session every so often, during the first half of an easy run, or even in the middle of a longer run.

Whenever you do them, make sure to keep your form on point-since stairs require that explosive form and a little more technique than running in a straight line, you want to be focused and engaged. "Eyes should be straight ahead, not staring down at your feet," says Kennihan. "Lean slightly forward and pump your arms to help you drive your knees up as you lift your feet up each stair." Only do stairs at the end of the run if you've still got the energy to do them _right_.

Want to add some incline to your running? Try these workouts from Kennihan and Irwin.

*Pyramid Stair Workout*

Warm up for 10 to 15 minutes running on flat ground
Run up and down stairs or bleachers for 2 minutes
Rest for 30 to 60 seconds
Run up and down stairs or bleachers for 3 minutes
Rest for 30 to 60 seconds
Run up and down stairs or bleachers for 4 minutes
Rest for 30 to 60 seconds
Run up and down stairs or bleachers for 3 minutes
Rest for 30 to 60 seconds
Run up and down stairs or bleachers for 2 minutes
Rest for 30 to 60 seconds
Cool down by running for 10 to 15 minutes on flat ground
*Total-Body Stair Workout*

Warm up for 10 to 15 minutes running on flat ground
Run up and down the stairs 5 times
Perform 10 push-ups at the bottom
Run up and down the stairs 5 times
Perform 10 triceps dips at the bottom
Run up and down the stairs 5 times
Perform 10 air squats at the bottom
Run up and down the stairs 5 times
Perform 10 full sit-ups at the bottom
Run up and down the stairs 5 times
Hold a plank for 60 seconds at the bottom
Repeat the circuit 2 times total
Cool down by running for 10 to 15 minutes on flat ground
*Stability Stair Workout*

Warm up for 10 to 15 minutes running on flat ground (or do this workout after a steady-state run)
Perform 3 x 30-second pick-ups (start at a jog and increase the speed until you are at a 9/10 intensity), recovering with a 1-minute walk between each rep
Do 3 x 30 single-step sprints
Do 3 x 30 double-step sprints
Do 2 x 20 single steps with lateral bounding
Do 3 x 10 double-leg jumps
Cool down by walking or jogging for 10 to 15 minutes on flat ground
*Leg Burnout Bleacher Workout*

After a moderate run, perform 3 x 30-second pickups (start at a jog and increase the speed until you are at a 9/10 intensity), recovering with a 1-minute walk between each rep
Do 2 sets of 4 x 40 stair sprint repeats (run up the stairs, laterally across the bleachers, and down the stairs, then walk laterally across the lower bleacher to recover)
Take 4 minutes to recover between sets
Cool down by walking or jogging for 10 minutes on flat ground









Running Stairs Could Be the Secret to More Speed and Power on Flat Ground


Yes, stair workouts are humbling as hell. That’s why you should do them more often.




www.runnersworld.com


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

*Hal Higdon Has Trained Millions of Runners. At 90, He's Not Slowing Down.*










Hal Higdon, middle, has a storied running career and millions of devotees​


Hal Higdon is the 90-year-old internet king of running plans​
His brand has transcended his running career, a storied résumé that includes eight appearances at the U.S.A. Track & Field Olympic Trials and a personal best marathon time of 2:21:55.​

Now, his name has become a brand, one that is synonymous with training plans for every type of runner, from beginners to Boston Marathoners.​

"He's all about the democratization of running," his daughter, Laura Sandall, said. "He was all about making sure that anyone who wanted to get out and run could have a training program at their fingertips."​

At their fingertips, and at the top of Google search results. His free training plans have remained some of the most frequently used - a rarity in a world where most plans and coaches cater to runners who are willing to shell out hundreds of dollars for personalized schedules.​

His unique blend of enthusiasm, a deep understanding of the sport and a big, supportive family have kept him top of mind for advanced and novice runners alike. But this wasn't his plan, not exactly, according to Higdon and his family.​

Higdon started running in high school, and began researching different ways to train for races while a student-athlete at Carleton College in the late 1940s. "I was a perky little freshman and sophomore who came up with training ideas of my own," he said in a telephone interview. He honed his expertise as an elite runner both in the youth and master divisions, taking his family along with him for the ride.​
Before races had water stations, his family would stand on the side of courses with cups of water. His children fondly remember spaghetti dinners before marathons. So, too, do they remember having marathon greats like Bill Rodgers stop by the family home for a meal or two









In those days, Higdon made a living from freelance writing on a variety of subjects. But the through line remained working with athletes and writing for runners. It wasn't until 1990, when a high school friend recruited him to design plans for Chicago Marathon runners, that he began crafting training plans for a larger audience
"I don't think I could have predicted my life at any point," he said, speaking with the enthusiasm of someone who has never come down from a runner's high. "I went with the flow. I had the intelligence I absorbed over decades of time, particularly for the kind of person who had no idea that he or she would become a runner."
In 1993, he wrote "Marathon: The Ultimate Training Guide," now in its fifth edition. He registered for a website in 1994, the same year Oprah Winfrey famously ran the Marine Corps Marathon. Running had hit a new mainstream fever pitch

The Higdon family - three children and nine grandchildren - had been training for what was to come. Higdon began naming some of his family members: Jake (or, as Higdon called him, grandson No. 5) and Jake's father, David, helped get the website up to date. His granddaughter Sophie dove into Instagram. He started talking about his son Kevin's role, before cutting himself off, worried he would not give everyone equal credit in the family business.


"Without leaving anybody out, all the family is involved," he said. "It may as well be called the Hal Higdon team legacy."​

​
Jake estimated that about 2 million people used the training plans online every year. More recently, the site added two programs - TrainingPeaks and a RunwithHal app - that are subscription based. But, Jake added, it was a total non-starter to ever pull any programs off the website. More than 90 percent of runners only use the free plans.​

"He has never been in it to make a ton of money," he said. "Putting that barrier up would really fly in the face of trying to reach runners of all levels."​

And reach them he does. Sure, it's a family affair. But each family member I spoke with was adamant about one thing: It's all Hal talking to runners on Facebook and Twitter. He was an early social media adopter, his daughter Laura Sandall said, and the family set up a system to allow him to do what he does best.​

"Grandpa Hal is the one that is still interacting with users," said Kyle, a proud Higdon grandson. "He treats all the users the same way he's treated me. It's kind of like they are his grandchildren or children, his Hal Higdon running community. And I think that comes across in the way he answers each person's questions and makes sure they are enjoying their training."​

Higdon has slowed his own pace recently (well, he did run seven marathons in seven months for his 70th birthday) and now opts for lower-impact workouts. He bikes two and a half miles to his favorite coffee shop, Hal's Supermarket, with his wife, Rose. That, he said, "is what has allowed me to live to a jolly old age."​

His family doesn't argue that, but they say his online community has kept him engaged too.​

"He gets up early every morning," Sandall said. "I get alerts for his tweets."​


​

​

​


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

I got my Garmin last year and now I can't imagine running without it. I liked this article

*No, You Don't Need Any Technology to Have a Good Run*

I lace up my shoes and press the "run" button on my watch. It's already well past 7 p.m., and if I don't get going soon, I won't have much daylight left to use. But here I am, impatiently standing in my driveway waiting for the GPS to connect on my watch.

Finally, once it connects a good ten minutes later*,* I start off down the road near my home. I immediately check the pace on my watch. _Too slow-you feel good, so speed it up_, I say to myself. I pick up my cadence and begin to move faster, only to find that two minutes later I am already starting to become out of breath. I begin to slow down a bit, and once again check my watch that's too slow. What an embarrassing pace, I think to myself as I stare down at the 10:35/mile on my watch. I work to find a more stable pace and turn in after running about two miles.

The next day I go out again. I decide to go along a dirt road that curves around a nearby lake. I stop and pull my phone out to take a photo of the sunset over the lake, and I subconsciously think to myself that I need to post the picture when I put my run up on Strava. I begin to wonder what I could say about this run once I post it on social media, and only while I'm mid-thought do I stop and think: _Is that really why you're running?_

That was me a couple weeks ago, attached to my running technology.

When I first started running again after having my second baby almost five months ago, I just started my watch and went. I didn't care about my pace or waiting for the GPS to connect; I only cared about getting out there. I felt like I did when I first really started running at 15 years old: just happy to be out there and enjoying where my feet took me.

Slowly, as I began to run more, I started worrying about my pace and what other people thought of me when I was running until I suddenly couldn't remember why I was running anymore. Would someone look out their window and think I was running too slow? Was I running because I wanted to or was it because I felt like I had to? Would I look look lazy for not posting anything on my running apps?

At the time, I was reading Christopher McDougall's book, _Born to Run_, which encapsulated what it meant to love running. This inspired me to brainstorm what I could do to turn my thoughts around and go out just to run. So I took off my watch.

My first two or three runs without a watch, I found myself thinking that when I start tracking my runs on Strava again, I'll tell followers what I was doing. I also started trying to do mental math at the end of each run, figuring out the mileage and calculating how fast I went. Once I realized what I was doing, I stopped and took a breath. It didn't matter.

After those initial watch-less runs, I started walking out the door, no watch in sight, purely because I enjoyed it. I adjusted to running without a watch by enjoying what was around me and clearing my mind; I was surprised at how easy the transition came. It was fairly easy to convince my brain that there were more interesting things to think about and observe when I was running than my pace, such as the birds chirping in the trees or the sunset reflecting on the lake.

When I'd been running without a watch for a few weeks, I reached out to Janet Hamilton, the founder and head coach of Running Strong in Atlanta, to ask about the benefits of unplugged running-was this something I should continue doing?

"Taking running out of [the social media] environment is just delightful," she told me. "For some people, social networking sites where running stats are shared are a motivational tool, but for most people it is not a good thing-there is too much self judgement. Ask yourself: What good could these tracking websites do for you?"

If you aren't sure on whether they motivate or stifle you, she suggests taking the tracking to a personal level instead, and record your runs in a notebook or Excel sheet. To start running unplugged, Hamilton suggests starting with a "no-agenda run" one day a week. Just go out and run by how you feel, she advises.

For me, running became a therapeutic way to shut everything out from the day. All I had to focus on was my breath, my foot strike, and keeping my shoulders back-and _that_ was liberating.

Also, I began to also ditch my headphones, which was an easier habit for me to break than my watch. I felt so good after every run, no matter how slow or fast I felt like I was going. My brain was clear, and I was happy to be out there.

My experience running unplugged has been a positive one. I'll likely slap it on if I begin a training cycle, but for my day-to-day runs, I might only wear it to keep track of the time of day.

Hamilton left me with wonderful perspective on running.

"Experience the joy of running," she said. "Running is a gift and not a lot of people get that gift. So if you're one of those fortunate people who've gotten the gift of running, never take it for granted."

I think I'll always keep that in the back of my brain, especially on those really tough days, whether I'm wearing a watch or not.


















It’s OK If You’re the Only One Who Knows You Went for a Run


This runner ditched her GPS watch and headphones, and rediscovered her love of running again.




www.runnersworld.com


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

It was a 4H funday: hot, hazy, humid and humdinger of a long run. Enjoyed all the adventures along the way. Spotted some hogriders; caught up to the 11:30 train; shoutout to a friend on his way to the Albion Hills trails; saying goodbye to the rotting sneaker (5 years and still rotting). This will probably be my last run to Albion Hills ... I'll miss the rolling hills and the ever changing scenery and onward to exploring new routes, new frontiers and new sights to behold. New goals and fresh challenges await.


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## nOOky (May 13, 2008)

If anyone is interested, I ran the Tahoe 50 miler last weekend, and wrote up a short report with pictures. It was weird running down the Tyrolean downhill bike course and having some bikes fly by us. Some runners were irritated, I was jealous!

Not sure why my link isn't clickable here, sorry.


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## chazpat (Sep 23, 2006)

nOOky said:


> If anyone is interested, I ran the Tahoe 50 miler last weekend, and wrote up a short report with pictures. It was weird running down the Tyrolean downhill bike course and having some bikes fly by us. Some runners were irritated, I was jealous!
> 
> https://************************/d/1u-6kLZnLbfP8s2WkJ6OJ5O--uQo0_-EL4xStL3VDUT4/edit?usp=sharing


interested but link doesn't work!


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## paramount3 (Jul 13, 2014)

cyclelicious said:


> *Sha'Carri Richardson and Her Now Uncertain Path to the Olympics*
> When Sha'Carri Richardson starts talking, the declarations are grand.
> 
> "I am it."
> ...


I'm still disappointed by this. Marijuana is banned essentially because athletes are seen as role models, and WADA thinks that using marijuana is not becoming of a role model. But alcohol use is not banned. Why the difference? I really wanted to see Shelly Ann Frazer Price vs Sha'Carri vs Elaine Thompson vs Shericka Jackson etc in the 100 m. But the 200 m women's race will still be the race of the games: Gabby Thomas, Dina Asher-Smith, Shaunae Miller-Uibo, Elaine Thompson, Shericka Jackson, SAFP, Jenna Prandini--all running well under 22 seconds this year. Should be phenomenal.


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

paramount3 said:


> I'm still disappointed by this. Marijuana is banned essentially because athletes are seen as role models, and WADA thinks that using marijuana is not becoming of a role model. But alcohol use is not banned. Why the difference? I really wanted to see Shelly Ann Frazer Price vs Sha'Carri vs Elaine Thompson vs Shericka Jackson etc in the 100 m. But the 200 m women's race will still be the race of the games: Gabby Thomas, Dina Asher-Smith, Shaunae Miller-Uibo, Elaine Thompson, Shericka Jackson, SAFP, Jenna Prandini--all running well under 22 seconds this year. Should be phenomenal.


I agree. I'm confused by the banning of one and not the other


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

This Olympic marathoner is not over 50 but she is a masters athlete and to compete at that level at 41 is incredible

*At 41, Malindi Elmore is Enjoying a Surprise Second Act, Competing in the Olympic Marathon*









At her first Olympics in 2004, Canadian Malindi Elmore hoped she'd be back in 2008-and if all went according to plan, maybe in 2012, too. In 2021? It's fair to say, for many reasons, that wasn't on her radar.

But here she is, 17 years later, lining up for her second Games. She is not a 1500-meter runner anymore, however. This time Elmore, 41, is competing in the marathon on August 6 in Sapporo, Japan (where it will be August 7). Her goal is to finish in the top 10.

"I've had my best block of training ever," Elmore said during a phone interview with _Women's Running_ on Tuesday, after completing her final workout near her home in Kelowna, British Columbia. "I'm fit, healthy, definitely ready to get on an airplane and start tapering now. I just need to get over the travel and get ready to execute."

In between the 2004 Athens Olympics and the Tokyo Games, Elmore quit pro running (in 2012), gave birth to two sons who are now ages 7 and 3, and had a stint competing in professional triathlon, including the Ironman distance. In 2018, after her second child came along, she craved some alone time each day, but didn't have the capacity for the many hours required of triathlon training anymore. So she gradually put in more miles until she was tempted to try a marathon.

In January 2019, Elmore lined up for her first try at racing 26.2 miles, at the Houston Marathon. At the time, she thought she was capable of finishing in 2:45 or so, but crossed the line in 2:32:09. That result rekindled her eternally competitive nature and she set a new goal of achieving the Olympic standard of 2:29:30. A year later she did better than that, finishing the 2020 Houston Marathon in a new Canadian record of 2:24:50.

*RELATED:* Olympian Malindi Elmore Celebrates Powerful Marathon Debut

"It's been quite the journey," said Elmore, who is also coach of the University of British Columbia Okanagan cross-country team. "I was standing next to my husband after my workout today-he's coaching me and supporting me-and we just come back to being so grateful for where I'm at now. This is an unexpected chapter in my running career that came around in the last year or two that was never planned."

She won't be the only masters-age competitor on the line in Sapporo. Her Canadian teammate Natasha Wodak, 40, is racing with a personal best of 2:26:19. Sinead Diver of Australia, 44, has run 2:24:11, along with fellow Australian Lisa Weightman, 42, whose PR is 2:25:15. Johannes Helalia, 40, of Namibia finished the 2020 Valencia Marathon in 2:19.52.

Olympic officials moved the marathon events to Sapporo, which is about 500 miles north of Tokyo, because of concerns about extreme heat. The start is in Odori Park, where they'll run two laps, then head into the streets of the city on a three-loop course before finishing back in the park. Spectators have been asked to refrain from attending because of COVID-19 concerns.

Elmore took some time before traveling to Japan to talk to _Women's Running_ about her comeback, training, and aspirations for her renewed career.

*Women's Running: What are the details of your training for the Tokyo Olympics? What did you do mileage-wise?*
*Malindi Elmore:* In the last four weeks, I've pretty much averaged 100 miles [per week], which is really great for me. I haven't traditionally been a high-mileage person. To be able to string four weeks together like that is really great. There are lots of different philosophies for marathon training, but our key sessions are once every eight to 10 days. They were a bit more frequent in this block because I did a 10K race on June 18-the Canadian 10,000-meter championships. Since then, I've done 4 x 6K and then a 40K run with a 20K fast finish around marathon pace. Today I did 10K, 7K, 3K. We cut off a little volume today because I'm ready and there's not point in going over the top now. So our key sessions were aiming from 25K to 30K of work at marathon pace, with warmup and cool downs.

*WR: Given that your second Olympic berth is a bit of a surprise, would you reflect on your unusual path to this moment?*
*ME:* As much as I'm nervous and have high expectations for how I perform in Tokyo, I'm just trying to channel the gratitude of being able to do this again. I raced until 2012 on the track, in the 1500 meters primarily, and in Canada we've changed our [national team] selection process, but back then I didn't make the team.
The criteria then meant that you had to run faster than the [World Athletics] standards. I was selectable and had made the standards&#8230;in 2008 Canada didn't take anybody in the women's distance events. It was devastating. It was so hard to work that hard and be competitive against other people competing at the Olympics and not be going. In the context of that, there was also a lot of doping going on and then I got a navicular stress fracture in 2007 and for about three years that really affected me. In 2012, I knew I had to step away for my mental health. I had classic signs of burnout and I wasn't enjoying it in the same way anymore. I was ready to move on-I didn't have regrets. I retired in 2012. The 1500 at the Olympic Trials was my final race. 
Then I decided I was going to pursue other interests. I went back to university to get a teaching degree, started teaching, got into triathlon in a big way. I really wanted to start a family, so I had my first child in 2014. We were happy. I took my pro card in triathlon and it just seems to happen that I just can't stop being competitive. I learned so much about endurance sports being a triathlete. I don't think I'd be where I'm at in the marathon without having done that-fueling, mindset, and coming to terms with the long days. And it developed my aerobic system.

*WR: OK, then you had your second son in 2018. What happened after that?*
*ME:* I was ready to retire again, from triathlon, and just focus on my family. I didn't train through my pregnancies or postpartum. I wasn't in a rush to get back-I just wanted to return to being active and the next thing you know I'd be entered in a race. And then I'd get results that indicated I could do better. My son was born in June and in September I came home from a run with some of my friends who were training for the Chicago Marathon and told my husband I wanted to run it, too. He didn't think I was ready. I wasn't. But he put together a training plan for me to do Houston in January [2019].

I ran 2:32:08 when the baby was six months old. We took him with us. I finished the race and it felt so easy. I loved the training. [Husband] Graham [Hood] and I looked at each other and said, "We've gotta go for the Olympic standard." We just thought it was so funny. We were walking around Houston for six hours because we had a late flight and had checked out of our hotel room. We kept saying it would be so crazy if I could make the Olympics again.

*WR: Having a family now in this new iteration of your running career, how does it influence your attitude?*
*ME:* It's everything. Once you have kids, that's the priority. My life is very busy. The boys are very active. My husband said today, "We've got to get you on the plane," because I'm the CEO of the household. I know where the swim suits are and what the activities are for the day. All the mom things you've got to do. My running gives me focus and breaks from the management and time with my kids. That's why I was drawn back into sport after having both of them. I needed a break every day-an hour or so to myself to run or ride or swim.

But I draw a lot of inspiration from my kids. We all want to show our kids what's possible and be the best role models. My kids have grown up seeing that. I'll be missing them like crazy in Japan, but I'll be thinking of them out there.

I think having a family has made me a better athlete in a lot of ways. I have to be a lot more disciplined about when I fit in my training. Some days I have to get up and get it done before my husband goes to work if I know that that's the window for the day. Now I've often finished two runs by 2 p.m.

I'm at a place in my life now where I wouldn't change anything. I had felt that tug that I wanted to have kids during the last few years of my running career. And I didn't know if I had to push it off for another quadrennial if that would have been an issue. Now I get to do what I love to do-running and coaching-and I get to have my kids. I wouldn't change anything. I'm approaching my running from a very happy place.

*WR: A lot has been made of the rise of U.S. women's distance running, but the Canadian women are also seeing much more talent and depth. What do you think accounts for the performances of your teammates?*
*ME:* This is the first time that I can recall, without going too deep into the history of Canadian running, that we've sent three women in the 800, 1500, 5K, steeplechase, and marathon to the Olympics. And one in the 10K. In Rio, we sent two in the marathon. In other years we didn't send anybody. So to have three deep in all these fields has been rare for Canada. We have a tenth of the population of the U.S. We've always been competitive with maybe our top runner against an American field, but maybe not three deep. I think we had five women break 15 minutes in the 5K this year. That's legitimately competitive.

Once the momentum gets going and once people get to see what they need to do, they rise to the occasion. We're really fortunate that we have really good support now from our national federation. We have great coaching and facilities. There's no reason why we shouldn't be very competitive.

*WR: How did COVID impact training there? And you personally-how did you cope?*
*ME:* It was really, really hard for everyone, I'm sure. My kids came home that spring at one and five years old. My younger son is your proverbial crazy child. Like Jack-Jack from _The Incredibles_. I had him daycare three days a week and I wasn't used to having him home 24/7, trying to keep him alive 24/7 [laughing]. It's a full-time job. I coach and have flexibility, so like a lot of moms, a lot of the responsibility falls to the mom to manage in these times.
We were concerned that if my husband lost his job, then who's paying the bills? There's a lot of worry not just for your own situation, but your friends. The uncertainty of how bad it was going to be. Are we all going to lose our jobs? Are we all going to get sick and die? No one knew what was going on. I felt the stress and worry and having the kids home all day, so I just took a couple months off running. It just seemed like there were no races, a hamstring injury was starting to bother me again. It took adjusting to the new realities and COVID was a wakeup call to prioritize what's important to us. About this time last year I was starting to feel like myself again, like I could get up and go run in the mornings. There just wasn't the time and energy there had been to put into running for a while.

*WR: So, now that you're in the 40s and competing on the global stage again, how do you feel about people making issue of your age? Does it bother you or do you think it can serve as inspiration to others?*
*ME:* I'm OK with it. Age is a number and I'm not taking personal judgement by it. It's an objective fact about myself. In some ways it has given me reason for why I'm doing this. Maybe that's why I so often wondered about when I was younger: What's the purpose of what I'm doing? And now I feel like this matters to a lot of people. I've had so many people reach out to me and I know how powerful role models and stories are to make me want to well in life, not just in running. If that is meaningful and significant to other people, then I'm honored to serve that role right now. Part of it is my age and part of it is that I'm a parent. It's all good. I'm not done yet anyways, so we can continue talking about it for a few more years.

*WR: What are the key elements of training that are contributing to your longevity?*
*ME:* My breaks have been super helpful. I had two pregnancies that were essentially a year off, then did a bulk of years of not a lot of running, but a lot of swimming and cycling. I don't have the wear and tear on my body that I might have had I just pressed on. I don't think I could have continued to train at this level for that long. Breaks, mentally and physically, are key.

I had a tendinopathy in my high hamstring in the fall 2019 that was a wakeup call to me. That's something that comes on in your 30s and 40s. Since then I've done weights with a strength trainer twice a week for the last year. That wasn't something I did as a middle distance athlete. I wasn't very diligent or strategic in my strength training program. I feel healthier and stronger now than I ever have.

*WR: Turning to the Olympics-the experience is going to be much different than your first for a lot of reasons, but mainly we're all focused on the logistics you have to go through for COVID safety. How are you feeling about that?*
*ME:* It was added stress last night when my negative COVID test came back not in the right format and without the right time and date. It's a lot. The majority of the team is already in Japan so I'm following along on our team chat. I have a good idea that when we get there, they aren't kidding around. We're in quarantine. You really have to pack your patience and your resiliency.

For me at my age and life experience, I can go with the flow and not let those little things add up to big stressors. I can just do my best to be patient. I know that there will be times when a couple of deep breaths will be required, but hopefully I'll be able to turn to that instead of getting frustrated.

*WR: What's a successful Olympic marathon for you?*
*ME:* My incoming time is about 16th on the list. My goal is a top 10 performance. I look at how well the Americans did with three in the top 10 in 2016 and I don't think that's unrealistic for myself and Natasha. We could run those kind of performances. If I can execute the kind of race I did in Houston, that should put me in that kind of contention even in the heat and humidity. Other than that, if I do everything I should do with pacing, fueling, and hydration, and just executing the race I need to, that will be a success.

*WR: Will your kids watch from home?*
*ME:* My older son gets it. He's super excited that mom is going to Japan for the Olympics and he has all his Canada gear. I don't know if he has the attention span for a two-and-a-half-hour race. [My younger son] will be watching some sort of show on the iPad.

It's a long ways off, but it makes me hopeful that maybe I can come back again in Paris [in 2024] and bring the kids with me.









At 41, Malindi Elmore is Enjoying a Surprise Second Act, Competing in the Olympic Marathon


She never expected to play a part in Canada’s rising tide of women’s distance talent, but as the national record holder, Malindi Elmore is leading the way at the 2021 Olympic marathon.




www.womensrunning.com


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)




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## jrhone (May 23, 2011)

I run as well. My main reason, to get in better shape and lose weight. Unfortunately I can only ride a few days a week because my schedule doesn't allow more, so on the other days its a 4-5 mile run. It uses different muscles than the bike so its nice to alternate and giver certain mussel a break, and it helps with cardio endurance, which helps my riding and it helps lose weight so again helps my riding. Im down 35 pounds so far in 3 months and my riding is getting better and more fun.


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

*Getting Faster Hurts*

"4:33," I hastily scribbled on my timing sheet as Ricardo flipped at the 400-yard mark. As coach of the UT San Antonio multisport club, I had the athletes swim an 800 yard time trial once a month to assess their progress - and Ricardo was on pace to set a personal record (PR).

After swimming his first 100 yards in 1:04, Ricardo was holding 1:08-1:10 per 100 yards. If he held his current pace, he would set a PR by over 20 seconds. He had been training for a multi-day open-water swim race, so I knew he was fit. Ricardo swam with a classic distance freestyle technique - low stroke count, hardly any kick, and effortlessly flowing through yards at a speed that most adult triathletes could only hit if they were sprinting 25 yards all-out&#8230; with fins.

But after another 1:09 to split 5:42 through 500 yards, Ricardo started to slow. He didn't just slow a little bit. It was like he slammed on the brakes. His next 50 clocked 5 seconds slower than his previous split. He stopped briefly at the wall, shook his head, then kept swimming. I shouted encouragement, "You're doing GREAT, Ricardo! Keep going!" Despite my encouragement, he seemed unable to get back to his early speed. I watched as he finished his last 200 yards at a pace slower than his warm-up just 30 minutes before.

*Faster ≠ Easier*
Ricardo looked utterly defeated when he finished and said, "Coach, I didn't have it today. I just felt so slow from the beginning." I showed him his split sheet and said, "Ricardo, you were only 3 seconds slower than your PR and went out in 4:32. You were swimming faster than you ever have, that's why it didn't feel good!" He was shocked that he had swam that fast.

Ricardo knew that he had been training well and that he was fit. He was expecting to swim well that night. But he forgot that being fit does not mean that racing will no longer hurt. In fact, going faster than he had ever gone before was going to hurt - A LOT!

Deep down, every athlete wants to be faster. No one signs up for their first 5k and, after finishing, sets the goal of going slower next time. We hire a coach, buy a training plan, or join a local training group with the goal of dropping 30 seconds off our time.

What we often forget, however, is that FASTER ≠ EASIER. Reaching a level of ability where training or racing no longer hurts is a myth - it does not exist. Going fast hurts. It will always hurt. And if you are reaching new levels of speed or distance, expect it to hurt even more.

Therein lies one key to unlocking your potential as an athlete: if you want to get faster, be prepared to hurt, to suffer, to be challenged mentally and physically.

*Rate of Perceived Exertion Changes at Submaximal Velocities*
As you improve your fitness, your rate of perceived exertion (RPE) and heart rate at a given submaximal velocity or power will decrease. In other words, if you used to run a 10-minute mile pace for 5K, but now you can run a 9-minute mile pace, then running a 10-minute mile will not feel as hard as before.

But if a 9-minute mile is your new "max" 5k pace, then that 9-minute mile will hurt every bit as much as the 10-minute mile did when you first started. In fact, the 9-minute mile might even hurt more, since you are now running at a higher intensity. The takeaway is that the faster you are, the harder you can go - and the more you can hurt.

*Mentally Come to Terms with the Pain of Racing*
Ricardo may have been swimming faster than he ever had before, but what he failed to grasp was that the increase in speed might also mean an increase in pain. He associated that level of discomfort with failure or a decrease in his performance level.

But his discomfort was actually a sign that his body was accomplishing something new. The acute pain was a testament to his improvement and his growth. His body knew it, but his mind just hadn't come to terms with it yet. I'm happy to report that Ricardo dropped 15 seconds off his next time trial. His body was already trained - it just took a bit of time for his mind to catch up.

Remember the next time you are completing a time trial or competing in a race: pain is not always bad. As Greg Lemond said, "It never gets any easier, you just go faster." Suffer faster.









Getting Faster Hurts | TrainingPeaks


Achieving a new PR doesn’t mean that racing becomes easier. USAT Coach Mark Saroni explains why going faster hurts.




www.trainingpeaks.com


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## swissarmychainsaw (Aug 4, 2010)

bakerjw said:


> I am still planning on riding the upper 1/4 of the GDMBR route next Summer and want to be sure that my walking/bike pushing legs are as good as they can be.


Practice hike-a-bike, I was just reminded that it's arms, back, neck and legs that get torqued during that!


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## nOOky (May 13, 2008)

Maybe this will work?

2021 Tahoe Rim Trail 50 mile race report.

The wife and I travelled to Sacramento, CA the Wednesday before the Saturday race as decent flights in this still covid-influenced time were kind of hard to book. We would be getting up at 5:00 a.m. the day after the race to drive back from Carson City to catch our flight Sunday morning. It ended up being not too bad as I drove, I did not feel that badly beaten up from the race.

The wife would be doing the 55k, myself the 5(2) mile after some course adjustments this year with a new starting line and venue right in Carson City. The race would start with a 4,000 foot climb in the first 8 miles, lovely!

Thursday we drove from Sacramento to Carson City, taking the scenic route through Donner pass. We stopped to hike around there a bit, and to go kayaking on Donner lake. It was very pretty, but the Donner party story is very sad. Thursday evening we went to a local meet and greet hosted by the race director, and had a beer and some dinner at a local pub.

Friday we drove around Lake Tahoe, stopping for photos and to walk in the water at Kings beach. We went to packet pickup at the race start to get our stuff, and had a nice dinner at a local Mexican place in Carson City.

Saturday morning we were up before the 4:45 a.m. alarm and got ready and made the 10 minute drive to the 6:00 a.m. start. The usual jittery race feelings were there, even though it had only been 2 weeks since I did the Afton 50k race. Did I prepare enough? Did I rest enough? Did I poop enough, and should I try again with 7 minutes to start? We listened to the race director's spiel (I don't recall any of it, sorry) as we checked in, and then lined up to start.

We were off! The first portion actually had some runnable, or trottable, distance to it. I was thinking that this wasn't so bad. The start of the Bear 100 is about the same amount of climbing, and I'd done that twice. However my good feelings would soon be dashed, as the two big climbs of the day were actually more like the warped walls in American Ninja Warrior. Call the first climb of the day the mega warped wall, it starts out easy, but soon the grade pitches up a lot.

The climb was decently hard, mostly on a fire road with some dust and just enough rocks sticking out that you had to watch your step. Even with the early start it was warm, but the sunrise at our backs was awesome. A few pickup trucks made their way up the hill past us, one guy honking at the runners in front of him quite a lot. I suppose we were irritating to him if we didn't get out of the way right away. I drank a lot of the Tailwind in my pack, trying to get ahead of my hydration as it was dry and expected to be a warm day in the 90's. It was also dusty.

The first aid station was supposed to be water only, but they were hawking that they had some energy drink brewed up too, so I topped off my pack with that after about an hour and a half. The climb continued, eventually going into some tree cover with beautiful views and nice grassy singletrack trail. It was here that I was leading (yes fat old me) a small pack of runners when I 
Sunrise on the big climb of the day.









went off course a bit in the woods. It was only maybe 50 yards, and when we found the trail again the guy behind me said "how did you miss that, it's so obvious" and I said "Well the four of you behind me missed it too" so there smarty pants.

It was still sort of cool out at this point, but the sun had come up and it was starting to make it's awesome power known on our backs. Up on top as we wound around, Marlette lake and then Lake Tahoe finally came into view to the left. We dropped down and ran along Marlette lake through some nice woods until we hit the Hobart aid station. Leaving Hobart there is an out and back with a rough loop at the end, kind of a sperm shaped portion of the course.

This part of the course went down a ski hill in a rather mild fashion compared to going back up. Going back up meant right up the service road of the ski resort with 1,700 feet of gain in two miles. I had to stop several times on that hill to catch my breath, as did many others around me. It was brutal after 30 miles of up and down already.

After that it was back to Hobart for another visit (there was actually a bar at this aid station that I did not partake of!), and then only 20 miles or so to go woot. At this point we left Hobart in another direction. Lots of gravel service road stuff on the side of a mountain etc. You could see the brown smoke from nearby wildfires, although the wind kept it away from us. At times it looked like it was just "right over there" and would soon cover us, but it never did.

The second to the last aid station was about 12 miles from the finish, but a guy working there said "it's all either downhill or relatively flat from here on out" and he actually did not lie. Other than some gentle uphills it wasn't bad. Having trouble breathing at around 8,000 foot of elevation for the day at best I could only trot most of the flat sections. Even drinking from my bottles or hydration pack would take my breath away.

The last 4 miles were mostly downhill, and I was able to rip off some miles under 10 minute pace. You could feel the temperature increase as you descended, but since I got done around 8:00 it wasn't that awful. One beer and no food was all I had after the race. I did not feel like eating.

Marlette lake in the foreground, Lake Tahoe behind it.









I came in just over 14 hours, my slowest 50 mile race by a couple of hours. Garmin said 51.99 miles at 16:12 pace with 9,838 feet of climbing. According to my watch I stopped for an hour and 11 minutes. I did stop to take a lot of pictures, and I did sit at a few aid stations to refill my pack and just catch my breath. Still, I was 52nd out of 129 runners, whatever that means in the grand scheme of things I don't know.








Going up.









And coming up.









Going down, sort of fast.









Some pleasant running as the sun went lower.









The end!


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

Fantastic accomplishment, Gorgeous landscapes and good write up. Way to go to you both!


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

*How Olympic Athletes Run: The Difference Between Speed and Distance*
The fastest Olympic sprint was Usain Bolt's 100 meters at the London Games, averaging more than 23 miles per hour for 9.63 seconds. Marathoners, who run for two hours, top out at around half of Bolt's speed. 

The 100 meters and the marathon are at either end of the Olympic spectrum of running races. The sprints (100, 200 and 400 meters) are strictly about power and mechanics. The endurance races (1,500, 5,000 and 10,000 meters and the marathon) are all about the supply and demand of energy. The 800-meter race, while just two laps around the track, sits between them, the painful middle ground between a pure sprint and pure endurance​










We invited three elite runners - TyNia Gaither, an 100-meter runner, Olivia Baker, an 800-meter runner, and Jared Ward, a marathon runner - to run on the world's fastest treadmill.

The common thread in all the events is speed. In the end, it's the only measure that matters; whoever crosses the finish line first wins. There is a single factor that determines a runner's speed, regardless of distance: how much force they deliver into the ground relative to their weight, said Peter Weyand, one of the world's foremost experts on how to run faster
Here's how NYT examined the differences between running fast and running far (but still pretty fast)









How Speed and Distance Dictate How Olympians Run


We invited three elite runners to run on the world’s fastest treadmill to examine the differences between running fast and running far (but still pretty fast).



www.nytimes.com


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

Runday is funday and race day







I completed race #4/5 for the 5Peaks Race Series: a respectable 35km run. I had to run an extra 4 km back to the house (but I can't count those extra kilometers!) It will prepare me for the final race in September. It was a beautiful foggy morning , and I saw a variety of birds including some herons, ducks, and ducklings, and a turkey casually crossing road. Some anglers and hikers and a few other early birds along the way. And is it just me that noticed... leaves are changing color... say it ain't so!


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

I do a weekly long run, typically 20-25km. I found some of the content helpful.

*The Ultimate Guide to One of Our Best Training Tools: Long Runs*
Ah, long runs: We love to hate 'em. Or maybe we love to love 'em-depends on who you ask. Either way, the long run is the cornerstone of any half marathon or marathon training plan, but it can be equally important to your 5K and 10K training. No races on your calendar? No problem. A long run can still be beneficial for your overall fitness and mental health.

But if you don't understand the long run, you may miss out on all of the magic it has to offer. So we put together this ultimate guide to one of the best training tools you have in your arsenal.

*What's the point of the long run?*
The benefit of running long-regardless of the distance you're training for-is the aerobic gain you'll make during those miles. "Long runs force the body to become more and more efficient," says Ben Rosario, head coach and founder of the Hoka NAZ Elite team in Flagstaff, Arizona. "The heart learns to pump higher amounts of blood with each stroke, which then carries more oxygen to the body."

Aerobic (or endurance) running also strengthens your slow-twitch muscle fibers, which can fire repeatedly with minimal fatigue (compared to fast-twitch fibers, which are used during short, explosive efforts but fatigue more quickly). These fibers are also important because they're full of capillaries, mitochondria, and myoglobin (an iron- and oxygen-binding protein), all of which are crucial to getting a steady supply of oxygen and energy to the muscles.

"Long runs force the body to create new capillaries, giving the oxygen a smoother and faster path to the mitochondria-a.k.a. the 'power plant' of the cells-where energy is produced and stored. And when we run for long periods of time, the size of those mitochondria increases, allowing them to produce and store more energy," explains Rosario.

One of the other major benefits of the long run is how it teaches your body to use fat as fuel over carbs, says Joe McConkey, a Boston-based exercise physiologist and USATF-certified running coach. "That allows you to be more efficient with your different forms of energy, so you can run faster without depleting your reserves."

Translation: The long run prepares your body to run more efficiently no matter the distance-even in a short race, when you need energy to be produced and oxygen sent throughout the body _fast_.

And you can't overlook the mental angle: To prepare for the psychological challenge of racing for hours, you have to train for hours. Even if you're not racing, a long run offers your mind the chance to tap into the ever-elusive runner's high, and research shows running can boost your mood and improve your mental health.

*What to Watch Out for On a Long Run*
A long run is, inherently, long. And the more time you spend on your feet, the more stress you put on your body. "The long run does ask a lot of our muscles, tendons, and ligaments due to the duration of exercise required for a run to be considered 'long'," says Rosario.

Generally, your cardiovascular system adapts to changes more quickly than your musculoskeletal system. So if you start running long before your body is prepared to run long, you could put yourself at an increased risk for injury, including overuse injuries like plantar fasciitis, Achilles tendonitis, runners' knee, iliotibial band (ITB) syndrome, and shin splints.

"If you're experiencing any little niggles or asymmetries _before _the long run, the long run will only make those worse with the thousands and thousands of steps you're putting on your body," says McConkey. It's super important to listen to your body and, if you feel like something is off _during _the long run, acknowledge that it may be more major than you think. "The only sensations you should feel during a long run are a slight challenge aerobically as it gets longer, and general fatigue or a sort of bilateral soreness," he adds.

*Gear You Need for a Long Run*
Running is a pretty simple sport in terms of gear, but when you start clocking over 60 minutes, there are some important things you'll want with you beyond a good pair of shoes.

The most important addition is a way to carry fuel and hydration, whether that's a running belt, a handheld water carrier, or a pack.

"If your long run is longer than 90 minutes in duration, you'll want to make sure you're carrying electrolytes in the form of a drink or gel," says Rosario.

Here's why that 90-minute cutoff is so important: "If you don't fuel properly, after 90 minutes-and especially after two hours or more-you'll start depleting your glycogen stores," explains Rosario. "Glycogen equals energy. If you're not replacing what you're losing through prolonged exercise, you could run out of energy." That's what runners call bonking or hitting the wall.

In general, runners should take in 30 to 60 grams of carbohydrates per hour during a long run. McConkey recommends consuming some kind of fuel every 15 minutes or so, alternating between a liquid and Speaking of liquids, even minor dehydration leads to a reduction in endurance performance, as well as a higher rate of perceived exertion. If you're training for longer than an hour, you should be drinking anywhere from 24 to 32 ounces per hour of your run (sipping sporadically, not chugging in one go). You can actually calculate how much fluid you need per hour by weighing yourself before and after an hour of running sans water; each pound of weight loss is approximately equal to 16 ounces of fluid deficit. (Or simply use our handy hydration calculator here.)

If you're running long, you also may want to wear headphones to play music or a podcast to keep you from getting bored and carry a phone and credit card or cash in case of an emergency.

*How Long Should Your Long Run Be?*
There's a _huge _amount of variation in how long a long run should be, depending on the type of runner you are.

Some coaches suggest long runs cover one-and-a-half to two times the distance of what you consider a normal-length run. Most experts, like Jack Daniels, agree that a long run be about 20 to 25 percent of your overall weekly mileage. So if you're running 40 miles per week, your long run will be 8 to 10 miles.

"I typically don't like the long run to be more than twice the length of a regular recovery run," says McConkey (in general, recovery runs last about 25 to 40 minutes). According to the Road Runners Club of America, a long run _technically_ isn't a "long run" unless it's over 90 minutes, so the exact distance depends on your running pace.

But your long-run distance becomes more specific if you're training for a certain distance. Remember: You need to go further (and slower) in order to run faster at shorter distances. Most experts recommend working up to the below peak long run for each distance:


5K: 5 to 6 miles for beginners; 10 to 12 miles for intermediate/advanced
8K/10K: 6 to 10 miles for beginners; 12 to 14 for intermediate/advanced
Half marathon: 12 to 13 for beginners; 16 to 18 for intermediate/advanced
Marathon: 18 to 22 for beginners; 18 to 30 for intermediate/advanced
Yes, some of those distances are longer than the race itself. "But logging those miles shows you've spent enough time at sub-max speeds to allow the necessary aerobic adaptations to happen," he explains.

*How Fast Should Your Long Run Be?*
No matter the distance, your long run should be run at an easy pace, says McConkey. We will repeat: easy pace! What does that translate to? It'll be different for every runner, but an easy pace should fall on the lower end of the rate of perceived exertion scale. Your heart rate should be 50 to 70 percent of your maximum heart rate, and you should be breathing naturally and able to hold a conversation effortlessly.

"I advise people to run as slow as possible, as long as it's mechanically comfortable," McConkey explains. "I challenge people to not look at pace until they're done, but just focus on something comfortable. You shouldn't feel like you're doing slow-motion single-leg squats; there should still be some spring to your step."

That pace is going to change as your fitness changes. "When you develop more strength and running efficiency, you'll be able to run faster at the same RPE or heart rate," says McConkey.

For shorter distances, long runs can generally be slow and enjoyable, says Rosario. But half marathoners and marathoners should approach their long runs with a little more structure. "Half marathoners and marathoners, in my opinion, should be adding faster-paced running into most of their long runs: things like alternating fast-pace and medium-pace miles, surging for two minutes at the beginning of each mile, or simply running the last 5K of their long run really fast," says Rosario. This is important, because it helps train your legs to get used to running fast even with lots of miles on them-and that will help at the end of races.

*How to Recover From a Long Run*
You may run your long run at an easier pace, but the sheer amount of time you're spending on your feet warrants more rest and recovery.

For starters, "the quicker an athlete can replenish after a long run, the sooner they will recover," says Rosario. "Shoot for a mix of carbs and protein, preferably at a 4:1 carbs to protein ratio-that particular ratio has been shown in labs to be the most effective at replenishing muscle glycogen stores and thus limiting muscle damage."

McConkey recommends taking the day off after a long run. "Instead of running, just walk around for 20 to 30 minutes and spend 10 minutes on a foam roller to open up your body," he says. "Those two things can really expedite recovery." In fact, foam rolling was shown to reduce delayed-onset muscle soreness while enhancing muscle recovery in a study published in the _Journal of Athletic Training_.

As for other trendy recovery modalities, do what feels good to you. Compression boots can also lead to recovery benefits, a study in the _Journal of Applied Physiology_ found. Ice baths were shown to reduce delayed onset muscle soreness in a scientific review by researchers at the Cochrane Library. And massage helped reduce pain intensity in runners' quads in a study from the _Journal of Physiotherapy_.

Most importantly, prioritize a good night's sleep-new research from the _International Journal of Sports Medicine _argues it may be the single most important factor in exercise recovery. After all, that's where the real recovery magic happens, when your body truly has time to rest and rebuild.









The Long Run Prepares Your Body to Run More Efficiently No Matter the Distance


Going the extra mile(s) can help you run more efficiently at every distance—even if you dread it sometimes.




www.runnersworld.com


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

What a fascinating story!










*The Unbelievable True Story of the Craziest Olympic Marathon*
Only 14 men crossed the finish: one after hitchhiking, one after napping, and one-the winner-after drinking rat poison.

On a broiling, 90-degree August afternoon in 1904, 32 men dressed largely in white with leather belts gathered at Francis Olympic Field, a newly constructed stadium in St. Louis. Flanked by other men in suits and porkpie hats, they were about to compete in what would become the most infamous marathon in history. The event was part of the Louisiana Purchase Exposition, also known as the 1904 World's Fair. Within the crowd of dapper onlookers was the man in whose honor the stadium was named: David R. Francis, a former Missouri governor and president of the organizing committee for the Olympic Games. At 3:03 p.m. he fired the starting gun; so began the first Olympic marathon race on U.S. soil.

The race started with five laps around the track and a flurry of lead changes. Among the cast of largely American runners were three previous Boston Marathon winners. None of them would finish. In fact, only 14 men eventually completed the race: one after hitchhiking, one after taking a nap, and one-the eventual gold medalist-after drinking strychnine mixed with raw egg and brandy. Not only would the percentage of finishers rank as the lowest of any Olympic marathon, but the event itself would be marred by the racism that pervaded and even guided the 1904 Olympics and World's Fair.









The marathoners line up at the start (from left, all American except where noted): Thomas Hicks, Fred Lorz, Sydney Hatch, John Lordan, Felix Carvajal (Cuba), official, Dimitrios Veloulis (Greece), Albert Corey, Frank Pierce, Samuel Mellor, Edward Carr, Arthur Newton, unknown.

Frank Pierce from the Seneca Nation-the first Native American to compete in the Olympics-briefly took to the front. Pierce was followed closely by fellow Americans Arthur Newton, Thomas Hicks, and Sam Mellor.

As the men made the third lap, another American, Fred Lorz, took a turn in the lead. Lorz, a bricklayer by trade, had the muscular build of a sprinter but had finished in the top five at the previous two Boston Marathons. Close behind, the race claimed its first casualty: The 1903 Boston champ, John Lordan, Irish-born but running for the United States, began vomiting and walked off the track to register the first DNF.

Hicks, who'd finished second behind Lordan at Boston that previous year, passed Lorz to lead racers out of the stadium. Hicks purportedly made his living as a professional clown. Yet in the few surviving pictures of the race, Hicks appears to be the most serious man in St. Louis, standing uncomfortably straight at the start line with a near scowl.

Striding onto the dirt roads beyond Francis Field, the runners were greeted by red flags marking the route. The man responsible for those flags, along with much of the 1904 St. Louis Olympics, was James E. Sullivan, head of the Physical Culture Department for the World's Fair. Sullivan intended to use the Games to showcase white American excellence through a series of events that ranged from the poorly executed, like the marathon, to the cartoonishly racist, like the fair's Anthropology Days-a two-day Olympic-style competition during which nonwhite performers from the fair's living anthropology displays competed in sports they'd never played before. The idea was to flaunt their athletic inferiority to the world. A headline in the _St. Louis Post-Dispatch_, "Barbarians meet in Athletic Games," made no bones about that intention.









Frank Pierce leads the first lap of the marathon around Francis Field.

Sullivan also designed the 24.85-mile race (26.2 became the standard in 1921) as an experiment to test his own exercise science theories. Chief among his beliefs was that of "purposeful dehydration." Following the conventional wisdom of the time, Sullivan insisted that drinking (or eating) during exercise would only upset the stomach. Accordingly, there was only one water station on the course, near mile 12.

Three miles in, Newton, who'd won bronze just a day before in the steeplechase, held fifth, the same as his finishing position at the 1900 Olympic marathon. Hicks, the professional clown, fell back to seventh. And Albert Corey, a French-born, U.S.-representing marathoner who lived in Chicago and worked at a slaughterhouse, ran in ninth place.

Trailing close behind were Len Taunyane and Jan Mashiani, both running their first marathon. The two members of South Africa's Tswana tribe were the first Black Africans to compete in the Olympics. In fact, they were the _only_ Black athletes to represent that nation until the end of apartheid 86 years later. Taunyane and Mashiani had no formal racing experience and were in St. Louis performing in the World's Fair's Boer War Exhibition. Taunyane and Mashiani had been message runners for the Boers and were part of a cast of hundreds that twice a day reenacted battles from the recent Second Boer War, between Dutch colonist Boers and the British Empire, in front of thousands of spectators.










Len Taunyane, left, and Jan Mashiani of the Tswana Tribe of South Africa.

Leading the way out of the stadium was a vanguard of horsemen, riding ahead of the racers to clear the dry dirt roads. Right behind them, a motorcade of journalists, doctors, support teams, and race officials followed, producing a steady brown cloud that enveloped the runners for most of the course.

At six miles Newton led, with 1902 Boston champ Sam Mellor in pursuit on the dusty road. Behind them were Lorz and Félix Carvajal, a Cuban mailman who'd arrived at the race in a long-sleeve shirt, hat, pants, heavy shoes, and a notable mustache. (A helpful Samaritan assisted Carvajal in cutting his pants into shorts prior to the start of the race.) Carvajal had raised the money for his journey to America by running exhibitions in his native Cuba, but after gambling away his funds on a layover in New Orleans, he'd hitchhiked the rest of the way to St. Louis. Carvajal was among the favorites to win; however, he was also a loquacious man, frequently stopping for mid-competition banter with spectators.









Félix Carvajal of Cuba, running in modified street clothes.

Approaching the 10-mile marker, Fred Lorz, plagued by muscle cramps, flagged down a car (likely that of his coach) for a ride back to Francis Field. Carvajal also stopped, but to find a snack. According to some accounts, Carvajal ate rotten apples from an orchard along the road. One writer observed Carvajal playfully swiping peaches from spectators after they'd denied his request for fruit. Either way, Carvajal suffered from stomach cramps and lay down to take a short nap.

At mile 12, the racers encountered the well that served as the lone water station. Sullivan had intended to test purposeful dehydration in the race by observing how athletes would perform in high-intensity work, on a hot summer day, with a limited amount of water available to drink.

Undeterred by the fact that fewer than half of his marathoners finished, he'd later write a book, 1909's _Marathon Running_, which reiterated his continued belief in the power of water abstinence. "Don't get into the habit of drinking and eating in a marathon race; some prominent runners do, but it is not beneficial," he wrote.

Halfway through the marathon, Mellor was leading, with Newton and Hicks, respectively, in second and third place. Mellor had been the pre-race favorite. In addition to his Boston win, he'd podiumed there in 1901 and 1903, and he'd won the Pan American Exposition marathon in 1901, in 104-degree heat. But this time, Mellor's pace slowed by mile 16 to combat cramping. By another account, he incorrectly believed he'd taken a wrong turn and tired himself out running backward on the course. In any case, he soon dropped out of the race. Hicks took the lead, with Newton trailing.








Sam Mellor of leads fellow Americans Edward Carr, left, and Michael Spring. All three would drop out of the race.

Hicks, now beyond the water station, began to grow desperately thirsty. He had two trainers following in a car, and he began to beg them for a drink of water. They refused, and instead gave his mouth and shoulders a sponge bath in an attempt to relieve the thirst without hydrating their athlete.

Near mile 19, William Garcia, a racer out of San Francisco who was in fourth place at the time, collapsed. He likely experienced the closest brush with death of any marathoner that day. On the side of the road, he began coughing up blood and passed out before being discovered and taken to a hospital. The combination of heat, dehydration, and roughly two hours of running through dust clouds landed Garcia in surgery for a dust-lined esophagus and a torn stomach lining.

Lorz, meanwhile, was feeling refreshed after riding in a car for 11 miles after his cramping episode. He decided to continue the last miles on foot, into the stadium, and across the finish line to claim victory in under three hours. Just as First Daughter Alice Roosevelt Longworth was crowning Lorz as the victor, a spectator revealed that Lorz had been driven along the course. Lorz defended his victory as merely a joke, but the stunt earned him a lifetime ban.

As Lorz was explaining himself away, Hicks held the lead with roughly four miles remaining, but he continued to suffer from dehydration. His trainers, making history, decided to give him something stronger than a damp sponge. In the first recorded instance of performance-enhancing drug use in the Olympics, Hicks was fed a combination of egg whites and 1 milligram of strychnine sulfate. In high doses, this compound is used as rat poison. At lower doses, however, it is a stimulant and currently prohibited for in-competition use by the World Anti-Doping Agency.









Thomas Hicks was refused water by his trainers. Instead, they bathed him with a wet sponge.

A ghastly Hicks continued, but his already mechanical form deteriorated and his pace slowed as he stopped to walk up a hill two miles from the finish. This earned Hicks a second dose of the strychnine mixture, plus a swig of brandy. It worked: Hicks picked up his pace to finish in 3:28. It was the slowest winning marathon time in Olympic history-by a 30-minute margin.

Albert Corey finished second at 3 hours and 34 minutes, and 13 minutes later Newton took third place. Carvajal's recovery nap delivered him to fourth place, while Len Taunyane (despite being chased a mile off course by a dog) took ninth and Mashiani was 12th. After the podium, no finish times were recorded (or they were lost), but finishers trickled in for hours.

Sullivan and his kind claimed the marathon as the evidence of racial superiority they sought-despite producing an event that was almost entirely stocked with white runners, many with coaches in tow. Charles J. P. Lucas, a physician and writer who traveled by car observing and assisting Hicks, wrote in his blandly titled book _The Olympic Games 1904 _that the marathon established "the stamina of the Caucasian race and the superior distance-running powers." His book did not mention that while Taunyane and Mashiani finished ninth and 12th, their white South African teammate, Bertie Harris, never made it back to Francis Field.

The infamy of the race, however, set in quickly. Two days after its running, the _Post-Dispatch_ dubbed it a "man-killing event" and reported that Olympic committee members were calling for its removal from future Games. Sullivan jumped on the bandwagon and quickly turned on the event, publicly decrying it and telling the paper "a 25-mile run...is asking too much of human endurance."

Sullivan's bid to end the Olympic marathon failed, and the event continued at the 1908 London Games-notably with only one 1904 competitor returning, mid-packer Sidney Hatch. Sullivan did have one perverse victory in 1908, though. In addition to being a white supremacist, he was also an outspoken misogynist, and as the head of the U.S. Olympic Committee he was able to bar American women from competing in London. But that was cold comfort for his racist side: To his chagrin, 1908 would also mark the first Olympic gold medal awarded to a Black athlete, John Taylor, who ran on the winning U.S. distance medley relay squad.









Thomas Hicks, 1904 Olympic marathon champion.

Hicks would never run another marathon. Like many of the athletes, including Taunyane and Mashiani, he practically disappeared from recorded history after the race. Corey returned to Chicago, racing annually in an early iteration of the Chicago Marathon and winning in 1908. Newton would compete in his third event of the Games four days later, taking gold in a four-mile team race that fielded just two teams. (Corey claimed another silver on the losing squad.) And Lorz's lifetime ban would last less than a year-he later won the 1905 Boston Marathon.

Carvajal continued to travel for marathons. In 1905 he returned to St. Louis to take third in the inaugural All-Western Marathon. The following year, the Cuban government sent him to Greece for an Olympics-adjacent marathon only for Carvajal to disappear en route in Italy. After being presumed dead, complete with newspaper obituaries, he reappeared in Havana several months later and resumed racing.









The Unbelievable True Story of the Craziest Olympic Marathon


Only 14 men crossed the finish: one after hitchhiking, one after napping, and one—the winner—after drinking rat poison.




www.runnersworld.com


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)




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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

*Do Softer Running Surfaces Really Reduce Injury?*
It's a long-held belief in the endurance sports community that harder running surfaces are linked to injury. However, new findings suggest we may have it all wrong. In two different opinion pieces (read them here and here), the authors posit that because leg stiffness is associated with running on softer surfaces, it is those - and not hard surfaces - that are associated with more running injuries.

*The Link Between Surface and Injury*
After running became a popular sport in the early 1970s, it wasn't long before an association was made between running volume and running-related injuries. Soon after, harder running surfaces also became correlated with injury.

The science behind this is simple. When you stride forward and land on your outstretched foot, the force coming down on your foot and leg is many times your body weight, which must be absorbed somewhere. If the running surface is hard (like pavement), then there is no give and all the force must be absorbed by your muscles, tendons, ligaments, and bones. Alternatively, softer running surfaces (like a dirt path) alleviate this impact so that less force needs to be absorbed by your leg.

*Leg Stiffness on Different Running Surfaces*
Some exercise scientists - specifically those looking at the biomechanics of limbs when they are under stress - have started to question this narrative. A paper published in the Journal of Biomechanics researched how runners adapt their stride when transitioning from one type of running surface to another. To do so, they evaluated the stiffness of the runners' legs, which has a direct correlation with impact absorption. The stiffer the legs, the less they are able to absorb force.

The study concluded that when runners transitioned from a softer surface to a harder surface, they _decreased_ the stiffness in their legs by more than 25%. Therefore, when running on a softer surface, runners did so with more muscle tension and with a stiffer leg.

The science behind this is also quite simple. When running on a soft surface, a runner's center of gravity tends to lean back because of the lack of support from the ground. In order to keep their mass forward, runners unconsciously use their muscle strength to compensate. On harder surfaces, however, the ground supports a runner's weight better, thereby negating the need for extra muscle exertion which in turn decreases leg stiffness.

*The Link Between Leg Stiffness and Injury*
While this study wasn't designed to assess injury, subsequent research has been conducted to determine whether or not these findings could mean that running on softer surfaces leads to more injuries than running on harder ones.

Researchers hypothesized that when running on softer surfaces, the leg stiffness needed for balance and propulsion would put more stress on all structures of the limb than when running on a harder surface. Additionally, as noted above, a stiffer limb has much less ability to absorb impact than does a relaxed limb. Therefore, all of the impact absorption of the softer surface would be offset by the stiffer leg, also increasing the likelihood of injury.

This is a fascinating hypothesis and, if true, would radically change our understanding of running injuries and how to rehabilitate them. Supporting research includes a recent study that measured the acceleration of the shin bone in runners running the same pace on different surfaces. It concluded that there was a higher acceleration detected on softer surfaces than on harder ones, suggesting a higher risk of injury.

*Takeaways*
These hypotheses are certainly interesting, but there haven't been any well-designed studies - at least, not yet - that have evaluated running injuries in a systematic way that would substantiate them. While I don't think we can make any definite conclusions about running surfaces and injury, I think it is worthwhile, at the very least, to consider where your leg soreness and muscle fatigue are coming from. Perhaps running on a harder surface would serve you better than a softer one in certain conditions, especially when you are particularly fatigued or sore from a long, high-intensity effort.









Do Softer Running Surfaces Really Reduce Injury? | TrainingPeaks


Doctor Jeff Sankoff offers new findings that may contradict our understanding of running surface and injury.




www.trainingpeaks.com


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## chazpat (Sep 23, 2006)

Bah, I'm sticking to the dirt!

Though I have been running a paved trail a lot lately (including this morning) because it's been raining so much. It's still along a creek on a nice green way through a pretty urban area.


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## chazpat (Sep 23, 2006)

Ok, been meaning to write this:

Nov 2019: crashed during a gravel race breaking 6 bones. Naturally, this meant I stopped running.
Feb - March 2020: got in a few runs. But then covid hit, ran a couple more times but the trails around me were too crowded and I didn't feel comfortable, stopped running.
Sept 2020: Did a couple of runs around the neighborhood and posted in this thread that "I'm back" - it didn't stick

Thing was, I hate running around the neighborhood. I don't like running on the street, But I didn't feel like I should get in the car and drive to the trails to run (in the past, I mostly stopped on my way to work and ran then took a shower at the office). I kept thinking "I'll run with we go back to working out of the office". But then I'd think, maybe this was the end of my running "career". But I hated the idea of "I used to run but I got out of the habit and never got back into it". So I decided it was ok to drive to the trails, it's only a couple of miles. Now summer in Atlanta is not a great time to run, but that would just be an excuse that would keep me from running. But first, I would have to do some runs around the neighborhood. And I wouldn't declare "I'm back" until I was sure it stuck this time.

June 2021: First run I felt like it was really jarring, which surprised me considering I ride a rigid SS a lot of the time. And it was harder than when I started back previously, I made it a mile before walking. But I continued to go out and run a bit further each time. After 8 runs, I was up to 2.5 miles so I decided to reward myself by driving to the trails for my next run. 3.47 miles!

I've hit a few challenges, had to be on a job site early for a few weeks so I only ran on the weekends. I've had a bit of a foot problem, though I don't think it is from running; it seems to be getting better. And the humidity REALLY kicked in which I don't seem to handle as well as I used to (I'd noticed that before I crashed). And lots of rain. But I've continued to run through it all!


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

amazing perseverance Chaz! Don't stop


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

*This Athlete Ran a 5K Wearing Crocs, But Here's Why We Don't Recommend That








*

Jeff Garmire, 30, is used to testing his body. As an ultra-endurance athlete, he feels at home pushing himself for days and nights with little to no down time. He's taken on Fastest Known Time (FKT) attempts and races that cover hundreds, if not thousands, of miles on foot. He currently holds the FKT on the Colorado Trail, and has also held the FKT on the Long Trail and the Arizona Trail. He's completed the Pacific Crest Trail, the Pacific Northwest Trail, and all 58 Colorado 14ers (mountains that reach or exceed 14,000 feet elevation).

But on August 7, Garmire took on a much shorter distance than what he's used to: the Sweet Pea 5K in Bozeman, Montana. The only thing was, three days before the race, Garmire decided to run in Crocs-yes, those squishy clogs that everyone either loves or hates.

Garmire isn't new to Crocs; he sometimes brings them to wear around camp when he's hiking or backpacking (and not going for a record). But why race in them? Garmire imagined that wearing this footwear for the 5K would force him to not only push himself in the race, but also have fun with it.

"I ran a couple years of cross county in high school and never particularly loved how hard you had to run in a 5K race, so I haven't run one in 10 years," Garmire told _Runner's World_."So I decided, if I'm going to run this distance again, I'm going to do it in a unique way."

Garmire treated race day just like everyone else, pinning on his number and walking to the start line in his Crocs (he bought a fresh pair for race day), and he said only a few people noticed his choice of footwear. When the gun went off, Garmire did his best to stay with the faster lead group.

"It was a pretty straight shot on a paved road, but we did go on a trail for a little while, and that's when I noticed my traction wasn't quite as good as the runners around me. Around mile 1.2 we had a right turn, and I had to take the turn a little easier [than everyone else]."

Garmire tried to make up for lost time on the turns with a blistering 5:50 third mile. He crossed the line in 19:05.26 (a 6:09/mile pace), good enough for 22nd overall out of 439 runners. While for many runners, that would be a PR, but Garmire thinks he could have broken 19 minutes. "I just didn't know what I was capable of," he said.










Garmire had a great time running the race, and encourages everyone to remember to keep things fun and not take yourself too seriously. However, experts don't recommend running in Crocs or similar footwear, because they don't offer the stability that your feet need while running.

"There's a difference between cushy and cushion," Anna Wieber, Doctor of Podiatric Medicine (DPM) in Denver, Colorado, told _Runner's World_. "It's a common misconception that something cushy would be good for your feet, but what most of us really need is something with more stability. ... [When wearing Crocs] you're really not getting the support or stability features that you do with a running shoe."

When Weber is evaluating a client, she does some gait analysis to see if an athlete has a neutral gait, or if they pronate or supinate. She then makes a more general recommendation about the amount of stability someone needs, rather than suggesting specific brands.

Dr. Courtney Conley, a chiropractic physician specializing in foot and gait mechanics at Gait Happens in Golden, Colorado, acknowledges that Crocs have a wide toe box, but points out that plenty of running shoes offer the same benefit.

"For a 5K, one might be able to get away with this, but for the majority of distance runners, having the appropriate shoe can be the icing on the cake for performance." Conley said, "Running shoes that allow this same forefoot splay are the Altra and Topo Athletic. These give the benefit of a wide toe box, but with more structure to accommodate different terrains and allow for longer distance running."

Beyond enjoying his down time and taking on some silly challenges, Garmire is getting ready to race The Rut, a technical 50K in Big Sky, Montana. He's also got his eye on a bigger FKT attempt in the fall. Garmire isn't sure if he'll make a serious attempt at shorter distance races, but his 5K in Crocs did make him want to do some more tempo runs, so maybe he'll lace up his actual running shoes for another 5K in the future.









Ultrarunner Jeff Garmire Ran a 5K Wearing Crocs (in 19:05!)


He wanted to make things interesting for his race, but do as he says (don’t take yourself too seriously!), not as he does.




www.runnersworld.com


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

*Sara Hall's advice for reframing bad runs








*

If anyone knows what it's like to have a bad run, it's the pros. After all, when you're running a 100 miles or more every week, you're bound to have a not-so-fun one once in a while. Recently, elite American marathoner *Sara Hall *offered advice on Twitter on how she reframes a bad run, and it's something we should all start doing regularly.

It's easy to start beating ourselves up when things don't go well in a run or workout, but, as Hall says, "everything can be reframed for success." Just because you don't hit the right pace in every interval or you have to take a walk break on your long run doesn't mean you didn't get any value out of it. In fact, it's during our "bad" runs when we learn the most about ourselves as athletes. They teach us how to push through when things get tough and, as some coaches like to say, they "build character."

*Other ways to handle a bad run*
Reframing a bad run is an excellent strategy for dealing with disappointment, but it's not the only one. Another way to shake it off when things go south is to remind yourself how far you've come. Maybe you weren't able to get through your entire 20-km run, but remember when you could barely run 5 kilometres without stopping? Don't let one bad day cause you to second-guess your progress or your ability to do well in your next race.

You can also learn from a bad run if you take the time to reflect on why it went poorly. Did you fuel properly beforehand? Have you been getting enough sleep? Have you been over-reaching during your training? Sometimes a bad run can show us our mistakes and give us an opportunity to correct them.

Finally, as tempting as it can be to want to wipe the bad run completely from your memory, you should instead file the memory away somewhere, so the next time you're in a race and it starts to get tough, you can remember that you've been through worse and you can push yourself through this one, too.









Use this calculator to determine your best run/walk ratio - Canadian Running Magazine


If you plan it well, the run/walk method can get you across the finish line in record time




runningmagazine.ca


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

His pace is incredible!

*Meet Aleksandr Sorokin, the man behind the new 24-hour world record*









Last weekend, Lithuanian ultrarunner *Aleksandr Sorokin* shattered the 24-hour world record, covering 309.4 km in a day during a race in Poland. On the way to his record, Sorokin averaged 4:39 per kilometre for 309 of them.

Sorokin, who turns 40 this year, now has four world records on his resume. He also owns the world record for 150 kilometres (10:27:48), 100 miles (11:14.56), and 12 hours (170.3 kilometres). His overall pace for the 12-hour record was 4:14 per kilometre.










We interviewed Sorokin after his 24-hour world record to learn how he got into ultrarunning, and what motivates him to chase world records.

Sorokin wasn't always a runner. He did not begin running until 2013 when he was 32. "In my youth, I was a kayak-sprinter who competed for the national team and at youth world championships, then I had an injury," he says. "I began running to get in shape when I weighed 100 kg (220 lb.). At the time I wasn't playing any sports, just drinking and smoking a lot." He knew his lifestyle needed a change. "Then I just began running," he says.

After a few months of training, Sorokin ran a half marathon. A few weeks later, he saw an advertisement for a 100 km race in Lithuania. "Then my ultrarunning life began," he says.










"The thing about running is you can do more than you think you are capable of," Sorokin says. He is motivated by the unlimited challenges in the sport and inspired by the running community. "I hope that my journey has inspired others to chase their goals."

Sorokin set both the 100-mile and the 12-hour world records earlier this year, giving him the confidence to go after the 24-hour mark he has been dreaming about. "The pandemic has helped my training, since my work has closed down, allowing me to concentrate on running," he says. (Sorokin works at a casino) "My coach, *Sebastian Białobrzeski,* deserves a lot of credit. He has been flexible, working with me through the pandemic to achieve my goals."










We asked Sorokin about his nutrition during the 24-hour race. What does he put into his body to give him fuel? "Junk food is my fuel," he says. "I will often eat a lot of chips, chocolate, cookies, candy and drink Coca-Cola during races." Junk food is high in calories and sodium, which is exactly what you need when you are constantly burning a ton of energy. "My special drinks contain a mix of Precision Hydration and Maurten," he says.










Sorokin took a chance that paid off at his 100-mile record run earlier this year. "A friend of mine gave me pair of Nike Alphafly's to try before the race. I liked the softness of the shoe. I took the risk of wearing the Nike Alphafly during the race," he says. "I find that cushioning is important when running long distances."

Sorokin dreams of continuing his running career and pushing boundaries further. "I hope to compete at next year's world 24-hour championships or run a race in the U.S," he says. But for right now, I need to rest."









Meet Aleksandr Sorokin, the man behind the new 24-hour world record - Canadian Running Magazine


Sorokin spoke to us about his 24-hour world record, how he got into ultrarunning and junk food




runningmagazine.ca


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## nOOky (May 13, 2008)

Been in Europe for a couple weeks touring and running a race. I'll try to embed the report here. I have a 100 miler in Oregon in less than 2 weeks, then done for the season woot. Went to take the fat bike out yesterday, it had a flat tire, wtf over!

2021 UTMB CCC RACE REPORT

CCC is a trail running race with a claimed 20,000+ feet of climbing over 101 kilometers. It travels from the start in Courmayeur, Italy through Champex, Switzerland and finishes in Chamonix, France traversing around the base of Mont Blanc.

Course Map









I had originally thought of doing the full UTMB 171K race with it's 33,000 feet of climbing, but opted for the shorter race so I would not be too tired doing some other touristy things while we were there. CCC is a WS100 qualifier itself so that is good enough for me. It's also a very difficult race in it's own right.

We made plans to fly there and arrive the Wednesday before the Friday morning race start, in order to try and eliminate some jet lag and to get acclimated to the area, and to check things out. It was myself, my wife Diane, and our good friend Kristine. Kristine and my wife are very supportive and offer excellent planning and organization skills for the logistics, and it's great to have people you trust meeting you at aid stations in the middle of the night knowing what you want or need.

Covid-19 of course placed a huge stress on everything surrounding travel at this period in time, and to be honest I wouldn't have travelled if it weren't so hard to get into this race. The CCC requires qualifying races of a certain difficulty yielding a certain number of points to then enter the lottery. Before the race there were questions about travel safety, eating at restaurants, etc. Flying required wearing masks everywhere, and the stores and restaurants all required masks and proof of being vaccinated which for us was our CDC vaccination card. The race itself required masks to be put on at aid stations and the start/finish areas. It all ended up being alright in the end, many of the initial worries did not materialize as being so difficult. However there was research involved as we would be entering 4 different countries. Only the USA required a covid test to re-enter which was weird because the USA had covid spreading like wildfire among the southern unvaccinated states, particularly compared to most of where we were in Europe.

Wednesday we flew into Zurich from Minneapolis via Amsterdam, and drove from Zurich to Chamonix, or more specifically Les Houches where our lodging was. Diane drove exclusively and she did a great job with one of us navigating. Our little apartment was great, and the view was freaking fabulous.

Pre-sunrise from our abode in Les Houches.









Wednesday we ate at the Kitsch Inn in Les Houches for dinner, and walked around a little bit. I did not sleep at all on the overnight flight so I was tired, and I had not slept well the week before stressing about the race and travel. I took a benadryl that night to try and sleep, but it didn't work so well, so I took a swig of Nyquil around midnight and I slept about 8 hours. Nyquil is a last resort as it makes me groggy, but it does work. I didn't really sleep at all Thursday night before the race, but I did not take anything to help as I didn't want to start the race groggy. It's not unusual though, to not sleep much the night before a big race. You'd think not sleeping and then missing another night running overnight would be worse than it is, but it's not actually that bad.

Thursday we tried to sleep in, and then went to town to check out the venue and pick up my race bib and GPS tracker, and get a feel for the finish line area etc. We walked around and did some shopping, neglecting to eat or drink enough the day before a race. We just got busy walking around checking stuff out and spending too much money on race paraphernalia. Or not. We finally ate in the late afternoon, and then went back to get my stuff ready and to try to get to bed early. I believe the alarm was set for 5:30 am so we could catch the shuttle bus to the start.

Race morning was the usual race preparations. Try to eat, try to poop everything out, and try not to forget anything. The girls would also be out and about and up all night so they had to pack for the day also, and carry the items I thought I would need when they could meet me at the 3 available aid stations. CCC had an extensive list of required gear that one must carry with them. Things like a survival blanket, long upper and lower layer, water-proof jacket and pants, whistle, hat, sunglasses, water hydration pack and water-proof gloves, etc. My pack was heavy when filled with water, creeping up on 8 pounds I suspect. I also carried 2 liters of water in a bladder with Tailwind, extra Tailwind, 8 Gu gels, 2 Cliff Bars, and my cell phone. They also required an extra long layer of a certain weight for the overnight as it was expected to be cold. Needless to say we were told we might be randomly checked for the required gear, so I checked and rechecked and repacked my pack a couple of times.

We walked down and caught the bus to the start easily enough, runners and their supporters were filling the buses up already at 6:30 am, for the 30 minute ride to the start. The ride was uneventful, I did not have to poop, and it seemed to go by quickly. The ride goes through a lengthy tunnel to go through the mountain to Italy rather than going around or over. We got to the start area around 7:00 am, 3 hours before my 10:00 am start time. We went inside and found a spot to sit and wait, but it was chilly as it was near the ice skating rink where speed skating practice was going on. Pretty cool, pun intended. I wore my jacket and had a blanket around my legs, and we sat and talked and had coffee and literally the best croissants ever. Ever.

The Start









10:00 am rolled around soon enough, so with one last trip to the toilette I lined up near the rear of the pack. They had some ceremony before the start at the front, and then it was go time. I purposefully started out slow, to keep my speed in check and not to rabbit. I knew I would not win the race, my main goal was to finish within the 26 ½ hours allotted, or try to break 24 hours. I can say at that time I wasn't feeling very confident: lack of sleep, nervousness, and not enough food or rest the days before. Nevertheless I felt decent enough when I started running. Once I start a race I feel better, because then everything is now under my control, there are no outside variables that can affect me if I have trained and planned and don't wuss out, I'll make it to the finish line.

The first climb once we were out of town was a doozy, the biggest elevation gain of the race, just to tire you out for the rest. Something like 4,200+ feet in just over 5 miles. It started out as paved roads in town, to smaller side roads, to gravel road, to gravel path, to singletrack super steep climbing. I carried some carbon fiber poles (sticks) for my first race with them ever. I had carried them before on a race, but never used them. They are supposed to help when climbing by giving your legs some rest as you use your upper body to help get you uphill. They can also help you when crossing streams or sketchy sections, and can prevent you from losing your balance in a tough spot if you use them correctly.

Elevation Chart.









I stopped to take a few pictures because sometimes the race would come to a crawl as people ahead of you would bunch up on some sort of choke point or obstacle, and we were all like a bunch of ants marching up the side of a green garbage can one behind the others in single file. If you look closely at the next photo you can see the zigzagging lines of runners going up all the way out of sight.









I looked down the slope a few times and saw that I was near the back of the pack as there were not many runners behind me, and there were hundreds before me. I did not panic and try to go faster, there was no way to pass anyway on the steep uphill, and the path was a well worn foot wide trench with rocks and gravel that was kind of sketchy also. The climb took a long time, something like 2 hours and 40 minutes. I had done a similar climb 6 weeks before in the Tahoe 50 mile race, which also started with a 4,000 foot climb, so I knew to pace myself. Once I got to the top around 8,200 feet I found that the elevation was noticeable, but it wasn't affecting me nearly as much as Tahoe, when I had breathing problems and could hardly run up over 8,000 feet even when it was flat. Yea boyeee.

It took me 3:26 or so to get to the first aid station at 13.5 kilometers.They were making you put on a mask (maschera!) and use hand sanitizer before you could enter. I struggled to find my mask, wet with sweat and stuffed in a pocket. It made my glasses steam up and was not fun. I refilled my water pack, and ate some watermelon and an orange slice or two. I was doing fairly well for me as far as taking in calories. A race like this really depends on your ability to keep moving forward whatever the pace, and to take in enough calories to support your working efforts.

I left that aid station and made my way to the next, there were only 6 aid stations on the course which is roughly one every 10 miles, which can be 3 hours for some if you are a slower runner. I made it to the second aid station after another 13 kilometers or so as it was supposed to be 26.1 kilometers in. There was more climbing in that portion of course, which my poles or sticks really helped with. By then I had been going for over 5 hours. It was mid afternoon, warm, sunny, and I was feeling pretty good as I was still eating and drinking.

At the second aid station I leaned my sticks against the water refilling table, and with the assistance of a young lady volunteer, I refilled my water bladder in my pack. I was struggling to get my full wet water bladder back into my overstuffed running pack, and when I was done I turned around, and my sticks were gone. Someone had grabbed them and taken them. I asked the young lady if she saw who had taken them, and she just pointed up the trail and said something in French I couldn't understand. So I hurried up the trail, looking at the people I caught to see if they had my sticks. It turns out that the Black Diamond Carbon Distance Z sticks are quite popular, and I couldn't stop every runner with them and ask them if I could see if they had my sticks. I think I'll mark them next time so they are more recognizable.

I carried on, and just a bit up the hill Kristine was on the side of the trail, cheering runners and waiting to see me if she could as I came by. I told her about my missing sticks, as at that time I was still agitated about it. I also saw Diane a bit farther up the trail, and regurgitated my discontent to her also. At that time I did not know that she would go down to the aid station and speak with the workers until she ended up picking up another identical, but older set of the same size and brand sticks, probably the ones the other guy had left to take my almost new ones.

Some moron took my fucking sticks!









Regardless of getting used to and almost liking using the sticks, I carried on. By now we had fantastic views of the back side of the Alps dividing France and Italy. I was doing alright still, nothing hurt, I was tiring, but not anywhere near feeling defeated or ready to quit. In fact I had started the race telling myself to try and remain positive the entire race and to do my best. Attitude is everything, and there really is no reason to stop or quit a race unless you are actually injured. Feeling tired or sore or disparaged is only temporary, there are lots of ups and downs in a race, and you have to ride the wave and embrace both.

The views just after getting to the top of the climb after seeing Diane and Kristine









At the top I had also witnessed a helicopter rescue. I was watching it spiral in the valleys making its way up to us, and then it settled in literally 100 feet above a couple of us, and for a second I was thinking he was just showing off for the runners. But it then dropped to a hover just above the ground and picked up a young female runner that apparently had injured her ankle. It was very quick, maybe 20 seconds to put her in the basket, and take off again, it never landed or shut down. Kind of cool despite the injured person I thought. Kind of expensive too, possibly up to $20,000 or so from what I read.

One of my favorite things about the race was running at dusk just before I had to use a headlamp. I was dropping off the side of the mountain and into a little town in Switzerland (La Fouly maybe?) and the cows in the pastures all had cowbells on. There were chalets along the trail and road, and you wound your way through town with a few people cheering. It was very idyllic with the views and the cowbells making their music as you went by.

Helicopter rescue.









The third aid station came at just over 40 kilometers in and 8 hours elapsed. I had put on my headlamp at around 9:00 pm or 11 hours into the race. It was kind of funny, I was in a long string of runners all moving at the same pace, and it was getting dark. But nobody seemed to want to turn their headlamp on, almost like it was an acknowledgement that we were then running at night. There were a few spots on the trail that had ropes or cables to hang onto in some sketchy spots of the trail. I could see where someone could fall and get hurt. There had been a death in an earlier race of a guy that was in a similar section and fell and was mortally injured from it.

The wife intended to meet me at roughly the halfway point in Champex, so I messaged her when I thought I would get there, but I was later than expected and when I didn't see her I noticed she had sent me a message that she wouldn't make it. I was kind of bummed, I was out of Tailwind, and I wanted some more gels and possibly mashed potatoes. Nevertheless I stocked up with what they had, and set out again in the dark.

Most of the runners had put on pants and a jacket when it got dark, I wasn't cold so I didn't. I tend to run warm, so I was actually fine most of the night with just my shorts and a tee shirt. Every time I would put on a light jacket or light gloves I would get too hot, so they did not stay on long. I enjoy running at night, so the cool air and the pleasant sound of occasional cowbells and night animals didn't bother me, it was in fact nice. I could see my breath, but I was okay.

I finally got to see the wife in Trient, where she presented me with the replacement sticks she had finagled out of the second aid station, and I refilled my bladder with Tailwind, and also had some instant potatoes with warm broth. I left that aid station feeling good, hoping to see her or Kristine again at Vallorcine after another bunch of climbing and hiking in the dark.

Entering Vallorcine I was met by Kristine. Diane had wanted to see me finish for sure, so she skipped that aid station, opting to wait at the finish. Technically you could only see one person at 3 of the aid stations, and Diane had missed one already. They had buses to transfer the crew from different places, and apparently they were not reliable or timely enough to guarantee arriving at each aid station at one's chosen time. Kristine is a capable veteran however, and I left with my pack full of Tailwind again, and some food in me. My watch read 17,197 feet of gain at that point.

What tired looks like:









Funny thing about races in Europe though. They offer two types of water, regular or non carbonated water, and water with carbonation or gas. I had had my running pack bladder filled accidentally with carbonated water along with Tailwind. I took a big sip walking up the side of a steep path after leaving the aid station, and I spit it out in a big spray of mist like an elephant. What the actual **** was that?! I figured it out, but since it was all I had, I had to drink it. At this point I had roughly 20K to go, and for some reason I stopped eating and drinking religiously because I thought I was almost done. LOL boy are you stupid Jay. Those last few miles would take over 5 hours, with possibly the hardest and most rigorous climbing of the entire race. I was at about 17 hours in and 50 miles, still thinking I could maybe finish in under 20 hours for some reason, maybe 21.

Starting up the final climb of the night with hope, my hopes were soon dashed as I along with a few other runners had all we could do to not stop on the extremely rocky and steep trail ahead of us. It was supposedly around 3,000 feet of climbing to finish, but man was it tough. It was like walking up a rocky water formed ravine, with rocks and boulders strewn about, footing unstable in places. Add in tired legs and soreness in the bottoms of my feet starting to set in, and my hopes of 21 hours were dashed. At the "top" of the climb the path wasn't any easier, it was twisting and very foggy/misty and those of us that were stuck together just followed one another like ants, probably for the feeling of safety and security. The entire course I was able to mostly follow other runners in fact, there were so many participants.

The kicker was the downhill. It was starting to get light out, enough to see again, when my headlamp flashed and informed me that it was done for the night. It was okay though, I could see well enough to get by without having to replace my battery. The thing is, the downhill wasn't really runnable, it was twisty, had very narrow worn in paths that my size 13 extra clown feet had trouble staying in without tripping. Think of it as walking down a cow path a foot wide and a foot deep. There were more rocks and little drop offs that one could wipe out one easily, especially being very tired. The bottoms of my feet were being grumpy, and informing me they were not happy stepping on sharp rocks and stuff any longer.

When I finally got to the bottom of that, and thought the climbing was done, I was presented with the bottom of a ski hill that had to be negotiated across before beginning the final downhill. The final downhill portion before getting into Chamonix was rocky enough with water breaks that I simply couldn't run it, so I did my best and fast walked down as best I could. I was passed by runners that did not apparently have sore feet and were feeling better, which did not help morale at all.

Eventually the downhill transitioned to more of a gravel path that I could start switchbacking down, running being a relative term for what I was doing of course. I did not know how far I had yet to go, and my Garmin watch was already over 60 miles in. I could see town and hear noises of the finish line, and I knew I was going to finish, it was just a matter of when. I still had my hat turned backwards and my headlamp on, and I toyed with the idea of removing my headlamp and adjusting my hat to look better for the pictures. But I said screw it, I was pretty tired.

Final gravel downhill and marking flag.









Cruelly, at the bottom of the hill you have to climb a few sets of stairs to take a pedestrian footbridge across a busy road. However it meant you were in town, and it was all nice road running to the finish.

Almost there!









I followed the twisting and turning road to the finish line, with a few people cheering and clapping. I saw the finish line and looked for Diane, and she was there, she ran with me for a little bit before peeling off. I ran through the finish and stopped my watch at 63.93 miles in 22:07:53. I was very tired, and I did not smile enough for my wife, but I did smile a little bit, and had my photo

taken. The race officials made us put masks on, the same one I carried through the race, and we made our way out to get another finish photo and my finisher's vest. The best part was the beer I got shortly thereafter, and a nice breakfast with the girls. Garmin said I was moving for just over 17 hours. I must have been going up some of the hills so slowly that it did not register my pace as movement lol.

Happy to be done!

















After the finish line the wife and I went back to our lodging, where I tried to sleep, but couldn't. We ended up getting up and going back into town to watch other runners finish and to eat dinner. The finish line of UTMB is like one big party, with lots of people around celebrating. We got to see some of the top 10 finishers, among them the female winner Courtney Dauwalter.

My race finish was greatly aided by the hard work of my wife Diane and Kristine. Sometimes just knowing they are out there for you, staying up all night, trying to get to where you are in a foreign country, is comforting. Bravo ladies, bravo!


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## chazpat (Sep 23, 2006)

Thanks for the write up and pictures, Jay! Fantastic accomplishment. Hard to believe a competitor would steal your poles.

My excuse not to run this week was due to a pretty bad bike crash last weekend. Not all that bad but one leg injured enough that walking was a little painful so I decided it best not to run. But I did get a run in this morning. Drove to the trails I run normally only to find the parking lot completely full. Driving upstream (these are part of a number of NPS NRAs along a river) it started raining so I drove on a bit further and drove out of the rain to a section of the park that I occasionally run.










It has some pretty rooty and rocky sections where you have to really watch where you land your feet. I can't imagine having to do this when you've already put in a lot of mileage and you're extremely tired!










Next challenge is we start going back to the office tomorrow and the gym is not open so I can't run on my way in and catch a shower. I think I'll try getting some runs in on my way home, the heat is down a little now but still pretty hot. The humidity seems to be lower than in the mornings so that will help as well.


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

What is hyponatremia?

Hyponatremia is a condition in which the level of sodium in the body is low. Sodium is lost in sweat along with water. 
Hyponatremia is not common but can be life threatening. Typically it occurs in slower runners (> 4 hour marathon) who drink too much water before, during and/or after a marathon. Although sports drinks contain sodium and are preferable to just water, it is also very possible to become hyponatremic by drinking too much of a sport drink. The key is not to overdrink; you do not want to finish the race with more fluid on board than when you started. It is important to drink enough to prevent dehydration but do not drink fluids "just because they are there". Learn to recognize when you are thirsty, learn from your training runs what your fluid needs are and test yourself before race day. Guzzling tons of fluids for a few days before the race, and immediately pre-race will not help you, you just need to have normal hydration.

Learn about the risk factors and symptoms of hyponatremia:

*Why the big fuss over hydration?*

Proper hydration during endurance events like the marathon and half marathon is important for both safety and performance. If you maintain proper hydration not only will your performance improve but it will keep you out of the medical tent (or worse)!

Hydration depends on the balance between fluid losses (mostly sweat) and fluid intake. Dehydration occurs when fluid losses are not adequately replaced. Minor degrees of dehydration (< 1 - 2% body weight, 0.5 to 1.4 kg) are common in runners at the end of the marathon and usually are not significant. Greater degrees of dehydration may affect your performance and endanger your life.

Dehydration is more likely to occur:


in warm weather (or when the temperature has unexpectedly increased over the usual temperature)
in men
when you run faster (more sweat)

*How do I know I am dehydrated?*


Thirst: this is an important warning sign. If you are thirsty you should drink! HOWEVER, for many it is a late sign, by the time you are thirsty it may be too late (way behind)
There are many other non-specific signs including: headache, dizziness, nausea, muscle cramps, irritability, and fatigue.

*How do I prevent dehydration?*

The simplest way to prevent dehydration is to drink small amounts of fluids frequently throughout the race. Ideally you know how much to take before you become dehydrated. If you have an approximate idea of your fluid needs then you can prevent dehydration. It is easy to overestimate how much you are drinking, as the cups at the aid stations are not full and you can easily spill some. You may need to take 2 cups to drink (and one to pour over yourself).

*How much should I drink?*

It is impossible to give one perfect answer that will satisfy all runners' needs.

How much to drink depends on your size, level of training, air temperature, and how fast you are running. There is also individual variation, what works for another runner may not work for you. For some, thirst is a good guide. By drinking when thirsty they will maintain adequate hydration. However some runners will find they do not recognize thirst as quickly as others, these runners need to learn how to adequately hydrate _before _the late symptom of thirst.

You can (and should) develop your own strategy based on observations made during training. You can test yourself by weighing yourself (nude) before and after an hour long run (at race pace), the amount of weight you lose is approximately your hourly sweat rate (assuming you did not drink during the test run). You can use this information to guide your fluid replacement during the race. You should *not* aim to weigh more at the end of the race than the start (this would put you at risk for fluid overload and hyponatremia).

Another indicator of hydration status is the colour of your urine. Your urine colour should be pale yellow (lemonade), if it is clear like water you could be overhydrated and if it is dark (apple juice) you are dehydrated.

For those "I need a number" runners out there - 400- 800 ml/hour should prevent dehydration. These numbers may be less if you weigh less, run slower (> 4 hour marathon), or if the weather is cool. Conversely these numbers may be higher if it is hot, you are running faster or if you are larger (hence the "test yourself" recommendation above).

*What should I drink?*

Sweat contains not only water but electrolytes, both need to be replaced. You should not drink just water, this puts you at risk for hyponatremia (which is very dangerous). Most sport drinks (Gatorade) contain a mixture of electrolytes and glucose; this helps in preventing hyponatremia and also provides energy. The added glucose and electrolytes in sports drinks can enhance your body's ability to absorb the fluids. The glucose also is a valuable energy source. Some have more queasy stomachs and do not tolerate sports drinks. It is worthwhile testing the sport drink used at the race you are entering prior to the event.

*What is this hyponatremia thing anyway?*

Hyponatremia is a condition in which the level of sodium in the body is low. Sodium is lost in sweat along with water. Hyponatremia is not common but can be life threatening. Typically it occurs in slower runners (> 4 hour marathon) who drink *too much *_water _before, during and/or after a marathon. Although sports drinks contain sodium and are preferable to just water, it is also very possible to become hyponatremic by drinking too much of a sport drink. The key is not to overdrink; you do not want to finish the race with more fluid on board than when you started. It is important to drink enough to prevent dehydration but do _not_ drink fluids "just because they are there". Learn to recognize when you are thirsty, learn from your training runs what your fluid needs are and test yourself before race day. Guzzling tons of fluids for a few days before the race, and immediately pre-race will not help you, you just need to have normal hydration.

Other risk factors for developing hyponatremia include:


female gender
small size
using NSAID's , these are anti-inflammatory drugs that may impair your ability to excrete water. These are medications like ibuprofen (Advil, Motrin), naproxen (Naprosyn, Anaprox) or Celebrex.
Symptoms of hyponatremia include: weight gain, puffiness, "not feeling right", water sloshing in your stomach, feeling bloated, headache, confusion and seizures.

*When should I start hydrating?*

For the few days preceding the race you should ensure that you are not dehydrated (drink normally, avoid exertion and alcohol). You should not be drinking liter after liter of extra fluids (particularly water alone) but ensuring normal hydration (check your urine). Salty foods will help to ensure normal sodium levels. In the 2-3 hours prior to the race consume approximately a liter of a sports drink (cold if expecting a hot day). Do not take NSAID's prior to the race (or immediately after).

*What about after the race?*

You will probably be at least slightly dehydrated after the race. Replace hydration with fluids containing glucose and electrolytes. Use whatever is tolerable to your stomach: popsicles, de-fizzed pop, soup, sports drinks). Check your urine color, initially it will probably be darker but should become lemonade color after 2- 6 hours. Check your weight post race to help determine the amount of fluid loss.

*And what do I do if it is smoking hot on race day?*

Hot and humid weather increases the chances of dehydration, heat illness, and visiting the medical tent (not good). Taking precautions can make your day much more pleasant.


this is not the day to try for a PB, relax, enjoy the race
you will need to increase your fluid intake
when passing a water station you can always take one cup to drink and pour another over your head to cool down
dress appropriately (light weight, light colored clothes, use a visor)
If you do not feel well during or after the race please seek medical attention.



https://www.runottawa.ca/why-the-big-fuss-over-hydration?fbclid=IwAR3CmiN5SXZ4I07kw_SlH2hJjj21EmdfV1u-ov8ST_mIYaZBJlwNHV5foy8


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## paramount3 (Jul 13, 2014)

cyclelicious said:


> What is hyponatremia?
> 
> Hyponatremia is a condition in which the level of sodium in the body is low. Sodium is lost in sweat along with water.
> Hyponatremia is not common but can be life threatening. Typically it occurs in slower runners (> 4 hour marathon) who drink too much water before, during and/or after a marathon. Although sports drinks contain sodium and are preferable to just water, it is also very possible to become hyponatremic by drinking too much of a sport drink. The key is not to overdrink; you do not want to finish the race with more fluid on board than when you started. It is important to drink enough to prevent dehydration but do not drink fluids "just because they are there". Learn to recognize when you are thirsty, learn from your training runs what your fluid needs are and test yourself before race day. Guzzling tons of fluids for a few days before the race, and immediately pre-race will not help you, you just need to have normal hydration.
> ...


If it's reasonably warm and for people who sweat a lot, the problem isn't too much water. It's not enough electrolytes. Gatorade, PowerAde, and other grocery store sports drinks provide only nominal quantities of electrolytes. Gatorade in fact qualifies as a "low sodium" drink. Bottled water (often given out at marathon aid stations) contains very little in the way of minerals also. For easy/short days, my typical sport drink is to pour table salt into tap water. For longer days, I use Salt Stick capsules with tap water: sodium, magnesium, potassium, calcium, as the chloride, citrate, and gluconate salts. This way I am replacing essentially all of the water and all of the major minerals that I sweat out. Then eat salted sunflower seeds, salty potato chips, etc after (or during) the ride/run.


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## nOOky (May 13, 2008)

Everyone should read the book Waterlogged, or at least hit the highlights. It's almost impossible to maintain hydration during really long events. Many races used to weigh you at the start and then at other places along the course, but have stopped doing that as it doesn't really matter in the end. The color of your urine is the best factor you can use imho during a really long event, or the fact that you have not had to pee for hours. There's a really good chart out there about what to take in if you have puffy hands etc. and how to deal with whether to take in salt or calcium etc. but I can't find it right off.

I hate running in the heat, it's impossible to keep taking enough in without feeling sloshy, and so easy to get dehydrated quickly. It's always better on the bike, maybe because the stomach is subject to less bouncing around, I dunno.


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

*American man celebrates turning 80 by going for 80-mile run*
*This was the 40th consecutive year that Hoefgen used exercise to celebrate his birthday*

*Bernie Hoefgen *of Eau Claire, Wis. turned 80 and instead of celebrating with a birthday cake, he celebrated the milestone by doing something that not many could do, running 80 miles (130 kilometres).

This was the 40th consecutive year that Hoefgen used extensive exercise to celebrate turning another page on the calendar. The 80-mile journey took him over four days to complete.

In an interview with the _Indiana Gazette,_ Hoefgen said that he began this running tradition when he turned 40 in 1981, as a way to promote physical activity among adults. Although it's turned into a walk/jog for Hoefgen due to his age, the distance is remarkable.

He usually treks alone and carries his food in a small backpack. He will take the occasional break to eat at a restaurant or hit the convenience store for hydration and snacks.

Hoefgen has been training every day over the past couple of years to prepare for his 80th birthday journey. Each year, he has changed the route but he especially enjoys the trails around Eau Claire.









American man celebrates turning 80 by going for 80-mile run - Canadian Running Magazine


This was the 40th consecutive year that Hoefgen used exercise to celebrate his birthday




runningmagazine.ca


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

I do both and the muscle is a benefit! I imagine it will be helpful with trail running too.

*Can You Hit Your Strength Goals While Also Hitting Your Mileage Goals?*

We know it can be _really hard_ to make time for strength training when you're at the peak of your training-running four, five, six days a week; doing mobility work and stretching; focusing on your eating and sleeping habits; and, you know, doing your job and having a social life.

But "for the amount of time you need to dedicate to it, you get massive returns," Asher Kyger Henry, a running coach, certified strength and conditioning specialist, and doctor of physical therapy, tells _Runner's World_.

The science backs her up: Strength training was shown to boost running economy by two to eight percent, middle-distance (i.e. the mile) performance by three to five percent, and long-distance (like the 10K) performance by two to four percent in a 2017 systematic review published in the journal _Sports Medicine_. Not to mention, it protects you from injury, too, Henry says.

You already know the benefits, but how do you actually improve your strength while also ramping up your mileage? Here's what the experts-and the research-have to say.

*When Training for a Race, You Have to Prioritize Running*
The unfortunate reality is that you're probably not going to run a marathon PR _and _notch a huge squat PR at the same time. "You can't train like you're two different athletes doing two separate loads of exercise at the same time," Henry says. "You have to think: What am I prioritizing?"

If you're training for a race, then running is your priority. It's called the principle of specificity: Your body will specifically adapt to the type of demand you're placing on it-so to improve as a runner, you have to run, Matthew Meyer, a certified personal trainer and RRCA-certified run coach based in Boulder, Colorado, tells _Runner's World_. That doesn't mean you _can't _lift weights while also increasing mileage for a race, he adds, but strength training isn't the focus for runners; it's an add-on meant to improve your running.

*How to Progress Strength Training*
The same sort of approach to safely increasing your mileage can also be applied in the weight room. Say you're doing squats: "We start with three sets of eight reps of 100 pounds," says Meyer. "The next week, you're going to increase reps: You could do three sets of 12 reps, or four sets of eight. The week after that, you can increase the weight and go back to the original reps."

If you're looking to gain muscle and increase your strength most efficiently, you're going to want to grab those heavy weights, says Henry. When you lift heavy versus light, you're better conditioning your nervous system, meaning it will take less effort for your muscles to exert force, a 2017 study published in _Frontiers in Physiology_ found.

What counts as "heavy" weight differs for everyone, but Henry recommends three to eight reps at 80 to 90 percent max effort while maintaining good form. For those newer to weights, it _is _possible to make gains with low-volume and low-intensity, she adds-and you should absolutely start with bodyweight until you have the correct form locked in. But you will eventually plateau using a lighter load, so progression is the name of the game.

When you're lifting, pay attention to how you look and how you feel: "If your form is great and you find that the overall feeling of increased fatigue is not there after the effort you're giving, it's probably time to increase your weight," says Henry.

And just like you would with running, don't forget to build in a cut-back or de-load week with strength training, as well. "It's not about going back to square one, but pulling back just a little bit to give your body a break," says Meyer.

It _is _OK to run on sore muscles after a strength workout, "but you definitely do want to note if that delayed onset soreness is lasting more than two or three days. That's a sign you've probably gone a little too hard and need to check yourself," says Henry.

Also, don't increase your mileage _and _intensity at the same time-that can lead to injuries or burnout.

*How to Fit Strength Into Your Running Schedule*
Remember that principle of specificity? That means running comes first in your training plan. Still, you should be strength training at least twice a week to get the benefits. "The overlying goal is to _not _do strength before a workout or a long run," says Henry.

So your schedule might look something like this:


Monday: Rest day
Tuesday: Easy run
Wednesday: Running workout
Thursday: Easy run plus strength training
Friday: Rest day
Saturday: Long run
Sunday: Strength training
"For someone who has a shorter history with strength training, I'd make Thursdays lighter and go heavier on Sundays, so you have two full days before introducing any intensity," says Henry.

Two workouts a day may sound intimidating, but stacking running and strength workouts-i.e. moving your strength training to Wednesday in the example above-can actually help you maximize your gains and recovery time. As long as you leave six hours between a morning run and strength training in the afternoon, you'll have increased strength gains without sacrificing recovery, a 2016 study in the _The Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research_ found.

If you're working on four-week blocks of loading and overload for both running and strength, those blocks don't necessarily need to coincide perfectly. "A de-load week during running may be a time to up your strength training because you're not pushing yourself as hard cardio-wise," says Henry.

On the flip side, you can also scale back strength training during high-mileage weeks (such as the week of a 20-mile long run during marathon training). Or you can sync both types of training so your down week is a true recovery opportunity, says Meyer.

"Stress is stress," he says. "If you scale back your mileage but push really hard all week with strength, it's not _technically _a down week-it's still a hard week, just a different kind of hard."

TBH, there's so easy answer here; it'll take some trial and error to figure out what works best for _your _training. But the point is prioritizing overall recovery between workouts: You can't progress on either front if your body doesn't have time to build itself back stronger.









You Can Hit Your Strength Goals While Also Increasing Your Mileage, But You Need to Be Strategic


Experts break down the best way to fit strength training into your running schedule.




www.runnersworld.com


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

I did my long run on Sunday. Last weekend of summer run. Good bye summer blues and bring on the best season...fall







18km training run. Prepping for one more race. On my run to island Lake, I spotted a pair of swans dunking for fish and an egret being stealth. Beautiful day to be out and about.























































*The Ultimate Guide to One of Our Best Training Tools: Long Runs*
Ah, long runs: We love to hate 'em. Or maybe we love to love 'em-depends on who you ask. Either way, the long run is the cornerstone of any half marathon or marathon training plan, but it can be equally important to your 5K and 10K training. No races on your calendar? No problem. A long run can still be beneficial for your overall fitness and mental health.

But if you don't understand the long run, you may miss out on all of the magic it has to offer. So we put together this ultimate guide to one of the best training tools you have in your arsenal.

*What's the point of the long run?*
The benefit of running long-regardless of the distance you're training for-is the aerobic gain you'll make during those miles. "Long runs force the body to become more and more efficient," says Ben Rosario, head coach and founder of the Hoka NAZ Elite team in Flagstaff, Arizona. "The heart learns to pump higher amounts of blood with each stroke, which then carries more oxygen to the body."

Aerobic (or endurance) running also strengthens your slow-twitch muscle fibers, which can fire repeatedly with minimal fatigue (compared to fast-twitch fibers, which are used during short, explosive efforts but fatigue more quickly). These fibers are also important because they're full of capillaries, mitochondria, and myoglobin (an iron- and oxygen-binding protein), all of which are crucial to getting a steady supply of oxygen and energy to the muscles.

"Long runs force the body to create new capillaries, giving the oxygen a smoother and faster path to the mitochondria-a.k.a. the 'power plant' of the cells-where energy is produced and stored. And when we run for long periods of time, the size of those mitochondria increases, allowing them to produce and store more energy," explains Rosario.

One of the other major benefits of the long run is how it teaches your body to use fat as fuel over carbs, says Joe McConkey, a Boston-based exercise physiologist and USATF-certified running coach. "That allows you to be more efficient with your different forms of energy, so you can run faster without depleting your reserves."

Translation: The long run prepares your body to run more efficiently no matter the distance-even in a short race, when you need energy to be produced and oxygen sent throughout the body _fast_.

And you can't overlook the mental angle: To prepare for the psychological challenge of racing for hours, you have to train for hours. Even if you're not racing, a long run offers your mind the chance to tap into the ever-elusive runner's high, and research shows running can boost your mood and improve your mental health.

*What to Watch Out for On a Long Run*
A long run is, inherently, long. And the more time you spend on your feet, the more stress you put on your body. "The long run does ask a lot of our muscles, tendons, and ligaments due to the duration of exercise required for a run to be considered 'long'," says Rosario.

Generally, your cardiovascular system adapts to changes more quickly than your musculoskeletal system. So if you start running long before your body is prepared to run long, you could put yourself at an increased risk for injury, including overuse injuries like plantar fasciitis, Achilles tendonitis, runners' knee, iliotibial band (ITB) syndrome, and shin splints.

"If you're experiencing any little niggles or asymmetries _before _the long run, the long run will only make those worse with the thousands and thousands of steps you're putting on your body," says McConkey. It's super important to listen to your body and, if you feel like something is off _during _the long run, acknowledge that it may be more major than you think. "The only sensations you should feel during a long run are a slight challenge aerobically as it gets longer, and general fatigue or a sort of bilateral soreness," he adds.

*Gear You Need for a Long Run*
Running is a pretty simple sport in terms of gear, but when you start clocking over 60 minutes, there are some important things you'll want with you beyond a good pair of shoes.

The most important addition is a way to carry fuel and hydration, whether that's a running belt, a handheld water carrier, or a pack.









The Long Run Prepares Your Body to Run More Efficiently No Matter the Distance


Going the extra mile(s) can help you run more efficiently at every distance—even if you dread it sometimes.




www.runnersworld.com


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

*What does running do to your brain?








*
It may seem obvious - as you push on through a long run, veering wildly between sensations of agony and elation - that running can have a huge effect on your state of mind. It is an intuitive idea that a growing number of neuroscientists have begun to take seriously, and in recent years they have started to show us what actually plays out on the hills and valleys of your grey matter as you run.

Their findings confirm what many runners know from their own experience: we can use running as a tool to improve the way we think and feel. And we are now learning precisely _why_ running can return focus, vanquish stress and improve mood. Plus we know why - if you're lucky - you might get a brief glimpse of nirvana.

It would be crazy to believe that running is a universal solution to all of our psychological challenges. Indeed, from your brain's perspective, you may not want to push it too hard. German neuroscientists scanned the brains of some of the competitors before, during, and after the TransEurope Foot Race, in which competitors slog through 3,000 miles, over 64 consecutive days. In the middle of this absurdly extreme ultramarathon, the runners' grey matter had shrunk in volume by 6%: the 'normal' shrinkage associated with old age is just 0.2% each year. Luckily, the story doesn't end too badly: eight months later the runners' brains were back to normal.

But if covering immense distances can be counter-productive, it is clear now that more moderate runs can result in very real benefits. First, in a world where smartphones bombard us with stimulation and blur the boundaries between work and life, a clutch of recent studies shows why going for a run can help regain a sense of control.

A 2018 experiment from West Michigan University, for example, showed that running quickly for half an hour improves "cortical flicker frequency" threshold. This is associated with the ability to better process information. Two others, from the Lithuanian Sports University and Nottingham Trent University, showed that interval running improves aspects of "executive function". This is a suite of mental high-level faculties that include the ability to marshall attention, tune out distractions, switch between tasks and solve problems. Among the young people studied, measurable gains were clear immediately after 10 minutes of interval sprints. They also accumulated after seven weeks of training.

A brain imaging study led by David Raichlen at the University of Arizona ties in neatly with these results. They saw clear differences in brain activity in serious runners, compared to well-matched non-runners. For obvious reasons, you cannot run while you are inside a brain scanner, so the neuroscientists studied the brain at rest. First, they saw increased co-ordinated activity in regions, mainly at the front of the brain, known to be involved in executive functions and working memory. This makes sense. Second, they saw relative damping down of activity in the "default mode network", a series of linked brain regions that spring into action whenever we are idle or distracted. Your default mode network is the source of your inner monologue, the instigator of mind-wandering and the voice that ruminates on your past. Its effects are not always welcome or helpful, and have been associated with clinical depression.

Advertisement

Raichlen's was a preliminary study, but if corroborated in the future, it will lend fresh weight to the idea that running can be a form of moving mindfulness meditation. Brain scans show that meditation and running can have a somewhat similar effect on the brain; simultaneously engaging executive functions and turning down the chatter of the default mode network. Again, this seems intuitively right: in the midst of a run, you are likely to be immersed in the present moment, tuned into your bodily state, and conscious of your breath. These are all key aims of mindfulness-based practices. Lacing up your trainers and going for a run could, therefore, be a way to reap some of the psychological benefits of mindfulness. Companies, too, are cottoning on to the therapeutic effects of running: I recently worked with running-shoe company Saucony to create a podcast about the effects of running on the mind.

All of this might start to explain why some people find that running, like mindfulness, can be a useful way to overcome stress and depression. Recent research from the Karolinska Institute in Sweden shows, at a chemical level, how running can defuse at least one important biological stress pathway.

When you are under stress, metabolic processes in your liver convert the amino acid tryptophan into a molecule with the mumble-inducing name of knyurenine. Some of that knyurenine finds its way into your brain, where its accumulation has been strongly associated with stress-induced depression, anxiety disorders and schizophrenia. When you exercise, the levels of an enzyme called kynurenine aminotransferase build up in your muscles. This enzyme breaks down knyurenine into the related molecule kynurenic acid, which, importantly, cannot enter the brain. In this way, exercising your skeletal muscles by running clears from your bloodstream a substance that can cause mental health problems. It is important to note that, for technical and ethical reasons, some of the details of this mechanism have been proven only in laboratory animals.

At first glance, it is not obvious why working your leg muscles should have a direct effect on your mental state. This work provides rare insight into the often-mysterious links between brain and body - and is a powerful reminder that your brain is just another bodily organ. What you choose to do with your body will, inevitably, have psychological consequences.

Running can do more for your mood than smooth out stress. Some lucky souls gloat about their experiences of the "runner's high", which, they claim, is a powerful feeling of ecstasy and invincibility. Running has never quite done that for me, but we do now know more about the potent chemical rewards that running triggers in the brain.

The popular idea of the "endorphin rush" was born in the 1980s and 90s, when a series of studies showed that the levels of beta-endorphin increase in your bloodstream during the course of a run. Beta-endorphin targets the same receptors as opiates, and has some similar biological effects. The endorphin rush hypothesis always had a flaw, however, since beta-endorphin does not cross readily the blood-brain barrier. And if it didn't make it into your brain, how could it give you a high?

In 2008, German neuroscientists put that right. They used functional brain imaging to show that, in trained runners, beta-endorphin levels do indeed spike in the brain after a two-hour run. Increased levels endorphin activity in the brain also correlated with the runners' self-reported feelings of euphoria.

It is not just home-brew opiates that can dull the pain and raise your spirits while you are on the run. Endocannabinoids are a diverse family of bodily chemicals which, like cannabis, bind the brain's cannabinoid receptors. The levels of endocannabinoids circulating in the blood rises after 30 minutes of moderately intense treadmill running. Rigorous experiments, conducted on lab mice, show that running-induced endocannabinoids are responsible for reductions in anxiety and perception of pain. It is a good bet that the same mechanism works in our minds. For many of us, running may never deliver a drug-like high. But we now see why a run that feels like murder at the start can leave you feel satisfied and at ease by the home straight.

Some of these studies are preliminary and need fleshing out. And it is definitely the case that your gender, genetic profile, fitness, expectations and many other factors besides will influence the way your brain responds to running. Even so, I read all these neuroscientific studies as good news stories.

While the physical benefits of running and aerobic exercise are well established, we are starting to see why running can have profound benefits for mental health, too. Hopefully, knowing this will redouble your determination to get out there and run more often.









What does running do to your brain?


Neuroscientists have studied treadmill runners, ultramarathon athletes – and a number of lab animals – to investigate the effects of running on grey matter




www.theguardian.com


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## nOOky (May 13, 2008)

Race report from last weekend's race. My last race of the year, now I can start biking more during my favorite time of the year!

2021 Mountain Lakes 100 DNF Race Report

Mountain Lakes 100 is a race held in Oregon in September, and claims to be one of the most beautiful races in the U.S. as it passes by several mountain lakes during the course of the race. I'm not sure how it got its name, but figured I would see for myself. I had been registered to run it in 2020, but Covid-19 killed that option, and everyone that was entered was able to defer until 2021. For some stupid reason I forgot to reply to the email in June guaranteeing me re-entry into the 2021 edition, so I had to go through the lottery process again to get in, and I was lucky enough to get picked again. If not I would have lost my entry fee money.

I was slightly concerned that running a 100 miler only three weeks after a 101k race with 20,000 feet of gain would reduce my chances of finishing the event. UTMB CCC was a fairly hard race, and I'm an older guy that doesn't recover as well as I did 20 years ago. But since both were kind of hard to get into, I could only do my best and give it a whirl.

The wife and I arrived in Portland on the Thursday night before the race as Friday night would have been too close for the Saturday morning start. Flight availability was sketchy, and there were many changes to our flights as airlines shuffled things around. We had all day Friday to check out the area, head to the race start to collect my race bib, and to generally get a feel for how the drive to the start would be and the logistics would shake out etc. We did some very light hiking in the Columbia river gorge area as well as stopping at an orchard and sampling local food. We had bread from a local orchard that had parmesan cheese, rosemary, and whole caramelized garlic cloves baked in. It was awesome, we ate it all without any condiments. My race morning breakfast was a pumpkin cinnamon roll from there also. Good stuff!

Yummy!









I actually slept well and got about 7 ½ hours sleep Friday night before the race. The race start was 8:00 am which seems a bit late to me, but nonetheless it was light out by then which is nice. Apparently the area had been in a drought, at least that is until the night before the race. I woke up a few times Friday night and heard it raining, and by Saturday morning everything was completely wet and it was still raining. During the drive to the start it rained, and my feet were wet from standing around by the time the race started, but running in rain is not a new concept for me. The scuttlebut the week before the race was all about the upcoming bad weather, it's natural to be concerned about how it will affect your race. But we toed the line anyway.

I had run the Mount Hood 50k two years earlier, which was essentially the first 50k of the 100 mile course. It's a very pretty area, lots of tall conifer trees, pine needle strewn singletrack, and excellent views. That is, unless it's rainy and foggy. Then the most prevalent view is of the puddles and rivulets of water enveloping the mostly singletrack course as you plod along.

Anyway, after a short pre-race briefing and some torturous decision making regarding what to wear, we were off. I decided to wear shorts, a short sleeve shirt, and my OR Helium 2 rain jacket. The race started as they usually do, a long line of people following one another, jockeying for position etc. I tried to start conservatively and not use up too much energy in the beginning. Most everyone, myself included, were trying to dodge around the puddles and big holes. It was a strange dance to be sure. That seemed okay, but quickly I realized that it was using up a lot more energy than just running straight through them, which is better for the trails anyway.

The photographer got a really good photo of me splashing through a mud puddle early in the race as shown below. The first 50k is an out and back, with Timothy lake in the middle that you skirt around counterclockwise going out and coming back. I was feeling okay and eating and drinking well, but also peeing a lot. Probably due to cold-induced diuresis which happens sometimes when you run in the cold when you are used to running in warmer temps. My average pace was just over 13 minutes a mile, and I hit the 50k mark at around 6:36 which seemed respectable and predictable enough for a sub 24 hour finish, or so I thought. I had mentioned to the wife that I may go out fast and try for a sub 24 hour finish as my main goal. My prior 50k time here was 5:42 so I felt I had gone out slow enough.

I got to see the wife as the end of the first 50k went through the Clackamas start/finish area. I would not see her again until mile 57 at Olallie Meadows aid station, where she would bring me more gels and Tailwind and anything else I had in my bag for her to support me. At that point she thought I was moving well and in high spirits. I tend to agree. A few miles down the trail would bring the biggest climb of the day. However it was not anything I was concerned about, it was merely a matter of hiking instead of running, and none of the trail was actually very rugged. Certainly not the steep ruggedness of the Alps.

Somewhere around the bottom of that climb just before mile 40 I had an issue that would eventually end my race for me. Without going into too much embarrassing personal detail, let's just say an inflamed vein in my butthole opening area decided to poke out of its normal spot and take a look around the inside of my new running shorts I brought home from France. Those of you unfamiliar with long distance running may not know that your butt cheeks, especially when constantly wet, tend to rub together as you move and can cause considerable chafing in your butt crack. I had actually put some Bodyglide lubricant there before the start, however that did nothing to help with the constant side to side action of my seductive rear end as I went down the trail with this new visitor hanging on for the ride.

The Start.









At the mile 42 aid station I made an attempt to put that unruly vein back in its place, but I did not have anything for the pain where it was starting to get rubbed raw and bleed a little bit. I did not make any effort to shake anyone's hand or reach into the food bowls at the aid station in case you were wondering. It did get extremely chilly on that section of the course, so I stopped and put on every piece of clothing I had left in my running vest.

I should mention the obvious. It was raining off and on, fairly windy with gusts some said into the upper 20 mph, and by then the temperature was falling to the lower 40's depending on where you were. It was also starting to get dark, and as it got darker there was heavy fog blowing around across the area that liked to make your headlamp reflect back at you. Most would say challenging conditions for a 100 mile race. Your feet would literally never get dry, but still when you stepped into a puddle the water was cold. I could feel my feet becoming dish-panned and wrinkled, but they never really hurt or anything. I credit Darn Tough merino wool socks and my Altra Olympus 4.0 shoes for that, as well as liberal amounts of Aquafor spread on my feet in the morning.

As I made my way slowly to the Olallie aid station using more of a stiff-legged hike than a run or normal hike, due to the increasing discomfort in my turd cutter area, my mind eventually convinced me that I would be done for the day there. It literally took almost 4 hours walking 17-18 minute miles like that to get to that aid station by the time I was 14 hours in. Those last painful miles I was doing the math in my head about how long it would take me to finish the remaining 43 miles, and the calculus was not pleasant. I had 16 hours left to finish the race within the time limits, but the thought of 12 or more hours of that just crushed my spirit. Actually, I guess, it didn't. I was very relieved knowing in my mind that I would be done, honestly.

As I walked along my mind began to wander. What if the wife wasn't there, what if she just left my bag and went back to the room, who could blame her for not standing in the cold and rain for hours waiting for me? What if she talked me into continuing, I can be stubborn, I have had some races that were very physically and mentally demanding under my belt, and I hate to quit. And as I walked along my Garmin watch was not jiving with the distances of the race itself, so many times I whispered aloud "where the **** is that aid station?". Almost every runner now passing me, or going by the other way was upbeat, saying things like "good job, you're doing great!" and truth be told the happiness just made me more ornery. I wanted to stop.

When I finally was close to my end, I passed another guy, Robbie, that I had talked to much earlier in the race. He stated he was dropping at the same place due to hypothermia, and indeed many people did the same. I'm not sure everyone was fully prepared for the weather conditions, even though we all should have been. I wasn't really cold anymore, just uncomfortable as hell and not really feeling all that good about life. We were told beforehand that at times we would feel like dropping, but two days later we would likely regret the decision. It's 3 days later right now and I don't. I didn't have anything to prove other than a stubbornness to finish, but I consciously knew that I simply did not want another 12 hours of that pain and discomfort. You can call me a wuss if you want, but I'm okay with my decision. It was not my first ultra, nor my first DNF.

Many runners have stated that the race, it's directors, and the staff and volunteers were top notch. I have to agree. The volunteers were exceptional; very helpful, knowledgeable, and I'm 100% certain they absolutely should share in the success of many of the runners to finish on such a tough day out in the woods. The race was well organized, well marked with brilliant reflective cones, and well coordinated. And the course itself, beautiful, challenging, and on that day horrible efficient at helping runners spend plenty of time spelunking in their pain caves. Special thanks also to the ground hornets that got me and several racers in my vicinity when we passed by their home. Well played you little bastards, I still have an itchy spot on my ankle.

Splashing in mud puddles.









It was wet.









In the end I did not get another buckle, nor did I get a WS100 qualifier or UTMB points. I did learn a valuable lesson, although I'm not sure how to proceed going forward with that particular issue. That will take some interwebs research.

I did reaffirm the belief that a 100 mile trail race is hard, and success is not always guaranteed. I know that there is a difference between discomfort and actual pain. And I did learn that Portland has some decent beer for sure, and that mother nature remains a fickle *****. Thanks for reading.

PS: as usual I have to thank my wonderful wife for her support and planning expertise surrounding this event. It originally was her desire to run this race, but she did not get in and I did. Love you honey!


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

Great write up nOOky and spectacular finish! Go long and stay strong!


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

I'll be running my second marathon soon. Good article from one great runner

*Marathon Advice from a Champion*
Olympic champion Joan Benoit Samuelson gives her tips for running a successful 26.2.










Whether you're lacing up your shoes for your first marathon or you've conquered 26.2 before, a marathon isn't just another race - it's a journey that demands preparation and training, and there are a lot of factors to consider as you gear up for the big day. To help you conquer this epic run, we spoke with seasoned marathoner Joan Benoit Samuelson, an Olympic gold medalist and two-time Boston Marathon champion.

After decades of racing, Samuelson continues to find inspiration from her fellow runners, regardless of their finish times.

"The most inspiring competitors aren't only the elite athletes at the front," Samuelson says. "The really moving stories come at the back of the pack." As for what keeps her going? "My goal is to inspire those who inspire me."

Here are some of Samuelson's tips for running your best race.

*Do it for Yourself*

According to Samuelson, the key to running a successful marathon is to run your own race. Don't compare yourself to other runners. Do it for yourself.

"You can't run anyone else's race but your own," Samuelson says. "It's your journey, your experience, your story. Go out and tell it."

Stick with what you know

Samuelson advises against any drastic changes to your diet the night before - or the morning of - the big race. What you put in your body will have a significant impact on your performance. While you'll need some energy before the run, be careful not to stuff yourself.

Samuelson's race day diet includes dry toast or bagel and/or a banana, and a small amount of coffee.

"Don't eat a lot of dairy the day before the race or the morning of," she says. "Don't try any new nutritional supplements on race day. Most importantly, stay hydrated! Even in the rain."

*Don't Scout The Route*

Running a marathon requires a lot of planning and preparation. But a look at the race route isn't on Samuelson's pre-race agenda. "I never look at marathon courses ahead of time," Samuelson admits with a smile. "What I don't know won't hurt."

For Samuelson, it's part of staying present and focusing on her goals.

"Don't look for the first mile marker. Don't even count them. You want to look up and suddenly see mile seven. Just look at the people in front of you and think about your time goal," she says. "Just look at the people ahead of you and try to pull them in one by one. Feeling good at Mile 17 is a good sign but don't forget about the .2 at the end of 26. The marathon doesn't end until you cross the finish line."

Dress for the weather

Samuelson says that her grandfather's favorite quote was, "We're going to have weather whether or not."

Considering the weather is likely to change, Samuelson recommends toting along a few different articles of clothing to the start, so you can make a race-time decision. She advises running in a shirt with short sleeves or a singlet with arm warmers. You can double layer with a long-sleeved shirt that can be discarded along the route and picked up for local charity. Taking along a large garbage bag to cover is not a bad idea if rain is in the forecast.

The right attire can make a big difference in performance, comfort and health. "It's extremely important to maintain heat at the beginning of the run," Samuelson says. "Make sure you bring enough clothing to keep warm. You do not want to be chilled before the gun goes off. If you're cold before you start, you're in trouble; you're bound to get hypothermia."

*The Last Half-Mile*

Samuelson views this stretch as a sacred time, as it's the last opportunity to compose yourself before crossing the finish line.

"If you want to collect your thoughts, this is the time to do it," she says. "Don't ever lose sight of your goal, even if it's just to finish. Remember, it's easier to pass people at the end of the marathon than to be passed."

*Never Give Up*

If you start to feel discomfort at any point during the race, listen to your body and slow down. This allows your body to cool off and regain strength as you race to the finish.

"If your body is telling you to stop, listen and walk and take nourishment if needed or advised. If your health is in jeopardy, Stop! There will be other marathons to run." Samuelson advises. "Just stay strong. Believe in yourself, believe in your training and believe in your heart. The huge crowd will carry you to the finish line."









Marathon Advice from a Champion


Olympic champion Joan Benoit Samuelson gives her tips on how to run a successful marathon.




www.abbott.com


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

On Caturday I ran the final race challenge for the 5 Peaks Series. This self supported virtual marathon (42km!) started with sunshine







and ended with rain







And in between I did three laps around IslandLake with a couple of brief pauses to admire the scenery. The mantras in my head kept me strong and focused on the end goal. Dedicated training runs and crossfit training (strength and endurance) has really paid off (awesome targeted workouts). My pace was much faster than first marathon time in 2020 and I was a little faster than the 50km ultramarathon I ran 4 months ago


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## nOOky (May 13, 2008)

Good time for the distance cyclicious! I agree with a lot of the advice from the article above you posted. Sometimes though my wife signs up for a race and doesn't check it out enough, and I'll be like "uh, did you know it has 14,000 feet of gain?" and she'll respond "no, but it looked pretty" lol.


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

This runner is a powerhouse! 


*How 73-Year-Old Jeannie Rice Keeps Getting Faster*









Sunday morning’s London Marathon will feature the usual world-class races in the men’s and women’s open divisions, plus an entirely new global event. After several years of planning (and COVID-19 cancellations), the Abbott World Marathon Majors Wanda Age Group World Championships will be contested for the first time. It will crown winners in age groups from 40-44 to 80+.

73-year-old American Jeannie Rice has attracted much of the attention in the Age Group Championships, which are expected to have about 700 entries. To qualify, runners had to score points in recognized marathons from around the globe. The list of qualifying marathons is far larger than the six members of the World Marathon Majors tour and the points are scaled relative to the age group winners’ times.

Rice appears ready to continue a streak of fast efforts that make her 10 to 15 minutes faster now than she was 10 years ago in her 60s. She’ll face stiff competition from Yuko Gordon, who finished 34th in the 1984 Olympic Marathon and three years later achieved a personal best of 2:38:32. Gordon turned 70 last February.

Here’s a look at how Rice has managed to get faster in her 70s.










*Jeannie Rice: Hidden talent*
*Back Story*
Born in South Korea, Rice has lived in the U.S. for four decades. She began running at age 35 in 1983, unhappy that she had gained a handful of pounds in the previous year and quickly learned that she had a talent for the marathon. She ran 3:45 after a year and dropped down to 3:16 six months later.

After that, Rice more or less plateaued. She always wanted to break 3 hours in the marathon but never reached that goal. Her marathon PR stands at 3:12. A semi-retired real estate agent who splits her time between Cleveland and southern Florida, she has been self-coached her entire career and has completed more than 120 lifetime marathons.

*Getting older and faster*
A decade ago, Rice was finishing most of her marathons around 3:40. Since turning 70, she has improved dramatically. In 2018, she ran a world record 3:27:50 at the Chicago Marathon. The next year, she improved to 3:24:48 in Berlin. Last fall she completed the Virtual Boston Marathon in 3:24:59 (September) and the Virtual Chicago a month later in 3:24:15. Rice believes she was in even better shape several months later when she injured her knee stepping in a pothole.

*How she did it*
Rice is self-coached and says she has been doing basically the same training for decades. She gets her runs in early — as early as 4 a.m. if she has a 20-miler on the schedule — and generally hits 50 to 55 miles a week, with a mix of long runs and shorter, quicker-paced efforts. Before a marathon, she’ll increase to 65 to 70 miles/week for several months.

Rice does her easy-day runs at about 8:30 pace and slows to 8:45–9:00 for the long days. She enters occasional 5Ks for speed work, generally clocking a time in the 21:00s or maybe low 22:00s.

“While my training hasn’t changed much, I do go a little harder and faster than I used to,” she admits. “Also I stay in Florida for a longer time now, which helps a lot with my winter training.”

*The outlook for London*
Rice is fully recovered from her springtime knee injury, and has trained strongly for London, including six long runs of 20 miles or longer. She’ll face a strong challenge from Yuko Gordon, who ran 3:19:37 two years ago in Berlin when she was 68.

Rice seems to be champing at the bit: “I love competition and I’m motivated to run fast and break my personal bests and also age-group records,” she says. “Once I turned 70, I could see it was possible to break records. Now I want to set as many as possible, even though I realize someone will come along after me and run even faster.”



https://www.podiumrunner.com/events/world-marathon-majors/how-73-year-old-jeannie-rice-keeps-getting-faster/?utm_source=facebook&utm_medium=podiumrunner&utm_campaign=0d57def8-9a83-4726-b0c1-bf0ddda271fc


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## chazpat (Sep 23, 2006)

^ that's amazing!


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

chazpat said:


> ^ that's amazing!



It is remarkable. Her 5km pace is a better pace than our faster runner at my crossfit gym!


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)




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## Velobike (Jun 23, 2007)

cyclelicious said:


> View attachment 1950708


So true.

The trouble is you start running out of age classes in some sports.

When I have competed in the 24 Hour Solo World Championships, the upper age class is 60, so I'm a 70+ (76) up against all those young fellows, and I don't make it easier for myself by riding a rigid single speed against people on full suspension bikes with gears.

If there was an age class for that maybe I'd be a world champ - mainly due to lack of competition  

In reality, probably not because having an age class would probably tempt out some of the old fast guys who don't like losing to kids in their 60s...


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

^ It's so true. There are fewer participants in the higher age groups (for popular races) which is nice but in smaller venues they lump everyone together.

I did a popular local 10km race in 2019. At the end, the organizers were handing out prizes to the podium winners. He started announcing out names for 50-55 age group. Then announced the 45-54's; 40-44 etc. I approached the organizer and asked he missed the 55+ group? He checked and there was a pause and then in front of the crowd he called out my name for the 55+ I was the only one! I was embarrassed and proud at the same time but gladly accepted my swag and a round of applause. I would have preferred if there were more runners in the 55+ group; my time was excellent, I really gave it my all.


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)




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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

Not many rocks but lots of slippery roots on this trail run today. The rain held off and we found a plethora of mushrooms and wildlife. Abundance of 'shrooms to forage including lion's mane, chanterelles, lobster mushrooms and spotted some magic mushrooms; we were spied on by a curious chipmunk, saw a large pair of swans on a big pond, a few deer, and a friendly rooftop goat. Awesome rain-free Sunday


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)




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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

*How trails can help you unlock the mental health benefits of running*
*Ultra trail runner and psychotherapist Cassie Smith explains how the combination of running and nature can boost your mood*

The mental health benefits of running are well documented, and there’s a large body of research demonstrating the mood-boosting effects of getting out for even a short jog around the block. There are also a number of studies that show the positive impact nature can have on our mental health. Trail running is the perfect combination of exercise and nature, and while it isn’t a panacea for mental illness, its positive impact on mental health cannot be denied. We spoke with ultratrail runner and psychotherapist *Cassie Smith *about how runners can maximize the mental health benefits of their daily miles.

Smith is an accomplished ultratrail athlete. The Smartwool-sponsored runner has several podium finishes to her name from races in Canada and around the world. She’s also a psychotherapist who works as a counselor at the University of British Columbia, which gives her a unique insight into the positive and negative aspects of running as they pertain to mental health. She explains that in addition to the combined effects of nature and physical activity, trail running also promotes being in a more present mindset or a “flow state,” which can help individuals cope with everyday stress and anxiety.

“A lot of mental health issues result from our minds going backward and thinking about the past, or going forward and worrying about the future,” she explains. “When you’re in that flow state, you’re not doing either of those things. You’re focused on the task in front of you, and the mechanisms in your brain that pull you in those other directions aren’t operating.”

She adds that while you can also enter this flow state on the roads, trail running is more effective in this way because you have to be more mentally engaged in what you’re doing to navigate uneven terrain and avoid tripping on a rock, root or other obstacle.

On the flip side, trail running does tend to lean toward the extreme end of the sport, and Smith admits that if you’re not careful, running can start to have the opposite effect on your mental health, particularly if it takes you away from other important parts of your life, like spending time with friends and family. Smith adds that many trail runners (and runners in general) also risk tying up too much of their identity in the sport, which sets them up for trouble if they have a bad run or race, or if something happens that prevents them from training.

“I encourage people to paint a picture in their minds of the healthiest version of themselves,” she says. “What do you look like when you’re sleeping eight hours each night, eating healthy meals, connecting with friends and moving well without pain?”

She goes on to explain that anything you do, including trail running, should promote that healthy version of yourself and be one aspect of it — not the entire picture. If you’re neglecting your relationships, sacrificing sleep or beating your body up without proper recovery in order to focus on running, you’re likely taking it too far. “You have to ask yourself if trail running is still serving its purpose,” she says, which is to make you a healthier, happier person.

Smith points out that finding the right balance can be difficult for people who have a naturally competitive drive. Making the conscious decision to laser-focus on training in the last couple of weeks leading up to a big race is fine, but it’s easy for runners to forget that they have value outside of their performance. 

*Smith’s advice for runners*
While running is an excellent tool for coping with stress, anxiety and depression, Smith warns that it shouldn’t be the only way runners manage their mental health. She reminds us that running is still both a physical and mental stressor, so she encourages runners to be mindful of their other needs and to prioritize them as well. She adds that if you’re struggling with your mental health, it’s important to talk to someone about it. Friends and family and mental health professionals serve different functions in this way, and she says both play key roles in supporting someone who’s struggling.

Finally, Smith reminds runners to be gentle and to have compassion for themselves. It’s easy to get caught up in negative self-talk when a run or workout goes south, and this can lead to a downward spiral in which running is doing more harm than good. In the same way, if you are struggling with your mental health, she encourages you to treat it the same way you’d treat a physical injury — with time, patience and care.

“If you sprained your ankle, you wouldn’t go out and try to run on it the next day, you’d go easy on it and wait for it to heal,” she says. “When we’re struggling with a mental health issue we don’t always have the same compassion for ourselves.”

Trail running (and running in general) has a lot of mental health benefits, and it can be an excellent tool to help you cope with the stressors of daily life. The key is to balance it with other parts of your life to ensure you maximize its benefits, rather than detracting from them. 









How trails can help you unlock the mental health benefits of running - Canadian Running Magazine


Ultratrail runner and psychotherapist Cassie Smith explains how the combination of running and nature can boost your mood




runningmagazine.ca


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## chazpat (Sep 23, 2006)

If it wasn't for trails, I would not be a runner! Had a great run after work yesterday after trying to balance meeting a deadline, helping a new guy at work get started and a crisis at home.


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

10km trail run and escarpment scramble. We climbed up and down the escarpment several times and checked out some caves along the way.


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## ddoh (Jan 11, 2017)

Everything Cassie Smith says can easily be applied to MTBing.


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## nOOky (May 13, 2008)

Gotta love the fall colors and running in the fall when it is cooler. The wife and I are going up to Duluth, MN this weekend for trail races, but the colors are slightly past peak there already. I'm doing a 100k on Saturday, and a 10k Sunday. She's doing a 50k Saturday, and a half marathon Sunday. The trail is mostly singletrack with a lot of leaves covering the rocks and roots so it becomes very tiring after a while, just watching ahead of you so you don't trip. Much easier on a bike!

Duluth has excellent mountain biking, I wish I had time to stay another day and ride up there.


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

This story is beyond sad. This 25 year old woman was a record-breaking long distance runner, an Olympian, and was just beginning to reach new and exciting milestones in her athletic career. Sadly, she was found murdered today and her husband is the primary suspect. Update: The husband suspect has been arrested.

*Agnes Tirop: world record holder found dead as Kenya police seek husband*









One of Kenya’s leading athletes, Agnes Tirop, has been found stabbed to death at her home in Iten, with police treating her husband as a suspect. The 25-year-old athlete, who broke the women-only 10,000m road record last month and also won bronze medals at the 2017 and 2019 world championships, was discovered by police on Wednesday after being reported missing by her father.

Tom Makori, the head of police for the area, confirmed that Tirop’s husband was a suspect after going missing. “When [police] got in the house, they found Tirop on the bed and there was a pool of blood on the floor,” he said. “They saw she had been stabbed in the neck, which led us to believe it was a knife wound, and we believe that is what caused her death.

“Her husband is still at large, and preliminary investigations tell us her husband is a suspect because he cannot be found. Police are trying to find her husband so he can explain what happened to Tirop.”

Last month, Tirop smashed the women-only 10km world record in Germany, crossing the line in 30:01 to shave 28 seconds from the previous record, set by Morocco’s Asmae Leghzaoui in 2002. She also competed for Kenya over 5,000m at the Tokyo Olympics, finishing fourth in the final.

Tirop gave early notice of her supreme talent by winning the world cross country title as a 19-year-old – the second youngest person to do so after Zola Budd in 1985. Athletics Kenya said it was still working to uncover details of the incident and added: “Kenya has lost a jewel who was one of the fastest-rising athletics giants on the international stage, thanks to her eye-catching performances on the track.”

Meanwhile Kenya’s president Uhuru Kenyatta also expressed his horror at the murder of an athlete he called a hero. “It is unsettling, utterly unfortunate and very sad that we’ve lost a young and promising athlete who, at a young age of 25 years, had brought our country so much glory,” he said. “It is even more painful that Agnes, a Kenyan hero by all measures, painfully lost her young life through a criminal act perpetrated by selfish and cowardly people.

“I urge our law enforcement agencies to track down and apprehend the criminals responsible for the killing of Agnes so that they can face the full force of the law,” he added.

The Kenyan journalist Evelyn Watta told the Guardian that as well as being a brilliant athlete, Tirop was well liked by her teammates. “As a person she was jolly, always smiling and very thoughtful with her words, very humble and respectful. She could come across as shy but it just needed asking the right questions. It’s just really sad news.”

The agent Michel Boeting, who was a friend of Tirop, tweeted: “We will never again see that majestic running style. We will never again see you raising your arms in celebration. But the worst is we will never see your beautiful smile again. You were Royal. It was a pleasure knowing you.”









Agnes Tirop: world record holder found dead as Kenya police seek husband


Kenya’s world record holder Agnes Tirop, two-times a world championship bronze medallist, has been found dead at her home




www.theguardian.com


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## chazpat (Sep 23, 2006)

She also came in second in the 2019 Peachtree Road Race 10K here in Atlanta, a race I've run a couple of times. Sad story.


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## nOOky (May 13, 2008)

That's horrible, RIP young lady.


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

Strange running style. Like a cross between Captain Jack Sparrow and an "ultimate akido master" .


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## nOOky (May 13, 2008)

He doesn't run like that anymore, he's put on a few pounds and he's old


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## paramount3 (Jul 13, 2014)

@cyclelicious Do you have lyme-carrying ticks in those woods?


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

paramount3 said:


> @cyclelicious Do you have lyme-carrying ticks in those woods?


Yes! There are some areas that are worse than others here in southern Ontario. There is a reported rise in ticks in south eastern Ontario this year. Our temps are up and down (thaw-freeze all winter) so we have to be cautious year round but fall season is noted for deer ticks

When I trail run I stay on the paths/trails and seek the areas have less prevalence but I don't take chances.


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## Happybill68 (Feb 4, 2020)

With my knee finally healed up (injury in may kept me from running) I hit the trails today for a whopping 1.5 miles. 

It’s a start and my knee felt good. 

Heading out tomorrow for another run. 

Baby steps back 


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

*How Gene ***** Became the World’s Fastest 70-Year-Old*
******, who ran a 2:54 marathon at age 70, opens up about training, injury, and his love of racing often. Plus, training details from his coach.*

Gene ***** is a heck of an athlete. In his serious bowling days, he four times rolled a perfect score (300). On the golf course, he has recorded a best round of 68 on a par 70 layout. And a little less than three years ago, ***** ran the fastest time ever by a 70-year-old in a certified, out-and-back marathon (2:54:23 in December 2018).

What’s he been up to since that marathon record? Quite a bit, especially when you consider his prolific race and ultramarathon schedule. But a bit less than planned, given a broken shoulder in 2019 (trail run fall), Covid restrictions in 2020, and a hamstring injury from late-August this year.

*****, now 73, had hoped for peak 2021 races to come at the WADA WMM Age Group Championships in London in early October, followed 8 days later by a fifth consecutive in person, age-group win at Boston. His hamstrings didn’t cooperate, however. He had strained them in late-August at the Hood To Coast Relay.

As late as 24 hours before London, ***** figured he wouldn’t run. But he’s irrepressible when it comes to starting lines, so he was there the next morning, and eventually hobbled and walked to the finish in 5:37:56.

At Boston, he hoped to continue his four-year age-group victory streak (65-69 victories in 2016 and 2017, 70-74 in 2018 and 2019). His legs felt a bit better, so he decided to aim for 3:30 pace, which he calculated would give him a 50/50 chance of winning his age group.

His math proved remarkably good, but he ended up on the short end of the 50/50. ***** hit the tape in 3:30:02, just 28 seconds slower than Mike Wien’s first-place 3:29:34.

“If I had known I needed 30 seconds, I could certainly have found them in the last 5 miles,” ***** says.

Other 70-somethings have broken 3 hours in the last month, including Jo Schoonbroodt in Amsterdam (2:56:37) and Michael Sheridan in London (2:59:37). ***** will turn 74 next April. If he wants to remain atop his age-group, he’ll face serious competition for the first time.

To get ready, and to heal an ailing body, ***** plans a full month of no running from mid-November to mid-December. He and his wife will be cruising the waters around Antartica and chasing a solar eclipse. He hopes to return to competition at the Naples (FL) Half Marathon in January.

Here, ***** answers questions about his remarkable past three years of running and what he has learned along the way. His coach, John Goldthorp, adds more information about *****’s training routine.










*Q &A with Gene ******
*Why did you run London and Boston if you were injured?*
Before London, my coach didn’t want me to run, my family didn’t want me to run, my wife didn’t want me to run, but I felt like my Facebook friends were all saying: “Run, run, run.” I thought I’d drop out after 6 or 7 miles, but I kept going even though my hamstrings wouldn’t allow anything under 10:15 pace. Then I didn’t run a lick before Boston, but I could tell that my legs were a little better.

*You were already running strong in your mid-60s when you hired a coach for the first time. How did that change things?*
It was like night and day. I was a 3:29 marathon runner before, and six months later I ran 3:09 at Boston. When I coached myself, I pretty much ran all long, slow miles with occasional 800-meter repeats on the track. If I was sore after a workout, I figured it was best for old guys like me to rest. John had me out there working my ass off 6 days a week. Sure, a couple of those were recovery runs, but he had me doing lots of miles about a minute per mile faster than before.

I found that when a coach set expectations for me, there was no way I wasn’t going to suffer to get the workout done. Needless to say, I discovered I had much more ability locked away than I had realized. I only needed the expertise and accountability that a coach provides.

*I’ve read that you were mostly running around 45 to 50 miles a week. That seems low for your fast race times.*
That’s the trouble with averages. They hide a lot of variation. I ran close to 2800 miles in 2016, 2017, and 2018, which comes out to about 53 miles a week. But I did so many ultra-marathon races, that my training average was probably 45 to 50. When peaking for a specific, important marathon, I was in the low- to mid-60s.

*You run a lot of ultras, and also race frequently. Is that to build endurance first, and then speed?*
I’ll probably never have another year like 2018. I ran 43 races that year. Hey, only seven of those were ultras! Because I raced almost every weekend, the race substituted for one of the week’s harder speed workouts, yes, but I also trained pretty hard between races.

*This year is instructive: You dropped out of a 256-mile trail race, ran a world best for 50K, did a road mile, then a 100-mile, then won three track races at USATF Masters, then jumped into Hood to Coast in late August. And these were only a few of your races in 2021. My question is: Is this a racing plan or a kid running amok in a candy store?*
I guess there really is no grand plan most of the time. Every November I go through the list of races that pique my interest, either for fun or competition, and pencil the most important ones into the calendar. So many races, so little time! The most fun I have is when I’m running a long distance on trails. Even though I hate the 5K and shorter, any race is fun. Once upon a time, I figured that I would perform better if I didn’t race so often. But in 2018, I raced 16 straight weeks and got faster every week. So why not go with it?

*If 2021 had gone perfectly, what would have been your realistic goals at London and Boston?*
At the beginning of the year, the dream was to set a world record at London and win at Boston. So, timewise, that would have been a 2:54 and, say, 3:07. As it turned out, absolutely nothing about that was realistic. After a 2020 filled with injuries and no races, I was off my game from the get-go in 2021. I realized pretty early that I wouldn’t be setting a record in London, but I still thought I could win both London and Boston, at least until the hamstring injury.

*What have you learned about yourself and running since your big year in 2018?*
Don’t run a bunch of fast legs at Hood to Coast on a body that’s already tired! Otherwise, I’m not absolutely sure I’ve learned anything yet. I have some theories that I’ll test out next year. I’ll probably give myself more recovery time after ultras, and maybe stop doing the 200-milers. I might race less often, but I’m hoping I can still perform well at road races week after week.

Maybe I’ve learned two things: 1) Injuries are weird; and 2) Maurten is a game-changer for me.

What makes injuries so weird is you don’t know when you’re going to get one, or when it will get better. Every injury is different. Some only hurt when you run, and some don’t hurt when you run, but they hurt around the house and yard. Some go away in a couple of days, but are suddenly replaced by others. You never know what’s coming next.

Hamstring injuries really worry me. This is my third. The first one kept me from running for six years! The second knocked me out for six months. I’m hoping that this one is only six weeks (and the fourth one only six days).

Maurten has become an absolutely essential fuel for me in long races. It’s more important than carbon shoes. It lets me get in more calories than ever before, and it eliminates nausea. When I’m feeling fatigued in a long effort, and then get some Maurten, my body feels happy again. [_Note: ***** has filmed a promotional video for Maurten, and might become a sponsored athlete._]

*Have you changed your training over the years?*
I don’t think much about my training, I just do what my coach tells me.

*What’s in your future?*
Sometimes I think I should just retire from trying to beat records. Maybe I should just have fun, and to hell with what everybody else thinks. I did set out to beat the marathon record in 2018, but I didn’t do it for the attention. I just needed a good goal to motivate me for a couple of years.

I’ll probably try to get back in shape and run fast next year. Then in 2023 when I’m 75, I’ll try to repeat what I did in 2018. I’ll prioritize whatever age-group records I think I can get, and the big championship races.










*John Goldthorp answers questions about Gene *****’s training*
*What kinds of workouts seem to work best for Gene? Which don’t?*
Every athlete is an N=1. Gene is fond of ‘general aerobic’ runs that are 60 to 90 seconds slower than his current 5K race pace, and he certainly loves long runs. Often we combine stamina training and short hills to make a longer session. We can tick off a lot of boxes in one day that way. Then he jogs very slowly the next day to recover.

*Gene does so many ultras and other races, what role does recovery play in his training plan?*
It’s true that older athletes may need more time to recover, but sometimes a 70-year-old retiree can recover faster than a busy professional with young children. My marathoners aim for 2 harder workouts per week with everything else being very easy. Gene tends to run 5 to 6 days a week, depending on his gardening and golfing plans.

*What about paces for intervals, tempo, long runs, etc.?*
I prefer to help my athletes train by perceived effort instead of pace. Gene is unique in his ability to run marathons at a pace only about 35-40 seconds per mile slower than his 5K pace, where others are often 50 or 60 or more seconds slower. So we target many of our hard workouts close to his marathon effort. Gene’s very good at not forcing things. Early in a workout, he’s often convinced he won’t be able to complete the planned session. But as he warms up, he usually finds that he can.

*Anything else?*
Gene’s a master at listening to his body and doesn’t hesitate to take a day off if necessary. On the other hand, I can’t tell you how many times I gave him a light session only to learn later that he felt good and went out for a 23-miler instead.

*How about Gene’s racing schedule?*
To say Gene’s racing schedule is unorthodox would be putting it mildly. In 2017, he ran three 200-milers in three months and often raced the other weekends. But maybe this has contributed to his success. Running marathons early in a training block allows him to develop tremendous endurance. Then, for about 8 weeks, he’ll use shorter races and faster long runs to develop his threshold and efficiency.

*I assume Gene’s racing doesn’t fit your ideal. How do you keep him under control?*
At the end of the day, we have one life and we need to do what brings us joy. Gene loves going on adventures, challenging himself, and seeing the world via running. He’s made a lot of friends and inspired a lot of people. If I were to say, “No, you must stick to one way of training and racing,” I wouldn’t be taking a client-centered approach to coaching.

I’m here to support Gene’s journey. Sometimes that means getting out of his way. Other times, I try to gently nudge him back onto the path. 

https://www.podiumrunner.com/traini...o9fWgsCj2tXQ9vPxD92wFgGuQ3-ARhsapPMoNk_Z5EMQI


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

I realize after posting that mtbr has censored Gene Dy kes's name!


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

93! and looks like he has his own teeth and hair! This man is on fire!

*Canio Polosa breaks Canadian M90+ 5K record*









*Canio Polosa*, a 93-year-old runner living in London, Ont., smashed his own 5K Canadian Masters record on Sunday by over one minute. Polosa ran 36:30 at the Halloween Haunting 5K, which was held at Springbank Park in London, Ont. 









His previous personal best was 37:41. Polosa mentioned that he was honoured to have so much support, as many runners recognized him at the race. 

Polosa is a retired medicine professor at McGill University. Polosa lost cartilage in his knees in his 50’s and was advised never to run. He began to run during retirement at age 60, “For eight years or so, I ran 10K’s, then became interested in longer distances,” says Polosa. When he moved to London, Ont., he joined the London Pacers Running Club, which inspired him to run three marathons during the ’90s. After his third marathon, Polosa took a break from running, as it was too much for his knees. Now at 93, Polosa is back running and setting Canadian records after his wife *Lynne Weaver* saw an Amazon recommendation for knee braces. “They have become his best friends,” she says.

Polosa said in a video interview with CBC London that he doesn’t know why he likes running, but he enjoys running 5K to 10K every day to embrace nature. When questioned why most people his age aren’t running, Polosa said, “Most people are not running because they don’t think they can do it.” 

Polosa also holds the M90+ Canadian masters’ mile record of 11:07, which he set in June of this year, but is eager to lower it after he said he started too fast during his last attempt. 









Canio Polosa breaks Canadian M90+ 5K record - Canadian Running Magazine


Polosa ran 36:30 to take one minute and 11 seconds off his previous 5K best




runningmagazine.ca


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## chazpat (Sep 23, 2006)

cyclelicious said:


> I realize after posting that mtbr has censored Gene Dy kes's name!


I guess we can't post about * * * * * Van * * * * * either!


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

*Inside The 1904 Olympic Marathon So Disastrous That The Sport Was Nearly Banned








*

On Aug. 30, 1904, then-President Teddy Roosevelt’s daughter Alice Roosevelt stood at the finish line of the 1904 Olympic marathon, eagerly awaiting the competitors.

The summer games were in St. Louis, Missouri, that year, making it the first modern Olympics held on United States soil. The throngs of spectators were also waiting eagerly, willing an American to cross the finish line first. They nearly got their wish.

“An American won,” the crowd chanted as young Roosevelt draped the gold medal around the neck of Fred Lorz, a bricklayer who’d seemingly come in first place. But then an Olympics official halted the ceremony, and Lorz was disqualified.

His charge? Lorz reportedly “had ridden about three miles in an automobile traversing the course over country roads.” Lorz confessed that he’d covered 11 miles of the course behind the wheel, earning him a lifetime ban from the Olympics. But his debacle was just the beginning in a series of marathon-related disasters that year.

Indeed, several of the competitors who hadn’t cheated were nearly killed in the process, prompting the Olympic committee to consider ending the sport completely. 

*Why The 1904 Olympic Marathon Was So Difficult*









Much about the 1904 Summer Olympics was unprecedented. For one thing, it was the first time the games were being held in the United States and it coincided with that year’s World’s Fair.

As such, Olympic organizer James Sullivan wanted to do something equally new and exciting for the games’ biggest even: the marathon. Sullivan resolved to design a 24.8-mile course that was intended to push the runners to the absolute edge of their abilities.

But although the course was about two miles shorter than any other year, it proved to be the most disastrous.

As the _Courier_ reported at the time, “The course led over hills and through dales innumerable, being pronounced one of the most uphill and downhill courses ever traveled.” In addition to a challenging course, the race started at 3:00 p.m. on a 92-degree day. And Sullivan intentionally limited access to water during the race.

“Don’t get into the habit of drinking and eating in a marathon race,” Sullivan warned in a 1909 book. “Some prominent runners do, but it is not beneficial.”

Purposeful dehydration, Sullivan declared, improved athletic performance, and so the race had a single water station positioned at mile 12.










Sullivan also had a darker goal. The Olympics, he felt, should prove the athletic superiority of white men. To underscore the inferiority of other races, the 1904 Olympics hosted an event dubbed “Anthropology Days,” where non-white competitors faced off in events that they were often attempting for the first time.

In fact, two men brought to the fair as a part of the “South African exhibit” competed in the marathon, Tswana tribesmen Len Taunyane and Jan Mashiani. Having never run such a race before, it was remarkable that they finished — and without shoes, no less.

*Who Were The Marathoners?*
The 32 marathoners competing in 1904 were a diverse group. They included Seneca Nations athlete Frank Pierce, the first Native American Olympian; Len Taunyane and Jan Mashiani, the only Black athletes to represent South Africa before the end of Apartheid; American and professional clown Thomas Hicks; and Cuban man Félix Carbajal, a former mailman.









Two members of the Tswana tribe of South Africa volunteered to run the marathon – even though they’d never run a marathon before. Both finished the race. 

The race began with five loops around a track. Then, the runners set off on dirt roads, often trailing behind a pack of horses and automobiles that kicked up a near-fatal amount of dust. American competitor William Garcia landed in the hospital for an emergency surgery after the race because of the dust.

The brutal hills along the course were “the most difficult a human being was ever asked to run over,” one official admitted. And the marathoners faced more than dust and hills. The route took the runners across train and trolley tracks. They also had to dodge traffic.

Many of the runners experienced terrible cramps which forced them to drop out. After eating rotten apples, Felix Carvajal passed out in a field. Around the same time, Lorz hopped into a car and headed for the finish line.


*The 1904 Marathon Winner Drank Eggs And Strychnine*








Missouri History MuseumAutomobiles followed the runners, kicking up dust and offering a quick escape from the race for less scrupulous runners.

Thomas Hicks was a favorite going into the 1904 Olympic marathon, but he nearly dropped out 10 miles into the race after begging his handlers for water, who refused.
Around the 18-mile mark, Hicks tossed back a mix of strychnine — a.k.a rat poison — and raw egg whites. The deadly poison, given in small doses, acted as a stimulant, and the Olympics did not ban performance-enhancing drugs in 1904.

But the concoction did not seem to help Hicks, and he barely managed to trot along the route until his handlers gave him a second dose, along with a shot of brandy.

“His eyes were dull, lusterless,” wrote one race official about Hicks. “The ashen color of his face and skin had deepened; his arms appeared as weights well tied down; he could scarcely lift his legs, while his knees were almost stiff.”

The now hallucinating marathoner begged to lie down, convinced he was still 20 miles from the finish line. His handlers, so close to victory, lifted Hicks and carried him across the finish line — while Hicks’ legs dangled in the air.

He nonetheless became the first American to win an Olympic marathon — but he never raced again.










No one died at the 1904 Olympic marathon, but several came close. If another hour had passed before Garcia was rushed to surgery, the man likely would have bled to death.

In spite of the fact that both of South Africa’s runners had never before run a marathon and raced barefoot, they placed 9th and 12th in the competition. And that was after wild dogs chased one of the men a mile off-course.

As for the winner, Hicks lost eight pounds during the race. “Never in my life have I run such a tough course,” Hicks said. “The terrific hills simply tear a man to pieces.”

Hicks’s winning time of 3:28:53 remains the slowest Olympic marathon time in history, even after the race upped the standard length to 26.2 miles in 1921.

The disastrous marathon also holds the record for the lowest percentage of marathoners to complete the race. While 32 runners set off for gold, only 14 crossed the finish line.

The press dubbed the race a “man-killing event,” and Sullivan joined the naysayers. “A 25-mile run … is asking too much of human endurance,” he declared.

But the event returned in 1908 for the London Olympics. Not surprisingly, only a single marathoner from 1904 gave it a second try.









The Insane Olympic Marathon That Saw One Man Drive 11 Miles And Another Drink Poison


The winner's time is the slowest of any gold medalist in the Olympic marathon by almost 30 minutes — even though the course was two miles shorter than it is now.




allthatsinteresting.com


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

We did a 14km trail run and scramble up and down the escarpment


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

My new goal is to live to 100+ so I can crush this record. 

*WATCH: Julia ‘Hurricane’ Hawkins sets the 105+ 100m world record*









Julia Hawkins, who is 105 years old and nicknamed ‘Hurricane Hawkins’, is now the oldest competitive female sprinter in the world, setting the 105+ 100m world record on Saturday in 1:02.95 seconds at the Louisana Senior Games. 

The Baton Rouge, La. resident now stands uncontested as the fastest senior sprinter in the world, as the first 105-year-old woman to race 100m. After Hawkins set the record, she said to the local media that she wants to continue doing this race annually.
Hawkins only took up racing when she turned 100, and she immediately set world records in the 100+ division, but now holds the 105+ record that never existed before. According to an interview with the NY Times, her training consists of maneuvering around her garden. 

Although her record is 10 times slower than the women’s world record of 10.48 set by U.S. sprinter *Florence Griffith-Joyner* in 1988. The men’s 105+ 100m record was set by Japan’s *Hidekichi Miyazaki* in 2015, in which he ran a speedy 42.44 seconds. Miyazaki was born in 1910 and passed away in 2019 at 108










WATCH: Julia 'Hurricane' Hawkins sets the 105+ 100m world record - Canadian Running Magazine


She is the only 105-year-old woman ever to run 100m




runningmagazine.ca


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## Velobike (Jun 23, 2007)

It's good to see age classes being provided up to over 100 in athletics. It will give an incentive for more people to stay active.

We're not getting them in MTB racing where very few events cater for beyond 55+.


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## ddoh (Jan 11, 2017)

There are lots of 70+ races here in the states.


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

There are some training recommendations specifically for women, from experts and runners alike, in this guide by Jen A. Miller. 

*How to Run Like a Girl*
Women really do run the world. For nearly a decade, more women runners have been crossing the finish line than men. In the United States, women make up 57 percent of finishers — that's about 10.7 million women racing. Globally, female race participation is up 25 percent, compared to 7 percent for men. That’s a lot of girl power, which is why we’ve created this women-only guide to running. Here you’ll find advice about the big and small challenges of running while female, and how women can get faster and stronger in spite of them. So ladies, grab the sports bra, lace up your sneakers and let’s hit the road.

*The Female Body*
We're not shaped like men, so we don't run like them. Here’s a look at some of the biological differences that can work for and against female runners.
*Flexibility*
Women tend to be more flexible than men, which can be both a good and a bad thing for a runner. The extra flexibility is a result of a woman’s body structure and function — our hips are wider and our hormones allow our tendons to stretch for childbirth. We also have less muscle mass, allowing our bodies to move more freely.
Flexibility can be good in a runner because it means that your body is moving slightly differently with each stride, and not putting the same load of pressure on your joints every time you stride and land. This can protect against injuries. “If you load exactly on the same point of your joint the same way over and over again, it’s going to place a lot of stress on it. With more flexibility, you’re not going to load the tissues in exactly the same way every time,” says Dr. D.S. Blaise Williams, director of the VCU Run Lab at Virginia Commonwealth University.
But flexibility is also a weakness. Looser connective tissues return less energy with each stride. It’s like having a lax rubber band — pull it and it doesn’t snap back. The top runners tend to have extremely tight hamstring muscles, which allow them to generate more energy during each stride. So flexibility may reduce injury risk, but it also means that you are slower.
*Stride*
Most runners are heel strikers, and *women are more likely to be heel strikers than men.* Heel striking is believed by many running experts to cause higher impact than landing near the middle or front of the foot, possibly contributing to an increased risk of injuries. In one of the few women-only fitness studies, scientists decided to study injury risk among 249 experienced female runners, all of whom were heel strikers.
Remarkably, 21 of the runners not only did not become injured during the two-year study but also had not had a prior injury. The researchers found that the never-injured runners, as a group, landed far more lightly than those who had been seriously hurt. Not everyone can land as softly as this unusual group of runners, but experts have this advice:

*Consciously think about a soft landing*. Some runners, especially those with a long history of injuries, might want to experiment with landing closer to the midfoot, since many — but not all — runners naturally land more lightly when they don’t lead with the heel.
Consider, too, *slightly increasing your cadence,* which is the number of steps you take per minute, a change that also tends to reduce the pounding from each stride.
*Imagine that you are running over eggshells* or, even more evocatively, are a water strider, moving gracefully and weightlessly across the pond.
*Endurance*
A woman’s extra body fat may be an advantage for endurance runners. Not only do women have more body fat reserves, some research suggests that *a woman’s body may be more efficient at using body fat and conserving glycogen,* which is the main way the body stores glucose and fuels exercise. For now, men overall are stronger and faster, but women are physiologically well-suited for endurance events.
Of course, there is a downside. While our body fat gives us more endurance for the long haul, it also can hold us back in the shorter races, slowing us down and making us work harder to run at a given pace.
*Pace*
In general, women seem to be better at pacing themselves during a race than men are. A Marquette University study published in Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise, gathered data about the finishers at 14 marathons and 91,929 participants, almost 42 percent of them women. Researchers found that at the midpoint of each race, *men slowed significantly more than women racers did.* In aggregate, men covered the second half of the marathon almost 16 percent slower than they ran the first half. Women as a group were about 12 percent slower in the second half. Far more men than women fell into the markedly slower category, with about 14 percent of the male finishers qualifying versus 5 percent of the women.
*Heart Size*
A woman’s heart is smaller than a man’s. A bigger heart can pump more oxygenated blood around the body. This is one reason men can run longer at top speeds. It’s worth noting that women’s hearts enlarge and remodel with training as much as men’s hearts do, but they start out smaller so also remain smaller.
*Injuries*
Women tend to get more injuries than men, in part due to differences in the shape of a woman’s hips and pelvis that put more stress on our bodies. Compared to men, *women tend to have less strength in their hips and core.* Women also tend to have strong quadriceps — the big muscle that runs between your knee and hip — and weaker hamstrings — the muscles that runs down the back of your thigh. This makes women “quad dominant,” says Dr. Williams. This imbalance affects the stability of the knee. Together, weaker hips, cores and hamstrings can cause a woman to run with a collapsed posture where a female runner’s pelvis is rotated forward to the floor, making her knees more likely to bump into each other, and her feet more likely to pronate (roll inward). Dr. Williams says this physiology is much more common in high school female runners, and women tend to get stronger and more stable as they age. For some, though, these weakness can stick around.
*Motherhood*
Pregnancy and motherhood seem to improve many competitive women’s running, both psychologically and physiologically. Paula Radcliffe famously won the 2007 New York City Marathon less than a year after giving birth, while the American Kara Goucher set a new personal record at the 2011 Boston Marathon barely seven months after having a child.
*Many of the physiological changes that occur during pregnancy can be beneficial for runners*, exercise scientists have found. A woman’s heart pumps more blood during pregnancy, for instance, and she gains red blood cells, which carry oxygen throughout the body. Both of those alterations are beneficial for subsequent athletic performance. Pregnancy also is a kind of resistance training, with a woman’s bones and muscles adapting to bear considerably more weight as her unborn child grows. Most of these changes are not permanent, physiologists point out, but some do linger for a year or more after a woman gives birth.
On the other hand, women sometimes find that their running form is different postpartum and, for some, running may even become painful, probably because their pelvis has shifted its position during the later stages of pregnancy and childbirth. But there are exercises that can help. Scroll down to our section on pregnancy for more information.
For many female runners, though, a signal advantage of motherhood is that it teaches you mental toughness. *Compared to labor, the pains of a marathon are almost insignificant.* 

*Getting Stronger*
Strength training is important to any running program, and these exercises specifically target the parts of the body that tend to be weaker in women.
*For Your Hips*
To improve the strength and stability of your hips, you have two main options: floor exercises or hill workouts. If you want to add the targeted strength training, try these exercises, as recommended by the VCU Run Lab, twice a week. Hill workouts can be included as part of your normal runs — it’ll improve your endurance, too. 








*Clamshells*

This exercise strengthens the major muscles in your posterior: the gluteus maximus and gluteus medius.

*1.* Lie on one side and bend knees.

*2.* Keep hips and knees bent at the same angle and slowly lift your top leg away from your bottom while keeping your feet together.

*3.* Lift until your hips and upper body begin to roll backward, then lower your leg back to the start position.

*4.* To make this move more difficult, add a resistance band.

*5.* Complete three sets of 10 twice a week. 

Slowly advance to five sets of twelve over a few weeks.









*Side Leg Lift*
This exercise strengthens the gluteus medius muscle on the outside of your pelvis.
*1.* Lay on your side and slowly raise your top leg up.

*2.* Keep your knee straight and your toes pointed forward. Lower your leg.

*3.* To make this move more difficult, add a resistance band.

*4.* Complete three sets twice a week. 

Slowly advance to five sets of twelve over a few weeks.

*Run or Walk Uphill*
If you want to train and build the muscles on the back sides of your legs at the same time, add some hills to your training. Running uphill works your calves, glutes and hamstrings, not to mention builds your endurance. Try adding hills to one of your weekly runs (or crank up the elevation on the treadmill if you run inside).
*For Your Core*
These three exercises, as suggested by the VCU Run Lab, can be added into any other strength training routine you already do to strengthen your abdominals and the muscles in the back of your legs. Try doing them twice a week for best results. 









*Plank*
This exercise strengthens the abdominals, the gluteus maximus and your shoulders.
*1.* Lay down on your stomach.

*2.* Lift your body up onto your elbows and toes. Try to maintain a straight spine, and do not let your hips or pelvis drop.

*3.* Hold for as long as you can. Williams says aim first for 30 seconds and then keep adding time time until you can hold for a minute.










*Abdominal Bracing*
This exercise strengthens the muscles in the core, specifically your transverse abdominus and abdominal obliques. 
*1.* Lie on your back with knees bent

*2.* Tighten your stomach muscles as your draw your navel down toward the floor.

*3.* Complete three sets of 10 twice a week. 

Slowly advance to five sets of twelve over a few weeks.










*Bridge*
This exercise strengthens the muscles in the back of your legs and core, including the gluteus maximus, quadriceps, transverse abdominus and abdominal obliques.
*1.* Lay on your back.

*2.* Tighten your lower abdominals, squeeze your butt and raise your butt off the floor.

*3.* Lower and repeat.

*4.* Resistance bands around the knees can make this move more difficult. 

You can do this either as a hold exercise, like a plank, or reps by lifting up off the floor, dropping back down, and repeating three sets of 10 twice a week. Slowly advance to five sets of twelve over a few weeks.

*Trail Running*
Another good option for a woman’s body? Trail running. Running on uneven terrain forces the body to stabilize itself by engaging the hips and core, thereby strengthening those regions, said Dr. Williams. The terrain also forces you to take smaller steps, and as we said earlier, a higher stride rate means fewer injuries.
If you’re coming back from an injury, a trail’s soft surface can help you ease back into running. Plus, unless it’s a completely flat and unobstructed trail, you’re going to be forced to slow down to get over rocks, roots, logs and maybe even a guardrail. The shifting terrain can prevent you from going out too hard and too fast too soon.
Can you find fellow women on the trails? While women run more road races than men, the gender stats are flipped for trail races. Sixty percent of trail runners are men and 40 percent are women, according to the American Trail Running Association. But trail races are a much smaller segment of the sport, and they tend to be more laid back than their road counterparts.
*A Note About Fitness Studies*
Exercise studies tend to be conducted on 18- to 25-year-old elite male runners, and because of this, women should be careful about the advice they take. If an article about the female body leads with, “studies have shown that,” read with skepticism. Not every study can be generalized across genders, says Dr. Williams.
Fortunately, this is starting to change, and more studies are including women. It will take some time, however, before the new study results trump the institutional backlog of knowledge built on looking at fast, skinny men.










How to Run Like a Girl


Women really do run the world. For nearly a decade, more women runners have been crossing the finish line than men. In the United States, women make up 57 percent of finishers — that's about 10.7 million women racing. Globally, female race participation is up 25 percent, compared to 7 percent...




www.nytimes.com


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## BansheeRune (Nov 27, 2011)

Nicely presented, cycleicious. 
Some of that is used in my scoliosis treatment and serves well.


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

Chris and I did a 16km trail run in Hockley Valley. There were countless climbs and descents; drizzle turned to snizzle then to snow! We brought lights which helped  Beautiful diverse trail


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## Velobike (Jun 23, 2007)

cyclelicious said:


> Chris and I did a 16km trail run in Hockley Valley. There were countless climbs and descents; drizzle turned to snizzle then to snow! We brought lights which helped  Beautiful diverse trail


That's what I like to see. Out in any weather.

It's amazing how once you're out in it, it doesn't seem as daunting as when you're staring at it from your window.


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## vikb (Sep 7, 2008)

I was planning a MTB ride today, but just wasn't feeling it as I have ridden quite a few days in the last week. So I laced up my running shoes and went out for a 10K instead. That was a good choice. I enjoyed it and I stopped at the grocery store and grabbed a loaf of bread! I just pretended it was a football and the end zone was really far away. 🤓


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## ghood (Dec 26, 2011)

Velobike said:


> That's what I like to see. Out in any weather.
> 
> It's amazing how once you're out in it, it doesn't seem as daunting as when you're staring at it from your window.


Surface conditions are far more determinative to my enjoyment than weather conditions. I actually like running in cold rain. Whereas I’d rather do anything other than ride a bike in cold rain.


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

Ha!


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

*The fastest runners who aren’t runners*

Over the weekend, professional cyclist *Tom Dumoulin,* who has had multiple tour victories, ran an incredible time of 32:38 at his hometown 10K race in Maastricht, Netherlands. His time has inspired us to find the top runners who just happen to be professional athletes in other sports. 










1) 
*Tom Dumoulin (cycling)*
The three-time Tour de France stage winner tops our list of fast athletes. At the Groene Loper 10K, he averaged the speed of 3:16/km, on his way to a second-place finish (17 seconds behind the winner).
He recently injured his wrist during the cycling season and has been running since for endurance training. 

2) 
*Kristin O’Neill (hockey)*
O’Neill is a left-winger on Canada’s women’s hockey team that won gold at the 2021 World Hockey Championships. In 2019, she finished 17th at Toronto’s lululemon Waterfront 10K, clocking a speedy time of 39:31. The Oakville, Ont. native has a background in cross-country running, competing for her high school team St. Ignatius of Loyola for four years.











3) 
*Daniel Sedin (hockey)*
Although his brother *Henrik Sedin* had more points during 17 seasons in the NHL, Daniel has shown that he is the better runner. Daniel ran a 3:11 marathon at the 2019 BMO Vancouver Marathon and has a 10K PB of 37:06, which he ran at Vancouver’s Eastside 10K. In a 2018 interview, Sedin said “Running has always been part of my regime, even while I played in the NHL. I love running – it’s a big part of our training routine in the summertime, and we’ll keep doing that.”

4)
*Scott McTominay (soccer)*
The Manchester United midfielder recently ran 5K in 16:01, which is the fastest time that we found recorded by a professional soccer player. He ran his time in a challenge against his United teammates. McTominay didn’t only smash his teammates by over a minute, but he negatively split the 5K too.









5) 
*Jessie Fleming (Soccer)
T*he young Canadian soccer phenom, who helped win Olympic gold in Tokyo, happens to be an extremely speedy distance runner. Fleming ran high school track and cross country in London, Ont. alongside Canadian steeplechaser Charlotte Prouse. In Grade 9, Fleming won Ontario High School’s cross country championship (OFSAA) and has a 5K personal best time of 18:23, which she ran when she was only 15. She currently plays professionally for Chelsea FC in England’s FA Women’s National League. 

6)
*Lance Armstrong (Cyclist)*
Love him or hate him, he is still a pretty remarkable athlete. The infamous cyclist, who won seven Tour de France titles, then later admitted to cheating, has run some respectable times off the bike. At the 2019 Austin Marathon, he ran negative splits to clock a time of 3:01:34. Armstrong’s PB came at the New York Marathon in 2006, where he ran 2:46 and said after the race that it was the hardest thing he had ever done.










The fastest runners who aren't runners - Canadian Running Magazine


Check out our list of the fastest distance runners playing professionally in other sports




runningmagazine.ca


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## nOOky (May 13, 2008)

I hiked 2.02 miles on my lunch break today with 692 feet of gain, did legs for the first time in 9 months after work, and ran 3.33 miles on the treadmill after to loosen up. Now I can hardly walk lol.


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)




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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)




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## Stewiewin (Dec 17, 2020)

bakerjw said:


> I ride a lot but a recent incident where a carpentry knife met my hand kept me off the bike for around 10 days. Rather than just sit on the trainer with Zwift, I opted to see if I could run a couple of miles. My leg muscles complained a few days later but I've been keeping at it and wondered who else also runs.
> 
> I am still planning on riding the upper 1/4 of the GDMBR route next Summer and want to be sure that my walking/bike pushing legs are as good as they can be.


Used to messed up knees. running sucks 😋 😂


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## Velobike (Jun 23, 2007)

Stewiewin said:


> Used to messed up knees. running sucks 😋 😂


Try running quietly. You land softer.
That's no good if you're the competitive sort though.

Also try running offroad so that your feet are not landing exactly the same way each time.

My knees are fine and I run with very thin shoes.


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## Stewiewin (Dec 17, 2020)

Velobike said:


> Try running quietly. You land softer.
> That's no good if you're the competitive sort though.
> 
> Also try running offroad so that your feet are not landing exactly the same way each time.
> ...


ye thanks my knees are beyond running now 😅


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

*The 7 emotional stages of winter running*

Most of Canada has seen their first snowfall, and this means that winter running has officially begun. While some runners enjoy cold weather running more than others, there are seven inevitable steps that runners go though when venturing into the wild snow-covered streets for their morning miles. 










*Stage 1 – Convincing yourself to get out of bed *
When the alarm goes off, and it’s so dark and cold, actually committing to the morning run can be very hard. In the summer months you’re getting out the door to avoid the rising temperatures, but in the winter, all you want is some sunshine and warmth. Sadly, chances are your run isn’t going to bring you either of those things. So you consider skipping your run, and then you remind yourself that you actually really like running and you’ll be better for getting it done. So you rise. 

*Stage 2 – Layering 







*

Layering is one of the most important aspects of successful winter running. Too many layers, you’re hot, not enough layers, you’re a human popsicle. Almost every runner will check the weather, consider their outfit, put said outfit on, reconsider their outfit, and maybe change once more. Layering is a black art. 

*Stage 3 – Stepping out the door








*

Once you’re stepped out of the warmth of your home, the cold wind will smack you in the face and force you to reconsider your decision. You haven’t gotten sweaty yet, there’s still time to bail on your workout and climb back into your bed. 

*Stage 4 – The first 10 minutes








*

The first 10 minutes of winter running are universally terrible. If you’ve layered properly, chances are you’re going to be pretty cold at the beginning. Remind yourself that this will all be over soon, and that the longer your run, the warmer you’ll be. 

*Stage 5 – This isn’t so bad








*

Now that you’ve warmed up and worked into your run, you’re feeling pretty good. This is why you get out of bed in the morning, you love doing this. At this point you’re feeling like a winter running warrior, and maybe even getting a little cocky. 

*Stage 6 – Body so warm, face so cold 








*

As your run comes to a close, you’re body will feel good, but your face will be colder than ever. Keeping your face warm throughout a run is very difficult but either a buff or face mask can help. Hopefully water isn’t freezing on your face but we can’t guarantee that. 

*Stage 7 – Hot shower, right now








*

Congratulations, you did it. Run complete. And while your run might have been a little uncomfortable at times, at least it didn’t happen on the treadmill. 










The 7 emotional stages of winter running - Canadian Running Magazine


Here are the seven inevitable emotional stages that runners experience while braving the cold




runningmagazine.ca


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## Velobike (Jun 23, 2007)

cyclelicious said:


> *...Stage 4 – The first 10 minutes*
> 
> The first 10 minutes of winter running are universally terrible. If you’ve layered properly, chances are you’re going to be pretty cold at the beginning. Remind yourself that this will all be over soon, and that the longer your run, the warmer you’ll be...


*Stage 4a*

You may feel terrible, but your nose is already running enthusiastically and your gloves are acquiring a layer of snot.


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

*A Beginner’s Guide to Trail Running*


Trail running is freedom — freedom from the distractions of city roads and freedom to explore the beauty of nature and a different style of movement. Trails offer the promise of adventure with their variety and challenge. There is nothing like tucking into the woods and getting lost in the thicket. As John Muir said, “And into the forest I go, to lose my mind and find my soul.”

If this sounds like heaven to you, you aren’t alone. Interest and participation in trail running have grown by an average of 12% per year for a decade with an estimated 20 million trail runners worldwide, according to an August 2021 report from the International Trail Running Association. If you’ve recently started running trails or are curious about the sport, this beginner’s guide is for you. 

*Understanding Trail Running Terrain *
The most obvious difference as you transition from road to trail is that the ground is different! Trails offer the best dirt therapy around, and you will find differences in terrain based on the type of trail, elevation changes, and surface type. Understanding these differences — and the terms used to describe them — can help you select trails that are appropriate for your ability level. 

*TYPES OF TRAILS*
Types of trails range on a continuum from groomed to technical, and from singletrack to wide/road. Groomed trails are smooth with packed dirt or gravel, with limited to no roots, rocks, or exposure. The more a trail moves along the continuum toward technical, the more obstacles you’ll face that add to the challenge, such as roots, varying types of rocks, mud, mountainous exposure, and the like. 

Trails can also be described as fire or land management roads, single track or double track. Any of these types of trails can range along the continuum from groomed to technical. Single-track trails are wide enough for one person to run. Double-track trails are a bit wider, with enough room for about two people side by side. Fire or land management roads (or jeep roads) are open dirt roads that are passable by all-terrain vehicles. Despite the fact that ATVs can traverse, don’t assume they will be groomed! In some cases, while wider than single or double track, these roads can have challenging components, such as rocks and elevation gain. 

*ELEVATION GAIN*
The terms “flat” and “hilly” are often used differently in trail running than in road running. For example, veteran trail runners may refer to a trail as “flat”, but a road runner may consider that same trail as rolling or hilly. 

To give you a sense of this difference, _Ultrarunner _magazine classifies elevation gain as follows: 


Rolling terrain: up to 50 feet per mile (road races might classify this range as hilly to very hilly)
Hilly: 50-150 feet per mile
Very hilly: 150-250 feet per mile
Mountainous: 250+ feet per mile
These ranges can help prepare you for what to expect for races or specific trails.

*SURFACE*
Trail surfaces include dirt, grass, gravel, sand, mud, roots, rocks, and, in many cases, a combination of all of the above. Any of these surfaces can be combined with the previous categories, which makes trail running quite a fun adventure. The more varied the surface, the more technical the terrain becomes, necessitating changes in technique and effort. 

*Trail Running Technique*
A groomed trail likely won’t result in many changes to your run technique, but as you move across that continuum toward increasingly more technical trails, there may be some changes in stride and approach to hills. Generally, trail runners employ a shorter, quicker stride than road runners, which allows them to hop rocks or skip to get over roots. 

*HILLS*
Hills are a key part of the fun and adventure of trail running. Work on quick, short strides for both uphill and downhill running, and use your upper body to assist with stability and drive. The uphill is a particularly invigorating challenge — you really know you are ALIVE as your lungs beat the drum. 

Uphill running requires a strong leg drive and you need to pump your arms to assist with this. On very steep or technical uphill grades, it is often more efficient to power hike. You can control your effort by switching between hiking and running, which allows you to run as soon as the grade lessens or as you crest over the top of the hill. Work on transitioning from running to hiking and from hiking back to running. This will take practice — be patient and have fun with it! 

If you are planning on very hilly or mountainous trail running, practice with poles. If the terrain is a super steep gradient, toe in to get traction rather than hiking with a flat foot or heel first. Use your poles to help with the lift. 

The downhills, while tricky at first, can leave you feeling like you are flying through the woods. Stay relaxed, and don’t lean too far back, as this will force heel striking and increase your risk of injury. Rather, focus on quick steps, using your arms like rudders for balance and steering. More technical downhills may require a stair-stepping motion. To start, go at the speed you feel comfortable with. This will improve with experience. Many trail runners find that downhill running is often more challenging than uphill! 

Given the variability in terrain, it is important to stay alert. Look down the trail several feet in front of you — not straight down at your feet — so you can pick a line and run through it. Rocks and small stumps can trip you up, especially if covered by leaves. 

*Trail Running Training Tips for Beginners*
*MEASURE YOUR EFFORT*
If you are a road runner that is used to training by pace, trail running will open a new opportunity for you. Generally speaking, pace is not a useful metric for trail runners for a few reasons. 

First, we are generally slower on trails for the same effort as compared to the road. The variability of the terrain means that pace will not be a very helpful metric to determine intensity and performance. For example, imagine you are running on a somewhat rocky trail, with undulating terrain. Your usual pace is going to be a heck of a lot harder in those conditions than it might be on a groomed trail or road. 

Second, the pace from your watch is most likely wrong, as GPS signals are notoriously inaccurate on trails. I’ve run right next to training buddies, and at the end, we all come out with different estimates, sometimes by several miles! 

While pace is a finicky friend, you can use your typical training zones for RPE (rating of perceived exertion) and heart rate. Your aerobic HR zone for the road _will_ translate to an aerobic effort on the trail. 

*TRAIN BY DURATION*
Because there can be significant differences in how long a certain mileage takes on different trails (for reasons just explained), I generally recommend training by duration. Estimate time on feet for your ultimate goal event, and train to be prepared for that duration. 

When transitioning from road running, gradually build your trail time. For example, if you regularly run three to four hours per week on the road, start with one of your shorter runs on the trail and build from there. Trail running will leave you sore and tired when you first start, even for a shorter run! Too much too soon can greatly increase your risk of injury. 

*TRAIN FOR YOUR RACE*
In order to prepare for your goal race or trail event, you need to train _specifically. _In addition to hitting duration targets, run on terrain that is specific to your event. Think in terms of the variations discussed in the previous terrain section, including terrain type, elevation, and surface. A note on elevation: make sure you understand the elevation profile and how the climbing is organized. For example, is there one long climb or is there a series of shorter but steeper climbs? 

*DON’T FORGET STRENGTH TRAINING*
Incorporate a regular strength routine into your training plan to include movements that work your body laterally and challenge your overall stability. A BOSU or balance board is a great investment for this purpose. Also, don’t forget your upper body! You will be surprised at how much you use your upper body in trail running. 

*LEARN TO BE SELF-SUFFICIENT*
Bring plenty of water and calories to support the duration of your run. If you don’t have a hydration system, you need to get one. Depending on where and how long you will be running, you should also consider bringing a headlamp, additional clothes for emergency weather changes (which is especially important in the mountains), and some basic first aid. The extra weight is worth it if you get jammed up!

*Trail Running Gear for Beginners*
Some trail running gear basics include: 


Shoes 
Hydration vest/pack
Headlamp
Poles (for very hilly or mountainous trail)
Like all sports, you can add more items to the list, but this will cover the basics for most introductions to trail running. I’m also assuming that you already have basic running gear, such as cold or wet weather clothing, lube, blister care, and the like. If you don’t, add that to your list, too. 

*TRAIL RUNNING SHOES FOR BEGINNERS*
Of the above gear list, shoes are most necessary, so let’s focus on them. If you are planning to run mostly groomed trails, you can very likely get away with your road shoes. But, if you will venture onto trails with technical features that make them slippery, rooty, and rocky, consider a trail-specific pair of shoes. Trail shoes vary from road shoes based on grip/traction, foot protection, and durability.

Trail shoes have two sole features that allow them to have more grip: lugs and a rubber coating to make them more sticky. In some cases, the coating is less durable on pavement, so it is good practice to save your trail shoes for dirt. 

Trail shoes also offer additional protection around the toes so when you inevitably stub your toe on a root or a rock, it doesn’t hurt quite as badly. Some shoes will also offer rock plates, which protect the bottoms of the feet from roots and rocks that might poke into the soles. Trail shoes have differing levels of water protection as well. Lastly, trail shoes use upper materials that provide greater durability to accommodate for the rougher style of running.

There is no one brand that is superior to all others. Your best trail running shoe is based on the trails you’ll be running, the specific stability or support you need as a runner, the width of your foot, and your desired ramp. Your best bet is to visit your local run specialty shop to try on different pairs that match your needs. 

*Trail Running Etiquette*
Trail running provides a unique community, filled with fun and friendly people who want to enjoy the adventure of the great outdoors. As such, it is imperative as trail runners that we protect the lands we are so fortunate to run. 

*LEAVE NO TRACE*
Protecting the land is accomplished by following the leave no trace principles. Some of the key principles include packing out whatever you take with you, traveling only on durable surfaces, and avoiding areas where you may cause further erosion. If you need to pass or are passed on singletrack, do not continue to run off-trail. Respect wildlife by leaving them be. Do not feed wildlife or encourage them to engage with you in any way. If we all act as stewards of the trails, we’ll have the privilege to use them forever!

*RIGHT OF WAY*
Generally speaking, you should yield to horses and uphill runners (when you are going downhill), and, depending on the trail, you may need to yield to mountain bikers. If you need to pass someone, let them know. A simple “on your left” or “is it okay to pass?” will do the trick. Remember to read the signs to know the appropriate etiquette for any given trail. When in doubt, just let the other person pass — good karma is always welcome!

*Trail Running Safety*
We run trails to get away from the hustle and bustle of the world — that is part of their charm! But, trail running also has its risks. Keep your overall safety in mind. Bring a pocket knife, trail map, some basic first aid (falls are very common in trail running!), and a cell phone. However, be forewarned: some of the best trails have no reception, so it’s a good idea to share your plans with someone and to give them an estimate of when you expect to return.

Depending on where you live, you will want to protect against tick-borne illnesses. If you are heading into a heavily wooded area where Lyme ticks are prevalent, be sure to wear tall socks and spray your clothing with strong tick repellent. Check yourself for ticks when you finish. 

*Finding Trails and Trail Races*
There are a variety of resources to help you locate trails and trail races. For races, start with the race calendars that are available on TrailRunnermag.com, Ultrasignup.com, and Ultrarunning.com. Despite the “ultra” in the last two, they include races of all distances. 

If you are looking for trails to run in your area or while traveling, consult the apps Trail Run Project or All Trails. Both have free plans that give you plenty of options to find trails near you. And, once you have your map, you can still see it even if you lose reception. 

Trail running poses different challenges than the road, so be patient and embrace the process of learning a new sport. Enjoy trail running for the unique experience it is. Embrace nature and listen to its sounds. Enjoy the feel of the dirt under your feet.

If you are thinking about taking your trail running to the ultra-distance, click here for an article I wrote previously with some pointers for making the transition to ultrarunning.









A Beginner’s Guide to Trail Running


Ready to make the switch from road to trail? Here's the ultimate guide to trail running for beginners, with tips on terrain, technique, and getting geared up.




www.trainingpeaks.com


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## ddoh (Jan 11, 2017)

Lots of crossover to MTBing.


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)




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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

*The Cold-Weather Running Gear You Need This Winter*

Running in the cold, whether you consider it invigorating or torturous, takes guts—and preparation.

“It makes me feel like a badass,” said Minnesota-based Verna Volker, founder of Native Women Running. “I grew up in the southwest and never thought I would ever run in Minnesota winters, but I am hooked.”

Mild temperatures of 55 to 60 degrees Fahrenheit allow for the most efficient transfer of heat out of the body, wilderness-medicine expert Dr. Richard Ingebretsen told us—which explains why that range often feels so terrific to run in. (Research on the relationship between air temperature and marathon performance, however, has found wider optimum spans.) But as temperatures drop, and as heat loss accelerates, the body can’t compensate fast enough. Dressing strategically can mean the difference between embracing outdoor winter exercise and sticking with the treadmill.



We consulted Volker, Ingebretsen, and five other experts for their tips on dressing for comfort, safety, and—possibly—bragging rights. Layering warm, breathable pieces (in general, no more than three) is key to helping the body regulate heat as temperatures dip. But it’s also possible to overdress even in the coldest of conditions. Choose clothing that vents or that you can easily shed mid-run and then close up or put back on when you’re done, the pros told us.

*Base layer: Stay dry on the inside*
Moisture is one of the easiest ways to lose too much heat, said Ingebretsen. To help pull sweat away from your skin, start with a base layer made of a breathable, quick-drying fabric (we have several good options in our thermal underwear guide). Merino wool, polyester, nylon, and Lycra work well. Cotton does not, since the material absorbs moisture but doesn’t wick it away.

The Icebreaker BodyFitZone Merino 260 Zone Long Sleeve Crewe (women’s, men’s), our favorite base layer for high-output aerobic exercise, is built to offload heat as you work and to preserve it when you’re done. Pieced together with differently weighted fabrics, it’s more protective in places exposed most often to the cold (shoulders) and lighter in areas that give off heat (armpits). Keep in mind that any well-fitting shirt made of a wicking fabric will do; for morning winter runs in New York City, I often wear one of the long-sleeve, technical-fabric T-shirts I’ve accumulated from past races.

*Second layer: Preserve heat*
For a second layer, choose a piece that’s soft, cozy, and insulating. “You want something with loft—a layer that traps heat,” explained Dan Fitzgerald, co-founder and president of running-apparel store Heartbreak Hill Running Company in Boston and Chicago.

The appropriate heft of this second layer depends on the temperature outside. Fitzgerald suggests a fleece item or a half-zip. (I like the New Balance Thermal Half Zip (women’s, men’s), which has textured microfleece on the inside and a slightly relaxed fit.)

If you’re as warm as toast before you run a single step, you might be overdressed.

Don’t overdo it here, though. Your body produces heat as you exercise. If you’re overdressed—particularly in layers that don’t breathe or wick well—you may find yourself damp and chilled by the end of your run. A rule of thumb: If you feel a bit chilly when you step outside and begin to warm up, you’ve most likely layered right. If you’re as warm as toast before you run a single step, you might be overdressed.

*Outer layer: Repel the elements*
To top things off, you need a protective shell, one that keeps the elements from penetrating your loft layer. This can be anything from a light windbreaker to a fully insulated jacket—again, depending on the conditions. In our guide to lightweight windbreakers, we recommend the Arc’teryx Squamish Hoody (women’s, men’s) for its durability, breathability, and extra-warm windproofing. I typically choose an older-model, water-resistant windbreaker, but I also like the Nathan Traverse Jacket, which has a softer, slightly stretchy feel and is water resistant, with back vents that help excess heat escape. (The same company also makes two of our favorite running belts.)

A vest, which keeps your torso warm and your arms free to cool, is another option. Wirecutter senior staff writer Chris Heinonen, an experienced runner who lives in Portland, Oregon, likes the Smartwool Men’s Merino Sport Ultra Light Vest, which he says does well in wind and rain.

*For the rest of your body: Minimize exposure*
Bare skin not only loses heat but is also susceptible to damage from exposure. “In really cold weather you want to make sure you protect all the points that are prone to cold injuries, like ears, nose, cheeks, and fingers,” said Rebecca Stearns, a certified athletic trainer and chief operating officer of the Korey Stringer Institute at the University of Connecticut’s kinesiology department. Verna Volker relies on a neck warmer that covers her face (she likes the Midweight Merino Wool Multifunctional Headwear by Buff). A breathable hat that covers your ears will work for your head.

A simple glove helps keep fingers warm. The merino-wool Smartwool Liner Gloves are sweat-wicking and odor-resistant, have excellent touchscreen sensitivity, and can layer with a mitten in colder temps. For a softer feel (but less touchscreen accuracy), try the wool Arc’teryx Gothic Gloves. We’ve also had good runs with WhitePaws Wind and Water Resistant RunMitts; essentially a thumbless mitten, they keep all digits close (and therefore warm) and feature a slot for a hand warmer if you desire. If you heat up, you can open the top of the mitt to expose your fingers or even push the gloves down to your wrists.

When it comes to your legs, one layer is enough on most cold days, said Dan Fitzgerald. A pair of regular full-length workout leggings will likely offer ample coverage and support. For especially cold days, we like the Sugoi Women’s MidZero Tights for their flattering fit and warmth. Chris Heinonen also likes the Smartwool Merino Sport Fleece Wind Tights, which have a windproof front panel and aren’t too hot.

*For your feet: Consider traction*
Don Kiely, a 28-year resident of interior and northern Alaska and webmaster of Running Club North in Fairbanks, Alaska, has run in temperatures as cold as -49 degrees Fahrenheit and is a fan of waterproof Icebug running shoes, which also have built-in studs for traction. “I wouldn’t survive the winter without them,” he said, noting that their only downside is that they’re a bit stiffer than regular running shoes.

If an all-in-one shoe for ice is a step too far, but slippery terrain is a concern for you, consider a nonslip traction device that you can wear with your regular running shoes. The Kahtoola NANOspikes, our favorite traction device for road running, are lightweight and have 10 tungsten-carbide spikes per cleat that can confidently handle black ice and mixed snow on roadways. The spikes are short and lighter underfoot than the chains or steel spikes used on devices meant for rougher terrain.

If cold feet bother you on the run, consider covering your shoes, said Sarah Ahlers McInerney, executive director of Run Minnesota. She suggests a DIY approach: using duct tape on the tops of your shoes to block wind and water.

*For your safety: Be seen*
Late sunrises and quickly fading daylight can make for dark runs. Our favorite piece of reflective running gear is the Amphipod Xinglet Vest, a pick for its reflectivity and adjustability (we also like that it doesn’t require washing after use, as a reflective shirt would). It’s easy to move in thanks to its spare design, and it’s visible from all angles. If you’re after even more visibility, consider a head lamp: For runners, we recommend the lightweight and comfortable Black Diamond Sprinter 275 with its 275-lumen front light and rear blinker.









The Cold-Weather Running Gear You Need This Winter


Dressing for winter runs takes preparation, but the right strategy (and gear) can help you stay warm, comfortable, and safe when temperatures plunge.




www.nytimes.com


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

We did a 12km trail run. Light dusting of snow, lots of hill climbs


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## BansheeRune (Nov 27, 2011)

I have bikes so I don't need to endure pronation.


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

BansheeRune said:


> I have bikes so I don't need to endure pronation.


I like to mix it up 

I've been running since 2016. (Never ran or owned a pair of running shoes before that) Taking up running, initially began as a form of cardio rehab + recovery following a very very bad dh bike crash (I broke countless bones). So I started very slowly and progressed to short distances; and over time I developed a skill and more stamina. Now I train as a long distance runner and race in marathons (I competed in 2 marathons this year... placing 1st/30 runners in the 50+ age and all genders and 3rd/20 runner all ages and all genders respectively) . Since I started, my cardio and endurance improved immensely with running... doing crossfit also helps too. I also like to mix up road and trail. Both styles have their interests and challenges.

The cross training is good for my body and brain. I have not suffered any injury (or illness) in over 5 years which is a good thing because as we get older it takes longer to recover. Nothing wrong with just riding a bike (I still ride once or twice a week). Overall, I guess I just like to learn new things and experience new frontiers and possibilities.


yesterday's run


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## Velobike (Jun 23, 2007)

cyclelicious said:


> ....Nothing wrong with just riding a bike...


Maybe there is.

I was talking to a woman I know at the weekend. She's 70 and an avid cyclist. She can leave me for dead on climbs.
She had a fall recently and broke her wrist. The X-rays revealed her bones were "like chalk".
Further investigation showed that this was widespread through her body.
She is now doing rehab with weights plus appropriate supplements.

Fundamentally some high impact sport is needed.

I remember once being told that a lot of racing cyclists have bones like birds. Strong in one direction and fragile in another.


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

Velobike said:


> Maybe there is.
> 
> I was talking to a woman I know at the weekend. She's 70 and an avid cyclist. She can leave me for dead on climbs.
> She had a fall recently and broke her wrist. The X-rays revealed her bones were "like chalk".
> ...


You are correct : 









More Than 1 in 4 Young Men and Women Are at Risk of Brittle Bones. Are You?


If all you do is ride, you might want to start crushing some cross-training to keep your bones just as strong as your quads.




www.bicycling.com


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## nOOky (May 13, 2008)

One of the reasons I started running again was to help bone density. I also lift weights etc. of course. Motion is lotion, use it or lose it.


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)




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## BansheeRune (Nov 27, 2011)

cyclicious, that is downright awesome!


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)




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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

Today I tested a pair of waterproof running socks. Dexshell socks are warm, thin and snug... the trails were slushy and my shoes were soaked but my feet stayed dry. These socks rock!











*Gear Up for Cold Weather Running*


Running became the thing to do in 2020 as the pandemic closed gyms across the country. Though indoor fitness options have reopened, a lot of runners are still passing on treadmills and sticking to the open road.
But winter running is different than summer. It’s darker, it’s colder and it can be rougher on your body. Staying warm without getting too hot can be a tricky dance. Here’s what you need to know.
*Think in layers.*
The key for winter running is layers, especially for new runners (or those who are new to running outside in winter). Too hot? Just take a layer off.
Sally Loeffler, the co-owner of the Beyond Running store in Fargo, N.D., recommends a three-layer system.

The first or base layer should be made of a synthetic fiber, merino wool or a synthetic/merino wool blend (the higher percentage of merino wool, the more expensive the item tends to be). Just avoid cotton, especially right next to your skin. “It will be soaking wet and twice its original size after you sweat,” Loeffler said.
The second layer should be something long sleeved that keeps heat close to your body, and the third layer is a shell that protects you from wind, rain or snow, if necessary.

What is cool, cold and really cold will depend on your body and the over all weather picture. Cecily Tynan, the chief meteorologist for 6ABC Action News in Philadelphia who is also a marathoner and Iron Man finisher, said to take both wind and humidity into account when planning what to wear. She also recommends dressing for 10 to 20 degrees warmer than it is outside.
“I often think if I’m not a little bit cold in the beginning of my run, I’m overdressed,” she said.
You can also take a walk first and think about how you’re going to feel after 10 minutes of running in those conditions.

*Don’t forget the accessories.*
Winter running is about more than just covering your upper and lower body. For your head, you can wear a hat or a band that covers your ears. If your fingers are cold, try mittens or mittens over gloves so you can take the mittens off if things warm up.
For shoes, you can buy winter traction devices that go over your sneakers, or put screws in the bottom of them to give you traction on slippery surfaces (you can buy cleats or boot studs made for this purpose, or quarter-inch or half-inch sheet metal screws, which are available at any hardware store; Chase the Summit, a YouTube Channel about trail running, has a great video on how to insert them).
If you decide to try adding screws, Greg Haapala, the race director of Grandma’s Marathon in Duluth, Minn., recommends trying it on old running shoes first, and making sure that the tips of the screws don’t poke through to your foot. “You can either simply wear older shoes as your ‘screw shoes,’ or once you know they will be comfortable for you, remove the screws from the older shoes and attach to your newer ones,” he said.
Haapala wears trail running shoes, which tend to have better traction, when running on snowy streets and sidewalks in the winter. He also wears sunglasses “even if it’s not very sunny, to block the winds and potentially blowing snow,” he said.
Jay Ell Alexander, the owner and chief executive of Black Girls RUN!, a group devoted to getting more African-American women to take up running, carries disposable hand warmers, which are typically sold at drug and hardware stores. “I keep a pack of them in the trunk of my car,” she said.
You’ll still need to hydrate on long runs in the winter. You can carry water in a handheld bottle, but that hand can get cold fast. Instead, consider a running waist belt with slots for water bottles, or a hydration vest. Just make sure that vest is running specific, not one designed for hiking or biking.
*Remember, lunchtime can be for running, too.*
If you’re still working from home, and have flexibility in your work-from-home schedule, winter running doesn’t have to be in the cold, dark morning, or the cold, dark night. Midday runs may be an option — especially since your co-workers can’t tell if you’re sweaty when you get back.

However, if those dark hours are still the best time for you to go, make sure that “you’re lit up like a Christmas tree,” said Loeffler. This is especially important “when the weather isn’t great because most people do not expect to see runners out,” she said. “They’re not looking for you.”
Loeffler said a simple reflective vest “does a world of good,” as long as it’s reflective on front and back. You can also buy light-up belts and sashes, or clip-on lights (those that work on cyclists work just as well on you). She also said that her store has seen a big sales spike in headlamps this year, which double as lighting for the path in front of you.
If you’re traveling to where you’re going to start your run (like to a trailhead), make sure you bring something to wear after, said Tynan. “You warm up very quickly when you run but you cool off really quickly when you stop,” she said. “When the weather does get colder, it’s really important that you have a dry change of clothes with you so you can get out of those wet clothes.”
*Get your body ready.*
A cold day can be a shock, especially if you’re trying to go right from your bed to running. Heather A. Milton, an exercise physiologist with the Running Lab at NYU Langone Sports Performance Center, recommends dynamic stretches like leg swings or lunges before you go. While the science on whether stretching really works is mixed, these kinds of exercise will get your blood pumping and ready to move.
If you’re running in urban or suburban environments on concrete or asphalt, those surfaces will be harder — and possibly frozen — in the winter. Especially if you’re used to running on a treadmill, it could be a shock to the body. Milton said to give your body time to adjust because you’re building up strength, just as you would through a new weight lifting routine. That may mean taking a day off after a long run on frozen concrete. You need to help the structures in your body “grow strong enough to withstand that extra force,” she said.
Your mask — which you should wear while running if you’re around other people — is also a help right now, as it’ll help warm that air up before you breathe it in. Otherwise, if the air is cold, you may feel like you’re working harder to hit a specific pace and as Milton said, feel “a little more tightness in your chest as your airways are trying to respond to the temperature of the air you’re inhaling.”
*Pal up to stay motivated.*
While you don’t want to run with a big group right now, having an accountability partner can keep you going.

“If you do it with someone else, you’re more likely to stay on track or be able to fight through a bad day or saying that it’s just too cold,” said Alexander of Black Girls RUN!. A partner can be “just that motivation to get you past that bad mood.” That partner doesn’t have to be by your side, either. Just having someone to call, text or email can help you both keep going.
You can also set a specific goal for what you want to achieve by running outside. Do you want to get a half-hour or hour of fresh air that day? Or do you want to work your way up to running a specific distance? While most big races have been scratched this year, some smaller events are still happening in person, and virtual races are the biggest trend in running right now. You can do them from anywhere.
Haapala said he also keeps his eyes on what comes after winter running. “In the spring, when you shed the layers, you feel so fast and like such an animal because you trained all winter in heavy layers,” he said. “It’s like losing 10 pounds without even trying.”








Gear Up for Cold Weather Running (Published 2020)


If you’re forgoing the treadmill and want to keep logging miles, here’s what you need to keep in mind.




www.nytimes.com


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

*26 Useful Facts About Running*
A nonexhaustive list










1. It is OK to take breaks while running. Sometimes breaks last a few seconds, and sometimes they last a few years.

2. There are no rules for what constitutes running or minimum required speed. But in the sport of racewalking, one foot is required to be in contact with the ground at all times or the walker is considered to be “running.”

3. There is no requirement that you have to own a couch to do the Couch to 5K program.

4. One hundred percent of the participants in the first marathon died upon completing the event.

5. No matter who you are, there is a very good chance that you can run five kilometers faster than you can run five miles. You might think, “Hell, I’ll just run kilometers from now on, then,” but unfortunately, that’s not how it works.

6. Eliud Kipchoge, who holds the world record for the fastest marathon ever, puts his shoes on one at a time, just like you. Which is nice to think about, but he would also fucking crush you in a marathon.

7. There is no “required clothing” for running. You can wear super-short shorts or take your shirt off in the middle of your run if you want to. The most important thing is that you’re comfortable.

8. Correction: many states and municipalities have laws requiring you to wear a certain amount of clothing in public spaces.

9. You can run in super-cushioned shoes, you can run in very minimalist shoes, and you can run barefoot. Any of these things can change your life.

10. People close to you or people you’ve just met may eventually tire of hearing how your particular footwear changed your life.

11. The top recorded running speed of a human, sprinter Usain Bolt, is 27 miles per hour. The top speed of a running grizzly bear is 35 miles per hour. Data does not yet exist, however, on how fast a human can run while running from a bear.

12. There are no hard-and-fast rules on what you should and should not eat before running; there is only your answer to the question “Have you ever pooped your pants during a run?”

13. If you’ve been running regularly but would like to find someone to tell you that you’re doing it wrong, you can find them on the internet.

14. 13.1 miles is half the distance of a marathon, which is 26.2 miles. When running a marathon, at the 13.1-mile mark, you are halfway. However, at 14 miles, you are also halfway. And at 15 miles, 16 miles, 17 miles, and 18 miles, you are also still only halfway. This continues every mile until mile 25.5, when you are almost finished.

15. It is a commonly held belief that ultrarunning is “not really running.” This is only one interpretation of ultrarunning, and there is some truth in it, as running is only one component of ultrarunning. Other components of ultrarunning include but are not limited to eating snacks, hiking, running with trekking poles, hallucinating, being sad, losing toenails, bleeding, despair, blisters, talking nonsensically, shuffling, and socializing with nice people who live in the forest next to folding tables displaying snack foods.

16. People who hate running and would prefer to avoid it at all costs may refer to running as “cardio.”

17. People who hate running and would prefer to avoid it may refer to running as “running” and do it regularly for decades.

18. The first human usage of treadmills was in early 19th century English prisons. Since then, treadmills have evolved to make it possible for humans to safely watch cable news while running.

19. Lots of longtime runners say they love the simplicity of running because all you need to do it is a pair of shoes.

20. Any real runner knows that in addition to a pair of shoes, you also need a steely resolve and the hard-won psychological tools to continually, day in and day out, drag your procrastinating ass out the door and actually begin running.

21. It is generally acceptable for runners to share usage of the same running path or trail at the same time, giving space to each other when passing.

22. It is generally unacceptable for runners to share usage of the same treadmill at the same time.

23. Many musicians have written songs that mention running in a metaphorical and/or literal sense, such as Iron Maiden's “Run to the Hills,” N.W.A.’s “100 Miles and Runnin’,” Bruce Springsteen’s “Born to Run,” and, more cryptically, the Nirvana song “I Hate Myself and Want to Die,” which is about ultramarathon running.

24. There are many ways to use technology to improve your running practice, such as using an app like Strava, which, with a few clicks, will communicate with satellites in order to tabulate your time and distance covered, or another app like GrubHub, which, with a few clicks, will enable you to have a bag of takeout food appear at your front door at the exact minute you arrive home from your run.

25. Many runners experience what’s called “runner’s high,” a euphoric feeling caused by chemicals released by the body during or after strenuous exercise.

26. Many runners also periodically experience a completely unrelated runner’s high, which is caused by extreme gastrointestinal distress while running and then making it to a restroom _just in time_ to release other chemicals produced by the body.









26 Useful Facts About Running


A nonexhaustive list




www.outsideonline.com


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## ddoh (Jan 11, 2017)

13. If you’ve been running regularly but would like to find someone to tell you that you’re doing it wrong, you can find them on the internet.


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

*The Rise of Daily Run Streakers. No, Not Those Streakers.*










Hellah Sidibe realized that he was a streaker on his 163rd consecutive day of running.
A former professional soccer player, Sidibe had decided five months earlier to try to run 10 minutes a day for two weeks straight. The distance didn’t matter, as long as he ran every day. Once he started on May 15, 2017, he didn’t want to stop
In the 1,692 days since, he’s become one of the sport’s most recognizable, and influential, run streakers, a designation loosely defined as an athlete who runs on consecutive days for a set period of time.

That wasn’t his intention. 

Sidibe, 31, grew up playing soccer barefoot on dirt fields in Mali, where the focus was camaraderie. He played Division I soccer for the University of Massachusetts Amherst, where his head coach had a mantra: “you may not be the best in the country — but you will be the fittest.” Sidibe began associating running with punishment, often a penalty for sloppy play or poor performances. In 2013, Sidibe signed a professional soccer contract with the Kitsap Pumas, a Seattle Sounders affiliate. But as his professional soccer dreams faded, he looked for a new physical challenge that he could pursue while also feeling a sense of purpose. 

He set a running goal: run every day for two weeks, no excuses. “I was afraid of it, and I wanted to hold myself accountable,” Sidibe said in explaining the choice. 
After one week, he was hooked. He told his then-girlfriend, now-fiancée, Alexa Torres, that he could do it for the rest of his life. More than five months into his journey, with Torres’s encouragement, Sidibe began to document it on YouTube. “I didn’t know then that people did run streaking,” Sidibe said. “I just said, ‘I want to run every day for 365 days.’” 

Followers sent him direct messages, and initially, he tried to respond to every one. But eventually he began receiving too many each day to keep up. He still tries to engage as often as he can with followers, when time allows.

“What are you training for?” a commenter asked one day. 
“To be the best, man,” Sidibe replied.

Sidibe ran for 365 days straight and avoided major injuries. He no longer saw running as a punishment; instead, it made him feel almost invincible. He didn’t monitor his pace as he ran loops around his neighborhood. He just ran until he felt satisfied. He ran through snowstorms, his hair frozen. He ran through rain and sleet. He ran past all excuses. Running indoors on a treadmill didn’t count. He had to run outside.

As he continued, he learned that he was far from alone in his quest. 
Streaking has become an increasingly popular phenomenon within running circles. Whether running one mile a day or 20, streakers advocate consistency, and often lean on one another for motivation. 

The Denver-based endurance athlete Robbie Balenger, who has accomplished many firsts in the ultra-feats of running, first heard about a run streaker several years ago, after reading an article in a running magazine. “But that was all I heard of it until Hellah,” Balenger said. “I feel like Hellah has really brought it into the mainstream.”
According to Streak Runners International and the United States Running Streak Association, some people have exceeded five decades of streaking. Atop the active run streak list is Jon Sutherland, 71, who has run for 19,211 consecutive days, or 52.6 years. And (likely) counting. 

Robert Kraft, nicknamed Raven, holds a running streak of 45 years, according to Runner’s World, and doesn’t just run every day — he runs exactly 8 miles each day.
Jason Banks, 42, decided to start a run streak after seeing Sidibe’s social media posts. Banks, a resident of Rochester Hills, Mich., reached out to Sidibe on Instagram, saying he hoped to carry out a run streak of 66 days. Sidibe responded, encouraging Banks and sharing advice.

Those 66 days turned into 731 — and counting. “Hellah is just a ball of sunshine,” Banks said. “He always has a great attitude and he’s very motivational. His mantra is, ‘no matter the circumstances,’ and I have kept that in my head throughout my streak.” 

That wasn’t always easy for Sidibe. In his second streak year, he suffered a posterior shin injury. He’d return home from his run almost in tears. Still, he wouldn’t stop. Instead, he lowered his mileage, hoping that with less pounding, his body would heal. Over time, it did — and he kept going. 

Enduring injury also brought a shift in attitude: Sidibe began to view running as a privilege. As he ran, he thought of the people who couldn’t, whether because of physical limitations, resources or other factors. He began dedicating his runs to various causes. An early race was dedicated to suicide awareness. His next race raised funds for a mother and daughter who were terminally ill. 

After planning for more than a year, Sidibe entered 2021 with his next goal: running across the country — in 85 days or less. He planned to donate the money he raised to Soles4Souls, an organization that distributes shoes and clothing to people in need. His social media following had grown to 260,000 YouTube subscribers and 75,000 Instagram followers (now up to 141,000). Torres had quit her full-time job to manage the filming and posting for each account. 

As he researched his route, Sidibe learned that if successful, he would be the first Black person to run across the entirety of the United States. He admitted that he was nervous beforehand about running through certain areas of the country. Several encounters, including with a white police officer in the Midwest, had left him shaken. 
But he knew that the impact of his potential journey would be worth it. When he was a guest at the Boston Marathon in October, a Black man ran up to him, crying. “I can’t believe that you look like me and are doing this,” the man said. “Seeing someone who looks exactly like me has made me start running.”

On May 24, 84 days and 14 states after beginning his journey in Huntington Beach, Calif., Sidibe crossed the finish line in New York City. A mayoral, firefighter and police escort, along with a large group of runners, accompanied him from Rochelle Park, N.J., where he lives, into Manhattan. 


“Being first is honoring, but what you do after is more important,” Sidibe said of the milestone.​

He has now been streaking for more than four years. “Someone said to me, ‘There’s no way you ran every day for three years,’” Sidibe said, thinking back to a conversation he had a year ago. “My point is: I’m not special. It’s possible, I just decided to be consistent.” 

He realizes that one day, his streak may end. When that happens, he’ll share the conclusion with his followers. But for now, he keeps going.​

“It’s a big word to say, but running is life to me,” Sidibe says. “It’s strange to say that, because life is everything. But running makes me feel like we have tough days in life and we just don’t give up. You push through, and the good part will come.”​

*Sidibe’s advice for aspiring daily runners*

Looking to start a running habit in 2021 — or even a running streak? Sidibe has some advice. 

Identify an attainable goal: Start small to keep going. Sidibe began with 10 minutes a day. He found so much joy in that practice that he kept running. “If you can only jog for one minute and walk for two, do it,” he said. “To me, that is still a runner. If that means 30 seconds on, 30 off, that’s OK.” Here’s our guide to getting started. 

Eliminate any pressure: Go easy on yourself. Sidibe began his streak by running by feel in terms of both pace and distance. Even now, when he has mileage goals (as of his 13-mile run on Dec. 31, he reached his goal of running at least 5,000 miles in 2021), he’s able to take it a day, and a mile, at a time. “I know I have to run 15 miles today, but there’s something in it that’s pressure free,” he said. “That’s my goal. As long as I know I am going out there and trying, that’s pressure free. If I don’t do it, it’s not the end of the world.” 

Do it because you love it: Yes, this one is easier said than done. Just in case you need it … here’s how you can trick yourself into liking running. “If you don’t love it, it won’t last,” Sidibe said







Gmail


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mail.google.com






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## Ptor (Jan 29, 2004)

cyclelicious said:


> *The Rise of Daily Run Streakers. No, Not Those Streakers.*
> 
> 
> ​


I just completed my 6th year as a ”daily run streaker” — 2192 consecutive days, 5983.3 miles covered through those years for an average of 2.7 miles per day. My 2+ miles a day running can be done anytime under any condition — consecutive running day #2193 was done this morning at 2° in 2” of fresh snow on top of snowpack and ice. I can always find 30 minutes in a busy schedule and the dog needs an outing anyway. But I don’t consider myself a “runner”, I’m a cyclist. I find the fitness and health gains from this activity are invaluable and it is the most important thing I do for my cycling outside of actually riding.


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

^ Way to go ptor!!


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

On Jan 1 we did a killer crossfit class in the morning and a 16km trail run in the afternoon. Trails were very icy caused by the freeze-thaw and hikers so the micro spike traction kept us upright 

Great start to 2022


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## nOOky (May 13, 2008)

I'll run later today. It's -11F right now, I'll wait until it gets up to 0F. I have not run yet this year like my running friends all have. I may get out the XC skis later. I like to do a variety of things.


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## vikb (Sep 7, 2008)

I've been doing so much snow riding the last two weeks that come 1 Jan I was feeling burnt out of riding the bike. So I laced up the running shoes for a 12K road/trail/snow run from the house to my local XC trails. It was a fun way to start the year. 🏃‍♀️🏃‍♀️🏃‍♀️🏃‍♀️


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)




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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

Our Winter bike tires are still in the moving container so it may be another week or so before we can ride. So in the meantime ... we run 









That's frost... not grey hair


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)




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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

Still on point with running goals (running a minimum 5km daily plus medium run 8-15km once per week and a long training run 20+km /wk)

I’ve really tried to be careful of what I speak over myself, especially about age. I don’t joke about age or even use the grandma emoji — my body is listening to all of that. I tell myself that “Once you start calling yourself old, you start the clock.” That motivates me and keeps me focused. Don't think about limitations
I'm averaging 50-60km /wk this year (January)


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## Ptor (Jan 29, 2004)

cyclelicious said:


> I’ve really tried to be careful of what I speak over myself, especially about age. I don’t joke about age or even use the grandma emoji — my body is listening to all of that. I tell myself that “Once you start calling yourself old, you start the clock.” That motivates me and keeps me focused. Don't think about limitations


I’ve been calling myself “old” for years, but that largely comes from working at a University where there’s a continual resupply of young folks spilling in the doors — so the label has largely lost all meaning to me. And most of my riding partners over the years have been students as contemporary colleagues largely fit the image of “fossilized professors”. I’ve not used my relatively advanced age as an excuse, but rather as a means to psych out the youngsters — “He’s 40 years older than me and kicking my ass up this climb?!”. Anyway, we all approach it differently and I’m certainly impressed with the mileage you’re knocking off on foot. Despite my 6+years of daily running, my feet and ankles can’t handle that mileage (and wouldn’t have at any age). Strava tells me that over the last 4 weeks I’ve averaged 39km/week running, 80km/week skate skiing, and 55km/week fat biking on the snow. Yes, I’m retired 😁.


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

Gyms have been closed due to Omicron and pandemic so we've been running and riding more and doing home gym workouts. Gyms will open again Jan 31. In the meantime Rocket the cat coach is leading my workout 
5km run. Then 4rds 2 Turkish get ups, 5 thrusters, 10 push ups, 15 sit ups , 20 weighted air squats


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## nOOky (May 13, 2008)

I got a new running headlamp last week, the Fenix HM65R-T and holy cow is it bright. Like overkill for running, it would work for night mountain biking. Of course it can just be set on a lower setting, but if anyone is in the market, it rocks.

I needed a new one as I have to have two on hand for an upcoming race in August, a 90 miler with 29,800 feet of gain trail race. Everesting on foot, it's hard enough on a bike!


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)




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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)




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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)




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## BansheeRune (Nov 27, 2011)

cyclelicious, that last part is what I am trying to avoid!


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## BansheeRune (Nov 27, 2011)

cyclelicious said:


> View attachment 1968521



Because I cannot flyyyyy!


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## Wheelspeed (Jan 12, 2006)

OMG, running is so 1800's. Go make some money and support the economy by buying something so you don't have to run anymore. The only time I needed to run lately was between gates at the airport and I got shin-splints in about 100 feet but screw it, I choose longer layovers now.


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## Velobike (Jun 23, 2007)

cyclelicious said:


> View attachment 1969127


The marathon distance is only long and painful if you're racing.
Run for fun and your own pace, and you don't have to ask *Why?* 
Racing sucks.

(Mind you what I do these days may be regarded by onlookers as speedy shuffling  )


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## chazpat (Sep 23, 2006)

I mentioned in another thread, SSS's _Love where you live - favorite specific trails Picture Thread_ that my nearby trail has mill ruins but they are not visible from the mtb trails and it's been awhile since I have visited them as it's an out and back and I usually run the trails to make a loop. So I decided I would _Run to the Ruins_ (what I named my run on Strava) today. 

There are actually two ruins, one on each side of the creek, with a few smaller ones scattered between.

These are just off the road, you can see the bridge over the creek in the background of the first one:





















This is further downstream on the opposite side. I imagine a lot of people don't know these exist:


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

^amazing . I love finding and exploring stuff like this!


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## Velobike (Jun 23, 2007)

cyclelicious said:


> ^amazing . I love finding and exploring stuff like this!


You'd love the Scottish Highlands then. Ruined castles all over the place. There's at least 8 within a 5 mile radius of me, plus the remains of Iron Age fortifications.
There's one 200 yards away, the remains of MacBeth's castle less than a mile, plus several henges.


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

Funday 15.6 km trail run. Awesome snow packed single tract trails. -2c but felt a little colder. There were a few hikers with snowshoes and walking poles but it wasn't necessary. We managed fine without microspikes and kept a great pace. Stopping briefly for a few photos. Spotted a couple of woodpeckers but both were too far away tapping for bugs to snap a pic. We didn't see the lost doggy... hope he's ok.


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

"I'm feeling pretty good today, let's speed things up a bit" Chris led the way and kept a steady quick pace on this Superb owl 15km trail run in Hockley Valley. -14c/-20 windchill. The micro spikes helped on icy sections and countless hill climbs and descents. We even got some big air and crushed another training day


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## Skispiggy (12 mo ago)

Yes yes yes. I started running again (failed at every attempt over the last 30 years). Been doing it for two years straight now. It's just the best. I simply did not have enough time on the mountain bike to get fit enough for the mountain bike. 
Because MTB for me means an hour and 10 min return drive, just to get to the MTB trails. Have never had enough time to do enough riding to get properly fit.

And now I love running. So it's just the best thing on the world. Running, great. Fit for MTB, great.


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

*Focus on Building Your Mental Strength.*

*On hitting the wall*

*Q* I’ve never struggled with motivation and I’ve hit some sort of wall. Any advice? 

*A* The Boston Marathon is a beast of a race to train for given that the build up of training happens in the winter, often alongside dreary and cold weather. The season is a great teacher for all of us in the endurance sports world, offering us the lesson of leaning into commitment to put in the miles even when the motivation isn’t there.

On a psychological level, this all comes down to the recognition that mood follows action. We feel better once we’ve completed the day’s training. You don’t have to feel excited or enthusiastic about the process. Give yourself permission that it’s OK for you not to have those feelings right now. 

Focus on discipline over emotion. Trust that come April, when you’re lining up for the race, that all that enthusiasm you weren’t feeling in the doldrums of February will be there, and you’ll be grateful for the time you put into training. 

*On getting out the door*
*Q *My question is simple: How do I get up in the morning? How do you take the first step out of bed?

*A* I often refer to the first minute of the morning alarm as the “hero’s minute.” Doing so will help you adopt a challenge mind-set for how critically important these 60 seconds are in your decision making. 

The early morning alarm pits us directly between a state of comfort and the importance of achieving longer-term goals. When we are warm, comfortable and tired, we may have a quick mental screen calculating just how much work it would take to gather all our gear, find our shoes, figure out our route, determine our training plan for the day and get out the door. When this seems even remotely daunting, we are less likely to push ourselves up and out of bed. 

Both mental and physical reminders will be helpful to get you out. Part of this process involves battling against initiation energy, which translates to the amount of perceived time and energy it will take to begin a task.

To win the hero’s minute, try to go to bed with your running clothes already on knowing that you will need to engage in a challenge mind-set when the alarm sounds. With your running clothes already on, you’ll have a physical sensation on your skin that will help ease the transition, providing a reminder of the importance of your goals, and combating against that initiation energy. Make sure everything else you need is ready and your route is planned to help this process. 

*On breaking a running habit*
Q I’ve gotten into the habit of taking breaks throughout a run when I don’t need them. How do I get out of that habit? 

A It will be helpful to break down the three components of every habit in this situation: the precursor, the behavior itself and the consequence. I would dive a bit more into understanding the precursors to the behavior itself. 

What are the exact thoughts, messages and narrative that enter your mind telling you to slow down or take a break? 
Bring awareness to those thoughts and develop a pre-run mental plan with a programmed set of thoughts ready to combat those messages. This could be something along the lines of, “Actually, I don’t need to slow down or stop, and I’m not intending to. Onward, let’s go!” 

Pair this positive, forward-momentum self talk with a deep commitment to running continuously. Once you’ve repeated this process a handful of times, the connection between self talk and deep commitment will strengthen, and you’ll begin to establish a new habit. And before long you’ll be wondering why you ever stopped in the first place. 

*On staring down a goal*

How do you build confidence in yourself in your present state when you are far away from your goal?​

Setting sights on massive, long-shot goals can be equally exhilarating and daunting. The most compelling place to start is with the ideas surrounding self efficacy, a term and theory coined by Albert Bandura, a Canadian American psychologist, that gets to the heart of what we believe we are capable of achieving. 
The most important factor in developing our self-efficacy beliefs is our own personal experiences. For athletes, we are presented with the opportunity to sharpen our self belief in relation to our day’s training every day. 
I often refer to this process as “how do you put your run away?” It may seem silly, but we often don’t think too much about putting our workouts away mentally. We typically just hit stop on our watch or treadmill and go on to the next part of our day. But taking a minute to mentally catalog what you just completed, and importantly how you completed the work, is a vital step to developing longer term self efficacy. 
Take a minute to review your workout and remind yourself not only of the miles and the pace, but the inner athlete you worked to develop in the process. Brick by brick, day by day, self belief for ultimate accomplishments is forged in those daily achievements. 

*Roadblocks: Where do I start?*

As runners, many of us train to become physically stronger. Maybe you’d like to get a bit faster, or be able to run longer. But how do you strengthen mental muscles? 
One of my favorite sayings is, ‘The mind is a highly trainable skill,’” Ross said. “We need to think about sport psychology mental skills as being developed in the same fashion that we train the body.” 





__





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A


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## nOOky (May 13, 2008)

We have had some great packed snow conditions lately so I have been running the mountain bike trail with Exospikes on, and riding it also. My fat bike tires are the only tracks except for one other guy I know. I took the wife today, and she was having fun running down the steep trail once she figured out the spikes would keep her from wiping out.


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

Throwback Thursday

*The Quickest Route*
The course for the 1904 Olympic Games marathon in St. Louis, Missouri was declared "the most difficult a human being was ever asked to run."










With a collection of traffic, steep hills, and wild dogs running free, the participants also had to battle high temperatures and humidity. After completing nearly half of the race, American runner Fred Lorz decided to rest and in the process hopped in a car, with hopes of going undetected to finish the remainder of the race. When the car broke down, Lorz finished the rest of the race on foot, with little surprise, winning. When his cheating ways were discovered, he would be stripped of his victory.


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## Velobike (Jun 23, 2007)

cyclelicious said:


> ...Q I’ve gotten into the habit of taking breaks throughout a run when I don’t need them. How do I get out of that habit?...


Don't get out of the habit. Enjoy them. Run for the simple pleasure of running. Stop for the simple pleasure of stopping. 
Racing sucks the joy out of running.


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## ElTortoise (Jul 27, 2015)

Skispiggy said:


> Yes yes yes. I started running again (failed at every attempt over the last 30 years). Been doing it for two years straight now. It's just the best. I simply did not have enough time on the mountain bike to get fit enough for the mountain bike.
> Because MTB for me means an hour and 10 min return drive, just to get to the MTB trails. Have never had enough time to do enough riding to get properly fit.
> 
> And now I love running. So it's just the best thing on the world. Running, great. Fit for MTB, great.


Two years now of trail running for me. It started from working remote during the pandemic. Between being able to start work earlier plus gaining well over an hour a day not having to commute, I always had at least an hour of daylight to get in a run after work. I still MTB on the weekends and I've noticed my riding pace has improved and I'm doing better on the hill climbs. It really does complement riding.


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## DrDon (Sep 25, 2004)

So I’m thinking about trail running again. I have a meniscal tear in one knee which ended my running. I also have plantar fasciitis. Will try a walk/jog at first. I’ve used a motion control shoe in the past with good results but can’t find the one I want in stock. For now I’m going to use the trail runners I use for hiking. 


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Pro


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)




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## Velobike (Jun 23, 2007)

oops wrong thread


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## Velobike (Jun 23, 2007)

oops wrong thread again


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

*Running resolutions: Your injury questions, answered*
*On overuse injuries*
I keep getting shin splints or stress fractures. What am I doing wrong? 

Shin splints and stress fractures happen when an activity has surpassed the load capacity of the bone. This can happen for various reasons, including nutritional deficiencies, lack of strength or flexibility, or poor biomechanics. That said, I find the most common reasons people develop shin splints are errors in programming their training.
Make sure you are gradually ramping up mileage without sudden changes in speed or distance. Also, it may be worthwhile to have an expert check out your running mechanics to see if you demonstrate high loading patterns like a pronounced heel strike 
A simple modification you can make is to turn over your feet faster or increase your running cadence to around 180 steps per minute. That change can reduce loading impact while changing very little regarding how you run. 

*On cross-training*
Everyone talks about the importance of cross-training. But what kind of non-running training do you recommend? Roller skating? Biking? Elliptical? Swimming?

There have been studies that show transfers in aerobic capacity between cycling, swimming and running, which are great forms of aerobic cross-training. But not all cross-training is equal! If you want to complement your running, I’d argue the most important form to include is actually strength training. 
Dead lifting, squatting and single-leg strengthening are great ways to improve running performance and reduce risk of injuries. 
There’s also a fair amount of research on how plyometric work can improve running economy, so incorporating the occasional box jump or jump squats into your program can be valuable, too. 

*On upper body injuries*
What about upper body injuries, ones that may affect how I swing my arms while running? Can I run through a shoulder or arm injury? 

Our shoulders are important in powering the arm drive in running. When it’s done efficiently, that arm drive can maintain tempo and reduce the overall energy cost of running 
If the shoulder or arm pain when running is less than a 3 on a 0-to-10 pain scale, and that pain usually dissipates while running, you’re likely safe to keep going. If the pain is above a three or if the pain increases while running, I’d recommend holding off as to not worsen the injury. 
Regardless, it’s worthwhile seeking help from a medical professional to diagnose your shoulder pain and manage symptoms. 

*On posture*
I have bad form when I run, which leads to back pain. Are there any exercises you recommend to improve running form? 

There are many reasons an athlete may develop back pain while running. It could be a lack of hip extension, decreased core strength or hip weakness, among other things. A thorough running analysis can be really helpful in determining why back pain may be provoked during running. 
Generally, it can be helpful to strengthen your core with isometric exercises like a Pallof press or plank variations. I’d also focus on ensuring your glutes are strong and activated to push your hip into extension when you run. 
If runners aren’t able to adequately drive their hip back into extension, they can put undue stress on the low back and develop pain. 

*On returning to running*
What’s your advice on returning to running, whether it’s after a short break or years since I last ran? 
A gradual and well-planned program is critical when returning to running after a long hiatus or injury. Generally speaking, you want to ensure you’re ramping up distance first versus any other variables like speed or incline 
Once you can run at a distance that you were comfortable with before, you can begin to increase your pace. 

A good rule of thumb is to pick one run a week and ramp up that run’s distance by 5 percent of the total week’s volume. For example, let’s say you run 5 kilometers three times a week, making your weekly distance 15 kilometers. Add 5 percent of 15 kilometers to one of your weekly runs, so do two 5-kilometer runs and one 5.75-kilometer run​
Repeat that increase every week until you reach your desired long-run distance. 
If this seems tricky, it may be worthwhile to consult a professional like a physical therapist who can guide you through navigating pain and running post-injury










Sports


Find breaking news, features and analysis on the NFL, NBA, MLB, golf, tennis, soccer, NCAA, NHL, World Series, Super Bowl, Olympics, World Cup and more.




www.nytimes.com






​


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## nOOky (May 13, 2008)

I tend to sidewind when I am running, usually after 50 miles or more. I've read it's a core muscle imbalance, I try everything to minimize it. Thankfully it's less than 6 times a year that I run over 50 miles, but when I do it's annoying.


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)




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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)




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## Stonerider (Feb 25, 2008)

stretch after the jog, not before.


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)




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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)




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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

Kicking off spring equinox with a 30km run! It was a mix of 65% road (dirty/gritty) and 35% trail (icy/slushy/muddy). Started with morning frost and seeing Chris launch his first ride of the season on his enduro bike. On return, Chris joined me on his mtb for my last 5km. And in between I saw water fowl at Island Lake; as the temps of the day rose I spotted runners in shorts, and discarded clothing; I noticed an urbanite living off the grid. Despite all the distractions, my finish time was lit! I'm currently in 10/46 overall runners and 7/30 place for overall females for this virtual race


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

This may interest my Canadian running friends

*Five beginner-friendly ultras for trail runners looking to take the next step








*


Since 1911, folks have been strapping in for 50 kilometre-plus running races dubbed ultras and now you’re ready for your first one. What took you so long? But first thing first, newbie ultrarunners might not be ready for the Barkley Marathons, where there were no finishers again this year. Since you’re just starting out, a quick tip is to avoid anything with the word “Death,” “Diablo,” “Dizzy” or “Defeat” in the name. Not that they’re not amazing races, just not quite as beginner-friendly as one might like for a first attempt.

Here are five recommended Canadian ultra trail races that are suitable, and still extremely difficult, for those ready for their first ultras.

*XTERRA Conquer the Crater*
In Kivi Park, Sudbury, Ontario, run for a cause to support Northern Cancer Foundation's Miles Against Cancer Fund. This newly minted 63K race over gorgeous Northern Ontario terrain is held on July 24, on a weekend when there is also an XTERRA triathlon as well as a 21K, 10K, and 5K option for less ultra-minded associates.

Details here.

*The Foxtail Hundred*
You’re running for a belt buckle prize at the Foxtail Hundred — seriously, finishers get a really cool belt buckle AND a medal (for those who complete the 100-mile race). There’s also some other great swag for early registrants for this Dundas, Ont. race. There’s a 50K, 100K, and 100-mile option, so start wherever you’re comfortable. This is a fast race over lovingly groomed trails in the Dundas Valley Conservation Area.

Details here.

*The Beaver Flat 50*
Ready for a surprise? Put 2,300 metres of elevation and Saskatchewan together — you’ve got the Beaver Flat 50 kilometre ultra set in beautiful Saskatchewan Landing Provincial Park. Cutting off at 10 hours, this September race will challenge you and surprise you with its verticality and level of difficulty and you'll walk, or maybe hobble, away swearing you thought this prairie province was flat. Oh, and did we mention the knock-knock joke aid station. Wonderful.

Details here.









*Slay The Dragon*
Held on June 25 in British Columbia's beautiful Okanagan Valley, Slay the Dragon is a trail race with options of 13K, 25K, as well as a 50K trail ultra. This course, held at Silver Star ski resort, definitely has some vertical, and some technical terrain, but there is also plenty of cruisy trails and an emphasis on fun and safety with a well-marked course, many aid stations and volunteers ready to assist.

Details here.

*Blackfoot Ultra*
Located just east of Edmonton in a gem of a green space called the Cooking Lake Blackfoot Provincial Recreation area, the Blackfoot Ultra scheduled for May 29 features a slew of distances starting at 50K and going up to 100K. Plus, there's an out-and-back canine ultra for, and we quote, "the canine runners attached to their human pets." You guys! So cute.

Details here.

*BONUS: Introducing the Fiddle 50*
Fiddle music, anyone? We can’t really “recommend” this one, since it’s brand new, but
this June run circles around epic fiddle music on a fast and flat 1 kilometre race loop through Shelbourne, Ont. With a 50K, 80K, and 100K competitor field, plus a 100-mile race and a relay, the options and music make this the perfect race to kick off a new ultramarathon hobby.

Details here.

I'm actually interested in the Fiddle 50 because : 1) It's close to where I live 2) It's 2 days after my birthday and 3) there are many race options: 50km, 50mile (80km), 100km and 100 mile (160km)

It looks tedious (1km loops) and I'm not a fan of fiddles but what the heck!










Five beginner-friendly ultras for trail runners looking to take the next step


Since 1911, folks have been strapping in for 50 kilometre-plus running races dubbed ultras and now you’re ready for your first one.




getouttheremag.com


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## nOOky (May 13, 2008)

Not a fan of loop races, especially that short of a loop. But they are handy if you don't want to carry anything in your hands and you can stop any time almost.


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

Thank you nOOky! I was wondering about that too. I haven't committed to anything yet


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

I can relate to this for running, riding and crossfit!


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)




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## guidodg (Mar 2, 2004)




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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

^Epic pic!


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)




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## nOOky (May 13, 2008)

In 10 days we'll be doing R2R2R for the first time. Looking forward to a vacation, but not spending that much time with the wife


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## slohr (May 22, 2008)

Run off and on for over 40 years. Always seem to get hurt. Decided to adopt the Phil Maffetone method of training, and what an insight that turned out to be. Works for cycling as well. You have to swallow and pride and ego, and dial it back. Only problem is I still went into running too hard and blew up my calves. Hoping to get that going 2x a week. It really helps when time is a problem.


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

10km in 1:14 at 93! I have my work cut out for me... keep training!


*He did it again. 93-year-old runner Canio Polosa of London, Ont., secures 3 more Canadian records*









Retired doctor, 93-year-old Canio Polosa was hoping to finish Saturday's 10K race in London, Ont., in an hour and 20 minutes. He'd been training all winter and had already secured a 5K Canadian Masters Athletics record last fall.

Turns out Polosa is even faster than he thought. He finished the Springbank Sprint 10K in 1:14:04. 

How does he do it? 

"I just keep working, doing something that I think helps," said a soft-spoken Polosa at the end of the race.

"It was so much better than he expected," said his smiling wife, Lynne Weaver, at the finish line. "I didn't know what to expect and it's fabulous. It's really exciting." 

Polosa started running at the age of 60 but was forced to give it up two decades later because his knees were giving him trouble. Miraculously, Polosa rebounded in his 90s after his wife got him knee braces, and now Polosa is breaking Canadian records.

He actually snagged three new Canadian running bests on the weekend.

The course was certified to capture Polosa's time at the 8K and 5 mile marks too; he easily beat the 8K time and he's the first in his age category to log times for the 5 mile and 10K distances.

"Three in one race, at least that's efficient," Weaver joked.










"I'm over the moon," said Polosa's coach Sherry Watts. "I think he's been training really well all winter, and he's just a very determined person. I think having Lynne behind him probably helps a lot too." 

"I'm going to feed him like crazy because he's burned off huge calories and as you can see he can't afford to burn off too many calories," said Weaver of her husband who stands just 5'6" and weighs 113 pounds.

"And he'll probably have a power nap," she said. "He's kind of like a puppy. They run like mad and then they eat and go to sleep. He's sort of like that." 

Polosa says maybe he'll run a longer race next time.

"I'm happy to be alive," he said.













https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/london/he-did-it-again-93-year-old-runner-canio-polosa-of-london-ont-secures-3-more-canadian-records-1.6407361?fbclid=IwAR3ir1YG1WcnmQGIGq6dTYU9bft92huUaGy_YfZAPCZVNdtwufMwp2sVgX8


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)




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## nOOky (May 13, 2008)

The 93 year old is amazing. I'm 53 and I feel beat and about ready to hang up my running shoes lol


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## nOOky (May 13, 2008)

Flying out Saturday to run the Grand Canyon R2R2R on my 54th b-day Monday. It's only about 48 miles or so and somewhere over 10,000 feet of gain. Maybe I shoud run another few miles to hit 54?


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

nOOky said:


> Flying out Saturday to run the Grand Canyon R2R2R on my 54th b-day Monday. It's only about 48 miles or so and somewhere over 10,000 feet of gain. Maybe I shoud run another few miles to hit 54?


Dig deep. Stay strong.


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

*How Running Like an Animal Makes Us Human | Dr. Jason Karp | TEDxRexburg*


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## nOOky (May 13, 2008)

Very interesting lecture. Too bad more people can't listen or don't want to.


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

*Trail running after 50: “I’m not an age”*
*Karen Craigie began trail running when she was 59 years old, and her adventures are just getting started*










*Karen Craigie,* 68, had always played soccer. But she considered trail running a different beast. It wasn’t until she finished her first 15K trail race that things began to click. Once the switch went off, there was no turning back. A retired nurse, Craigie was hooked on exploring trails over bigger and bigger distances. From there, she began tackling 20K to 50K adventures in the mountains and on the trails, and beyond.










*The beginning*
It all began when Craigie was 59 years old. She signed up for a trail running clinic in North Vancouver, and three months later she finished her first 15K trail race, The Dirty Duo. Motivated by her partner Linda, who is 11 years younger, Craigie never knew what the trails would offer. She was amazed at what it did for her mind, body, and spirit. Despite living in North Vancouver, it wasn’t until she began participating in trail running clinics that she started exploring the trails in her backyard.

Craigie and Linda decided to sign up for the next clinic to train for a 25K trail race. Nowadays, her favourite distance is 50K. “What I love most about trail running though, are the adventure runs. There is no stress or pressure about meeting cutoff times and one can just really enjoy the scenery.”










*Next steps*
Craigie has always had the mental toughness to get through tough times on the trail. But as her running goals continued to grow, she hired a coach. “When I retired, my goals got loftier, so I decided I needed a coach. *Gary Robbins* kindly agreed without hesitation. I completely attribute my successes to having two great coaches,” she says. Robbins and *Eric Carter* continue to coach her to this day.


*Running resume*
Just as Craigie is not defined by her age, the distances she loves have no limits. Her ultrarunning and trail running resume is stacked for someone of any age. Once she toes the line, there’s no turning back. She has completed every race she’s started and has yet to come in DFL. “I usually win my age group. However, at times, I am the only one in their 60s.”

So far, Craigie has raced the notorious Knee Knacker 48K race twice, Mount Hood 50K, Sun Mountain 50K, The Golden Ultra 60K, Survival of the Fittest 35K, Squamish 50K, WAM 55K, and over seven races 23-25K in distance. In 2014 she did the Vancouver BMO Marathon, and was reminded how much she truly loves the trail










In October 2015, Craigie ran across the Grand Canyon with friends. They found themselves under the desert stars in the middle of the night in the canyon, which was a definite highlight. In July 2018, she created her own adventure run in Ireland. Craigie and friends ran 208K over seven days. Each day ranged from 20-42K covering north, west, and southeast coasts. Next year, she plans on running somewhere in the Alps, continuing to abide by the notion she is “not an age.” 









Trail running after 50: "I'm not an age" - Canadian Running Magazine


Karen Craigie began trail running when she was 59 years old, and her adventures are just getting started




runningmagazine.ca


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

*Nike Says All Its Running Shoes Will Be Electric by 2025








*

Nike intends to make its entire line of running shoes electric by 2025, Dumb Runner has learned—a move intended to address climate change and sure to prompt a similar shift among its competitors.

“The climate is changing—both on a literal level and a figurative one—and Nike, as an innovator and industry leader, has a duty to step up,” reads a recent internal memo obtained by Dumb Runner. “Going electric is our next logical step.”

The memo includes three photographs of electric shoe prototypes, which outwardly appear to be normal Nike running shoes with the notable exception of a charging port in the heel.

The electric shoes are expected to have a range of up to 100 miles on a single charge, making them suitable for all but the longest runs and races; traditional shoes can go twice that far.

The memo alludes to several “challenges” the company will need to overcome, including a scarcity of electric shoe charging stations nationwide and what it describes as “isolated incidents” of batteries overheating and exploding.

“We are confident that we can address these issues and any others that arise,” the memo reads. “We are equally confident that, by [the fourth quarter of] 2025, runners across the U.S. will have embraced Nike’s electric shoes while other shoe brands scramble to catch up.”

A call to Nike for comment did not go through, because apparently Nike has blocked Dumb Runner’s number.









Nike Says All Its Running Shoes Will Be Electric by 2025 — Mark Remy's DumbRunner.com


Other brands expected to follow suit.




dumbrunner.com


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)




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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

We did a 14km trail run


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## nOOky (May 13, 2008)

The wife and I did R2R2R for my 54th b-day. I wrote a short memoir for myself in case I want to do it again, which I do.

4-11-2022 R2R2R 54th birthday run/hike.

April 11th was on a Monday this year, a good day of the week to be hiking in the Grand Canyon if you want smaller crowds on the trails. Mid April is also better than the summer season, which for some reason is supposed to be very busy despite the summer heat.

The wife and I flew into Phoenix on Saturday night and got in very late. We stayed at a hotel there, then drove to the Grand Canyon village area Sunday morning. It was about a 3 ½ hour drive to the Yavapai lodge where we stayed for two nights. We got our room, went to dinner with a couple we know named Mike and Janet, and went back to our room to rest and get ready for the R2R2R the next day.

The alarm was set for 4:00 am for a 5:00 am start. Mike was picking us up as Janet was also running which was handy. After a breakfast of a Danish and some diet Dew and some preparation we caught a ride from Mike to the main road leading to the start of the South Kaibab trailhead. It was a short road run from being dropped off on the road to the trailhead, then we went down from there. It was about 33F and windy. I wore shorts and a compression tee shirt with a wind jacket. I put on gloves, but they came off after a few miles.

After dropping off the top and heading down, the wind became less of a factor. We had headlamps on, but they were only needed for a short while. We started running at about 5:09 am, which from my research is a bit later than ideal. We ended up catching the mule train that was going down, but they stopped and were gracious enough to let us pass. My wife being a bit slower downhill than I, it seemed like the mules were keeping up with us, so the pace began to quicken as we did not want to play leapfrog with them, we wanted to stay ahead and keep out of their way. We did manage to keep ahead of them, but I swear those mules are very relentless in their pacing.

Janet took off faster than us, I could gradually see her light going down the switchbacks gaining on us. I let her go, I was here to stay with my wife, not race. We got to the bottom soon enough. South Kaibab is a fairly easy trail, but the relentless water breaks get kind of old to trot over after a while. I stopped a couple of times to take pictures as the sun rose. At the bottom you cross the Colorado river bridge and make your way along the bottom until you get to Phantom ranch, which is a campsite with amenities at the bottom of the canyon. Everything there is brought in and brought out by mule teams that go up and down the trail regularly.

We wound our way along the bottom, along Bright Angel creek as South Kaibab becomes North Kaibab trail at the bottom. Around 11 miles in, the wife told me I should go ahead as it was an out and back, and I wanted to go faster. I took off somewhat faster. The trail along the creek was actually kind of loud in places as the water roared downhill past. I remember thinking how noisy it was, with the water and the wind constantly blowing. There was actually a wind advisory, with sustained winds of 30-40 mph and gusts expected up to 65 mph.

So I trotted along, the trail meandering up and down. Past Ribbon creek falls, which I did not stop at, past Cottonwood campground, where there was no water turned on yet, to Manzanita creek station where I filled my running pack and my two soft flasks with water. The water was not very good, having been treated, but Tailwind covered up the taste. As I was turning into the ranger’s yard I saw Janet going up the hill, I was surprised I was that close to her. I think it took me over 10 minutes to replenish before I turned up the trail again. I got my running poles out here for the big climb ahead.

At that point the trail started to trend slightly more upward as it made its way to the north rim. There were switchbacks, Roaring Springs, and I started to see other runners coming down from the north rim that were before me. Only runners were on the trails here, it’s hard to get here as the north rim road is closed. The trail followed the side of a canyon going up, and crossed over on a bridge to the other side. From there it was just switchbacks up to Coconino overlook, then the top shortly after. There was a young woman sitting at the top waiting for another runner to meet her at the top. I had passed that woman, she was looking pretty tired already. I talked to her for a few minutes as I ate a gel and drank water, then I turned back down. It was 48 degrees there, and I was getting cold and didn’t want to put my jacket on. There was a lot of snow there still on top, but thankfully nothing on the trail that could not be stepped over.

I actually ran down at a decent pace. I stowed my hiking poles away after using them on the way up, and one rubbed my back annoyingly, but I left it alone. I didn’t want to ruin my mojo. I stopped to fill up at Manzanita again. It had been about 22.3 miles from the start to the top of the north rim. I made it there in just under 7 hours. I finally caught my wife a few miles from Phantom ranch, and I ended staying with her the rest of the way. She had almost made it to the top, but decided to turn around early.

We sort of fast hiked and trotted until we got to Phantom ranch right before they closed at 4:00 pm, and we ordered lemonade and a bag of chips. The wife sat down to eat and drink, and that ended up being a mistake. Despite only stopping for about 10 minutes or so, she got up stiff-legged. It took many miles before she could move at a decent pace again.

We took off and crossed another bridge over the Colorado river, because we went up the Bright Angel trail. Bright Angel is a few miles longer than going back the way we came down, but supposedly not as steep overall. It’s fair to say we mostly hiked the rest of the way, admittedly with me trying to get the wife to go as fast as she could. We stopped twice to fix her feet, first one, then the other. She had big blisters right under her big toes that needed lubing up.

We skipped getting water at Indian Garden as we figured we had enough to finish as it was.Just past that point it started to get dark enough to turn on the headlamps. There was supposed to be some weather coming in, and the sky looked ominous at times, but we had nothing but the strong winds. The next morning there would be some snow on the ground.

There are a lot of switchbacks and water breaks on the way up, the wife having a harder time with her shorter legs than I. In fact I was feeling pretty good, especially at a reduced pace. I wasn’t feeling any soreness or tiredness, other than a few little niggling things in my right hamstring and left knee. I kept seeing maybe 3 lights far down the trail below us, but they never seemed to gain ground on us. We kept talking about the distance remaining on the way up, and I think my math was better than hers. At the 1.5 mile point to the top I was confirmed as being better at math than her. I think we were doing just under 30 minute miles, so there was a rough idea of when we would be finished.

And then, just like that you pop up at the south rim, and see the trailhead and parked cars etc. I called for a ride home from Mike, and he was there shortly. It was quite cold out in the exposed wind, once we climbed out of the canyon. Mike picked us up and drove us to our hotel room, and that was that. Dinner was a sub we had bought the day before, and two beers for me.

It had been a long but epic day. The canyon is absolutely beautiful, and the scale of it is huge. The stars were not as spectacular due to it being rather cloudy during the dark hours. Climbing in the dark in the beam of a headlamp you don’t really see the drop offs next to the trail, you just see the path which is comforting.




Gear:

I carried a Salomon Advanced Skin 12 liter hydration pack with a two liter water bladder, and two 17 ounce soft flasks in the front bottle pockets. I purposely carried a bit more gear than normal, almost what would be required for UTMB just for practice. In my hydration pack I carried the following:

-Sawyer mini water filter with collapsible bottle.
-Ice Breaker merino wool long sleeve top.
-Ultimate Direction water-proof long pants.
-Outdoor Research Helium 2 jacket, Patagonia Houdini.
-three 7 scoop each Ziplocs of Naked flavor Tailwind.
-three Cliff bars.
-ten Gu gels, three non-caffeinated.
-a small bag of Band aids and pain relievers, and Tums and electrolyte capsules.
-two headlamps, a Petzl Reactik+ and a Fenix hm-65R-T which is super bright.
-a Halo headband, Craft Hybrid weather gloves, an Adidas beanie, a Headsweats cap with sun shade, and Tifosi Tryant Fototec sunglasses.
-Black Diamond carbon distance poles.
-I also carried a small bottle of sunscreen, and my room key with a $20 bill. I should have brought my ID also, but I didn't.
-my Samsung Note Ultra in a Flipbelt Zipper.
-last, but very importantly, a wad of toilet paper in a Ziploc bag.

A lot of doing this hike is studying the logistics of the canyon, specifically the places to get water. I had carried a Sawyer mini water filter, and I did try it out on my way up to the north rim, I lay down and drank from a stream crossing the trail to see how it worked. It was fine, although it may take a bit to get enough water in. If I had wanted to fill my 2 liter pack with it, I suspect it might have taken more than 10 minutes. It comes with a 32 ounce collapsible bottle that you would need to squeeze through the filter into the pack.


Clothes: I wore Altra Olympus 4 shoes that were almost worn out, Darn Tough merino wool quarter socks, and OR gaiters. Uglow shorts with liner, an UnderArmour compression tee shirt, a Patagonia Houdini wind jacket, which I only wore for a short bit at the start.

Total ascent is off on my Garmin, it’s supposed to be somewhere between 10,000 and 11,000 feet of ascent.


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

Comprehensive write-up and beautiful pics! Thanks for sharing


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

Impressive pace!!

*Scottish man takes a minute off M65+ 10K world record*









At the British Masters 10K Championships on Sunday in Grangemouth, Scotland, local runner *Alastair Walker* not only broke the British men’s 65+ 10K record, but took more than one minute off the world record as he placed 32nd overall in a speedy time of 34:32. 

The 65-year-old from Hawick, U.K., broke the previous record of 35:36 held by* Albert Anderegg* of Switzerland, set back in 2012. 

In 2018, Walker returned to running after taking a 22-year hiatus from the sport. Upon his return, he won gold in the men’s 60+ 10K at the World Masters Championship in Malaga, Spain. He followed it up with a bronze-medal performance in the 5,000m for the 60-65 age group. 

In an interview with the Old Crazy Runners podcast, Walker said his key to staying fast is having fun with the sport, and obviously the post-run beverages. 

Walker has his sights set on the 5,000 and 10K at the 2022 World Master Athletics Championships in Tampere, Finland. If he continues running at the level he’s at for the next five years, he could potentially break *Ed Whitlock’s* 70+ 10K world record of 37:33. 









Scottish man takes a minute off M65+ 10K world record - Canadian Running Magazine


Alastair Walker returned to running in 2018 after taking a 22-year hiatus from the sport




runningmagazine.ca


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)




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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)




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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

*The 7 Most Common Running Injuries*

*1. Runner’s Knee*








*While it can affect other athletes, runners are the most commonly afflicted with this pain or tenderness in and/or around the kneecap.*

According to a University of Calgary study, this type of pain accounts for 57% of all knee problems in Canadian runners—if you’re having pain in this area, it’s most likely runner’s knee.

*Book a physiotherapy appointment if:* You’re having twinges on the outside or inside of the knee when you begin your run, but then seem fine throughout, only to flare up afterward or during prolonged sitting—this is a sign that things could get worse without physiotherapy treatment.

*2. Achilles Tendinitis*








*Up to 20% of runners are affected by this injury, which appears when the Achilles tendon (connecting the two major calf muscles to the back of the heel) comes under too much stress.*

The tendon tightens and gets irritated, leading to the pain in the back of the foot.

*Book a physiotherapy appointment if:* You’ve got a dull pain in your heel during and after a run, but at home remedies like ice usually take care of it—book a physiotherapy appointment before this pain shows up even when you’re not running.

*3. Hamstring Issues*









*Your hamstrings make up the majority of the muscles in the back of the thighs, propelling you forward during your run; injuries involving this group can be an issue of flexibility or strength.*

Hamstring strains are common and take a lot of time to heal—re-injuries often occur without the proper physiotherapy and if the re-introduction of training is rushed.

*Book a physiotherapy appointment if:* You have a constant ache or tightness in the back of your legs when you run, which you try to ease with a slower pace or a shorter stride—you’ll want to get physiotherapy before there’s a pop, snap or bruise.

*4. Plantar Fasciitis*









*Foot pain accounts for 15% of all running injuries, with plantar fasciitis at the top of that list.*

This injury involves small tears and inflammation of the tendons and ligaments of the foot, resulting in pain that might feel like a dull ache or bruise along your arch or heel.

*Book a physiotherapy appointment if:* You’re having foot pain when you first get out of bed, walking around after sitting or the first few strides of a run. It may disappear after that, but you’ll want to avoid having that constant pain by consulting with a physiotherapist as soon as possible

*5. Shin Splints*









*Also known as medial tibial stress syndrome, this achy pain down your shins makes up about 15% of all running injuries.*

It may seem small, but these are actually tears happening around your shinbone and can develop into something more serious.

*Book a physiotherapy appointment if:* You can walk and even jump without pain, but there’s a tightness and ache around your shin when you run. Before it becomes too tender to touch (or walk), see a physiotherapist for simple ways to correct the issue.

*6. Iliotibial (IT) Band Syndrome*









*When the band that runs along the outside of your thigh—connecting hip to knee and shin—gets irritated, runners experience a pain down the outer area of the knee joint.*

At 12% of all running injuries, it’s often mistaken for a knee injury.

*Book a physiotherapy appointment if:* Two to three kilometres into your run, you start experiencing pain and tightness on the outside of your knee. If you walk it out, the pain disappears, but this means it’s time for physiotherapy – before you hear the clicking or popping sensation of the IT band snapping against the joint.

*7. Stress Fracture*









*For runners, the constant impact of activity can cause too much strain on the shins, feet or heel bones and lead to a stress fracture—the most serious of all running injuries.*

Different than an acute fracture that happens in one brief moment, stress fractures happen gradually, which means they can be prevented.

*Book a physiotherapy appointment if:* You’ve got pain when you run, but also sometimes when you’re on your feet for too long. Like any progressive injury, it’s key to listen to your pain and respond early—a physiotherapist can help make sure you’re on track to prevent or recover from stress fractures caused by running.










7 Most Common Running Injuries


The 7 most common running injuries are Runner's knee, Achilles tendinitis, Hamstring issues, Plantar fasciitis, Shin splints, Iliotibial (IT) band syndrome, and Stress fractures




www.pthealth.ca


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## nOOky (May 13, 2008)

lol I've had all of those except a stress fracture. I find most of my injuries have always been sudden changes. Too many hills all at once, too many miles all at once, or suddenly starting speed work. A gradual progression that slowly increases the stress to a peak and then allowing rest and healing has seemed to work for me over the years. I like training cycles versus always trying to run as much as possible, those people always get sidelined eventually.


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## DrDon (Sep 25, 2004)

I continued running with a torn meniscus for 6 months. At the end I was doing a run limp stride. Pathetic. Back at it. Walk jog intervals per a proscribed regimen. Single speeding and trail running are great ways to get in shape in a limited amount of time. Provided you’re close to a trail head. 


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk Pro


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

*How Cycling Affects Your Run Metrics*









When Alistair Brownlee stormed to his second successive Olympic triathlon gold at the 2016 Rio Olympics, he ate up the 10km run in a swift 31 minutes and nine seconds. Gwen Jorgensen won the women’s gold, blasting through the 10km run in 34 minutes and nine seconds. Analyze both runs and the captivating images are of both elites executing pitch-perfect running form — as you’d expect from athletes at the peak of their powers.

Sadly, back on planet age-grouper, things were very different when the biomechanics of cycling and then running are placed beneath a microscope. It seems the prospect of injury is heightened if your form isn’t like Brownlee’s or Jorgensen’s.

*Running Injuries Are Further Impacted by Cycling*
Around 70% of injuries reported in triathlon occur during, or because of, the run. That’s not surprising, as the weight-bearing nature of running, though good for bone health, is more stressful on the joints and muscles than both swimming and cycling. 

According to research, this specter of injury is further impacted by the previous bike section. A team from Miami University examined a group of triathletes’ running posture and movement patterns in what’s called the “sagittal plane.” This is also called the “longitudinal plane,” and anatomically divides the body into right and left parts. 

The US researchers examined the running patterns of 28 recreational triathletes who ran at a self-selected speed on a customized treadmill, both before and after riding a bike for 30 minutes. Their cycling intensity was based on their rate of perceived exertion (RPE), with the athletes told to settle into the range of 12-14 out of 20, which translates as moderate to somewhat hard. 

Twelve cameras surrounded each runner (and treadmill) to capture the triathletes’ 3D kinematics at different times (at 2, 6, 10, and 14 minutes) during the run. The goal was to understand how 30 minutes in the cycling position influenced their subsequent running biomechanics.

*Leaning Too Far After the Bike*
The results? It’s perhaps of no great surprise that running movement was significantly impacted by spending 30 minutes in the prolonged and trunk-flexed cycling position. Whereas the likes of Brownlee and Jorgensen flow gracefully from bike to run, striding into a sustainable, efficient, and fast tempo, the recreational triathletes saw greater peak angles for anterior (forward) pelvic tilt; an increase in hip flexion and spine extension; and a decrease in hip extension across all the time points.

Essentially this meant a greater forward lean around the pelvic area and exaggerated hip flexion. This resulted in a forward-leaning posture that resulted in a far-from-optimum stride length. 

These inefficiencies and changes were noticeable in the sagittal plane, specifically at the spine, pelvis and hip, leading the researchers to conclude that these alterations were enough to increase injury risk and, of course, impact running performance. 

These effects are not ideal, but not terminal either. There are plenty of solutions for age groupers hoping to improve their run — one being hip-flexor stretching. A simple exercise is easing into the lunge position and gently applying pressure to the buttocks of the rear leg in a forward direction to increase the stretch intensity. A more complete gluteal and lower-back strengthening program will also improve hip extension and running posture after cycling. 

There’s also evidence from a study in Spain that plyometric training bulletproofs the triathlete’s body so that they’re more resilient to neurological fatigue when transitioning from bike to run; in fact, the researchers showed a significant improvement in the first kilometer post-T2 due to better biomechanics.

*Correcting Inefficient Stride*
Again intuitively, the cycling portion also affects running efficiency, or economy, according to a further study from Australia. Broadly speaking, good running economy equates to expending less energy for a given pace. This is especially attractive at higher speeds where you burn through limited glycogen (your muscle’s carbohydrate stores) stores at a swift rate.

The Aussie team analyzed the running economy, muscle activity and limb movement along the sagittal plane of 15 moderately-trained triathletes, again either following the bike (this time a 45-minute high-intensity ride) or with no preceding cycle.

What did they find? That muscle recruitment and kinematics during running was significantly changed post-cycle in seven of the 15 triathletes. This alteration realized a significant drop in running economy, leading to greater oxygen uptake to sustain the same running speed. Interestingly, a change in ankle angle when the foot contacted the ground accounted for about two-thirds of the reduction in running economy.

Strategies to rectify the situation include building optimum ankle strength and flexibility via such simple exercises as calf raises and suitable stretches. And even exaggerating the ankle movement when pedaling (also known as ‘ankling’) a few minutes ahead of T2 to prepare you for the run. Spinning at a lower gear is also beneficial for the change from pedaling to striding. 

With a few strengthening and stretching exercises, you can bike and run into 2021 with the stylish, efficient, and injury-reduced biomechanics of a Brownlee or Jorgensen.









How Cycling Affects Your Run Metrics | TrainingPeaks


Cycling and running aren’t always complimentary—these tips will maximize your ability to run fast off the bike.




www.trainingpeaks.com


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)




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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

17km training run along the Bruce Trail after crossfit. Spotted a few patches of white trilliums ready to bloom and a couple of single red trilliums. I also saw a very patient chipmunk (he held his pose while I turned on my point nad shoot camera and zoomed in to capture his vertical position) . Today I crossed many bridges and climbed many hills. It sure felt like spring again!


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## nOOky (May 13, 2008)

I'm tapering for the Ice Age 50 miler next weekend, it's going to suddenly get hot and humid here, which will make it a suffer-fest for sure. My hammy has been bothering me, so I will likely just do bike rides this week and some massage etc. instead of stretching it out. I'm also glad it's spring, but that also brings a ton of yard work etc.


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)




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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

After "Murph", Chris and I went for a run-hike along the escarpment (+++climbs and descents). The wind kept the 'skeeters away and we were able to cover 12km without using bug spray🦟The trails were tacky but the roots were a little slick from the rain. We spotted some lovely pink Trilliums. Sunday is funday and runday


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## chazpat (Sep 23, 2006)

Looks like a great place to run/hike, Judy! I am intrigued by that 4th from the last photo with the moss covered rock chasm.


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

The Bruce Trail is Canada's oldest and longest marked hiking trail. The main trail is 900 km from Niagara to Tobermory plus 400km of side trails. It runs along a long the Niagara Escapment. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Niagara_Escarpment The trail we were running, goes past a part of the rock formation that has cliffs and caves. We have climbed down less steep sections of this cliff and done scrambles from one end to the other. It seems like another world. Huge boulders, ferns, and caves!

The pic of me running on top of the escarpment along the cliffs


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## Cheeze Wheelie (May 24, 2004)

I used to run and lift up until about 9 months ago when I decided to go exclusively to riding for better cycling specific gains. I think my recovery is better between consecutive workouts because cycling is lower impact. The biggest surprise was how much upper body muscle I've maintained only mountain biking. I do alot of sprint intervals through flowy single track and come home pretty pumped up after all the pulling up, hard braking and actively making traction in corners. I don't miss the running. It's the devil's exercise.


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)




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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

No matter how fast you think you can run, there's always someone with a stroller that's faster than you. It can happen on the bike too 


*Hamilton man wins Buffalo Marathon while pushing his 2-year-old son, asleep in his stroller*











When Lucas McAneney's wife bought him a stroller for his infant son Sutton, he was hoping it would help his little one fall asleep.

Two years later, McAneney was crossing the finish line of the Buffalo Marathon before anyone else — while pushing a sleepy Sutton in that very same stroller.

"It's the year a two-year-old won the marathon, sleeping," joked the 35-year-old who lives in Hamilton, Ont.

McAneney said he's been running competitively for most of his life but took a break when Sutton was born.

Then in early 2019, McAneney said he picked up running again and he took his son with him in a stroller. He said his wife eventually bought a proper running stroller as an early Father's Day gift. Soon after, the pandemic hit.

"Ninety per cent of my runs since the pandemic started have been with him. He's been my training partner throughout the whole thing," McAneney told CBC Hamilton.










McAneney became so confident running with Sutton, he attempted to break the Guinness World Record for the fastest time running a marathon while pushing a stroller, a record held by Canadian Calum Neff.

Greg Weber, the marathon's executive director, said he was confident McAneney could break the record and made an exception to the rules to allow McAneney to run with the stroller.

*Sutton crossed the finish line first*
Weber said running with a stroller would undoubtedly put McAneney at a disadvantage even if the stroller moved well but said McAneney was "motoring," running at a pace of three minutes and 38 seconds per kilometre.

McAneney said, during the run, Sutton would point out all the police cars and ambulances they passed.

"He's never spoken more during a run than he did at the Buffalo Marathon and I've never talked more in a marathon … it was two and a half hours of fun," he said.

McAneney didn't beat the record, but ran the marathon in two hours, 33 minutes and 32 seconds. He finished the race, with Sutton — by then nodding off — 16 seconds ahead of the next runner.










"The fact we were able to pull it off and win the race was an icing on the cake and made that a much better story and memory Sutton and I can look back on," he said.

Weber also pointed out while Sutton crossed the finish line first, the rules state you actually have to run the marathon, so his dad is technically the winner.

McAneney said a lot had to go right, like having nice weather, packing everything Sutton needed to stay entertained and waking him up at 5:30 a.m. without incident.

"He loved every minute of it … I couldn't imagine it would go that perfectly again," McAneney said.

McAneney said he and Sutton will do more runs together, but he hopes the next time they'll both be on their feet, running side-by-side.

Weber said he hopes it inspires others to run and spend time together.

"I think it's a great testament to a father and a son. I think everybody should look at it and say, 'What can I do?'" Weber said.



https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/hamilton/man-wins-marathon-pushing-stroller-1.6480357


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)




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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

Another hamster wheel


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)




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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)




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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

*How a Former Boxer and Opioid Addict Became the World’s Best Marathoner Over 50*









Let me tell you about my friend Ken. 

This would be Ken Rideout, who, in the few years I have known him, has transformed himself from a very good masters marathoner — that’s the over-40 crowd — into arguably the world’s best marathoner age 50 or older. 

His goal is to win the 50-and-over division at all six World Marathon Majors: Tokyo, Boston, London, Berlin, Chicago and New York. So far, he has checked off two: New York and Boston. Rideout thought he had won London last year, but he was beaten by someone who began the race in a different starting area. He never saw him on the course and lost by a minute. Yes, he remains bitter. 

At the New York City Marathon in November, he also won the masters division, finishing in 2 hours, 33 minutes, 31 seconds. Knowing Rideout, he would definitely want me to mention that if the 45-year-old five-time Olympian Abdi Abdirahman had not withdrawn from that race, Rideout probably would not have won the masters competition. But all you can do is race the people who show up, so the $3,000 first-place check was his. 

So here’s the really weird thing about Rideout, who, at 51, is just a year younger than I am. He does his morning 10-mile run at about the same pace, roughly 7:30 per mile, or even slower, that I do, even though his best marathon times are about 45 minutes faster than my personal records. I know this because we have run together. 

He ran his first marathon in New York in 1996 in a cotton T-shirt and finished in 3 hours and 20 minutes. The next year, it rained like hell, and he finished eight minutes slower. 

“I’m just a regular guy with four kids and six jobs who does about 80 or 90 minutes of running in the morning,” he told me recently when I was trying to get to the bottom of his secret sauce. “Then maybe I sneak in 20 or 30 minutes in the weight room before dinner, if I can, and there are plenty of times when I can’t.” 









Let’s be clear — Rideout is not so regular, and there is so much interesting about him, especially when it comes to running. He did not get really serious about it until five years ago, and that might be one of the keys to his success, along with bringing a unique determination to all of his pursuits. 

“Ken has an insane amount of talent and an uncommon work ethic,” said Mario Fraioli, a top coach of amateur athletes who has worked with Rideout over the past three years. “He is also incredibly driven and has an ability to push himself literally to the point of collapse. Given that, there is a good chance that if he took long-distance running seriously as a teenager he would have run himself into the ground and had a short career.”

Rideout grew up in a poor, fairly dysfunctional family in Somerville, Mass., outside Boston. When he talks, he sounds like Matt Damon’s character in “Good Will Hunting” and looks a bit like him, too. His brother and his stepfather spent time in prison, the same prison where Rideout worked — not at the same time — as a guard to help pay for his education at Framingham State University. He played hockey and boxed in college. He found endurance sports in his 20s as a way to cope with an opioid addiction. In addition to marathoning and working in finance, he also hosts a popular boxing podcast with the famed trainer and boxing commentator Teddy Atlas. 

Rideout thinks of the prison and the boxing ring when he is hurting in races or grinding out intervals at the track and fearing what might come next. He was terrified at work nearly every day at the prison and terrified every time he stepped into a boxing ring. 

“Everyone is afraid, even world-champion fighters, believe me,” he said. “The brave guy isn’t not afraid. He just figures out how to internalize the fear and be motivated by it.” 

Rideout was mainly a triathlete until 2017. He twice qualified as an age-group racer for the Ironman World Championship in Hawaii. 

Then he finished the 2017 Los Angeles Marathon in 2:40:13 and decided to see what would happen if he focused on running. He started mixing in some long runs with his regular 10-mile run on the Temescal Canyon Trail in Los Angeles. He crossed the line in 2:35:43 in Boston in 2019 but thought he could go faster. 










He signed up for the California International Marathon and enlisted Fraioli’s help. Fraioli floated the concept of recovery runs. Rideout told him he never wanted to run less than 10 miles in a day. Fraioli told him he could work with that, but he was going to have to go easy on some days and then very hard on the others. 

For eight weeks that fall, while Rideout was living in Philadelphia and helping Atlas train a boxer for a light heavyweight championship bout, Rideout did everything Fraioli told him. There were generic track workouts — repeats of 400, 800 and 1,000 meters, with brief jogging between each one — but the long runs that included increased speed for long segments were something Rideout had never experienced. 

“We had a 20-miler in late October that started as 10 miles at a 6:30-per-mile pace,” Rideout said. “Then I had to do three, three-mile intervals, with the first mile at 5:45, the second at 5:35 and the third at 5:25. I had to repeat that ladder three times. On the last one, I basically collapsed.” 

Those runs remain integral to his marathon preparation, and the work has paid off. Last year in London, he ran a 2:29:54. Through it all, he has managed to stay largely healthy, something Fraioli also thinks has to do with Rideout’s late arrival to serious distance running. 

“He has a robust athletic background,” Fraioli said. “He’s a strong guy with a big engine.” 









So who also runs?


After "Murph", Chris and I went for a run-hike along the escarpment (+++climbs and descents). The wind kept the 'skeeters away and we were able to cover 12km without using bug spray🦟The trails were tacky but the roots were a little slick from the rain. We spotted some lovely pink Trilliums...




www.mtbr.com


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

*First-ever Canadian Mountain & Trail Running Championship is coming this September*









*Inaugural event scheduled for Sept. 17 in Okanagan’s Kalamalka Lake Provincial Park*
Vernon, BC’s Bush Babes and Bros trail running will host this summer’s first-ever Canadian Mountain & Trail Running Championship set to take place on Sept. 17 in Okanagan’s Kalamalka Lake Provincial Park in Vernon, B.C., as part of the Freaky Creeky race weekend.

Athletics Canada, in collaboration with the Canadian Mountain Running Association (CMRA) and the Association of Canadian Ultramarathoners (ACU), is pleased to announce that the 2022 Canadian Mountain & Trail Running Championship, the first of its kind, will take place on Sept 17 in Okanagan’s Kalamalka Lake Provincial Park in Vernon, B.C., as part of the Freaky Creeky race weekend.

The Canadian Mountain Running and Trail Running championships used to be held separately, but in holding them together, Canada follows the international trend: the World Mountain and Trail Running Championships will also be held in tandem for the first time this year.

“We’re thrilled to be working closely with the Canadian Mountain Running Association and the Association of Canadian Ultramarathoners,” said Mathieu Gentès, Athletics Canada Chief Executive Officer. “Athletics Canada is track and field, road running, cross country, para-athletics, and mountain, ultra and trail running. It’s a priority of our organization to provide value and representation for participants in all disciplines of our great sport.”

The event will serve as the Selection Trials for the 2023 World Mountain & Trail Running Championships in Innsbruck and Stubai, Austria in June of next year.

Dawna Jodoin, race director and coach at Bush Babes and Bros Trail Running, has hosted ultra-running events in Vernon for four years, and trail races for 12. She expects the Canadian Championship event to be the biggest one she has seen take place on her home trails.

“I think people will fall in love with our views – the course through three ecological systems, and you see everything from Cedars to marshes to Douglas firs.”

The event will comprise five championship races, each with a women’s and men’s category: three in mountain running (Senior Classic Up and Down, the U20 Classic Up & Down, and the Vertical Uphill) and two in trail running (40km short course, and 80km long course).

Each championship race will offer a prize purse of $300, $200 and $100 for first, second and third finishers, respectively, for a total prize purse of $4,800.

Jodoin said her company’s events have become known locally for its stellar aid stations: runners looking for a short rest between miles will be treated to hot and cold food, BBQs, entertainment, and music for all tastes. Yet, competitors should not expect their day in the park to be too comfortable.

“You’re going to be doing a lot of climbing. We have pretty sharp hills – at one point you travel 900m in six kilometres,” she said.

“It’s a special course because there is no paved road: it’s one per cent dirt road, 95 per cent single track and 4 per cent double track – it’s a good combination of challenging and scenic.”
Learn more about the event here!









First-ever Canadian Mountain & Trail Running Championship is coming this September


Vernon, BC’s Bush Babes and Bros trail running will host this summer’s first-ever Canadian Mountain & Trail Running Championship set to take place on Sept.




getouttheremag.com


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## nOOky (May 13, 2008)

I've been nursing a nagging injury, so I've been running under 30 miles a week. I've got 9 weeks until a super hard trail race, so I'm getting nervous. At least I've got a decent fitness base, and I can still gravel bike, although that exacerbates it somewhat also.


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

^ Wishing you a strong and steady recovery! You got this nOOky!


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## 2sharp7 (Aug 29, 2013)

I've recently in the past few months, taken up running again. Or, trying to make myself into a runner again. It has not been easy, having suffered from multiple lower leg and hamstring issues, but am starting to think I may actually be a runner now, lol. I signed up for my first half marathon (goal time is sub 2 hr), which is in Nov. 
Cautiously excited


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

Friday Free For All! I took the day off work; went for a + 14km morning run and found an unopened can of beer at the side of a road! Of course there were other sights along the way, including a Pride rainbow, an abandoned ATV on the trail, muppet jam and calm water. Great segway into a fabulous weekend.


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)




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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

Long read but in summary:

One of the most overlooked aspects (unfortunately) of running is the benefits that it has on brain function and it’s capacity to improve connections between different regions of the brain as well as dramatically increase neurogenesis. Neurogenesis is the process by which new brain cell are produced in the adult brain.
Marathon runners tend to perform better on cognitive tests and have better brain function overall. This is further supported by a number of studies that show that endurance runners have significantly different architecture from other athletes.

So, what makes endurance/marathon running different and so “special?”

Well… one hypothesis is that it’s the result of moderate (yet sustained) production of lactate by muscles during a 3-4 hour run that you don’t typically get with other forms of more acute exercise. The brain appears to respond really well to this “low-level continuous infusion” of lactate and responds by adjusting levels of various neurotransmitters as well as increasing BDNF production — which is involved in neurogenesis.

Overall, this helps to prevent brain ageing and keep you mentally sharp!





*Exercise Training Improves Memory Performance in Older Adults: A Narrative Review of Evidence and Possible Mechanisms*

As human life expectancy increases, cognitive decline and memory impairment threaten independence and quality of life. Therefore, finding prevention and treatment strategies for memory impairment is an important health concern. Moreover, a better understanding of the mechanisms involved underlying memory preservation will enable the development of appropriate pharmaceuticals drugs for those who are activity limited. Exercise training as a non-pharmacological tool, has been known to increase the mean lifespan by maintaining general body health and improving the cardiovascular and nervous systems function. Among different exercise training protocols, aerobic exercise has been reported to prevent the progression of memory decline, provided adequate exertion level, duration, and frequency. Mechanisms underlying exercise training effects on memory performance have not been understood yet. Convergent evidence suggest several direct and indirect mechanisms at molecular and supramolecular levels. The supramolecular level includes improvement in blood circulation, synaptic plasticity and neurogenesis which are under controls of complex molecular signaling of neurotransmitters, neurotrophic factors, exerkines, and epigenetics factors. Among these various factors, irisin/BDNF signaling seems to be one of the important mediators of crosstalk between contracted skeletal muscles and the brain during exercise training. This review provides an affordable and effective method to improve cognitive function in old ages, particularly those who are most vulnerable to neurodegenerative disorders. 











*Highlights*
- Exercise training enhances memory performance via neuroplastic alterations.

- Long-lasting moderate aerobic exercise is a more efficient neuroprotective modality.

- Exercise-induced memory improvement might be mediated via neurotrophic factors, and exerkines.

- Irisin/BDNF signaling is an important link between skeletal muscles and the brain.

*Introduction*
*Epidemiological Overview*
Cognitive function has been known to be negatively associated with aging (Plassman et al., 2007), genetic predisposition, cardiovascular disease, and type 2 diabetes (Grøntved and Hu, 2011). Currently, 35.6 million people worldwide live with dementia which is predicted to double to 75.6 million by 2030, thus, soon cognitive deficit will be a major public health priority (World Health Organization, 2020). The reasons responsible for the cognitive deficit are not yet well established. However, some assumptions have arisen, and among them, the reduction in the speed of information processing, sensorial deficit, decline in learning, and memory capability due to aging are more prominent (Ball and Birge, 2002; Kramer and Willis, 2002).

On the other hand, exercise training as a healthy lifestyle factor reduces the likelihood of developing dementia or slow down the progress of cognitive decline both in normal aging and dementia (Larson et al., 2006; Rolland et al., 2007; Chang et al., 2010, 2012; Buchman et al., 2012; World Health Organization, 2019; Lewis et al., 2020). It has been reported that engagement in exercise training by 5% over 5 years, reduces the percentage of patients with dementia by 11% (Grøntved and Hu, 2011).

Considering the remarkable evidence indicating positive association between exercise training and cognitive function, the American College of Sports Medicine (ACSM) and the American Heart Association (AHA) recommended daily exercise for adult individuals (Voss et al., 2010).

*Cognitive Function*
Cognitive function refers to higher-level functions of the brain and includes different modalities such as acquiring knowledge, perception, attention, judgment, decision making, processing speed, executive function, cognitive flexibility, task switching, comprehension, response inhibition, and memory performance (Lezak et al., 2004; Diamond, 2013). Cognitive flexibility is an ability associated with adjusting mental activity and content, switching between different task rules and corresponding behavioral responses, maintaining multiple concepts simultaneously, and shifting internal attention between them to make a better adaptation to a new context (Scott, 1962; Cooper-Kahn and Laurie, 2008). Also, the ability to simultaneously consider two aspects of an object, idea, or situation at one point in time refers to cognitive flexibility, which requires aspects of inhibition, attention, working memory, response selection, and goal maintenance (Miyake et al., 2000; Sheet, 2005). Cognitive flexibility is mediated via a complex network including the front parietal cortex, cingulate cortex, mesolimbic, and striatum (ventral and dorsal parts) (Nowrangi et al., 2014; Hall and Fong, 2015). Considering the complexity of cognitive flexibility elements, the related neural networks, and limitation in the existing literature, we decided to review the effects of exercise training only on memory; as a vital component of cognitive flexibility.

The memory is an exciting capability of brain which preserves and stores acquired information and enables performing of adequate behavior based on lifelong experience (Magila and Xavier, 2012). Any deficits in memory retrieval might have deleterious implications on individual routines and health (Colcombe and Kramer, 2003).

Therefore, the arguments developed in this review focused on exercise training’s effects on memory performance and is not intended to cover all aspects of cognitive function.

*Exercise Effects on Memory Performance*
Exercise training is defined as planned, structured, and repetitive exercise (Caspersen et al., 1985). There are remarkable pieces of evidence indicating that regular exercise training slows down the progress of cognitive decline (Erickson et al., 2011; World Health Organization, 2019; Lewis et al., 2020), and maintain the brain’s cognitive ability, particularly memory, however, there are inconsistencies in the literature due to the variety in type and timing of the cognitive tests, subjects characteristics (Sibley et al., 2006; Lambourne and Tomporowski, 2010; Chang et al., 2012), and exercise protocols (Loprinzi et al., 2019a).

Some researchers believe that working memory is improved by chronic exercise, but not acute, in elderly individuals (Smith et al., 2010; Rathore and Lom, 2017; Damirchi et al., 2018), elite soccer players (Babaei et al., 2014); and in Alzheimer’s disease patients (Vreugdenhil et al., 2012). Both animal study in aged rats with the Parkinson’s disease (Tsai S.-F. et al., 2018; Tsai et al., 2019), and human study in patients diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease (Jia et al., 2019) and also in healthy adults (Babaei et al., 2014), recommended engaging in exercise training for 16–24 weeks, at least up to 3 times per week with 30 min per session, in order to achieve better outcomes on working memory. Liu et al. (2020), in patients with dementia confirmed that both strength aerobic and resistance training programs over 4 weeks can bring about significant cognitive benefits. In contrast with chronic protocols, Loprinzi et al. (2019a) reported that acute moderate-intensity exercise prior to memory encoding is capable to enhance short and long-term memories in healthy individuals (Loprinzi et al., 2019a). The relationship between acute exercise and memory is complex to conclude, and may vary based on the temporality, intensity of exercise, and the memory type evaluated.

Taken altogether, regular chronic type of training is more prominent for memory facilitation.

In the next section we discuss about the effect of intensity of training on memory performance.

*The Effect of Exercise Intensity on Memory Performance*
Besides the modalities of exercise training discussed above, the intensity of exercise training in relation to memory tests is important as well. Some studies suggest a dose-effect relationship between aerobic activity and executive function (Masley et al., 2009; Pyke et al., 2020), but, some believe in a reverse u shape pattern, meaning that a moderate-intensity exercise would improve memory, whereas high-intensity exercise would impair memory performance (Brisswalter et al., 2002; Kashihara et al., 2009; Ruscheweyh et al., 2011; Frith et al., 2017).

It should be noticed that, the timing of memory tests is very important too. Loprinzi et al. (2019b) reported that acute moderate-intensity exercise prior to memory encoding enhances short and long-term memories in healthy participants (Loprinzi et al., 2019a), however high-intensity acute exercise impairs working and episodic memories (Loprinzi et al., 2019b).

In addition, a decline in cognitive performance of adults, when measured during acute high-intensity physical exercise (Isaacs, 1991; McMorris and Keen, 1994), or immediately after the exercise (Covassin et al., 2007; Bue-Estes et al., 2008; Moore et al., 2012) have been found. Moreover, the declines in working memory, verbal memory, and attention have been shown to be transient following intense activity in adults (Covassin et al., 2007; Bue-Estes et al., 2008; Moore et al., 2012), and children (Samuel et al., 2017).

A recent study reported that a single bout of maximal intensity exercise in children can transiently impair complex tasks such as verbal learning, which resolves after a 1-h rest. On the other hand, more simple cognitive tasks that apply short-term working memory are not negatively affected by such an activity, and may even be facilitated after adequate rest (Samuel et al., 2017). Therefore, adequate recovery from intense exercise might result in enhanced working memory abilities (Bue-Estes et al., 2008), indicating both debilitating (Covassin et al., 2007; Bue-Estes et al., 2008; Moore et al., 2012) and facilitating (Bue-Estes et al., 2008) effects of physical activity.

Overall, when high-intensity acute exercise occurs before or during the memory task, it may be less favorable for working memory, and may not associate with long-term memory function, as opposed to when it occurs shortly after memory encoding (Hötting et al., 2016; Loprinzi, 2018).

Also, exercising shortly after memory encoding is slightly less advantageous for both moderate (Labban and Etnier, 2011; Sng et al., 2018) and high-intensity exercise (Frith et al., 2017) compared to pre encoding.

Interestingly, in contrast with the negative relationship between high-intensity exercise and memory performance which discussed above, Wilke (2020) believes that high-intensity functional training represents an appropriate method to acutely improve working memory, in healthy middle-aged individuals. One of the explanations for discrepancy in findings possibly related to the fatigue which plays a more important role on the cognitive responses to an exercise bout.

Collectively, there is an intensity-specific effect of exercise on memory, and results may differ based on the memory tests, the temporality of memory assessment, the time elapsed from completion of the exercise, and the method of estimating the intensity of exercise training.

Additional works exploring the effects of a variety of exercise types (e.g., continuous, intermittent, strength, aerobic, combined-type) under different intensities and durations upon memory storage and retrieval are needed.

*Possible Mechanisms of Exercise-Induced Memory Improvement*
Although mechanisms underlying exercise training effects on memory improvement have not been understood well, there are both direct and indirect mechanisms at molecular and supramolecular levels. The supramolecular level refers to the alteration in the physiological functions or structural changes in organs such as increase in blood circulation or hippocampal volume (Colcombe and Kramer, 2003; Smith et al., 2010; McAuley et al., 2011; Guiney and Machado, 2013). The supramolecular alterations, _per se_ are under the control of complex molecular signaling pathways. For instance, increasing gray matter integrity, and hippocampal volume (Colcombe and Kramer, 2003; Smith et al., 2010; McAuley et al., 2011; Guiney and Machado, 2013) are mostly related to neurogenesis (Sibley et al., 2006; Chang et al., 2012; Foster, 2015) and elevation in neurotrophic factors (Hötting et al., 2016).

Below, we discuss in more detail some of the selected molecular mechanisms underlying exercise’s beneficial effects on learning and memory.

*Brain Circulation*
Regular physical activity has been reported to improve brain circulation (Erickson et al., 2012) particularly the hippocampus; an area important for learning and memory (Pereira et al., 2007; Burdette et al., 2010; Mandolesi et al., 2017). How exercise leads in elevated circulation and further memory improvement, has not been clarified yet. It is assumed that skeletal muscles induces the secretion of lactate, during contraction, then, lactate is taken up by the brain regions (Ide and Secher, 2000), and causes excitability of the primary motor cortex (Coco et al., 2010), increases brain vascular endothelial growth factor (Morland et al., 2017) and density of cerebellar cortex vessels (Castellano et al., 2017). Besides providing adequate pumping and oxygenation of the blood, lactate increases brain metabolism by ketone uptake and utilization.

Adequate circulation also provides clearance of the brain waste products such as amyloid-beta; an important abnormal protein in the frontal cortex and hippocampus of AD patients (Jørgensen et al., 1992; Adlard et al., 2005; Jessen et al., 2015; von Holstein-Rathlou et al., 2018; Li et al., 2019). Collectively, all these mechanisms prevent neural damages, and potentially improve the acquisition and retrieval of memory.

*Neurogenesis*
The higher cardiorespiratory fitness and physical activity in aged subjects, have been found to be associated with greater brain structures integrity, and better memory performance (Burzynska et al., 2015). Previous studies confirmed that, exercise training increases gray matter integrity in brain, and volume of brain regions, particularly entorhinal cortex and hippocampus in both human and animal studies (Voss et al., 2013; Ten Brinke et al., 2015; Chieffi et al., 2017; Firth et al., 2018; Tsai S.-F. et al., 2018; Clark et al., 2021), and also, brain white matter of memory-related regions in people with mild cognitive impairment (Amjad et al., 2019). In addition, reduced hippocampal atrophy together with improved memory were reported following 6–12 weeks of exercise training in early stage of Alzheimer’s disease with this finding (Chirles et al., 2017; Ma et al., 2017; Morris et al., 2017). Interestingly, it seems beneficial effects of exercise on brain structures mostly are found in the regions sensitive to neurodegeneration such as the hippocampus and the neocortex in healthy elderly and also adults with Alzheimer’s disease or mild cognitive impairment (Haeger et al., 2019).

How exercise leads in neurogenesis and memory improvement has not been clarified yet. Some researchers believe that intensive exercise training, produces lactate (Scandella and Knobloch, 2019; Nicola and Okun, 2021), and then, lactate stimulates neurons and glia cells proliferation (Steiner et al., 2004; Hirase and Shinohara, 2014; El Hayek et al., 2019), particularly in the hippocampus (Ohia-Nwoko et al., 2014; Elahi et al., 2016). Moreover, lactate induces brain derived neurotropic factor (BDNF) expression in the hippocampus, and then BDNF stimulates neurogenesis (El Hayek et al., 2019).

*Mitochondrial Biogenesis*
An important aspect of exercise training, is the contraction of skeletal muscles, which is associated with enhanced mitochondrial function. There is a bidirectional relationship between the brain and skeletal muscles in a way that both organs benefit from exercise, in order to get adaptation, and in this scenario, mitochondria play pivotal roles in cells survival, metabolism, and oxidative stress (Hood et al., 2019; Burtscher et al., 2021). Studies showed that the number of mitochondria are decreased with aging in healthy adults (Flockhart et al., 2021), and are increased by exercise training (Damirchi et al., 2012; Hood et al., 2019; Huertas et al., 2019; Granata et al., 2021). Exercise training increases antioxidant capacities and the affinity of mitochondria for oxygen (Sun et al., 2016; Hood et al., 2019), also increases proteins involved in energy production and ATP (Bishop et al., 2019; Hood et al., 2019), and finally stimulates mitophagy in skeletal muscles (Bishop et al., 2019; Burtscher et al., 2021), and brain (Navarro et al., 2004; Steiner et al., 2011; Li et al., 2019). Mitochondrial biogenesis after exercise training, is mediated by 5′ adenosine monophosphate-activated protein kinase (AMPK) and peroxisome-proliferator-activated receptor γ coactivator-1α (Short et al., 2005).

On the other hand, mitochondria produce reactive oxygen species (ROS) (Clark and Simon, 2009), in response to intensive acute exercise (Holloway, 2017), which implicates the pathogenesis of several brain disorders (Pesta and Roden, 2017; Zorova et al., 2018). It should be noticed that, exercise-induced ROS levels, can affect redox regulation in brain (Aguiar et al., 2008), and endogenous antioxidant capacities (Quan et al., 2020). In other words, mitochondria are double-edged swords with both beneficial and detrimental effects on memory performance. They not only produce antioxidants molecules, but also increase Ca++ and ROS in cytoplasm. Recently, we showed that blocking mitochondrial calcium uniporter, inhibits Ca++ neurotoxicity and alleviates cognitive decline in AD model of rats (Nikseresht et al., 2021). There is not clear yet, how it could be possible to keep a balance between antioxidants and ROS in mitochondria (mithohormesis) by exercise training. According to the theory of “Hormesis,” response to exercise might be biphasic, depending on the baseline physical fitness status of individuals (Seifi-Skishahr et al., 2016), and the amounts of ROS (Quan et al., 2020). In other word, exercise might be protective at moderate levels, but, detrimental at high levels in healthy adults (Flockhart et al., 2021). Therefore, regular exercise may prevent the aging-related decline of mitochondrial function.

Taken all together, a lifestyle with moderate regular exercise training, appears to be more useful to improve health by making the balance between oxide and redox state in cells.

*Neurotrophic Factors*
As we mentioned earlier, the relationship between contracted muscles and the brain has been questionable for years. It has been assumed that the number of dendritic connections and neural plasticity is related to the neuroendocrine and humoral alterations promoted by exercise (Isaacs et al., 1992; Santos, 1994). Currently, it has been proposed that, when skeletal muscles are contracted, they start to secrete various proteins, known as myokines into the circulation (Pedersen and Febbraio, 2012). Then, these molecules might elevate neurotrophic factors such as irisin, brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF), and insulin-like growth factor (IGF-1) (Delezie and Handschin, 2018), which all are involved in hippocampal plasticity and long term memory (Lynch et al., 2008; Tanaka et al., 2008; Duzel et al., 2016) following exercise in both animals (Gobbo and O’Mara, 2005; Babaei et al., 2017) and human subjects (Belviranli et al., 2016; Damirchi et al., 2018).

In the next section, we discuss the mechanisms by which, BDNF and irisin might impact on memory and learning.

*Brain Derived Neurotropic Factor*
Exercise training has been known to increase serum BDNF levels, parallel with memory improvement in healthy individuals (Babaei et al., 2013, 2014; Damirchi et al., 2014; Szuhany et al., 2015; Belviranli et al., 2016; Marinus et al., 2019) and roddents (Erickson et al., 2010; Babaei et al., 2017; El Hayek et al., 2019). These findings support the pivotal role for exercise—induced BDNF in brain (Numakawa et al., 2018; Di Liegro et al., 2019). However, there are differences in the baseline level of BDNF considering the subjects’ characteristics. For example, Babaei et al. (2014) showed that long-term habitual exercise in elite athletes is associated with a lower resting level of serum BDNF and better memory. In contrast to elite athletes, a higher level of serum BDNF was detected in subjects diagnosed with metabolic syndrome (MetS) (Damirchi et al., 2014), which might reflect the compensatory role for BDNF.

Collectively, recent studies confirm that, exercise training increases circulatory BDNF levels, regardless of their type, intensity, duration, and subject’s health status (Feter et al., 2019; Marinus et al., 2019). Babaei et al. (2014) showed an increase in serum BDNF level after an acute aerobic/anaerobic exercise in both elite athletes and sedentary subjects. Although Feter et al., 2019 reported that interventions lasting at least 12 weeks with a session duration of 40 min would be the most prominent strategy for increasing BDNF levels in healthy or unhealthy adults (Feter et al., 2019). In contrast, overtraining seems to reduce BDNF level, but upregulates its receptors of “_p75_” and tropomyosin receptor kinase B (TRKB), in intact mice (Xu et al., 2020). Therefore, BDNF releasing system keeps enough sensitivity to be elevated, whenever encountering the different forms of exercise training, although acute exercising is more prominent.

The cellular and molecular mechanisms of exercise-induced BDNF have not been understood yet. El Hayek et al. (2019) suggested that lactate released during exercise by skeletal muscles, crosses the BBB and induces BDNF expression, and activates TRKB signaling in the hippocampus. The function of lactate is dependent on the activation of the transcriptional coactivator; PGC-1 α, and the secreted molecule fibronectin type III domain-containing protein 5 (FNDC5), which both are involved in the upregulation of BDNF expression. Wrann et al. (2013) in an interesting study in mice demonstrated that, aerobic exercise causes production of PGC-1α in muscles, and then PGC-1α induces FNDC5. Then irisin is released by the cleavage of FNDC5 (Lee et al., 2012; Miyamoto-Mikami et al., 2015; Lourenco et al., 2019) and induces BDNF expression through inhibition of histone deacetylase-1, both in human and animal studies (Erickson et al., 2009; Koppel and Timmusk, 2013).

Finally, sustained BDNF levels during exercise, have important roles in cognition through stimulating long-term potentiation, protein phosphorylation, synaptic regeneration (Ji et al., 2005; Tapia-Arancibia et al., 2008), and finally memory improvement in healthy and AD model of rats (Wu et al., 2008; Griffin et al., 2009; Babaei, 2021).

Besides neurotrophic effects which have been discussed above, BDNF also exerts metabotropic roles, and indirectly could influence memory and learning ability, via alleviating systemic insulin resistance in men with MetS (Damirchi et al., 2014), and mitochondrial biogenesis in cultured murine hippocampal neurons (Cheng et al., 2012).

Given the importance of BDNF levels on neuroplasticity and memory, these results support that exercise should be considered as part of rehabilitation programs in different neurodegenerative disorders.

*Insulin-Like Growth Factor-1*
Insulin-like growth factor (IGF-I), is a peptide which is secreted by liver and some other tissues, and stimulates bone growth, and decreases blood glucose levels (Utiger, 2011). Alteration in IGF-I levels, in response to exercise training has inconsistent results in old adults, with or without mild cognitive impairment (Baker et al., 2010; Anderson-Hanley et al., 2017; Tsai C.-L. et al., 2018; Liu et al., 2020; Arazi et al., 2021). Inconsistent results, probably related to various protocols of biochemical assessments, or subjects characteristics. For example, no significant change was found after neither strength nor aerobic exercise in demented patients (Liu et al., 2020). Also a negative correlation was found between endurance exercise and cognitive prognosis when serum IGF-I levels were above 74 ng/ml by Vardy et al. (2007) and Anderson-Hanley et al. (2017). These authors concluded that the higher IGF-I levels, might indicate disease progression, potentially as a compensatory response similar to the higher BDNF levels in metabolic syndrome (Damirchi et al., 2014). Therefore, participants with higher IGF-I levels, may be less likely to benefit from the exercise intervention in either healthy adults or adults with Alzheimer’s disease (Vardy et al., 2007; Anderson-Hanley et al., 2017).

Also increase in both central and peripheral IGF-1 levels following exercise training in rodents (Carro et al., 2000; Trejo et al., 2001; Nakajima et al., 2010; Kim et al., 2019) have been reported. Finally, IGF-1 increases the expression of BDNF (Carro et al., 2000), synaptic plasticity markers such as synaptophysin and postsynaptic density protein-95 in the hippocampus, and represents positive effects on the spatial and aversive memories in healthy rats (Segabinazi et al., 2020).

*Neurotransmitters (Adrenaline)*
Circulatory catecholamines levels have been shown to be increased during exercise training (Kraemer et al., 1999; Sutoo and Akiyama, 2003), and their levels are related to better intermediate and long-term retentions of memory (Winter et al., 2007). Adrenaline is released from the adrenal gland in response to exercise (Kjær, 1998), and has been studied more than other bioamines. Since adrenaline does not cross the BBB (Bradbury, 1993); therefore, it might indirectly affect the brain via activating the vagal nerve (McGaugh et al., 1996), then stimulates noradrenergic inputs of the amygdala (Williams et al., 2000; Miyashita and Williams, 2006), hippocampus (Miyashita and Williams, 2004), and locus coeruleus (Miyashita and Williams, 2006); the main source of brain noradrenaline (McMorris, 2016). Noradrenaline released by locus coeruleus, modulates memory and learning following exercise training both in human (Atzori et al., 2016; Chandler, 2016; Feinstein et al., 2016), and animal studies (Mello-Carpes and Izquierdo, 2013; da Silva de Vargas et al., 2017). Together, these findings suggest an exercise-induced increase of noradrenaline potentiating role on learning and memory.

*Endocannabinoid*
The endocannabinoid system (ECS) is a system of biological lipids, that essentially modulates the functions of the immune, endocrine, and nervous systems (Lu and Mackie, 2016; Zou and Kumar, 2018). In the brain, ECS is involved in various neurophysiological processes including neurogenesis, synaptic plasticity, as well as memory, and emotions (Bisogno and Di Marzo, 2008; Silvestri and Di Marzo, 2013).

Several studies showed that, both acute physical activity (Brellenthin et al., 2017) and regular aerobic exercise, raise endocannabinoid (EC) levels in healthy adults and animal models (Alkadhi, 2018), and elevated plasma levels of EC are potentially associated with long-term beneficial effects on memory and neural plasticity in healthy or adults with major depressive disorders (Coccaro et al., 2018; Stone et al., 2018; Meyer et al., 2019). Moreover, EC reduce anxiety, neuroinflammation, oxidative stress, and brain amyloid-beta deposition (Charytoniuk et al., 2020).

Not only the intensity of physical activity determines the alteration of EC in healthy adults (Feuerecker et al., 2012), but also the duration and subjects characteristics are important as well (Charytoniuk et al., 2020). Some studies showed that chronic exercises might be associated with the upregulation of EC receptor (CB1R) in the hippocampus of mice (Ferreira-Vieira et al., 2014; Brellenthin and Koltyn, 2016). Interestingly, a recent study revealed that isometric handgrip exercise for 3 min, led to major alterations in the EC and its receptor type 1 (Crombie et al., 2017).

Importantly, EC have been known to express BDNF (Sleiman et al., 2016), and then, BDNF regulates the expression of CB1 receptor as well (Maison et al., 2009). In fact, CB1 receptor signaling in glutamatergic neurons increases the BDNF production, and dendritic spine density in the hippocampus and leads to long-term memory in CB1R deficient mice (Wang and Han, 2020).

Consequently, exercise-increased EC and BNDF levels, synergistically improve memory recall and storage in healthy men (Marin Bosch et al., 2021).

Wu et al. (2020) provide new insights into the BDNF/EC-associated modulation of neurotransmission, in the physiological and pathologic processes. They stated that BDNF inhibits the excitatory postsynaptic current (EPSC), presynaptic calcium influx, and exocytosis/endocytosis via activation of the presynaptic CB1 receptors. They also found that BDNF induces the release of endocannabinoids and also retrogradely activates presynaptic CB1Rs via postsynaptic TrkB receptors (Wu et al., 2020).

In this regard, Ferreira et al. (2018) demonstrated that endogenous BDNF is crucial for the cannabinoid-mediated effects on the subventricular zone and dentate gyrus neurogenesis. On the other hand, cannabinoid receptor signaling is also determinant for BDNF actions upon neurogenesis (Ferreira et al., 2018).

Moreover, BDNF attenuates inhibitory transmission by inducing the postsynaptic release of EC, that retrogradely suppress GABA release in the somatosensory cortex (Yeh et al., 2017; Selvam et al., 2018).

Nevertheless, the mutual relationship between physical activity, the endocannabinoid system, and memory performance remains not well discovered and needs proper fulfillment.

*Myokines*
Contracted skeletal muscles following exercise leads to the secretion of various paracrine factors, which are named myokines. Myokines include irisin, myonectin, angiopoietin-like protein (ANGPTL), β-aminoisobutyric acid, fibroblast growth factor 21 (FGF21) (Ingerslev et al., 2017; Cinkajzlová et al., 2018). Myokines are linked with other physiological systems and might impact on their functionality/(Pedersen, 2013; Whitham and Febbraio, 2016). For instance, irisin is a peptide secreted by skeletal muscles, particularly after intermittent high-intensity exercise, and is correlated with glucose and lipids metabolism in skeletal muscles in healthy adults (Huh et al., 2014). Besides metabolic roles, irisin might coordinate locomotion following exercising in healthy rat model (Zhang et al., 2015). Moreover, irisin elevation has been known to be associated with secretion of BDNF, metabolic alterations in human subjects (Huang L. et al., 2019; Arazi et al., 2021), and also facilitation of memory retrieval in male rats (Ding et al., 2006; Babaei et al., 2019). In contrast, finding no correlation between irisin, BDNF, and memory in metabolic syndrome model of rats, indicates that irisin might not be the only mediator for exercise on learning and memory in pathologic conditions such as metabolic syndrome (Babaei et al., 2017).

Another myokine that is elevated after exercise is myonectin. Myonektin is secreted by skeletal muscles and adipose tissue, and induces uptake and oxidation of glucose and fatty acid in healthy adults (Toloza et al., 2018), in response to exercise (Seldin et al., 2012; Toloza et al., 2018). The extent of muscle mass loss and elevated level of myonectin is associated with the severity of cognitive deficits in the Alzheimer’s disease model of mice (Lin et al., 2019).

Since the direct effects of myokines on memory have not been understood yet, here we consider their indirect effects on memory via insulin sensitivity.

*Improving Insulin Sensitivity*
Metabolic syndrome is a complex condition characterized by insulin resistance, hyperglycemia, dyslipidemia, and obesity (Alonso-Gómez et al., 2019), and stands as a risk factor for cognitive decline and Alzheimer’s disease (Razay et al., 2007; Farooqui et al., 2012; Neergaard et al., 2017; Kong et al., 2018). One of the features of metabolic syndrome, is the excess visceral fats producing inflammatory cytokines which are named adipokines. Adipokines are categorized into two groups of pro and anti-inflammatory. Pro-inflammatory adipokines cause oxidative stress and increase inflammation, which consequently leads to memory impairment (Santilli et al., 2017; Funcke and Scherer, 2019). On the other hand, exercise has been known to reduce pro-inflammatory, but increase anti-inflammatory adipokines and prevents the progression of metabolic syndrome toward type II diabetes (Babaei et al., 2015). In addition, besides alteration in adipokine levels, exercise alleviates cognitive decline in middle-aged men with metabolic syndrome (Damirchi et al., 2014), by epigenetic modulation in cell metabolism (Sjøberg et al., 2017). For instance, the first beneficial effect of exercise or lipolytic action involves the phosphorylation and activation of AMPK in healthy mice (Huang J. et al., 2019; Yoon et al., 2019). AMPK is a fuel-sensing enzyme, which is activated after the increase in the cellular ratio of AMP relative to ATP. Animal studies on healthy mice revealed that AMPK also mediates mitochondrial biogenesis (Jørgensen et al., 2007), angiogenesis (Ouchi et al., 2005), BDNF production, and therefore reverse memory deficits (Kim and Leem, 2016). Moreover, exercise directly activates the autophagy through up-regulating the AMPK-SIRT1 signaling pathway (Huang J. et al., 2019), and remove abnormal proteins responsible for neurodegenerative diseases in mouse (Osellame and Duchen, 2014; Lin et al., 2020). Elevated AMPK exerts insulin sensitivity in healthy rats (Zhang et al., 2011), thus attenuates the progression of neurodegeneration in human and animal models with AD (Watson and Craft, 2004).

The second beneficial effect of exercise, takes place via activating phosphoinositide 3-kinase and translocating the glucose transporter type 4 into the skeletal muscles (Vega et al., 2017), and the third mechanism mediated by adipokines (Beavers et al., 2010). One of the pro-inflammatory adipokines, is TNF-α which leads to insulin resistance, and induces a chronic state of local inflammation in rats with diabetes or metabolic syndrome (Samarghandian et al., 2016; Kouhestani et al., 2018). TNF-α also contributes to cognitive decline in AD patients by elevating oxidative stress and apoptosis (Perry et al., 2007; Janelsins et al., 2008). Both aerobic and exercise training have been demonstrated to be efficient in reducing TNF-α in young adults and suppressing neuroinflammation (Flynn et al., 2003; Forti et al., 2017; Monteiro-Junior et al., 2018).

On the other hand, reduction in anti-inflammatory adipokines, more notably, adiponectin is associated with metabolic syndrome in a rat model (Damirchi et al., 2010), coronary heart disease in adult patients (Lindberg et al., 2017), and cognitive decline in adults with AD (Teixeira et al., 2013). Adiponectin receptor-1 knockdown mice exhibited spatial learning and memory impairment (Kim et al., 2017), however exercise training exerts anti-inflammatory and insulin-sensitizing effects via elevating adiponectin and inhibiting TNFα and IL-6 (Tore et al., 2007; Rizzo et al., 2020). Administration of exogen adiponectin improves learning and memory (Tore et al., 2007), similar to the exercise-induced elevated adiponectin level (Martinez-Huenchullan et al., 2018; Pousti et al., 2018; Diniz et al., 2019; Parastesh et al., 2019) in animal studies.

Considering more than 800 adipokines, it needs more studies to clarify the exact roles of these molecules on memory following exercise training.

*Epigenetic Mechanisms*
Acute and regular exercise training induces both short and long-term epigenetic regulations, creating a “functional genome” that consequently leads to adaptation during the active life span of individuals. For example, memory-boosting effects of exercise training could be partly mediated by DNA methylation (Deibel et al., 2015; Kim and Kaang, 2017), histone acetylation (Barrett and Wood, 2008; Fernandes et al., 2017), as well as up and downregulation of microRNA (Fernandes et al., 2017; Grazioli et al., 2017). Recently, an increase in histone acetylation of the BDNF and the expression of immediate early genes of _c-fos_ and _Arc_, parallel with improvement in plasticity and memory consolidation, storage, and retrieval in senescence-accelerated mice following aerobic exercise have been reported (Maejima et al., 2018, 2021).

In contrast with regular exercise training, an acute exercise had no significant epigenetic change in basal levels of plasma BDNF considering histone acetylation in healthy amateur runners (da Silveira et al., 2017).

Taken altogether, epigenetic modification of exercise is incomplete, and needs to be evaluated considering different protocols timing and new candidate genes.

*MicroRNAs*
MicroRNAs (miRNAs) are small, single-strand non-coding RNAs that play pivotal roles in the post-transcriptional regulation of genes responsible for various physiological functions (Baek et al., 2008). A growing body of evidence in human and animal studies has shown that exercise alters blood levels of several miRNAs (Flowers et al., 2015; Gomes et al., 2015; Xu et al., 2015), and these small molecules modulate communication between the brain and muscles. However, the patterns of miRNAs regulation in response to exercise training is very complicated. Some of them are upregulated in response to acute exercise (miR-146a, miR-222), but some are increased in response to sustained training (miRNA-20), and other remain non-responsive (miR-133a, miR-210, and miR-328) (Baggish et al., 2011). One of the broadly studied miRNA in response to exercise is miR-132. This mi RNA is involved in memory formation and synaptic plasticity (Scott et al., 2012; Hansen et al., 2013; Wang et al., 2013). For instance, Radom-Aizik et al. (2012) reported a rapid elevation in circulating levels of miR-132 in healthy men in response to an acute intermittent exercise, but a reduction in trained human subjects (de Gonzalo-Calvo et al., 2015, 2018). Meanwhile, an animal study carried out by Dong et al. (2018) showed increased miR-132 level in the hippocampus of the mouse model of AD after aerobic exercise, parallel with memory improvement. In contradictory, Smith et al. (2015) and Hernandez-Rapp et al. (2016) reported a reduction in the expression of miR-132 in the transgenic mice model of AD. The inconsistency in literature, might be related to the model and stages of AD development, and also the sensitivity of biochemical assessments used for mi RNA.

In conclusion, exercise training could mitigate the aging-induced memory decline by regulating the hippocampal expression of miR-132 in the AD mice model (Dong et al., 2018), miR-21 in mice with traumatic brain injury (Hu et al., 2015), miR-34a and miR-124 in rats with cognitive impairment (Pan-Vazquez et al., 2015; Kou et al., 2017).

Taken all together, it seems the bioinformatic analysis is required to summarize the panel of various miRNA in response to exercise training, rather than a single molecule.

*Conclusion*
In conclusion, this review provides an affordable and effective method to improve cognitive function in all ages, particularly the elderly who are most vulnerable to neurodegenerative disorders. In spite of the limitations of this review, it is suggested that frequent moderate aerobic activity is associated with improved neurocognitive performance for elderly people. Improved brain circulation, neurotrophic factors, mitochondrial biogenesis, and the release of numerous signaling molecules, including myokines and adipokines in response to regular exercise might be involved in the neuroprotective mechanisms of exercise training. Currently, among various mechanisms, irisin/BDNF signaling seems to stand at the core of exercise facilitatory effects on learning and memory. These molecular signalings anticipate better understanding of mechanisms that will enable the development of pharmaceuticals, particularly for those who are activity limited (coma, spinal cord injury, etc.).

The strengths of this review is describing updated findings on various exercise modalities and memory performance which uncovers molecular and cellular linkages critical in studies of aging and neurodegeneration. However, the limitations of the present review are focusing only on the selected possible mechanisms including some of the important mediators and signaling pathways.

Future studies need to find standard protocol for exercise intensity, and also adequate follow-ups to consider the maintenance of neurocognitive effects of exercise.









Exercise Training Improves Memory Performance in Older Adults: A Narrative Review of Evidence and Possible Mechanisms


As human life expectancy increases, cognitive decline and memory impairment threaten independence and quality of life. Therefore, finding prevention and treatment strategies for memory impairment is an important health concern. Moreover, a better understanding of the mechanisms involved...




www.frontiersin.org


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

*Dave Proctor’s cross-Canada record attempt is 75 per cent done*
*We reached the ultrarunner for a phone interview as he approached Moose Jaw, Sask.








*


Since May 15, Canadian ultrarunner *Dave Proctor* of Okotoks, Alta. has been on a quest: to break *Al Howie’s* cross-Canada speed record of 72 days, 10 hours, set in 1991. Proctor started in Newfoundland on May 15, and has been on the road for 51 days, mostly following the Trans-Canada Highway and passing by the *Terry Fox* memorial in Thunder Bay, Ont., on June 23. He is currently running through Saskatchewan, and expects to reach Victoria on July 21.

This is not Proctor’s first attempt at the record; in 2018, running in the other direction, he was beset by a back injury and forced to quit in Manitoba after 32 days on the road.

Proctor is one of Canada’s most accomplished ultrarunners. He set the 48-hour Canadian record at 6 Days in the Dome in 2018 (358.163 km); in addition, he holds Canadian records over 24 hours (257.093 km) and 72 hours (500.077 km). When he’s not running tremendous distances, he works as a massage therapist in Okotoks, Alta.










Proctor’s current attempt, originally planned for 2020, was delayed by the pandemic, but finally started on a sunny spring morning with a hat-dip in St. John’s. Proctor has consistently run for about 11 hours a day, covering about 105 km every day. He has not taken a single day off, and his pace has never varied by more than a few seconds per kilometre. (His Strava doesn’t even show his meal breaks; he explained that he has his watch set to auto pause.) A fall resulting in a deep gash to his forehead the day he passed through Thunder Bay (where *Terry Fox* had to abandon his run in September 1980, when his cancer returned) does not appear to have slowed him down. 












A lot has changed since Proctor’s 2018 attempt; for one thing, he is no longer courting publicity for the effort or fundraising for rare diseases. “For many reasons, I’ve moved away from that, and this time around I’m simply running for myself,” Proctor says. “I want to take this for myself. I have a personal goal of running across the country in record time. I’m putting myself first, and I’m really proud and happy that I’m doing so—in fact, I’ve never run any better, never felt as strong or as capable.”










Proctor adds that fundraising and publicity require a lot of energy and time (as does documenting everything for the Guinness World Records organization), both on his part and his crew’s, and the decision not to do those things this time around was conscious and deliberate. “You can’t do both, I learned in 2018,” he says. “You can’t have a national awareness and fundraising campaign and break the speed record.”

Proctor’s current level of success and consistency present a contrast with the setbacks he has dealt with over the last few years. At Six Days in the Dome, a 6-day race in Wisconsin in 2019, he went out hard, lapping the other competitors and breaking the 48-hour Canadian record, but logged only 313 miles (504 km) over six days, after claiming to be in pursuit of the Canadian 6-day record (which is 541 miles/871 km in the open category and 434 miles/698 km in Proctor’s age category, M40). In 2021, an injury forced him to abandon an FKT attempt across the width of Alberta (a distance of 537 km, which he hoped to cover in 72 hours) after the first day. 










Proctor attributes this to the slower miles he put in in preparation for the current attempt. “I had a more dialled-back approach, into the low Zone 2, doing a lot more longer runs, and definitely a lot slower–which is really difficult to do for the ego. My ego wanted me to go faster, but my 41-year-old mind vs. my 37-year-old mind told me this was a better choice, and it’s been paying dividends. Outside of physical training, I’ve also got a sports psychologist now, and I’ve been on the phone with her every week as I run across the country. Every runner will tell you that running is largely mental, and I think it’s very true … There is not a lot that I can’t work through physically, after running ultras for as long as I have, but the mental component is something we can all work on.” 











Those interested in “nerding out” on Proctor’s stats may be frustrated by the fact that, until a few weeks ago, the new Strava account he created for this project had his heart rate data toggled off (it is now on). And while “journey runs” of this type are typically documented using sophisticated technology, backed up by witness statements from strangers at regular intervals, Proctor claims ignorance about such matters, leaving it up to his team to document everything.


He was not aware, for example, that his Garmin tracking data shows some gaps between where he stopped and started from day to day (such as on May 16, in Newfoundland, and on June 10, in Deep River, Ont.), despite his practice of marking the spot where he stopped running. His indifference toward the technical documentation of his journey (which he readily admits) is surprising, considering he hopes to claim the title of the fastest person ever to cross Canada on foot. “I’ll share it all at the very end,” he says. “The technical data is all there. If it doesn’t concern me in the moment, I don’t concern myself with it.”










Here are some other questions we asked Proctor when we reached him on Tuesday:

*Dave, you’re running on the paved shoulder of a highway most of the time. How are your feet? How are you caring for them?*

All the highways in eastern Canada are quite heavily sloped, and quite narrow; my feet took a beating early on, mostly for that reason, but since entering Manitoba and Saskatchewan, the shoulders are wide and not as sloped, and it’s a lot more comfortable. I didn’t get a blister until day 43—I’m wearing the Altra Rivera shoe and Swiftwick socks (I have 12 pairs of shoes, and I’m on pair nine)–but I also have a stride that doesn’t put a lot of strain and stress on my feet … That blister has gone away, and I haven’t had a recurrence.

*Can you describe your daily routine?*

Every day is like Groundhog Day—I’m very systematic and disciplined, and I haven’t fallen off the plan in 51 days. I wake up, and my crew treats me like a toddler–they make my oatmeal and coffee, and I use my Theragun and eat my oatmeal. We leave the hotel and drive to where I stopped the day before. I run 20 km, and they drive ahead and wait for me, and I grab new water bottles and new food to put in my vest, reapply sunscreen, and then do another 20 km. Then we stop again and do the same things. For the rest of the day, it’s sessions of 10 km each. At the end of the day, we mark the side of the highway with Google maps and a pinwheel marker, then drive to the hotel we have booked. Again, my crew treats me like a toddler; they’ve already ordered food, and I have a shower and do body care–I massage my legs and do foot and ankle mobility exercises. I put on my Normatech recovery boots, and I’m falling asleep as I eat my dinner. I got to bed before 8 p.m., and I wake up at 4 a.m.

*If you’re following Al Howie’s route, why did you not run through Prince Edward Island?*

Al Howie didn’t need to run through PEI, he just did that for fundraising purposes. Ultimately, the run across Canada is a point-to-point run from St. John’s to Victoria. It’s really difficult to know which route he ran, because he didn’t post it; I tried to find maps of where he ran. If I can avoid running downtown in a city, I’m going to run around that city—sometimes it’s longer, sometimes it’s shorter, but it’s always safer.

*How did you calculate that you could do the run in 66 days?*

I made up my own route using Plotaroute.com. I didn’t even factor in Howie’s 72 days, 10 hours; I started mapping, and said, I know my ultrarunning and what I’m capable of, and I think I can run 105 km every day. That brought it up to 66 days, so that was the number. I’m not very good at the technical side, and I admit I had a couple of beers when I was doing it, because when you’re mapping out the country, you have to numb yourself a little or it scares the living **** out of you. I’ve got people that are redoing the mapping, so it now looks like I’ll be finishing in 67 days, not 66, and I’m averaging 106-107 km a day right now. I think July 21 is the day I arrive in Victoria.









Dave Proctor's cross-Canada record attempt is 75 per cent done - Canadian Running Magazine


We reached the ultrarunner for a phone interview as he approached Moose Jaw, Sask.




runningmagazine.ca


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)




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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

*Q&A: What running can do for your health, according to a sport medicine physician*
*Here are some tips on how often you should run to running that first race*









Research has shown that exercising a few times each week can have immense health benefits. 

Running is often considered one of the most accessible cardio exercises and a great way to stay in shape.

Dr. Brian Goldman, host of CBC podcast _The Dose_, spoke with Dr. Jane Thornton, a sport medicine physician and Canada Research Chair in Injury Prevention and Physical Activity for Health at Western University, about the research on the health benefits of running and what people should keep in mind before lacing up. Here is part of their conversation. 

_The following transcript has been edited for clarity and length._

*Q: Running has been pegged as one of the best ways to work out to stay healthy. But what do we know about what it does for the body? 

A: *Running has this lovely way of improving almost every system we have in our body, and that's the nice thing of it being a weight-bearing activity. And because of that, that means our bones are strengthened, muscles become stronger but it also affects our aerobic capacity. 

And as a result, if we have good heart health, we have good vessel health which means that all of those organs that those vessels feed become healthier as a result. 

So what we find with running in particular, it just seems to be one of those sports that because it uses most muscles in the body to some degree, and it really uses our cardiovascular system, that it is one of the best kind of bang-for-your-buck sport and physical activity that you can do on a daily basis. 

You don't need a lot of time to get a really maximum impact out of it. It's not only wonderful from that physical health aspect, but it also seems to do wonders for mental health, concentration, cognition. 

*Q: I looked at a new study [presented at] the American College of Cardiology's [71st Annual Scientific Session] that suggested that regular exercise can decrease the likelihood of heart complications by 22 per cent in people with anxiety and depression. Of course, not everybody who runs has anxiety or depression, but is running the best cardio exercise to do for good heart health?

A:* It really is among the top. Of course not everyone has access to running for a variety of reasons. It could be a physical inability or a physical disability. It could be financial implications. It could be even just the amount of time that they have to spend on a given task during the day. 

But it is one of those sports that it seems to really help the brain's stress response, kind of keep that stress response in check. 

In that particular study you're referring to, for example, we know, as I mentioned, it's great for cardiovascular health. But then once you put on that added potential for people who have underlying depression or anxiety, they have that heightened stress-related neural activity. And so as a result, running in particular seems to help those individuals.

*Q: Now, running isn't for everyone. I've certainly met people who had to stop running because they developed knee injuries and they eventually had severe arthritis in their knees. But was it the running that did it or were they just programmed to develop arthritis and then have to stop running?

A:* It's the million dollar question. What causes the osteoarthritis? It is really interesting from a perspective of the research that's come out as of late and it is a topic that people go back and forth on a little bit, but it seems to be a bit of a U-shaped curve on running and things like knee osteoarthritis, for example. 

So what I mean by that is that it seems to be higher rates of arthritis in people who are sedentary.









Exercise actually does improve cartilage health and running and loading your knees does actually improve joint health, which seems a bit counterintuitive because I think we've had this line that it's wear and tear that causes arthritis. Basically the more you use your knees, the more your chance of developing arthritis later on. And it just simply isn't the case. 
In many cases, people who have some even mild arthritis or moderate can run and it improves their symptoms of arthritis. 

And then at the other end of the U is people who are in very high-impact activities, what we are understanding is that exercise is good for joints. 

*Q: What does the research say when it comes to how far or how many minutes per week are needed to get all of those health benefits that we've been talking about? 

A: *In family medicine and in sports medicine and internal medicine, there's very little consensus that we have on every single aspect of our fields internationally.

One thing I can say is what we all agree on in public health and family medicine and so on, is that there's a certain number of physical activity minutes per week that will help you achieve your overall health goals. 

And that magic number seems to be between 150 minutes per week to now 300 minutes per week, according to the World Health Organization. 

And so what that means is about half an hour to an hour a day, most days of the week, and that's being physically active enough that you're that brisk walk type of intensity to the more intense, vigorous physical activity. So that is the golden number. 

But, as you say, it's really where people start. Even five minutes per day seems to be beneficial. 

*Q: It's getting into race season once again. So for those who are looking to do their first running race, how should they start? 

A:* It really depends on the baseline of where people are starting. 

If you're trying to run a faster 5K, maybe that only takes six weeks to plan out. Essentially work backwards from that [goal] and try to plan some easy wins, some milestones that might work for you.

So maybe that's breaking the five minute per kilometre or maybe it's trying to run a 10K for the first time because you've been able to run a 5K successfully, but start putting in little benchmarks throughout that to keep you on track between now and that date. 

*Q: What about people who want to work their way up to longer distances but don't necessarily want to run a marathon or even a half marathon? How do they do that? 

A:* It's interesting. Some recent research seems to think that it may be one pace that we're all very efficient at, that we normally choose. And you can make yourself faster, of course, but it usually requires a little bit more of a stimulus. 

So, for example, for people looking to get faster on a five or 10K, running hills once a week seems to help. Those kinds of tempo changes where you're changing the pace or you're changing things like hills seem to help with improving efficiency and improving speed, and that can also help you work up to longer distances as well. 

People generally tend to have one long run a week and there's a lot of variation to that depending on people's level of comfort with running and time availability.

But if you can run one long run a week and then slowly improve that over time, again, kind of setting your goal a certain number of weeks away, that tends to help people over time achieve what that mileage goal may be. 



https://www.cbc.ca/radio/whitecoat/q-a-what-running-can-do-for-your-health-according-to-a-sport-medicine-physician-1.6449756


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)




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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

Amazing accomplishment! Running approx 100km /day blows my mind! I have so many questions like how many pairs of shoes did he go through etc. Dave reported that the most challenging region to run was Northern Ontario. The Canadian Shield with its steep rolling climbs was tough! Can't agree more!

*Alberta ultra-marathoner sets new record after running across Canada in under 68 days*










Dave Proctor was overcome with emotion when he reached a cheering crowd of family and supporters at Mile 0 in Victoria, B.C., on Thursday, 67 and a half days after he set out on a literal cross-country run from St. John's, N.L.

The ultra-marathon runner and massage therapist from Okotoks, Alta. appears to be the new holder of the cross-Canada speed record, smashing the previous time of 72 days and 10 hours set by Al Howie in 1991.

"It feels tiring," Proctor, 41, said with a laugh, when asked how he was feeling after arriving at the finish line in Victoria's Beacon Hill Park.

"I feel like I'm on top of the world," he said. "Blessed to have this opportunity and grateful — I've just seen the most beautiful country in the world."

*Proud parents*
Randy and Nancy Proctor, Dave's parents, said they were overjoyed to see their son accomplish such a lofty goal.

"Isn't that incredible?" said Randy. "I didn't think a human body could do that."

"I just want to give him the biggest hug ever," said Nancy, shortly before Dave arrived. "I'm so proud of him."








Dave Proctor hugs crew leader and girlfriend Lana Ledene after arriving at the finish line in Victoria's Beacon Hill Park

This was the runner's second attempt at beating Howie's record. He set out in the opposite direction in 2018, dipping his cowboy hat in the Pacific Ocean and leaving from Victoria. But after 32 days on the road, a back injury he suffered just before the run got so bad, he was forced to stop.

"He ruptured a disc the day before he started," Nancy Proctor said. "He made it on the other side of Winnipeg and finally had to call it quits because his body started rebelling."

Proctor said the toughest stretch of this year's run was through Ontario. But a conversation with Fred Fox — brother of athlete Terry Fox, who ran the cross-country Marathon of Hope to raise money for cancer research — and support from friends and crew members who helped him along the way, kept him motivated as he struggled across the province in 20 days.
"Terry Fox has taught ... every Canadian just what grit and determination are. And that you can really do anything as long as you just try and give it your all," he said.

Proctor and his team left on May 15, said Lana Ledene, Proctor's crew leader and girlfriend. He ran an average of 105 to 107 kilometres per day, mostly along the Trans Canada Highway.

The final leg on Thursday was 34 kilometres from the Swartz Bay Ferry Terminal to downtown Victoria, on Vancouver Island. 

"Given that it's a speed record attempt you want to stay as close as possible to that last route that Al Howie ran in 1991," said Ledene.

*Long list of accomplishments*
This is just the latest in Proctor's long distance running achievements: he also holds Canadian records for the longest distance run in 24, 48 and 72 hours, and a world record for the longest distance run on a treadmill in 12 hours.

Ledene said Proctor trained for years to realize what was a "lifelong dream," but it also required serious discipline and mental strength.

For 67 days, he woke up at 4 a.m. and ate some oatmeal before heading out on the road. He would run 10 or 20 kilometres at a time and meet his crew to quickly rest and re-fuel.

Ledene says Proctor went through 12 pairs of running shoes and consumed 9,000 calories a day.

In order to keep up his calorie intake, Proctor said he "ate his way from bakery to bakery" as he crossed the country.

"Cinnamon buns and scones, I'm still not sick of it," he said on Thursday. "I am looking forward to eating a salad tomorrow though."



https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/british-columbia/dave-proctor-cross-canada-record-run-1.6528459?fbclid=IwAR3-NJXI1j41tYKonwS0HYQQGwDBzwestwFrRpjgBXPuUphtPjjLTfv4QA0


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

Long run sunday. 20km 50% (flat) rail trail and 50% (rolling hills) road. Interesting views along the way. My mileage tally so far this year is 2116 km


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## SpokaneTim (Jan 2, 2004)

I row. I only run if I’m being chased.


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## Mcfarton (Oct 18, 2021)

I run when I don’t injure myself  I also row on occasion. I have too many hobbies 


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


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## nOOky (May 13, 2008)

I'm still doing PT for my double injuries, but ramping back up the running and reducing the riding a lot for a race in just under 4 weeks. When I couldn't run I was still allowed to bike so I was doing almost 14 hours a week on the bike to keep my fitness up. Sometimes I miss training for XC racing, but riding gravel with hills is also a hoot. I might try a hundred mile gravel race this fall after my running stuff is done.


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

*Are Runners Getting Faster, Faster?*









Sydney McLaughlin shattered another one of her own world records at the world championships

The highlight of the track and field world championships, which wrapped up in Eugene, Ore., on Sunday, was undoubtedly Sydney McLaughlin shattering her own world record, and the rest of the field, in the 400-meter hurdles. It was a record set in dominant fashion, the type of performance fans watch sports for but rarely actually get to see.

World-class runners compete on two different planes simultaneously. They are trying to beat each other, but they are also chasing ghosts and trying to run faster than anyone ever has before.

We are in what some have referred to as a golden age of people running fast, with records across the spectrum being broken, and more people than ever — from elite professionals down to high schoolers — running times that would have previously been unheard-of.

One small example: At last summer’s Tokyo Olympics, Rai Benjamin of the United States ran the 400 hurdles in 46.17 seconds, which was faster than any man had run before that day. Unfortunately for Benjamin, Karsten Warholm of Norway, in the lane next to him, finished 0.23 seconds faster, setting a world record that still stands.

The records are falling largely from a combination of better training and technique as well as, perhaps most important, the accelerating use of high-performance sneakers across disciplines

Data from World Athletics, track and field’s governing body, on official meets show more world records were set last year than in any year since 2008. (It should be noted that very few official meets were held in 2020.) If one more world record is set in 2022, it will be the most world records in a non-Olympic year since 2003.
Yet there are still interesting variations, especially at the top of the sport, where records are falling fastest.









American Track Athletes Showed Up. Did American Fans?


Track and field officials were hoping that having the world championships on U.S. soil would help reignite American interest in the sport. But progress takes time.




www.nytimes.com


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

*Will Running Ruin Your Knees? Here Are the Facts*
Why runners are less likely to get knee arthritis, and how to otherwise keep your knees healthy.


You’ll know you’ve arrived as a runner when you get your first lecture on how you’re going to destroy your knees. This “advice” is usually based on the idea that running increases your risk of developing osteoarthritis in your knees. But the truth is, it doesn’t. 

Below we’ll look at the evidence and explanation for why that’s the case. We’ll also examine how best to lower your risk of incurring the most common running-related knee injuries. Armed with this knowledge, you should be able to be a living refutation to the idea that running will eventually ruin your knees.

*Running and Osteoarthritis in the Knees*
This should be stated as clearly as possible: Numerous studies have shown that runners have lower rates of knee osteoarthritis than sedentary people. For example, in one study that followed runners and non-runners for almost 20 years, X-rays showed signs of arthritis in the knees of 20 percent of the runners, but 32 percent of the non-runners.

A potential counterargument against such results is that, when the studies are started, the long-time runners that take part have above-average structural health—they don’t include people who started running but had to give it up because their bodies broke down.

Research has rebutted that idea as well. One study followed more than 2,000 people for several years to see how many developed arthritic knees. The participants gave detailed information about how often and how severely they had knee pain. They also described their current and former exercise habits. In other words, the participants weren’t selected because of whether they were or weren’t runners.

But it turned out that running status _did_ matter. In frequency of knee pain, symptoms of arthritis, and evidence of arthritis on X-ray, current runners had significantly better scores than non-runners. For example, current runners were 29 percent less likely than non-runners to report frequent knee pain. Even former runners were less likely to report knee pain and show signs of arthritis than non-runners. That last finding is the opposite of what should be the case if running ruined their knees and caused them to give up the sport.

There’s also good evidence that running and knee arthritis isn’t a case of play now, pay later, in terms of running increasing your chances of physical limitations as an older person. In one study, researchers matched members of a running club with healthy non-runners; all the study participants were at least 50 years old at the beginning of the study. The researchers followed up with the participants 21 years later. Not only were more of the runners still alive, but they also reported significantly fewer physical limitations.

Part of the researchers’ conclusion was that “running at middle and older ages is associated with reduced disability in later life.”

*Why Might Runners Have Lower Rates of Knee Osteoarthritis?*
To answer this question, it helps to know current thinking on osteoarthritis.

Arthritis is inflammation in joints, the points in your body where bones come together (knees, hips, wrists, etc.). Osteoarthritis is arthritis characterized by thinning and breakdown of cartilage, the protective tissue at the ends of bones. Osteoarthritis used to be considered a “wear and tear” disease, with body parts seen as analogous to machinery that inevitably breaks down. That model is no longer widely believed by medical experts. Instead, osteoarthritis is considered a disease of the joint, with multiple potential causes.

With this more nuanced understanding of osteoarthritis, running’s potential protection against developing it makes more sense. First, runners tend to have a lower body mass index (BMI) than the average person, and any extra weight increases strain on joints. In one long-term study, runners had lower rates of osteoarthritis and hip replacements than walkers and other more casual exercisers. The researchers cited the runners’ lower BMIs as one of the probable explanations. 

Being overweight is also associated with chronic low-grade inflammation throughout the body; by helping you to stay at a good weight, running makes it less likely that your joints will be subject to this potentially damaging inflammation.

There’s also good evidence that, as with the rest of your body, knee cartilage is subject to the use-it-or-lose-it principle. Rather than breaking down your joints, running helps to keep them lubricated and stimulates your body to build new cartilage. Researchers have also found that running conditions your cartilage to become more resilient as it adapts to the demands of running. Sedentary people who have developed osteoarthritis are advised to exercise regularly for these very reasons.

*What If Your Knees Are Already in Bad Shape?*
It’s one thing to say that running will likely lower your risk of developing knee osteoarthritis. But what if you already have it, or some other chronic knee issue? Is running out of the picture for you?

Research in this area is encouraging. One study followed people who were at least 50 years old and had osteoarthritis in at least one knee. At the end of the eight-year study, runners reported less knee pain, and imaging showed that their arthritis hadn’t progressed.

In a four-month study of middle-aged people, imaging found evidence of damage (not necessarily arthritis) in most of the people’s knees. After half of the study subjects did a four-month marathon training program, MRIs of their knees showed less damage than at the start of the study. That finding meshed with the results of a study that found that, after four months of moderate exercise, knee cartilage health improved in middle-aged people at risk of developing osteoarthritis.

“Listen to your body” is excellent advice for all runners. In the case of runners with preexisting knee pain, that means to let your symptoms guide you in how much running, and what type, is tolerable. Take heart that as you go about this trial-and-error process, there’s good reason to believe running won’t worsen your condition over time.

*How to Lower Your Risk for Common Knee Injuries*
None of this is to suggest that runners are immune to knee injuries. In one study of more than 2,000 runners treated at a sports medicine clinic, knee injuries were three of the five most common types. (The top five were patella femoral syndrome, a.k.a. runner’s knee, iliotibial band syndrome, plantar fasciitis, meniscus tears, and shin splints.)

But it’s important to remember that most running knee injuries, like most running injuries in general, are overuse injuries. They’re caused by more cumulative stress to a given body part than your body is currently equipped to handle. Knee injuries aren’t a given, and they aren’t likely to cause permanent damage unless you ignore them and don’t try to fix the underlying issues that led to the injury.

There’s a growing body of research suggesting that knee injuries are often caused by weakness or instability elsewhere in the body, especially the hips. That’s why strengthening programs for avoiding or overcoming knee injuries often focus on exercises for your quads and glutes. The video below offers six exercises that will help keep your knees—and the rest of your body—in proper working order. Just do the exercises twice a week (or more if you are injury-prone).

If you have a history of knee injuries, you might also benefit from slightly (slightly!) altering your running form.

Backed by research, many sports medicine experts advise increasing your running cadence (the number of steps you take in a minute) by 5 to 10 percent if you can’t seem to shake knee injuries. The reason: A shorter, quicker gait should shift running’s impact forces from your knees to your lower legs. Although there’s no one ideal cadence for all runners, if you can see your feet making first contact with the ground when you run, you’re probably overstriding. Doing so places enormous braking forces on your knees, and is linked to an increased risk of injury.









Here’s Exactly How Running Can Affect Your Knees


You’ll know you’re a runner when you get your first lecture on how you’re destroying your knees.




www.runnersworld.com


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## nOOky (May 13, 2008)

Most people that tell me running is bad for my knees are 50 pounds overweight. They don't realize the amount of stress that extra 50 pounds puts on their knees over time.


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

*Athlete Comes In Last In World Championship Race After His Junk Keeps Falling Out Of His Shorts








*


Talk about dropping the ball...

You ever have one of those days at work where you're just trying to do your best but your junk won't stay in your shorts? No?

Us neither, but Italian runner Alberto Nonino had exactly that kind of day recently, unfortunately.

During the 400-meter event at last week's World Athletics U20 Championship in Cali, Columbia, Nonino suffered from repeated wardrobe malfunctions when practically from the moment he got off the blocks he struggled to keep mini-Nonino safely stowed. 

It resulted in him coming in last in the event. But while it may have lost him the race, it has won him the attention of the internet, so at least there's that.

Nonino started off with a respectable lead against most of his fellow competitors, but was quickly and repeatedly stymied by whatever was going on in his shorts, eventually resorting to just holding it in his hand while he tried to run. 

As Spanish sports journalist David Sanchez de Castro described it while sharing footage of the mishap: 


> _His penis escaped out of the side of his shorts and he had to hold it because it wasn’t allowing him to run properly which is normal when your dongle is swinging from side to side."_


Absolutely true. If we all had a nickle for every time our dongles escaped our shorts while going for a jog, well...

*Of course, Twitter had an absolute field day cutting up about this incident.*


__ https://twitter.com/i/web/status/1555643851611709440


https://www.comicsands.com/runner-loses-race-penis-shorts-2657828798.html?fbclid=IwAR2vj-T6F0yo1PErZjKUVcOUn2rACPoXo-xlKiuoSjOEv7uHl2K_EHTCuu8


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## nOOky (May 13, 2008)

I've never had that problem, but I'm hung like a light switch 😜


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)




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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)




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## 2sharp7 (Aug 29, 2013)

According to Strava stats, I've run 424 miles ytd, which may be more that I accumulated in the previous 30 years combined (I'm 56). Signed up for my first half marathon in Nov with a sub 2:00 goal, as well as being signed up for a local 10k in Oct (I did a few 10k when I was young).


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

2sharp7 said:


> According to Strava stats, I've run 424 miles ytd, which may be more that I accumulated in the previous 30 years combined (I'm 56). Signed up for my first half marathon in Nov with a sub 2:00 goal, as well as being signed up for a local 10k in Oct (I did a few 10k when I was young).


That's amazing! May you finish strong!
How many miles do you average per week?


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## 2sharp7 (Aug 29, 2013)

cyclelicious said:


> That's amazing! May you finish strong!
> How many miles do you average per week?


Thank you! Weekly mileage is consistently inconsistent, as I still try to prioritize my MTB riding, but anywhere from 15-30 per week this year, but I don't think I ran at all in the month of January. When I get 12 weeks out from the half marathon, I will adopt and follow a training plan. Any recommendations?


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

There are a variety of plans out there

Garmin has good plans so does Training peaks Find A Training Plan | TrainingPeaks

If you are following a standard training plan you can use this website it creates the plan for you and you can export it to your calendar (where you can modify it) or print off as PDF.

NRC (nike running club) it’s completely free and includes so many different guided runs depending on your mood, run length or time, and you can play music from other apps in the background while you run. Running Training Plans

When I was able to run 42km/26 miles per week I felt confident that I could finish a marathon. When I could run more ie 50-60km or 30-40 miles/week I knew I could finish strong or do my first ultra. I ran hilly routes because most marathons are fairly flat and I practiced doing sprint work which also enhanced my endurance. I continue to crosstrain (I do crossfit) 

Find a program that works for you! Have fun


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)




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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

*A Relay Race Match Made*








The 12 members of the 70Rocks! relay team before taking off from Mount Hood to Seaside, Ore.


WANTED: Runner. Must be 70 years old or older. Must be able to maintain a decent pace. Must be available to fly to Oregon and run a 200-mile relay race with strangers in less than one week.

Eric Spector was hopeful. His team was down one runner, and he thought maybe, just maybe, they would be able to find someone on a week’s notice. They did have to be fast though, he said: His team — 70Rocks! — was looking to overtake some teams with runners as young as 60, too. 

A few hours after Spector sent the newsletter, and had a handful of emails in his inbox. Jim Duffy responded in a way that made Spector think of Craigslist “missed connections.” Could he be the runner Spector was seeking? “Saw the ad this morning and I could be your team member,” Duffy wrote in an email. He then listed his accomplishments: He ran the 2022 Boston Marathon in 3 hours 55 minutes, ran a half marathon in 1 hour 40 minutes, and a 10-kilometer race in under 45 minutes. Plus, he added, he was a top-ranked runner in the 70-74-year-old age group. 

A member connected him with Spector, then stepped to the side. Moments after the two chatted over the phone, Duffy booked his flight from Virginia to Oregon. Duffy, 70, is the youngest member of the 12-person team. Spector, 75, is the oldest. One serendipitous match later, the 70Rocks! team will be running across Oregon when this newsletter hits your inbox. 





​


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

Today for Labour Day, I did my first in-person race since 2019 when the pandemic shut down races. The Island Lake Classic Race was a smashing success and attracted runners from all across Ontario! It was my first 10km trail race and much to my surprise I finished 3rd! Chris was my rock and biggest fan and kindly snapped a few pics.


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## Mcfarton (Oct 18, 2021)

cyclelicious said:


> Today for Labour Day, I did my first in-person race since 2019 when the pandemic shut down races. The Island Lake Classic Race was a smashing success and attracted runners from all across Ontario! It was my first 10km trail race and much to my surprise I finished 3rd! Chris was my rock and biggest fan and kindly snapped a few pics.
> 
> View attachment 1998785
> 
> ...


That’s awesome! I love the occasional run race. 


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

He wins by a nose.


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

*The best running shoes to buy on a budget*
Whether you’re a casual jogger or a regular racer, Alex Cyr pinpoints what shoe technology you should buy into


In 1960, Abebe Bikila of Ethiopia raced through the streets of Rome to win what is still considered to be one of the most memorable Olympic marathons in history. The slender 28-year-old crossed the finish line in two hours, 15 minutes and 16 seconds, becoming Africa’s first-ever Olympic gold medalist and the new world record holder. Even more impressive: he did it running barefoot.












Abebe Bikila of Ethiopia crossed the finish line in two hours, 15 minutes and 16 seconds, becoming Africa’s first-ever Olympic gold medalist and the new world record holder.THE ASSOCIATED PRESS


Bikila’s stunning, probably blister-inducing feat, was never replicated (not even by him: Bikila wore shoes in the next Olympic marathon in Tokyo in 1964). Barefoot running, save for a few fads, has steadily fallen out of style since the legendary marathoner’s victory, and then all but disappeared five years ago with the advent of new, paradigm-shifting shoe technology.

As the story goes, Bikila had become accustomed to running barefoot because sneakers were too pricey. The majority of today’s runners can relate: The rise in running-shoe quality across the board justifies a hefty price increase and runners must now be careful about how they invest. Generally speaking, top brands now typically sell three tiers of running shoes: superlight racing shoes (supershoes) for roughly $320, a padded version of those racing shoes for training sessions (let’s call them supertrainers) for about $250, and then classic, carbon-less training shoes for approximately $180.


In 2017, Nike came out with the VaporFly 4%, the first commercially available “supershoe”: a running shoe infused with a carbon plate and a thick layer of light midsole foam, woven together to create better energy return and faster finish times. Soon after, Saucony, New Balance and many of Nike’s contemporaries came out with their own versions of supershoes, for races and for training sessions. Several studies since then show they make everybody – including Olympians, weekend warriors and beginners – several minutes faster in road races from 10 km to the marathon. Bikila’s 1960 world record, for instance, would not rank him in the top 500 in the world today.

*Meet the 2022 shoe family*
*1. The supershoe*
The supershoe will make you run your fastest. They could potentially improve your finish time by up to 5 per cent – a huge margin in a marathon. But they tend to lose part of their pop after around 200 km. So, it’s best to buy a pair and save them for races and key workouts only, to preserve their advantage for as long as you can.

_You may like: Nike ZoomX Vaporfly; Saucony Endorphin Pro; New Balance FuelCell RC Elite 2; Brooks Hyperion Elite 2; Altra Vanish Carbon; On Cloudgo Echo; Puma Deviate Nitro Elite_

*2. The traditional trainer*
The dawn of supershoes has made these carbon-less flagship trainers appear a bit ordinary, but running in them does not make you a Luddite. Wearing more economical traditional shoes in training can give you a psychological edge on race day, when you switch into your supershoes and feel that extra bounce. Wearing traditional shoes on race day, however, will put you at a speed disadvantage.

_You may like: Nike Air Zoom Pegasus 39; Saucony Kinvara 13; New Balance 880 V12; Brooks Ghost 14; Altra Provision V6; On Cloudgo; Puma Velocity Nitro 2_

*3. The supertrainer*
Think of these sneakers as a middle ground between the supershoe and the traditional trainer, in both performance and price point. They tend to boast midsole foam and a carbon plate, all wrapped in more padding than the supershoes, which adds weight but makes them keep their bounce for a bit longer. Their carbon plate also makes them a popular upgrade from traditional trainers, as they can help the lower legs and feet to absorb landing forces and to push off the ground. Supertrainers are perfect for long, key training days, because they replicate some of that supershoe spring feel while providing more cushioning, and being easier on the wallet.


_You may like: Nike Air Zoom Tempo; Saucony Endorphin Speed; New Balance FuelCell Rebel V3; Brooks Hyperion Tempo 2; Altra Vanish Tempo; On Cloudflash; Puma Deviate Nitro 2_

*Choosing the right buying strategy for you*
Now that you know more about the main tiers of running shoes and their price, it’s time to build your arsenal of footwear for the season. Here are three standard buying strategies:

*The standard*
Buy shoes of each tier, and alternate them accordingly: easy runs in the traditional trainer, workouts in the supertrainer, races in the supershoe. I recommend this strategy for best results, and to make it through the season without wearing out your trainers.

I stick to this strategy when starting my season. To cut costs, I always ask vendors if they carry last year’s shoe models. Most brands release new versions of their shoes every year, and previous versions, despite feeling similar to their update, often sell at a discount.

_*Approx. cost: $800*_

*Just the staples*
Save money by buying one pair of trainers and one pair of supershoes, while foregoing the supertrainer. Use the traditional shoe for easy runs and most workouts, and break out the supershoe for your top two or three workouts of the build and the races. Here, you save money, but depending on how much you run, your training shoe might become worn out before the end of your build.


_*Approx. cost: $550*_

*On a budget (ideal for beginners and casual joggers)*
Buy a supertrainer, and wear it for all your runs, including your race. This tactic is not a good fit for someone who plans to run more than 1,000 km in their build, but can work well for beginners who are not looking to break the bank.

_*Approx. cost: $200-250*_

Finally, as you walk (or run) to your nearby sports store to purchase your footwear for the fall, never forget the most important part of buying shoes: to find what works for you. Your feet are unique (and probably even different from each other): maybe they roll a bit inward, our outward, when they land. Maybe they’re wide, narrow, with a high arch or low arch. All those characteristics can make you respond to some shoes better than others. So, when you land on something you like and that keeps you fit and healthy – be it a supershoe, supertrainer or traditional trainer – stick with it.









The best running shoes to buy on a budget


Whether you’re a casual jogger or a regular racer, Alex Cyr pinpoints what shoe technology you should buy into




www.theglobeandmail.com


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## jabrabu (Aug 2, 2010)

I was running, but ended up with a fractured fibula from it. Didn't even twist my ankle or anything. After an 8 mile run, which I had done before, I felt a little discomfort in that area. A couple of days later I tried a trail run, and within a mile the pain was excruciating. I guess I'm getting fragile in my old age.


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

Stress fractures are usually indicative of other things (osteoporosis, nutrition, etc). I'd go see your doctor and get checked out. Get your vitamin D levels checked. Low D can affect calcium absorption. I've never experienced a stress fracture but a couple of years ago my bone density was low so my GP suggested I take a vitamin D supplement. My bone density improved. I'm still running (and still vegan  )


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## nOOky (May 13, 2008)

I started running again a few years back mainly because running is good for bone density. Any time you become too one dimensional you risk muscle imbalance and injury. I'll always mix biking and running and lifting weights to avoid that.


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## 1 Speed (Jan 8, 2004)

I do the occasional run or two per week on top of CrossFit..... It's almost always trail running as my body doesn't like running on paved or concrete surfaces.


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

*Ready, Set, Don’t Get Injured*
Marathon season is upon us for the first time since 2019. But, a doctor warns, “Your body right now is not the same body you had two years ago, so you’ve got to pay attention to that.” 


The pattern is a familiar one for sports medicine doctors, orthopedic surgeons and physical therapists. Marathon season — usually a stretch lasting from mid-August to December — means more patients.
This year, of course, is the first time since the fall of 2019 that many runners are returning to start lines around the world, in hopes of feeling something resembling normalcy. They will be joined by a swarm of new runners: those who laced up their shoes in the past year and a half when running outdoors became the easiest, and sometimes safest, option for exercise.
And this year, there will be more major marathons packed into a fall calendar than ever before, with the Berlin Marathon on Sept. 26, the London Marathon on Oct. 3, the Chicago Marathon on Oct. 10, the Boston Marathon on Oct. 11, the Tokyo Marathon on Oct. 17, the Marine Corps Marathon in Washington on Oct. 31, the New York City Marathon on Nov. 7 and the Los Angeles Marathon also on Nov. 7.



The beginners and veterans will, as always, be united by a common goal: getting to the start line injury-free. But this year may make that a bit more difficult, as many runners have not entered an in-person race for more than 18 months.
“Your body right now is not the same body you had two years ago, so you’ve got to pay attention to that,” Dr. Jordan Metzl, a sports medicine physician at the Hospital for Special Surgery in New York, said. “I’ve been talking to patients about closing the gap between where you are and where your mind thinks you are.”
So how do you stay on track for a fall race — be it a 5K fun run or an ultramarathon — and keep yourself uninjured?
Here’s some advice for novice runners and elites alike:

*Acknowledge the past year and a half. *For the vast majority of us, there’s been a drastic shift in activity since March 2020, be it eliminating the walks to and from work or decreasing the intensity of workouts because of pandemic restrictions. Treat this training block accordingly, and fight the impulse to compare your runs with those from previous years.
*Look at your past few months. *Make sure you are not violating what Metzl, a 35-time marathoner and 14-time Ironman triathlon competitor, calls the “Rules of Too” — too much, too quickly. Drastically increasing your mileage or workout intensity can be a surefire recipe for an overuse injury. Most plans should ease you into longer runs and faster workouts.
*Invest your time in strength training.* “Every time you run, it’s a battle of man or woman against the ground,” Metzl says. “And the ground wins every time.” Two of the ways you can show up more prepared for that battle are strength training and cross training, which Metzl has long proselytized to his patients. And you don’t need a gym membership to find a good strength program for runners. Try this 9-minute, equipment-free workout to start.
*Be a good “body listener.”* If you use a training plan, you may be wary of switching anything up for any reason. That can come at the expense of your health. So if you are feeling off, listen to your body and change course. Knowing when to push and when to back off is perhaps one of the hardest things for a runner to do consistently. Fight the urge to do more if your body is telling you to do less. And don’t be afraid to adapt your plan — which should be thought of as a guide — based on what your body is saying you need.
*Know how to identify types of pain. *It can be difficult to determine when running pain is acceptable, even expected, versus when it will lead you down a treacherous road toward injury. It’s something that novices and elites alike struggle to identify. Metzl, who admits he has faced almost every injury his clients have, recommends thinking of your stride to start. A side cramp is one thing. A pain that causes you to shift your mechanics is something else. If you are no longer able to run properly, it’s time to see your doctor.
Learning how to listen to your body and recognize different types of pain is a lifelong process for athletes. So go easy on yourself if you are frustrated when different aches arrive on the road to race day. And when in doubt, check it out.



https://www.nytimes.com/2021/09/12/sports/running-injuries.html?campaign_id=35&emc=edit_ru_20220924&instance_id=72847&nl=running&regi_id=78430320&segment_id=108038&te=1&user_id=c57a238e515a775a5a2886440eb9cf77


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## nOOky (May 13, 2008)

Headed to Orcas Island to run a 50k there Saturday. Looks absolutely great weather-wise for a trail run. Likely to be my last race of the year. I want to start biking more, I tend to bike more over the winter than the summer, go figure.


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

^ finish strong n00ky!


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## 2sharp7 (Aug 29, 2013)

@nOOky WOW, a 50k that is incredible! I've got my first races in YEARS coming up in the next two months. The main one I've been training for, a half marathon Nov 19 with a goal of sub 2:00. My first half ever at 56 (almost 57). Then on a whim I just signed up for a local 10k, which is Oct 8 as I figured that could fit in my half marathon training plan, even though it's on a Saturday and that is typically my rest (from running) day. I've run this twice, 53:10 in 2011 and 1:11:40 in 2012. My goal is to best my 2011 time. And then there is the company 5k (virtual) on Thanksgiving Day. I ran this for the first time last TG, as I was just beginning to think about running again, in a time of 29:09. My goal I think, should be 23-24 min this time.


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

Cassie, a robot that looks disturbingly like a person without an upper body, ran 100 meters in 24.73 seconds at the Whyte Track and Field Center in Corvallis, Oregon yesterday, breaking the Guinness World Record for the fastest 100 meters by a bipedal robot. The robot was designed at Oregon State University College of Engineering and built by Agility Robotics. 

[QUOTE
From Oregon State University:



> The 100-meter record builds on earlier achievements by the robot, including traversing 5 kilometers in 2021 in just over 53 minutes. Cassie, the first bipedal robot to use machine learning to control a running gait on outdoor terrain, completed the 5K on Oregon State's campus untethered and on a single battery charge.
> Cassie was developed under the direction of Oregon State robotics professor Jonathan Hurst with a 16-month, $1 million grant from the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency, or DARPA.
> The robot has knees that bend like an ostrich's and operates with no cameras or external sensors, essentially as if blind.


][/QUOTE]


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)




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## nOOky (May 13, 2008)

2sharp7 said:


> @nOOky WOW, a 50k that is incredible! I've got my first races in YEARS coming up in the next two months. The main one I've been training for, a half marathon Nov 19 with a goal of sub 2:00. My first half ever at 56 (almost 57). Then on a whim I just signed up for a local 10k, which is Oct 8 as I figured that could fit in my half marathon training plan, even though it's on a Saturday and that is typically my rest (from running) day. I've run this twice, 53:10 in 2011 and 1:11:40 in 2012. My goal is to best my 2011 time. And then there is the company 5k (virtual) on Thanksgiving Day. I ran this for the first time last TG, as I was just beginning to think about running again, in a time of 29:09. My goal I think, should be 23-24 min this time.


I had a great time at the race, it took 7:55 and had 8,200 feet of elevation gain. I'm sure Cyclicious knows the type of terrain, typical Pacific NW big hills and beauty. It was a fun little trip also, been a long time since I've been to Seattle area. 

Good luck at your 10k today!


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

^Way to go nOOky! Your time is incredible!


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

Here's another amazing achievement

Gene Dy kes for winning the London Marathon ( 70-74 Category) with an amazing time of 03:19:50











And here are the winners of the 50+ categories... truely remarkable

London Marathon--- Category Winners and Times.

Male:
75 to 79 Victor Petrovic 03:48:53
70 to 74—Gene ***** 03:19:50
65- 69 Dave Walters 02:56:45
60 – 64 Brian Murphy 02:44:16
55- 59 Maiorano, Gianluca 02:36:44
50- 54 Van ongeval, Tom 02:25:38

Female:
70- 74 : Yuko Gordon 03:31:54
65- 69 Joan Benoit 03:20:20
60- 64 Mary Stocum 03:13:26
55- 69 Krishna Stanton 02:48:06
50- 54 Jacquiline Rockliffe 02:54:08


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

*Why Does a Long Run Send Me Running to the Restroom?*
Runner’s gut — which can include cramping, nausea and a sudden urge to “go” — can plague many runners during intense exercise. Here’s why, and how to avoid it.
*Q: Sometimes during a long run I’ll get really bad stomach issues, such as cramping, nausea or a sudden, very urgent need to use the restroom. What causes this, and what can I do to prevent it?*
For many runners, long or intense bouts of exercise can lead to a range of digestive issues, like stomach pain, nausea and diarrhea. While gut issues can happen during many endurance sports, experts say they can be especially problematic for runners and are thought to be caused, in part, by a lack of blood flow to the intestines. Some call it runner’s gut, others refer to it as runner’s belly, runner’s trots or a number of other names.
So what is runner’s gut, exactly? And what can be done to avoid it?

*What causes runner’s gut?*
During a run, when oxygen is supplied to skeletal muscles, “the blood that is supposed to be flowing to the intestines is actually going to your muscles,” said Sam Wu, an exercise scientist at Swinburne University of Technology in Melbourne, Australia.
This shunting of blood to the muscles can negatively affect digestion, as “you need a lot of blood flow to the gut when you are digesting food,” said Dr. Lauren Borowski, a sports medicine physician at NYU Langone Health.
This reduced blood flow, combined with physical jostling, can cause nausea, diarrhea, cramping or the sudden need to defecate, especially if you are running on a full stomach, Dr. Borowski said. Such symptoms can be exacerbated if a person is dehydrated, which reduces the overall volume of blood flowing through the body, or if they have hard-to-digest foods moving through the digestive tract, such as complex carbohydrates, fiber or protein. Without enough blood to aid digestion, the body will pass partially or incompletely digested foods.
“Things that are not digested are just flowing through your intestines,” Dr. Wu said. “That’s why you have to run to the toilet.”
For long, sustained endurance efforts, such as running a marathon, the shunting of blood away from the intestines can damage the thin layer of epithelial cells lining the intestine, which control what enters the bloodstream. During a long run, a sustained lack of blood flow can cause these cells to detach from each other and burst open, spilling their contents into the bloodstream.
The idea of intestinal damage may sound worrying, but “for most people, that damage is transient,” said Kate Edwards, a doctoral student at the University of Tasmania who researches gastrointestinal symptoms in endurance athletes.
However, Dr. Wu noted, it’s likely that this intestinal damage can affect the way nutrients are absorbed during a race, leading to less available energy, or cause general gut discomfort. In a small study published in 2021, researchers from Britain found that runners who collapsed during a marathon tended to have higher blood levels of a marker for intestinal damage than those who did not collapse, suggesting that gut issues may have contributed to their collapse
As Ms. Edwards and her colleagues demonstrated in a separate small study published last year, intestinal damage can be correlated with the intensity of exercise and isn’t specific to running. When compared with runners, cyclists showed similar levels of damage when exercising at similar intensity levels, although they reported fewer overall symptoms of gut discomfort. This damage mostly occurs during high-intensity efforts, Ms. Edwards said, when exercisers were working out at 80 percent of the their bodies’ VO2 max (a measurement of the ability to absorb and use oxygen, loosely tied to effort), compared with when they were working at 60 percent.
“Anything below a moderate intensity, it’s unlikely you are going to get much damage,” Ms. Edwards said.

*How to avoid it*
Thankfully, there are ways to avoid runner’s gut, Dr. Borowski said. When running long distances, such as when training for a marathon, you need to eat enough to fuel your body, but not so much that it causes gut issues, which is tricky. “What to eat and when to eat is really difficult when it comes to marathon training,” she said.
Two to three hours before a run, eat foods that contain simple carbohydrates, like bananas, rather than foods with lots of fiber or complex carbohydrates, such as berries or whole wheat bread.
Training the gut for a long run can be every bit as important as training your legs. Practice what to eat and drink while training, and remember that a race will be more intense than most training runs. Pay special attention to how you feel during training runs done at race pace, rather than just during long, slow runs. On race day, anxiety can also contribute to stomach issues, which is why Dr. Borowski advised not putting any extra strain on your gut and to stick with the usual foods you eat before runs, rather than trying something different. It’s also important to stay hydrated.
One recent study of 46 people concluded that compression socks may help, too. In the study, published in September in the Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research, researchers from Australia looked at the associations between wearing compression socks and intestinal damage during a marathon. Compression socks, which apply pressure to the outermost muscles of the legs, are known to improve circulation.
In the study, those who wore compression socks while running a marathon showed lower levels of a blood marker for intestinal damage than those who did not. Wearing compression socks may not thwart runner’s gut, Dr. Wu said, but it is a relatively simple action that may help minimize the effects.
“If we can improve the blood flow and increase circulation to the deeper parts of the body, then we should be able to promote blood flow back into our digestive system,” said Dr. Wu, who was one of the study authors. “That can help to decrease or reduce the amount of damage that’s done to our gut during high-intensity exercise.”


nytimes.com/2022/10/04/well/move/runners-gut-explained.html?campaign_id=35&emc=edit_ru_20221008&instance_id=74098&nl=running&regi_id=78430320&segment_id=109424&te=1&user_id=c57a238e515a775a5a2886440eb9cf77


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## 2sharp7 (Aug 29, 2013)

nOOky said:


> I had a great time at the race, it took 7:55 and had 8,200 feet of elevation gain. I'm sure Cyclicious knows the type of terrain, typical Pacific NW big hills and beauty. It was a fun little trip also, been a long time since I've been to Seattle area.
> 
> Good luck at your 10k today!


This time wouldn’t take 22nd overall and 2nd in 50-59 category at many races but I’ll take it lol.


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

2sharp7 said:


> This time wouldn’t take 22nd overall and 2nd in 50-59 category at many races but I’ll take it lol.


Congrats! Your time is great... strong finish


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

From History defined... some running facts

#1 *Kenyan Runner Abel Mutai Was Only A Few Meters From The Finish Line, But Got Confused With The Signs And Stopped, Thinking He Had Finished The Race*










A Spanish man, Ivan Fernandez, was right behind him and, realizing what was going on started shouting to the Kenyan to keep running. Mutai did not know Spanish and did not understand. Realizing what was going on, Ivan Fernandez pushed Mutai to victory.

A reporter asked Ivan, "Why did you do this?" Ivan replied

My dream is that one day we can have some sort of community life where we push ourselves and help each other win." The reporter insisted "But why did you let the Kenyan win?" Ivan replied, "I didn't let him win, he was going to win. The race was his."

The reporter insisted and asked again, "But you could have won!" Ivan looked at him and replied: "But what would be the merit of my victory? What would be the honor of this medal? What would my Mother think of it?" 

#5 *In 1912, Jim Thorpe, A Native American, Had His Running Shoes Stolen On The Morning Of His Olympic Track And Field Events.







*

He found this mismatched pair of shoes in the garbage and ran in them to win two Olympic gold medals that day.

He was also the first Native American to win a gold medal for the United States. 

#13 *Bobbi Gibb, First Woman To Run The Boston Marathon In 1966, She Ran Without A Number Because Women Were Not Allowed Into The Race







*

In 1967, she became the first woman to run the Boston Marathon as an officially registered competitor. 
During her run, race manager Jock Semple assaulted Switzer, trying to grab her bib number and thereby remove her from official competition. After knocking down Switzer's trainer and fellow runner Arnie Briggs when he tried to protect her, Semple was shoved to the ground by Switzer's boyfriend, Thomas Miller, who was running with her, and she completed the race.

The AAU banned women from competing in races against men as a result of her run, and it was not until 1972 that the Boston Marathon established an official women's race.











“History Defined”: 50 Important Photos That Shed A New Light On Our Past


A list of fascinating moments from history featured on the History Defined Instagram account!




www.boredpanda.com


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## nOOky (May 13, 2008)

I haven't run in over 12 days because I found out I have Lyme's and it's kicking my ass. Only on my second say of doxy so maybe soon. Cycleliscious post above should help us all remember that we are not very far removed from a time when we still had segregation here in the US, women could not vote, and all sorts of nasty unpleasantness that is still in some people's recollection. I hope the next 20 years we advance more instead of regressing like we have been.


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

*Running doesn’t wreck your knees. It strengthens them.*


Almost all runners, whether veterans or newcomers, poky or fleet, youthful or antique, share one bond. Someone soon will warn us that we are ruining our knees.
“A lot of people think that running is bad” for knees and other joints, said Jean-Francois Esculier, a clinical professor of physical therapy at the University of British Columbia in Kelowna, who studies running.

But accumulating research, including studies from Esculier and others, generally shows the reverse. In these studies, distance running does not wreck most runners’ knees and, instead, fortifies them, leaving joints sturdier and less damaged than if someone had never taken up the sport.

There are exceptions, though, so it is important to understand the nuances of the science, the unique history of your knees and the mechanics of what really happens behind our kneecaps with each stride we take.

Ever since the first marathon ended with the death of its entire field (consisting of the one soldier, Pheidippides), some people have been convinced running must be hard on us, especially our knees. An online survey conducted by Esculier and his colleagues, its results published this year in the Orthopaedic Journal of Sports Medicine, found more than half of the 2,514 respondents believed distance running damages knees.

This stubborn idea persists despite considerable evidence to the contrary. Study after study indicates running rarely causes or exacerbates arthritis in most runners’ knees, even older runners, who are at relatively high risk for arthritis.

*Can running build stronger knees?*
Shifting the public’s perceptions is hard, however, said Alister Hart, an orthopedic surgeon and research professor at University College London, who used to worry about his own knees, especially after he finished his first marathon and limped afterward for days. At that point, he decided, he should delve more deeply into the effects of this consuming activity on runners’ joints.

So, for a 2019 study, he and his orthopedic colleagues recruited 82 middle-aged, first-time racers who had signed up for the 2017 London Marathon. Few had done much, if any, previous running and none felt knee pain. The researchers scanned the runners’ knees before they began a structured, four-month training program and, again, two weeks after most completed the marathon. (Eleven dropped out during training.)

Interestingly, although none of the runners reported knee problems at the start, most of their first scans showed signs of incipient joint injuries, including cartilage tears and bone-marrow lesions, any of which could be early steps toward arthritis.

But this simmering damage had been partially reversed by training and racing. Two weeks after their first marathon, most of the runners’ existing bone marrow lesions had shrunk, as had much of their frayed cartilage.

But some runners showed symptoms of new, if slight, damage in the bones and cartilage right around their kneecaps, a part of the joint that absorbs much of the pounding from running. “We could not ignore this, since it likely happened because of the training and racing,” said Johann Henckel, a study co-author and also an orthopedic surgeon at University College London and the Royal National Orthopaedic Hospital. “So then, we had to ask, does this damage last or get worse?”

If it did, running was harming people’s knees.

The scientist-surgeons helped settle that concern, though, with a follow-up study, published in 2020, during which they scanned the runners’ knees again, six months after their race. Most of them still ran, although with reduced mileage.

The new scans showed their knees were healthier now than in the weeks right after the marathon. Many of the lesions and tears that had begun shrinking during training were smaller and the fresh damage seen around some kneecaps had largely dissipated, with few remaining signs of lesions and tears.

“I feel comfortable at this point saying running should not harm most people’s knees and can, in fact, be beneficial,” Hart said.

How, though, does running revamp knees?

Hart and his colleagues believe running strengthens the major leg muscles supporting the knee, allowing them to take on and offload more of the strains involved in repeatedly striking the ground.

*Plump up the cartilage*
The knee’s cartilage probably also bulks up, thanks to the repeated squishing it receives during running, Esculier said. “For a long time, we thought that cartilage could not adapt” to running or other activities, he said, because it lacks blood supply and nerves. “But in fact, cartilage does adapt,” he said, “by becoming stronger and more tolerant to compression.”

In a 2022 review of past MRI studies he co-wrote, he and his colleagues found evidence that the knee’s cartilage flattens immediately after a run, but then bounces back into shape within a few hours. With long-term recreational running, he said, the cartilage probably thickens, although that possibility still needs to be studied.

“Bottom line is that cartilage does become more robust” with running, Esculier said.

Some runners will develop knee injuries or arthritis, though. So will many non-runners. A helpful online summary of the science of knees and running, created by Esculier and others, points out that people who are overweight, past age 50, with a family history of arthritis or a personal history of knee injuries face a substantially higher risk of knee problems than other people, whether they run.

“If running makes your knees hurt, you don’t have to run,” Hart said. “It’s fine to try something else.” He cross-trains with cycling, he says, and his research group is studying how biking affects joints.

But even confirmed skeptics might find sturdier knees and other solace in running, if they try it. Hart remembers recently presenting his group’s findings about running and knee health to other physicians. One of them, he said, “told me he just didn’t believe it.” But a few weeks later, he saw the man jogging in London’s Regent’s Park.




https://www.washingtonpost.com/wellness/2022/10/19/running-knee-injuries/


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

A heartbreaking and heartwarming story about a brave and strong woman fighting for human rights. The documentary showcases what humans are capable of. Just waching the women persevere through their struggle, gives me strength. I follow amazing ultrarunner Stephanie Case on IG and wish her all the best in her conviction.


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)




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## 2sharp7 (Aug 29, 2013)

cyclelicious said:


> *Running doesn’t wreck your knees. It strengthens them.*
> 
> 
> Almost all runners, whether veterans or newcomers, poky or fleet, youthful or antique, share one bond. Someone soon will warn us that we are ruining our knees.
> ...


I hope this is true, so far I think it is! I think running AND biking are helping my knees. I base this on years of inactivity, or little activity, compared to currently, where I'm running 5 times a week, and riding 2-3 times. I also do full barbell back squats once a week, and I believe this is beneficial to my knees as well. I've recently been thinking about starting a "running streak", first committing to 30 consecutive days, then maybe a year, then maybe the rest of my life?? I know rest is beneficial as well, so if I were to go on a long lasting streak, I would have a one mile minimum, that I'd do slowly on my rest days.


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## jabrabu (Aug 2, 2010)

Back when I was training for and running marathons, my knees hurt a lot of the time. Cycling always helped my knees feel better. When I was doing triathlons, my knees were fine, but when I switched to mostly running they hurt. Maybe it's my own biomechanics or form or whatever.


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

__ https://www.facebook.com/video.php?v=1710297785765889


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

Ha! I was faster than Oprah  and Ethan Hawke when I did my 2021 marathon









30 Of The Fastest Celebrities To Ever Run A Marathon, Ranked


At 26.2 miles it is impossible to not discover a new sense of self-worth, accomplishment, and gratitude for feet that have taken you such distances.




social.digitaltrends.com


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

*Meet Betty Holston Smith, the 79-Year-Old Vegan Competing in 100-Mile Races*













Betty Holston Smith, a running coach from Rockville, Maryland, has logged over 100,000 miles, including 85 marathons, 29 ultramarathons, and countless half-marathons and 10-milers. At age 79, she’s not even close to slowing down.

We talked with Smith about her running career and the role a whole-food, plant-based diet has played in her success.

*You were once an overweight smoker, tipping the scales at 200 pounds, who followed fad diets and even popped diet pills. What made you adopt a plant-based diet and start exercising?

Betty Holston Smith: *I heard a doctor on the radio say that outside of losing weight, there are two things you can do to get healthier: Do weight-bearing exercise at least three days a week, with the goal of doing 30 minutes without stopping and of keeping your heartbeat 20 beats higher than your resting rate. And eat a diet high in fruits, vegetables, whole grains, beans, seeds, and nuts, with only occasional animal protein.

As I was listening, I was cooking for my 4-year-old daughter and husband and announced that I was going to become vegetarian, a diet I followed as a kid. I took baby steps until I’d removed everything from my diet that had a face. … I wrestled with [eliminating] dairy, especially cheese. But when my cholesterol started climbing, I cut dairy.









*Why running?

BS:* I started [with] walking; then I tried running one day and liked it. Over time, I walked less and ran more until I became a runner. Running became such a passion that, for eight years, I ran two miles every day, only missing a few days.

*What prompted you to start competing?

BS:* My younger brother, also a runner, asked me why I hadn’t done a 5K or 10K, since I wouldn’t need to run that much more [than I already was]. So I did, and because I liked the longer races, I started doing more of those. My first marathon was the Marine Corps Marathon in 1988, and I’ve run that marathon, with the exception of two or three, every year. About 10 years ago, I learned how to do ChiRunning, a technique that teaches you how to run without injury, and I became faster and more efficient.

*How has running improved your health?

BS:* Doctors say that I defy medical textbooks because of my lifestyle. My “fitness age” is 32 (calculate yours at World Fitness Level), and my resting heart rate is 30 beats per minute. Along with running, I do two hours of body work daily, including strength, flexibility, balance, and relaxation work, [including] tai chi and meditation.










*What role has your diet played in attaining your level of health?

BS: *Diet is as important as movement. For the past 25 years, I’ve eaten only organic, 100 percent whole foods prepared closest to nature—so nothing processed. I always ask how food is going to function in my body. Is it going to make me healthier? It’s a simple yes-or-no answer. And although it’s hard work, you can’t measure the payoff of being this healthy at almost 80.

*WANT TO START RUNNING? HERE ARE SMITH’S TIPS:*

Check with your doctor before you begin.
Contact your local running club for a referral to a running shoe store where you can get fitted for proper shoes.
Start every session by walking for at least 15 minutes to warm up.
After warming up, begin jogging slowly until your legs feel heavy or you feel tired. Then stop running and cool down by walking for at least five minutes. Do this daily or every other day.
Gradually work up to the point where you can jog slowly for at least 30 minutes without stopping. If you’re happy with this, repeat at least five times a week.
Want to run longer or race? Join a running club or hire a running coach









Meet Betty Holston Smith, the 79-Year-Old Competing in 100-Mile Races


79-year-old Betty Smith has logged over 100,000 miles, 85 marathons, 29 ultramarathons, and countless half-marathons. Learn her diet and running tips here.




www.forksoverknives.com


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## Mcfarton (Oct 18, 2021)

cyclelicious said:


> *Meet Betty Holston Smith, the 79-Year-Old Vegan Competing in 100-Mile Races*
> 
> 
> 
> ...


I have probably ran/raced with her without knowing her incredible story. I live a few miles away from her and belong to the local run club. Her RHR is mind boggling.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

This story needs to be made into a movie!


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

Sharing the Bruce Trail with hikers (groups, families, singles etc) and dogs walking their hoomans. Adventures along the way: a row of 'shrooms, finding an old rusty piece of farm equipment, spotted a circle of witches? fairies? weary walkers? 15km training run of hills, thrills and steps galore!


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## ghood (Dec 26, 2011)

First icebeard of the season yesterday. I have been eyeing Salomon Spikecross shoes for years and finally tried them this year. They work really well.


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## nOOky (May 13, 2008)

Nice. First snow of the year I always try to run in it, and get the fat bike out in it. Then I hope it all melts so I can do it again.


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

ghood said:


> View attachment 2008883
> 
> First icebeard of the season yesterday. I have been eyeing Salomon Spikecross shoes for years and finally tried them this year. They work really well.



Love the pic!!


Beautiful weather today here in Ontario 20c/68f ( wish I took the day off work)
We might get snow flakes this weekend But I'm ready 

Interesting re the Salomon Spikecross shoes. I wear Kahtoolah microspikes and running gaiters with my shoes when it gets snowy and slippery. My trail shoes are Nike Pegasus gortex. The system works well for me (trail and road running)


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## 2sharp7 (Aug 29, 2013)

ghood said:


> View attachment 2008883
> 
> First icebeard of the season yesterday. I have been eyeing Salomon Spikecross shoes for years and finally tried them this year. They work really well.


Great pic! I ran in 20 degree temps this morning but here in central AZ we don't have enough humidity in the air to form an ice beard haha.


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## nOOky (May 13, 2008)

Freezing last night with light swirling snow. The girl dog and I ran 6 miles on the trail, she loved it. We found out she has an incurable type of cancer that will eventually kill her, so she's going to get a lot of love going forward. I feel like I'm about 80% from stupid lyme, so I didn't have the energy to get the fat bike and do a ride after.


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)




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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

A couple of recent runs. Saturday 12km (Road +trail) and Sunday 13km (trail... very hilly)


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## Mcfarton (Oct 18, 2021)

Trail runs are good for the soul


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)




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## 2sharp7 (Aug 29, 2013)

Ran my first half marathon on Sat @ 1:53:38. Here I am with my son and son in law who both beat me to the finish lol.


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

Sub 2 hours! Congrats! Looks like you had great weather too


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)




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## 2sharp7 (Aug 29, 2013)

cyclelicious said:


> Sub 2 hours! Congrats! Looks like you had great weather too


Thanks! It was about 27F at the start but once I got going it was warm enough. Ditched my gloves around mile 4 haha.


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)




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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)




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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)




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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)




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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

Went for a 8km trail run today after crossfit. Creeks and streams are starting to ice over and the ground was solid. Temps were nippy


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## ghood (Dec 26, 2011)

I’m only 49 years old but come here for inspiration. Here’s some pics from runs this week. 








































































In the winter I run downtown during my lunch at work.


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

Conversations on the run


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

Full contact running, a new sport










Kevin Mason on Reels | Kevin Mason · Original audio


9.9M views, 33K likes, 3.4K comments, 1.7K shares, Facebook Reels from Kevin Mason. Kevin Mason · Original audio




www.facebook.com


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

*Scientists stuck grizzly bears on treadmills and confirmed they hate hills as much as we do*









Grizzly bears can run really fast—but not for very long, and they seem to prefer not to. In fact, new research shows that bears are partial to the same kinds of hiking trails and walking speeds as humans, despite not being the most energy efficient for their ursine bodies. 

Scientists trained nine captive grizzly bears to walk and run on a special treadmill (usually used for horses) placed in a custom, sealed enclosure of steel and plastic. The research team had individual bears walk for about 6 minutes each at varying speeds and gradients (i.e. inclines), keeping the animals motivated with a constant stream of apple slices. The sealed enclosure allowed the scientists to then measure how the bears’ oxygen consumption differed as they strolled on the exercise machine, giving a good measure of the animals’ metabolic rates. 


The team found that the most energy efficient walking speed for the bears was about 4.2 kilometers per hour (or about 2.7 mph), despite GPS data from bears in the wild showing that grizzlies usually only travel at about 0.6 meters per second—or a little less than a mile and a half per hour, which is about how fast humans walk. The GPS data also showed that wild grizzlies mostly stuck to trails with gentler gradients, probably to conserve energy. The findings were published in the _Journal of Experimental Biology__._

Researchers also found that bears are pretty bad at maintaining high speeds. The paper states that their metabolic thresholds are low enough that they can be considered “non-athletic.” But given how powerful we all know bears to be, the authors also say that a more accurate label might be to call bears “sprinters” as opposed to “endurance runners.”

“Our study helps explain why bears would want to use the same types of terrain as us, so it shouldn’t be a surprise to see a bear walking on one of ‘our’ trails,” said lead author Anthony Carnahan in a statement. 

Visitors to Yellowstone National Park reported more than 37,000 bear sightings between 1980 and 2005. This science sheds light on why bear sightings on hikes are as common as they are—and if grizzlies share human preferences for gentle hiking trails, those sightings are likely to continue. But hopefully research like this, the paper says, can help support management programs that take those inherent similarities between people and bears into account—for the safety of both species. 









Scientists stuck grizzly bears on treadmills and confirmed they hate hills as much as we do


Scientists put grizzly bears on treadmills to help find out why humans frequently run into them on hiking trails.




www.popsci.com


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)




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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

A couple of trail runs this weekend (10km x2)

Lot's of hills and nice scenery.


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

*When Is It Too Cold to Run Outside?*
As a fan of many endurance sports, I took pause earlier this winter when the entire Norwegian cross-country ski team sat out an early season race due to extreme cold. The Norwegian team was not worried about frostbite, but rather the short- and long-term consequences of extremely cold air on their athletes’ respiratory systems. They said that they wouldn’t be taking such risks so close to the _*Winter Olympics*_.

The International Ski Federation currently follows a very specific set of rules that dictate how cold is too cold for ski racing, saying races must be delayed or canceled if the coldest point of the course is colder than -4 degrees Fahrenheit (F)/-20 degrees Celsius (C).

On that day in Finland, where the race took place, the temperatures were close to, but not below, the legal racing limit. However, current research shows that respiratory system damage can occur at temperatures warmer than -4F (-20 ).

While cold-weather concerns are commonly considered in winter sport circles, running is a year-round sport, and many of us spend significant time exposed to a wide range of temperatures — including extreme cold. Cold temperatures alter the way we dress: we use layers to cover exposed skin and stay warm, and we employ technical materials to keep dry, but these elements only cover our external bases.

What about the inside of our bodies? Should we worry about the cold affecting our lungs? Is there risk in slogging out runs as the temperature drops? How cold is too cold for doing intervals, or exercising outside at all?

In this article, we address these questions and look at the short- and long-term risks of cold exposure to your respiratory system, and what you can do to exercise safely year-round.










*Running in Extremely Cold Temperatures Can Be Very Dangerous*
There is currently a general consensus among the scientific community that exercising in temperatures of 5 F (-15 C) and below requires special considerations in order to protect your respiratory system, including making adjustments to training duration and intensity, and covering your mouth with a buff, AirTrim mask, or other covering in order to protect your lungs (1).

One of the main reasons for this is that essentially all cold air is very dry air (1). For example, air that is -4 F (-20 C) holds 99% less total water content than air that is 32 F (0 C). Inhaling very cold and dry air presents as an acute physiological stressor to the surfaces of your airway (1). This is because your airway is lined with a liquid surface and when you breathe, this liquid naturally evaporates a little. If you breathe cold, dry air hard or a lot, this liquid evaporates faster than your body can cope, causing a cascade of negative effects that we’ll talk about in a little more detail below.

One of the foremost researchers in this area is _*Dr. Michael Kennedy, PhD*_, of the University of Alberta in Edmonton, Canada. In a recent article, Kennedy cautioned, “If it’s a really cold day in February, a high-intensity run or ski could change your life.”

Unlike most of the other structures of our body which get stronger and bigger in response to the stresses of endurance running, such as our hearts or leg muscles, our lungs can respond to significant stress by remodeling in a way that diminishes our lung function over time (2).

*Airway Dysfunction in Athletes: What Is Exercise-Induced Bronchoconstriction?*
Chronic airway dysfunction in athletes is called exercise-induced bronchoconstriction (EIB).

As previously described, when you inspire large volumes of cold, dry air during a workout or competition, this results in water loss from the liquid surface that lines your airways (3). As that liquid surface dries, it changes the concentration of the surface of the airways.

Known as an osmotic shift, this contracts and shrinks the cells that make up the lining of your bronchioles, the smaller tubes that carry air into your alveoli within your lungs. What happens next is the release of a number of inflammatory mediators, like histamine, which ultimately causes the smooth muscle of your airway to constrict. Further, mucus and swelling build up in the airway. All of this together can lead to long-term, permanent airway remodeling.











What’s even scarier about airway inflammation and limitation, is that they appear to be progressive over a lifetime in some endurance athletes, with 90% of the asthmatic population and 20% of the general population developing EIB (4). According to Dr. Michael Kennedy, those numbers are probably understated

The progressive nature of EIB is possibly the biggest issue for athletes, with repeated exposure making things worse over time (5). Alongside this permanent remodeling, airways also become more reactive over time, meaning that you become more sensitive to the same irritants.

Airway remodeling and chronic hyper-reactivity ultimately lead to a ventilatory limitation during performance (5). While short-term consequences include wheezing and post-exercise coughing, long-term consequences to chronic extreme cold exposure have a high probability of causing long-lasting problems which can progress to EIB, ultimately requiring medical intervention.

*What Should Athletes Do When It’s Really Cold Outside?*
Here’s some practical advice and a set of guidelines you can utilize when the temperatures dip.

We know that the temperature limitation of -4 F (-20 C) used by the International Ski Federation is more about protecting athletes from frostbite and hypothermia, and is an important piece of guidance to follow for protecting our body’s external structures. Right now, research suggests that 5 F (-15 C) is a good minimum threshold for protecting the respiratory system from damage caused by competition and intense training in extreme cold, and one that I think we runners should follow.

There seems to be a slight decline in post-hard-exercise ventilatory function testing between 14 F (-10 C) and 5 F (-15 C), but not to the same extreme seen at temperatures below 5 F (-15 C). I would caution athletes who know cold-weather exercise provokes breathing changes for them, or if they develop post-exercise coughing, to exercise with caution at these temperatures.

Once temperatures fall below 5 F (-15 C), move exercise inside if possible. If that’s not possible, take action to protect your airway while running outdoors. First, keep outdoor exercise easy to allow more time for your lungs to warm and humidify the air (2). Basically, if you are running easily enough that you can breathe through your nose, that gives your lungs a little break.

Also, because we know that the main issue for our lungs is that cold air is dry air, we can also use different strategies to limit the drying out of our airway surfaces at these very cold temperatures. The first way to do this is to cover your mouth with a heat and moisture exchange device to pre-warm and humidify the air you are inhaling (3).

This can be as simple as a buff, and there are also masks like the AirTrim mask developed for the cross-country skiing market that are constructed to allow easier breathing and can be fitted with various filters. One other option is to utilize an indoor warmup of 15 to 20 minutes before training outside, which helps dilate the bronchioles and reduces the effects of cold air once you get out the door (2).









*Takeaways for Running in the Extreme Cold*

*Cold air is dry air, and lungs don’t like this*. Air that is at -4 F (-20 C) contains 99% less water content than air that is 32 F (0 C) (1). While breathing in other irritants can also stress the lungs, it’s important to remember that cold air, even when it’s pristine, can acutely impact your short-term and long-term lung health.
*Adjust your training in extreme cold*. Running in negative temperatures doesn’t prove you’re the toughest runner on the block. Adjust your training to run in the warmest part of a cold winter day, cut your run short, cut intensity, move your exercise inside, or don’t run at all. One run or hard session in 5 F (-15 C) or below temperatures isn’t going to make or break your race buildup, but it could permanently remodel your lungs.
*Move your warmup inside*. One way to help your lungs stave off the impact of inhaling cold air on the run is to start your run inside. Spending 15 to 20 minutes warming up not only your body but your lungs indoors before heading outside helps to dilate your lungs and lessen the impact of inhaling cold air.
*Mask up when training in extreme cold outdoors*. Help to warm and humidify the air you are breathing by running with a mask designed for cold-weather use or a buff over your mouth. Buffs are effective, but they have a higher mechanical resistance for breathing than specialty masks and also have a tendency to get wet and freeze over, rendering it difficult to breathe or warm the air effectively.









When Is It Too Cold to Run Outside?


Here's what the science says about running outdoors when it's very cold.



www.irunfar.com


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## Ptor (Jan 29, 2004)

cyclelicious said:


> *When Is It Too Cold to Run Outside?*


The dog and I did 2.5 miles today at -21°F. It’s by far not the first -20°F run, nor even the coldest. But they’ve all been relatively short and at a pretty slow pace. I found out long ago that breathing through my nose (with lots of ”free-hand” clearing) and keeping it at an easy pace and not going far makes it possible without causing me distress. I’d NEVER race in that cold or sub-zero F conditions, but running or even riding at a very easy pace — yeah, I’ve done it quite a bit over the years. Perhaps the frequency at which I do it and living in a very dry climate (7200’ in arid Wyoming) has harden my nasal passages and lungs to the vagaries of cold dry air.


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## nOOky (May 13, 2008)

Good article, maybe I'll reconsider running outside in a blizzard today.


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

nOOky said:


> Good article, maybe I'll reconsider running outside in a blizzard today.


It's blizzardy here today too. I have a 6:30pm crossfit class that I'm aiming for


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## ghood (Dec 26, 2011)

I ran at -4F today and do so every winter. I didn’t know that there was science saying it is bad for lungs. I’ll probably just continue. I don’t feel any difference at all with my breathing. My nose and hands are another thing.


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## 2sharp7 (Aug 29, 2013)

I can't remember if this has been discussed here or not...run streaks. Who here runs every day? I've been thinking about it for a few months now, and I'm "pretty sure" I'm doing it now, not quite 100% committed to it yet but if I do decide to commit to it I'm on day 3 haha. I know rest is important, so on my so called rest days, I'll have a slower / shorter (but 1 mile minimum) run. I am trying to focus on better rest / sleep as well.


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## Ptor (Jan 29, 2004)

2sharp7 said:


> I can't remember if this has been discussed here or not...run streaks. Who here runs every day?


That would be me — just finished off 7 years of running every day and have started on my 8th year on January 1st. I‘m a big proponent of a run streak but haven’t convinced anyone else (that I know of) to do it. For 2022 I ran at least 100 miles every month, 1333.3 miles on the year, averaging 3.65 miles a day, never less then 2 miles for each run and never more than 7 miles, and all miles were done outside (lowest temp was -22 F, just a week or so back). And they were all done at a very slow pace — no races. 99 out of 100 runs are done from my door first thing in the morning with my dog in tow. By doing the run first thing I’ve accomplished something positive with my day no matter what else happens and it was an important tool to stay sane for the last 5 years of a stressful job (now retired). I still consider myself first and foremost a cyclist (~2600 miles in 2022) and am far from a graceful runner. I can’t always find time for a ride but I can find 30 minutes for a run. I never fall very far out of my top riding shape because of the daily run and can quickly top off my fitness because my base is relatively “high”. Finally, if I didn’t have the streak I for sure would be an intermittent runner — that was how things worked for me before I started the streak (run for a few months, not run for a few months, rinse and repeat). I’ve run through a very mild case of COVID and mild injuries and almost never catch a “bug” anymore. I think the streak has been the most important component of my healthcare regimen I’ve adopted in the last 50 years.


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## 2sharp7 (Aug 29, 2013)

Ptor said:


> That would be me — just finished off 7 years of running every day and have started on my 8th year on January 1st. I‘m a big proponent of a run streak but haven’t convinced anyone else (that I know of) to do it. For 2022 I ran at least 100 miles every month, 1333.3 miles on the year, averaging 3.65 miles a day, never less then 2 miles for each run and never more than 7 miles, and all miles were done outside (lowest temp was -22 F, just a week or so back). And they were all done at a very slow pace — no races. 99 out of 100 runs are done from my door first thing in the morning with my dog in tow. By doing the run first thing I’ve accomplished something positive with my day no matter what else happens and it was an important tool to stay sane for the last 5 years of a stressful job (now retired). I still consider myself first and foremost a cyclist (~2600 miles in 2022) and am far from a graceful runner. I can’t always find time for a ride but I can find 30 minutes for a run. I never fall very far out of my top riding shape because of the daily run and can quickly top off my fitness because my base is relatively “high”. Finally, if I didn’t have the streak I for sure would be an intermittent runner — that was how things worked for me before I started the streak (run for a few months, not run for a few months, rinse and repeat). I’ve run through a very mild case of COVID and mild injuries and almost never catch a “bug” anymore. I think the streak has been the most important component of my healthcare regimen I’ve adopted in the last 50 years.


Ptor, great and very encouraging to hear this! I made some good lifestyle changes last year that helped me shed a few lb's and part of that was deciding I wanted to be a runner to supplement MTB and weight lifting. Then I decided late spring I needed to have a goal / race so I'd be training for "something" so I signed up for a Nov half marathon. I was consistent with my running starting in Feb of 2022 but without a specific plan. I knew I wanted to follow a specific training plan to be ready for the half, and so I started one (free Garmin) at 12 weeks out. Most of the year I ran about 3 or 4 times a week and usually about 4 miles but with the training plan I incorporated some longer runs, up to about 12 miles. I ended up signing up for a local 10k on a whim last minute about 6 weeks before the half marathon and did well. 2nd in category, but it's a small town race and there apparently weren't many runners, haha. The half marathon went well also and I ran under my goal of sub 2:00 and finished at 1:53 ish. I tapered off my running after that to about 2x per week, and finished the year with about 850 miles running! That amazes me. I've been thinking about running every day for several months now, and I really think I'm beginning to commit to it. Like you, I consider myself a MTB'er first but a lot of the year I can only hit the trail 1x a week and I do think running will (mostly) keep me fit enough to enjoy whatever ride I choose to do on my weekends. I also really want to love running. I want to look forward to the run, rather than dread it. I think the more I do it, the more this will come.

I have no idea how long my streak will be, but with the long term goal of running every day in mind, my immediate goal is this first week, then a month, then three months, six months, a year....


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

Such an inspiring article
I started running at 57. I continue to run and hope to do so into my 70's 80's and beyond!

*These 90-Year-Old Runners Have Some Advice for You*


The scene at the Ansin Sports Complex in Miramar, Fla., was recognizable, not unlike any high school track and field meet. There was a practice area where athletes jogged and stretched. There were anxious runners milling about the track and tarps providing shade from the hot Florida sun.

But the athletes competing at the National Senior Games track and field event had a few more gray hairs than their teenage counterparts. They also had grandchildren cheering for them in the stands











*Look at his flexibility!!!*


Many of the runners were 75 to 99 years old and didn’t pick up running until they were in their 60s. Some needed a bit of assistance getting their shoes on before making their way to the start line. But all shared in their determination to compete — and to complete each race.


They had plenty of advice for younger runners who hope to follow in their footsteps around a 400-meter oval.

Stay consistent, stay persistent and stay in motion, they said.










*Walter Lancaster*
82 years old, Charleston, S.C.

“I try to be an inspiration,” Walter Lancaster said. “A lot of people, you know, get lazy or something. And I say: ‘Look. You got to keep moving.’ That’s the secret. Just keep moving.”

As a passionate competitor, Lancaster taught himself how to compete in field events — both throwing and jumping — to complement his track races. “If you hate running, you’ll find a lot of reasons not to run,” he said.

Lancaster doesn’t anticipate slowing down any time soon. “I just enjoy it,” he added. “I’ll keep going as long as my joints hold up.”











*Lillian Atchley*
93 years old, Cleveland, Tenn.

Lillian Atchley said she didn’t have much advice for new runners. “I guess you just have to have the love to race, the determination to just do it,” she said.

Atchley, from Cleveland, Tenn., entered every track event available in Miramar: the 50-meter dash, the 100, 400, 800 and 1,500 in the women’s 90-to-95-year-old category.

The 50-meter race was a close one: Patricia Fujii and Yvonne Aasen tied for first place with a time of 20.43 seconds, and Atchley finished third in 20.53 seconds. She placed second in the 100-meter dash with a time of 44.28 seconds, behind Fujii, who won in 43.25.
“The people in the run community are wonderful,” she said.











*Roy Englert*
99 years old, Springfield, Va.
Roy Englert was one of the oldest participants in the National Senior Games. He competed in the 400 meters, finishing in 3:35.47.
Englert credits his success to a simple equation. “My consistent advice is to keep moving, keep moving, keep moving,” he said, “and have a little luck.”










*Yvonne Aasen*
90 years old, Westminster, Md.

Many have called Yvonne Aasen an inspiration. But running is “just what I do,” she said. “I feel good when I run, and when I don’t run it feels like I’m missing something.”

As a member of two running clubs — the Annapolis Striders and the Westminster Road Runners Club — she embraces the opportunity to compete. Like her friendly rival, the 93-year-old Atchley, Aasen entered the 50-meter dash, the 100, 400, 800 and 1,500. In some races, she was one of only two runners. But she didn’t mind. “I feel competitive even when I don’t have competition,” she said.

And for runners looking to keep pace? “Run every day, even if it’s a short distance,” she said. “I can’t run very much now, but when I can’t run anymore I’ll still walk.” 













https://www.nytimes.com/2022/05/22/sports/national-senior-games-runners.html?campaign_id=35&emc=edit_ru_20230107&instance_id=82140&nl=running&regi_id=78430320&segment_id=121894&te=1&user_id=c57a238e515a775a5a2886440eb9cf77


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## nOOky (May 13, 2008)

And I feel old running at only 54 hehe. I just hired my first coach, hoping he'll help me achieve a few goals better than I could manage myself. I have no interest in running streaks, they are too easy to break and I'm a firm believer in rest days. I was terribly sick when I had lyme, and I could not imagine going out for even a mile with a bad headache and 104F fever. I'm training for a 102k in just less than 5 weeks, and a tough 100 miler 11 weeks after that. I ran this morning, and I'm looking forward to taking the fat bike out in a bit to unwind.


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

Marathons are a great metaphor for careers, building businesses and winning in life.
Here are some of my favorite insights from my marathon experiences.

1 You don’t run 42km once, You run one kilometer forty-two times.
Focus on the present. And only on the present.

2 A marathon is a 10km race with a 32km warmup. Start slow, finish strong.
Compounding is back-ended.

3 Every uphill has a downhill.
Things are never as good or as bad they seem.

4 To finish first, you must first finish.
It’s ok to walk if you are tired, but keep moving forward.

5 It never gets easier, you only get faster.
Keep growing and raising your ambition.

6 We only see the runners in front of us, never those behind us.
Appreciate everything you have and how far you have come in life.

7 The hardest part is not finishing, it is believing you can finish.
Self belief is your greatest source of strength.

8 A marathon is not run on the road. It is run in the six inches between your ears.
Mental toughness trumps physical strength.

9 For every minute you gain on the first half, you will give back three in the second half.
Stay patient and stick to your plan.

10 It takes a team to run a marathon alone.

Acknowledge your family, friends, colleagues, teachers and mentors who have made you who you are.


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)




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