Runner's Form: from head to toe

Head
How you hold your head is key to overall posture, which determines how efficiently you run. Let your gaze guide you. Look ahead naturally, not down at your feet, and scan the horizon. This will straighten your neck and back, and bring them into alignment. Don't allow your chin to jut out.

Shoulders
Shoulders play an important role in keeping your upper body relaxed while you run, which is critical to maintaining efficient running posture. For optimum performance, your shoulders should be low and loose, not high and tight. Your shoulders also need to remain level and shouldn't dip from side to side with each stride.

Arms
Even though running is primarily a lower-body activity, your arms aren't just along for the ride. Your hands control the tension in your upper body, while your arm swing works in conjunction with your leg stride to drive you forward. Keep your hands in an unclenched fist, with your fingers lightly touching your palms. Imagine yourself trying to carry a potato chip in each hand without crushing it. Your arms should swing mostly forward and back, not across your body,between waist and lower-chest level. Your elbows should be bent at about a 90-degree angle. When you feel your fists clenching or your forearms tensing, drop your arms to your sides and shake them out for a few seconds to release the tension.

Legs
Efficient endurance running requires just a slight knee lift, a quick leg turnover, and a short stride. Together, these will facilitate fluid forward movement instead of diverting energy. When running with the proper stride length, your feet should land directly underneath your body. As your foot strikes the ground, your knee should be slightly flexed so that it can bend naturally on impact. If your lower leg extends out in front of your body, your stride is too long.

Feet
To run well, you need to push off the ground with maximum force. With each step, your foot should hit the ground lightly--landing between your heel and midfoot--then quickly roll forward. Keep your ankle flexed as your foot rolls forward to create more force for push-off. As you roll onto your toes, try to spring off the ground. You should feel your calf muscles propelling you forward on each step. Your feet should not slap loudly as they hit the ground. Good running is springy and quiet.

Reference: www.runnersworld.com

Eating & Nutrition for Runners!

"Food is fuel, and as athletes, we need more fuel, and better fuel, as we increase distance or intensity."

--Breakfast is important! Do not skip this meal! For runners this meal is beneficial because it gives you the needed energy to start your day off right!

--Expect to eat every 3-5 hours.

--Food is fuel so as a runner you should be consuming no less than 2000 calories a day.

--What to eat?
1. Fruits
2. Veggies
3. Grains
4. Meat
5. Milk
6. Sweets/Fats

--Listen to your cravings!

Video: Knees!

I found this video so important! Your knees are vital to your body and also a part of your body that is most common to become injured. This video is useful!

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Stretching

Stretching is VITAL! I don't think I can stress that enough! Because I had a an injury that was caused as a result of not stretching properly and enough, I decided to blog about the importance of stretching and how to do it PROPERLY!

**Stretching is one of the most controversial subjects in exercise and sport, but this author feels regular stretching is a must, and when done properly can actually rehabilitate injuries**

Yoga.
Yoga involves static-active stretching. As in static stretching (whose proper technical name is static-passive stretching), you assume and hold positions in which certain muscles are lengthened.

Calf Stretch.
>>Stand in an upright position.
>>Shift your body weight to your left leg.
>>Keeping your right heel on the ground, lift your right foot's toes up and back toward your shin.
>>Hold for a second or two, then release.

How to dress properly when running outside:
Wear softer, looser shirts; avoid a new, unwashed shirt. Switch from cotton to a synthetic sweat-wicking fabric as the base layer next to the skin. If the weather is warm enough, men can go topless. Please remember, however, that you need a sun block as this method risks sunburn. Use a product that is waterproof so that your sweat doesn’t wash it away. Don’t fear not sweating since your other areas without the sun block are enough to allow your needed sweat mechanism.
www.runnersworld.com

The 10 Best Running Routes in the Twin Cities

The Twin Cities offers some of the best running paths in the country. Not only scenic, but they provide the runner with a safe running experience. Nearly all of them have water pumps and fountains along the way. Most of the running paths are paved and wide enough for runners to mix with walkers and others.

1. The River Road

2. The Lakes

3. Minnehaha Parkway

4. Pike Island

5. Summit Avenue

6. Eloise Butler Sanctuary

7. Boom Island

8. Lake Como

9. Baker Park Reserve

10. The Corridor


** Mapquest some of these scenic running routes and get out there ... you will NOT be disappointed!

I find running powerful and enjoyable! Especially during the fall months ... September and October hold some of my favorite runs ever. The beautiful scenery that encloses all around me, calms me. I love running in the fall!

A Simple Running Workout to Ease Any Pain

I know that many times I have woken up to incredibly sore muscles, from my previously hard workout the day before. Instead of taking a day off, here is an example of a light workout to do:
Run Light
Warm up with five minutes of walking, then run a few miles at a slower-than-usual pace, taking more frequent walking breaks. Avoid hills as much as possible because they place added stress on the leg muscles. If you're really sore, go for a 30-minute walk.

Footage from the New York City Marathon

Video: At The Races!

Winter Running

Since Winter is fastly coming, which means COLD weather, I found this article online at www.runnersworld.com and it is simply a plan for running in the winter months. In the article it talks about this 3-point plan over the winter months and how you can come back strong in the spring.

Winter is one of my favorite times to run. I'll take the beauty of fresh tracks on new snow over slogging through heat and humidity any day. But not everyone agrees. During my first year as a college coach, I had a freshman who raced in the NCAA cross-country championships but then disappeared for the next six weeks. When he returned, I asked where the heck he'd been. "Coach," he said, "in high school I always took a few months off after cross-country." My exasperated reply was "This ain't high school!"

Needless to say, this freshman was a nonfactor in the track season. The fact is, maintaining a base over the winter is critical to successful spring running. During a long training hibernation, the principle of reversibility kicks in: When exercise ends, detraining begins. One study showed that with just seven days of not training, blood volume dropped sharply. Loss of blood volume directly affects your ability to perform aerobic work. Within three to six weeks of inactivity, your fitness can drop to pretraining levels.

Today, when I send my guys off for the winter break, I give them a gift: a three-point plan to stay fit and come back fresh in spring. So can you.

Maintain Miles:
The less activity, the quicker the free fall into detraining, so keep a running base of at least three nonconsecutive days a week of no less than 50 percent of your usual mileage. Cross-training can help keep your fitness high, but remember that only running makes you running fit.

Run Fast:
A week or two off from quality runs can be beneficial physically and mentally. But extending a break longer than that can slow you down faster than a frigid north wind. Even if your next race is months away, tempo runs will keep you inoculated against the ravages of lactic acid. And fartlek sessions--my winter speedwork of choice--will help you maintain your VO2 max. These fast-paced runs also recruit fast-twitch muscle fibers that would otherwise remain dormant when only doing easy miles. And doing strides will help keep your sprint mechanics in working order.

Plan Ahead: Put the date of your first spring race on your calendar. Then your second. These forecasted races provide motivation. And they let you know when your training should begin, which might be well before spring.

Definition of Running

Running is defined as the fastest means for an animal to move on foot. It is defined in sporting terms as a gait in which at some point all feet are off the ground at the same time. It can be a form of both aerobic and anaerobic exercise.

I found this definition online and I really liked it.

Running is a complex, coordinated process that involves the entire body. Every human being runs differently, but certain general features of running motion are common.

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Step One: Find the Right Shoe

Before you start running, you need to buy a good pair of running shoes ... but before that you need to know...

How High Is Your Arch?

Flat


Medium


High


What is your motion mechanics?

Underpronator


Normal


Overpronator


A Few Common Mistakes to keep in mind:
1. Buying for looks
2. Not asking for deals
3. Buying shoes that are too small
4. Shopping at the wrong time of day
5. Assuming your shoe size

Know what activity you will be doing:
1. Training
2. Trail Running
3. Speed Workouts
4. Road Racing