Volunteer at Your Favorite Running Events

By John

November 2, 2012

One of the greatest things about organized races is the availability of opportunities to “give back” by volunteering to work at the event instead of competing. Some events will even allow you to do your volunteer work before the event so you’ve still got the chance to run too!

Tough Mudder is a good example of how to bring the community of runners, their families and friends and volunteers together to share what is becoming a true “Community Event” with the added business that they bring to the local economy where these events are sponsored.

Have a look at this:

As a runner I take my community participation seriously and I hope you do too. Do what you can, leave the trail looking better than the way you found it. Run safe, have fun, PEACE.

Natural Healing and Relief for Runners

By John

July 2, 2011

Running may lead to injury if you’re not careful with your health, your training or even where you place your feet. We all do our best to avoid injury but sometimes it’s inevitable.Many injuries can be prevented with pre-run stretching, being well hydrated and having the proper nutrition to match your body’s needs. Another way to both prevent and heal from injuries, and something I use every day as a 50+ runner, is to use Essential Oils.

Whether you’re suffering from sore muscles or damage to connective tissue some people I know say, “There’s an oil for that!”. In my quest to take as natural and holistic approach as I can to my running and training I got turned on to using oils. It’s really difficult for me to decide to take an ibuprofen let alone anything harder. I suffer from chronic pain as it is and running is my relief to that pain, but when the sport I love causes new pains or exacerbates old ones I feel like I’ve lost my refuge.

We’re all familiar with the wintergreen smell of BenGay. It’s no coincidence that wintergreen has very high pain relieving properties. By using an essential oil of wintergreen we can see the benefits without the other harmful chemicals that are also part of old Ben’s recipe. Lavender oil is great for abrasions and blisters. It heals them without leaving a scar for most people. Oils such as Lemongrass are very good at repairing connective tissue. I personally use it pre-run on both of my knees, each of which have had ACLs with torn miniscus, and find it brings tremendous relief.

The company that I get my stuff from makes a few proprietary blends of mutually beneficial or synergistic oils but I’ve also come up with a few of my own. I could go on for an hour about the great benefits that I’ve realized using essential oils. The fact is that they’re natural substances derived through distilling the plants used. They’re a way to relieve pain without drugs. They’re are also oils that can assist with other medical issues. Pick up a book on natural healing or leave a comment, I’d love to talk to you about it!

The Runner Returns

By John

April 29, 2011

Hey there fellow runners, yes I know it’s been 3 months since my last post, but I’ve just recovered from some injuries and it’s only been in the past week that I’ve been able to get back out on the trails. It’s tough to keep my mind on writing about running when I’m NOT. I’ll try to be more attentive in the future and not leave you guys hanging like this again.

It all started at the beginning of February. I had planned some surgery (hernia) to be done over the winter months, so recovering from that was all part of the “big plan”. It was the complications of surgery and then some other “maladies” that plagued me for about 8 weeks after that.

Once my surgery had sufficiently healed enough that I felt comfortable running a slow and easy pace, I (tentatively) began what I knew would be a road to full recovery. It seems I hadn’t been back out there for a week when I got a sever pull in my left calf. The pull probably came from putting too may miles on my Vibram 5 Finger KSO’s before being fully recovered. It was a painful, yet necessary lesson. It made me realize that perhaps I needed more time to heal my surgery site (which is also on my left side) because I had been favoring that side too much.

This week I’ve managed to do 5k+ on two different days. On Tuesday I ran a 45:18 (ez pace) just to see how I’d feel the next day. On Wednesday I did an elliptical circuit and then rested on Thursday. Today was the warmest day of the week and I managed to do the full 5k. I didn’t count my time because I took to the trails at the half way mark and did about 2 miles in, up and around Nickerson State Park. It was a gorgeous sunny day with a slight breeze that felt as if it were sent straight from heaven, especially for me.

I had planned to run in the “Brewster in Bloom” 5k Run tomorrow, and I still may, let’s see how I feel in the morning. Beyond that I don’t have plans for any organized races until June 25th when we’ll go up to Amesbury, MA for the “WARRIOR DASH”, a 5k beer run with obstacles, horned helmets and plenty of good times to be had by all.

The popularity of these “Beer Runs” is growing and are (IMO) the glitzy, sugar coated entry point for something much darker and insidious, namely Ultra-Marathons and Long Haul Trail Running. I really forgot how much I missed running Cross-Country, like in HS. As it is now, I do most of my running on the bridle path that runs alongside the “Cape Cod Rail Trail”. There are many offshoots and areas that have miles of trail systems in pretty much every town that the Rail Trail passes through.

My posts will be more frequent, I promise. I appreciate you stopping by to read my ramblings. If you’d like to comment on this or any other posts, you’re more than welcome to do so. I love the interaction and hearing what you’re all thinking about. Let me know. Leave your comments.

Runner’s Knee

By John

January 22, 2011

Sometimes it’s inevitable that you’re going to lose more than just a run or two from your training regimen due to sickness or injury. Usually when sickness is involved, you’re able to get back on the tracks and trails sooner than if you unfortunately injure yourself in one way or another.

“Runner’s Knee” or patellofemoral pain syndrome (PFPS) is the most common complaint due to overuse experienced by runners and actually makes up 42% of all overuse injuries.

Our knees are actually smaller underneath the kneecap than on the outside of it. It can be difficult to tie knee pain to any one cause without

Musculo-Skeletal Structure of the Knee

looking at the runner’s history and habits.

Sometimes the kneecap (patella) rides too high and its range of motion can be impeded by the end of your femur. If there is weak cartilage surrounding the knee it can result in a diminished ability of the knee joint to absorb shock. Both high arches and flat feet can also lead to other longer term injuries.

If your thigh muscles (quadriceps) or calf muscles haven’t been prepared properly, they too can lead to knee issues.

“Runner’s Knee” can cause problems in one or both knees. Younger, female recreational runners are most often affected by this painful situation because their hips tend to be wider than men’s.

The symptoms of “Runner’s Knee” tend to be behind and in the center of the kneecap. Your pain may manifest at the back of your knee. The crackling sound or feeling that may be felt as you bend and flex your knee are another indicator of weak knees. It’s not recommended to run hills, steps or very uneven terrain while you’re suffering from knee pain.

5 ways that you can heal a knee suffering from PFPS include:

Be aware of where you’re running. Stick to softer surfaces. Choose the bridal path over the bike path. Choose the beach over the road.
Stretch your calves and hamstrings. Well conditioned muscles help prevent injuries too.
Don’t increase your pace or distance by more than 5% per week until you’re fully healed.
Visit your local “high tech sneaker store” and get yourself evaluated. Learn more about your own stride, gait and whether or not you’re wearing the right shoes.
Use prevention as your ally. Decrease your mileage at the first sign of injury and modify it as your condition improves. Never over do and delay your ability to come back to 100%.

Try to avoid downhills and stairs while you’re injured. As your pain subsides you can assist your own healing by using shorter strides on those stairs and hills. Let your body be your guide. You are your own best advocate and nobody knows your body as well as you do. Trust your intuition, but if you’re not seeing any improvement or if you suffer from an actual trauma, by all means seek the advice of your chosen medical professional.

Runners Take Your Mark

By John

January 11, 2011

Ok, so it’s been almost a week since my last post. Kind of pathetic, I know.

It’s been a week of mixed weather, physical and mental blocks and a good dose of research spurred by self examination.

What am I talking about? Well we’re all entitled to an off week now and then, but what the hell are you supposed to do when it seems that all of your biorhythms are on an all time low at the same time?!?!! Well for me it meant getting back to the basics….like in the dirt basic.

We all run for different reasons. Some for health, fitness, cardio strength and exercise while others run for more eclectic and ethereal reasons like working out issues of the day or on a grander scale, issues of the planet.

Runners in and of themselves are a huge group of individuals with the commonality of a love of running. Once you get past that first criteria the pack becomes seriously (tho not in a bad way) separated with each sub-group of runners comprising another mini-community. Although running is a singular and personal experience and endeavor, we do tend to congregate in training, stores, events and races. We get our “crew” together and we tend to bond and stick together until life circumstances move one away or out of the group.

Well, first and foremost I’m a runner on Cape Cod who is training for his first marathon. I haven’t really run into any organized groups on the Cape and the majority of groups on the various running sites are centered closer to or in Boston. I’m certainly not going to commute to run…doh!

I’d like to set up a forum on this website for runners, both local and elsewhere, to share their thoughts, workouts, training routes, tips, tactics etc…

BUT, only if there’s an interest from you, my readers. So what do you think, should we start a forum here for folks to share?