How to Run

If you are anything like me you aren’t a fan of stretching. Ive grown to enjoy it more over time but still, not what I love spending my time doing. After all, runners want to run! The “sit and reach” exercise was always the crusher of my Presidential Physical Fitness Award dreams, throughout elementary school, despite easily achieving many of the other standards. I’m also certain that most of the injuries I’ve sustained over my career could be traced back to this error of laziness.

It’s Hot

There are studies out there have compared the benefits of heat training to that of altitude training. While altitude training has been found to increase the body’s red blood cell count, training in extreme heat while slightly dehydrated can stimulate the body to produce more plasma. 

One Month, One Mile

So as I am patiently waiting for the start of my race I look down and notice that the soles of my shoes are melting off. The same happened with the backup pair! Granted it is in the upper 90s in South Carolina which usually means that it feels closer to 200 degrees and I have been standing on the track for over an hour. I traveled 4 hours from Bluffton to Greenville to race in the South Carolina Open and Masters Track Classic. I was already working with a handicap after that drive but a one hour delay didn’t help either. Needless to say I did not finish this race season the way I would have liked but it did however start with some promise.

“the race that got away”

I plan to attempt to run the 1 mile race distance a few times this spring and summer.  I’ve been consistent in my training for some time now, and I’ve started to see some results in my level of fitness hinting at good things to come. Even though success in the 1 mile race is historically enjoyed by younger runners, it was always my least impressive personal record. Of the standard middle distance events I raced in high school, the mile was the one for which I was never fully trained or rested. It’s “the race that got away”.