The Ugly Side of Running

I recently stumbled across a great blog article that hit home with me about the not-so-glamorous side of running. Thanks to Anne Mileski for this great post in RunAddicts.net

When I first started running, I didn’t realize how my body would respond.  Granted, I became a lot stronger as time went on, but there were also a lot of not so pleasant side effects to my new hobby.  Here are a few of the most common ailments I’ve encountered and how to prevent them.

Blisters

This might be the most common issue new and old runners alike find creeping onto their heels.
Blisters love warm, moist areas where they can creep in underneath friction.  Fast feet definitely fall into that category.
To prevent blisters make sure that your shoes fit! It seems obvious, but if your shoes aren’t properly sized, they won’t sit correctly and will facilitate blister-loving conditions.  Also, the longer distances you run, the more you need moisture wicking socks.  They are made of special material to keep your feet dry, making it harder for blisters to form.
Check out our in-depth article about blisters.

Shin Splints

The #1 culprit for that aching on the front of your legs? Your stride.
Lots of beginners tend to run on the front of their feet rather than on the balls.  Make sure you stay centered on your stride and don’t favor one side of your foot.  Shoes can be another one to blame.  Good running shoes will have enough cushion to take the shock of pounding your feet on the pavement.  Go to a good sporting goods store to check out something with a little extra pad.  While you’re there, have them check out your old kicks to assess your stride.  Kill two birds with one stone by getting shoes that enhance your natural stride tendencies and provide adequate shock absorption.
There has been a lot of discussion about the correct stride and there are a lot of different opinions on the correct way to land your feet while running. We’ll cover this in an upcoming article soon!
We have written a Runner’s Guide to Shin Splints.

Tummy troubles

Remember that rule about not swimming for an hour after you eat?
If you’re experiencing nausea after or while running, you might need to apply that rule to your feet flying as well. However, the more likely suspect is dehydration.  Make sure that you’re drinking lots of water throughout the day.  Besides keeping yourself well hydrated, water is  your number one cleansing source, flushing away toxins and all the bad stuff you might be encountering throughout the day and in your snacks.
But even if you’re getting 8 glasses a day, you need to hydrate during your training runs.  Especially if you’re running for longer than an hour.  Carry a water bottle or try a hydration pack to keep your energy and hydration up.  If running like a camel isn’t your style, plan your runs around drinking fountains or some other sort of water spot.
Read more about hydration.

Sunburn

Unless you’re continuously running at night, always take the proper precautions to protect yourself from the sun. Depending on your location, lather yourself up with SPF, wear a hat and get some good polarized sunglasses.  Trust me, you’ll thank me later.

Chafing, Toenails, and all the Gross Stuff

Long term, long distance runners can vouch for the fact that running isn’t always pretty.  Do yourself a favor and make like a girl scout: be prepared.  Use Vaseline or another type of body gel to cover spots that might rub against your clothing to prevent chaffing.  Keep your toenails short so they don’t hit the front of your shoes when you’re heading down hills–that way they won’t bruise or even fall off (seriously).  As for staying dry, make sure you have moisture wicking clothing and a hat or headband to keep sweat from burning your eyes.
As a fellow runner, I can tell you that I haven’t experienced all of these things in full force.  Some I experienced right off the bat (shin splints) and others I got a little taste of when I started to run longer and further.  You may never get a blister, or you might have to take off a couple of weeks because your knee ended up being more serious of a set back than you imagined.
As long as you are smart, armed with resources and confidence about how to jump any hurdle, your training will be unstoppable.  Maybe even beautiful.

A Little (ok a LOT) of Laughter

I was cleaning out my old Hotmail account and ran across this gem of an email sent by my friend back in 2005. It cracks me up each time I read it and thought I just had to share. 

It's long, but SOOOOO WORTH THE READ!!! 

If this doesn't make you laugh... you must be dead. All hair removal methods have tricked women with their promises of easy, painless removal - The Epilady, scissors, razors, Nair and now...the wax.

My night began as any other normal weeknight. Come home, fix dinner, play with the kids. I then had the thought that would ring painfully in my mind for the next few hours: "Maybe I should pull the waxing kit out of the medicine cabinet." So I headed to the site of my demise: the bathroom. 

It was one of those "cold wax" kits. No melting a clump of hot wax, you just rub the strips together in your hand, they get warm and you peel them apart and press them to your leg (or wherever else) and you pull the hair right off. No muss, no fuss. How hard can it be? I mean, I'm not a genius, but I am mechanically inclined enough to figure this out. (YA THINK!?!) 

So I pull one of the thin strips out. Its two strips facing each other stuck together. Instead of rubbing them together, my genius kicks in so I get out the hair dryer and heat it to 1000 degrees. ("Cold wax," yeah...right!) I lay the strip across my thigh. Hold the skin around it tight and pull. It works! OK, so it wasn't the best feeling, but it wasn't too bad. I can do this! Hair removal no longer eludes me! I am She-rah, fighter of all wayward body hair and maker of smooth skin extraordinaire. 

With my next wax strip I move north. After checking on the kids, I sneak back into the bathroom, for the ultimate hair fighting championship. I drop my panties and place one foot on the toilet. Using the same procedure, I apply the wax strip across the right side of my bikini line, covering the right half of my vfagina and stretching down to the inside of my butt cheek. (Yes, it was a long strip) I inhale deeply and brace myself.........RRRRIIIPPP!!!!

I'm blind!!! Blinded from pain!!!!.... OH MY GOD!!!!!!!!! 

Vision returning, I notice that I've only managed to pull off half the strip. CRAP!!! Another deep breath and RRIIPP!! Everything is swirly and spotted. I think I may pass out...........must stay conscious...Do I hear crashing drums??? Breathe, breathe...OK, back to normal. 

 I want to see my trophy - a wax covered strip, the one that has caused me so much pain, with my hairy pelt sticking to it. I want to revel in the glory that is my triumph over body hair. I hold up the strip! 

There's no hair on it. Where is the hair??? 

WHERE IS THE WAX??? 

Slowly I ease my head down, foot still perched on the toilet. I see the hair. The hair that should be on the strip. I touch. I am touching wax. CRAP! I run my fingers over the most sensitive part of my body, which is now covered in cold wax and matted hair. 

Then I make the next BIG mistake....... remember my foot is still propped up on the toilet? I know I need to do something. So I put my foot down. 

DAMN!!!!!!!! I hear the slamming of a cell door. Vfagina? Sealed shut! Butt?? Sealed shut! 

 I penguin walk around the bathroom trying to figure out what to do and think to myself "Please don't let me get the urge to poop. My head may pop off!" 

What can I do to melt the wax? Hot water!! Hot water melts wax!! I'll run the hottest water I can stand into the bathtub, get in, immerse the wax-covered bits and the wax should melt and I can gently wipe it off, right??? 

*WRONG!!!!!!!* 

I get in the tub - the water is slightly hotter than that used to torture prisoners of war or sterilize surgical equipment - I sit. 

Now, the only thing worse than having your nether regions glued together, is having them glued together and then glued to the bottom of the tub...in scalding hot water. Which, by the way, doesn't melt cold wax. So, now I'm stuck to the bottom of the tub as though I had cement-epoxied myself to the porcelain!! God bless the man who had convinced me a few months ago to have a phone put in the bathroom!!!!! I call my friend, thinking surely she has waxed before and has some secret of how to get me undone. It's a very good conversation starter! 

"So, my butt and who-ha are glue together to the bottom of the tub!" There is a slight pause. She doesn't know any secret tricks for removal but she does try to hide her laughter from me. She wants to know exactly where the wax is located, "Are we talking cheeks or hole or who-ha?" She's laughing out loud by now.....I can hear her. I give her the rundown and she suggests I call the number on the side of the box. 

YEAH!!!!! Right!! I should be the joke of someone else's night. 

While we go through various solutions. I resort to scraping the wax off with a razor . Nothing feels better then to have your girlie goodies covered in hot wax, glued shut, stuck to the tub in super hot water and then dry-shaving the sticky wax off!! 
By now the brain is not working, dignity has taken a major hike and I'm pretty sure I'm going to need Post-Traumatic Stress counseling for this event. 
My friend is still talking with me when I finally see my saving grace....the lotion they give you to remove the excess wax. What do I really have to lose at this point? 

 I rub some on and OH MY GOD!!!!!!! The scream probably woke the kids and scared the dickens out of my friend. It's sooo painful, but I really don't care. "IT WORKS!! It works !!" I get a hearty congratulation from my friend and she hangs up. I successfully remove the remainder of the wax and then notice to my grief and despair.... 

THE HAIR IS STILL THERE.......ALL OF IT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!. 

So I recklessly shave it off. Heck, I'm numb by now. Nothing hurts. I could have amputated my own leg at this point. Next week I'm going to try hair color......

101 Running Tips by Other Runners

Did you just Fartlek?

As a new runner, I came across several names for runs that were as foreign to me as the trying to speak Farsi. Now that I can officially say I am a seasoned Fartlek veteran, I'd like to share a little info on just what those runners are talking about.

Fartlek:  a Swedish-named run that means "speed play". Fartlek is an unstructured run that alternates moderate-to-hard effort intervals with easy intervals throughout. After a warm-up, you play with speed by sprinting for short distances (say from one telephone pole to the next) followed by an easy pace for recovery. Then at the next pole try running faster but not sprint-speed, followed by another easy pace. You can mix the pace and distance. These alternating unrestricted intervals help enhance your muscle fire timing and when integrated regularly into your work can help improve your overall pace and stamina.

Tempo:  Think of an Oreo cookie (yuuuum....cookies.....). Okay, think of a turkey on whole grain sandwich instead. The warm-up and cooldown are your bread, and the meat of the workout is a run at an effort that's at or slightly higher than your anaerobic threshold. It's is NOT comfortable and NOT easy, but NOT impossible. Think of this as one step beyond your comfort zone. You can hear your breathing, but you're not gasping for air. You can't talk easily, but if you can't talk at all you're pushing too hard. This is that level of "I'm pushing myself but not trying to win the race". Think of an effort where you can talk in broken words. Tempo runs increase your lactate threshold so in the long run you'll be able to run faster with easier effort. It's not a fun workout but a necessary one if you're training to PR or complete a longer run event.

Interval:  These are short, intense efforts followed by equal or longer recovery paces. For instance, run hard two minutes, the jog 2-3 minutes, then repeat. These efforts should be harder than tempo runs where you're fighting for air and counting the seconds until you can stop. The recovery jog is a blessed time to recouperate before the next antagonizing interval. Interval training improves your running form, endurance and your running economy.

Now, you're probably left with more questions than answers, like what is anaerobic threshold? What's a PR? We'll get there in time. After all, I've only been running for 8 months at this point and am by no means an expert yet. What I can tell you is that I Fartlek weekly and it definitely played a key part in my overall increase in pace in the autumn months. I personally hate trying to do interval work on the treadmill because of having to hit buttons whenever I want to switch it up, but once the weather warms up I'll be out there sprinting between telephone poles again and working on achieving a sub-30 5k time.