begin running

Elastic tendons let ostriches run faster using less calories

beginrunning — Fri, 29 Oct 2010 16:19:22 +0000

Runners are about to suffer from a new condition. Ostrich Envy is likely to spread now a study just published has found why ostriches burn less calories than humans while running. Assistant Professor Jonas Rubenson of the Biomechanics Group in UWA’s School of Sport Science, Exercise and Health used reflective markers on limbs to capture [...]

Marathon running calculator shows how to avoid the wall

beginrunning — Fri, 22 Oct 2010 10:08:58 +0000

Harvard Med Student, Benjamin Rapoport, has proposed a Marathon Formula to predict calories required for your race pace. Having hit the wall himself during the 2005 New York Marathon, Rapoport had some personal motivation for investigating the phenomena and notes recent literature showing “more than 40% of runners hit the wall during a typical marathon“. [...]

Running after a break

beginrunning — Thu, 29 Apr 2010 14:14:13 +0000

Once again I’ve returned to running after a long break. This time regular running was interrupted by a couple of months of feeling run down followed by a trip to hospital with severe chest pain and a suspected pulmonary embolism. Luckily no clot was visible on the scan but some D-Dimer tests were positive and [...]

Running without a watch

beginrunning — Thu, 25 Feb 2010 17:11:08 +0000

A couple of months ago the battery died on my cheap, old stopwatch. I went to use the HRM instead and found that dead too. So I went for an easy run without a watch and it felt really strange, like something was missing. I hadn’t realised how important the watch had become and I [...]

My aerobic fitness is kept in a leaky bucket

beginrunning — Fri, 01 Jan 2010 14:52:19 +0000

My lack of aerobic fitness was a real shock when I went for the first run after a couple of months break due to illness. My progress and been OK up to that point and I’d enjoyed including anaerobic exercise in the form of running intervals and gym work, which seemed to really help my [...]

Midwinter Motivation

beginrunning — Thu, 24 Dec 2009 22:20:22 +0000

While many people start running as a New Years resolution Beth Risdon explains how the Winter Solstice is an ideal time to set running goals for the New Year. She also points out that Northern Hemisphere runners can now look forward to longer daylight hours! I’ve found it really helpful using significant dates as motivators, [...]

Runners itch relief

beginrunning — Fri, 17 Jul 2009 14:12:51 +0000

It may be embarrassing, but how many runners haven’t suffered from a touch of monkey butt now and again? Even if you managed to escape that then you’ve probably endured the irritation of running induced chaffing or sweat rash. As these are quite “personal” afflictions I was a bit surprised to get an email asking [...]

Adidas Supernova Sequence in use

beginrunning — Fri, 03 Apr 2009 07:47:05 +0000

After a couple of months and a few miles I’m happy with a pair of Adidas Supernova Sequence. They’re quite a narrow fit which suit my feet and wore in nicely after a week or two. Although the firmness under the arch was a bit strange at first it seems to have softened up now [...]

Middle age men live longer when they exercise

beginrunning — Fri, 06 Mar 2009 18:11:00 +0000

Now that’s not only good news but a useful motivator on those days I just can’t get going. According to a study from Uppsala University published in the BMJ, men in their 50′s who increase their amount of exercise live up to 2.5 years longer than those that remain sedentary. The purpose of the study [...]

Brooks Infinity 2 or Adidas Supernova Sequence ?

beginrunning — Mon, 02 Mar 2009 18:19:02 +0000

It’s been a while since I bought a pair of running shoes so I was looking forward to seeing what was new for overpronators. As I’ve been happy with a hefty pair of Brooks motion control shoes for some time now, their latest models were top of my list to try out. When I last [...]

Retiring old Brooks shoes

beginrunning — Sat, 14 Feb 2009 11:27:51 +0000

It’s time to retire my old Brooks running shoes. While they’ve been great I’ve probably done too many miles in them and need to find a replacement. They’re a hefty, older style motion control shoe and I was fitted by the someone watching me run down the road to asses my gait! They were fairly [...]

Good stretching and bad stretching before running

beginrunning — Fri, 07 Nov 2008 15:43:31 +0000

Although we often hear that it’s bad to stretch before running or exercising, we don’t hear that dynamic stretching as part of a warm up is a good idea. There’s been some coverage of a recent study from the University of Nevada showing how static stretching before exercise may be bad for performance. Although this [...]

Running to save a cormorant

beginrunning — Tue, 14 Oct 2008 16:30:36 +0000

This was the first easy run after a few days off. As I headed down the hill through the park I noticed a few people staring at a large bird sitting on the ground so I decided to stop and see if it was OK. As we watched from a distance I hoped the bird [...]

Running – even late starters slow aging process

beginrunning — Tue, 12 Aug 2008 15:54:01 +0000

According to the results of a long term study by Stanford, running in middle and older ages helps to counteract some of the effects of aging and help prolong active lifespan. The study, begun in 1984, also addressed concerns that running may harm older people over both the short and long term. It tracked a [...]

224 pound runner trains for Olympic Marathon

beginrunning — Thu, 13 Mar 2008 19:25:17 +0000

This is a truly inspirational story of a British runner weighing 16 stone (224 pounds), who decided to train for the marathon at the Beijing Olympics! Alex Vero originally started running to lose weight and found that he enjoyed it. He describes himself as a “heavy-drinking, asthmatic, smoking slob” in the beginning and embarked on [...]

Runners high driven by endorphins

beginrunning — Thu, 06 Mar 2008 17:59:14 +0000

It appears that the runners high really does exist and is caused by the release of endorphins. A study by researchers from Munich and University of Bonn used a PET scan to show that specific areas of the brain indicated an increase in endorphins in subjects jogging for two hours. Lots of people have reported [...]

Misery of the middle aged runner

beginrunning — Tue, 26 Feb 2008 10:54:29 +0000

I was trying to find an excuse why I shouldn’t go out and run today when I came across this story of the 77 year old runner Greg Prom. What’s so inspiring is that he started running in his mid forties and now, at 77 years of age, has run in over 400 races. There’s [...]

Fun with flat feet, skinny legs and painful patellas

beginrunning — Sat, 23 Feb 2008 11:48:43 +0000

When I started running I was expecting a few aches and pains. I’d been fitted with the best shoes for my feet and embarked on an easy plan that wouldn’t finish me off before really getting started. Everything went well for a while but when I reached the point of doing regular 40 minute runs, [...]

Which type of running shoe for which type of foot

beginrunning — Mon, 18 Feb 2008 17:11:10 +0000

When I decided to begin running I thought I could just go and buy a cheap pair of trainers and get started. Following this route could have ended up being a painful choice, especially with my feet. The correct choice of shoe is not just important for comfort but also to avoid injury. Running shoes [...]

How to calculate running times for various distances

beginrunning — Thu, 17 Jan 2008 17:46:24 +0000

The following method is a rough guide to calculating how much time it will take to run a particular distance. This popular method, known as the 4 second rule, gives an idea of the sort of times a runner might achieve in a race. It is useful for anyone whose been following the easy running [...]